Search results

This paper aims to examine optimal decisions for information security investments for a firm in a fuzzy environment. Under both sequential and simultaneous attack scenarios, optimal investment of firm, optimal efforts of attackers and their economic utilities are determined.

Throughout the analysis, a single firm and two attackers for a “firm as a leader” in a sequential game setting and “firm versus attackers” in a simultaneous game setting are considered. While the firm makes investments to secure its information assets, the attackers spend their efforts to launch breaches.

It is observed that the firm needs to invest more when it announces its security investment decisions ahead of attacks. In contrast, the firm can invest relatively less when all agents are unaware of each other’s choices in advance. Further, the study reveals that attackers need to exert higher effort when no agent enjoys the privilege of being a leader.

In a novel approach, inherent system vulnerability of the firm, financial benefit of attackers from the breach and monetary loss suffered by the firm are considered, as fuzzy variables in the well-recognized Gordon – Loeb breach function, with the help of fuzzy expectation operator.

This study reports that the optimal breach effort exerted by each attacker is proportional to its obtained economic benefit for both sequential and simultaneous attack scenarios. A set of numerical experiments and sensitivity analyzes complement the analytical modeling.

In a novel approach, inherent system vulnerability of the firm, financial benefit of attackers from the breach and monetary loss suffered by the firm are considered, as fuzzy variables in the well-recognized Gordon – Loeb breach function, with the help of fuzzy expectation operator.

This study aims to focus on how grocery store retail entrepreneurs invest in formal and informal surveillance, and how these investments affect consumers' and employees' sense of security. In particular, it tries to understand what kind of surveillance investments can be found from the stores with high consumer and employees' sense of security.

The present study utilizes elements of CPTED in its theoretical approach. The population for the study consisted of 946 grocery store K‐retailers. The data collection was carried out through an internet survey in February and March of 2009. A total of 161 grocery store retailers filled in the questionnaire, yielding a response rate of 17 percent.

The research reveals that investments in informal surveillance are more likely to create a high sense of security among consumers and employees than are investments in formal surveillance. In other words, the analysis shows that the stores where consumers and employees have a high sense of security have made more investments in comfortable, clean and well‐lit premises than stores where consumers and employees have a low sense of security.

The present study was limited to surveillance and to consumers' and employees' sense of security as understood by the retailers. Unquestionably, there is a need to study surveillance from the consumers' and employees' viewpoints. In addition, qualitative studies would enable more thorough operationalization of the concepts that linked the surveillance and sense of security in the store context.

Retailers wishing to create a safe retail space for employees and customers should invest in informal surveillance. Investments in comfortable, well‐cleaned and well‐lighted premises make both consumers and employees feel safe in the store environment. In this way, retailers can enhance the competitiveness of their store.

Very little empirical research has evaluated the effectiveness of surveillance in the store environment, although many articles and reports have commented on the importance of surveillance. The present study fills this research gap.

The purpose of this paper is to trace the evolution of the Archway Investment Fund (AIF) at Bryant University from its founding in 2005 as a portfolio focused exclusively on US equities to a multi-asset program that incorporates US equities, non-US equities, equity ETFs, REITs, individual bonds, fixed income ETFs and options. It also describes the explicit introduction of environmental, social and governance (ESG) considerations into the investment process.

The paper follows a case study approach.

The paper describes the programmatic changes that accompanied this evolution in these areas: finance department curriculum innovations; the investment guidelines and constraints that govern the AIF; the investment process utilized; the oversight and governance process; and the reporting, presentation, and publicity initiatives that keep critical constituencies (university administration, faculty, alumni and students) informed and engaged in this program to sustain its success.

The vast majority of student-managed funds are equity funds focused on individual stock selection. The AIF is a multi-asset fund with separate equity and fixed income sub-portfolios that explicitly incorporates ESG factors into the security selection process.

The purpose of this paper is to provide insights into recent financial analysis practice in the Chinese context. The paper aims to examine the approaches pursued and information used by Chinese financial analysts in investment appraisal of ordinary shares. The research seeks to explore influences upon analysts' decision making and how analysts perceived the Chinese investment environment.

A questionnaire based survey approach was used, conducted in 2003 with 65 Chinese financial analysts.

The findings indicate that fundamental analysis was the predominant technique adopted in appraising equities in line with the development of institutional investors and improved market efficiency. Regarding information used to analyse companies, annual reports constituted the most influential source. The Chinese analysts favoured usage of International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRSs) and International Accounting Standards (IASs) by A‐share companies. The findings indicate changes within the financial analyst community, suggesting pressure for higher quality analysis and increased use of more sophisticated techniques despite ongoing market shortcomings. Opinions vary as to how important financial analysis is in influencing stock valuation or, crucially, socio‐economic welfare. However, studies putting the analysts' role in perspective vis‐à‐vis other forces contribute to broadening understanding of this significantly under researched area. This current study contributes to filling this gap.

This paper provides insights into how specific country contexts influence financial analysts' investment appraisal practice in interims of incentives, information sources and techniques adopted.

The purpose of this paper is to explore the perceptions of supply chain managers regarding the elements that make up cyber supply chain risk management (CSCRM) and the related level of alignment, to understand how organizations can deploy a CSCRM strategy that goes beyond the technical, internal functioning of single companies and moves beyond the dyad, to create a better alignment that can ultimately lead to improved cyber supply chain resilience.

An exploratory survey in the fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) industry involving over 100 organizations in Italy was conducted. Results were analysed through one-way analysis of variance, to appraise the differences in the perceptions of the various actors of the FMCG supply chain (Manufacturers, Logistics Service Providers, Retailers).

While a certain degree of alignment of the perceptions across the FMCG supply chain exists, the study found that Logistics Service Providers can play a crucial role as orchestrators of the CSCRM process towards a more “supply chain-oriented” response to cyber threats and risk events. The research also highlights the necessity to see people as key elements for improving cyber resilience in the supply chain.

Through a vertical analysis of a supply chain, the study extends the existing theory on CSCRM, which contains isolated case studies. It also contributes to extending the current theory with the proposal of the paradigm of Logistics Service Providers as orchestrators of the CSCRM process. The study combines different classifications of CSCRM initiatives and embraces theories external to the supply chain literature.

Through the empirical analysis, this study helps practitioners in streamlining the design of cyber security strategies and actions that span across the supply chain for better alignment. This could mean more coordination of efforts and more targeted/accurate investments in CSCRM initiatives. The study invites practitioners to ponder the perceived relevance of the human factor as a source of risk and the perceived importance of countermeasures aimed at mitigating risk events stemming from that source.

By focusing on an entire supply chain, this is one of the first studies on CSCRM that goes beyond the dyad. Its originality also lies in its use of the investigations of perceptions along the supply chain as pillars for the alignment of CSCRM strategies and mitigation initiatives. This original perspective allows for discovering the role of Logistics Service Providers in driving the alignment of the efforts towards better outcomes of the CSCRM process.

This paper aims to study the cross section of expected returns on Shari’ah-compliant stocks in Pakistan by using single- and multi-factor asset pricing models.

To estimate cross section of expected returns of Shari’ah-compliant stocks, the study uses capital asset pricing model (CAPM), Fama-French three-factor model and Fama-French five-factor model. Data for the period 2001-2015 on 217 companies are used. For the market portfolio, PSX-100 and Dow Jones Islamic Index for Pakistan are used.

The study could not find empirical support for CAPM using Lintner (1965), Black et al. (1972) and Fama and Macbeth (1973) approach. Nonetheless, the relation between beta and returns is positive in up-market and negative in down-market. The results of Fama-French three-factor and five-factor models suggest that size premium is positive and significant for explaining the cross section of stock returns of small size stocks, whereas value premium is positive and significant for explaining the cross section of returns of high value stocks.

The results suggest that fund managers can use Shari’ah-compliant stocks for portfolio diversification and for offering specialized investments given the positive market excess returns and the existence of size and value premium on Shari’ah-compliant stocks.

This is the first study on Fama-French (2015) five-factor model for Islamic capital markets in Pakistan.

The purpose of this paper is to illustrate the effectiveness of integrating a portfolio simulation‐based trading program with the top‐down approach to fundamental analysis in a security analysis course. The simulation allows for the application of class material using a combination of group and individual projects.

Students enrolled in the class completed a survey about the integrated approach and the required simulated trading.

Over 87 per cent of students agreed that the economic analysis provided more educational value as a group project than as an individual project, while over two‐thirds of the students disagreed that the trading simulation had more education value as a group project.

Although the authors focus on the top‐down approach, the concepts of technical analysis, hedging, and income generation could be more formally incorporated into the trading simulation.

The outline of how to integrate a trading simulation into the top‐down approach, using a combination of group projects and a cumulating project completed by each student, can be used as a guide for how to make the top‐down approach a more meaningful task.

The integration of the portfolio simulated trading program with the top‐down approach makes the course more applied and more enjoyable for both the students and the faculty.

The paper outlines how to integrate a trading simulation and the top‐down approach and reports the finding that students preferred the group approach to economic analysis and individual projects for the simulation and the company analysis.

The need for security for the business user is all important these days especially as the trend is to distribute computing power in the user environment. Examines risk analysis of information security and its aim of placing risk exposures into perspective and providing a basis for comparing the risk exposure with the cost of the solution. Views two different approaches, qualitative and quantitative, based on the mixed influences of Dr Jerry FitzGerald′s matrix approach and Bob Courteney′s approximation scales. Assesses the strengths and weaknesses of the analysis.

The retention rate of a company has an impact on its earnings and dividend growth. Corporate management has control over this. However, lease structures in some real estate markets reduce the control of investment managers and force them to adopt full distribution policies and a passive management style. This is likely to impact the rental performance of the real estate by permitting depreciation to go uncorrected. This paper examines several European office markets across which lease structures and retention rates vary. It then compares depreciation rates across these markets. It is concluded that there is evidence of a relationship between retention and depreciation. Markets with particularly inflexible lease structures clearly exhibit low retention rates, and we can tentatively suggest higher levels of rental value depreciation. This poses interesting questions concerning the relationships between lease structures in different markets and their impact on expenditure by owners, and also concerning the impact on building depreciation and property performance. While longer and deeper datasets are necessary to establish direct linkages between lease structures and performance, this paper raises important issues for global investors.

The purpose of this paper is to describe the student investment management program at Saint Louis University.

It is a case study of the program’s structure and investment performance.

The authors present information on the program’s philosophy and course structure, investment performance and how the authors use LinkedIn to involve alumni in the program.

The authors find that using LinkedIn to maintain alumni connections to the program takes little effort on the part of the instructors but adds value for current students and program alumni alike.