When a quarter of your workforce is heading for the door, it's time for some serious strategic thinking. One Australian organisation is tackling the outflow of thousands of mature-age workers by 2015 with a series of policy changes and initiatives that not only glean vital information for the employer, but also improve the prospects for wannabe retirees. However, a one-size-fits-all policy approach will not be effective in all cases, warn researchers from the Australian School of...

A new inquiry into the activities of Australia's central bank subsidiary, Securency, has brought the prevalence of bribery in international business dealings back into the spotlight. Demands for "grey money" are commonplace when negotiating deals in many developing nations. While multinational boards may place a high emphasis on ethics, often it's their people on the ground who are left with the risky business of tackling the grey areas to get deals over the line. It's time for a public...

The global financial crisis delivered new opportunities to re-engineer the workforce with an increased focus on flexibility for both employers and employees. But dangers lurk in the short-term cost-cutting approach embraced by many organisations. The arrangements – and, in some cases, the companies – may not be sustainable. There’s a fine line between organisational agility achieved by varying head counts, and having the right in-house talent and capabilities. Employers need workforce models...

The consuming habits of the baby boomers (those born between 1945 and 1960) have substantially eroded the rate of saving in advanced nations over the past 40 years. Spending up rather than saving up has created an untenable situation. And future generations will almost certainly have a lower standard of living, unless policymakers step in to reverse the trend, according to a new study from the Australian School of Business. With an ageing population accelerating the problem, researchers...

There's no training manual for how to manage multigenerational workforces. Yet a new study from the Australian School of Business covering four generational cohorts in five countries shows significant differences in work values exist between age groups. Members of Generation Y may be technologically adept, but their focus on leisure strongly conflicts with Traditionalists' and Baby Boomers' hard-work ethics. Adaptability is required all round. Some companies are actually leveraging...

Executives and managers confront a barrage of distractions from the big picture. As the speed of change and communication in global business generates incessant opportunities and threats, a clear corporate strategy is more vital for long-term business success than ever. Smart organisations know where they are heading and why. Some even divest profitable operations just to stick to their plans. Doug Stace, a strategy expert at the Australian School of Business, highlights why strategy...

Managers are role models for smart phone use – and new research from the Australian School of Business shows always-on cultures are hampering productivity, effectively turning workers into "human pinballs" as they bounce from one distraction to the next with no time to think. Setting a poor example for technology use can send employees down the fast path to burnout, with ambitious staffers particularly at risk of over-engagement. While some individuals are turning off communication...

Not-for-profit organisations often thrive on the strength of volunteers so understanding what drives people to give time and effort free of charge is vital. Typically, volunteering is considered a selfless, empathetic activity, but quite often the "me" factor is at play. A new study from the Australian School of Business shows the motivations of volunteers vary greatly between age groups and indicates the need for not-for-profits (NFPs) to profile their volunteer bases to understand...

Plans by the new Coalition Government to abolish Australia's carbon tax put it on a collision course with its Labor predecessor, which opposes the move unless it leads to an emissions trading scheme. Into the fray comes new research from centres at the University of New South Wales. This modelling of investment and operating cost scenarios demonstrates how, by 2030, power generated from renewable energy sources would be a cheaper option than even “clean” gas and coal. The researchers...

Australian School of Business professor Peter Swan and colleague Marc-Oliver Fischer have stirred up the business community by refuting the popular view that independent board directors increase firm value. The researchers studied the performance of almost 1000 Australian companies since the ASX introduced voluntary governance guidelines in 2003. Those that followed the board independence recommendations increased CEO and director pay yet under-performed financially. “We estimate these...

When it comes to appreciating the power of big data, the whistle-blowing activities of WikiLeaks and American computer specialist Edward Snowden have seized the headlines. But the collection and manipulation of massive amounts of digital information is increasingly being applied in more legitimate ways, with savvy businesses investing in innovative tools to unlock real-time information about their operations.  Speed is the crucial factor, according to Felix Tan from the Australian...

Asian nations are facing a dramatic rise in medical costs as they plan for the looming demographic transition to much older populations. Rafal Chomik, from the Centre of Excellence in Population Ageing Research (CEPAR) at the Australian School of Business, says that Asian governments have the fiscal capacity to keep expanding their health systems, but they should heed the successes and failures of reforms in the region and elsewhere to avoid the excessive cost growth seen in the West....

The Chinese market is a glittering prize for foreign companies, but those that hope to prosper need to be aware of a complex labyrinth of government, labour and cultural forces, according to research from Australian School of Business professor Stephen J. Frenkel and PhD candidate Chongxin Yu. Business plans and HR strategies must adapt to the local context and ties with  authorities at all levels need to be maintained. Frenkel suggests that returning Chinese students educated in ...

Companies need to update their products, develop new ones and break into fresh markets. But equally important is the ability to cull projects that aren’t working. Dan Levinthal, the Michael J. Crouch Visiting Professorial Fellow at the Australian School of Business, describes it as a “difficult balance of being tough on resource allocation, but at the same time you can’t make it stigmatising and career-ending” for those whose ideas don't go forward. Controlled micro-failures are part...

Business professionals are on the move, whether they like it or not. Traditional employers, such as media organisations, the public service, telecommunications companies, accounting firms, banks and universities have all announced redundancy programs during the past 12 months. Job ads are down and unemployment is rising. Some firms are accessing cheaper services offshore.  But what replaces employee commitment to an organisation when stable, full-time jobs are replaced by casual,...

Research led by Ronald Masulis, the Macquarie Group Chair in Financial Services at the Australian School of Business, demonstrates a strong causal link between board independence and increased value for shareholders. But there is a potential pitfall in the way board members are chosen. Masulis and co-author Lixiong Guo find that social connections between CEOs and non-executive directors can undermine board independence. “I would encourage corporate boards to voluntarily adopt a fully...

High-frequency trading (HFT) accounts for 27% of Australian stock market turnover.  Its critics describe it as parasitic and providing toxic liquidity. The Australian Securities and Investment Commission says that most concerns about HFT are unfounded. But controversy is never far from the surface. Last month, the Industry Super Network (ISN) cried foul, claiming high-speed traders could cost Australian investors and retirement savers more than $1.5 billion a year. It prompted...

Australia's goods and services tax (GST) was born of a political compromise and any discussion of potential changes to its scope and rate remains too sensitive for legislators to touch, particularly during an election year. But there's a growing realisation that GST reform could improve Australia's competitive advantage. So let the debate begin. Neil Warren, a professor of taxation at the Australian School of Business, looks at options and says the GST is a far more efficient tax than...

Many populations across Asia are ageing more rapidly than those in Western countries, yet the development of viable retirement income systems is lagging behind. A new report from the ARC Centre of Excellence in Population Ageing Research (CEPAR) at the Australian School of Business notes that large parts of Asia could benefit from Australian expertise in retirement planning. And providing solutions may offer Australia a new economic boom in financial and insurance services as it...

Gender diversity in the boardroom has its advantages but there is no business case for female quotas, says Renée Adams, a professor and Commonwealth Bank (CBA) Chair in Finance at the Australian School of Business. Too much emphasis on placing women at the top obscures the systemic difficulties many women face in pursuing and maintaining full-time careers. Policy-makers should concentrate on working from the bottom up to build a talent pipeline. Carolyn Kay, a non-executive director at...

The popularity of crowd-funding continues to explode, but is it just an early stage in the web community's ongoing quest to find ways of circumventing traditional financial service institutions? “The next logical step is crowd investment and crowd equity, where investors take on property rights in the ventures they back,” says Daniel Schlagwein from the Australian School of Business. But there are unresolved legal issues and regulators are hovering as the sums get bigger. With banks...

Technological progress is creating a new market reality in advertising with the emergence of a generation of engaged customers, says Liem Viet Ngo, from the Australian School of Business. Traditional television and print advertising is being increasingly supported – and sometimes replaced – by social media marketing and online campaigns where participation and sharing information are the norm. Are these new forms working? Ngo notes that measuring the return on investment of an online...

According to Markus Groth, an associate professor at the Australian School of Business, employees who have to manage their emotions when dealing with difficult customers are providing emotional labour. It is distinct from physical or cognitive labour and bosses need to take this work and the effects it can have on workers into account. Research into parking officers shows they can be more productive if they display authentic emotions in abusive situations, but other occupations require...

South Korea – officially the Republic of Korea – has Asia's fourth-largest economy and is Australia's fourth-largest trading partner, a relationship in which Australia enjoys a significant surplus. Yet Korean was omitted as a priority language in the Australian government's future blueprint, the Asian Century White Paper. Chung-Sok Suh, from the Korea Research Institute at the Australian School of Business, is at the heart of efforts to expand collaboration with our affluent regional...

A lack of transparency in the accounts of listed Chinese companies has long sounded warning bells for outside investors, particularly in the context of an insider economy with weak legal enforcement and low investor protection. But China has made great strides in adopting international financial accounting standards during the past 20 years. Researchers from the Australian School of Business have found this progress has improved earnings quality, though not across the board. In some...