The Balanced Scorecard has become vital for companies in order to ensure a competitive advantage in our ever changing global environment. The Balanced Scorecard, if applied effectively, will assess whether the company’s vision, mission, strategy and values are achieved. The Balanced Scorecard system is a management tool that can be used to transform strategy into action. The Balanced Scorecard used at Picture Perfect Photography has been identified as problematic. This study includes a literature study on the Balanced Scorecard system and an empirical study regarding the application of the Balanced Scorecard in a specific Photography company. The literature study set out to evaluate the efficiency of the Balanced Scorecard as it is applied at Picture Perfect Photography. The secondary objectives defined the Balanced Scorecard, reviewed the evolution and the need for a Balanced Scorecard. The literature study further explored the advantages and disadvantages of the Balanced Scorecard and continued exploring personal development with linking it to compensation. The Balanced Scorecard should be used to align the company’s vision and strategy in order to improve long-term performance. The research indicates that communication and constant feedback play an important role in the successful implementation of a Balanced Scorecard approach. The Balanced Scorecard could be a very useful instrument when implemented and applied effectively. An empirical study was done including Picture Perfect Photography’s employees, at different job levels, work sections and years of service. The aim of the empirical study was to determine how the Balanced Scorecard was used in the alignment with the company’s strategy, vision, mission and values. Furthermore, the aim was to determine the problems with the existing Balanced Scorecard and if it helps to focus on quality, reengineering and customer services’ initiatives. The study indicated more or less the same average responses on specific Balanced Scorecard related issues. The majority of employees responded that feedback and communication of the Balanced Scorecard were not transparent enough nor was it applied effectively. Conclusions and recommendations were made in order to identify and improve the advancement of an effectively applied Balanced Scorecard used at Picture Perfect Photography for the future. / Thesis (MBA)--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2013.

The Balanced Scorecard has become vital for companies in order to ensure a competitive advantage in our ever changing global environment. The Balanced Scorecard, if applied effectively, will assess whether the company’s vision, mission, strategy and values are achieved. The Balanced Scorecard system is a management tool that can be used to transform strategy into action. The Balanced Scorecard used at Picture Perfect Photography has been identified as problematic. This study includes a literature study on the Balanced Scorecard system and an empirical study regarding the application of the Balanced Scorecard in a specific Photography company. The literature study set out to evaluate the efficiency of the Balanced Scorecard as it is applied at Picture Perfect Photography. The secondary objectives defined the Balanced Scorecard, reviewed the evolution and the need for a Balanced Scorecard. The literature study further explored the advantages and disadvantages of the Balanced Scorecard and continued exploring personal development with linking it to compensation. The Balanced Scorecard should be used to align the company’s vision and strategy in order to improve long-term performance. The research indicates that communication and constant feedback play an important role in the successful implementation of a Balanced Scorecard approach. The Balanced Scorecard could be a very useful instrument when implemented and applied effectively. An empirical study was done including Picture Perfect Photography’s employees, at different job levels, work sections and years of service. The aim of the empirical study was to determine how the Balanced Scorecard was used in the alignment with the company’s strategy, vision, mission and values. Furthermore, the aim was to determine the problems with the existing Balanced Scorecard and if it helps to focus on quality, reengineering and customer services’ initiatives. The study indicated more or less the same average responses on specific Balanced Scorecard related issues. The majority of employees responded that feedback and communication of the Balanced Scorecard were not transparent enough nor was it applied effectively. Conclusions and recommendations were made in order to identify and improve the advancement of an effectively applied Balanced Scorecard used at Picture Perfect Photography for the future. / Thesis (MBA)--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2013.

The integration of hydrogenated amorphous silicon (a-Si:H) thin-film transistors (TFTs) with plastic substrates enables emerging technologies such as flexible organic light emitting diode (OLED) displays. Current a-Si fabrication processes, however, create residual thin film stress that affects the underlying flexible substrate due to its high mismatch in the coefficient of thermal expansion resulting in a dimensional instability for fabricating TFTs on large area flexible substrates. The motivation of this thesis is to reduce this non-uniformity and improve fabrication throughput of bottom-gated inverted-staggered a-Si:H TFTs on flexible substrates. This thesis therefore encompasses the study of overlay misalignment on TFTs over 3 inch flexible substrates and investigates the electrical characteristics of the TFTs fabricated on plastic platforms. To reduce overlay misalignment of TFTs fabricated on flexible substrates, a plastic-on-carrier lamination process has been developed. The technique comprises of a polyimide tape to attach a 125 um-thick poly-ethylene-napthalate (PEN) flexible substrate to a rigid carrier. This process has been used to minimize stress induced strain of the PEN substrate during the fabrication process; strain, which has been observed after processing a-Si:H TFTs on free-standing substrates. This technique would in turn assist in fabricating uniform stacked-layers as required for a-Si:H TFT fabrication on the PEN substrates. Overlay misalignment is measured after each of the 5 consecutive lithographic steps at 4 corner-most edges of the PEN substrates using a standard optical microscope. Results have shown an overlay misalignment reduction from 21 um to 2 um on average based on the TFTs fabricated on free-standing flexible substrates while ensuring a centre alignment accuracy of +/- 0.5 um. Post fabrication adhesive removal to separate the PEN substrate from the rigid carrier has been accomplished by sample immersion in acetone. The results present a significant increase in fabrication throughput by reducing lithographic overlay misalignment such that the resolution of large-area flexible electronics would be enhanced. Electrical characteristics show the average performance of a-Si:H TFTs with an ON/OFF current ratio of 10^8, field effect mobility of ~0.8 cm^2/Vs, and gate leakage current of 10^-13 A.

No description available.

In the first chapter, I study a recent and important innovation, the shift towards independent compensation consultants that provide advice only to boards. I construct a theoretical model to conceptualize the potential impact of independent consultants and then develop an empirical strategy to quantify the impact. One contribution of the paper is to provide strong identification of the impact of independent advice, something that has been challenged by the lack of appropriate data. I use a unique sample of Canadian firms which allows me to directly measure the impact of non-compensation related consulting fees on compensation advice. I conduct a number of empirical experiments but the main tests exploit a "quasi-natural experiment" provided by the creation of an independent consultant, Hugessen Consulting, as a spin-off from Mercer. I show that switching from an a ffiliated consultant to an independent consultant is associated with an increase in managerial incentives. Despite the benefits of independent advice, independent consultants may not be hired due to higher fees, the influence of powerful CEOs, or because boards already possess adequate expertise. In the second chapter, using a simple model of incentive contracting as a guide, I examine empirically whether some aspects of executive stock option backdating may be an optimal response of firms to distortions in the institutional environment, in particular tax law and accounting rules. Some of the findings suggest that firms may attempt to effi ciently lower the exercise price of the executive options in order to enhance managerial incentives for risk averse and poorly diversified executives. In the presence of restrictive accounting and tax rules, backdating may be a mechanism by which to achieve this objective of better incentives. Consistent with this explanation I find that backdating is associated with lower CEO pay levels but higher CEO incentives. In the final chapter, I use a dynamic structural model to show that on average firms excessively smooth their payout while maintaining larger than optimal levels of cash (excess cash) on their balance sheets. I provide an agency explanation for the positive correlation between dividend smoothing and cash savings. I show that the dynamic effect of managerial perceived cost to cutting payout results in accumulation of excess cash and distortion of shareholder value.

This thesis investigates the monitoring effect from institutional ownership on bidder Chief Executive Officer (hereafter CEO) compensation in mergers and acquisitions (hereafter M&A) as well as the shift in compensation structure. While it is well-established in the literature that bidder CEO compensation soars significantly after conducting such transactions, the sources of the growth are left unclear. One major argument, the traditional theory, proposes that the growth derives from additional wealth created to shareholders in M&A, because according to the nature of compensation contract, CEOs’ interests are effectively aligned with shareholders’ benefits. On the other hand, scholars of managerial power theory argue that managerial power is stronger than shareholders’ oversight, so managers use M&A as a cover to expropriate wealth from shareholders. Whether the traditional theory or the managerial power theory dominates depends on the presence of optimal contract and the effectiveness of corporate governance. Institutional owners have more motivation and resources to restrict managerial behaviour than diffused owners. Thus, the change in CEO compensation following M&A and the driving factors behind the change could be different in firms with different types of ownership. After examining the 268 merger events from 266 US public non-family bidding firms from 2001 to 2005, this study finds that the magnitude of increase in CEO cash-based compensation is significantly alleviated in the presence of large institutional shareholders, and that the increase seems to be positively related to good short-term performance rather than managerial power. However, the concentrated institutional ownership does not seem to affect CEO equity-based compensation or the change in compensation structure. Besides, we do not find any significant relation between firm long-term post-acquisition performance and the market reaction to the announcement of M&A. Thus, we propose that without a reliable indication from short-term performance, large institutional shareholders could have problems in understanding the potential impact of M&A and they might adjust CEO equity-based compensation in a serial process after M&A.

Unsatisfactory performance of a control system may have different root causes, of which diagnosis and control have been subjects of interest. Numerous approaches have been used to identify the source of the oscillatory behavior of control systems. This work will focus on the nonlinearities introduced by process equipment, more specifically, static friction (stiction) in control valves. Using shape-based stiction detection methods and surrogate testing for time series, a new detection method is proposed for systems containing one or more sticky valves. Performance of this method is validated by both simulation and industrial data. The existence of stiction in a control valve may lead to oscillations in all loops of the process. In this work, frequency analysis of multi-loop processes oscillating due to stiction will be presented. Derivation of a general mathematical representation of the condition, under which oscillations occur in a multi-loop system because of stiction, is the contribution of the proposed analysis. The proposed condition for occurrence of oscillations provides a compensation framework for this problem. In this scheme, given dynamics of the system and severity of stiction, the appropriate tuning for the controller will be found which reduces or removes oscillations from the system. An alternative compensation algorithm will also be proposed, which aims removal of oscillations from systems for which the previously proposed approach cannot permanently remove undesirable oscillations. Achieving a non-oscillatory output without making the valve stem to move more aggressively, is the main characteristic of this algorithm. / Process Control

Typescript. / Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Hawaii at Manoa, 1986. / Bibliography: leaves [96]-99. / Photocopy. / vii, 99 leaves, bound maps 29 cm

University of Technology, Sydney. Faculty of Law. / There are different notions of justice that support different reasons for compensating people injured in automobile accidents. The' traditional' method of compensating such persons is the tort system, which involves accident victim proving that fault of some other person caused their injury. This system is not a compensation scheme per se, but a means of shifting losses in accordance with community expectations. This system was criticised during the 20th-century for its inequity, expense and delay. Alternative compensation systems developed which supplement or replace tort as a means of access to compensation. These are divided into 'hybrid' systems - add-on, threshold and choice no-fault - and 'pure' no-fault. There are numerous arguments for and against each system and no one scheme has emerged as the system of choice internationally. In Australia, which is a Federation of states and territories, each jurisdiction has a separate scheme. The majority are fault based but with variations in benefit structures. There is also an add-on no-fault system in Tasmania, a threshold no-fault system in Victoria and a pure no-fault scheme covering residents of the Northern Territory. This pattern of diversity could be expected because of reluctance to embrace change when alternatives are not universally viewed as superior. Chapman and Trebilcock argue that the diversity signifies political instability that is not seen in other areas of law such as workplace injuries, products liability and medical malpractice. They hypothesise that because appreciation of facts surrounding automobile accidents and core values within communities across a Federation such as Australia should be similar, the probable reason for diversity is the existence of majority voting cycles and sequence dependent outcomes. A critical analysis of Chapman and Trebilcock's reasoning shows that their basic premise is faulty. An examination of the evidence from the structure of each Australian scheme, and the scheme reviews and debates on points of change during the period from 1970 to date, demonstrates that in relation to Australian automobile accident compensation schemes, Chapman and Trebilcock's theory is probably wrong, and the diversity is a result of rational democratic political processes.

Thesis (Ph.D.) -- University of Adelaide, School of Humanities, Discipline of Philosophy, 2007. / "Submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in April 2006" Bibliography: p. 219-233. Also available in print form.