Search results

Charting the earnings numbers reported by Korean firms produces a bell curve, but for a sharp discontinuity in the area surrounding zero. The purpose of this paper is to investigate if and how a large segment of Korean managers might manage accounting numbers to produce the observed result.

This study adopts an empirical research method using Korean listed firms as a sample. The primary focus of investigation is on major income statement variables that might produce the observed results in earnings from operations and net income.

Managers of Korean firms opportunistically use almost all income statement variables to influence earnings numbers. They manage revenues and selling, general & administrative expenses to report small positive earnings from operations, but manage non-operating gains (losses) to report small positive net income.

This paper does not answer several questions related to loss avoidance. First, the paper did not examine which actions, such as discretionary accruals, opportunistic business decisions, or bogus transactions, were employed to affect line items on the income statement. Second, the paper did not investigate what specific incentives trigger Korean managers to report small positive earnings. Korean firms have traditionally raised capital by borrowing funds from creditors and governmental agencies. Thus, they may be concerned that reporting losses would reduce their borrowing capacity. Finally, corporate governance, such as CEO tenure and option grants may influence the extent of earnings management to avoid losses, but most corporate governance data for Korean companies must be manually collected. Accordingly, these subjects are left for future studies as well.

This study contributes to accounting literature by reporting how managers of Korean firms artificially coordinate major income statement variables and report small positive earnings figures, noting the differences between earnings management investigating methodology and ones used in previous studies.

As the global economy continues to boom, there remains a significant need for more efficient transportation and effective management in corporate logistics. In this regard, railways have been considered one of the most efficient modes for long distance transportation. In Asia, there are several extensive and direct railroads such as the TSR (Trans-Siberian-Railroad), the TCR (Trans-Chinese-Railroad) and the TMR (Trans-Mongolian-Railroad) which could connect Asia to Europe. If these railroad networks such as the TKR (Trans-Korean-Railroad) were fully operational, it is expected that they would replace a major portion of the current global trade transportation with is sent through other shipping methods. Therefore, the development of railroad networks is one of the most important steps toward an integrated international transportation system. However, in reality, it is difficult to achieve this vision because of the political and economic problems surrounding multiple countries that this network must cut across. Moreover, it is difficult to ensure the railways’ economic competitiveness when it is compared with other logistics options. In this study, we aim to discover the status quo about railway networks by focusing on the TCR and TSR. Through in-depth interviews and surveys with actual users of these networks, current issues and problems are analysed in order to make suggestions for improvements. This research also provides meaningful insights which the TKR-TSR and TKR-TCR railway networks should consider if they want to continue to be successful in the future.

This paper aims to propose a conceptual framework that illustrates how information technology (IT) applications may lead to competitive advantage in hotel companies.

The paper is written based on a synthesis of previous literature in this area.

Multiple areas need to be carefully evaluated in developing and implementing IT projects so that they can lead to competitive advantage in hotel companies. There are four closely related areas when analyzing IT decisions in hotels, which include coherence between the business strategy and IT decision, types of IT applications, intended benefits of IT decisions, and decision‐making style. Technology sophistication, management skills, and integration of resources are key issues when implementing IT decisions. Investments into IT applications in hotel companies can lead to superior IT competencies and IT capabilities, which can subsequently result in lower cost, agility, innovation, added value for customers, and better customer service. However, not all IT investments may result in positive outcomes or their sustainability may be short lived. In addition, there can be a lag time between making IT investment decisions and seeing their intended outcomes.

There are multiple areas and issues that need to be considered in making and implementing IT investment decisions if they are to contribute to the company's competitive advantage. Hotel companies need to be selective in their IT investment decisions and look at each IT investment from the strategic management perspective.

This is one of the first articles in the hospitality field that offers a theoretical framework on how IT applications can lead to competitive advantage in hotels. It also offers numerous theoretical and practical implications. Therefore, this paper should help hotel executives and researchers in evaluating IT projects in hotel companies.