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Causes
of Stress Among Insurance Employees: An Empirical Study --Jyoti
Budhraja
The
paper studies the causes of stress among insurance employees.
The data for the study was collected from two insurance companies.
For accomplishing the objective of this research, a structured
questionnaire was designed and administered on 100 employees
selected from all levels. Information was also collected through
personal interviews and observation for gaining deeper insights
with regard to the topic of study. Both the organizational
and individual factors were analyzed for availing a focused
perspective on the causes of stress. It was identified that
the employees mostly suffer from stress due to heavy work
load and unattainable targets, thereby generating work life
imbalance and anxieties. Suggestions have been offered based
on the analysis of the results of the survey.
©
2008 The Icfai University Press. All Rights Reserved.
Measuring
Formative Constructs in Management Research: Definitions,
Distinctions and Measurement --Subhadip
Roy
The
debate over measurement models being reflective (where the
latent construct is the cause and the indicator variables
are the effects) or formative (where the latent construct
is the effect and the indicators are the causes) has been
addressed in various disciplines of management. However, traditional
covariance-based measurement modeling does not offer much
in modeling formative constructs. This paper addresses that
issue with discussions on Partial Least Squares (PLS), a relatively
new methodology in management research. Alongside, the paper
also discusses the differences between formative and reflective
measurement models and the possible effects of measurement
model misspecification.
©
2008 The Icfai University Press. All Rights Reserved.
An
Empirical Study of Quasi-Equity of SMEs: Evidence from the
Auto-Ancillary Manufacturing Units of Jharkhand --D
D Mukherjee and S K Bose
One
of the important sources of funding the initial capital requirements
of small scale industrial undertakings is loan/funds mobilized
from friends and relatives of the promoter. These loans tend
to be unsecured in nature and remain subordinated to the loans
provided by banks and financial institutions. In a majority
of cases, the funds belong to the family and treated almost
as an equity contribution. These funds are commonly termed
as Quasi-Equity (QE) or Equity 'de-facto'. This paper analyzes
the factors that prompt the SMEs towards mobilization of such
QE. The study finds that the incidence of QE is more in enterprises
with a comparatively lower sales turnover. High turnover companies
do not exhibit a marked tendency to mobilize QE. Further,
the entrepreneurial behavior in mobilizing QE does not depend
on the constitution of the enterprise. Nor does it depend
on the Profit/Cash earning capacity of the enterprise. Most
importantly, there exists a firm negative correlation of the
ratio of QE/Total funds employed of an enterprise with increasing
sales. This indicates that institutional lenders are more
comfortable in lending to a growing organization, and the
role of QE as a source of funding becomes less significant
in a growth phase.
©
2008 The Icfai University Press. All Rights Reserved.
Triggers
of Corporate Practices and Environmental Performance: An Empirical
Evidence for India
--Sarbani
Mitra, Satyajit Dhar and K M Agrawal
It
is frequently hypothesized that incorporation of environmental
issues in corporate practices may improve a firm's environmental
performance. Whether or not this hypothesis is true is important
from the perspective of environmental proactiveness, as are
the questions relating to the relevant issues: (1) What are
the relevant environment performance indicators for a facility's
environmental proactiveness? (2) How is it measured? and (3)
Which specific determinants trigger corporate practices and
environmental performance? Based on ample empirical evidence
for the Indian grossly polluting units, this paper addresses
these issues on the basis of parametric inference tests, viz.,
Chi-square testing and, later, ANOVA, that explicitly take
into account the argument that the decision on corporate environmental
management practices within a facility may be correlated to
the decision on selection of firm-specific determinants. The
empirical results indicate that there are six primary Environmental
Performance Indicators (EPIs), viz., environmental policy,
environment department, regulatory compliance, environmental
audit, EMS certification and environmental cost management
that may reflect the level of incorporation of environmental
issues in business practice. The authors have tried to measure
this level of integration by applying quantitative scores
and termed this as `Environmental Performance Score (EPS)'.
Furthermore, the authors find that size and nature of the
unit may explain a firm's environmental proactiveness.
©
2008 The Icfai University Press. All Rights Reserved.
Global
Warming, Nuclear Power and Resurgence of Renewable Energy
A Political Economic Analysis with Special Reference to India
--Dipankar
Dey
Arguments
in favor of nuclear power have been revived in recent years
especially in emerging economies like India. The proponents
of nuclear power have put three arguments to justify their
demand: (1) Nuclear energy is safer today due to induction
of better and safer technology; (2) Nuclear energy is a better
option for mitigation of carbon emission and for combating
global warming; and (3) India needs nuclear energy to sustain
its projected rate of economic growth. This paper is divided
into two sections. The first section focuses on the above
three issues. The second section begins with a brief discussion
on the alternative energy initiatives taken in different countries
of the world, especially in Europe. This section also highlights
the alternative energy options that are still open to India,
but not yet considered by the energy planners of the country.
©
2008 The Icfai University Press. All Rights Reserved.
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