This study assesses the extent to which ten selected factors affect corruption in Least Developed Countries (LDCs). The study uses Eritrea as a case study and delves into the causes and challenges of corruption in LDCs. The findings of the study support several previously conducted studies in that each factor examined had a moderate to high positive correlation with corruption, where r ranged between .47 and .59. In addition, the ten variables together explain about 73 percent change in perceived corruption (R2= .73). The study acknowledges that corruption is multifaceted and complicated, involving economic, political, and social-cultural factors and has no „quick fix‟ and thus needs proper planning, determination, resilience, and above all, political will. Implications of these findings and future research directions are discussed. Key Words: Governance, Accountability, Corruption, LDCs, Eritrea, Entrepreneurs, Business Eethics.

The current study aims to adapt the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) to the use of mobile banking services in Jordan through examining the researches and subjects related to this topic. In this study the TAM model has been modified by introducing two new dimensions, which are the factors of quality and experience to the five dimensions that the TAM model, which introduced by Davis in 1986, originally composed of them. Thus this study sample consists of seven dimensions, which are the three following factors: quality (the quality of information and quality of service and the quality of the system), perceived ease of use the experience, the perceived usefulness, attitudes, behavioral intention and the use. In light of this, the current study extended these necessary dimensions and factors in order to be expanded in line with the banking business, especially in the mobile banking services in Jordan. The development of the seven hypotheses was based on the dimensions of the study as well as on the relevant literature. In addition, eight hypotheses were added to measure the correlation between the different constraints of the studied model. A questionnaire consisting of (24) questions covering the dimensions and hypothesis of the study was designed in order to collect the required data for examining hypotheses and reaching conclusions. The questionnaire used in this study was designed and developed based on an initial pretested survey distributed to a sample consisting of (238) customers of the Jordan Banks. It is found that all the variables of this study (all dimensions included in the study sample) are affected by the use of mobile banking services with value of mean(4.45). All seven hypotheses for the first group were accepted as well as for the eighth hypothesis, concerning the relationship of the link between the components of study model. The statistical analysis showed that the positive correlation between all of these components consisted of a stronger correlation (positive relationship) between each of the attitude and the use of mobile banking services with a value of coefficient correlation (0.377). As for the dimensions, the strongest correlation is found to be between (perceive ease of use) and (experience) with the value of correlation (0.534). Key Words: Technology, Acceptance, Model, Perceived, Use, Mobile Banking Services.

This study aims at elucidating the correlation between the education background of fund managers and their fund performance. The researchers adopt the fund performance of various fund managers in Taiwan in 2013 as the research sample. The empirical results indicate that female fund managers outperform male fund managers; fund managers who receive an overseas education outperform those who receive their education in Taiwan; those with an undergraduate degree outperform those with a graduate or postgraduate degree; those from unrelated education departments outperform those from business management departments; and fund managers with previous experience in an accounting firm perform more stably compared with those who work in other industries. Key Words: Fund Manager, Fund Performance, Educational Background.

A moving average is essentially, by its nature, a trend-following device; therefore, it works well only in a market where a trend is clear. We consider two issues in this paper. One is whether moving average trading rules can be applied to Vietnamese stock market data to forecast stock price movements and to outperform a simple buy-and-hold strategy. The other is whether the predictability of variable moving average (VMA) trading rules is stronger in a trending market than in a non-trending one. We show that in the frontier market like Vietnamese market, technical trading rules are not only substantially profitable, but, unlike some prior studies on the emerging markets, they are also effective to generate excess returns for investors – even after taking transaction costs into account. Notably, we found arguments that explain why VMA rules perform better in a trending market than they do in a non-trending one. Key Words: Variable Moving Averages, Technical Trading Rules, Excess Returns, Transaction Costs, Trading Range Breakout.

Today, modern methods of management has changed into a necessity for companies and organizations; and quality management also as the most important and comprehensive procedure could help organizations in order to supply products and services with better quality and lower costs by providing appropriate methods and patterns; consequently, the necessary of applying has growth more than before. Since, productivity has close relationship with quality, the audit of quality and productivity is conducted at the same time in the research, accordingly, the impact of implementation components of ISO 9000 on manpower productivity in Gilan Province General Department of Standard that is the objective of this research is examined here, which includes Leadership, Involvement of people, Customer focus, Process approach, System approach to management, Continual improvement, Factual approach to decision making, Mutually beneficial supplier relationships. Statistical population of the study includes all employees of the certain departments in cities of Rasht, Anzali and Astara. Considering the number of participants in the statistical population is around 95 persons, the sample capacity is estimated 76 persons using by Morgan table, which 75 questionnaires were returned. The relationship between variables is measured by using SPSS software and inferential statistical tests that includes Spearman Correlation Coefficients. The research results confirm the impact of the components of staff participation, customer focus, systematic thinking toward management, continuous improvement and relationship with suppliers based on mutual interests toward manpower productivity in Gilan Province General Department of Standard, but they refuted the impact of leadership and guidance and subject-based decision-making on manpower productivity. Based on the regression equation, it was found that the variable of customer focus and the variable of continuous improvement have maximum and minimum impact on manpower productivity respectively. Key Words: The Management Standards of Quality of ISO 9000, Manpower Productivity, Leadership and Guidance, Staff Participation, Customer Focus, Systematic Thinking Toward Management.

One of the major changes that have been made in management is change in the attitude toward organization. Until the last few decades, organizations in order to achieve their objectives were used as a tool to create harmony among people and controlling them. But nowadays, organizations are considered in a broader perspective and special attention is paid to concepts such as culture and organizational communication. This study aims to assess the impact of organizational communication on managers' performance in government agencies of Astara. This study aims to identify the factors influencing organizational communication and also is about to evaluate the role of these factors on the performance of organizational managers which was conducted in the form of case study. In this context, the communication model of Vanra and Botherox (2006) has been used that in the form of four main premise components of appropriate information, correct information, timely information and quick information at 48 government agencies have been measured. The research findings indicate that on information, the greatest impact on the performance of the managers in government agencies in Astara is appropriate information which this factor strongly follows the latent variable of relationship with appropriate individuals, and other factors respectively fall into later stages. Key Words: Organizational Communication, Organizational Performance, Attitude toward Information Process, Appropriate Information, Correct Information, On Time Information, Quick Information.

This research aims to examine how the gender of principal serves as a moderating effect between the principal’s leadership traits and teachers’ organizational commitment. Using SmartPLS structural equation modeling technique, the study found that the gender of principal did serve some effects on this relationship. Principal nurturant leadership was signicantly moderated by their gender on continuance commitment. The principal gender moderated significantly on the principal transformational leadership and the teacher’s continuance and normative commitment. Organizational commitment of Muslim faith majority Malaysians were influence by gender stereotyping to certain extends in this study. Islamic faith still prefers males as their leader. Empirical studies suggest that Malaysians condone liberal faith as compared to majority of other Muslim countries by having more female principals. Key Words: Transactional (TS), Transformational (TF), Nurturant (NT), Affective (AC), Continuance (CC) and Normative (NC).

Automotive production-relocation in the NAFTA region after the 2008 crisis is analyzed at different levels, including automobile unit-production changes in the regions within a Country, at the assembly-plant level and in the product portfolio. We compare production for two different years: 2007, when the crisis began and 2011 when the consequences could be observed. Based on information relative to where plants are located, year of establishment, firm ownership and production, we defined five regions: four in the US and Mexico and one in Canada. These regions were classified as “traditional” or “emergent” spaces. Results show that the age of each assembly plant was not a factor for restructuring. Traditional spaces in Mexico were the most favored, while in the USA traditional spaces were adversely affected. In the period under study, Canada decreased production by 400 thousand automobile units but still remained as the country with the best Economies of Scale in both years, manufacturing cars with high added-value: Canada was the only country that launched more new models than it stopped manufacturing. Mexico increased the average production per assembly plant during the crisis years, although it did not improve in Economies of Scale. Key Words: Automotive Industry, NAFTA, Regional Development, Economies of Scale, Product Portfolios.

This research paper determines the factors responsible for influencing purchase intentions of consumers towards green products through environmental or green advertising. The major purpose behind study was to instigate a new vision into marketers of various products, services or brands in Pakistan, which would help them fundamentally in devising attractive and more effective green advertising strategies. Based onto findings from the previous similar studies, a research model was conceived and developed. The model was tested on a sample of 150 university students in Sahiwal city of Pakistan, selected through convenience sampling technique. The data after collection was tested statistically in SPSS 18.0 version software. The statistical tools of mean, correlation and regression analysis were employed to test the developed hypotheses. The findings were found statistically significant and positive for all three independent variables having strong impact upon purchase intentions of consumers towards green products. The results indicate that Pakistani university students have a positive attitude towards green advertising and preferred to purchase green products as a consequence. The pragmatic attitude of Pakistani consumers has led towards the deduction that, marketers/ advertisers of green products should convey abundant information regarding both extrinsic and intrinsic attributes of a green product. This would eliminate all fears or skepticism regarding acceptability of green products. The prominent limitations of the study are small sample size, focusing only on the university students in Sahiwal, and the results of the study may not be generalized upon all populations. The study shall help marketers in closely comprehending the attitudes of Pakistani customers towards green products in Pakistan, in order to devise effective green marketing strategies. Key Words: Attitudes towards green products, Green Aadvertising, Purchase Intensions.

This paper reviews the affirmative action laws of Nigeria and South Africa and asks what the best way for businesses to respond to them is. The answer is that businesses have no choice but to obey the law, but by linking the changes required by the laws to common archetypes of change they can find optimal responses that both maximize shareholder value and boost organizational capabilities. We are also able to propose certain responses to the resistance that might arise to changes required by affirmative action laws. Key Words: Affirmative Action, Emerging Markets, Business in Africa, Business Laws, Managing Change.