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Article
Publication date: 1 March 1990

Barbara G. Leonard

Five years ago, the administration of Clark Libary, San Jose State University in California, contracted with a programmer to design a personal computer system to provide…

62

Abstract

Five years ago, the administration of Clark Libary, San Jose State University in California, contracted with a programmer to design a personal computer system to provide management information about the student payroll. Before this, information on budgeting for student personnel, hours worked, and costs were kept manually, requiring an inordinate amount of clerical time. Because DBASEII was the leading program for database management at that time, it was the program of choice. Since then, the resulting system has been upgraded to DBASEIII + and is being revised using DBASEIV.

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The Bottom Line, vol. 3 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0888-045X

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Article
Publication date: 23 October 2007

Barbara Leonard and Jerry Biberman

The purpose of this paper is to describe and compare various theoretical models of decision making such as classical rational decision making, left‐brain/right‐brain dominance…

1289

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to describe and compare various theoretical models of decision making such as classical rational decision making, left‐brain/right‐brain dominance decision making, utilization of tacit knowledge in decision making, utilization of intuition in decision making, utilization of emotional intelligence in decision making, a systems approach to decision making, and spirit‐based decision making.

Design/methodology/approach

Studies on different modalities of decision making are reviewed, discussed, and compared.

Findings

The traditional assumption of the optimality of rational decision making may be improved by including other dimensions of decision making. It is posited that organizations that encourage and support multi‐dimensional decision making, which utilizes the rational, intuitional, emotional and spiritual aspects of the whole person, develop better management–employee relations, more creative problem solving, and better market place performance.

Research limitations/implications

Development and testing of instruments that measure multi‐dimensional decision making would extend the scope of this study.

Originality/value

This paper compares different styles of decision making to assist the manager in making optimal decisions. By expanding on the traditional rational decision making model to include other dimensions of decision‐making, managers are able to capture additional information in framing their decisions.

Details

Managerial Finance, vol. 33 no. 12
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0307-4358

Keywords

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Article
Publication date: 1 August 1996

Barbara Brockie Leonard and Chandrasekhar Mishra

Long‐term performance contracts are awarded to top management in order to provide incentives to maximize shareholder value. We test the incentive hypothesis using 350 firms, one…

233

Abstract

Long‐term performance contracts are awarded to top management in order to provide incentives to maximize shareholder value. We test the incentive hypothesis using 350 firms, one half of which has adopted long‐term performance plans over the period 1971–80. The analysis uses performance indicators such as earnings per share (EPS), rate of return on assets (ROA), rate of return on equity (ROE), rate of return on investment (ROI), and stock returns (ASR). In addition to using a control group of firms that did not adopt plans, the test period consists of a control period (six years prior to plan adoption) and a test period (six years following plan adoption). The results support the incentive hypothesis in that all performance indicators for the test firms improved compared to prior performance, but the performance of test firms in the period subsequent to plan adoption when compared to the control firms was not significantly different.

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Managerial Finance, vol. 22 no. 8
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0307-4358

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Article
Publication date: 1 April 1996

Barbara Brokie Leonard

The accounting profession has been charged by Supreme Court Chief Justice Warren Burger with a public responsibility to fulfill a “public watchdog” function. This function demands…

252

Abstract

The accounting profession has been charged by Supreme Court Chief Justice Warren Burger with a public responsibility to fulfill a “public watchdog” function. This function demands that the accountant maintains total independence from the client at all times and requires complete fidelity to the public trust (Briloff, 1990). The accounting profession also fulfills a monitoring and enforcing role in society in that the monitoring of contracts is considered a necessary cost of contracting (Jensen & Meckling, 1976). The North American Free Trade Agreement is viewed as a coalition of participants who interact through a system of contracts and agreements regarding trade between Canada, Mexico, and the United States. Explicit in the agreement is the recognition of the individual rights of the labor sector. This article discusses the rights of labor acknowledged by NAFTA, and the role accounting should play as a response to these agreements. Previous papers have called for the creation of a value theory in accounting that is socially conscious (Tinker, Merino, and Neimark, 1982) and for the development of a political economy of accounting which explicitly considers the relationships between accounting and the institutional structure of the economy (Cooper & Sherer, 1984). The Economist (4/9/94, p.14) calls for social disclosure as a means of advancing the cause of human rights in the third world. Following this literature, which calls on the accounting profession to become actively involved in setting accounting policy that is socially conscious, this article recommends making changes to the existing U.S. and North American accounting systems to facilitate fair economic growth and resource allocation between the North American countries. Recommendations include encouraging accounting standard setters and governmental bodies to require publicly traded companies doing business under NAFTA to provide additional disclosures concerning labor and other NAFTA agreements, such as environmental disclosures, in order to provide socially relevant information to stakeholders in all three countries. Additionally, an international group of auditors should be formed and funded by the NAFTA countries to monitor and publish compliance with the NAFTA agreements on labor and other issues, and to provide credibility to the required disclosures.

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Managerial Finance, vol. 22 no. 4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0307-4358

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Article
Publication date: 23 October 2007

Wendy L. Pirie and Michael K. McCuddy

The purpose of this paper is to provide an initial test of the validity of an intertemporal stewardship theory. This theory incorporates stewardship considerations, based on a…

1362

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to provide an initial test of the validity of an intertemporal stewardship theory. This theory incorporates stewardship considerations, based on a foundation of spirituality, as well as financial considerations into financial decision‐making models.

Design/methodology/approach

Contends that successful contemporary companies incorporate both financial and stewardship considerations into their decision making. Fortune magazine's Global Most Admired Companies list was used to define company success. Using Fortune's reputational criteria, companies were differentiated in terms of level of success. Hypotheses were developed about the articulation of and emphasis on financial considerations and stewardship considerations as evidenced by the corporate mission for highly successful vs less successful companies. The hypotheses were tested using paired t‐tests on mission statement data developed for the top‐, middle‐, and bottom‐ranked companies in each of the global industry categories in the 2002 Fortune magazine list. The intent was to determine if hypothesis‐relevant features of the mission statements significantly differed for the companies that were ranked at the top, middle, and bottom of their industries.

Findings

The results of this analysis indicate that organizational success cannot be achieved by focusing primarily on financial or stewardship considerations, but rather company success depends upon emphasizing both financial and stewardship considerations within the context of a clearly articulated mission focus.

Research limitations/implications

The research should be extended to cover more than a one‐year period. This will result not only in a test of validity over time but also a larger sample size.

Practical implications

The practical implications are threefold – for managers and for business professors and researchers. Managers should ensure that mission statements are sufficiently well articulated and focused, and that both financial and stewardship considerations are sufficiently emphasized. Business professors and researchers should use a new paradigm – incorporating both stewardship and financial considerations – for teaching and thinking about business and for conducting meaningful and realistic research.

Originality/value

The preeminence of financial considerations in business decision making is challenged in this article. We find that the most successful companies incorporate stewardship considerations as well as financial considerations into their decision making, at least as it is reflected in their missions. This article provides evidence that decision making can no longer be devoid of stewardship considerations if an organization is to survive and prosper over the long term.

Details

Managerial Finance, vol. 33 no. 12
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0307-4358

Keywords

Available. Open Access. Open Access
Article
Publication date: 21 June 2023

Alvin Holliman and Kimberly Collins

Companies affected by California’s cap-and-trade legislation are allotted certain credits for production that can be used or sold and can purchase additional credits from the…

2559

Abstract

Purpose

Companies affected by California’s cap-and-trade legislation are allotted certain credits for production that can be used or sold and can purchase additional credits from the state, which become a revenue source to be used for activities that reduce carbon emissions. The purpose of this paper is to investigate who ultimately pays for this program, its effectiveness in reducing carbon emissions in accordance with established goals, and the related effectiveness to advance social, economic, and environmental equity.

Design/methodology/approach

The methodology used for this research is secondary data analysis, triangulating three sources: California’s Climate Change Investment Reports, 2019-2021; repositories maintained by the California High-Speed Rail Authority and the California Air Resources Board; and a review of the literature and websites from other professional sources which addressed, directly and indirectly, the topics and questions explored in the study.

Findings

Key findings include evidence of enhancing social and environmental equity but ineffectiveness in reducing carbon emissions in accordance with state goals. Furthermore, the program displays evidence of economic inequity as it demonstrates characteristics of regressive taxation and an inability of low-income persons to acquire electric vehicles due to high costs.

Originality/value

The research effort is unique in that no other academic efforts were located which attempt to examine the cap-and-trade program’s effectiveness in attaining its goals.

Details

Public Administration and Policy, vol. 26 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1727-2645

Keywords

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Article
Publication date: 23 October 2007

Penny Clayton and Janet Kimbrell

The purpose of this paper is to examine the thought processes of financial auditors in order to offer additional information on factors affecting their decision behavior.

1651

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to examine the thought processes of financial auditors in order to offer additional information on factors affecting their decision behavior.

Design/methodology/approach

Using the psychology concept of cerebral dominance, two different instruments are used to measure the thinking styles of 20 auditors, at different stages of management. Prior research has indicated that “whole‐brain” thinkers (who do not exhibit dominance in either left‐ or right‐brain) may make better decisions, and thus, better managers.

Findings

The results of this study show partners in public accounting firms usually exhibiting a whole‐brain thinking style, while lower levels of management (staff auditors and managers) usually exhibit left‐brain thinking styles.

Originality/value

The findings have implications for training, education, communication, managerial styles, as well as the individual's position within the firm.

Details

Managerial Finance, vol. 33 no. 12
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0307-4358

Keywords

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Article
Publication date: 23 October 2007

Michael K. McCuddy and Wendy L. Pirie

The purpose of this paper is to develop a theory of intertemporal stewardship that incorporates stewardship, based on a foundation of spirituality, into financial decision‐making…

3982

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to develop a theory of intertemporal stewardship that incorporates stewardship, based on a foundation of spirituality, into financial decision‐making models.

Design/methodology/approach

Argues that stewardship, which shares some common ground with sustainable development, must become an integral component of financial decision‐making. Using agency theory as a point of departure, discusses the Anglo‐American and Continental European‐Japanese models of financial decision‐making, and how they can be reformulated to embrace stewardship and the spiritual foundation upon which stewardship is based. The key to linking spirituality and stewardship is our concept of self‐fullness – the simultaneous pursuit of reasonable self‐interest and reasonable concern for the common good of all human beings. The reformulated model of financial decision‐making is labeled intertemporal stewardship theory.

Findings

The merger of spirituality, stewardship, and financial decision‐making is crucial for the survival and prosperity of businesses and the people they serve. The failure of businesses in the new economy can be traced to the loss of values regarding spirituality and stewardship.

Research limitations/implications

Empirical research must be conducted to test the validity of the proposed intertemporal stewardship theory.

Practical implications

It is essential that managers base their decisions on internalized spiritual and stewardship values that they do not “park at the door” when they arrive at work. Managers should never lose sight of these values, and their decisions should always be grounded in these values. Without such grounding, it is very possible that once again managers will be caught in a cycle of “irrational exuberance”. Therefore, it is critical that these values become not only an integral part of financial decision‐making but also an integral part of education for financial decision‐making.

Originality/value

The financial bottom line is that financial decision‐making can no longer be devoid of spiritual and stewardship considerations if an organization is to survive and prosper over the long term. Neither can business organizations deny spirituality and stewardship considerations if they are to be socially responsible members of society, contributing to and upholding a moral existence for all humanity. In this sense then, the conception of intertemporal stewardship theory that is offered in this paper takes a step toward realizing these greater goals.

Details

Managerial Finance, vol. 33 no. 12
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0307-4358

Keywords

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Article
Publication date: 23 October 2007

Margaret Benefiel

The purpose of this paper is to address a number of significant field‐shaping questions faced by scholars in the burgeoning new field of spirituality in organizations. How should…

945

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to address a number of significant field‐shaping questions faced by scholars in the burgeoning new field of spirituality in organizations. How should spirituality in organizations be defined? What correlation can be established between an organization's spirituality and its financial performance? What research methods are most appropriate for this work – quantitative, qualitative, a combination of the two, or entirely new methods? The answers given to these questions will determine the shape of this new field and the direction research will take over the next several decades.

Design/methodology/approach

These questions are addressed by mapping the terrain of current spirituality in organizations scholarship, examining trails being blazed by pioneers venturing into this new territory, and then broadening the boundaries.

Findings

This article articulates academic challenges facing scholars who wish to continue to broaden the boundaries of research into spirituality in organizations, and suggests some ways forward.

Originality/value

The paper offers insights into the pioneers who are blazing trails in the spirituality and organizations terrain.

Details

Managerial Finance, vol. 33 no. 12
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0307-4358

Keywords

Available. Content available
Article
Publication date: 23 October 2007

210

Abstract

Details

Managerial Finance, vol. 33 no. 12
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0307-4358

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