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We investigate the link between firm volatility and risk-taking (RT) among 4232 institutions across 11 countries during the period of 2000–2017 and find RT is negatively correlated with volatility measures. Second, a decomposition of the primary risk measure, the Z score and Merton distance-to-default, reveals that high RT contributed to lower stock return volatility mainly through better corporate governance, firm size, higher information efficiency, and strong BOD. Third, Australia firms engage in more RT compared to other countries. Finally, majority of the selected countries show the negative impact of RT in firm volatility in the pre-crises period (2002–2006) and during the crises period (2007–2009) but not in the post-crises period (2010–2014).

To maximise acoustic comfort in a classroom, the acoustic conditions of the space should be variable. So, the optimal acoustic state also changes when the classroom changes from a study environment into a lecture environment. Passive Variable Acoustic Technology (PVAT) alters a room’s Reverberation Time (RT) by changing the total sound absorption in a room. The purpose of this paper is to evaluate the improvements to classroom acoustic comfort when using PVAT.

The study is conducted in an existing tertiary classroom at Auckland University of Technology, New Zealand. The PVAT is prototyped, and the RTs are measured according to international standards before and after classroom installation. The acoustic measurement method used is a cost-effective application tool where pre- and post-conditions are of primary concern.

PVAT is found to offer statistically significant improvements in RT, but the key benefits are realised in its’ ability to vary RT for different classroom situations. It is predicted that the RT recommendations for two room types outlined in the acoustic standard AS/NZS 2107:2016 are satisfied when using PVAT in a single classroom space. By optimising RT, the acoustic comfort during both study and lecture is significantly improved.

When PVAT is combined with an intelligent system – Intelligent Passive Room Acoustic Technology (IPRAT) – it can detect sound waves in real time to identify the optimal RT. This paper details a pilot case study that works towards quantifying the benefits of IPRAT, by prototyping and testing the PVAT component of the system.

1. A pilot case study outlines the development and test of a variable acoustic prototype in a tertiary classroom

2. A method is adopted to measure acoustic conditions, using three under-researched Android applications

3. The benefits of PVAT are realised in its ability to vary RT by adjusting the prototypes’ sound absorption

4. By using PVAT in a single space, the recommended RTs for two room types outlined in the acoustic standard AS/NZS 2107:2016 can be satisfied

5. The improvements in acoustic comfort due to PVAT are statistically significant

A pilot case study outlines the development and test of a variable acoustic prototype in a tertiary classroom

A method is adopted to measure acoustic conditions, using three under-researched Android applications

The benefits of PVAT are realised in its ability to vary RT by adjusting the prototypes’ sound absorption

By using PVAT in a single space, the recommended RTs for two room types outlined in the acoustic standard AS/NZS 2107:2016 can be satisfied

The improvements in acoustic comfort due to PVAT are statistically significant

Informed by acoustic design standards, the built environments are designed with single reverberation times (RTs), a trade-off between long and short RTs needed for different space functions. The novel intelligent passive room acoustic technology (IPRAT) has the potential to revolutionise room acoustics, thus, it is imperative to analyse and quantify its effect. IPRAT achieves real-time room acoustic improvement by integrating passive variable acoustic technology (PVAT) and acoustic scene classification (ASC). This paper aims to compare IPRAT simulation results with the AS/NZS 2107:2016 Australian/New Zealand recommended design acoustic standards.

In this paper 20 classroom environments are virtually configured for the simulation, multiplying 5 classrooms with 4 aural situations typical to New Zealand classrooms. The acoustic parameters RT, sound clarity (C50) and sound strength (G) are considered and analysed in the simulation. These parameters can be used to determine the effects of improved acoustics for both teacher vocal relief and student comprehension. The IPRAT was assumed to vary RT and was represented in the simulation by six different absorption coefficient spectrums.

The optimised acoustic parameters were derived from relationships between C50, RT and G. These relationships and optimal RTs contribute a unique database to literature. IPRAT’s advantages were discerned from a comparison of “current,” “attainable” and “optimised” acoustic parameters.

By quantifying the effect of IPRAT, it is understood that IPRAT has the potential to satisfy the key recommendations of professional industry standards (for New Zealand namely; AS/NZS 2107:2016 recommended design acoustic standards).

Innovation in rural tourism and hospitality (RT) is a complex process that involves the exchange of knowledge and resources between many actors and the interrelationships between those actors in the business environment. The purpose of this paper is to provide structure to this “knowledge and resource ecosystem” through a thorough systematic review of the extant literature.

The current study uses a time-tested and reproducible systematic literature review process to identify and analyse 79 research papers that have discussed innovation in RT.

Through content analyses, this review identifies critical stakeholders in the innovation ecosystem, as well as the enabling and hindering roles these stakeholders play in innovation. The thematic analysis uncovers three key research foci: stakeholders and their roles, outcomes of innovation and business model innovation. The review also identifies types of innovation and critically analyses the bibliographical research profile. The authors summarise the findings in an RT innovation ecosystem model, which includes the various actors and their knowledge and resource sharing roles within the business environment.

This is one of the first systematic reviews to concentrate on RT innovation and, within that focus, on knowledge and resource networks in particular rather than on innovation in tourism in general, which was the focus of prior reviews. The authors encourage cross-pollination of ideas by introducing theories from the strategic management, innovation, knowledge management and business model innovation literature wherever appropriate. To consolidate and present the findings on the innovation process’s antecedents and outcomes, the authors present an ecosystem of innovation within the RT framework.

Particularly in volatile, uncertain, complex and ambiguous (VUCA) business conditions, staff in supply chain management (SCM) look to real-time (RT) data processing to reduce uncertainties. However, based on the premise that data processing can be perfectly mastered, such expectations do not reflect reality. The purpose of this paper is to investigate whether RT data processing reduces SCM uncertainties under real-world conditions.

Aiming to facilitate communication on the research question, a Delphi expert survey was conducted to identify challenges of RT data processing in SCM operations and to assess whether it does influence the reduction of SCM uncertainty. In total, 14 prospective statements concerning RT data processing in SCM operations were developed and evaluated by 68 SCM and data-science experts.

RT data processing was found to have an ambivalent influence on the reduction of SCM complexity and associated uncertainty. Analysis of the data collected from the study participants revealed a new type of uncertainty related to SCM data itself.

This paper discusses the challenges of gathering relevant, timely and accurate data sets in VUCA environments and creates awareness of the relationship between data-related uncertainty and SCM uncertainty. Thus, it provides valuable insights for practitioners and the basis for further research on this subject.

The purpose of this study is to apply the motivation–opportunity–ability (MOA) framework to investigate the relationships between ambiguity tolerance (AT), reflective thinking (RT) and performance in a complex task to predict knowledge-sharing intent.

In this study, 190 subjects performed a complex scheduling task in which they were randomly assigned to either participate in RT or not.

Results show that factors of the MOA framework positively predicted knowledge-sharing intent. In addition, RT significantly increased intention to share for individuals with low performance or with low AT.

More research is needed to determine relationships between complex task performance and knowledge sharing, and the role of learning strategies, particularly self-directed ones such as RT. Future studies may use a larger sample size for more complex analysis.

RT may be used to create a sustainable and low-cost method of increasing knowledge sharing in complex tasks, without which those with low AT or low performance may not have participated.

The study supports the importance of contextual influences and points to how organizations can use RT in addition to individual motivation and ability to encourage knowledge sharing.

The purposes of this paper are to analyze the path and speed of rural transformation (RT) and explore the relationship between farmer's income and RT as well as structural transformation (ST) and typology of RT in the past four decades in China.

Based on the major indicators of RT and ST, graphic illustration is used to analyze the relationships between these indicators and farmer's income using the time-series and cross-provincial data in 1978–2017.

While China has experienced significant RT and ST, the levels and speeds of these transformations differed largely among provinces. Higher and faster RT and ST are often positively associated with the higher and faster growth of rural income. Based on this study, a general typology of rural and structural transformations and rural income is developed. The likely impacts of institutions, policies and investments (IPIs) on RT are discussed.

The authors believe that the findings of this study provide the insights on regional RT and ST and policy implications to increase farmer's income through facilitating and speeding up RT and ST with appropriate IPIs during the rural transformation.

The purpose of this paper is to propose a novel demand response method for real‐time (RT) balancing markets, which relies on dynamic demand control (DDC) based on frequency linked RT prices.

A RT balancing market, where the RT price varies inversely with the system frequency, is described. In such a market, producers and consumers can get the RT price, simply by monitoring the frequency deviations themselves. Air conditioning load, the main contributor of summer peaks, is selected for DDC. A physically based model of air conditioner load is taken to simulate the load control. A smart load controller is proposed that changes the thermostat setting with deviations in grid frequency/RT price. Simple examples are simulated to show the load reductions achieved by DDC in a single air conditioner, a group of large number of air conditioners and a RT market consisting of four generation companies and four distribution companies.

The result of simulation on a single air conditioner shows that significant reduction in energy consumption can be achieved during severe frequency dips in a RT market. The results of simulation in an example of a RT market show that such load control not only results in better frequency control but also lowers the RT price of power.

The demand control mechanism suggested in this paper can be applied to Indian market setting but its applicability to other markets might be limited due to differing, reliability standards, market rules, and regulatory framework.

This paper finds that DDC by distribution companies based on RT price/frequency signal not only results in a significant benefit to these companies and consumers but also helps the system operator in frequency regulation. By making the demand‐side participate in frequency regulation, such control can potentially facilitate an increase in renewable energy portfolio.

This paper aims to identify and articulate critical research issues in the emerging area of real‐time knowledge management (RT‐KM) in enterprises, in order to stimulate other researchers to further pursue them. The paper creates a framework around which it identifies and examines research issues and challenges that become salient and critical when knowledge sharing and creation need to happen in near real‐time. The framework is based on two drivers: increasing the requirements to plan for quickening the action‐learning loop in the enterprise, and increasing requirements in planning for emergence. The action‐learning loop is further articulated through the “observe, orient, decide, and act” (OODA) framework that is suited to sense‐and‐respond environments. Through the framework six sets of critical research challenges are identified around RT‐KM in enterprises: challenges around managing the quality of information in RT‐KM, challenges around improving the selective and intensive aspects of managerial attention in RT‐KM, challenges around making core business processes better suited to RT‐KM, challenges around integrating multiple distributed perspectives unpredictably in RT‐KM, challenges around developing heuristics in a way that allow real‐time emergence, and challenges around effectively capturing actions and learning for later reuse in RT‐KM. The issues and challenges identified are suggestive rather than exhaustive. Based on observations from real field case studies in industry, and driven by an industry need for better RT‐KM. This paper brings together the concepts of vigilant information systems, OODA loops, and emergence and applies them through a framework to identify research issues and challenges in this new emerging area of RT‐KM.