ABSTRACT Long-lasting management is the goal of enterprises. In order to achieve long-lasting management while maintaining competitiveness, CEO has to possess clear operating policies. Utilize the limited resources on core businesses especially those plans which relative financial planning is involved in the operating policies. Essentially, the management achievements and crises of an enterprise reflect on its financial data. Under the tough environment, deliberate financial planning, control, and management are the main key factors in keeping competitiveness and long-lasting management. Management consultant applies different diagnosis methods and techniques to figure out the malpractices and weaknesses of business management. Optimistic approaches are adopted to propose concrete improvement plans. Meanwhile, assistance is provided in the implementation in order to improve enterprise constitution, enhance management effectiveness and thus achieve the expected goal. This research applied system dynamics as the tool to provide enterprise with ¡§Financial Policies Laboratory¡¨. Through dynamic stimulation process, the influence of enterprise profit in setting financial goal is examined. CEO is supplied with the valuable references such as financial forecast, financial analysis, and financial diagnosis to adjust management policies, management principles and implement programs with the use of limited enterprise resources. It is hoping that this symptomatic solution can help the enterprise to improve its constitution. With the research of sample stimulation, conclusions are found as below: (1) The data received from decision function and stimulation results are adopted to construct suitable financial statement. This is for the use of financial executive in ¡§Financial Policies Laboratory¡¨. Assistance is provided to pursue better financial policies in setting the enterprise goal. (2) The timing of statement output can be coordinated as enterprise required. Through the time interval function of internal system, the objective of financial planning is achieved. (3) In accordance with enterprise real condition, financial strategies are made for different situations. Assist the enterprise to modify financial activities in appropriate timing and capacity as to enhance enterprise management achievement, improve financial constitution, and achieve the final goal of long-lasting management and development. Key words: Financial forecast, Five Forces Analysis, financial diagnosis.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Missouri-Columbia, 2003. / Typescript. Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 346-377). Also available on the Internet.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Missouri-Columbia, 2003. / Typescript. Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 346-377). Also available on the Internet.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Florida State University, 2003. / Includes bibliographical references.

International financial centre (IFC) development is a hot topic in today’s global arena at the political state level and within academic circles as they can have a significant impact on national, regional and local economies. A critical review of the literature on this topic reveals that not much scholarly attention has been directed towards how IFCs develop from within, more specifically how local entrepreneurial activity contributes to the advancement and evolution of an IFC. In addition, a number of different theories such as path dependence and the concept of social networks have been used as alternative frameworks to explain the phenomena of spatial agglomeration in international financial centres (IFCs); however, these theories haven’t either been properly constructed in a geographical context, empirically applied in a convincing manner or been further investigated using different methodological frameworks. Through the lens of the entrepreneurial hedge fund (EHF) firm and by incorporating a multiple methodological approach (quantitative, descriptive and spatial analysis); this research investigates four separate empirical lines of inquiry in regard to either the firm, its proprietor or the IFC that focuses on micro characteristics, spatial characteristics, the general business arena and development mechanisms. The major empirical findings are that the EHF firm can be classified as small and large based on a number of different factors; while the proprietor is a well educated individual who was previously employed as a high level manager of a large multinational corporation and has previous career ties to the investment banking and traditional fund management sectors. EHF firms agglomerate in IFCs with the most intense clustering occurring within close proximity to the nucleus of the main financial district and other agglomeration patterns are evident. Categorically, government and regulatory factors and people factors are considered as the most important competiveness factors of an IFC. When compared as a whole with previously conducted studies, the findings were found to be statistically indifferent; however, at the individual factor level there are distinct differences. The factors that trigger entrepreneurial behavior are endogenous in nature and the top barriers encountered were customer related followed by employee recruitment and regulatory issues. Finally, human agency and social networks are an integral part of the entrepreneurial process and can be categorized into five separate groups with professional and associate considered to be the most important. This study makes three theoretical contributions on developmental aspects of IFCs. First, a spatial agglomeration model is proposed based on areal differentiation that is derived from the established and changing patterns in the human landscape and its institutions. Second, the theory of path creation is introduced along with social network interaction to account for the genesis of new financial firms at a micro level and a ‘path as processes’ model that incorporates ‘place dependence—path creation—path dependence’ as an economic process is proposed to illustrate the development of the alternative asset management sector which ultimately contributes to the advancement and evolution of an IFC in the defined study area. / published_or_final_version / Geography / Doctoral / Doctor of Philosophy

ABSTRACT Deposit Insurance: Is it good for the development of Financial Markets? BY Kaysia Therese Campbell April 25, 2006 Committee Chair: Dr. Stephen Smith and Dr. James Owers Major Department: Finance The literature on deposit insurance has focused primarily on the role it plays in promoting banking sector stability and growth, while little attention has been placed on its possible effect on the development of other markets. Failure to examine the impact of deposit insurance on other markets could lead to premature conclusions about the full effect it has on total financial market development and, in turn, economic growth. Using panel data and cross sectional averages on 96 countries covering the time period 1975 – 2004 to distinguish between short run and long run effects, and including a host of controls, I find evidence that deposit insurance is associated with greater long run, total financial market development, as measured by the size and activity of banks, equity markets, bond markets and non-bank financial intermediaries. This indicates that it is able to accelerate banking sector development without necessarily retarding the development of other markets so that overall financial market development is improved. It is important to note that this is primarily evident for countries with a strong legal and contracting environment. The results also suggest that the immediate impact of deposit insurance is greatest for middle income economies but over time there is no clear evidence that this persists. Using design features thought to contribute to the generosity and ability of the scheme to curb moral hazard and provide a credible guarantee, I construct two indices to summarize the various design features and examine their impact on financial market development. I find that countries adopting more credible schemes appear to have smaller and less active markets over time. However the results also indicate that more credible and generous design features are better able to promote total market activity in the long run. The hopeful conclusion to be made from this study is that the positive influence of deposit insurance on the banking sector is translated into the entire financial market system over time and may be irrespective of a country’s particular stage of economic development.

<p>This research report examines the factors associated with facilitating and constraining the implimentation of financial management and budget reforms in the public sector using the Health Sector (National and Provincial Departments of Health) as a case study. The main findings of this report are that there are factors that are both facilitating and constraining the implementation of financial management and budget reform in South Africa. The primary constraining factor in this regard is that there is limited capacity in the country with regard to financial management.</p>

The research addresses the management dilemma of a decrease in the number of capital project investments, due to the current methods of capital budgeting (i.e. net present value analysis using discounted cash flows) being ineffective, because it does not effectively deal with uncertainty in the investment, and also does take management's flexibility into account. It has been determined that a strategic options framework can be used to provide a more meaningful assessment of future business opportunities under uncertainty. The options approach complements the conventional net present value criterion in evaluating risky investment. The options approach provides an immediate and important perspective on value creation because the options approach takes into consideration that management have the choice of deferring the investment to a later date when circumstances are more certain, and there is less risk involved, or the choice of completely abandoning the investment. / Thesis (MBA)-University of Natal, Durban, 2003.

This participant-observation study explores the process of gathering and evaluating both financial and non-financial information and communication and transfer of that information within a medium-size Electrical Company in Christchurch, New Zealand. The previous literature has established the importance and the main characteristics of small and medium enterprises (SMEs), mainly studying manufacturing companies. However, there has been little research done in New Zealand on the overall communication process and the financial and non-financial information usage in a small-medium enterprise. Face-to-face interviews were carried out with all the office employees and two partners, along with a ten month participant-observation in the Electrical Company in order to understand how financial and non-financial information is communicated and processed in an SME. Also, research in an SME that has overcome the 2008 economic depression and several major earthquakes allows a deep understanding of lessons learned and what is valued by the Electrical Company. The research has found characteristics of this SME similar to those that have been mentioned in previous literature. However, the partners of the Electrical Company understand the importance of financial management and use financial information extensively to ensure the business expenses are under control. Moreover, the partners use more than just financial information to manage the company. They gather non-financial information through talking to their accountant, their customers and people in the same industry and they keenly follow the news on the rebuilding of Christchurch.

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