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Analyses the likely impact of the recent bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) crisis on the organization of the UK beef supply chain. Using concepts from New Institutional Economics, argues that, in addition to the direct financial costs of the crisis, additional hidden transaction costs and long‐term “transaction benefits” should be considered. Hidden costs include the increased need for monitoring and traceability in the supply chain, while hidden benefits may result from a reorientation of the industry towards a more consumer‐driven focus, a greater attention to food safety issues and opportunities for branding and market segmentation. It is suggested that the hidden transaction costs and benefits are likely to lead to closer vertical co‐ordination throughout the beef supply chain.

Fringe benefits may add 15 to 30 percent to the real cost of labor in your institution! If you are responsible for the budget, they could have both a professional and personal effect on you. Library literature contains few studies that compare or even document the costs of fringe benefits by kind or geographic location of the library. Almost every survey comparing salaries and the number of workers in the field excludes fringe benefit costs.

Desktop publishing has emerged in the last few years as perhaps the most exciting new application of the microcomputer. Prior to this development, the only way of producing high quality printed output from computer generated text was to use elaborate embedded formatting codes for driving a typesetter (as in the Unix troff system) or else to use very expensive purpose built equipment (such as that developed for the newspaper printing industry). Thanks to desktop publishing the situation has changed dramatically. With the aid of software packages such as Ventura Publisher or Pagemaker, low cost microcomputers and laser printers can be used to produce high quality camera ready output in a great variety of formats and with sophisticated typographic control. With such cost savings, the quality of presentation material can be greatly improved. It becomes affordable for even small organisations to produce, in‐house, properly printed brochures, newsletters, factsheets, and other forms of documentation. This move towards a higher quality of published information helps immeasurably to improve the public image and credibility of the organisation. With greater control over the printing process it also becomes easier to provide more frequent updates of material. Thus information can be more timely and accurate, as well as better presented. In addition, it may no longer be necessary to print off large numbers of any particular document at any one time: short runs and ‘publication on demand’ become feasible with DTP. Even online storage and document delivery over communications networks become possible, particularly with the adoption of a standard page description language (such as PostScript). In summary, desktop publishing makes communication easier, both by making the printed product more readable and by enabling a whole range of additional services to be added; such as frequent updating, demand publishing and electronic archiving. New methods of document distribution, using electronic mail or other digital networks, also become possible. In this sense, it may represent just the first step towards a radical change in the way we communicate.

Globally, manufacturing facilities are constantly being upgraded in order to provide competitive advantages. Parunndekar observes that Indian manufacturing firms have recognized the importance of automating their production systems to meet the challenges posed by the pluralistic market. However, adoption of such automation projects involves large investments and a strategic management style. Meredith and Suresh state that any financial investment in economic activities requires a justification for the purpose of committing capital. The introduction of automation projects (AP) can, and many would say should, include changes in the prevailing management style and in the organizational culture of a firm. Thus, the decision‐making process with regard to the selection of AP is quite complex, because the commercial success of the firm is highly dependent on the mechanics of such a process. In addition to the obvious quantitative benefits accruing from the introduction of AP, they can offer a large number of qualitative (intangible) benefits. Datta et al. observed that these are generally difficult to quantify. Researchers have attempted to convert the relative importance of qualitative benefits into priority weights (PW) for procedures involving the selection and evaluation of AP. Mohanty states that project selection and evaluation involve decisions that are critical to the profitability, growth and survival of the manufacturing firm in the increasingly competitive global scenario. Such decisions are complex and require analysis of tangible and intangible attributes.

The importance of advanced manufacturing technology (AMT) has been increasing because of their competitive advantages. Adoption of AMT involves major investment, and large‐scale issues are involved in the selection and justification of these technologies. Researchers have identified a considerable number of issues and subattributes for implementing various projects. Reviews the literature and then classifies several of these implementation issues.

Quality cost is usually considered as a means to measure the quality level in a quality system. Since the interrelationship among quality cost components is complex, a general quantitative model for describing their relationship is not easy to construct for improving the quality. In the assessments of quality cost, some hidden quality costs, such as the goodwill loss due to lost customers’ reliability, are often neglected in the existing analysis methods. This may lead to reaching a sub‐optimal decision. In addition, the assessments of quantitative quality cost items are usually approximated, and therefore are imprecise in nature. Based on these considerations, we propose fuzzy approaches to evaluate quality improvement alternatives because of its fuzzy nature. An evidence fusion technique, namely Choquet fuzzy integral, is employed to aggregate the quality cost information. A composite index is determined to find the best quality improvement alternative. Finally, a numerical example is used to demonstrate the applicability of the approach.

Traditional accounting methods used for evaluating new information technology (IT) projects such as Net present value (NPV) and Internal rate of return (IRR) have been criticized in the academic and practitioners’ literature as being grossly inadequate. This is because these methods do not quantify benefits that are considered to be intangible. Similarly, they do not incorporate many “hidden” costs associated with new IT projects. Thus, traditional methods have been stated to be only appropriate for simple “cost saving” projects and not for evaluating complicated IT investments. New methods suggested in the academic literature have been criticized as being too esoteric for practitioners. Presents the results of a case study and shows how many intangible benefits previously ignored can actually be quantified and incorporated in traditional NPV models by holding discussions with personnel of all departments affected by the new IT. Also demonstrates how many of the costs considered hidden (and thus ignored) can be quantified and incorporated in the decision‐making model. Shows how uncertainty and risks associated with anticipated project cash flows can be quantified and included by the use of probability theory and sensitivity analysis.

This paper examines the hidden financial benefits that non-elite events are capable of delivering for host cities. The paper provides examples of how mass participation (and other non-elite) events can generate substantial economic impacts comparable to and, in some cases greater than, those associated with elite events. Cost-effectiveness of mass participation events, relative to major elite sports events, is discussed.

The principal aim of this paper is to present the case for securing greater affinity between the formal curriculum and the hidden curriculum with respect to integration in business education.

Consideration is given to the concept of the hidden curriculum, as manifested in the compartmentalised nature of academia and the need for this to be offset by business educators. A number of principles for configuring the hidden curriculum in ways that support the goal of integration are suggested.

Some of the literature on the hidden curriculum emphasises the need for consistency in the learning culture so that students' understanding of what their course is seeking to achieve is underpinned by the structures and processes that play an important part in shaping their learning experience.

If integration is the goal of business education then attention should be given to creating a learning environment in which its virtues are clearly demonstrated and the vices of compartmentalisation are eschewed.

The paper complements the very limited literature on the hidden curriculum in higher education, in general, and business education, in particular.

Employee benefits, a critical element of total employee rewards, are important for both employers and employees. This study aims to explore the utility of employee benefits for male and female employees during the recent economic recession. In doing so, it intends to highlight an indirect deterioration of employment arrangements and equality in the workplace.

The paper draws on the findings of three repeated large-scale surveys during the Greek crisis (2012-2015, total N = 3,498).

Employees report that the availability of employee benefits has decreased during the recession and that women find more utility in them than men do. Additionally, women seem to be affected more than men by decreases in employee benefits allocation.

The present findings support calls for contingent employee reward allocation.

Employers wishing to sustain their competitive advantage by fostering inclusion and diversity and/or employers with a high female employee ratio are encouraged to consider increasing their employee benefits portfolio.

The recent economic crisis and the subsequent recession have brought about several potential negative effects, in terms of the employment conditions for women. Decreased employee benefits are a hidden negative effect of the recession for female employees and it presents multiple, potential and unforeseen consequences for gender diversity and inclusion.

To the best of the author’s knowledge, this is the first study to address non-monetary employee remuneration under the lens of gender pay differentials. It does so in a turbulent macro-economic setting.