Russian Enterprise Restructuring - the Effect of Privatisation and Market Liberalisation on the Performance of Large Enterprises

The fundamental question in the transitional economies of the former Eastern Europe and Soviet Union has been whether privatisation and market liberalisation have had an effect on the performance of former state-owned enterprises. This study examines the effect of privatisation, capital market discipline, price liberalisation and international price exposure on the restructuring of large Russian enterprises. The performance indicators are sales, profitability, labour productivity and stock market valuations. The results do not show performance differences between state-owned and privatised enterprises. On the other hand, the expansion of the de novo private sector has been strong. New enterprises have significantly higher sales growth, profitability and labour productivity. However, the results indicate a diminishing effect of ownership. The international stock market listing has a significant positive effect on profitability, while the effect of domestic stock market listing is insignificant. The international price exposure has a significant positive increasing effect on profitability and labour productivity. International enterprises have higher profitability only when operating on price liberalised markets, however. The main results of the study are strong evidence on the positive effects of international linkages on the enterprise restructuring and the higher than expected role of new enterprises in the Russian economy.

Offshore Sourcing in Software Development: Case Studies of Finnish-Russian Cooperation

The study examines international cooperation in product development in software development organisations. The software industry is known for its global nature and knowledge-intensity, which makes it an interesting setting to examine international cooperation in. Software development processes are increasingly distributed worldwide, but for small or even medium-sized enterprises, typical for the software industry, such distribution of operations is often possible only in association with crossing the company’s boundaries. The strategic decision-making of companies is likely to be affected by the characteristics of the industry, and this includes decisions about cooperation or sourcing. The objective of this thesis is to provide a holistic view on factors affecting decisions about offshore sourcing in software development. Offshore sourcing refers to a cooperative mode of offshoring, where a firm does not establish its own presence in a foreign country, but utilises a local supplier. The study examines product development activities that are distributed across organisational and geographical boundaries. The objective can be divided into two subtopics: general reasons for international cooperation in product development and particular reasons for cooperation between Finnish and Russian companies. The focus is on the strategic rationale at the company level, in particular in small and medium-sized enterprises. The theoretical discourse of the study builds upon the literature on international cooperation and networking, with particular focus on cooperation with foreign suppliers and within product development activities. The resource-based view is also discussed, as heterogeneity and interdependency of the resources possessed by different firms are seen as factors motivating international cooperation. Strategically, sourcing can be used to access resources possessed by an industrial network, to enhance the product development of a firm, or to optimise its cost structure. In order to investigate the issues raised by the theoretical review, two empirical studies on international cooperation in software product development have been conducted. The emphasis of the empirical part of the study is on cooperation between Finnish and Russian companies. The data has been gathered through four case studies on Finnish software development organisations and four case studies on Russian offshore suppliers. Based on the material from the case studies, a framework clarifying and grouping the factors that influence offshore sourcing decisions has been built. The findings indicate that decisions regarding offshore sourcing in software development are far more complex than generally assumed. The framework provides a holistic view on factors affecting decisions about offshore sourcing in software development, capturing the multidimensionality of motives for entering offshore cooperation. Four groups of factors emerged from the data: A) strategy-related aspects, B) aspects related to resources and capabilities, C) organisation-related aspects, and D) aspects related to the entrepreneur or management. By developing a holistic framework of decision factors, the research offers in-depth theoreticalunderstanding of offshore sourcing rationale in product development. From the managerial point of view, the proposed framework sums up the issues that a firm should pay attention to when contemplating product development cooperation with foreign suppliers. Understanding different components of sourcing decisions can lead to improved preconditions for strategising and engaging in offshore cooperation. A thorough decisionmaking process should consider all the possible benefits and risks of product development cooperation carefully.

Mr [James] O'Grady arrivant à Caxton Hall [membre du Parlement anglais et secrétaire de la National Federation of General Workers] : [photographie de presse] / [Agence Rol]

Référence bibliographique : Rol, 56233

Message from the President of the United States, transmitting a report of the Secretary of State, in obedience to a resolution of the thirteenth inst. "requesting the President to lay before this House such documents relative to the Russian mediation as in his opinion it may not be improper to communicate." --

United States,13th Congress, 2d session, 1813-1814. House. Doc. no. 35.

Canadian Federation of University Women--St. Catharines fonds, 1921-2013

The University Women’s Club of St. Catharines was founded in 1921, two years after the formation of its national affiliate, the Canadian Federation of University Women. Membership was limited to women with university degrees. In early 2000 the constitution was expanded to include professions that now require university or college degrees. Associate members (non-voting) and student members were also accepted in 2007 by our local club. The purposes of the club are to assist in maintaining high standards of education in Canada, to stimulate members’ interest and participation in public affairs, to provide an opportunity for collective action, and to facilitate intellectual and social pursuits among members. The club takes an active interest in the status of women, provides scholarships at the university and high school levels, encourages reading in the formative years, makes charitable donations to support women and children’s services. In 1988 our club changed its name to Canadian Federation of University Women – St. Catharines at the direction of the National Office of CFUW.

Ontario Federation of Agriculture records, 1974-1984

The Ontario Federation of Agriculture was established in 1936 and is the largest voluntary farm organization in Canada, representing 37,000 farm families. The Federation came about in response to the creation of the Canadian Chamber of Agriculture (later renamed the Canadian Federation of Agriculture) in 1935. The establishment of an Ontario branch was needed to provide a forum through which similar organizations from other provinces could communicate about farm issues that were of interprovincial, national, or international importance. The organization is led by farmers and is based in Guleph, Ontario. Their missionis to enable prosperous and sustainable farms. They accomplish this through lobbying, government and media relations, and community representation.

The National Hockey League (NHL) Entry Draft: An Examination of the Impact of Brand Associations Attached to the Russian Hockey Players

This research was conducted to investigate whether negative brand associations attached to Russian hockey players impact their draft rankings during the National Hockey League (NHL) Entry Draft. A quantitative analysis based on various regression model specifications was used to test whether Russian players were drafted relatively equally to their counterparts in the NHL Entry Draft. The data consisted of the NHL draft picks between 1993 and 2013 and their performance statistics and physical characteristics. The results suggested that Russian players were drafted relatively equal to their counterparts from other countries. Meanwhile, Russian players who played in the CHL before the draft are actually drafted better than Canadians who played in the same league. Hence, the negative brand associations attached to Russians were unlikely to impact their draft rankings. This study redefined the so-called “Russian Factor” from a notion that allegedly damages Russian players’ rankings to one that enhances their rankings.

Guide des bonnes pratiques en matière de gouvernance et « Sustainability framework » : l’orientation de l’International Federation of Accountants vers un « capitalisme stakeholder »

Au premier trimestre 2009, le normalisateur mondial de la profession comptable (International Federation of Accountants) a publié deux documents destinés à apporter une aide aux professionnels de la comptabilité et de la finance sur leur prise en compte du développement durable et des parties prenantes d’une entreprise. En premier lieu, l’International Federation of Accountants propose un cadre d’analyse durable. Outil destiné aux comptables et financiers, il vise à faire de ces derniers un maillon essentiel du développement de nouvelles pratiques favorisant une performance économique, sociale et environnementale des entreprises. En second lieu, l’International Federation of Accountants vient de diffuser un guide international des bonnes pratiques en matière de gouvernance d’entreprise complétant les codes de gouvernance existant et ayant pour objectif d’inscrire les entreprises dans une approche stakeholder. A l’heure où la crise financière se fait ressentir et où la finance se trouve décriée pour s’être focalisée sur la valeur actionnariale, la position de l’International Federation of Accountants est révélatrice d’un changement de paradigme non sans conséquence pour la comptabilité, la finance et le droit.

Democratic Deliberation in a Multinational Federation

Democratic deliberation is an aspiration that, in the most favorable conditions, remains difficult to achieve. In divided or multinational societies, the requirements of democratic theory appear particularly daunting. This essay surveys the Canadian debate about democratization and constitutional politics to better understand the significance of democratic deliberation in a concrete case, when principles are evoked in a context where institutions, interests, identities and power also matter. The article proposes to think of deliberation and power politics as closely intertwined and, in fact impossible to separate. Even in the best conditions, multinational deliberations always remain imperfect exercises in practical reason.

A Russian language speech discrimination test for clinical audiometry

This paper contains a speech discrimination test in the Russian language composed of fifty known Russian monosyllables.

Trends in aerosol optical depth in the Russian Arctic and their links with synoptic climatology

Temporal and spatial variability of aerosol optical depth (AOD) are examined using observations of direct solar radiation in the Eurasian Arctic for 1940-1990. AOD is estimated using empirical methods for 14 stations located between 66.2 degrees N and 80.6 degrees N, from the Kara Sea to the Chukchi Sea. While AOD exhibits a well-known springtime maximum and summertime minimum at all stations, atmospheric turbidity is higher in spring in the western (Kara-Laptev) part of the Eurasian Arctic. Between June and August, the eastern (East Siberian-Chukchi) sector experiences higher transparency than the western part. A statistically significant positive trend in AOD was observed in the Kara-Laptev sector between the late 1950s and the early 1930s predominantly in spring when pollution-derived aerosol dominates the Arctic atmosphere but not in the eastern sector. Although all stations are remote, those with positive trends are located closer to the anthropogenic sources of air pollution. By contrast, a widespread decline in AOD was observed between 1982 and 1990 in the eastern Arctic in spring but was limited to two sites in the western Arctic. These results suggest that the post-1982 decline in anthropogenic emissions in Europe and the former Soviet Union has had a limited effect on aerosol load in the Arctic. The post-1982 negative trends in AOD in summer, when marine aerosol is present in the atmosphere, were more common in the west. The relationships between AOD and atmospheric circulation are examined using a synoptic climatology approach. In spring, AOD depends primarily on the strength and direction of air flow. Thus strong westerly and northerly flows result in low AOD values in the East Siberian-Chukchi sector. By contrast, strong southerly flow associated with the passage of depressions results in high A OD in the Kara-Laptev sector and trajectory analysis points to the contribution of industrial regions of the sub-Arctic. In summer, low pressure gradient or anticyclonic conditions result in high atmospheric turbidity. The frequency of this weather type has declined significantly since the early 1980s in the Kara-Laptev sector, which partly explains the decline in summer AOD values. (c) 2004 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Glacier shrinkage and climatic change in the Russian Altai from the mid-20th century: An assessment using remote sensing and PRECIS regional climate model

This paper examines changes in the surface area of glaciers in the North and South Chuya Ridges, Altai Mountains in 1952-2004 and their links with regional climatic variations. The glacier surface areas for 2004 were derived from the Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer (ASTER) imagery. Data from the World Glacier Inventory (WGI)dating to 1952 and aerial photographs from 1952 were used to estimate the changes. 256 glaciers with a combined area of 253±5.1 km2 have been identified in the region in 2004. Estimation of changes in extent of 126 glaciers with the individual areas not less than 0.5 km2 in 1952 revealed a 19.7±5.8% reduction. The observed glacier retreat is primarily driven by an increase in summer temperatures since the 1980s when air temperatures were increasing at a rate of 0.10 - 0.13oC a-1 at the glacier tongue elevation. The regional climate projections for A2 and B2 CO2 emission scenarios developed using PRECIS regional climate model indicate that summer temperatures will increase in the Altai in 2071-2100 by 6-7oC and 3-5oC respectively in comparison with 1961-1990 while annual precipitation will increase by 15% and 5%. The length of the ablation season will extend from June-August to the late April – early October. The projected increases in precipitation will not compensate for the projected warming and glaciers will continue to retreat in the 21st century under both B2 and A2 scenarios.