Corporate governance has gained considerable prominence in the last decade as it has become a much more widely discussed and debated issue. The debate as to which model of corporate governance China should adopt continues as China forges a new era of interaction with the global market, especially since its accession to the World Trade Organization in 2001. The state-owned enterprise (SOE) sector in China is a significant contributing factor in China's endeavour to continue to develop its economy, provide employment and reduce poverty. Therefore, the success of SOE reform is important to China's future economic prosperity and ability to contend with social justice issues. The commencement of the reform process began in the late 1970s and many SOEs have attained significant progress in some important areas. However, all too many SOEs experience poor overall performance. Thus, the consequence of the corporate governance model and corporate structure selected will be considerable, especially as the country's market economy gains momentum. This thesis contributes to the ongoing body of work relating to corporate governance in China, and some clear results have been found. It also reviews the institutional setting in China and elements of the corporate governance literature in detail. As the ownership of firms is considered to be one of the key elements to enhance corporate governance, the empirical study considers issues relating to changes in ownership, concentration and ownership structures. It conducts an empirical study of the ownership and performance of listed corporations in China and based on these analyses, the thesis provides policy recommendations as to which model of corporate governance may best be suited to China during this transitional phase. The findings suggest that the ownership structure is a key element to enhancing corporate governance in China. The wealth affects of changes in listed firm ownership, which for the most part had the effect of reducing state ownership, were found to be positive. Concentration ownership structures per se were not found to enhance listed firm performance. The most significant findings were the following. Firstly, that institutional ownership, through the Legal Person holding companies, have a positive bearing on listed firm performance and thus by implication, upon improving corporate governance. Secondly, medium levels of Legal Person ownership were found to be the most effective. Thirdly, foreign institutions and individual investors were found to be positively correlated to performance. Similar results were found for offshore ownership, but to a lessor extent. Conversely, state ownership was found to be negatively correlated to performance. Other issues that were identified in the empirical analysis are that size does matter, in that large firms were found not to perform as well as smaller firms. Leverage appears to matter also, as highly leveraged firms were found not to perform well. The industry in which a firm operates was also found to have an affect on performance. The policy recommendations are based on the findings and observations of this thesis. The assumption is made that the present gradualist approach and regime will continue. As state ownership is shown to have a negative bearing on listed firm performance, the recommendation is that the state, at its various levels, should divest its holdings. This could be achieved through a privatization program in which the state denationalises a large proportion of its holdings. One of the keys would then be managing the change of ownership. Based on the observations and findings of this study, it is recommended that a privatization program should be instigated that supports blockholders and institutions, and does not focus purely on dispersing large proportions of holdings to diverse small shareholders. In addition, mergers and acquisitions that embrace economic efficiency should be encouraged and supported. The empirical study demonstrates that the ultimate ownership and control of tradeable shares ought to be channelled to pension funds, private institutional investors that should be encouraged to take strong stakes in the firms, to strategic investors, especially minority blockholders, and a proportion to international investors. This strategy would be in China's best interests in its present stage of development.

Background: Understanding the process of strategy change offers a unique insight into the functioning of an enterprise. While well-researched in the context of Western private firms, this process has attracted relatively little attention in state-owned Chinese enterprises. A research on this topic is particularly pertinent today, when many Chinese state-owned enterprises have attracted attention of international investors and the Covid-19 pandemic situation has created unprecedented challenges for daily operations of enterprises.  Purpose: In order to understand the process strategy change, this research has focused on the elements of the strategy change process and the role of institutional pressures in it on an example of China Eastern airline: a state-owned listed enterprise in China.  Method: This is a qualitative case study based on 7 semi-structured interviews with the employees of China Eastern Airlines. A thematic analysis is used for analyzation of the primary data. Findings/Conclusion: This research has confirmed the presence of concurrent processes of planned and emergent strategy change processes and the impactful role of normative and coercive pressures in the processes of change. Several deviations from the previous theories of strategy change were detected and attributed to the differences in national and organizational culture. The findings of this research confirm the general similarity of the process of strategy change during and outside crisis and highlight the potential cultural differences in strategy change in Western and Chinese firm.

No description available.

The performance of state-owned enterprises in Namibia has been in the spotlight for many years, resulting in the Government of the Republic of Namibia to introduce interventions and strategies to address and improve this performance. The poor performance of state-owned enterprises has been studied in terms of financial aspects with less attention, however, on human resources as a key success factor in contributing to performance. Studying performance in terms of the human resources is an important area for research and intervention. The Government introduced several measures to ensure the efficient governance and monitoring of state-owned enterprises and to ensure that they are performing to the satisfaction and expectations of the stakeholder. These measures included the introduction of the State-Owned Enterprises Act (Act 2 of 2006) of Namibia, as well as governance structures to ensure that the performance of state-owned enterprises is properly maximised. Despite these efforts by the Government to regulate state-owned enterprises with the intention to improve performance, to date the poor performance of state-owned enterprises is still a topical issue in Namibia. Almost a decade after the promulgation of the State-Owned Enterprises Act, in 2006, the government is still financially bailing out a number of the state-owned enterprises. State-owned enterprises need to take a positive approach that recognise and leverage human resources for contribution to sustainable growth, competitive advantage and performance. Positively oriented high-performance work practices are conceptualised within the context of positive organisational behaviour. Positive organisational behaviour as characterised in the form of psychological capital, with antecedents such as authentic leadership and supportive organisational climate and employee outcomes such as job satisfaction, intention to leave, engagement in the Namibian state-owned enterprises context are the main focus of this study. The study aimed to assess the relationship between psychological capital, authentic leadership, supportive organisational climate, job satisfaction, intention to leave, employee engagement and performance for employees in state-owned enterprises in Namibia. A cross-sectional survey design was used to gather data regarding all these constructs as experienced by employees. A convenience sample (N = 452) of employees from 20 state-owned enterprises participated in the study. The measuring instruments used were the Psychological Capital Questionnaire, Performance-related Attitudinal Questionnaire, Job Satisfaction Scale, Turnover Intention Scale, Engagement Scale, Authentic Leadership Questionnaire, Supportive Organisational Climate Questionnaire and a biographical questionnaire. The results of study 1 showed that authentic leadership was positively associated with psychological capital (i.e. experiences of hope, optimism, self-efficacy and resilience) and job satisfaction. Authentic leadership affected job satisfaction indirectly via psychological capital. Psychological capital had a medium to large indirect effect on employees’ intentions to leave. The findings suggest that authentic leadership and psychological capital explain job satisfaction and retention of employees in state-owned enterprises. Study 2 showed that authentic leadership and psychological capital predicted employee engagement. A supportive organisational climate was related to employee engagement on individual level, but only if authentic leadership and psychological capital were not included in the model. Psychological capital mediated the relation between authentic leadership and employee engagement on an individual level in state owned enterprises. The results of study 3 showed that authentic leadership and a supportive organisational climate had a positive impact on psychological capital. Psychological capital predicted job performance on an individual level. Psychological capital was not associated with organisational performance. Recommendations for interventions to promote psychological capital, its antecedents and outcomes were made.

The performance of state-owned enterprises in Namibia has been in the spotlight for many years, resulting in the Government of the Republic of Namibia to introduce interventions and strategies to address and improve this performance. The poor performance of state-owned enterprises has been studied in terms of financial aspects with less attention, however, on human resources as a key success factor in contributing to performance. Studying performance in terms of the human resources is an important area for research and intervention. The Government introduced several measures to ensure the efficient governance and monitoring of state-owned enterprises and to ensure that they are performing to the satisfaction and expectations of the stakeholder. These measures included the introduction of the State-Owned Enterprises Act (Act 2 of 2006) of Namibia, as well as governance structures to ensure that the performance of state-owned enterprises is properly maximised. Despite these efforts by the Government to regulate state-owned enterprises with the intention to improve performance, to date the poor performance of state-owned enterprises is still a topical issue in Namibia. Almost a decade after the promulgation of the State-Owned Enterprises Act, in 2006, the government is still financially bailing out a number of the state-owned enterprises. State-owned enterprises need to take a positive approach that recognise and leverage human resources for contribution to sustainable growth, competitive advantage and performance. Positively oriented high-performance work practices are conceptualised within the context of positive organisational behaviour. Positive organisational behaviour as characterised in the form of psychological capital, with antecedents such as authentic leadership and supportive organisational climate and employee outcomes such as job satisfaction, intention to leave, engagement in the Namibian state-owned enterprises context are the main focus of this study. The study aimed to assess the relationship between psychological capital, authentic leadership, supportive organisational climate, job satisfaction, intention to leave, employee engagement and performance for employees in state-owned enterprises in Namibia. A cross-sectional survey design was used to gather data regarding all these constructs as experienced by employees. A convenience sample (N = 452) of employees from 20 state-owned enterprises participated in the study. The measuring instruments used were the Psychological Capital Questionnaire, Performance-related Attitudinal Questionnaire, Job Satisfaction Scale, Turnover Intention Scale, Engagement Scale, Authentic Leadership Questionnaire, Supportive Organisational Climate Questionnaire and a biographical questionnaire. The results of study 1 showed that authentic leadership was positively associated with psychological capital (i.e. experiences of hope, optimism, self-efficacy and resilience) and job satisfaction. Authentic leadership affected job satisfaction indirectly via psychological capital. Psychological capital had a medium to large indirect effect on employees’ intentions to leave. The findings suggest that authentic leadership and psychological capital explain job satisfaction and retention of employees in state-owned enterprises. Study 2 showed that authentic leadership and psychological capital predicted employee engagement. A supportive organisational climate was related to employee engagement on individual level, but only if authentic leadership and psychological capital were not included in the model. Psychological capital mediated the relation between authentic leadership and employee engagement on an individual level in state owned enterprises. The results of study 3 showed that authentic leadership and a supportive organisational climate had a positive impact on psychological capital. Psychological capital predicted job performance on an individual level. Psychological capital was not associated with organisational performance. Recommendations for interventions to promote psychological capital, its antecedents and outcomes were made.

本論文共分為六章十六小節，計約五萬餘字。首章討論研究目皂、範圍、方法及限制 。第二章探討專案可行性評估的理訥基礎及文獻資料，包括專案可行性評估的意義、 功能及步驟，如何訂定專案可行性評估的指標，並簡述各種評估方法及其優缺點、應 用範圍。第三章為現行評估作業系統的探討，搜集到的資料有我國工研院、國營事業 投資評估方法、經濟部重要經建計畫評審，韓國矼究發展評審等。第四章，由前三章 的討論發展出經濟部科技顧問室經營管理類專案計畫可行性評估模式，包括評估程序 之確立、評估方法之選擇、評估指標及評估尺度的建立。第五章為本研究評估模式與 經濟部科技顧問室原評估作業之比較。第六章為本研究之結論與建議。

公營事業民營化儼然已成為九○年代的世界風潮，在我國自民國七十八年起正式宣示民營化政策迄今亦達五年有餘，然推行進度與成效及對經營績效是否具有正面效果的疑慮仍深植於許多人的心中。本文試圖從文獻回顧及國內實際個案對此一問題進行研究，但由於國內已有的個案數目太少且不具代表性及推行民營化的時間過短，很難採用完整的個案分析，故僅以其中兩個案作為代表，並輔以國外符合本研究目的之個案對所提出的命題做進一步的說明，以幫助了解該命題之實際意義。 　　經由國內外文獻探討後，本研究首先得出公營體制績效不彰的主因，藉以了解是否有必要以放棄公營體制的手段提昇經營績效，結果發現市場結構、資本市場不具競爭性及公營事業本身受到管制以致無法企業化經營等三項因素才是績效不佳的主要原因，因此乃以這三個因素作為本研究的自變數，並將公營事業民營化的定義擴大法律的解釋方式（依我國法律的規定，民營化的方式僅限於所有權移轉一項），觀察公營事業民營化在這三個自變數上的變化對經營績效有何影響，同時經由代理理論、財產權方面等文獻上發現，管理者是否有追求利潤的誘因乃是這些自變數影響經營績效的中介變數，因此乃形成本研究的研究架構。 　　在命題發展及理論建構上，乃根據本研究所提出的研究架構做自變數與經營績效關係之推導，分別為市場結構與經營績效、所有權與經營權結構與經營績效及企業化管理程度與經營績效，同時亦提出本之間的關係。本研究最主要的貢獻在於對「公有民營」的民營化方式對經營績效的影響做進一步的肯定，這種方式特別適合於該公營事業與政府關係處於對抗階段，且財務資金來源仍需依賴政府，對於我國的情形尤為合適。最後建議政府在民營化目標公司的選擇上，應考慮建構競爭環境的可行性及與政府之關係週期，且推行方式應更加多樣化，這對於推行成效及經營績效的改善皆有相當的助益。對後續研究者則建議能以本研究所推導的命題為藍本，進行個案或實證分析，使本研究能得到更進一步的確認。

This thesis critically assesses the design and operation of the corporate legal adviser (“CLA”) system for state-owned enterprises (“SOEs”) in the People’s Republic of China (“PRC”). / The study of in-house legal advisers (commonly known as corporate counsel) in Western jurisdictions has developed as its own subfield of studies of the legal profession. That literature shows that the roles that in-house legal advisers in Western corporations should and can play is heavily influenced by their corporate environments, corporate policies and attitudes of the corporate leaders with whom they work. There are a range of complex organizational and ethical issues faced by Western corporate counsel in discharging the functions of effective gatekeepers, advisers and preventive law practitioners. However, as compared with the abundant published works on corporate counsel in the era of post-Enron corporate America, there is little academic literature on in-house legal advisers in China. / In the face of the challenges and risks caused by the intensifying economic reforms in the PRC since the early 1990s, and China’s entry into the WTO in 2001, the PRC Government has been attempting to strengthen measures to preserve and protect those state assets that are managed and operated through SOEs. The supervisory body for SOEs is the powerful and well-known State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission (“SASAC”) which is directly under the control of the State Council. / SASAC has perceived that corporate counsel in Western corporations have been playing a critical role in corporate risk management and decision-making, and have been accorded a high status within their organizations. Therefore one of the measures implemented by SASAC under its risk management framework for SOEs is the CLA system. The CLA system requires SOEs to engage licensed CLAs as part of the corporate governance and risk management system. Pursuant to the Administrative Measures for State-owned Enterprise Corporate Legal Advisers (2004) (the SASAC document governing the system), the role, rights and obligations of CLAs are set out. The policy objective is to ensure that SOEs are managed and operated in compliance with law and with proper legal advice. / SASAC leaders have claimed that the CLA system in SOEs has made great achievements in improving the risk management performance of SOEs. However, this thesis finds that SASAC has not properly addressed the ethical and role dilemmas commonly faced by Western corporate counsel. On the basis of the Western literature on corporate counsel and analysis of SASAC’s policies and the practice of SOEs, this thesis identifies the following key concerns with the CLA system of SOEs: the status and independence of CLAs, the qualification system for CLAs, the legal and professional regulation of CLAs, and the management structure and corporate culture of SOEs where CLAs work. Finally, the inherent problems caused by the power structure in SOEs, especially the role of senior cadres of the ruling Chinese Communist Party in SOEs, has not been resolved. / This thesis concludes that CLAs as corporate watchdogs in SOEs are still at the developmental stage. More empirical research of CLAs of SOEs is warranted to better understand how China, as an emerging world economic power, is to play on the international stage.

This thesis critically assesses the design and operation of the corporate legal adviser (“CLA”) system for state-owned enterprises (“SOEs”) in the People’s Republic of China (“PRC”). / The study of in-house legal advisers (commonly known as corporate counsel) in Western jurisdictions has developed as its own subfield of studies of the legal profession. That literature shows that the roles that in-house legal advisers in Western corporations should and can play is heavily influenced by their corporate environments, corporate policies and attitudes of the corporate leaders with whom they work. There are a range of complex organizational and ethical issues faced by Western corporate counsel in discharging the functions of effective gatekeepers, advisers and preventive law practitioners. However, as compared with the abundant published works on corporate counsel in the era of post-Enron corporate America, there is little academic literature on in-house legal advisers in China. / In the face of the challenges and risks caused by the intensifying economic reforms in the PRC since the early 1990s, and China’s entry into the WTO in 2001, the PRC Government has been attempting to strengthen measures to preserve and protect those state assets that are managed and operated through SOEs. The supervisory body for SOEs is the powerful and well-known State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission (“SASAC”) which is directly under the control of the State Council. / SASAC has perceived that corporate counsel in Western corporations have been playing a critical role in corporate risk management and decision-making, and have been accorded a high status within their organizations. Therefore one of the measures implemented by SASAC under its risk management framework for SOEs is the CLA system. The CLA system requires SOEs to engage licensed CLAs as part of the corporate governance and risk management system. Pursuant to the Administrative Measures for State-owned Enterprise Corporate Legal Advisers (2004) (the SASAC document governing the system), the role, rights and obligations of CLAs are set out. The policy objective is to ensure that SOEs are managed and operated in compliance with law and with proper legal advice. / SASAC leaders have claimed that the CLA system in SOEs has made great achievements in improving the risk management performance of SOEs. However, this thesis finds that SASAC has not properly addressed the ethical and role dilemmas commonly faced by Western corporate counsel. On the basis of the Western literature on corporate counsel and analysis of SASAC’s policies and the practice of SOEs, this thesis identifies the following key concerns with the CLA system of SOEs: the status and independence of CLAs, the qualification system for CLAs, the legal and professional regulation of CLAs, and the management structure and corporate culture of SOEs where CLAs work. Finally, the inherent problems caused by the power structure in SOEs, especially the role of senior cadres of the ruling Chinese Communist Party in SOEs, has not been resolved. / This thesis concludes that CLAs as corporate watchdogs in SOEs are still at the developmental stage. More empirical research of CLAs of SOEs is warranted to better understand how China, as an emerging world economic power, is to play on the international stage.

本篇論文的主要目的是檢測會計師是否會影響其客戶投資效率。本研究以2007至2016年間的中國上市公司為樣本，實證結果顯示:（1）事務所層級的產業專家對客戶投資效率有積極影響。（2）會計師個人、事務所皆為產業專家時相對於非產業專家可以提高其客戶的投資效率且其對客戶的投資效率的影響大於單一產業專家。（3）會計師個人、事務所皆為產業專家時，對於國有企業投資效率的影響小於非國有企業。綜上會計師在提高客戶的投資效率方面起著至關重要的作用。 / The objective of this thesis is to examine whether the auditors affect the investment efficiency of its client. Using a sample of Chinese listed firms during 2007~2016, I find that: (1) Audit-firm-level industry expert is positively associated with its clients’ investment efficiency. (2) Industry expert at both firm and partner levels has stronger effect on investment efficiency than industry expert, either at firm-level alone, or at partner level alone. (3) When auditors are industry expert at both firm and partner levels, the effect of industry expertise on investment efficiency is more pronounced for non-state-owned enterprises than state-owned enterprises. In sum, auditors play a critical role in enhancing firm’s investment efficient.