Manufacturing SMEs Competitiveness against the Crisis: Management Characteristics and New Perspectives

The purpose of this paper is to study the drivers of competitiveness in sectors of the Greek manufacturing industry, both in the pro and post economic crisis era, based on firm level financial and qualitative data cover this gap, providing evidence about factors impact competitive dynamic of Greek manufacturing SMEs taking into account aspects of IT, knowledge management, training, innovation and financial ratios. The study is structured as follows: the next section presents a literature review on this subject, while section 3 highlight the methodology as well as the model approach of the study. In section 4, the empirical results of the study are presented and section 5 the main findings are discussed. Section 6 summarizes the empirical findings and draws the policy implications of the study

The sticky cost on Greek food, beverages and tobacco limited companies

The cost behavior is one of the most important aspects of the analysis of businesses profitability. The traditional model of study of its behavior requires strict proportion with the level of activity, something that is not shared by modern studies. To better understand the behavior of asymmetric cost, our work examines the behavior of the Greek retail food, beverages and tobacco companies. We studied 438 limited companies for a period of 12 years and noticed that a 1% increase in sales leads to an increase of 1.011% of the cost, while the corresponding reduction lowers the cost of sales by 0,905%. The industry addressed by our study, has a direct relation to all households. So it is important that the industry, be studied further in order to give more opportunities and benefits for consumers and state. Finally, future studies can use our study in an attempt to better understand the behavior of asymmetric costs.peer-reviewe

Efficiency and Ship Class of Shipping Companies: The Case of Greek-owned Shipping Companies

Transport industry is a very importantfactor for countrys development in various fields.One of them is economic, since the development oftransport reinforces the trade relationships betweencountries and companies. This helps countries andfirms to utilize the competitive advantage which mayhave. Therefore, the volume of transport carried outby countries could reflect their growth. This studyaims to examine the efficiency (by ship class) ofGreek-owed shipping companies, listed on New Yorkstock markets. The analysis was performed via BCCmodel of Data Envelopment Analysis (inputsorientation)

Determinants of Profitability in Aviation Industry of Europe and America

The civil aviation, is an industry evolving at exponential speed despite the significant problems that faces in the last decade (increase of oil price, terrorist attacks etc.) An important feature of aviation firms and generally all companies, is that their size reflects their efficiency and in general their economic growth. In this era of financial crisis, liquidity is a significant factor for the stabilization and growth of economic organizations. Therefore, the examination of cash flows as indicator of liquidity limitations is necessary for the measurement of firms profitability. In this study, we tried to see whether the efficiency of size of European and American airlines listed firms, depends on their growth and cash flows from investment activit

Translating the service quality gaps into strategy formulation : an experimental case study of a Greek academic department

The purpose of the current research is to develop a strategic service quality focused framework in a Greek Academic Department, translating its service quality (SQ) gaps into specific strategic directions from a “student-focused” perspective. The research is separated in two parts and follows the recommendations of Tan and Pawitra (2001), using various SQ measurement techniques and management tools. In the first part a SWOT analysis is conducted and a SWOT matrix is produced in order to assess the Department’s position, mission and vision as well as to construct the “Academic” questionnaires based on the SERVQUAL method and the Kano’s Model. The proposed questionnaires were applied in 180 undergraduate students. The second part incorporates the Quality Function Deployment (QFD) framework which is able to translate the customers’ voice (WHATs) into specific processes and measurable actions (HOWs), generating a realistic approach for successful management. The incorporation of SERVQUAL-Kano’s model in the QFD rated the importance of the WHATs, identifying the gaps which function as obstacles in the attainment of the Academic Department’s superior SQ. With the assistance of the SWOT matrix the main strategies of the Academic Department were generated, feeding the HOWs in the QFD. According to the findings, through the student priority level of SERVQUAL and Kano model, the most important SQ dimensions were found to be: Facilities/Equipment/Services, Abilities and Capabilities of Faculty, Educational/Course Content and Department’s Reliability and Reputation. Finally, with the assistance of QFD correlations, a set of strategic directions were proposed such as Accredited Programs, Proactive Partnerships with Corporations, Well-Maintained and Attractive Buildings etc.peer-reviewe

Evaluation of empirical attributes for credit risk forecasting from numerical data

In this research, the authors proposed a new method to evaluate borrowers’ credit risk and quality of financial statements information provided. They use qualitative and quantitative criteria to measure the quality and the reliability of its credit customers. Under this statement, the authors evaluate 35 features that are empirically utilized for forecasting the borrowers’ credit behavior of a Greek Bank. These features are initially selected according to universally accepted criteria. A set of historical data was collected and an extensive data analysis is performed by using non parametric models. Our analysis revealed that building simplified model by using only three out of the thirty five initially selected features one can achieve the same or slightly better forecasting accuracy when compared to the one achieved by the model uses all the initial features. Also, experimentally verified claim that universally accepted criteria can’t be globally used to achieve optimal results is discussed

The Impact of Dow Jones Sustainability Index on US Dollar Value

The scope of this study is to address the impact of stock index returns on exchange rate. In particular, it aims to fill the literature gap regarding the determinant role of socially responsible companies on the exchange rate Trade Weighted U.S. Dollar Index to Major Currencies as a proxy for US dollar value. For this reason, the Dow Jones Sustainable Index World (DJSIW) as a proxy for the world's leading companies in terms of economic, environmental and social criteria. A generalized autoregressive conditional heteroskedasticity (GARCH) model is employed over US dollar value to major currencies for the period January, 1999 to May, 2016 using monthly data. A number of control variables were introduced in the proposed model, namely Oil prices, US interest rate, US supply money, trade balance and consumer confidence. The empirical results revealed the negative impact of stock returns of socially responsible companies on US dollar value inconsistent with proposed empirical literature. The results have significant implications for investors, portfolio managers and policymakers hedging on diversification strategies for their portfolios. Keywords: Exchange Rate, Dow Jones Sustainability Index, Returns JEL Classifications: G1, F2, Q40, M2

Quality measurement indices of narrative information of financial reports before and after the adoption of IFRS

The research for the annual reports quality and more specifically of their narrative segments has been underestimated, mainly due to the lack of trustful quality measurement and analysis methods of the businesses narrative information. This thesis, using two composed indicators, the non-weighted Index (Ma.Co.I) and the weighted Index (Ma.Co.Iw), examines the quality of narrative sections before and after I.F.R.S adoption to a sample of firms originate from Northern Europe, Western Europe and U.S.A. This time period is not characterized only by the reform of the accounting standards but also by the reform of management commentary standards. The results suggest that the I.F.R.S. adoption affect in positive way the overall annual reports quality. This positive relation is reflected more to the financial information (35%) than to ESG information regarding to environmental, social and corporate governance firms’ behavior (20%). Despite of the pressure for quality and transparency of annual reports by shareholders, our findings shows that a high volume of the sample uses techniques, during the disclosure process, for hiding information. This thesis using the OLS method by examining specific variables that may affect the quality of annual financial reports, giving significant and varied conclusions.In addition, the U.S.A compulsory standards (MD&A - Management Discussion & Analysis) does not offer significant quality improvement in relation to firm operating in Europe, suggesting that mandatory roles are not always a channel of better information. In other words, the adoption of mandatory rules is not a panacea, nor does it necessarily contribute to better corporate information, but presupposes their deliberate, honest and methodical attachment to the adoption of stricter criteria in relation to more objective and more credible financial statements.Η έρευνα για την ποιότητα της ετήσιας έκθεσης χρηματοοικονομικών καταστάσεων και συγκεκριμένα του τμήματος των αφηγηματικών/λεκτικών πληροφοριών που ενυπάρχουν σε αυτήν έχει από καιρό υποτιμηθεί, κυρίως λόγω της έλλειψης κατάλληλων δεικτών που να επιτρέπουν μια αντικειμενική μέτρηση και ανάλυση των αφηγηματικών πληροφοριών των επιχειρήσεων. Η εργασία αυτή εστιάζει στην μέτρηση της ποιότητας του αφηγηματικού μέρους των χρηματοοικονομικών καταστάσεων, με τη χρήση δύο προτεινόμενων σύνθετων δεικτών, του μη-σταθμισμένου δείκτη Ma.Co.I και του σταθμισμένου δείκτη Ma.Co.Iw, σε μια πολύ σημαντική μεταβατική περίοδο αλλαγών για τα διεθνή λογιστικά πρότυπα αλλά και για τα πρότυπα της αφηγηματικής πληροφόρησης. Η μεταβατική περίοδος αυτή, ορίζεται, πριν την εφαρμογή των Διεθνών Λογιστικών προτύπων (2002-2004) και μετά την εφαρμογή των Διεθνών Λογιστικών προτύπων (2005-2007), ενώ οι γεωγραφικές περιοχές που επιλέχθηκαν ήταν η Βόρεια Ευρώπη, η Δυτική Ευρώπη και η ΗΠΑ. Τα αποτελέσματα της έρευνας δείχνουν ότι μετά την υιοθέτηση των Διεθνών Λογιστικών προτύπων (ΔΛΠ), υπήρξε βελτίωση στην ποιότητα των ετήσιων χρηματοοικονομικών καταστάσεων. Ωστόσο, η βελτίωση αυτή αποτυπώθηκε περισσότερο στις οικονομικές πληροφορίες στο ποσοστό του 35% σε αντίθεση με τις Περιβαλλοντικές, Κοινωνικές και Εταιρικής διακυβέρνησης πληροφορίες (ESG-Environmental, Social and Governance) όπου η αύξηση τους κυμάνθηκε κατά μέσο όρο στο ποσοστό του 20%.Παρά τη συνεχιζόμενη ζήτηση των επενδυτών για περισσότερη ποιότητα στην δημοσιευμένη χρηματοοικονομική έκθεση των εταιρειών, στο δείγμα που επιλέχθηκε στο πλαίσιο της παρούσας έρευνας, ένας μεγάλος αριθμός επιχειρήσεων φαίνεται να μην συγκλίνει προς αυτή την κατεύθυνση αλλά να επενδύει σε τεχνικές διαχείρισης εντυπώσεων και απόκρυψης της πληροφόρησης αυτής. Οι εν λόγω τεχνικές ερευνήθηκαν στην συγκεκριμένη διδακτορική διατριβή (Δ.Δ), με την χρήση της μεθόδου των ελαχίστων τετραγώνων (OLS) εξετάζοντας συγκεκριμένους παράγοντες που μπορεί να επηρεάζουν την ποιότητα των ετήσιων χρηματοοικονομικών εκθέσεων, δίνοντας σημαντικά και ποικίλα συμπεράσματα. Τέλος, η γεωγραφική περιοχή των ΗΠΑ η οποία εφαρμόζει υποχρεωτικά τους κανόνες του αφηγηματικού πλαισίου “Συζήτηση και Ανάλυση της Διαχείρισης” (MD&A - Management Discussion & Analysis , δεν διαφαίνεται να προσφέρει σημαντική βελτίωση ως προς την ποιότητα των χρηματοοικονομικών καταστάσεων, σε σχέση με τις εταιρείες που δραστηριοποιούνται στην Ευρώπη (Βόρεια και Δυτική Ευρώπη), στις οποίες η υιοθέτηση του αφηγηματικού πλαισίου είναι προαιρετική. Λαμβάνοντας ως σημαντικό μήνυμα ότι οι υποχρεωτικοί κανόνες αφηγηματικής πληροφόρησης δεν είναι απαραίτητα και δίαυλοι ποιοτικότερης πληροφόρησης, αλλά οι εκάστοτε εταιρείες μπορούν να γίνουν με την θέληση τους περισσότερο αξιόπιστες προς τα ενδιαφερόμενα μέλη τους

It Is Time for Anti-Bribery: Financial Institutions Set the New Strategic “Roadmap” to Mitigate Illicit Practices and Corruption in the Market

The financial sector is characterized by complexity due to the management of a large volume of transactions, which can lead to the difficulty of considering, identifying, and monitoring them. The lack of mechanisms in monitoring and control transactions can contribute to the development of illegal practices within a company, such as fraud, corruption, bribery, and money laundering. These phenomena can affect financial institutions negatively. Therefore, the development of an appropriate corporate governance system can ensure to members of the board and executives in a company that any illegal practice can be detected. This study aims to highlight the factors that contribute to the development of illegal practices within European financial institutions. This can help executives to plan and mitigate the illicit practices that may emerge. For this purpose, a binary logit regression analysis on panel data from 2018 to 2020 was applied to 336 European financial companies. The findings of this research emphasize the crucial role of corporate governance in the prevention of the development of illicit issues within European financial institutions, while human resources can be characterized as a pathway to corruption. Both factors, corporate governance and human resources, are main pillars of environmental, social, and corporate governance (ESG), which indicates the need of the financial sector in Europe for the elaboration of anti-corruption strategies. Thus, companies within the sector can improve their ESG score

The Effects of Commodities and Financial Markets on Crude Oil

Investigating crude oil price volatility is crucial, because crude oil price certainly affects the economy through many channels. This study applies a Vector Auto Regression (VAR) model to examine the impact of crude oil market on basic commodities, financial markets and industrial production. We find that the production in the US economy has an important effect on the crude oil prices. In addition we noticed a higher increase in crude oil price volatility after a large negative shock, contrary to a large positive one. Also, it was found that, in the short-run, oil price volatility is not influenced by short-run interest rates or industrial production. An adverse linkage between crude oil prices and industrial production has been proved confirming the economic theorists claiming that there is a close linkage between oil price shocks and economic activity. Finally, our findings indicate that there is Granger causality between crude oil and the endogenous variables used in the Granger causality framework