1,721,052 research outputs found
Valuing Human Capital Career Development: A Real Options Approach
Full text linkPurpose – There has been a long controversy in the literature on assessing the value of human capital – a longsought but elusive and challenging task. The ability to quantify flexible human capital (FHC) has been a shortcoming in extant literature. We make a meaningful contribution by showing how real options (RO) methodology can be used to quantify FHC and we provide complementary case study evidence from Fortune 500 “best companies to work for” that the value of employee career development is higher in more volatile sectors in line with real options theory (ROT).
Design/methodology/approach – This article provides a prescriptive RO methodology for adopting a more flexible, staged SHRM organizational perspective suitable for uncertain environments, and explores its theoretical and empirical implications through the dual use of RO methodological modelling and multi-case study data involving ten Fortune 500 companies. The case study approach is aimed at creating managerially relevant knowledge. The relevance of our approach to managerial practice is shown through guidelines on how a company like Google might use the RO methodology to estimate the career development option value so as to inform its internal development program for employees to create and capture value.
Findings – Our focus is on the staging flexibility in HR as exemplified by the internal career development process. This process can be viewed as a multi-stage (compound) option involving various types of HC uncertainty, HC options, and HR practices. We model staging HR deployment via the option to promote staff employees to middle level management, itself embedding the option to rise to the top management. To empirically validate our valuation approach, we present case study research that enables quantifying the option value of a career development program and allows assessing how much a mismatch exists in a sample of ten public U.S. companies.
Research limitations/implications – The overall staging quantification idea is important as it offers guidance as to how to value HR as a sequential investment process under uncertain demand or skill conditions. The analysis is limited to the extent that staged career development might interact with other types of human capital (e.g. switch and learning) options and HR practices (e.g. training). Human resources may also interact with other organizational intangibles, such as brand equity. Our analysis also does not account for
psychological considerations from the employees’ perspective, such organizational commitment facilitating trust to enable reciprocal commitments, which remains a fruitful subject for future extensions.
Practical implications – ROT can provide useful guidance and tools for HR scholars and managers. By keeping tabs on HR-based flexibility value and focusing on the key input variables driving HR flexibility, HR managers can determine the flexibility value unleashed from staging the deployment of HC resources in the face of unanticipated demand and skills shifts.
Originality/value – This is the first paper that attempts to quantify the value of staged career development flexibility using the RO methodology. This article will be cited for its innovativeness in being the first to quantify the value of human capital’s contribution to corporate value creation and provide objective evaluation in the context of organizational career-development programs. Besides providing useful insights to scholars, the article also demonstrates how the RO methodology can apply to actual companies and inform managerial
practice offering guidelines of relevance to HR practitioners on how to quantify the value of staged HC development in an uncertain environment
Desenvolvimento da parte aérea de xGraptosedum 'Francesco Baldi' (Sedum carnicolor) sob diferentes condições de sombreamento
Full text linkTrabalho de Conclusão de Curso (Graduação)As suculentas são plantas ornamentais populares no Brasil, mas há escassez de bibliografia sobre suas características e seu cultivo, visto o grande número de espécies e famílias. A xGraptosedum 'Francesco Baldi' é resultado do cruzamento de gêneros de plantas da família Crassulaceae. Objetivou-se avaliar o desenvolvimento de Graptosedum F. em diferentes condições de sombreamento (pleno sol, malha preta 50%, malha preta 80% e sombra), cultivadas em substrato fibra de coco 40%. foram avaliadas características quantitativas (numero de folhas, largura da maior folha e altura de planta) e qualitativas (mudança de coloração das folhas da parte aérea, estiolamento, involução e conformação final). As mudas mantidas a pleno sol e sombra não apresentaram conformação final agradável. As plantas sob malha preta 50% apresentaram aspecto mais atraente pois desenvolveram mais folhas, não estiolaram nem involuíram. Portanto, recomenda-se o cultivo de Graptosedum F. sob malha 50%, em substrato de fibra de coco, irrigadas uma vez por semana
The Role of ESG Scoring and Greenwashing Risk in Explaining the Yields of Green Bonds: A Conceptual Framework and an Econometric Analysis
Full text linkThis article aims to investigate the factors that most influence the yields of public sector and corporate green bonds besides those conveyed by the conventional finance theory (e.g., rating, volatility, maturity). To accomplish that, we first develop a theoretical framework that postulates the negative relationship between the size of the underlying project financed by a green bond issuance, the use of the ESG metrics to quantify such impact, as well as the positive relationship between the risk of greenwashing practices by the issuer, and the yield to maturity of the green bond. We then provide an empirical validation of our conceptual framework by estimating multiple regression models applied to two distinct samples of public and corporate green bonds issued globally in the 2012-2020 period. The reliability of our results is confirmed by further exploring the effects of some key determinants on the yield spread of green versus comparable ordinary bonds of corporate issuers. Our findings corroborate our theoretical predictions showing that investors are inclined to accept lower returns in exchange for contributing to the funding of infrastructure projects with greater impact on the sustainability of target communities or territories and require higher premia as a form of compensation when being exposed to higher risk of greenwashing by issuers. At corporate level, greenwashing risk is higher among manufacturing (rather than services) firms but more pronounced in the financial sector. At public level, greenwashing strategies may be more easily pursued by multinational or sovereign issuers rather than local governments as the former’s greater distance from communities enables them to elude investors’ controls. Important recommendations are drawn for investors, rating agencies, and policymakers
Exploring the role of ESG for the performance and risks of infrastructure investing: evidence from the international funds' market
Full text linkPurpose: This study investigates the relation between ESG-driven investment strategies and the performance of infrastructure funds. More specifically, this study examines the impact of the different dimensions – environmental (E), social (S) and governance (G) – of the ESG profile of infrastructure funds on their performance. Design/methodology/approach: To study the risk-return properties of infrastructure funds and the relationship with their ESG profiles, an econometric analysis is conducted, based on a sample of 180 listed, ESG-oriented infrastructure funds identified through Refinitiv Eikon. Findings: The results show that infrastructure funds with more solid environmental investment policies experience a lower performance, while those with a stronger social orientation yield a superior performance. Governance-related investment policies seem trivial in determining the performance of these funds. Further analysis shows that ESG controversies have a negative impact on infrastructure funds' performance, whereas Emissions and Resource Use scores, both proxying for different elements under the environmental pillar, have opposite signs. Finally, the Community score has a positive impact on funds' performance consistent with the positive impact of the social pillar score. The study also provides a number of sub-sample analyses to shed light on the conditions under which each pillar has significant impact on funds’ performance. Practical implications: First, infrastructure funds should choose the composition of their portfolio holdings in a way that the total return is not penalized by the prevalence of the tricky E aspects (compliance with environmental regulations) over the main benefits of the S dimension. Second, fund managers need to bet on infrastructures with an expected impact on the social pillar dimension such as those aimed at promoting the wealth of the local communities (e.g. hospitals, schools). Third, to strengthen the fund's social dimension, fund managers must increase the dollar amount of the assets under management to count on a higher firepower. Originality/value: This study makes three contributions to literature. First, the ESG profiles of the infrastructure funds operating both at local and global level and their relationship with annual performance are studied. Second, the different dimensions of the ESG profile of infrastructure funds are investigated by measuring their impact on performance. Third, the study sheds light on some detailed but relevant aspects of this phenomenon by analyzing the breakdown of the ESG profile of infrastructure funds into four sustainability sub-scores capturing their efforts to reduce CO2 emissions, the use of polluting materials and to influence local communities as well their exposure to the risk of litigation due to the occurrence of ESG controversies. This study addresses the extent to which the adoption of ESG investment policies by the infrastructure funds have an impact on their performances
Going Beyond Counting First Authors in Author Co-citation Analysis
Full text linkThe present study examines one of the fundamental aspects of author co-citation analysis (ACA) - the way co-citation
counts are defined. Co-citation counting provides the data on which all subsequent statistical analyses and mappings
are based, and we compare ACA results based on two different types of co-citation counting - the traditional type that
only counts the first one among a cited work's authors on the one hand and a non-traditional type that takes into
account the first 5 authors of a cited work on the other hand. Results indicate that the picture produced through this non-traditional author co-citation counting contains more coherent author groups and is therefore considerably clearer. However, this picture represents fewer specialties in the research field being studied than that produced through the traditional first-author co-citation counting when the same number of top-ranked authors is selected and analyzed. Reasons for these effects are discussed
Il ruolo dei green bonds nel finanziamento delle infrastrutture sostenibili
No full textNegli ultimi decenni, i continui mutamenti climatici ed ambientali hanno evidenziato la necessità di attuare una trasformazione della rete infrastrutturale tradizionale orientandola verso una maggiore sostenibilità. Per infrastrutture sostenibili si intendono tutte quelle opere ideate, progettate, organizzate e realizzate al fine di assicurare il rispetto di cinque dimensioni quali: la sostenibilità ambientale; sociale; finanziaria; istituzionale e tecnologica.
Nel presente lavoro verrà posta l’attenzione sulla dimensione della sostenibilità finanziaria necessaria al finanziamento di dette infrastrutture. Nei prossimi anni, infatti, il settore finanziario dovrà affrontare nuove sfide per promuovere e garantire la c.d. finanza sostenibile che sia in grado di finanziare investimenti volti a contrastare gli effetti avversi del cambiamento climatico. La green transition, almeno per i prossimi trenta anni, richiederà, dunque, l’implementazione di significativi piani di investimento da parte delle istituzioni internazionali, dei singoli Governi e del settore privato, che dovranno essere supportati da un adeguato sostegno finanziario.
Attualmente, fra gli strumenti finanziari che più si prestano a soddisfare tale necessità si possono individuare i Green Bonds e i Green Loans, che generalmente vengono emessi o concessi da istituzioni pubbliche e private. In questo lavoro verrà posta l’attenzione esclusivamente sullo strumento dei Green Bonds evidenziandone il funzionamento, le dinamiche di mercato e i fattori che maggiormente impattano sui rendimenti di tali titoli. Inoltre, attraverso l’ausilio di un modello econometrico, sono state individuate le principali variabili che maggiormente hanno influenzato i rendimenti di questi titoli, emessi dal settore pubblico e dalle aziende private, fra il 2012 e il 2019
Il direct lending alle imprese da parte delle compagnie assicurative: regole, opportunità ed implicazioni di policy per l’industria italiana
No full textIl finanziamento diretto alle imprese da parte delle compagnie di assicurazione (c.d. direct lending) è una importante innovazione normativa che, tuttavia, non ha ancora trovato concreta applicazione. Un possibile fattore ostativo risiede negli assorbimenti patrimoniali addizionali richiesti per lo svolgimento dell’attività creditizia e nel conseguente peggioramento delle condizioni di solvibilità delle compagnie. Il presente saggio – dopo aver descritto gli aspetti più
importanti della normativa sul direct lending – propone alcune simulazioni finalizzate a quantificare l’impatto che la creazione di portafogli di impieghi creditizi in piccole e medie imprese, finanziata dalle riserve tecniche, può avere sul coefficiente di solvibilità (Solvency Ratio) di un campione di compagnie assicurative italiane. Le simulazioni mostrano che le compagnie orientate al direct lending mantengono una elevata capienza patrimoniale (ben al di sopra delle soglie regolamentari), il che spinge ad approfondire le motivazioni alternative che sono alla base del mancato sfruttamento di tale opportunità di business nell’industria assicurativa nazionale. Ne segue il suggerimento di meccanismi di policy attivabili per consentire alle compagnie di veicolare risparmio privato verso l’economia reale, assumendo – seppure in via complementare e residuale – il ruolo di lender alle imprese
Who Uses Trade Finance? Case-Based Evidence from Italian Exporters
No full textOur study aims to investigate the characteristics of those export-oriented firms that are more inclined to borrow capital or receive payments via use of trade finance (TF) products so as to boost their international trade activities and expand globally being exposed to a minimum counterparty risk. In this sense, this article seeks to provide additional empirical evidence enlightening the mechanics of the commercial bank-(corporate) customer relationship in the international trade financing context characterized by shortage of data and business practice opacity. Relying on the fact that only banks collect data on their own TF transactions for internal reporting purposes, we had the opportunity to access the proprietary information on export lending conducted by Crédit Agricole with 155 corporate customers in 2015. This enabled us to collect a case study-based set of TF transactions. Our study challenges extant research by adding novel empirical evidence on how TF works so as to address the issue of the dearth of data that limits empirical efforts in this area. The contribution of our research is threefold. First, we advance the knowledge of Italy considered as an interesting country case study in the international trade area due to its characteristics of an export-oriented and bank-driven economy. Second, we investigate the characteristics of those firms that are more in need and thus organized to obtain bank-intermediated export finance to successfully pursue their international expansion strategies. Third, we provide guidelines to bank managers on how to set the main terms of TF products for corporate clients by drawing upon a better understanding of the latter’s features. This may improve the way relationship lending is conducted in the international commercial banking business. In this vein, our study expands the body of research on relationship banking
Variations on the Author
Full text link“Variations on the Author” discusses two of Eduardo Coutinho’s recent films (Um Dia na Vida, from 2010, and Últimas Conversas, posthumously released in 2015) and their contribution to the general question of documentary authorship. The director’s filmography is characterized by a consistent yet self-effacing form of authorial self-inscription: Coutinho often features as an interviewer that rather than express opinions propels discourses; an interviewer that is good at listening. This mode of self-inscription characterizes him as an author who is not expressive but who is nonetheless markedly present on the screen. In Um Dia na Vida, however, Coutinho is completely absent form the image, while Últimas Conversas, on the contrary, includes a confessional prologue that moves the director from the margins to the center of his films. This article examines the ways in which these works stand out in the filmography of a director who offers new insights into the notion of cinematic authorship
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