Search results

The purpose of this paper is to chart the development of the Nepalese telecommunications industry and assess how they may develop in the future.

A country case study approach is adopted. The Nepalese context is outlined before the telecommunications industry is described and the main drivers of its development identified. The paper draws on interviews as well as secondary sources and models the relationship between the main drivers of the industry in Nepal.

Although the Nepalese telecommunications industry has substantially changed since the modernisation process began in early 1980s, large parts of the country remain without access to telecommunication services.

Some data collection problems were encountered, but these were addressed through the use of multiple sources.

The industry's future development will be shaped by the interplay between geography, resources and the CPN (Maoist) insurgency.

Previous studies have tended to focus on one part of the Nepalese telecommunications industry or one specific issue. This paper provides a broad overview of the industry and draws attention to the inter‐relationships that exist between the key drivers of telecommunications diffusion in Nepal.

This study aims to explore the challenges and complexities of interaction in international stakeholder networks within the context of projects focused on the implementation of sustainable development goals (SDGs). In particular, it examines the challenges faced by stakeholders in a network from a developed country during interaction in the context of a developing country.

Using a qualitative approach, this study analyses interview data collected from the key managers of an international consulting company in charge of a water supply and sanitation project in Nepal. The primary data is triangulated with secondary data, such as project reports and related academic articles.

This study illustrates how interaction in international stakeholder networks affects and is interrelated with SDGs, as well as how aiming to achieve one specific goal can stimulate the implementation of other sustainable goals. Further, this research shows how project managers from a developed country had to adapt to the specifics of the developing country context and how their sustainability project influenced the well-being of local communities by improving environmental and social sustainability.

The research suggests that challenges in stakeholder interaction may arise because of differences in process management methods used by the international stakeholders involved in the project and country-context specifics, such as corruption, imperfect national regulations, cultural specifics, effects of climate change, etc.

The paper contributes to the literature on international multi-stakeholder interaction between actors from developed and developing countries. Furthermore, it adds to the literature on stakeholder networking by highlighting the importance of engaging in a dialogue with local communities during the conceptualisation stages of both sustainability and SDG implementation because of diverging worldviews and practices.

The paper aims to examine the status of corporate social responsibility (CSR) in Nepalese companies.

The study is descriptive‐cum‐analytical and is based on a review of the literature.

The cases presented in the paper show a low intensity of CSR in Nepal. Both government and employers are somehow not serious in implementing labor laws. At the company level, employees' awareness of CSR can bring a positive attitude towards the company.

This paper is useful to academicians and companies seeking to understand the factors supporting and inhibiting CSR in Nepalese companies.

The main limitation is that although there are many variables by which to measure CSR initiatives, only labor laws, employees' awareness and a few HRM dimensions have been covered.

This is perhaps the very first investigation of its kind in the Nepalese context.

The paper aims to assess the corporate social responsibility (CSR) domains in Nepalese companies and explain the active CSR activities related to concerned domain.

The study is descriptive and is based on a review of previous research findings and focus group discussion.

It has three major findings. First, there is a gradual shift from philanthropic domain of CSR to the economic domain. Second, a number of CSR activities have emerged from within the domains. Finally, some of the CSR intents are even linked to the Millennium Development Goals of the country.

This study is mainly based on qualitative analysis (focus group discussions) of the participants in three different discussion programs.

This paper is useful to academicians and companies seeking to understand what kind of CSR activities are undergoing in Nepalese companies in different domains.

This is perhaps the very first investigation of its kind in the Nepalese context.

This paper aims to examine the current quality of work-life (QWL) situation and the effectiveness of labor laws for promoting QWL in the context of Nepalese workplaces.

It uses a descriptive-interpretative-qualitative approach to analyze the responses. Information is gathered through discussions with 85 higher- and middle-level managers of large and medium-sized organizations.

The majority of Nepalese organizations accept safe and healthy working conditions, social relevance of work-life, social integration in the work organization, and work and total life space as the key aspects of QWL. They have become even more critical as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. However, they face challenges in providing employees with opportunities for continued growth and security, immediate opportunity to use and develop human capacities, adequate and fair compensation and constitutionalism in the work organization. QWL-related provisions in Labour Act, 2017, play a vital role in promoting the QWL situation. The QWL programs offer many benefits to employees’ private and working lives. The lack of such programs would undoubtedly have negative consequences for Nepalese companies. Compliance with labor laws will promote a better QWL situation at Nepalese workplaces.

Only managerial perspectives are considered for examining the current situation of QWL and the effectiveness of QWL-related provisions of the Labour Act, 2017. It excludes the views of union leaders.

This paper indicates that labor laws’ QWL-related provisions are effective. It also provides several policy measures for promoting a better QWL in Nepalese workplaces.

This study presents QWL-related legal provisions and the actual situation at the workplaces of Nepal. It also presents the key aspects of QWL in the context of Nepal.

The purpose of this study is to explore the nature of human resource management in publicly listed finance sector companies in Nepal. In particular, it explores the extent to which HR practice is integrated into organisational strategy and devolved to line management.

A structured interview was conducted with the senior executive responsible for human resource management in 26 commercial banks and insurance companies in Nepal.

The degree of integration of HR practice appears to be increasing within this sector, but this is dependent on the maturity of the organisations. The devolvement of responsibility to line managers is at best partial, and in the case of the insurance companies, it is more out of necessity due to the absence of a strong central HR function.

The survey is inevitably based on a small sample; however this represents 90 per cent of the relevant population. The data suggest that Western HR is making inroads into more developed aspects of Nepalese business. Compared with Nepalese business as a whole, the financial sector appears relatively Westernised, although Nepal still lags India in its uptake of HR practices.

It appears unlikely from a cultural perspective that the devolvement of responsibility will be achieved as a result of HR strategy. National cultural, political and social factors continue to be highly influential in shaping the Nepalese business environment.

Few papers have explored HR practice in Nepal. This paper contributes to the overall assessment of HR uptake globally and highlights emic features impacting on that uptake.

Insurance companies play a significant role in every economy; hence, it is essential to investigate and understand the factors that propel their profitability. Unlike previous studies that present a linear relationship, this study provides initial evidence by exploring the non-linear impacts of the determinants of profitability amongst life insurers in South Africa.

The study uses a panel dataset of 62 life insurers in South Africa, covering 2013–2019. The generalised method of moments and the dynamic panel threshold estimation technique were used to estimate the relationship.

The empirical results from the direct relationship reveal that investment income and solvency significantly predict life insurance companies' profitability. On the other hand, underwriting risk, reinsurance and size reduce profitability. Further, the dynamic panel threshold analysis confirms non-linearities in the relationships. The results show that insurance size, investment income and solvency promote profitability beyond a threshold level, implying a propelling effect on life insurers' profitability at higher levels. Below the threshold, these factors have an adverse effect. The study further points to underwriting risk, reinsurance and leverage having a reduced effect on life insurers' profitability when they fall above the threshold level.

The findings suggest that insurers interested in boosting their profit position must commit more resources to maintain their solvency and manage their assets and returns on investment. The study further recommends that effective control of underwriting risk is critical to the profitability of the life insurance industry.

The study contributes to the literature by providing first-time evidence on the determinants of life insurance companies' profitability by way of exploring threshold effects in South Africa.

Considering the ongoing debate regarding the roles of business in society, this paper aims to examine the managerial understanding of corporate social responsibility (CSR) in Nepal.

This study uses explanatory sequential design under mixed methods of research. First, the questionnaire survey method was used to collect data from 168 managers of listed companies in Nepal. Second, semistructured interviews were conducted with 20 senior-level managers of listed companies to verify the results obtained from the survey and to gain a deeper understanding of the phenomena.

The survey results show that managerial understanding of CSR is mainly guided by the notions of corporate philanthropy, stakeholder approach and political CSR, respectively. However, the managerial understanding vis-à-vis political CSR and corporate philanthropy were found to be remarkably positively influenced by the firm’s size, whereas the stakeholder perspective was widely held by the managers regardless of their firm’s size. The interview results largely substantiated questionnaire survey findings and further revealed vivid dimensions within the philanthropic approach, stakeholder approach and political CSR.

Given the recent legal provisions vis-à-vis mandatory CSR spending in Nepal, the policymakers may devise and update common core and firm-size-specific informational, fiscal-economic, legal and partnering instruments based on the findings of this study. Besides, companies may go for appropriate institutional arrangements for CSR as needed.

The reaffirmation of conventionally accepted roles and the approval of relatively nascent political roles of business in a distinct socio–political–legal–economic context of Nepal can be an important contribution to the literature.

The purpose of this paper is to explore the extent of strategic integration between business strategy and human resource (HR) policies and their impact on organizational performance of public listed companies in Nepal.

Exploratory cum descriptive research design is followed with structured questionnaire distributed to 105 publicly listed individual organizations as a unit of analysis and secondary source of information used to verify the performance result of perceptual measurement.

Formulation of explicit mission and business strategies indicate that around half of the organizations are doing business without business strategy and just one-fourth organizations formulate explicit HR strategy in order to support business strategies. Among the respondent organizations, few organizations meet the requirement of high strategic integrating organizations that were performing better than organizations that were low integrating.

This study provides sufficient evidences to Nepalese decision makers and academics that integration of business and HR strategies will have better impact on organizational performance. The result of this study motivates decision makers and academics, particularly South Asian, to understand the importance of investing in HR to raise organizational performance.

Examining strategic integration for organizational performance is perhaps the first study which certainly contributes to the overall assessment HRM and its impact on organizational performance to the developing countries of South Asia, like Nepal and add values to the process of theoretical development as well as HR management.

Nepal’s rich cultural and natural heritage – the basis of a flourishing tourism industry that contributes 8% to the country’s GDP – suffered heavily during the Gorkha earthquake that shook the country in April 2015. Recovery was challenged by a political-economic crisis that hampered mobility and delayed access to resources. Given the economic importance of tourism to Nepal, a revival of this industry was considered vital by public authorities and private sector representatives. This chapter discusses the response mechanisms of the tourism industry in Kathmandu to two sequential, overlapping stressors that brought challenges to the business sector beyond the usual. Interviews with hotel managers and owners, tour operators and trekking company owners have revealed that coping strategies varied from business-as-usual to completely new paths. To what extent do multiple disruptive events challenge a tourism industry to diverge from established paths of economic development? How did Nepal revive its tourism industry? In-depth interviews with tourism industry stakeholders brought forth evidence of unusual collaborative action towards a quick restoration of tourist arrivals and a positive image of the destination. Furthermore, a handful of companies have shifted their entire business strategy.