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Recent events have shown that earnings management is a significant problem in the business world and that the culture in place in many organizations may encourage managers to manipulate earnings. While prior research has shown that earnings management exists at the corporate level, it has not examined whether managers at the divisional level are motivated to manage earnings. The purpose of this study is to examine whether divisional managers will be more inclined to manage earnings in order to maximize personal wealth. The secondary research objective is to examine whether the information frame will impact discretionary management accounting decisions. Members of the Institute of Management Accountants participated in an earnings management study in which two conditions were manipulated. First, the annual compensation of subjects was contingent on whether target income was met or not met. Second, information about a potentially obsolete inventory item was framed as either positive or negative. Subjects were asked the likelihood they would write off the potentially obsolete inventory. Research findings support the earnings management hypothesis and indicate that managers are less likely to write off obsolete inventory when their compensation is impacted by the write-off. Study results also reveal that the manner in which the inventory information is framed may affect managers’ write-off decision. These results are important as they may indicate that earnings management is more pervasive throughout the organization than previously shown.

The newsvendor problem is fundamental to many operations management models. The problem focuses on the trade-off between the gains from satisfying demand and losses from unsold products. The newsvendor model and its extensions have been applied to various areas, such as production plan and supply chain management. This chapter examines the study about newsvendor problem. In this research, there is a review of the contributions for the multiproduct newsvendor problem. It focuses on the current literature concerning the mathematical models and the solution methods for the multiitem newsvendor problems with single or multiple constraints, as well as with the risks. The objective of this research is to go over the newsvendor problem and bring into comparison different newsvendor models applied to the flower industry. A few case studies are described addressing topics related to the newsvendor problem such as discounting and replenishment policies, inventory inaccuracies, or demand estimation. Three newsvendor models are put into practice in the field of flower selling. A full database of the flowers sold by an anonymous retailer is available for the study. Computational experiments for practical example have been conducted with use of the CPLEX solver with AMPL programming language. Models are solved, and an analysis of different circumstances and cases is accomplished.

We examine the sample self-selection and the use of LIFO or FIFO inventory method. For this purpose, we apply the Heckman-Lee’s two-stage regression to the 1973–1981 data, a period of relatively high inflation, during which the incentive to adopt the LIFO inventory valuation method was most pronounced. The predicted coefficients based on the reduced-form probit (inventory choice model) and the tax functions are used to derive predicted tax savings in the structured probit. Specifically, the predicted tax savings are computed by comparing the actual LIFO (FIFO) taxes vs. predicted FIFO (LIFO) taxes. Thereafter, we estimate the dollar amount of tax savings under different regimes. The two-stage approach enables us to address not only the managerial choice of the inventory method but also the tax effect of this decision. Previous studies do not jointly consider the inventory choice decision and the tax effect of that decision. Hence, the approach we use is a contribution to the literature. Our results show that self-selection bias is present in our sample of LIFO and FIFO firms and correcting for the self-selection bias shows that the LIFO firms, on average, had $282 million of tax savings, which explains why a large number of firms adopted the LIFO inventory method during the seventies.

This chapter enters an old debate on the shape of validation processes in qualitative research. We discuss a reflective research validation framework related to teaching approaches and practices. The majority of investigations in this area draw mainly on indirect observation, semi-structured interviews or the application of questionnaires and inventories. To this extent, only “half-the-story” has been reported. The validation framework here develops a five-part three stage structure, conceptualized as an “iterative-interactive-process,” integrating a set of strategies aimed at the “minimization of invalidity.” The application of the framework is illustrated through a longitudinal study investigating the relationship between classroom questioning practices and teachers’ preferential teaching approaches. Fieldwork in this naturalistic-interpretative research was conducted during four academic years and entailed close collaboration with a group of four university teachers lecturing biology to undergraduates.

Sharing services increasingly extends beyond intraorganizational concentration of service delivery. Organizations have started to promote cooperation across their boundaries to deal with strategic tensions in their value ecosystem, moving beyond traditional outsourcing. This chapter addresses two research questions geared to the challenge of interorganizational shared services (ISS): why would organizations want to get and remain involved in ISS? And: what are the implications of ISS for (inter)organizational value creation?

The conceptual chapter reviews literature pertaining to ISS from public, commercial, and nongovernmental sectors. ISS is understood as a multistakeholder organizational innovation. In order to analyze ISS and conduct empirical research, we developed a taxonomy and research framework.

The chapter shows how ISS can be positioned in value chains, distinguishing vertical, horizontal, and hybrid ISS. It outlines ISS implications for developing business models, structures, and relationships. Success factors and barriers are presented that epitomize the dynamic interplay of organizational autonomy and interorganizational dependence.

The research framework offers conceptual ideas for theoretical and empirical work. Researchers involved in ISS studies may adopt strategic, strategic innovation, and organizational innovation perspectives.

ISS phases are distinguished to focus innovation management — initiation, enactment, and evaluation. Furthermore, insights are provided into processes and interventions aimed at making ISS a success for participating organizations.

Cross-sectoral perspective on ISS; taxonomy of ISS; research framework built on organization and strategic management literature.

This chapter covers three main concepts: it provides an overview of supply chain management (SCM), introduces the concepts of procurement and what is entailed within this function, and explains how inventory is managed. In the first section, SCM is considered broadly but also in the context of hospitality. The key roles and objectives of SCM as well as the significance of supply chain risk and disruption are considered. In the second section, the concept of sourcing is discussed. Sourcing is a critical function in any organization: without this, an organization would cease to operate. The importance of supplier selection is explored, with methods to make the most appropriate selection and for subsequently managing suppliers. Finally, the third section focuses on how inventory management can be optimized. Concepts such as economic order quantity (EOQ) and ABC analysis are explored, along with alternatives to traditional inventory management methods.