Tracking Performance: When Less Is More

With or without a balanced scorecard, it is easy for managers to become inundated with metrics and measures. In this article, we first highlight the differences between lagging and leading measures. Second, we illustrate the importance of differentiating the strategic leading indicators-the key leading measures-from those that may improve operational efficiency without significant improvements in profitability. Third, we use a business simulation to demonstrate that focusing on and improving the key leading measures has the greatest impact on profitability, but getting lost in the secondary measures dilutes the effect. Combined, the results illustrate that less may be more when it comes to measuring performance

Do Different Cost Systems Make a Difference?

Presents a survey of several U.S. manufacturing companies to determine whether managers within companies that use different cost systems believe the information provided by those systems differs. Reason for the decision of companies to continue to use other types of cost systems; Emphasis on activity-based costing; Association of variable costing with the theory of constraints literature

The Impact of PBIS Instructional Strategies on Student Engagement

AbstractSchool districts across the United States are using multiple systems to improve teacher instruction and student engagement. The problem at a middle school in North Texas is that it is unknown how middle school teachers are using Positive Behaviors Interventions and Supports (PBIS) to engage students. The purpose of this basic qualitative study was to explore how sixth-grade teachers are using PBIS instructional strategies to engage students, as well as sixth-grade teachers’ perceptions of PBIS for engaging students in the classroom. PBIS, along with Watson’s behavioral theory and Vygotsky’s cognitive development theory, served as the conceptional framework for this study. The research questions concerned how teachers used PBIS instructional strategies to engage students and teachers’ perceptions of PBIS instructional strategies to engage students. This study encompassed open-ended semi-structured interviews using nine participants who were certified teachers, taught a core subject, and used PBIS instructional strategies in their classrooms. The data were collected and analyzed through the process of open, axial, and selective coding. Three themes emerged: effective environment, systems for support, and learning leakages. Based on the findings of this project, professional development was integrated to address concerns and reoccurring themes. Teachers may benefit from positive social change by gaining insight needed to better meet the needs of all students through PBIS systems. Students may benefit from positive social change by an enhance the overall learning experience and in turn, improving student academic achievement

Promoting Investments in Intangible Organizational Assets through Aligned Incentive Compensation Plans

In order for large companies to continue to compete and expand in the global business world, it is important that the performance and compensation of strategic business unit managers are aligned with the organization’s overall long-term goals and strategies

Correcting x ray spectra obtained from the AXAF VETA-I mirror calibration for pileup, continuum, background and deadtime

The VETA-I mirror was calibrated with the use of a collimated soft X-ray source produced by electron bombardment of various anode materials. The FWHM, effective area and encircled energy were measured with the use of proportional counters that were scanned with a set of circular apertures. The pulsers from the proportional counters were sent through a multichannel analyzer that produced a pulse height spectrum. In order to characterize the properties of the mirror at different discrete photon energies one desires to extract from the pulse height distribution only those photons that originated from the characteristic line emission of the X-ray target source. We have developed a code that fits a modeled spectrum to the observed X-ray data, extracts the counts that originated from the line emission, and estimates the error in these counts. The function that is fitted to the X-ray spectra includes a Prescott function for the resolution of the detector a second Prescott function for a pileup peak and a X-ray continuum function. The continuum component is determined by calculating the absorption of the target Bremsstrahlung through various filters correcting for the reflectivity of the mirror and convolving with the detector response

Food Security: The What, How, Why and Where to of Food Security in NSW. Discussion Paper

This Discussion Paper considers food security in the context of food supply and access systems, and articulates how it links with food consumption patterns, weight and risk of chronic disease, in order to provide direction for research, policy and programs. The paper provides an overview of what is meant by the term ‘food security’, a summary of studies describing patterns of food insecurity in Australia, and strategies for promoting food security, with examples of programs. This synthesis also discusses the implications for research and programs in NSW. Importantly, it also seeks to clarify where there are or might be both common and divergent approaches to addressing food security and obesity and chronic disease prevention. Whilst there are known global and national influences on food security, this document mainly focuses on community, household and individual level food security

How Groups Produce Higher-Quality Balanced Scorecards than Individuals

Many articles explain how to develop a balanced score card using groups, but the literature provides little insight about why groups are important. We gathered data from 12 groups involved in developing balanced score cards to determine how they use information suggested by their members. We found that the groups filter individual members\u27 poor ideas and carry through their worthy ideas to the group score card--although not all poor ideas are filtered and not all good ideas are carried forward. We also found some evidence that groups create innovative ideas but to a lesser extent than filtering and carrying through ideas. Our findings suggest that the outcome of the group process depends on the quality of the potential score cardobjectives and metrics that group members bring to the discussion. As such, entities that plan to develop a balanced scorecard in a group environment should ensure that the group contains a diverse set of individuals--each with different training, skills, and perspectives--to ensure that the group considers a large pool of good ideas

The Relationship between Pre-Employment Expectations, Experiences, and the Length of Stay in Public Accounting

This study examines the relationship between work-family conflict, employment expectations, and length of stay in public accounting. Length of stay is modeled as a function of demographic factors and job characteristics associated with work-family balance, measured in terms of the extent to which the employees\u27 expectations matched their actual employment experiences. Results indicated that gender, the presence of children in the household, flexible schedules, and the presence of mentors were related to length of stay in public accounting

Skin conductance responses indicate children are physiologically aroused by their favourite branded food and drink products

Children’s favourite food and beverage brands use various tactics to foster positive associations and loyalty. This brand-consumer dynamic is frequently influenced by the use of implicit techniques and emotional appeals. Few studies have used physiological methods to examine the connections that brands build with children and the influence this has on their automatic responses. These techniques are potentially less prone to bias than behavioural or cognitive methods. This is the first study to explore the implicit response that children have to images of their favourite food and beverage brands using skin conductance responses as a marker of arousal. Australian children aged 8–11 years (n = 48) were recruited. Images of the participants’ favourite branded food and beverage products, alongside images of the same products unpackaged, their family and friends, and neutral objects were presented in a randomised order with a standard timed interval between images. Children were significantly more aroused by branded images of their favourite food and beverage products than by their unpackaged counterparts (p < 0.042, d = 0.4). The physiological response to the branded products was similar to the response to the children’s family and friends (p = 0.900, d = −0.02). These findings suggest that children may have an implicit connection to their favourite branded products