Management Research in Iran
Year:2011 | Volume:15 | Issue:3 (72)|Papers Count:10

This paper, first presents a literature review about the performance based ‎budgeting and intelligent systems. Then the important factors in failure of ‎budgeting systems relevant to the lack of intelligent system approach and the ‎factors that make the process semi-structured are identified. The feasibility ‎of using intelligent DSS approach for performance-based budgeting based on ‎the expert’s viewpoints is examined. The elements of the intelligent ‎DSS_PBBS and their properties are identified: a fuzzy knowledge base, a ‎linear programming model base, an object oriented database, a backward ‎chaining, a data‏ ‏warehouse and user interface. At the end, the relationship ‎between the elements and the architecture is presented and the results are ‎compared with the other approaches.‎

This research is an attempt to suggest a new financial statement analysis method. In this method, the value of accounting information in balance sheet is measured by information theory. Henry Thiel (1969), applying the information theory in accounting, offered a new thought in financial statement analysis. He measured the value of financial statement information by using entropy. Entropy is a logarithmic measure of the rate of transfer of information in a particular message or language. In this research, we attempted to measure the value of information in alimentary corporations’ balance sheet by using entropy and suggested a new method for optimizing fixed assets classification, which increases the information value of those balance sheets. The results showed that if firms present fixed assets information by detail in the balance sheet, the entropy of information will increase and the high value of transmitted information will improve decision making by users of financial statements.

In order to achieve a strategy-focused organization, creating alignment, focus and understanding of the process of translating strategy into action at all organizational levels and processes are vital. But more important issue is that how to provide a quality translator in the spectrum of time. This paper shows how a company can use three-stage "quality function deployment" (QFD) method using the third generation balanced scorecard (BSC) approach for improving the quality of step by step translation strategy into action. Also, since in this article, the emphasis is on the operational level and translated initiatives and projects make solutions and action plans for achieving objectives, so the dynamic approach of quality function deployment method through the application of the dashboards is described. Finally, an application is presented in one of active companies in Oil industry to illustrate the proposed methodology.

Inter-organizational relationships are studied in three dimensions including relational structural, and outcome. The main objective of this research is to study the relationships between relational factors and their impact on the forming of structures. Therefore, via defining operational variables for power, risk perception, control and trust, as relational variables, the impacts of these variables on collaborative structures were investigated. The relationships between these variables, in the form of some hypotheses and a conceptual model, were examined using a sample including 112 high ranked managers. The results indicated that unbalanced power has a positive effect on relational risk perception. Relational risk perception itself is a positive predictor for safeguard control and a negative predictor for commitment-based trust. On the other hand, safeguard control is a negative predictor for collaborative structure while commitment-based trust is a positive predictor for such kind of structures. Further investigation revealed that commitment-based trust does not have a significant effect on collaborative structure while it has passed a threshold, and safeguard control does not have a negative effect on collaborative structure while it has not passed a threshold.

Among the various economic and financial organizations, banks are considered and discussed as one of the most important pillars of any economic system. Therefore, considering the important role of banks in the developed countries and their multiple branches, bank branch performance measurement is important. The main purpose of this work is measure branch performance and the use of integration strategy to obtain efficient branches. Accordingly, first the efficiency of bank branches conceptual system was defined. Then using the action plan were inputs and outputs determined. In the next stage, Tehran province branch efficiency was calculated through Data Envelopment Analysis model as non-radial (SBM) to determine the inefficient branches. Based on the bank merger policy, the clusters were determined and the branches in each cluster were merged in a binary form. The final stage of the integration of non-radial (SBM) to assess the performance of branches and compare it with their initial performance.

Academics and practitioners usually optimize portfolios using the mean-variance approach than the mean-semivariance approach. Due to the fact that semivariance is often considered a more plausible measure of risk than variance, in this paper, semivariance was measured as the main indicator of risk. The portfolio optimization problem is a mixed quadratic and integer programming problem for which efficient algorithms do not exist. This study presents a heuristic approach to portfolio optimization problem using Harmony Search Algorithm (HS). The HS method is inspired by the underlying principles of the musicians’ improvisation of the harmony. The test data set is the daily prices of 20 companies from March 2006 to September 2008 from the TEPIX in Iran. The results showed that Harmony search approach is successful in constrained portfolio optimization to find the optimum solutions at all levels of risk and return.

Financial distress evaluation is important because firm failure imposes significant direct and indirect costs on a firm’s stakeholders. Hence, using financial ratios has been considered by bank loan officers, creditors, stockholders, financial analysts, and the general public in order to provide them with timely and accurate assessment.Timely evaluation can help decision makers to find the optimal way and predict bankruptcy. There are different models for financial distress evaluation, which are mainly applied in decision making by financial market players. It has been attempted to improve the accuracy of these models by more developed techniques.The main goal of this research is to examine the capability of the additive model of Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) model in assessing corporate financial distress by comparing it with logistic regression (LR). The results showed that in within-sample evaluation, LR outperforms DEA (Additive model) in correctly identifying the default firms significantly.

Our world is a rapidly changing world. So it is very important for the survival of organizations to know what lies ahead in the future, how much demand is there for their products and for what price? We cannot afford big changes unless we are able to predict the future. The application of predictability science in management has been studied in this research. With the increasing progress of science, the use of new methods and application of new intelligent technologies have also increased. In this research, new methods and algorithms such as neural networks and fuzzy logic have been explained and the application of their combination in predictability has been studied. Various methods such as Moving Average Method, Weighted Moving Average, Exponential Smoothing, Double Exponential Smoothing, Linear Trend, Combined Functional Trend, and Exponential Process were used to make predictions. The results obtained from these methods were compared with the those obtained from the neru-fuzzy networks method using 6 error measurement criteria. It was found that the neru-fuzzy networks method yielded better results, and the correspondence of data (R2 coefficient) for the Neru-fuzzy networks was about 90 percent. The data used in this research were related to the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) for the years 1970-2000.

The purpose of this article is to determine the possibility or impossibility of ISL in Maskan Bank and comparing, the managers' and personnel's viewpoints in bank branches, considering the Organizational Climate Indexes (OCI).The methodology used in this study in terms of purpose is applied, and in terms of data collecting approach is descriptive-analytical and correlational research type. Population of this study consists of the managers and other personnel of Maskan Bank branches within the Semnan province. A sample was selected out of this population using classified random sampling method. The necessary data were collected by applying a questionnaire and the research hypotheses were investigated using Mann-Whitney and Binomial tests.The results suggest that there is a significant difference between the views of managers and personnel in "satisfaction of remuneration" and "agreement on procedures". On the other hand, ISL in studied organization is possible just according to one of the indicators (satisfaction of remuneration) and is not possible according to other indicators (clarity of purpose, clarity of role and agreement on procedures).

Succession planning as a subsystem of HRM affects individual and organizational learning, personnel satisfaction, turnover and financial performance. In this paper, we pursue developing a measure to identify the degree of maturity and extensiveness of succession planning in large organizations. Regarding the literature, the scale was developed in three dimensions with 22 items. The dimensions include change & process management of succession planning, selection of successor and development of successor. By data gathering from 23 governmental large organizations, the reliability and validity of the scale were tested and accepted. The scale measures the level of maturity of organization in 5 levels. It can be used as a tool for comprehending as-is situation and gap analysis, and also as a tool for planning OD programs by researchers and practitioners.