Home About us Contact
|
Home About us Contact | ||
|
|
||
Enterprises
Kinds of Enterprises Selected AbstractsMULTILEVEL FRAMING: AN ALTERNATIVE UNDERSTANDING OF BUDGET CONTROL IN PUBLIC ENTERPRISESFINANCIAL ACCOUNTABILITY & MANAGEMENT, Issue 2 2010Lars Fallan This paper addresses the question as to why there tends to be recurring budget deviations in public sector service organizations. In the public sector, budgets and actuals are loosely coupled, and budgets may serve other institutional functions than control purposes. However, little research has addressed how the framing of budget information may explain the different functions of the budgets as control devices. The paper argues that the valence of budget deviations varies between organizations, and that organizations that have a positively oriented valence towards budget surpluses have a propensity to underspend the budgets. Consequently, organizations that have a positively oriented valence towards budget deficits tend to overspend the budgets. The empirical part analyses the budget situations in the Central Bank of Norway and in a large university hospital in Norway. In the case of the Bank, it was found that underspending of budgets was framed as performance measures indicating high organizational efficiency. The Hospital, on the other hand, showed a different picture as budget deficits were the situation during all years studied. One main finding was the key actors' roles as translators of the society's expectations as to the fulfilling of the organizations' missions. These translators function as mediators between the institutional context and pressures, the organizations' goals and the internal budget processes. The conventional wisdom that the budget also acts as a means of communication and as symbols and ritual acts that reflect the institutional contingencies of the organizations, is further developed by describing how organizations' goals valence the role of budgets. [source] THE GOVERNANCE CHALLENGES OF SOCIAL ENTERPRISES: EVIDENCE FROM A UK EMPIRICAL STUDYANNALS OF PUBLIC AND COOPERATIVE ECONOMICS, Issue 2 2009Roger Spear ABSTRACT:,The social enterprise sector in the UK is going through a period of rapid growth, and is being seen by government as another important vehicle for delivering public services. As a result the issue of public trust in social enterprise is of growing importance. While there is a growing literature on the governance of voluntary and non-profit organizations, with some exceptions (e.g. co-operatives) there has been little research on the governance challenges and support needs of social enterprises. The research reported here aimed to help fill that gap. Based on interviews and focus groups with governance advisers, board members and chief executives it explores the typical governance challenges faced by social enterprises. Based on the research the paper develops a new, empirically-grounded typology of social enterprises based on their origins and development path, and presents findings about some of the governance challenges that are common across the sector and some that are more distinctive to the different types of social enterprise. [source] INTERNAL REGULATION BY MIXED ENTERPRISES: THE CASE OF THE ITALIAN WATER SECTORANNALS OF PUBLIC AND COOPERATIVE ECONOMICS, Issue 2 2007Alessandro MARRA ABSTRACT,:,This paper aims at proposing an economic analysis of mixed enterprises in local utilities. We suggest that the public service concession to mixed enterprises could embody a noteworthy substitute to the traditional public provision and the concession to totally private enterprises. The starting point of the entire analysis is that ownership allows the (public) owner to gather more information about the actual management of the firm, according to property rights theory. Following it, we conclude that under certain conditions mixed enterprises could significantly reduce asymmetric information between regulators and regulated firms by implementing a sort of ,internal' regulation. With more information, the public authority can stimulate the private operator to be more efficient and can monitor it more effectively with respect to the fulfilment of contractual obligations. Moreover, concerning the latter function, the board of directors of these enterprises can be the suitable place where public and private representatives can meet to solve all disputes arising from incomplete contracts. [source] Corporate Governance and International Location Decisions of Multinational EnterprisesCORPORATE GOVERNANCE, Issue 6 2007Lammertjan Dam This paper analyses international location decisions of corporations based on corporate governance considerations. Using firm level data on 540 Multinational Enterprises (MNEs) with 44,149 subsidiaries in 188 countries, we test whether firms with relatively good governance standards are more often located in countries with a weak governance system. We find empirical support for this hypothesis, especially for those corporations present in low-income countries. [source] Affordable Prices for Essential Medicines for Developing Countries: Some Economic IssuesDEVELOPMENT POLICY REVIEW, Issue 3 2004Homi Katrak This article discusses some recent developments that may help bring about more affordable prices of essential medicines for developing countries. Governments of developing countries should support campaigns for such prices. Generic competition will also bring gains, though these may differ between different income groups. Enterprises could be persuaded to provide free, or subsidised, medicines for their employees, by the expenditures being allowed against liabilities for profits tax. The UN Global Fund could complement the efforts of public action groups, enhance a government's fiscal capabilities and also encourage other measures to reduce the costs of providing medicines. [source] Professional Employer Organizations and Their Role in Small and Medium Enterprises: The Impact of HR OutsourcingENTREPRENEURSHIP THEORY AND PRACTICE, Issue 1 2003Brian S. Klaas While effective HR services and programs can help firms gain competitive advantage, small and medium enterprises (SMEs) often lack the internal resources required to develop and deliver these services and programs. As a result, SMEs increasingly are outsourcing HR activities to professional employer organizations (PEOs). Questions remain, however, about the conditions under which SMEs will benefit from outsourcing HR to a PEO, as well as about the type of benefits that are potentially available. The very nature of many HR activities raises questions about the risks associated with market governance and a PEO's ability to ensure service quality for SMEs. In order for these questions to be addressed, it is necessary to understand the process by which PEO utilization affects SME outcomes. In this article, we use transaction cost economics, social exchange theory, and the strategic HR literature to develop a framework for understanding the factors and conditions likely to affect whether and how an SME will benefit from using a PEO. [source] The Performance of State,Owned Enterprises RevisitedFINANCIAL ACCOUNTABILITY & MANAGEMENT, Issue 4 2002Richard Bozec Many theoretical and empirical studies look at the ownership,performance relationship. So far, the literature in finance and in accounting mainly refers to the property rights, agency and public choice theories. Despite the fact that the results of these studies are more or less conclusive, it is usually considered that the private enterprise performs better than the state,owned enterprise. In this article, we argue that these studies suffer from one major limitation. They do not recognize that the goals of the state,owned enterprise are different from the ones espoused by the private firm. Using a sample of state,owned entreprises and private firms for the period 1976,1996, we present empirical evidence that the state,owned enterprises, when their main goal is to maximize profit, perform as well as the privately owned enterprises. Therefore, the alleged under,performance of the state,owned enterprises may only be the result of pursuing other goals while the poor quality of public managers may be another urban myth. [source] Coca-Cola Enterprises invests in on-boarding at the front lines to benefit the bottom lineGLOBAL BUSINESS AND ORGANIZATIONAL EXCELLENCE, Issue 4 2010Kelly Fritz The world's largest bottler of nonalcoholic beverages has made a training investment in new customer-facing employees as a strategy for reducing turnover, improving productivity, and increasing employee engagement. The CCE Pathway, a structured program of daily self-study, on-the-job learning, peer coaching, reflection, and weekly manager assessments, accelerates learning so that new frontline employees know everything they need to keep customers happy. The authors explain the two-to-four-week program's structure for experiential learning tailored to each position's requirements. Learning objectives for each day focus questions, conversations, and feedback on the knowledge and actions important for individual success and business results. Ongoing coaching and evaluation ensure that learning translates into performance. © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. [source] A Proposal for Teaching Introductory and Intermediate Accounting in an Environment of International Financial Reporting Standards and Generally Accepted Accounting Principles for Private Enterprises,ACCOUNTING PERSPECTIVES, Issue 1 2010FRED PRIES comptabilité générale; enseignement; IFRS Abstract Teaching introductory and intermediate financial accounting in an environment of international financial reporting standards (IFRS) and generally accepted accounting principles for private enterprises (GAAP for PEs) is an issue facing faculty at Canadian universities and colleges. We present a number of options and then propose an approach that we believe provides a balanced treatment of accounting standards for both publicly accountable and private enterprises. This approach focuses on the concepts and principles that are common to both IFRS and GAAP for PEs. We argue that this approach encourages deep learning resulting in students' better understanding of accounting standards and their application. Proposition d'enseignement de la comptabilitéélémentaire et intermédiaire dans un contexte de normes internationales d'information financière et de principes comptables généralement reconnus pour les entreprises à capital fermé Résumé L'enseignement de la comptabilité générale élémentaire et intermédiaire dans le contexte des IFRS et des PCGR pour les entreprises à capital fermé est problématique pour les professeurs des universités et des collèges canadiens. Les auteurs exposent différentes options et proposent ensuite une approche qui offre, selon eux, un traitement équilibré des normes comptables pour les entreprises ayant une obligation d'information du public ainsi que les entreprises à capital fermé. Cette approche est axée sur les notions et les principes que partagent les IFRS et les PCGR pour les entreprises à capital fermé. Selon les auteurs, elle favorise un apprentissage en profondeur permettant aux étudiants de mieux comprendre les normes comptables et leur application. [source] A New Form of Chinese Human Resource Management?INDUSTRIAL RELATIONS JOURNAL, Issue 4 2001Labour-Management Relations in Chinese Township, Personnel, Village Enterprises: A Case-Study Approach Township and Village Enterprises (TVEs) in China have in the last decade played an increasingly important role in the Chinese economy, employing over 120 million workers. This article examines their human resources, personnel and labour-management relations, based on in-depth case studies of a selected number of TVEs located in southern China, reflecting the influence of diversification, local labour-market conditions and marketisation. [source] National Enterprises, National States and Labour Relations after the End of GlobalizationINTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF URBAN AND REGIONAL RESEARCH, Issue 2 2001Bob Jessop Books reviewed in this essay: Edwards, Paul and Tony Elger (eds.) The global economy, national states, and the regulation of labour Waddington, Jeremy (ed.) Globalization and patterns of labour resistance Rugman, Alan The end of globalization [source] FINANCIAL STRATEGY FOR MIDDLE MARKET COMPANIES: a ROUNDTABLE DISCUSSIONJOURNAL OF APPLIED CORPORATE FINANCE, Issue 4 2000Article first published online: 5 APR 200 Dennis Soter begins with the provocative observation that "U.S. companies, private as well as public, are systematically underleveraged," and goes on to suggest that debt-financed stock repurchases may help address the current valuation problems faced by many middle market companies (and by many larger firms in basic industries as well). Soter makes his case by presenting two case histories. In the first, Equifax, the Atlanta-based provider of credit information services, combined a leveraged Dutch auction stock repurchase with a multi-year series of open market repurchase programs and an EVA incentive plan to produce large increases in operating efficiency and shareholder value. In the second, FPL Group (the parent of Florida Power and Light) became the first profitable utility to cut its dividend, substituting a policy of ongoing stock repurchase for its 33% reduction in dividend payments. Following Soter, John Brehm, the CFO of IPALCO Enterprises (the parent of Indianapolis Power and Light), explains the rationale for his company's decision to become the first utility to do a leveraged recap (while also cutting its dividend by a third). As in the case of Equifax, IPALCO's dramatic change in capital structure (also combined with an EVA incentive plan) was associated with major operating improvements and a positive stock market response. But, of course, high leverage is not right for all companies. And, to reinforce that point, James Perry, CEO of Argosy Gaming, recounts his harrowing experience of having to raise new equity shortly after taking charge of his overleveraged company. By arranging an infusion of convertible preferred, Argosy was able not only to stave off bankruptcy, but to fund major new investment and engineer a remarkable turnaround of its operations. Finally, William Dutmers, Chairman of Knape & Vogt, a small midwestern manufacturing company, discusses the role of debt-financed stock repurchases and an EVA management approach in his company's recent operating improvements. [source] Profitability differences between MNE subsidiaries and domestic firms: The case of the food industry in GreeceAGRIBUSINESS : AN INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL, Issue 1 2004George Anastassopoulos This report analyzes determinants of profitability differences between subsidiaries of Multinational Enterprises (MNEs) and Domestic Enterprises (DMEs) in the Greek food industry using company level data. Previous studies have tested the hypothesis that ownership-specific advantages are a major determinant of performance differences. This study analyzes the processed food sector (SIC = 20), using a panel data set for 75 firms and 5 years. The model is evaluated using a random effects model. The results indicate that the determinants of profitability differ between MNEs subsidiaries and DMEs. MNEs' profitability depends on their market share, knowledge, and experience of the local market; training intensity; and product differentiation through the use of technological inputs from abroad and local advertising. DMEs' profitability depends on their market share and product differentiation, through local advertising and local R&D. Size has a negative effect on profitability for both groups of companies. Even after allowing for all of these determinants of profitability, ownership has an independent effect on profitability (namely higher for MNE subsidiaries than DMEs). [EconLit citations: F23, L66, L69]. © 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Agribusiness 20: 45,60, 2004. [source] Voluntary Disclosure by State-owned Enterprises Listed on the Stock Exchange of Hong KongJOURNAL OF INTERNATIONAL FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT & ACCOUNTING, Issue 2 2002Michael J. Ferguson This study examines the impact of international capital market pressures on the voluntary disclosure of three types of information (strategic, financial, and non-financial) in the annual reports of former wholly state-owned People's Republic of China (PRC) enterprises, listed on the Stock Exchange of Hong Kong (SEHK). Consistent with a costÂbenefit framework, we find that PRC H-Share firms disclose significantly more strategic and financial information than other SEHK firms. Additional analysis of disclosures in their home listings on the PRC exchanges, however, suggests an alternative explanation. The fact that these firms have been selected for "showcasing" in international capital markets may also play a role in our findings. While H-Share firm disclosures in the PRC also appear sensitive to management's assessment of the associated costs, the magnitude of differences across listing locations suggests that disclosure practices on the SEHK may also reflect the effects of state-encouraged disclosure policies. Our findings contribute to the understanding of disclosure behavior among former wholly state-owned enterprises and to the emerging literature on the efficacy of the privatization process. [source] Organizational Transformation in Transition Economies: Resource-based and Organizational Learning PerspectivesJOURNAL OF MANAGEMENT STUDIES, Issue 2 2003Klaus Uhlenbruck ABSTRACT The capitalist and socialist societies of the twentieth century assigned firms different roles within their economic systems. Enterprises transforming from socialist to market economies thus face fundamental organizational restructuring. Many former state-owned firms in the transition economies of Central and Eastern Europe have failed at this task. These firms have pursued primarily defensive downsizing, rather than strategic restructuring, as a result of both internal and external constraints on restructuring strategies. Building on the organizational learning and resource-based theories, we analyse strategies available to management in privatized, former state-owned enterprises in transition economies to restructure their organization. Both internal forces promoting or inhibiting the restructuring process, and external constraints arising in the transition context are examined. A model and testable propositions are developed that explain post-privatization performance. Implications of our research point to the ways in which firms should manage and develop their resource base to transform to competitive enterprises. [source] Host country nationals as socializing agents: a social identity approachJOURNAL OF ORGANIZATIONAL BEHAVIOR, Issue 3 2007Soo Min Toh A major challenge facing Multinational Enterprises (MNEs) is finding ways to increase the success rates of managers assigned overseas. Our paper draws upon social identity theory to develop a model that focuses on the role of host country nationals (HCNs) in determining the adjustment of expatriate managers. Specifically, our model proposes attributes of the expatriate and the HCN that can increase the salience of national identity and outgroup categorization of expatriates by the HCNs. We also suggest how outgroup categorization interacts with a number of situational factors to influence the role of HCNs as socializing agents for expatriate newcomers. Finally, we propose that the socializing behaviors HCNs may display or withhold from the expatriate will affect the adjustment of the expatriate. Our model highlights the often-overlooked partners in the expatriate adjustment process and emphasizes the need for MNEs to be cognizant of the social dynamics between HCNs and expatriates in the host location. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Conflict values and team relationships: conflict's contribution to team effectiveness and citizenship in ChinaJOURNAL OF ORGANIZATIONAL BEHAVIOR, Issue 1 2003Dean Tjosvold Although conflict has traditionally been considered destructive, especially in collectivist societies like China, recent studies indicate that valuing and approaching conflict can contribute to effective teamwork. A hundred and six pairs of employees and their leaders were recruited from State Owned Enterprises in Shanghai and Nanjing. Employees described their conflict values and relationships. Their immediate supervisors rated the effectiveness of their teams and the extent of their citizenship behavior. Results indicate that positive conflict attitudes and approaching conflict can contribute to strong relationships, which in turn strengthen team effectiveness and employee citizenship. Findings suggest that how conflict values affect relationships and outcomes are more differentiated than originally expected. Results were interpreted as supporting the traditional idea that relationships are critical for effective organization work in China but also challenging future research to understand the processes by which conflict has a positive contribution to work relationships. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Comparing Innovation Capability of Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises: Examining the Effects of Organizational Culture and EmpowermentJOURNAL OF SMALL BUSINESS MANAGEMENT, Issue 3 2010Nigar Demircan Çakar This study analyzes the impact of organizational culture and empowerment on innovation capability, and examines the peculiarities of these effects. The study's hypotheses are tested by applying both individual and firm-level analyses to survey data collected from 743 employees from 93 small and medium-sized firms located in Turkey. For medium-sized enterprises on both the individual and firm level of analysis, results suggest that collectivism and uncertainty avoidance are positively associated with empowerment, whereas power distance is negatively related to empowerment. Assertiveness focus has no relations with empowerment and innovation capability, yet among cultural dimensions, only uncertainty avoidance is related to innovation capability. For small-sized enterprises, findings suggest that both power distance and uncertainty avoidance are linked to both empowerment and innovation capability on the individual level, whereas two new paths between collectivism and innovation capability and between assertiveness focus and empowerment are found on the firm level. Also, empowerment is found to be positively related to innovation capability for both small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) on both the individual and firm level. In terms of managerial practice, our study helps clarify the key role played by cultural dimensions in the process of shaping an empowering and innovative work environment. Findings also reveal that managers should focus on participative managerial practices (e.g., empowerment) to promote innovation capability of SMEs. [source] Brand Management in Small to Medium-Sized Enterprises,JOURNAL OF SMALL BUSINESS MANAGEMENT, Issue 1 2008Pierre Berthon Although an impressive body of literature has emerged focusing on the critical activities involved in brand management for larger organizations with well-established brands and substantial marketing budgets, no research has been undertaken to examine branding within small to medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). The present study therefore seeks to assess the nature and scope of brand management within an SME context. Findings show significant differences between small and large organizations along 9 of the 10 brand management dimensions reported in Keller's brand report card. Moreover, different brand management practices are associated with business performance in SMEs. Implications of the study are highlighted, limitations noted, and directions for future research outlined. [source] Credit Risk Assessment and Relationship Lending: An Empirical Analysis of German Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises,JOURNAL OF SMALL BUSINESS MANAGEMENT, Issue 2 2007Patrick Behr We estimate a logit scoring model for the prediction of the probability of default by German small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) using a unique data set on SME loans in Germany. Our scoring model helps SMEs to gain knowledge about their default risk, which can be used to approximate their risk adequate cost of debt. This knowledge is likely to lead to a detection of hold-up problems that German SMEs might be confronted with in their bank relationships. Furthermore, it allows them to monitor their bank's pricing behavior and it reduces information asymmetries between lenders and borrowers. Finally, it can influence their future financing decisions toward capital market-based financing. [source] New Product Development Processes in Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises: Some Australian EvidenceJOURNAL OF SMALL BUSINESS MANAGEMENT, Issue 1 2002Xueli Huang This article examines the new product development process (NPDP) in Australian small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). Findings from a sample of 276 innovative Australian SMEs suggest that marketing-related activities were undertaken less frequently and were less well executed than technical activities in developing new products. However, marketing-related activities were important in distinguishing between successful and unsuccessful new products. In addition, resource and skill availability and new product planning were positively associated with the quality with which NPD activities are executed. Further, the existence of a new product strategy seemed to have a significant positive impact on the quality of NPD activities. [source] Returns to Education during the Reform of State-owned Enterprises in Hunan, People's Republic of ChinaLABOUR, Issue 3 2002Xiaoyu Huang The objective of this paper is to analyse the impact of education on personal earnings during the reform of state-owned enterprises, comparing 1995 with 1998 in Hunan, China, using the Mincerian earnings equation method. The results show that the rates of return to education increased, indicating that human capital has been better rewarded as the reforms of the Chinese economic structure have progressed. Moreover, the findings show that primary education receives the highest returns, followed by tertiary education. Middle school education obtains the lowest rewards, reflecting the effects of the reform of state-owned enterprises on middle school graduates on whom the unemployment impact of this change has been the greatest. [source] Special issue on ,The Globalization of Chinese Enterprises: Environment, Strategy and Performance'MANAGEMENT AND ORGANIZATION REVIEW, Issue 1 2009Article first published online: 22 FEB 200 [source] Special issue on ,The Globalization of Chinese Enterprises: Environment, Strategy and Performance'MANAGEMENT AND ORGANIZATION REVIEW, Issue 3 2008Article first published online: 15 OCT 200 [source] Special issue on ,The Globalization of Chinese Enterprises: Environment, Strategy and Performance'MANAGEMENT AND ORGANIZATION REVIEW, Issue 1 2008Article first published online: 12 FEB 200 [source] The Puzzle of China's Township,Village Enterprises: The Paradox of Local Corporatism in a Dual-Track Economic TransitionMANAGEMENT AND ORGANIZATION REVIEW, Issue 2 2005Peter Ping LiArticle first published online: 6 JUL 200 abstract This paper seeks to reconcile and synthesize the diverse views about the township,village enterprises (TVEs) and local corporatism in the context of ongoing institutional changes in China as a transition economy. Specifically, I attempt to integrate the economic, political, cultural, and social explanations for TVEs, especially the two competing views of market competition and political corruption. I focus on the puzzle of TVE efficiency as well as the paradox of local corporatism as a government,business partnership with both a positive function of public alliance for wealth creation and a negative function of private collusion for wealth transfer. I argue that the key to both the puzzle of TVEs and the paradox of local corporatism lies in China's dual-track reform paradigm (i.e. a market-for-mass track and a state-for-élite track). Lastly, I discuss the critical implications for theory building and policymaking regarding economic transition in general. [source] Earnings Differentials between State and Non-State Enterprises in Urban ChinaPACIFIC ECONOMIC REVIEW, Issue 1 2002Yaohui Zhao The present paper estimates earnings differentials between state and non-state sectors for Chinese urban residents in 1996 by taking into account differences in non-wage benefits. Household survey data are used to estimate wage differentials while aggregate statistics are utilised in estimating non-wage benefits. We find that state-sector workers earned significantly more than workers in urban collective and domestic private enterprises in 1996. Unskilled workers in foreign invested enterprises (FIE) earned significantly less than those in the state sector but skilled workers earned more in FIE than in the state sector. These findings shed light on the source of labour immobility that state-owned enterprise had experienced until recently. [source] Partial privatization and yardstick competitionTHE ECONOMICS OF TRANSITION, Issue 3 2006Evidence from employment dynamics in Bangladesh L32 (Public Enterprises); L33 (Privatization) Abstract We analyse the dynamics of public and private sector employment in Bangladesh, using the natural experiment provided by the partial privatization of the jute industry. The public sector had substantial excess employment of workers initially, but this excess was substantially eroded by the end of the period we studied. The extent of erosion differs between white-collar and manual worker categories, with excess employment persisting only in the former. Our findings suggest that partial privatization increases the efficacy of yardstick competition in the regulation of public firms, because heterogeneous ownership undermines collusion between public sector managers, and also makes excess employment more transparent to the general public. [source] Business First: Work Relations in Cape Breton's "Progressive" Third SectorANTHROPOLOGY OF WORK REVIEW, Issue 1 2005Constance P. DeRoche Abstract Cape Breton Island, the northeastern portion of Canada's province of Nova Scotia, has a long history of both economic malaise and experimentation with innovative forms of economic organization. Disillusioned with both private enterprise and state economic intervention, local activists have, over the last three decades, worked to develop community-oriented, "third-sector" ventures. Building on the grassroots tradition of the region's "Antigonish Movement," and inspired by the Basque worker co-operatives of Mondragón, these reformers have established enterprises that purport to be progressive. This article examines that reformist claim as it pertains to a group of not-for-profit companies called New Dawn Enterprises, as well as the community-investment firm it spawned, BCA. The analysis suggests that while these firms, in some ways, have "socialized" capital, they have done nothing to restructure labor-management relations. Experimentation with workplace democracy has been sacrificed for conventional measures of business success. That is, though it is not privately appropriated in these firms, financial profit is the top priority. [source] Efficiency, Performance and Changing Corporate Governance in China's Township,Village Enterprises since the 1990sASIAN-PACIFIC ECONOMIC LITERATURE, Issue 1 2001Russell Smyth This article outlines some of the major challenges facing Chinese township,village enterprises (TVEs) since the 1990s. The authors argue that the internal mechanisms associated with the unique ownership structure of TVEs has allowed them to perform better than state-owned enterprises (SOEs). Since the mid-1990s, debt levels in the TVE sector have increased sharply. Most of the problems of TVEs have been magnified by the close relationship between local governments and enterprises, which was once one of their major strengths. Since the mid-1990s, local governments have come to regard TVEs with high levels of debt as a burden rather than an asset. In response local governments have moved to other, more indirect forms of governance over most TVEs under their control, while retaining direct control over the most successful. These alternative ownership structures include share-holding co-operatives and outright privatisation. [source] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||