Financial development, liberalisation and productivity growth. The analysis performed in this project will provide some new insights into the role of financial policies in bolstering productivity growth. This issue deserves more attention from the policy circle given that a better understanding of the mechanisms by which finance affects growth performance allows policy makers to evaluate the costs and benefits associated with liberalising and deepening the financial systems, thus enabling the fo ....Financial development, liberalisation and productivity growth. The analysis performed in this project will provide some new insights into the role of financial policies in bolstering productivity growth. This issue deserves more attention from the policy circle given that a better understanding of the mechanisms by which finance affects growth performance allows policy makers to evaluate the costs and benefits associated with liberalising and deepening the financial systems, thus enabling the formulation of effective financial policies. This understanding is critical to achieve the Australian policy makers' objective of promoting financial stability and strengthening growth.Read moreRead less
The Impact of Customer-Focused Business Strategies on Organisational Performance in a Professional Service Context. The study poses important new questions about the impact well-established customer marketing approaches, such as value, have, within a professional service environment. It is unclear whether organisations focus on such concepts when developing strategy and, if so, how they use them when formulating strategy and this will be investigated. A second question, which is of academic and ....The Impact of Customer-Focused Business Strategies on Organisational Performance in a Professional Service Context. The study poses important new questions about the impact well-established customer marketing approaches, such as value, have, within a professional service environment. It is unclear whether organisations focus on such concepts when developing strategy and, if so, how they use them when formulating strategy and this will be investigated. A second question, which is of academic and practical importance, is the impact such strategies have on organisational performance, and this will also be examined. Understanding the link between strategy and organisational performance is vital as managers have difficulty assessing the relevance of their marketing activities.Read moreRead less
Adoption of electronic commerce-enabled supply chain management: a trans-national comparison study. The framework developed will allow practitioners to identify an appropriate strategy to promote the adoption of EC-enabled SCM in developing countries. By including Indonesia and China as two of Australia's large trading partners in this study, the relationships can be further enhanced, leading to an increase in Australia's export market and improvement in national productivity and growth. Through ....Adoption of electronic commerce-enabled supply chain management: a trans-national comparison study. The framework developed will allow practitioners to identify an appropriate strategy to promote the adoption of EC-enabled SCM in developing countries. By including Indonesia and China as two of Australia's large trading partners in this study, the relationships can be further enhanced, leading to an increase in Australia's export market and improvement in national productivity and growth. Through wider adoption of EC-enabled SCM by Australia's trading partners, Australia can trade with them more efficiently. The empirical data and the research instruments developed will also enhance Australia's research standing and contribute to university teaching and research training. Read moreRead less
A Protocol for Customer Relationship Management Implementation and Evaluation. In 2001, companies worldwide invested US$20 billion (US$125 billion by 2004) in Customer Relationship Management (CRM). Despite the magnitude of this investment, the general consensus among practitioners is that most CRM systems have failed to live up to expectations. This is somewhat alarming, given that the theoretical underpinnings of relationship management are both well developed and intuitively sound. This pr ....A Protocol for Customer Relationship Management Implementation and Evaluation. In 2001, companies worldwide invested US$20 billion (US$125 billion by 2004) in Customer Relationship Management (CRM). Despite the magnitude of this investment, the general consensus among practitioners is that most CRM systems have failed to live up to expectations. This is somewhat alarming, given that the theoretical underpinnings of relationship management are both well developed and intuitively sound. This project investigates the contradiction between relationship theory and CRM practice. It will identify and synthesise critical factors in the success or failure of attempts to implement CRM as a preliminary stage to developing a protocol for successful CRM implementation and evaluation.Read moreRead less
The key strategies in firms' realisation of value from ICT: A transformational model of ICT value generation. Studies indicate that information and communication technologies (ICT) have contributed significantly to Australia's productivity gains over the last decade. It is not well understood, however, why some firms and some industries have been able to benefit significantly more from ICT use than others. This study will show the strategies and practices that are used by the firms that gain max ....The key strategies in firms' realisation of value from ICT: A transformational model of ICT value generation. Studies indicate that information and communication technologies (ICT) have contributed significantly to Australia's productivity gains over the last decade. It is not well understood, however, why some firms and some industries have been able to benefit significantly more from ICT use than others. This study will show the strategies and practices that are used by the firms that gain maximum benefit from ICT - the 'ICT winners'. The lessons learned will allow other firms to gain further benefits from ICT, potentially leading overall to further economic gains by industries and the nation. Read moreRead less
Examination of consumers' and food industry's use and views of plant-based food products. Plant food products such as cereal grains, fruits, vegetables and legumes can provide physiological benefits for consumers, value-adding opportunities for industry, and, ecological sustainability. This project will examine the factors driving consumer interest in this area and gauge the extent of industry and mass media influences over consumer demand.
Major outcomes of the project include greater under ....Examination of consumers' and food industry's use and views of plant-based food products. Plant food products such as cereal grains, fruits, vegetables and legumes can provide physiological benefits for consumers, value-adding opportunities for industry, and, ecological sustainability. This project will examine the factors driving consumer interest in this area and gauge the extent of industry and mass media influences over consumer demand.
Major outcomes of the project include greater understanding of consumer use of these foods, segmentation of the consumer market, novel segmentation instruments, a stronger basis for communication between industry and consumers regarding plant foods, and identification of opportunities and barriers to the production and marketing of novel plant food products.Read moreRead less
Development of a Global Decision Support System towards Virtual Manufacturing. The aim of this research project is to develop a global decision support system (GDSS) in order to assist SMEs to improve their competitiveness in the dynamic global market while providing an industry oriented research training for a high calibre PhD student, who would be a valuable asset to Australia. The GDSS will help SMEs leverage their operations in a global context and to adopt a realistic virtual manufacturing ....Development of a Global Decision Support System towards Virtual Manufacturing. The aim of this research project is to develop a global decision support system (GDSS) in order to assist SMEs to improve their competitiveness in the dynamic global market while providing an industry oriented research training for a high calibre PhD student, who would be a valuable asset to Australia. The GDSS will help SMEs leverage their operations in a global context and to adopt a realistic virtual manufacturing system in the future. The significance of the project includes developing a new methodology and a GDSS to assess virtual manufacturing issues for SMEs and assisting them making timely decisions.Read moreRead less
Leaders as motivators: A test of an integrated theory of leadership and motivation to predict employees' psychological health and productivity. The effectiveness of organisations depends upon the quality of its leaders. While research shows that certain leader behaviours can enhance psychological heath (increase job satisfaction, reduce stress) and productivity, it is not clear why this occurs. This proposal addresses this shortcoming by developing a model of leadership that places motivation ....Leaders as motivators: A test of an integrated theory of leadership and motivation to predict employees' psychological health and productivity. The effectiveness of organisations depends upon the quality of its leaders. While research shows that certain leader behaviours can enhance psychological heath (increase job satisfaction, reduce stress) and productivity, it is not clear why this occurs. This proposal addresses this shortcoming by developing a model of leadership that places motivation as a core process between the leader's behaviour and outcomes. The model is tested across new innovative research designs, including a study that tests an intervention to improve leadership effectiveness. The research will increase the understanding of workplace leadership and provide practical ways to improve employees' psychological health and productivity.Read moreRead less
Measurement and Sources of Productivity Growth under Imperfect Competition. The relative growth performance of countries using net output will free comparisons from the contentious and differing adjustments made by many statistical agencies in an attempt to take account of quality change in capital goods. Thus, Australia will have a better understanding of its relative performance in terms of growth, and thus be better positioned to make informed policy decisions. In addition, whether producti ....Measurement and Sources of Productivity Growth under Imperfect Competition. The relative growth performance of countries using net output will free comparisons from the contentious and differing adjustments made by many statistical agencies in an attempt to take account of quality change in capital goods. Thus, Australia will have a better understanding of its relative performance in terms of growth, and thus be better positioned to make informed policy decisions. In addition, whether productivity growth is mainly driven by technical progress or returns to scale, and the size of monopolistic markups, has a large bearing on how we view the performance of an economy and its potential for future growth.Read moreRead less
Classifying the indirect costs of information systems and information technology in business. Many businesses are increasing their expenditure on IS/IT to obtain a strategic competitive advantage. Traditional approaches to IS/IT appraisal are unable to accommodate the costs associated with deploying 'organisational-wide' IS/IT solutions because of their qualitative characteristics. The inability of managers to determine the 'true' costs of IS/IT are attributable to a lack of knowledge and unders ....Classifying the indirect costs of information systems and information technology in business. Many businesses are increasing their expenditure on IS/IT to obtain a strategic competitive advantage. Traditional approaches to IS/IT appraisal are unable to accommodate the costs associated with deploying 'organisational-wide' IS/IT solutions because of their qualitative characteristics. The inability of managers to determine the 'true' costs of IS/IT are attributable to a lack of knowledge and understanding of IS/IT related costs. This research will extend the myopia of traditional 'direct' financial cost analysis by identifying 'indirect' cost factors. A model that integrates cost taxonomies and performance measures/metrics of IS/IT will be developed as a frame of reference for IS/IT decision-makers.Read moreRead less