Regional and Sectoral Disparities in Inflow of FDI in India

During the last two decades, Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) has become increasingly important in the developing world, with a growing number of developing countries seeking in attracting substantial and rising amounts of inward FDI. Furthermore, FDI has become the most important source of finance that can contribute to economic development. Recognizing this, all the governments want to attract it. India as a developing country is not an exception in this regard therefore study the different aspects of FDI can be helpful for policy makers in macro as well as micro level. Since 1990, FDI has been considered as the most powerful driver of economic development. While India has seen a steady increase in FDI inflows in the post-reform period, therefore, this study tries to analyze the regional and sectoral disparities in Inflow of FDI in India since 1990. The analysis showed that there is a disparity between states in India and it also indicates a shift from primary and secondary sectors to tertiary sectors and pervasive computing areas.

Bivariate Causality between FDI Inflows and Economic Growth in India Since 1990

Nowadays, most of the countries in the world mostly concentrate on the flow of FDI, because it has direct relationship with economic development. The present study attempts to make a contribution in this context, by analyzing the existence and nature of causalities, if any, between FDI and economic growth in India since 1990, where growth of economic activities and FDI has been one of the most pronounced. The results indicate that there is a strong correlation between FDI inflows and GDP in India. And also there is unidirectional causal relation between FDI and GDP. Finally as co-integration shows there is no long run relationship between FDI and economic growth in India.

Pervasive Computing, Firm Characteristics, and Environmental Factors Conducive to the Adoption of Activity-Based Costing

The main purpose of this study is to provide evidence on the contextual featutres of firms adopting Activity-Based Costing (ABC) compared to those not adopting ABC. The study examines certain organisational and business environment variables which appear to have influenced the adoption of ABC. Based on a review of the relevant literature, it is hypothesised that firm size, the amount of overhead costs, the level of product variety, production complexity, the degree of competition, and the degree of computer usage are factors which encourage firms to adopt ABC. A list of manufacturing companies operating in Bahrain (332 firms) was obtained from the Ministry of Industry. Firms with (50) workers or more were selected for the study. The reason for limiting the study to firms with this number of workers is that small firms are less likely to be able to afford the cost of adopting and implementing an ABC system and its required changes. Total of (111) firms met this size criterion and a questionnaire was developed and distributed to the entire sample. Fifty seven questionnaires were returned completed; a response rate of (51.4%). The results of the study show that a small percentage of Bahraini manufacturing companies are adopting or planning to adopt ABC systems (26.3%). There were significant relationships between the adoption of ABC and the variables selected for the study except production complexity and the degree of computer usage. The results are consistent with previous research. However, further research using a case study approach with semi-structured interviews could be conducted in those firms which claim to have adopted ABC. This approach might be fruitful and would provide more insight in identifying the characteristics of ABC companies in the Bahraini context.

Automatic Trading System Design

This chapter will focus on the problem of design of automatic trading system for futures trading, specifically its design lifecycle. This is a task that can be divided into several phases. In this chapter we focus on the selection of proper environment (i.e. choose the right market and commodity), choosing appropriate set of tools (fundamental or technical analysis indicators) and creating the automatic trading system itself, which has to follow rules of money (risk) management and trading psychology. The chapter stresses the importance of the system`s acceptability for the user. The last phase covers the topic of testing and optimization. This chapter provides a general overview of each of these phases together with a discussion of typical issues.

A Quality Assurance System in a Pervasive Computing Environment

As the competition for products and services continues to grow, with customer satisfaction playing an integral part in this process, organizations are faced with the task of ensuring quality in all of their activities. Since many organizations do not necessarily produce the entire product or deliver the service by themselves, they are dependent on other vital sources, for example, suppliers, that impact quality of the finished product/service. This necessitates development and implementation of a quality management system which can integrate information from the various entities to facilitate decision making in a timely manner. Additionally, it is desirable for such a quality management system to be responsive to the existing quality environment at the various sources that contribute to the manufacture of the product or delivery of the service. This chapter provides a foundation for accomplishing such quality management objectives.

The Human Factor in Quality

The aim of this chapter is to theoretically investigate the implications of ISO 9000:2000 and EQA on HR issues in selected Greek industrial organizations in their road to quality improvement. The study sample consists of two selected industrial organizations that were judged as normal, ordinary, and representative. The data gathering was carried out through extensive and in-depth interviews in the two organizations asking several multiple informants. The study shows that organizations approach to quality is of great influence to effective human resource utilization. There is a tendency to avoid the involvement of HR department on either certification or the EQA and also it is clear that HR department status and role is still very traditional. The small sample does not allow making any generalizations for the majority of Greek organizations in all sectors of the economy. This is the first step towards an understanding of the current context and content of HRM in organizations moving towards total quality management implementing ISO 9000:2000 or EQA model. However, further studies needed to investigate similarities and differences in an international basis. The chapter provides a basis for understanding the present status of HRM implementation under ISO 9000 implementation and EQA model of selected Hellenic organizations and the results can be helpful for academics and practitioners. The author suggests that in order to have a reliable and objective depiction of the effect and influence of ISO 9000:2000 and EQA to the context and content of HRM, a thorough examination and analysis of relevant studies should be conducted which will include all the various approaches, practices and perceptions recorded so far in the literature -some of them based on empirical data and some deriving from rhetoric and “good-stories” or “how things ought to be” perspective.

The Role of Computer-Mediated Communication Modes in Enhancing Audit Quality

The circumstances and variables surrounding the auditing environment like the International Trade Agreement (ITA) and the probability of the entrance of foreign auditing firms in the auditing field in Egypt resulted in pressure to enhance the audit effectiveness and quality of Egyptian auditing firms’ performance. The main focus in this research study is on the Computer-Mediated Communication (CMC) modes to be used in the communication process in auditing firms to enhance the auditor performance. A survey strategy is conducted by using questionnaires, which are distributed among a number of Egyptian auditing firms, to collect the required data and then the collected data is analyzed logically and statistically. These logic and statistical analyses are made to test the study hypotheses. The results of this research study supported the acceptance of all study hypotheses. The results revealed that CMC modes effectiveness increases the audit work effectiveness and audit quality. Also, the results indicate the contradiction between the users’ perception of the effect of using CMC modes on the audit effectiveness and the real application of traditional communication modes in auditing firms.

RMS

Today, markets increasingly require more customized products, with shorter life cycles. In response, manufacturing systems have evolved from mass production techniques to the ?exible automation. This paper argues that manufacturing systems of the next generation will have to incorporate more ?exibility and intelligence, evolving towards recon?gurable manufacturing systems. In particular, the concept of intelligence becomes more relevant because of the need to maintain e?ective and e?cient manufacturing operations with minimum downtime under conditions of uncertainty. This chapter presents some research issues related to the development of reconfigurable manufacturing systems with pervasive computing.

Lean Manufacturing Scenario and Role of Pervasive Computing in Indian SMEs

Large scale firms have been adopting various management practices to remain competitive in today’s global economy. Lean manufacturing is one such initiative, which significantly improves performance in terms of cost, delivery, quality and flexibility. Although small and medium enterprises (SMEs) play a very significant role in overall manufacturing supply network, less is known about the extent to which lean is present in these firms. The present study investigates this issue by exploring the scenario of implementation of lean manufacturing in Indian SMEs. It also examines the constraints, which need to be addressed for real penetration of lean on a wider scale and the role information and communication technologies like pervasive computing play in successful implementation of this initiative. This aspect is considered important as no organization, whether big or small, can afford to neglect it in today’s business environment. The study reveals that although lean manufacturing is not implemented as a formal management initiative in SMEs, its elements could be traced with varying degrees in firms. However, a need is felt to improve upon various identified constraints, so that SMEs are able to implement it as formal system and reap maximum benefits. It is also experienced that IT solutions like pervasive computing help in improving lean manufacturing performance but Indian SMEs in general have not taken considerable initiatives in this direction.