Real estate research needs of the plan sponsor community:what do the plan sponsor real estate investment managers want to know?

This article reports the results of a web-based survey of real estate portfolio managers in the pension fund industry. The study focused on ascertaining the real estate research interests of the respondents as well as whether or not research funding should be allocated to various research topics. Performance measures of real estate assets and portfolios, microeconomic factors affecting real estate and the role of real estate in a mixed-asset portfolio were the top three real estate research interests. There was some variation by the type and size of fund providing evidence that segmentation is important within the money management industry. Respondents were also queried on more focused research subtopics and additional questions in the survey focused on satisfaction with existing real estate benchmarks, and perceptions of the usefulness of published research. Findings should be used to guide research practitioners and academics as to the most important research interests of plan sponsor real estate investment managers.

Trade balance and real exchange rate:new evidence from Mauritius-UK trade

Two main questions are addressed here: is there a long-run relationship between trade balance and real exchange rate for the bilateral trade between Mauritius and UK? Does a J-curve exist for this bilateral trade? Our findings suggest that the real exchange rate is cointegrated with the trade balance and we find evidence of a J-curve effect. We also find bidirectional causality between the trade balance and the real exchange rate in the long-run. The real exchange rate also causes the trade balance in the short-run. In an out-of-sample forecasting experiment, we also find that real exchange rate contains useful information that can explain future movements in the trade balance.

Cortical oscillatory activity associated with the perception of illusory and real visual contours

We used magnetoencephalography (MEG) to examine the nature of oscillatory brain rhythms when passively viewing both illusory and real visual contours. Three stimuli were employed: a Kanizsa triangle; a Kanizsa triangle with a real triangular contour superimposed; and a control figure in which the corner elements used to form the Kanizsa triangle were rotated to negate the formation of illusory contours. The MEG data were analysed using synthetic aperture magnetometry (SAM) to enable the spatial localisation of task-related oscillatory power changes within specific frequency bands, and the time-course of activity within given locations-of-interest was determined by calculating time-frequency plots using a Morlet wavelet transform. In contrast to earlier studies, we did not find increases in gamma activity (> 30 Hz) to illusory shapes, but instead a decrease in 10–30 Hz activity approximately 200 ms after stimulus presentation. The reduction in oscillatory activity was primarily evident within extrastriate areas, including the lateral occipital complex (LOC). Importantly, this same pattern of results was evident for each stimulus type. Our results further highlight the importance of the LOC and a network of posterior brain regions in processing visual contours, be they illusory or real in nature. The similarity of the results for both real and illusory contours, however, leads us to conclude that the broadband (< 30 Hz) decrease in power we observed is more likely to reflect general changes in visual attention than neural computations specific to processing visual contours.

Technology transfer and Chinese government policy:opportunities and implications for business

State-owned enterprises in China have been given greater autonomy and responsibility, have freer access to foreign technology, and are being encouraged to form groups to gain from rationalization and integration. This article uses case studies to identify the key strategic issues that affect the commercial viability of foreign technology acquisition by state-owned enterprises within the context of enterprise reforms. All the case study enterprises used technology transfer to develop new or improved products. Technologies acquired as parts of subcontracting arrangements and well-established technologies to produce end-use products are easier to manage and operate profitably. However, the latter type of technology has been imported by numerous enterprises and has led to fierce competition and industy restructuring. Importing capital-intensive and complex technology to produce major components for products, such as cars, is more difficult and requires closer coordination with customers and suppliers.

Trade balance and real exchange rate:new evidence from Mauritius-UK trade

In this study we investigate whether there exists a relationship between the exchange rate and the trade balance using bilateral data for the Mauritius/UK trade. We also investigate whether following depreciation or a devaluation the trade balance initially worsens due to contractual agreements and subsequently improves when new contracts for international trade are signed. Using a variety of econometric techniques we are able to establish that there exists a long-run relationship between the trade balance and the real exchange rate. The existence of such a relationship signifies that the authorities would be able to use the exchange rate to steer the trade balance. We also find following a depreciation or devaluation the trade balance initially worsens due to contractual agreements but the trade balance subsequently improves when new contracts are signed. This signifies that if the authorities want to devalue their currency to improve the trade balance, the desired effect does not occur immediately but it occurs with a lag, in this particular case after approximately a year.

Exporting and productivity in business services:evidence from the United States

Does exporting make firms more productive, or do more productive firms choose to become exporters? This paper considers the link between exporting and productivity for a sample of firms in US business services. We find that larger, more productive firms are more likely to become exporters, but that these factors do not necessarily influence the extent of exporting. This conforms with previous literature that there is a self-selection effect into exporting. We then test for the effect of exporting on productivity levels after allowing for this selection effect. We model both the relationship between exporting and productivity, and a simultaneous relationship between export intensity and productivity after allowing for selection bias. In both cases we find an association, indicating that productivity is positively linked both to exporting and to increased exposure to international markets.

Exporting and productivity in business services:evidence from the United States

Does exporting make firms more productive, or do more productive firms choose to become exporters? Given the amount of resources devoted by governments to supporting exporters, this is an important question. There are reasons to expect exporting to boost productivity, both through the exposure to foreign competition which exporting brings, and through ‘learning by exporting’. However, the broad thrust of previous research is that more productive firms self-select into export markets, with relatively little evidence that exporting leads to higher productivity thereafter. This paper considers the link between exporting and productivity for a sample of firms in US business services. We find that larger, more productive firms are more likely to become exporters, but that these factors do not necessarily influence the extent of exporting. This conforms with previous literature that there is a self-selection effect into exporting. We then test for the effect of exporting on productivity levels after allowing for this selection effect. We model both the relationship between exporting and productivity, and a simultaneous relationship between export intensity and productivity after allowing for selection bias. In both cases we find a clear association, indicating that productivity is positively linked both to exporting and to increased exposure to international markets.

Organisational slack resources, the definitions and consequences for business flexibility and performance : an empirical investigation

Slack resources are recognised to be those spare capabilities and assets of the organisation that are variable reclaimable for re-deployment. They represent under utilised and hidden spare energies within a company that may be recaptured and employed for a variety of tasks. However their positive contribution to organisational success has been a contentious claim that has provoked the intuitive argument that slack resources are inefficiency and are to be eradicated. The counter argument has been that very efficient organisations are inflexible and therefore incapable of being responsive to an increasingly dynamic environment. Therefore this work compares and contrasts three distinctive industries in a holistic manner and maps the impact of environmental flux on the firm, its subsequent disruptive ripples through the organisation and its absorption by slack resources. Through this process it is demonstrated that slack resources do positively contribute to organisational performance and subsequently the ability of slack to promote sustained competitive advantage is also identified. The major findings of this work are listed. 1. This work has developed and perfected a new research model that aids the investigation of the internal behaviours and consequences of Slack Resources. 2. Supported by argument a new variable of Soft Slack was developed. Its validity was demonstrated in its ability to capture the contribution of intangible assets, such as education, experience, spare management time and further training, to the extant levels of Organisational Hard Slack resources. 3. The validity of Soft Slack was further supported when its contribution to organisational Flexibility was also established. 4. The original argument that Slack Resources enhance organisational Performance has been further developed. It is now evidenced that Slack Resources facilitate Organisational Flexibility and by this process enhances Organisational Performance.

The finance of biotechnology:investment in new biotechnology firms by British venture capitalists-attitudes to, and evaluation of, business proposals

A notable feature of the recent commercialisation of biotechnology has been the success of 200 or so new firms, established in America since 1976, in exploiting specialised market niches. A key factor in their formation has been the ready availability of venture capital funding. These firms have been instrumental in establishing America's lead in exploiting biotechnology. It is this example which Britain has attempted to emulate as part of its strategy for developing its own biotechnology capabilities. This thesis investigated some aspects of the relationship between biotechnology and venture capital, concentrating on the determinants of the venture capitalist's investment decision. Following an extensive literature survey, two hypothetical business proposals were used to find what venture capitalists themselves consider to be the key elements of this decision. It was found that venture capitalists invest in people, not products, and businesses, not industries. It was concluded that venture capital-backed small firms should, therefore, be seen as an adjunct to the development of biotechnology in Britain, rather than as a substitute for a co-ordinated, co-operative strategy involving Government, the financial institutions, industry and academia. This is chiefly because the small size of the UK's domestic market means that many potentially important innovations in biotechnology may continue to be lost, since the short term identification of market opportunities for biotechnology products will dictate that they are insupportable in Britain alone. In addition, the data analysis highlighted some interesting methodological issues concerning the investigation of investment decision making. These related especially to shortcomings in the use of scoresheets and questionnaires in research in this area. The conclusion here was that future research should concentrate on the reasons why an individual reaches an investment decision. It is argued that only in this way can the nature of the evaluation procedures employed by venture capitalists be properly understood.

Constructing institutional change: emergence, contestation and convergence of business models in the field of Java application servers

How are innovative new business models established if organizations constantly compare themselves against existing criteria and expectations? The objective is to address this question from the perspective of innovators and their ability to redefine established expectations and evaluation criteria. The research questions ask whether there are discernible patterns of discursive action through which innovators theorize institutional change and what role such theorizations play for mobilizing support and realizing change projects. These questions are investigated through a case study on a critical area of enterprise computing software, Java application servers. In the present case, business practices and models were already well established among incumbents with critical market areas allocated to few dominant firms. Fringe players started experimenting with a new business approach of selling services around freely available opensource application servers. While most new players struggled, one new entrant succeeded in leading incumbents to adopt and compete on the new model. The case demonstrates that innovative and substantially new models and practices are established in organizational fields when innovators are able to refine expectations and evaluation criteria within an organisational field. The study addresses the theoretical paradox of embedded agency. Actors who are embedded in prevailing institutional logics and structures find it hard to perceive potentially disruptive opportunities that fall outside existing ways of doing things. Changing prevailing institutional logics and structures requires strategic and institutional work aimed at overcoming barriers to innovation. The study addresses this problem through the lens of (new) institutional theory. This discourse methodology traces the process through which innovators were able to establish a new social and business model in the field.

The business of partnership:a preliminary evaluation of the objectives and operations of Business Link Birmingham

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Is Bologna working? Employer and graduate reflections of the quality, value and relevance of business and management education in four European Union countries

This article focuses on the relevance of undergraduate business and management higher education from the perspectives of recent graduates and graduate employers in four European countries. Drawing upon the findings of an empirical qualitative study in which data was collated and analysed using grounded theory research techniques, the paper draws attention to graduates' and employers' perceptions of the value of higher education in equipping students with discipline-specific skills and knowledge as well as softer 'generic' skills. It also highlights the importance of formal 'work-based' learning within undergraduate curricula in providing students with the skills and experiences required by employers operating within a global workplace. © 2014 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.