1,720,972 research outputs found
CSR reporting and ownership structure: Evidence from Italian listed companies
No full textThe paper empirically explores how firms’ Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) disclosure varies according to their ownership structure. Three different kinds of ownership structures are considered: family firms (FFs), state-owned firms (SOFs) and firms with dispersed ownership (DOFs). It is the first study examining the relationship between CSR disclosure and ownership structure, which includes in the analysis also FFs and SOFs. The analysis is provided on a sample of 192 listed firms with reference to Italy, a suitable setting for the purpose of the study due to the considerable presence of both FFs and SOFs. Firstly, a content analysis on the CSR documents disclosed by the 192 firms is provided and then data are empirically analysed to test whether the ownership structure influences a firm’s CSR disclosure. Results show that FFs and SOFs disclose less CSR information and the explanation can be found in the lower level of agency problems they have to face. The paper contributes to the stream of literature about CSR disclosure, because it argues that the contents of CSR disclosure vary according to firm’s ownership structure and also to those about FFs and SOFs because it shows that the presence of a concentrated ownership lowers the level of CSR information disclosed
The Innovative Forms of Corporate Responsibility Disclosure: The Sustainability Reporting and the Use of Social Media
No full text
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
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
Appropriate Similarity Measures for Author Cocitation Analysis
Full text linkWe provide a number of new insights into the methodological discussion about author cocitation analysis. We first argue that the use of the Pearson correlation for measuring the similarity between authors’ cocitation profiles is not very satisfactory. We then discuss what kind of similarity measures may be used as an alternative to the Pearson correlation. We consider three similarity measures in particular. One is the well-known cosine. The other two similarity measures have not been used before in the bibliometric literature. Finally, we show by means of an example that our findings have a high practical relevance.information science;Pearson correlation;cosine;similarity measure;author cocitation analysis
Il settore dell’energia elettrica e del gas naturale nell’Unione Europea: strategie e performance delle local utility
Full text linkIn questi ultimi anni sia i servizi di pubblica utilità di maggiore rilevanza industriale (telecomunicazioni, energia elettrica, gas naturale, servizi idrici) sia i servizi pubblici locali hanno sperimentato, anche se con tempi e modi diversi a seconda del comparto e del paese considerato, una fase di profonda ristrutturazione, avviata con il ridimensionamento del ruolo dello Stato nell’economia.
Questi processi di liberalizzazione e privatizzazione hanno reso i mercati nazionali sempre più competitivi, favorendo la nascita di nuovi operatori (new comer) e costringendo al tempo stesso le aziende presenti (incumbent e local utility), quasi sempre monopolisti per legge o di fatto, a riconsiderare il proprio ruolo nel mercato. Inoltre, il fatto che questi fenomeni abbiano assunto una dimensione sempre più globale, o comunque internazionale, ha amplificato ulteriormente gli effetti della concorrenza e del libero mercato al di là dei confini geografici dei singoli stati nazionali, moltiplicando sia le opportunità di business sia le minacce per i competitor.
In questo contesto, il progredire dei processi di deregulation è accompagnato da una tendenza crescente da parte delle imprese di pubblici servizi a convergere su più settori dando origine al modello della multiutility, vale a dire società in grado di offrire, tendenzialmente alla stessa base di clienti, una molteplicità di servizi di pubblica utilità.
Il presente lavoro, dopo una breve ricognizione del settore dei servizi pubblici in generale, si concentra sulle filiere energetiche, che sono quelle investite per prime da cambiamenti rilevanti nella struttura del mercato.
Nella prima parte della ricerca, dopo aver definito il concetto di servizio di pubblica utilità, si ripercorre la storia dello sviluppo dei servizi pubblici in Europa dalle origini fino ai nostri giorni, nell’alternarsi delle forme di mercato e dei modelli di gestione. Successivamente, l’attenzione si concentra sui settori dell’energia elettrica e del gas naturale, che vengono analizzati nelle loro caratteristiche tecniche ed economiche. In particolare, verrà anche studiata la struttura attuale dell’industria energetica europea e la regolazione del settore dell’energia alla luce del processo di liberalizzazione del mercato.
Nella seconda parte del lavoro, dopo una puntuale descrizione del nuovo scenario competitivo europeo dei servizi di pubblica utilità, determinato da cambiamenti del contesto normativo, tecnologico e concorrenziale, si procede analizzando le risposte strategiche adottate dalle local utility e le traiettorie di sviluppo emergenti. In questo quadro merita una particolare attenzione l’emergere del modello multiutility, che si pone come risposta strategica predominante all’evoluzione del contesto competitivo dei servizi di pubblica utilità. Anche se, storicamente, le imprese multiservizio possono essere considerate figlie dell’opportunità di effettuare una gestione congiunta dei servizi pubblici offerti in regime di monopolio in una data area geografica, la recente evoluzione del fenomeno delle multiutility sembra stimolata soprattutto dall’apertura dei mercati dei servizi di pubblica utilità.
L’adozione del modello multiutility ci sembra, quindi, un’opzione strategica sia per gli incumbent, per far fronte alla maggiore concorrenza che in questi settori si sta progressivamente affermando, sia per le local utility, per estendere il proprio business, sia per i new comer, per entrare in comparti in precedenza protetti da barriere regolamentari. Come vedremo, la logica di questo processo, dal punto di vista imprenditoriale, pare essere soprattutto legata alla presenza di opportunità di diversificazione, alla conoscenza del territorio e dei legami (anche contrattuali) con la clientela potenziale e allo sfruttamento di vere sinergie sul lato dei costi (anche se queste ultime, a volte, possono risultare relativamente marginali).
L’analisi prosegue prendendo in considerazione alcuni casi aziendali particolarmente significativi, che dimostrano le tendenze delineate nella prima parte del lavoro. Oggetto dell’analisi sono sette gruppi societari europei di grande rilievo internazionale, operanti, in via principale, nei settori dell’energia elettrica e del gas naturale. I gruppi aziendali analizzati sono: A2A, Hera, Iride ed Acea (di origine italiana), Union Fenosa e Iberdrola (di origine spagnola) ed Energie Baden-Württemberg, o EnBW, (di origine tedesca).
Lo studio di ogni caso aziendale si sviluppa su due piani distinti ma paralleli. Il primo è quello dell’analisi strategica del gruppo d’impresa, con particolare riferimento all’azionariato, alla struttura organizzativa prescelta e al posizionamento strategico sul mercato; il secondo livello di analisi concerne, invece, la valutazione delle performance economico-finanziarie del gruppo, che, in questa sede, viene svolta principalmente tramite i tradizionali strumenti dell’analisi di bilancio.
Infine, si tenterà di valutare il grado di efficacia della liberalizzazione del mercato energetico, ovvero l’impatto prodotto sui cittadini, destinatari del servizio, in termini di prezzi praticati e qualità del servizio offerto, mediante un’analisi comparativa dell’andamento dei prezzi nei principali paesi europei e della qualità percepita dai cittadini.
La ricerca si chiude con alcune osservazioni critiche che, sottolineando i principali risultati ottenuti, permettono di comprendere l’importanza del modello multiutility nel settore dei servizi di pubblica utilità e le sue ulteriori possibilità di futuro sviluppo.The European energy sector has gone through a period of significant changes. Since the 1980s a series of cultural, technological and economic changes have resulted in a reassessment of this industry. As a result of European Directives 2003/54 and 2003/55, respectively on the liberalization of the internal market for electricity and natural gas, the European energy sector has been subject to extensive institutional changes which have affected the competitive nature of the market and, consequently, the structure of the industry. The process of liberalization of the energy sector has been accompanied by a progressive change in the ownership structure, in the corporate governance model, and, indeed, in the strategy of public utilities.
In this dissertation I attempt to assess how the process of liberalization and privatization of the European energy sector affects the management and the performance of the major European local utilities. The aim of the dissertation is to determine how external factors, such as regulation, market competition and technological innovation, and internal factors, such as ownership, corporate governance and culture impact on the strategy and the performance of the local utilities.
Secondly, I attempt to compare the post-liberalization strategies of local utilities in the energy sector and explain why local utilities have changed their direction of development. Consequently, I will compare the economic-financial performance of the European local utilities and explain how the liberalization of the European market affects their performance. Hence I will outline the emerging business model for local utilities in the liberalized market of electricity and gas. Finally, I will point out some remarks as concerns the effects of market liberalization and privatization process on the industry structure and, subsequently, on the costumers satisfaction.
Theoretically this thesis is inspired by both strategic management literature and financial analysis literature. Concerning the management of public utilities the industrial organization studies focusing on the structure-conduct-performance paradigm is the approach which allows us to explain the new strategies adopted by local utilities in consequence of the liberalization and the privatization of the European electricity and gas industry.
The research method consists of presenting the theoretical background and empirical evidence, which includes the results of the multiple case study analysis. Therefore, to find the answer to the research question, I conduct a descriptive and exploratory research in the first logic stage, and a more explanatory in the second one.
The first step of the research is to analyse the main changes in the structure of public utilities industry in terms of regulation, organization system, management model, ownership and corporate governance mechanisms. Secondly, the thesis focuses on the new strategy adopted by the European local utilities after the liberalization of the electricity and gas markets in the European Union. Thirdly, the research focuses on the economic-financial performance obtained by these local utilities and the underpinned logic of value creation. After an analysis and discussion of the research findings (in term of similarities and differences) in the strategy and performance of the European local utilities, the dissertation ends with a summary and some conclusions on the emerging business model in the European energy sector. Finally, it will outline the impact of these crucial changes on the customers satisfaction.
This thesis is based on a qualitative multiple case study analysis of the major European local utilities quoted on the stock exchange, particularly it focuses on the following groups of companies: Iberdrola, Union Fenosa, EnBW, A2A, Hera, Iride and Acea. Several documents (e.g. strategic plans, organigrams, financial reports, internal documents, etc), websites of local utilities, European institutions laws and reports, and the general picture of the European electricity and gas sectors will be studied.
From the analysis carried out, it emerges that the strategy of local utilities has changed after the liberalization and privatization processes of the European electricity and gas markets. In particular, the introduction of competition in the internal market and the deregulation of the sector has led to new rules of behaviour which utilities should adopt to survive in this new competitive setting.
The structure-strategy-performance paradigm allows us to determine the strategies adopted by the European local utilities and the expected results of this period of transition leading to market competition. The results of the analysis indicate a common tendency toward the growth in firm size, which assumes a specific form for each local utility. The current trends could be summarized in the following points:
• choice of unrelated diversification in other public services;
• choice of focalization on the core business and, consequently, the attempt to achieve a suitable scale (critical mass) for competing in the European internal market through the adoption of a concentration strategy;
• choice of business diversification and adoption of the ‘pure’ multiutility model; and
• choice of internationalization in other geographical markets.
Indeed, the analysis seems to indicate a tendency of the local public utilities to opt for the development of financial strategies, such as a public offering on the stock exchange, mergers and acquisitions, partnerships, and joint ventures with national and international partners. As result, three main business models of local utilities have been outlined: traditional local utility, multiutility company, and global specialist company. However, a predominant business model has emerged as archetype to aim for: a multiutility model focalized in the energy value chain, mainly based on territorial strengthening and the development of industrial and entrepreneurial aims of the local utility, at national and international levels
Dispelling the Myths Behind First-author Citation Counts
Full text linkWe conducted a full-scale evaluative citation analysis study of scholars in the XML research field to explore just how different from each other author rankings resulting from different citation counting methods actually are, and to demonstrate the capability of emerging data and tools on the Web in supporting more realistic citation counting methods. Our results contest some common arguments for the continued
use of first-author citation counts in the evaluation of scholars, such as high correlations between author rankings by first-author citation counts and other citation
counting methods, and high costs of using more realistic citation counting methods that are not well-supported by the ISI databases. It is argued that increasingly available digital full text research papers make it possible for citation analysis studies to go beyond what the ISI databases have directly supported and to employ more
sophisticated methods
koamabayili/VECTRON-author-checklist: VECTRON author checklist
No full textWe have done our best to complete the author checklist relating to the use of animals in the hut study. Note that the objective for the hut study was to evaluate the IRS treatment applications for residual efficacy against Anopheles mosquitoes, including the local An. coluzzii mosquito population. Cows were only used to attract mosquitoes into the huts and no tests were carried out directly on the cows. The author checklist is intended for use with studies where experiments are carried out on animals, which is why we have had such difficulty in completing this for the hut study, as many of the questions do not relate to how the cows were used
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