Abdullah Alfalah, Simon Stevenson, Steffen Heinig and Eamonn D’Arcy
This paper aims to improve the housing affordability by measuring the housing affordability in a resource-rich economy and studying the impact of implementing new policies.
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to improve the housing affordability by measuring the housing affordability in a resource-rich economy and studying the impact of implementing new policies.
Design/methodology/approach
This paper seeks to test the impact of new policies introduced to the Kuwaiti housing market to improve affordability. In 2008, the Kuwaiti parliament introduced two policies: a tax on empty lands and, forbidding companies to own or develop residential lands or houses.
Findings
By constructing the housing affordability index and the price-to-income multiplier using observations from 2004 until 2017, it has been found that affordability has worsened over time regardless of the new policies introduced in 2008. Housing in Kuwait became “severely unaffordable” (equivalent to London in the UK, San Diego in USA and Toronto in Canada).
Originality/value
Even with its unique condition, as a rich country, small population and availability of white land and other resources, the affordability worsened over time. Introducing new policies without solving the central issue of housing supply challenges seems not worth it. This paper is the first of its kind on the Kuwait housing market, and it provides a valuable foundation for future research on this market and similar markets in the region.
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Abdullah Alfalah, Eamonn D’Arcy, Steffen Heinig and Simon Stevenson
The purpose of this paper is to examine the sensitivity of the Kuwait housing market to major local and regional geo-political and economic events.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to examine the sensitivity of the Kuwait housing market to major local and regional geo-political and economic events.
Design/methodology/approach
This paper examines the market dynamics of the housing market in Kuwait. Kuwait provides an interesting market to consider owing to its position as a major oil producer, its sensitivity to geo-political events and its unusual demographic characteristics.
Findings
The error-correction model highlights that market is relatively volatile, with evidence of mean-reverting behaviour. Only when the data is smoothed are their more consistent findings with respect to underlying fundamentals. This paper also examines the response of the market to seven regional and local events. Of particular interest is that the one event that results in a consistent significant response is domestic legislation directly concerned with housing. This has a far greater impact than local or regional geo-political events.
Originality/value
Very few papers have considered how economic and political shocks directly impact housing markets using an event study approach. Given its geographic location and also its economic dependence on oil, Kuwait is an interesting market to consider.
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Ayman Abu-Rumman, Ata Al Shraah, Faisal Al-Madi and Tasneem Alfalah
This study aims to explore if the application of the customer results criteria contained within the King Abdullah II Award for Excellence (KAIIAE) is correlated with high levels…
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to explore if the application of the customer results criteria contained within the King Abdullah II Award for Excellence (KAIIAE) is correlated with high levels of patient satisfaction within a large hospital based in Jordan.
Design/methodology/approach
Using a mixed methodology, supported by a pragmatist theoretical approach, a satisfaction survey was conducted with patients accessing the hospital as an in-patient across a range of specialities gathering feedback about different aspects of their care. The results were compared with a self-assessment completed by different speciality teams about the existence and maturity of customer result arrangements implemented as a result of the (KAIIAE).
Findings
The findings confirmed that quality awards such as the KAIIAE can effectively be applied in a health-care setting and can help provide a framework for improving patient experience and satisfaction. A correlation was found with those specialties that self-assessed themselves more highly in terms of these arrangements and the overall levels of patient satisfaction with that specialty, suggesting that the products of working towards the KAIIAE such as establishing effective patient experience monitoring arrangements and improved learning from complaints, has a positive impact on patient satisfaction.
Originality/value
There are limited studies which focus specifically on customer results and on the use of the KAIIAE more generally. This study therefore makes a valuable contribution in adding to the debate about the strategic value of working towards formal quality improvement models and awards in health-care settings.
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Muhammad Shaukat Malik and Durayya Debaj Makhdoom
This paper aims to determine the impact of corporate governance practices on the financial outcomes of Fortune Global 500 Companies, thus covering impact of geographical…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to determine the impact of corporate governance practices on the financial outcomes of Fortune Global 500 Companies, thus covering impact of geographical differences (USA and non-USA) as well.
Design/methodology/approach
The study is a quantitative research based on a positivist paradigm using deductive reasoning and secondary data collection. Data collection has been done from secondary sources (annual reports, Edgar submissions and financial statistics from renowned financial databases such as yahoo.finance, Bloomberg, Ycharts statistics and Morningstar. Data were collected for 8 years (2005-2012).
Findings
The study found a strong positive relationship between corporate governance and firm performance. Smaller board sizes are found to generate better firm performance in Fortune Global 500 Companies. Frequency of board meetings have also been found to have inverse relationship with firm performance. The study supports board independence to improve transparency in board decision-making process. CEO compensation has been found to have inverse relationship with firm performance. The robustness of our results has been measured with the usage of three dependent variables, and we have found same results with varying significance level.
Research limitations/implications
Due to selection of globally broad sample set qualitative aspects of corporate governance could not be covered. Nevertheless, there is a need to go beyond the quantitative techniques (secondary data) of measuring corporate governance mechanisms.
Practical implications
The population set is unique combination of big players and global diversification. Hence, the corporate governance practices of these firms as understood from the results of this study can be bench-marked for emerging corporates of varying global context.
Originality/value
The research is original and unique as it significant and globally diverse population of Fortune Global 500 Companies over a period of 8 years for 11 variables of interest. Results are helpful in bench marking for the rest of market players.
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Norazah Mohd Suki, Abdul Majeed and Norbayah Mohd Suki
This study aims to examine the impact of consumption values on consumers’ purchase of organic food and green environmental concerns. Additionally, the relationships between green…
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to examine the impact of consumption values on consumers’ purchase of organic food and green environmental concerns. Additionally, the relationships between green environmental concerns and consumers’ purchase of organic food are investigated.
Design/methodology/approach
A self-administered questionnaire was distributed to 500 consumers with experience in purchasing organic food in Pakistan. The covariance-based structural equation modeling (CB-SEM) technique was used for the data analysis using the Analysis of Moments Structure software version 23. The CB-SEM technique allows for the simultaneous estimation of all relationships.
Findings
The CB-SEM technique reveals that of the 11 hypotheses tested, social value heavily influences consumers’ green environmental concerns. Moreover, consumers’ purchase of organic food is greatly impacted by conditional value. Consumers purchase organic food for their daily needs because they feel responsible for preserving and protecting the environment against global warming and its associated threats. This green purchasing behavior actually leads to better social approval, through its ability to impress others.
Practical implications
Organizations and business owners should address green environmental concerns by seriously applying organic methods in the process of production, processing, packaging and selling of organic food products. Such organic practices would enable organizations and business owners to produce organic food products that are free from chemicals.
Originality/value
The inclusion of consumption values strengthens the explanatory power of the proposed model in the context of Pakistani consumers’ purchase of organic food and green environmental concerns simultaneously. This study therefore adds new and substantial insights into the marketing theory.
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Hoang Nguyen Ngoc, Eslam Mohammed Abdelkader, Abobakr Al-Sakkaf, Ghasan Alfalah and Tarek Zayed
The construction industry is facing an enormous number of challenges due to continuous advancements in construction technologies and techniques. Hence, construction management…
Abstract
Purpose
The construction industry is facing an enormous number of challenges due to continuous advancements in construction technologies and techniques. Hence, construction management theories have to confront critical newly issues concerning market globalization and construction innovations. The key factor to address these challenges is to ameliorate the competitive abilities of the competing construction firms. In this context, measuring competitiveness of construction firms is an efficacious approach to amplify their competitive growth and profitability. To this end, the purpose of this research paper is to design a three-tier multi-criteria decision making model for competitiveness assessment and benchmarking of construction companies, meanwhile tackling a wide range of essential factors and attributes that covers broad aspects of the present competitive market.
Design/methodology/approach
In the first tier, four new pillars (4P) of competitiveness assessment are introduced for construction firms, namely, organization performance, project performance, environment and client and innovation and development. These pillars are able to aid in construction firms’ management on both long and short term basis. Hence, 21 key competitive factors and eighty key competitive criteria are identified, incorporated and analyzed in this research study. The second tier encapsulates carrying out a questionnaire survey in the Canadian and Vietnamese market to garner two main sets of information. The first set of information incorporates responses of the pairwise comparisons between competitiveness factors and criteria. The second set involves gathering utility scores pertinent to each competitiveness criteria. The developed model then leverages the use of analytical hierarchy process to scrutinize the relative importance priorities of competitiveness factors and criteria. The third tier of the developed model encompasses the use of multi-attribute utility theory to compute competitiveness scores for construction companies through blending criteria’ relative importance weights alongside their respective utility functions. In addition, the third tier comprises conducting a sensitivity analysis to derive the most important criteria influencing the overall competitiveness of construction companies. The developed model is tested and validated using three case studies; one construction company from Canada and two construction companies from Vietnam.
Findings
Results demonstrated that the developed model has a potential to render a synthesized and methodical performance evaluation for the competitive ability of a given construction company. Furthermore, it was found that Vietnamese companies are more considerate towards pillars pertaining to environment and client while Canadian companies are more attentive towards innovation and development. The outcome of sensitivity analysis revealed that effectiveness of cost management highly affects the competitive ability of Vietnamese companies while effectiveness of cost management exhibits the most significant influence on the competitive of Canadian companies.
Practical implications
The developed model can benefit construction companies to understand their competitiveness in their market and diagnose their strengths and weaknesses. It is also can be useful in efficient utilization of their limited resources and development of sustainable and long-term strategic plans strategic plans, which consequently leads to maintaining better position in their dynamic business markets.
Originality/value
Literature review manifests that reported competitiveness assessment models and practices are not able to address present challenges, technologies and developments in construction market.
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Salman Ahmed Shaikh, Mohd Adib Ismail, Abdul Ghafar Ismail, Shahida Shahimi and Muhammad Hakimi Mohd. Shafiai
This study aims to comparatively analyze the performance of Islamic and conventional income and equity funds using various performance evaluation methods.
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to comparatively analyze the performance of Islamic and conventional income and equity funds using various performance evaluation methods.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors comparatively analyze the performance of mutual funds using measures, such as tracking error, Sharpe ratio (1966), Treynor ratio (1965), M-square measure by Modigliani and Modigliani (1997) and information ratio. The authors also use market timing and selection measures, such as Treynor and Mazuy model (1966), Henriksson and Merton (1981) model and Fama’s decomposition approach (1973).
Findings
The authors find that Islamic equity funds are as much competitive as conventional equity funds. All Islamic equity funds have positive Sharpe ratio, Treynor ratio and net selectivity measure. Islamic equity funds are slightly less risky in general. Islamic equity and income funds generally have positive Jensen's Alpha and a positive market timing ability. However, the authors find that Islamic income funds generally underperform the market due to less Shari’ah-compliant investment class assets in the market.
Practical implications
It will help the industry players to assess their strategic positioning with regard to the commercial competitiveness of Islamic investments.
Originality/value
The authors take considerably large sample of 60 funds in Pakistan as compared to previous studies and also cover recent period (2006-16). For income funds, the authors construct an original benchmark index based on price and dividend data and use that in performance assessment.
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Ahmed Hassanein and Hana Tharwat
This chapter explores the concept of corporate social responsibility (CSR) from an Islamic Shari'ah-compliant perspective. It provides a comprehensive literature review on CSR…
Abstract
This chapter explores the concept of corporate social responsibility (CSR) from an Islamic Shari'ah-compliant perspective. It provides a comprehensive literature review on CSR with an explicit focus on the Islamic perspective of CSR, Islamic models of CSR, CSR practices in conventional and Islamic banks, and the consequences of CSR to Islamic banks. This chapter's main contribution lies in considering the current CSR literature from a Shari'ah perspective. Likewise, it identifies gaps in the current literature and suggests potential areas for future research. This chapter attempts to improve the understanding of how Islamic banks integrate social responsibility into their operations. The insights from this chapter are helpful to practitioners and academic scholars in Islamic finance, accounting, and CSR. This chapter emphasizes the importance of incorporating Islamic values and principles into CSR practices and encourages further research and investigation in this area.
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Naji Mansour Nomran and Razali Haron
This study aims to empirically examine whether there is any optimal Shari’ah supervisory board’s (SSB) size that maximizes performance of Islamic banks (IBs). Apparently, IBs…
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to empirically examine whether there is any optimal Shari’ah supervisory board’s (SSB) size that maximizes performance of Islamic banks (IBs). Apparently, IBs adopt different SSB size based on their different regulations across jurisdictions, and then it is still questionable whether there is any optimal SSB size that can fit all and be recommended to IBs.
Design/methodology/approach
The paper investigates the impact of different SSB size on IBs performance using a sample of 113 banks over 23 countries for the period 2007-2015 based on the generalized method of moments estimator.
Findings
The empirical evidence documented in this study strongly highlights the importance of small SSB size in enhancing the performance of IBs as compared to the large board size. The findings confirm that the SSB size of IBs should neither be lesser than three nor greater than six. More specifically, it is found that the optimal SSB size seems to be five.
Research limitations/implications
First, the study does not investigate whether the findings are constant during crisis and non-crisis periods. Second, the optimal SSB size in IBs should be confirmed from the risk-taking perspective besides performance.
Practical implications
For both the IBs and the regulators, they should give due importance to small SSB size as an important element for improving the IBs performance. It is strongly recommended for the IBs to have a SSB size between three and six, and five is the most recommended. The Accounting and Auditing Organization for Islamic Financial Institutions also should revise their existing standards that only suggest the minimum SSB size of three to include the maximum size of six and the optimal size of five.
Originality/value
Despite the SSB size plays an important role in affecting the performance of IBs, it seems there are no empirical studies attempting to address whether there is any optimal SSB size that can enhance the IBs performance so far.
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Lutfullah Saqib, Muhammad Aitisam Farooq and Aliya Mueen Zafar
This paper aims to analyze the impact of Sharī‘ah compliance perception on customer satisfaction in Islamic banking sector of Pakistan.
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to analyze the impact of Sharī‘ah compliance perception on customer satisfaction in Islamic banking sector of Pakistan.
Design/methodology/approach
Primary data were collected from 242 account holders of Islamic banks and Islamic banking branches of conventional commercial banks and analyzed by correlation and regression through self-administered questionnaires based on SERVQUAL model.
Findings
Significant moderating effects of Sharī‘ah compliance perception on the relation between service quality and customer satisfaction have been identified.
Research limitations/implications
As a cross-sectional study with convenience sampling restricts generalizability and because financial benefits offered by banks were not included as a variable, the scope of this study is limited to service quality only. Future research may focus on the moderating effect of Sharī‘ah compliance perception through longitudinal study with larger sample size in a multi-cultural environment.
Practical implications
Results of this paper recommend Islamic banks to focus on their core strength “Sharī‘ah compliance” while developing their product/service and building marketing strategies. Moreover, assurance of high-quality services will sustain such strategies against competition with conventional banks.
Social implications
Islamic banks must primarily develop their brand through extensive communication and public awareness programs regarding Sharī‘ah compliance standards in terms of products/services, policy/procedures, code of conduct and Sharī‘ah board.
Originality/value
This research examines moderating role of Sharī‘ah compliance perception between service quality and customer satisfaction in Islamic banking sector of an Islamic Republic with dual banking system. This interactive effect of Sharī‘ah compliance perception has not been found as an overriding theme in any of the main stream journals/articles. Therefore, this study fills this gap.