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This study aims to investigate the compliance of Kuwait’s College of Basic Education (CBE) with records management standards (RMS), legislation and regulations.

This case study collects data from semi-structured interviews and a thorough internet search of relevant records management (RM) policies and procedures.

The findings reveal the shortcomings of the bottom-up approach to RM, which poses significant risks due to inadequate management and monitoring; lack of compliance with local or national records and archives regulations; and a general unawareness of RMS and best practices among interviewees.

This study focuses on CBE, potentially limiting generalizability to other academic institutions in Kuwait, but offers valuable insights for polities that similarly lack records legislation and wish to improve their RM practices and comply with international standards.

This study proposes a more top-down approach to RM with the adoption of international RMS to improve practices, minimize risks and reduce legal liabilities. Positive outcomes will support the case for records and archives legislation (RAL) in Kuwait and provide the framework for its establishment.

The study argues that the passage of RAL and the subsequent implementation of RMS will improve citizens’ Right to Access Information.

This study initiates a pioneering effort in understanding Public Authority for Applied Education and Training and CBE’s level of compliance with RMS, legislation and regulations and their challenges.

This study aims to establish an evaluation method for cross-regional major infrastructure project (CRMIP) supportability. The focus is to identify evaluation indicators from a complexity perspective and develop an evaluation model using qualitative and quantitative methods. Case studies are carried out to verify the reliability of the evaluation model, thereby providing theoretical and practical guidance for CRMIP operations and maintenance (O&M).

Guided by the idea of complexity management, the evaluation indicators of CRMIP supportability are determined through literature analysis, actual O&M experience and expert interviews. A combination of qualitative and quantitative methods, consisting of sequential relationship analysis, entropy weighting, game theory and cloud model, is developed to determine the indicator weights. Finally, the evaluation model is used to evaluate the supportability of the Hong Kong–Zhuhai–Macao Bridge (HZMB), which tests the rationality of the model and reveals its supportability level.

The results demonstrate that CRMIPs' supportability is influenced by 6 guideline-level and 18 indicator-level indicators, and the priority of the influencing factors includes “organization,” “technology,” “system,” “human resources,” “material system,” and “funding.” As for specific indicators, “organizational objectives,” “organizational structure and synergy mechanism,” and “technical systems and procedures” are critical to CRMIPs' O&M supportability. The results also indicate that the supportability level of the HZMB falls between good and excellent.

Under the guidance of complexity management thinking, this study proposes a supportability evaluation framework based on the combined weights of game theory and the cloud model. This study provides a valuable reference and scientific judgment for the health and safety of CRMIPs' O&M.

This study aims to provide insights into the possible impact of International Public Sector Accounting Standards (IPSAS) on public governance and perceived levels of corruption in developing countries.

Through a multivariate analysis on panel data applied to 36 countries in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region and sub-Saharan Africa over the period 2010–2020, the authors test the impact of IPSAS adoption on transparency, accountability and perceptions of less corruption. The authors examine the moderating role of transparency and accountability in the strength of the relationship between IPSAS and perceived corruption.

The main results show that IPSAS adoption promotes an increase in transparency and accountability and leads to the perception of less corruption. Additional tests show that transparency and accountability strengthen the effect of IPSAS adoption and experience on perceived corruption.

The first limitation may be the use of the Transparency International CPI to measure the level of perceived corruption. Probably, the CPI does not reflect the actual levels of corruption in countries while the literature argues that these two measures are related. Also, the lack of data on the status and level of adoption of IPSAS by governments may be one limitation of the sample.

The study may help public authorities in their decision to adopt IPSAS. In light of the findings, standard-setting bodies could be encouraged to strengthen the disclosure requirements of IPSAS that make governments more transparent and accountable to limit perceptions of corruption.

This study may also help citizens understand the benefits of such reforms in protecting public assets and how such standards may help improve social welfare.

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is one of the few studies that examines the impact of IPSAS on good governance by combining the dimensions of transparency, accountability and perceptions of corruption in DCs. It also provides insights into the moderating role of public governance pillars. Finally, it includes the IPSAS experience of the country, which has been little tested previously.

For over 25 years, the United States Green Building Council (USGBC) has significantly influenced the US sustainable construction through its leadership in energy and environmental design (LEED) certification program. This study aims to delve into how Baton Rouge, Louisiana, fares in green building adoption relative to other US capital cities and regions.

The study leverages statistical and geospatial analyses of data sourced from the USGBC, among other databases. It scrutinizes Baton Rouge’s LEED criteria performance using the mean percent weighted criteria to pinpoint the LEED criteria most readily achieved. Moreover, unique metrics, such as the certified green building per capita (CGBC), were formulated to facilitate a comparative analysis of green building adoption across various regions.

Baton Rouge’s CGBC stands at 0.31% (C+), markedly trailing behind the frontrunner, Santa Fe, New Mexico, leading at 3.89% (A+) and in LEED building per capita too. Despite the notable concentration of certified green buildings (CGBs) within Baton Rouge, the city’s green building development appears to be in its infancy. Innovation and design was identified as the most attainable LEED benchmark in Baton Rouge. Additionally, socioeconomic factors, including education and income per capita, were associated with a mild to moderate positive correlation (0.25 = r = 0.36) with the adoption of green building practices across the capitals, while sociocultural infrastructure exhibited a strong positive correlation (r = 0.99).

This study is beneficial to policymakers, urban planners and developers for sustainable urban development and a reference point for subsequent postoccupancy evaluations of CGBs in Baton Rouge and beyond.

This study pioneers the comprehensive analysis of green building adoption rates and probable influencing factors in capital cities in the contiguous US using distinct metrics.

Despite the considerable hype about how Big Data Analytics (BDA) can transform businesses and advance their capabilities, recognising its strategic value through successful adoption is yet to be appreciated. The purpose of this paper is to focus on the process-level value-chain realisation of BDA adoption between SMEs and large organisations.

Resource-based theory offered the lens for developing a conceptual BDA process-level value chain adoption model. A combined two-staged regression-artificial neural network approach has been utilised for 369 small, medium (SMEs) and large organisations to verify their critical value chain process-level drivers for successful organisational adoption of BDA.

The findings revealed that organisational BDA adoption success is driven predominantly by product—and service-process-level value, with distinctive discrepancies dependent on the organisation’s size. Large organisations primarily embrace BDA for their external value chain dimensions, while SMEs encompass its internal value chain cues. As such, businesses will be advised to acknowledge their organisational dynamics and precise size to develop the right strategies to adopt BDA successfully.

The study advances the understanding of the role of internal and external value chain drivers in influencing how BDA can be successfully adopted in SMEs and large organisations. Thus, appreciating the organisation’s unique attributes, including its size, will need to be carefully examined. By investigating these elements, this research has shed new light on how developing such innovative capabilities and competencies must be carefully crafted to help create a sustainable competitive advantage.

For an organisational positioning, acknowledging the role of internal and external value chain drivers is critical for implementing the right strategies for adopting BDA. For larger businesses, resources for innovation often can be widely available compared to SMEs. As such, they can manage their costs and associated risks resourcefully. By considering the identified value-chain-related adoption success factors, businesses should be better positioned to assess their competencies while being prepared to adopt BDA.

The study offers the research and business community empirical-based insights into the strategies needed to successfully adopt big data in an organisation from a process-level value chain perspective.

Financial statement fraud has become a global concern, and auditors are increasingly focused on identifying and investigating it. Auditors may play a crucial role in investigating and reducing financial statement fraud, and this is particularly important in developing countries where fraudulent practices are more prevalent due to the lack of strict regulations and oversight. This study investigates whether enhanced audit quality has an impact on reducing financial statement fraud. The primary aim is to recognize whether a higher level of audit quality relates with a decrease in fraudulent activities in Indonesia, which is one such country that has not yet adopted IFRS.

This study investigates the effect of audit quality, as measured by audit tenure, audit fee, and audit size, on the dependent variable of financial statement fraud, as indicated by Dechow F-value. The sample for this study comprises 951 observations from 2015 to 2020, and the research design utilizes a panel data approach. To test the main hypothesis, OLS, and GMM estimation techniques are employed.

The analyses reveal a negative relationship between audit tenure and financial statement fraud. This suggests that shorter audit tenure may be associated with an increased risk of financial statement fraud. This heightened risk could stem from auditors having limited time to thoroughly understand the company's operations and internal controls, potentially making it more challenging to detect and prevent fraudulent activities perpetrated by the client. Conversely, a positive relationship is identified between audit fees and financial statement fraud, suggesting that companies paying higher fees may be engaging auditors less adept at detecting fraudulent activities. Furthermore, a negative relationship is observed between Big-5 and financial statement fraud, which may be due to the greater resources, expertise, quality control, scrutiny, reputation, and ethical conduct of Big-5 audit companies.

This study only focused on listed companies in Indonesia, therefore, caution should be exercised when generalizing the findings to other developing and Muslim countries such as Malaysia. The findings may differ due to the adoption of IFRS in Malaysia. As such, it is important for future studies to include Malaysia as a sample and compare the results with those of Indonesia. This comparison would demonstrate the impact of IFRS adoption on the relationship between audit quality and financial statement fraud and provide insights for policy makers in Indonesia.

The findings of this study have important implications for developing countries that have been shown to be more susceptible to fraud than developed countries. This study contributes to the existing research on the role of audit quality in reducing financial statement fraud and emphasizes the need for auditors and accountants to take a proactive approach in detecting and investigating financial fraud.

This study is a new study because it investigates the relationship between audit quality and financial statement fraud in Indonesia, a developing Muslim country that has not yet adopted International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS). The study provides valuable evidence on the unique factors that influence fraud in Indonesia and fills a gap in the literature as previous studies on this topic have largely focused on developed countries. Additionally, the study recommends that policymakers in Indonesia consider implementing IFRS to improve the reliability of financial reporting and strengthen the effectiveness of the auditing process, thus reducing the incidence of fraud.

This chapter reviews digital payment infrastructures at the retail, wholesale and cross-border levels, available operating and governance models and trade-offs. Various developments in the field of digital payments, key challenges and the role of the central banks in helping to address those challenges are introduced. This chapter starts by examining issues in retail payments, before moving on the wholesale and large-value payments, real-time gross settlement (RTGS) which is the core settlement of payment systems before examining cross-border payments. This chapter ends with an overview of the role of central banks in promoting digital payment infrastructures.

The research aims to provide empirical evidence on the relationship between financial statement comparability (FSC) and cost of equity (COE) in an emerging market.

Specifically, this study examines the relationship between FSC and COE of Vietnamese listed firms. The research uses the System Generalized Method of Moments regression techniques for a panel data set of 454 companies for the period 2015–2022.

The authors find that firms with high comparability of financial statements have lower COE. To confirm the research findings, the authors conduct the robustness test by using different proxies for the cost of equity. Consistent results are found.

The study contributes to the overall understanding of the relationship between FSC and COE, and suggests policy implications for relevant stakeholders such as managers, regulatory bodies and investors. Especially, regarding policymakers, this study could provide more insight into how the accounting convergence process impacts the effectiveness of a firm’s capital allocation.

The purpose of this study is to examine the vital link between manufacturing firms and the environment, delving into the intricate connections among factors affecting these firms. Specifically, it investigates how the environmental performance of manufacturing firms is shaped by their adoption of environmental management practices and the regulatory environment in which they operate.

Data are currently being collected through a structured questionnaire from employees working in manufacturing firms in Pakistan. Random sampling was used to select the participants. The hypotheses were tested using PLS-SEM analysis.

The study reveals a positive correlation between green manufacturing practices and superior environmental performance. Effective environmental management systems further help firms reduce their environmental footprint. External environmental regulations play a significant role as moderators, influencing the strength and direction of the relationship between green manufacturing, environmental management and environmental performance.

The practical implications offer valuable insights and guidance for manufacturing companies seeking to improve their environmental responsibility and performance. Additionally, policymakers gain insights into how regulatory frameworks can be designed or modified to better support sustainability efforts within the manufacturing sector.

This study offers timely insights for sustainable business practices, aligning with corporate responsibility efforts. It contributes to both academic knowledge and provides actionable guidance for fostering environmentally responsible practices in the manufacturing sector.

This paper aims to examine the convergence and divergence of business and production practices in the global wine industry, particularly focusing on Pinot Noir producers in Burgundy, New Zealand and South Africa (SA). This study explores the interplay between firm-specific factors and regional contexts to identify competitive advantage drivers among Pinot Noir producers.

This research uses a comparative analysis approach, using data from a comprehensive winery level survey. This study applies methodologies akin to value chain analysis to unravel the configuration of productive and technology/knowledge creation activities within wineries across three regions.

This analysis reveals both convergence and divergence in business and production practices among Pinot Noir producers in Burgundy, New Zealand and South Africa. Although there is a degree of convergence in marketing, distribution and competition strategies, differences exist in production practices and firms’ capabilities. Burgundy emphasizes tradition and terroir expression, contrasting with the modernization and innovation focus observed in New Zealand and South Africa. However, all regions share a commitment to quality as a competitive advantage.

This study acknowledges limitations such as the focus on a specific grape variety and regions, the absence of performance impact analysis and the need for additional variables like environmental, institutional and cultural factors and consumer preferences to provide a comprehensive understanding of industry dynamics.

The insights from this study offer practical implications for winemakers, industry stakeholders and policymakers. Producers can optimize production and marketing strategies based on regional contexts and market segments, whereas stakeholders can identify emerging trends and opportunities in the global wine market. Policymakers can develop targeted policies supporting innovation, sustainability and competitiveness.

This paper provides a unique contribution by conducting a comparative firm-level analysis across distinct wine-producing regions, shedding light on the nuanced interplay of factors shaping competitive advantage among Pinot Noir producers. This study’s comprehensive data set and methodological approach enhance understanding and offer valuable insights for industry stakeholders and policymakers.