Uses of Information Systems to Develop Trust in Family Firms

The family business literature has not addressed the role of information systems (IS) in the development of trust in family businesses. Through an in-depth analysis of a Chinese industrial family business in Qingdao, this study shows how several IS contribute to trust within the organization. Trust is conceptualized according to three dimensions, namely interpersonal trust, competence trust, and systems trust. Three main IS have been identified in the organization, namely WeChat, DingTalk, and the Enterprise Resource Planning system (ERP). This exploratory study analyzed how eight departments use these IS to understand which institutional logic is embedded within each IS. Each information system is conceptualized as embedded in a specific institutional logic which is not neutral in terms of trust building. These findings highlight the fact that Chinese executives use specific information systems to develop trust. ERP (here SAP) has a specific inherent institutional logic, namely rational managerialism, which contributes to system trust. Social media such as WeChat and DingTalk are embedded in their own institutional logic which makes them more adapted to specific activities. Unlike rational managerialism, the institutional logic associated with WeChat includes a strong focus on interpersonal communication, cooperation and problem-solving. WeChat is associated with the development of interpersonal trust whereas rational managerialism is rather associated with transparence and formality, thus unsuitable for developing interpersonal trust. Chinese executives use WeChat to create an informal and dynamic social space which promotes the development of stronger social ties with each other. DingTalk is associated with another logic which promotes formal information sharing, reliability and internal management. This information system contributes to the development of another type of trust, namely competence trust. The two social media contribute to sustaining interpersonal trust and competence-based trust which are critical in the development stage of a family business. Findings also show that family members need to create a forum without their presence for employees to exchange freely, thus creating a space in which trust can blossom. This paper concludes with theoretical contributions and implications for practitioners

Le contenu informatif additionnel des accruals discrétionnaires : Cas des firmes Françaises et Tunisiennes

En se basant sur la méthodologie des études d'association entre les composantes du résultat comptable (le cash flow d'exploitation, l'accrual total, l'accrual discrétionnaire et le résultat non discrétionnaire) et le rendement boursier, nous avons mené une comparaison internationale des propriétés statistiques des accruals discrétionnaires. L'objectif est de comparer les pratiques de la gestion des résultats dans des contextes différents, deux pays ayant des normes comptables différentes ; un pays développé la France et un pays en voie de développement la Tunisie. Pour cela nos estimations ont été faites sur des données de Panel en tenant compte à la fois du vecteur temps et du vecteur espace (les individus). Il apparaît que les accruals discrétionnaires des firmes françaises et tunisiennes ont un contenu informationnel additionnel par rapport au résultat non discrétionnaire et ce contenu informationnel s'intègre dans le cadre de la perspective informative.Étude d'association ; accruals discrétionnaires ; contenu informationnel additionnel ; comparaison internationale ; perspective informative

Determinants of loans and deposits strategies of foreign bank subsidiaries in emerging countries

Abstract. This paper focuses on the transmission of bank liquidity shocks in Loan and deposit in emerging markets. First, we attempt to identify factors affecting the credit strategy of foreign banks in emerging countries. Second, we test whether depositors exert market discipline on foreign subsidiaries. By combining financial variables of subsidiaries and their parent banks and macroeconomic variables of host and home countries, we investigate the factors that may affect the behavior of depositors. Our empirical approach is based on a Partial Least Squares-Path model that allows us to indentify the causal relationships between the various groups of variables. Our results show that foreign bank lending is determined by the specific financial variables of the parent bank and macroeconomic variables of the country of origin. This support that the strategy's credit of foreign subsidiary is centrally managed at the parent bank and credit supply of subsidiaries depends primary on the financial situation of its parent bank. Finally we find evidence of market discipline exercised over foreign subsidiaries in emerging countries. We show that market discipline is strongly affected by the specific characteristics of the subsidiary

Flaws in Banking Governance

International audienc

L'impact des normes IFRS sur la performance et le risque des compagnies d'assurance

Les sociétés d'assurance sont des investisseurs institutionnels importants dont les bilans se composent essentiellement d'actifs financiers. Il en résulte que tout changement dans les règles d'évaluation de ces actifs a des répercussions importantes sur leur bilan et performance financière. La mise en place en France pour ce secteur des normes IFRS, et en particuliers la comptabilisation des actifs à leur juste valeur et non plus au coût historique, constitue donc un véritable défi. Dans le présent article, nous nous proposons donc d'évaluer l'impact de l'introduction des normes IFRS, notamment l'IAS 39, sur la performance financière et le risque des compagnies d'assurance. Pour se faire, nous procédons à une analyse comparative des compagnies d'assurance composant le SBF 250 avant et après l'introduction de ces nouvelles normes à partir de plusieurs indicateurs de performance à savoir le Combined Ratio, Combined Operating Ratio, le Taux de marge nette, et le Return On Capital Employed. L'intérêt managérial de cette étude est de savoir si l'introduction de ces nouvelles normes permet aux firmes de ce secteur d'accroître leur performance et d'expliquer leur comportement dans l'adoption de ces nouvelles règles.Assurance; Performance; Risque; IFRS; IAS 39; Solvabilité II

What is the Performance of Incubators? The Point of View of Coached Entrepreneurs

This article examines the performance of incubators because their economic model implies constantly finding external sources of financing. In order to evaluate the performance of incubators in France, we questioned 404 entrepreneurs in 80 incubators. The results show the social utility of incubators in France. Indeed, they encourage entrepreneurs to pass to the act of creation, but also contribute to the success of incubated firms. Moreover, these companies create more jobs than other start-ups. However, the services provided by incubators could be more developed and focus more on the assistance in order to find potential investors. Lastly, the work quality of an incubator as perceived by entrepreneurs is largely dependant on its director. This fact can explain important variations of performance between incubators

DO IFRS PROVIDE BETTER INFORMATION ABOUT INTANGIBLES IN EUROPE ?

International audiencePurpose-The purpose of this paper is to study the information content of intangible assets under IAS/IFRS when compared to Local GAAP for European listed companies. Design/methodology/approach-The paper employs multivariate regression models for a sample of 1855 European listed firms in a six-year period, from 2002 to 2004 in Local GAAP and from 2005 to 2007 in IAS/IFRS to investigate the empirical relationships between market value of European firms and book value of their intangible assets. Findings-The results suggest that the book value of other intangible assets of European listed firms is higher under IFRS than Local GAAP and has more informative value for explaining the price of the share and stock market returns. European investors, however, consider the financial information conveyed by capitalized goodwill to be less relevant under IFRS than with Local GAAP. Thus, identified intangible assets capitalized on European company balance sheets provide more value-relevant information for shareholders than unidentified intangible assets that have been transferred into goodwill, with the exception of Italian and Finnish investors. Originality/Value-The paper adds to the existing literature on IFRS by documenting the association between the market value of European listed firms and the book value of their goodwill and other intangibles assets. The study complements prior studies by demonstrating that country differences persist despite the use of common accounting standards and that Legal and regulatory country characteristics as well as market forces could still have a significant impact on the value relevance of accounting data

Sensitivity of Interest Rate Caps to the Elasticity of Forward Rate Volatility

ABSTRACT This paper examines the pricing performance of interest rate option pricing models in the Euribor interest rate cap markets. We investigate the sensitivity of the prices of cap derivatives to alternative specifications of the forward interest rate derivatives. We use a term structure-constrained model that allows us to modify the volatility structure without altering their initial values. Consequently, any differences in prices can be directly attributed to alternative assumptions on the term structure of forward rate volatilities rather than to the initial conditions. Our results show that cap prices are significantly sensitive to the structure of forward interest rate volatility and the inelasicity of this volatility function may lead to significant pricing errors. JEL Classification: G1