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Wong, Chun Hung Eliphas. / Thesis (M.Phil.)--Chinese University of Hong Kong, 2007. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 74-78). / Abstracts in English and Chinese. / Abstract --- p.i / Acknowledgement --- p.v / Thesis/Assessement Committee --- p.vi / List of Figures --- p.xi / Chapter 1 --- Introduction --- p.1 / Chapter 1.1 --- Literature Review --- p.13 / Chapter 1.2 --- K-Convexity --- p.16 / Chapter 1.2.1 --- "The (s, S)policy and cardinal optimality equation form" --- p.17 / Chapter 2 --- Inventory Problem --- p.25 / Chapter 2.1 --- Two-channel Inventory Model --- p.26 / Chapter 2.1.1 --- Model Formulation --- p.27 / Chapter 2.2 --- The total expected cost and constraints --- p.34 / Chapter 2.3 --- The optimality equation --- p.37 / Chapter 3 --- The two phase optimal policy --- p.40 / Chapter 3.1 --- Deviation of two phase optimal policy --- p.41 / Chapter 3.1.1 --- "First phase optimization - The (s, S, s') policy" --- p.42 / Chapter 3.1.2 --- Second phase optimization --- p.46 / Chapter 3.2 --- More about the optimal policy --- p.60 / Chapter 4 --- Further discussion and conclusion --- p.64 / Chapter 4.1 --- Multi-period problem --- p.65 / Chapter 4.1.1 --- Model formulation --- p.65 / Chapter 4.1.2 --- The challenges in extending the optimal policy --- p.67 / Chapter 4.2 --- Conclusion --- p.69 / Bibliography --- p.74

Thesis (MBA.) -- University of Limpopo, 2015 / Refer to document

Thesis (MPA.) --University of Limpopo, 2011 / The public sector is faced with increased demands for public goods and services from communities. Public institutions have limited resources which should be managed effectively for effective and efficient service delivery. The South African government initiated and implemented financial management reforms since 1994 with the aim of improving public service delivery. The Public Finance Management Act, 1999(Act 1 of 1999) was promulgated to regulate financial management. The object of Public Finance Management Act is to secure transparency, accountability and sound management of revenue, expenditure, assets and liabilities of the public sector. The aim of the Public Finance Management Act is to enable public sector managers to manage and be more accountable with the purpose of eliminating waste and corruption in the use of public resources. A Supply Chain Management system was introduced by the South African government in 2003 to ensure effective procurement and improve financial management in the public sector. The introduction of Supply Chain Management led to procurement reforms which resulted in government decentralising and delegating authority for procurement to public institutions. Supply Chain Management forms an integral part of financial management. The process integrates general financial practices with budgeting, procurement and asset management. Supply Chain Management is currently not correctly implemented by some public institutions and this lead to irregular, fruitless and wasteful expenditure. Accounting officers should recognise the importance of Supply Chain Management in order to ensure effective procurement, sound financial management and improve service delivery. The study highlights the important of implementing Supply Chain Management in an institution. The implementation of adequate Supply Chain Management practices will promote efficiency, effectiveness, transparency, openness, accountability and fairness in procurement and improve ethical conduct of officials.

Negotiation is one of the most important activities for organisations in conducting electronic business. Traditional purchasing and selling have been conducted through complex processes involving negotiation that includes coordination and cooperation. To conduct automated negotiation for electronic business, a multi-agent system is needed where agents interact with each other. To perform this activity effectively and efficiently agents need to be able to negotiate, coordinate and cooperate with each other within the system. The research detailed in this thesis investigated the negotiation process in business-to business (B2B) transactions in supply chain management for multi-agent based electronic business (e business). Specifically, it answers the following research question: How can the negotiation process in B2B transactions be formulated and applied in multi-agent based e-business? The research strategy utilized an exploratory case study framework, with methods from decision theory, game theory, fuzzy logic and simulation for analysis. A series of integrated studies were undertaken to develop: an automated negotiation protocol; negotiation strategies; and a coordination and cooperation model. These were analysed in the context of the case study, Trading Agent Competition Supply Chain Management (TAC SCM) game scenario. Currently, the TAC SCM is the only international competition involving an electronic marketplace (e market). The studies involved the negotiation strategy between two agents, where the agents will be able to solve a problem by finding the best feasible strategy to bind an agreement for negotiation. By adopting a maximin and minimax strategy, this research proposes that agents will reach a reasonable positive intention approach towards negotiation, and will increase the agreement binding rate. A negotiation strategy was also examined by Fuzzy Logic using possibility theory and linguistic variables in which it also proposes a negotiation strategy in an uncertain situation for the TAC SCM. This will aid in binding the agreement to achieve the agent’s expected profit. Next, this research reviewed the TAC SCM game and explored the procurement performance of agents.The monotonic concession negotiation protocol, which determines the rules in which the agents can offer and counter-offer in the negotiation process was investigated. The author proposes two types of protocols. The first protocol is a Non-Monotonic Protocol with theoretical analysis. The second protocol is an Extended and Flexible Iterated Negotiation Process. This research also developed an Extended Bilateral Negotiation Model based on OMG (1999). The Negotiation Mechanism involving Offering and Counter-Offering models were also developed. Next, this research reviewed the cooperation and coordination process. This study identified problems in conducting e-business and supply chain management and expected benefits for supply chains with agents working together in coordinated and cooperative processes. The utilization of the multi-agent system in supply chain management with the Enhanced and Effective Cooperative Processing Stages is discussed. To apply these stages, the author proposes an architecture of Effective Cooperative Processing for Agents, and some characteristics in modelling coordination and cooperation for TAC SCM have been outlined. The research detailed how the negotiation process in B2B transactions can be formulated and applied in multi-agent based e-business. Through the proposal of a Flexible and Iterated Negotiation Framework, consisting of an Extended Bilateral Negotiation Model and a Cooperation and Coordination Model, the research community moves further towards the ultimate goal of an efficient, economic and automated negotiation process. In summary, the main contributions of the thesis include: a theoretical analysis of the negotiation process with coordination and cooperation; proposed models for an automated negotiation process; development of strategies and protocols for automated negotiation; and the coordination and cooperation model that can be used not only in supply chain management but also in any type of e-business. / Doctor of Philosophy

Thesis (M. Phil.)--University of Hong Kong, 2006. / Title proper from title frame. Also available in printed format.

Thesis (M. Phil.)--University of Hong Kong, 2007. / Title proper from title frame. Also available in printed format.

Thesis (M. Phil.)--University of Hong Kong, 2007. / Title proper from title frame. Also available in printed format.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Ohio State University, 2006. / Title from first page of PDF file. Includes bibliographical references (p. 159-164).

Thesis (Ph.D.)--Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, 2007. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 114-121). Also available in electronic version.