Search results

The purpose of this paper is to examine the intellectual capital (IC) performance of Australian banks for the period 2005‐2007. It also aims to examine the relationship amongst various constituents of IC performance.

The value added intellectual coefficient (VAIC™) approach developed by Pulic is used to determine the IC performance of the Australian banks. The required data to calculate different constituents of IC was obtained from the annual reports of Australian banks.

The paper reveals that VAIC™ has a significant relation with human costs and the value addition made by the Australian banks. All Australian owned banks have relatively higher human capital efficiency than capital employed efficiency and structural capital efficiency. The size of the bank in terms of total assets, total number of employees and total shareholders equity has little or no impact on the IC performance of the Australian owned banks.

The paper analyses IC performance of only 11 Australian owned banks. However, the more than 90 per cent market share enjoyed by these banks still promises a degree of validation of the results of the paper from the Australian perspective or similar banking structure in some countries.

The findings may serve as a useful input for bankers to apply knowledge management in their institutions and in addressing the factors affecting IC performance in order to maximise their value creation. The findings of the study would also provide some information to the stakeholders and potential investors to assess the value creation capabilities of this group of banks.

This is the first paper that examines the relationship of VAIC™ and the size of the firms for Australian owned banks in Australia.

The purpose of this paper is to examine the intellectual capital (IC) performance of the Australian Financial Sector for the period 2006‐2008. It also aims to examine the relationship between IC performance and the financial performance of the financial sector.

The value added intellectual coefficient (VAIC) approach developed by Pulic is used to determine the IC performance of the Australian financial sector. The required data to calculate different constituents of IC was obtained from the annual reports of Australian Financial Sector companies.

The value creation capability of financial sector in Australia is highly influenced by human capital. About two thirds of the sample companies have very low levels of intellectual capital efficiency. The performance of various components of VAIC and overall VAIC differs across all subsectors in the financial sector. Investment companies have high value VAIC due to higher a level of human capital efficiency, as compared to banks, insurance companies, diversified financials and RIETs. Insurance companies are more focussed on physical capital rather than human and structural capital leading to lower VAIC.

The paper analyses IC performance of only one sector of the Australian economy and there is a relatively narrow three‐year period for the data collection. However, a comparative analysis of various sub sectors in the Australian financial sector justifies the contributions made by this study.

The findings may serve as a useful input for financial institutions to apply knowledge management in their institutions and in addressing the factors affecting IC performance in order to maximise their value creation. It will also help the management of companies in other sectors, especially those in knowledge‐based industries, in understanding the contributions of various components of intellectual capital in their growth.

This is the first paper that examines the relationship of intellectual capital performance with financial performance of financial sector companies in Australia.

In the previous chapter, the reader will have become familiar with the idea of screening for traumatic experiences within organisations as a way to identify those who may benefit most from interventions and support. In this chapter, I present an overview of the trauma therapy literature in the first instance and then explore some of the debates regarding specific trauma-informed treatments versus general therapeutic approaches. The multicultural competency literature is discussed, and the multicultural orientation approach of cultural humility, cultural opportunity and cultural comfort is highlighted in a practice context. This chapter concludes with a case study vignette that brings it all together with a clinical example of what trauma-informed therapy through a multicultural lens might look like. As such I operationalise choice, collaboration , trust and transparency, and cultural principles from the trauma-informed care literature. Although applied here to specific trauma-informed organisations, some of the methods and processes that I unpack can be used in non-specific organisations where social/case managers are employed and wish to operationalise choice and collaboration in a structured way.

In the previous chapters, we have explored some of the key debates around empirically supported treatments, and I have introduced the reader to the concept of evidence based practice as a tripartite model that speaks to a much wider understanding of therapy research and practice. In this chapter, I introduce the concept of the common factors and some of the research that supports the idea that in general all therapy approaches tend to be as effective as each other, indeed, a summary of this research going back as far as 1936 is highlighted. The common factor proposition rests on the premise that there are far more commonalities across diverse therapy methods, than differences, and that it is these trans-theoretical constructs that are responsible for the lion’s share of outcomes. After briefly reviewing some of the literature, several common factor models are presented for the reader to consider.

Organisations are increasingly understanding the need to be trauma informed. However, how trauma therapies in such organisations apply the principles of choice and collaboration is less understood. The present paper applies two trans-theoretical methods for involving clients in their therapy through preference accommodation and feedback-informed treatment (FIT). A case vignette is provided demonstrating how to involve clients in trauma therapy by listening to their preferences, needs and by providing them with a voice on their experience of the process and outcome of care.

A focused review of the literature was conducted, with relevant randomised control trials, systematic reviews and meta-analyses sourced. The resulting information informed the design and this model for working with those in trauma therapy.

The research regarding trauma-specific therapies being more effective is far from conclusive. At the same time, early attrition and negative outcomes make up a large percentage of those seeking therapy. Using preference accommodation and FIT is one possibly way to mitigate against these experiences in therapy and to provide choice, preference and collaboration consisting with the principles of trauma-informed approaches.

Methods to improve the experiences of those seeking trauma therapy have been identified and discussed. According to the author’s knowledge, this is the first known paper aligning trauma therapy and trauma-informed approaches with preference accommodation and FIT. Future empirical studies may wish to examine the relative effectiveness of this approach.

Methods to improve outcomes for those seeking trauma therapy are at the disposal of practitioners. Improving outcomes, while also providing choice, voice and collaboration is a clinical setting.

This is a novel paper adding to value and extending how practitioners can use principles of trauma-informed approaches within trauma therapy.

Schemes of profit sharing and employee share‐holding have a 19th century origin. The objects of profit sharing vary according to its proponents. The primary focus of this paper will be on managerial schemes of financial participation and the expectations that their installation will lead to an improvement in organizational performance and employee behaviour. Using a survey of 2,827 private sector firms in 11 European countries we test for the effect of profit sharing on profitability, productivity and employee turnover and absenteeism. In addition, the effect of profit sharing on union influence is examined. In common, with other research in this area, our results show that while there is some evidence of a positive relationship between profit sharing and organizational performance, this was not definitive. In the case of union influence, there was some evidence of an adverse effect of these schemes on the solidarity of the collective.

To replicate the Luton pilot study (Andrews et al., 2011), both by investigating treatment changes using the Human Givens (HG) approach via a practice research network (PRN) and by assessing the viability of replacing the 34-item Clinical Outcome in Routine Evaluation Outcome Measure (CORE-OM) with the ten-item version (CORE-10).

Clients were included if they were offered the HG approach to manage psychological distress and attended at least one measured treatment session following their initial assessment. Pre-post treatment effect size (Cohen's d) was benchmarked against data from Clark et al. (2009). Potential differences in treatment effects based on type of termination (planned vs unplanned) and medication use were examined.

High correlation between the CORE-10 and CORE-OM and near-identical calculated effect sizes support the utilisation of CORE-10 as a routine outcome measure. Pre-post treatment effect size suggests that clients treated using the HG approach experienced relief from psychological distress.

There was no experimental control nor evidence about the precise components of the HG treatment. Data on problem description and duration may not be reliable.

This larger study, involving thousands of cases in a wide variety of settings, reinforces the findings from the pilot study as to the plausibility of the HG approach in the relief of emotional distress.

The viability of using a ten-item scale to reliably measure treatment effectiveness will allow organisations to assess the quality of their treatment with minimal disruption to their service delivery allowing for true evidence-based practice. A PRN provides a suitable mechanism to assess psychotherapy treatment effectiveness in real-world settings.

The purpose of this paper is to empirically investigate the effect of intellectual capital (IC) efficiency on changes in the productivity of insurance companies in Ghana.

Using a panel of 33 insurance companies from 2008 to 2016, the study applied Value Added Intellectual Coefficients model as a measure of IC efficiency, whilst Malmquist Productivity Index is employed to capture changes in the productivity of insurance companies. In estimating the effects of IC on productivity, System Generalised Method of Moment (GMM) is applied because of its power over endogeneity and heteroscedasticity.

Robust empirical findings on productivity analysis showed that improvements in insurer’s productivity were experienced in three year intervals out of the overall studied year. In addition, panel regression results revealed that IC along with human capital and capital employed significantly affect the productivity of insurance companies.

The generalisability of the study findings could be questioned because it is limited to insurance firms operating in Ghana; some firms were omitted due to mergers and acquisition that reduced the final sample. Yet, the findings facilitate the validation of IC concept and, hence, informs manager/policy makers on IC utilisation as a source of competitive edge.

Having robust empirical findings, the study expands on the existing literature by unveiling the dynamic nature of IC relationship and productivity. The findings also serve as a benchmark for managers/policymakers in insurance companies to increase the operational efficiency by investing in IC, which will help guarantee improve returns on generated premiums.

Although a few studies have investigated the effect of IC in Ghana, this study is the first to examine the dynamic relationship between IC and changes in productivity in a Ghanaian context.