This research studies the p-centre problem in the continuous space. This problem is particularly useful in locating emergency facilities, such as fire-fighting stations, police stations and hospitals where it is aimed to minimise the worst-case response time. This problem can be divided into a single facility minmax location problem (1-centre) and multi-facility minmax location problem (p-centre). The solution of the 1-centre location problem can be found optimally in polynomial time by using the well known Elzinga-Hearn algorithm for both the weighted and the unweighted case. The objective of the p-centre problem is to locate p facilities (p>1) so as to minimise the radius of the largest circle. However, in this case, we cannot always guarantee optimality as the problem is known to be NP hard. The aim of the research is to develop and analyse powerful meta-heuristics including the hybridisation of exact methods and heuristics to solve this global optimisation problem. To our knowledge this is the first study that meta-heuristics are developed for this problem. In addition larger instances previously used in the literature are tested .This is achieved by designing an efficient variable neighbourhood search, adapting a powerful perturbation method and extending a newly developed reformulation local search. Large instances are used to evaluate our approaches with promising results.

Two papers (Ding and Jia, 2012; Al-Najjar and Ding, 2014) contribute to research on product market efficiency and the remaining three (Ding and Cheng, 2011; Ding and Hou, 2015; Chen, Ding, Hou and Johan, 2015) contribute to financial market efficiency. Taken together, the underlying theme of these papers has important implications for resources allocation and the aggregate welfare of an economy.

This research effort seeks to investigate the co-creation of customer value in distribution channels of financial services as perceived by customers. In financial services, an in-depth investigation of customer value is necessary because of its recognised strategic imperative for competitive advantage (Woodruff, 1997). The Service Dominant Logic further demonstrates the importance of customer value as the basis of customers’ evaluations of products or service offerings (Vargo and Lusch, 2004). Customer value assessments are typically based on core services. However, core services are rapidly copied, diminishing prior competitive advantages. Hence, other sources of customer value and competitive advantage have to be considered. In light of this, distribution channels are considered resilient sources of value for the customer (Ballantyne and Varey, 2006). Specifically, this research seeks to empirically determine the type of value co-created through interactions in various distribution channels of financial services and the degree to which the various types of value vary, in distribution channel use. The conceptual model developed for this study synthesises two perspectives of customer value. The first perspective is the unidimensional perspective, which posits that customer value is a trade off between perceived benefits and perceived sacrifices. The alternative perspective is the multidimensional perspective where customer value is multidimensional. Various types of value, functional or utilitarian as well as emotional and aesthetic value are offered in the extant literature. In financial services, dominant studies focus on adoption and non-adoption of financial services channels particularly innovative technological channels such as the internet channel and mobile channel. A study of the customer value of various channels in the multichannel context of financial services is relatively absent. Therefore, a two-step research design was utilised. First, an exploratory study was conducted to determine the different benefits and sacrifices perceived by customers when using the distribution channels. The first stage of the study incorporated an exploratory study of semi-structured interviews conducted on a sample of 22 respondents. The hypotheses developed for the study were based on the exploratory study and the extant literature of customer value and distribution channels. The second stage of the study was a survey of 300 respondents using a questionnaire, within the Klang Valley area. The data were collected and analysed using Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA), Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) and regression analysis as appropriate. The findings of the study show that both co-created functional value and emotional value perceptions exist in the distribution channel of financial services. Co-created functional and emotional value furthermore contributes to overall customer value perceptions. The study also finds that different benefit and sacrifice perceptions give rise to co-created functional and emotional value perceptions respectively. A comparison of the customer value perceptions of channels revealed that customers perceived functional value and emotional value in all channels, except the ATM/CDM/Cheque deposit channel. The in-branch channel is perceived to co-create a greater magnitude of emotional value. Adding to the extant literature, the findings demonstrate that distribution channels are an important source of customer value assessments. Furthermore, the findings lend support to the conceptual model, which posits various benefits and sacrifice perceptions existing in distribution channels of financial services lead to co-created perceived functional and emotional value or both simultaneously. From a managerial point of view, the findings of this study enable accurate identification of specific benefits and sacrifice perceptions in the various distribution channels of financial services to inform the development of strategies and tactics to enhance customer value of individual channels. Furthermore, the importance of emotional value in the in-branch channel lends support to the role of face to face interactions, careful recruitment and training of personnel to enhance the in-branch experience. The study also raises the importance of the consideration of service failures in services customer value assessments.

No description available.

Despite the growth of studies in contextual strategic human resource management (SHRM) investigating the linkage of competitive strategy (CS) and human resource management practices (HRMp), there have been minimal studies on the phenomenon in emerging economies such as Nigeria. Notably, the applicability of western models of SHRM in Nigeria has shown a lot of difficulties over time due to the peculiarity of the Nigerian context. This study therefore addresses the key question of a context-specific model of CS-HRMp linkage in Nigeria medium-sized enterprises (NMSEs). Due to the dearth of literature on CS-HRMp linkage in Nigeria, this study adopted a sequential exploratory mixed method (SEMM) which involved qualitative and quantitative methods. Exploratory interview was conducted with 10 managers and HR professionals in NMSEs and thematically analysed to contribute to the development of a questionnaire for data collection. Survey data was obtained from 323 top management and HR professionals in NMSEs and tested to achieve the aim of this study. The outcome of this study established the adoption of business-level strategies and people management practices suited to the Nigerian context. This study also examined the linkage between CS and HRMp in NMSEs and identified the direction of the linkage; also the strengths of linkage which ranged from weak, moderate to strong which previous SHRM literature has not emphasised were identified. In SHRM literature, four levels of linkages are associated with business level strategies and HRMp; however, this study found three levels of linkage in NMSEs, which are administrative, one-way and two-way linkages. In addition, contrary to previous SHRM literature suggesting only positive organisational outcomes of CS-HRMp linkage, this study found both positive and negative outcomes in NMSEs. Furthermore, in this study, key contextual factors: culture, religion, language differences, ethnicity, Nigerian economy, currency value, corruption, governmental policies, labour union, family and personal relationships that impact on CS-HRMp linkage in Nigeria were also identified. Most importantly, this study suggests a model of linking CS and HRMp signifying the context of practice in NMSEs. Therefore, this study contributes to the contextual approach to SHRM by providing key information on practice of CS-HRMp linkage in Nigeria, filling the gap created by the dearth of studies on CS-HRMp linkage in an emerging economy context such as Nigeria, and developing a management model of practice in NMSEs.

No description available.

No description available.

This thesis concerns the field of business-to-consumer electronic commerce. Research on Internet consumer behaviour is still in its infancy, and a quantitative framework to characterize user profiles for e-commerce is not yet established. This study proposes a quantitative framework that uses latent variable analysis to identify the underlying traits of Internet users' opinions. Predictive models are then built to select the factors that are most predictive of the propensity to buy on-line and classify Internet users according to that propensity. This is followed by a segmentation of the online market based on that selection of factors and the deployment of segment-specific graphical models to map the interactions between factors and between these and the propensity to buy online. The novel aspects of this work can be summarised as follows: the definition of a fully quantitative methodology for the segmentation and analysis of large data sets; the description of the latent dimensions underlying consumers' opinions using quantitative methods; the definition of a principled method of marginalisation to the empirical prior, for Bayesian neural networks, to deal with the use of class-unbalanced data sets; a study of the Generative Topographic Mapping (GTM) as a principled method for market segmentation, including some developments of the model, namely: a) an entropy-based measure to compare the class-discriminatory capabilities of maps of equal dimensions; b) a Cumulative Responsibility measure to provide information on the mapping distortion and define data clusters; c) Selective Smoothing as an extended model for the regularization of the GTM training.

Following the lifting of the sanctions imposed on Libya by the UN in 2003, the need for developing cost allocation systems has become necessary. This includes aspects such as privatization, foreign industries, and competition. All these factors should be considered by the cost and management accounting practitioners of the Libyan industrial sector. Based on the findings of a questionnaire survey, supported by semi-structured interviews, this study has examined the state of cost allocation (CA) systems in terms of product costs of large and medium Libyan manufacturing companies (LMLMCs). A contingency theory approach is adopted and a frame-work is developed in order to investigate the accuracy of the product costs. The study revealed that the majority of the LMLMCs are influenced by the financial accounting mentality. Almost all of them are using simplistic traditional CA methods. A few of them have already contracted to develop (up-date or redesign) their CA system. In fact, almost all of them calculate inaccurate product costs when companies produce various products. The full cost-plus pricing method is rejected by almost all the surveyed companies that face high levels of competition. Instead, they traced the mechanism of market price or comparing product cost with the prevailing market prices. On the other hand, almost all the public companies are facing very low competition which enabled them to adopt the cost-plus pricing method. In contrast, almost all privately-owned companies are facing very high or high levels of competition. In terms of preparing cost information on time, some the LMLMCs do not prepare overhead budgets. Most of them prepare cost information annually and the majorities are preparing cost information in irregular periods. According to the important factors that influence the accuracy of product costs, it was found a strong negative relationship with the level of product diversity and accuracy, a strong negative relationship between the level of intensity of competition and the level of use of cost-plus pricing and a strong negative relationship between the level of ownership and the level of use of the cost-plus pricing method. Finally, the factors that constrict the CA development are as follows; absence of any internal leadership; lack of specialist managerial accountants; lack of top management support; lack of active training programs; centralization of decision-making; it is extremely expensive to develop the CA systems; absence of professional cost or managerial accounting bodies in Libya. With regards to the organization's size factor, lack of financial ability; lack of an independent cost accounting department are important. In relation to the organization's ownership factor, it was found only the low level of competition is important. While most previous studies focused on the implementation of ABC in Western developed countries, this study has contributed further evidence to the value of studying CA systems in terms of product costs with a managerial emphasis in the Libyan context. In addition, this research describes the degree of accuracy and preparing cost information on time. However, it determined contingency factors that restrict the cost allocation system development and influenced the accuracy of product costs in the LMLMCs.

This study presents the results of an investigation into the methods of auditing Expert Systems. Such systems have already proved to be, and are increasingly becoming, a very powerful tool in many areas such as medicine, geology, finance and banking. They embody unique risks which are not treated by conventional audit methods of operating or developing software. The lack of awareness and information about Expert Systems in general and their auditability in particular are somewhat surprising. The author, in tackling this new area, has developed and proposed two models of auditing Expert Systems: a) the Audit of an Operating Expert System (AOES), b) the Audit of an Expert System under development (AESD). The first model incorporates the" control band" which aims at eliminating the exceptional risks and to allow the internal auditor to treat it as conventional software. The second proposed model is based on "NESDEM'; a normative evaluation model for Expert Systems. The test of the proposed AOES model was conducted in two different organisations: ARJO-WIGGINS APPLETON which developed and still uses an Expert System for its paper mill and the CITY UNIVERSITY DEPARTMENT OF OPTOMETRY AND VISUAL SCIENCE which developed an Expert System for eye tests. Unfortunately the author was unable to test his proposed AESD model under a "live" development process due to lack of cooperation from organisations which the author contacted. Consequently he tested this model by mailing questionnaires to internal/external auditors within the U.K. Given the research performed in this study and subject to the limitations detailed, the proposed models appear reliable, flexible, practical and suitable to the internal auditor in assessing the effectiveness of the internal controls within Expert Systems.