Business, Management, Finance and Economics

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Internal service quality in the Malaysian telecommunication industries
(Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, 2007) Mohd Yusoff , Ainan
Internal service quality reflects the service quality of an organization. The telecommunications industry, facing rapid technological changes and varied customer demands, nonetheless, would find this approach useful in attaining the service quality improvements. The Service Profit Chain concept was adapted to show the relationship between internal customer service quality and internal customer satisfaction (employee satisfaction). Thirty branches or service centres of telecommunications companies participated in the survey, of which 182 of 399 (45.61%) respondents returned the questionnaires. The survey questionnaire was constructed, based on the SERVPERF. The range of scale from one to eight was selected to give the respondents a greater differentiation in the responses, as well as to avoid potential problems in interpreting purely verbal answers. The resultant dimensions from this study were interpersonal relationship, internal customer orientation, internal support systems, work climate, adequate tools, and rewards and recognitions. The results of the study provided the basics of the internal service quality requirements for the telecommunications industry in Malaysia. Interpersonal relationship was found to be the most important dimension, proving that the Malaysian telecommunications companies need to look into this aspect for internal service quality improvements. The significance of using the mean was to show the degree of importance of the dimensions, as well as the level of internal customer satisfaction. The overall internal customer service quality and employee satisfaction for the industry were average. The study carried out could provide a benchmark for service quality improvements in the telecommunications companies, so that eventually customer satisfaction and the resultant profitability could be attained
Workplace humor in public sector organizations in the Sultanate of Oman
(Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, 2013) Al Obthani, Hadi Saleh Salim
This thesis is an attempt to study a humanistic phenomenon where humour is viewed as new managerial and leadership traits for employee motivation and work performance. The study observed that humour at the workplace happening in government departments in Oman is among the reasons that prevent or encourage the management to use humour in appropriate situations. A comprehensive study was also conducted on the effects of humour on the work performance of the employees in the public sectors in Oman. This study is phenomenological in nature based on relevant arguments using case study as the design where samples were selected among employees who have served in three supervisory positions at twenty-five ministries in Oman. Factor analysis, multivariate regression, Pearson chi-square and Spearman’s rank order correlation were used to analyse the data and to test the hypothesis. Results of the study showed that humour is evident in Omani public environments entailing its uniqueness as a milieu that promotes humour at work with a sensed tendency towards using affiliative humour style among Omani public managers in addition to being self-enhancing on a personal level. It was also found that humour is not exerted at all times during working hours. Instead, it is situational in nature. In terms of performance, humour generally affects performance in different ways but with a tendency towards the development of positive attitudes and work atmosphere where it was found that humour directly affects humanitarian outcomes such as group cohesiveness, communication and stress reduction. However, it indirectly affects the job-related outcomes such as creativity, organizational culture, leadership and management performance. Hence, this research explores the opportunities for a new humanitarian perspective of management
Influence of financial and ownership factors on capital structure of Iranian listed companies
(Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, 2014) Ahmadimousaabad, Aiyoub
For more than five decades, the issue of capital structure still remains a puzzle. One of the issues is the lack of consensus to choose either debt or equity that would qualify as the optimal capital structure. The study investigated the determinants of capital structure by exploring traditional financial theories (trade-off theory and pecking order theory) and agency cost hypothesis. The study was conducted on Iranian firms listed on the Tehran Stock Exchange for the period of 2001 to 2010. A panel data set of 123 published annual reports of these firms was compiled. The data was used to analyse the impact of the financial and corporate governance factors on the debt and equity structure of these firms. Ordinary Least Squares, Fixed Effect and Generalized Method of Moments methodologies were used in the analysis. The results stated that capital structure is positively related to tax rate, size, capital intensity, and risk, but negatively related to profit, growth and tangibility. As for the agency cost, government ownership has positive impacts on capital, indicating that these firms are exposed to financial distress with increasing debt. In contrast, capital structure is negatively related to the legal person ownership, ownership concentration of the single largest shareholder and the ten largest shareholders, indicating that these firms are able to manage their debts and future prospects. The effects of agency cost on capital structure shown in the study serve as the evidence of agency conflicts based on debt and equity explanations. In addition, the findings of this study predicted the financial and non-financial factors of capital structure. The study has contributed to the field of finance by identifying capital structure determinants, and provided valuable insights on optimizing capital structure among the Iranian firms which would provide information for investors as well as other stakeholders
Faktor kejayaan kritikal dalam melaksanakan pelan induk operasi dan penyenggaraan aset tak alih
(Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, 2014) Md. Yunus, Norhidayah
Maintenance and Operation Blueprint for Iskandar Malaysia was established to ensure local authorities immovable asset maintenance management in line with Government Asset Management Policy 2009. However, Maintenance and Operation Blueprint for Iskandar Malaysia have not fully implemented by local authorities in the maintenance management of immovable asset. Therefore, the aim of this research is to provide detailed explanations about the critical success factors for Maintenance and Operation Blueprint implementation in the maintenance management of local authorities immovable asset so that the Maintenance and Operation Blueprint Plan for Iskandar Malaysia can be implemented successfully. Five local authorities in Iskandar Malaysia were the sample in this research which are Johor Bahru City Council, Johor Bahru Tengah Municipal Council, Kulai Municipal Council, Pasir Gudang Municipal Council and Pontian District Council. Twenty five respondents from ten executive level managers and fifteen operating unit managers had been chosen as respondents in this research. The data has been analysed qualitatively using critical success factors approach. Results of the analysis showed that the local authorities in Iskandar Malaysia do not fully implement the Maintenance and Operation Blueprint in the maintenance management of immovable asset because there are seven flaws that interfere with the successful implementation of the Maintenance and Operation Blueprint. There are seven critical success factors for the implementation of Maintenance and Operation Blueprint for Iskandar Malaysia in the maintenance management of local authorities immovable asset according to the local authority perspective which are effective approach, cooperation, effective resources, leadership, skills and abilities, commitment and beliefs. Research contribution to the body of knowledge is to produce a new approach for successful blueprint implementation. In conclusion, the critical success factors for implementation of Maintenance and Operation Blueprint Plan for Iskandar Malaysia in the maintenance management of local authorities immovable asset should be implemented so that the Maintenance and Operation Blueprint Plan for Iskandar Malaysia can be implemented successfully
Kerangka budaya penyenggaraan aset tak alih pihak berkuasa tempatan
(Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, 2014) Abdullah Sani, Suwaibatul Islamiah
Infrastructure development is fundamental to the success of a country to achieve the status of developed nation. However, the development made is deemed to be unsuccessful without a strong culture of maintenance to maintain the existing infrastructure. Nevertheless, the effort is unworthy since the performance level for maintaining immovable assets in Malaysia, especially those that belongs to Local Authorities is still at unsatisfactory level. This problem arises due to the poor maintenance culture that resulted to the immovable assets were not properly maintained. Thus, this research was conducted to achieve four objectives. The objectives are: (i) to identify the main factors that influence the development of maintenance culture; (ii) to identify the good practice for each main factor that influence the development of maintenance culture; (iii) to identify the indicators of positive maintenance culture; (iv) to determine the relationship between the main factors of maintenance culture with positive maintenance culture. The research involves 22 PBT in Peninsular Malaysia which consist City Council/City Hall and Municipal Council. This research was implemented using two approaches, which are distribution of questionnaires (questionnaires 1 and 2) and interview with experts in order to validate and verify the research findings. The data were analyzed using descriptive analysis, calculation on relative important index (RII), and structural equation modeling-partial least squares (PLS-SEM) analysis. The research found that almost all respondents among the Local Authorities in the opinion that factors such as leadership, teamwork, involvement, motivation, training and education, communication, maintenance policies, reward and recognition, empowerment, and organization structure are important factors that influence the development of maintenance culture. Six out of ten factors were identified as the key factors influencing the development of maintenance culture. The six factors is leadership, teamwork, communication, involvement, maintenance policies and training and education. Meanwhile, 26 practices have been identified as the good practices for the six key factors in developing of maintenance culture. This research has proven that there is a significant relationship between communication, maintenance policies, involvement, teamwork and, training and education factors with positive maintenance culture. However, leadership factor has no significant relationship with positive maintenance culture
Relationship between neighborhood physical design and institutional changes: patterns and their effect on housing in Malaysia.
(Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, 2014) Misnan, Siti Hajar
Housing neighborhoods, in the context of urban economics can be viewed as a nexus of contracts that assign property rights over private and shared resources, and over various neighborhood attributes. However, previous studies have indicated that the fragile assignment of property rights in the conventional open neighborhood can contribute to the neighborhood instability over time. As a result, through the process of institutional change, new and more efficient institutional forms will gradually emerge. While, a vast amount of studies suggested neighborhood privatization as a possible solution to the problem of instability with assignment of property rights, it appears that not all neighborhoods are able to transform under the existing neighborhood conventions and laws. Thus, there is a crucial need to study and consider other forms of institutional innovation that can resolve those problems. Therefore, this research proposes a theoretical foundation based on property rights and new institutional economics to initiate the analysis of the transformation of physical design and institutional arrangement in urban neighborhood development in Malaysia. This research takes advantage of the institutional transformation in Malaysia over the year 1960-2010. It is noticed that some conventional open neighborhood can be reinforced into guarded neighborhood and enjoy the benefits similar to that of gated community, while the others cannot. Therefore, this research aims to identify the dynamic interrelationship patterns between neighborhood physical design and institutional arrangement that contribute to maximize housing price benefits and strengthen the conventional open neighborhood institution in Malaysia. The research begins by examining the unique features of the causes, process and outcome of institutional change through extensive literature reviews, interviews, and field observations. Secondly, a conceptual framework has been developed based on the identified unique features of institutional and physical design characteristics. Third, the framework is used to evaluate the effect of institutional change on housing price and appraise those relationships through critical comparisons of two neighborhoods. This research found a unique anomaly when one developer has developed two identical neighborhoods in the same township, but under different land titles. The gated community is developed under the strata title, while the guarded neighborhood developed under the individual title. These differences generated an exogenous allocation of property rights across the neighborhood, enabling researchers to measure their effect on housing price. This research identified the dynamic interrelationship that has taken place in two dimensions. First, in order to avoid further neighborhood conflicts, both physical and institutional designs of conventional open neighborhood (CON) ‘reinforce’ into guarded neighborhood (GN) and ‘accompanied’ each other during the transformation process. Second, learning from the previous obstacles, the physical and institutional designs of the emerging new guarded neighborhood (GN) ‘adopted’ the same physical and institutional designs similar to that of gated community (GC). Finally, this research recommends a conceptual framework that demonstrate the relationship between the neighborhood physical design and institutional arrangement of CON, GN and GC, and provides urban policy-makers with an objective reference to strengthen the conventional open neighborhood institution. The conceptual framework may also be a strategic tool in understanding the local institutional change in other cities and a foundation to provide research directions for future studies in this area
Delay in housing delivery process in Malaysia
(Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, 2014) Chai, Chang Sa'ar
The challenges associated with housing delivery process in Malaysia have resulted in late delivery of housing supply and increasing numbers of sick and abundant projects. Although delays have been extensively investigated in the construction industry, it is still a common phenomenon especially for Malaysian housing industry. Therefore, there is a strong need to review the delay and reclassify delay factors in order to evaluate the housing delivery performance in Malaysia. This research aims at developing housing performance index to address delay in delivery process. As the delay factors are identified and classified, the factors which are gathered in an empirical survey are analyzed. Principal Component Analysis (PCA) is conducted on the information obtained from a questionnaire survey held. A numbers of 23 delay factors are extracted from a total of 91 delay factors which are classified into 3 categories of new delay classification; structural, institutional and cultural in housing delivery stages. The most successful mitigation measures in housing delay avoidance are identified. Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) is performed to examine the causal relationship of new delay classification and housing delivery process. A housing delivery performance index is derived from such SEM model. Structural delay recorded the highest index coefficient (0.42) as compared to institutional delay (0.28) and cultural delay (0.30) respectively. This demonstrated that structural delay is a significant influence to the housing delivery performance. The performance index can be improved by trading off mitigation strategy and potential delay factors. The index is essential to benchmark the housing delivery performance and hence provides a preliminary guideline to the construction players in handling housing projects. The index is verified via a semi structured interview and three case studies which proves its functionality in practice
Market orientation in higher education and innovativeness as a mediating variable
(Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, 2015) M. Algarni , Abdullah Mohammed
Market orientation (MO) is an operationalization of a marketing concept and considered vital to enhance organization profitability and sustainability especially for businesses. However, efforts to investigate MO in the educational context have not been extensively conducted in comparison to those in the business settings. This research assessed the influence of top management emphasis and internal market orientation (IMO) as antecedents to MO in higher education institutions (HEIs). It also examined the effect of IMO and MO on HEIs perceived performance. In addition, the mediation role of innovativeness to the relationship of MO and perceived performance was investigated. The unit of analysis in this research was an educational institution that provides tertiary education under the supervision of the Ministry of Education in Saudi Arabia. In this quantitative cross sectional study, the whole population was targeted and data was collected online. There were 263 usable responses from 537, representing 48.97% response rate. The findings of this research indicated that there is a positive relationship between top management emphasis and IMO, as well as with MO. Results also showed that IMO was found to be positively related to MO. On the contrary, the relationship between IMO and HEIs perceived performance was found to be insignificant. Besides that, the study disclosed that MO is positively related to HEIs perceived performance. In this study, innovativeness was found to be partially mediating the relationship between MO and perceived performance. The research has illustrated the application of MO in the educational setting of a developing country. Additionally, the findings of the study will help academic managers and education policy makers in Saudi Arabia to develop market oriented strategies to improve HEIs performance
A contingency-based framework of strategic management accounting, sophisticated budgeting and costing techniques in Malaysian small and medium entreprises
(Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, 2015) Nejad Kalkhouran, Abolfazl Amanollah
Survival in the current competitive business environment requires updated and accurate accounting information through adoption of appropriate management accounting practices (MAPs). However, improving organizational performance may require businesses including small and medium enterprises (SMEs) to not merely adopt those practices but also to observe the fit between MAPs and the contextual variables that determine performance. Knowledge regarding MAPs in SMEs is still scarce; hence, the need for further understanding of factors affecting the adoption of MAPs and how appropriate the fit between those factors and practices enhances SMEs’ performance. This study aims to examine the effect of perceived environmental uncertainty (PEU), advanced manufacturing technology (AMT) and chief executive officers’ (CEOs) involvement in networks and characteristics on advanced MAPs including strategic management accounting (SMA), advanced budgeting and sophisticated costing techniques. The study also explores the mediating effect of advanced MAPs on performance. An online survey was conducted among 1470 manufacturing SMEs in Malaysia which produced 186 useable responses. The Partial Least Squares-Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM) was used and the data was analysed using SmartPLS 3. The results provide evidence of the positive relationship between the contingency factors and almost all MAPs as well as between MAPs (with the exception of costing techniques) and performance. In addition, the main result suggested that in a situation of high PEU or when CEOs are highly educated and experienced, the increased use of budgeting practices will yield higher performance. Moreover, when CEOs are more educated, using more SMA can have similar effect to firm performance. This study elucidates the appropriate MAPs for SMEs by offering empirical evidence based on the integration of the theory of contingency and upper echelon theory. This model helps SMEs adopt suitable advanced MAPs for better response to particular circumstances that their firm faces
Corporate social responsibility index for Islamic banks in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
(Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, 2016) Ali Alamer, Abdullah Rajeh
Islamic banking operations are widely accepted in Islamic society as the transactions are guided by Islamic principles and Shariah values. Although Islamic bank transactions are in compliance with the Shariah, all aspects of corporate social responsibility (CSR) in the Islamic banking industry have not been met. The current study investigated the limitations of existing indices to measure CSR practices in Saudi Arabia Islamic banks. Existing indices are either unable to measure actual CSR practices or do not cover all aspects of these practices in the Islamic banks. There is a need to understand the limitations of existing indices. In this study, CSR in these banks is categorised into two broader scopes: business process dimensions and oriented outcome dimensions. Selective elements to construct an appropriate CSR Index (CSRI) to measure all aspects of CSR practices for both scopes have been assigned weights in accordance with existing studies. Unstructured interviews with practitioners from selected Islamic banks as well as secondary data from annual reports and documents were used to develop this index, which was empirically tested to explore real CSR practices. Based on the developed CSRI that gave oriented outcome dimensions less weight than business process dimensions, and content analysis of annual reports and documents of Islamic banks, the findings indicated that these banks had weak CSR practices. Therefore, it is recommended that this developed CSRI be provided as a guide for Islamic banks in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to improve their CSR practices
The role of work volition and organizational commitment in the relationship between total rewards and employee retention
(Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, 2016) Aamir, Alamzeb
In the last few decades, retention of employees has become a real issue in public and private organisations because of the openness and liberalisation of global economy. These organisations have implemented various reward oriented schemes to improve employees' work effectiveness and efficiencies. The key purpose of these schemes is to retain valuable human capital and make employees more committed at the work place. A number of empirical studies and anecdotal evidences indicated employee retention is becoming a dilemma in private and public organisations particularly in the higher education sector. The study explored the phenomena of employee retention and total rewards by examining the mediating role of organisational commitment and job satisfaction. In addition, the moderating role of work volition between total rewards and job satisfaction was examined. This study employed quantitative methods for data collection and analysis. Based on multistage random sampling technique, a survey was conducted among faculty members of higher educational institutions in Pakistan. Approximately 289 completed questionnaires were received from the targeted population. Data checking, preparation, screening, normality, descriptive statistics, confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) and hypotheses were tested using Analysis of Moment Structures (AMOS- 21). The key findings indicated that total reward has a significant impact on job satisfaction, organisational commitment and employee retention. These findings also showed that work volition significantly moderated the relationship between total reward and faculty member's job satisfaction in the higher educational institutions. Theoretically, the research has implications in the existing state of knowledge by proposing a noble policy and practice for the higher education sector of Pakistan.
Pembangunan budaya kualiti dalam firma pembinaan
(Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, 2016) Wan Mahmood, Wan Yusoff
There is an increasing trend for construction firms to practice total quality management as an initiative to solve problems of quality in the construction industry and to meet the client requirements continuously. However, construction firms still faced problems in terms of it's implementation. The implementation of the total quality management's philosophy in the organization requires a cultural change and it is identified as an important aspect for the development of total quality. To implement these changes construction firms must identify the factors and its main activities that contributes towards the development of quality culture within their organizations. The study was carried out to achieve four objectives. Firstly is to identify the importance and the level of implementation of factors and its main activities that influence the development of a quality culture. Secondly to identify the perception on the importance and the level of implementation of the quality culture practices in the construction industry. Thirdly to examine the relationship between the level of implementation of the factors and its main activities in the development of quality culture with the level of implementation of quality culture practices in the construction industry. Lastly to develop Structural Equation Model between the importance of the factors and its main activities in the development of quality culture with the quality culture practices in the construction industry. The research methodologies used in order to achieve those objectives involved literature review, interviews with eight industry's experts and a questionnaire survey of 600 construction firms. Data obtained were analyzed using descriptive analysis techniques, calculating the value of the relative importance index, and analysis using SEM-PLS method. The study has identified nine factors that influence the development of quality culture in a construction firm which are leadership and top management commitment, customer focus, teamwork, employee's involvement, training and education, strategy and quality policy, organizational structure, communication, and continuous improvement. Forty-two main activities were identified in the process of quality culture development. The study has shown that there is a significant relationship between the factors of leadership and top management commitment, continuous improvement, employee involvement, and teamwork with a quality culture practices
The attractiveness of ASEAN countries to foreign direct investment in real estate
(Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, 2016) Ahmad, Nurul Afiqah
Foreign direct investment has played a significant role in ASEAN economic growth. Foreign direct investment in real estate (FDIRE) however, is relatively new to the real estate sector. In global investment, the competitiveness of a country and its ability to attract and retain investors is one of the main drivers of sustainable economic development. Thus, to describe the bilateral country-specific impacts and the complex multiple criteria decision-making problems in FDIRE, appropriate analytical methods for ASEAN country's attractiveness assessment are required.The aim of this study is to assess the level of country's attractiveness to bilateral FDIRE factors, with emphasis on the ranking of ASEAN countries using hybrid methods of Gravity Model (GM) and Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP). The GM determines the significant bilateral FDIRE factors in ASEAN-5 countries. Panel data analysis is conducted on ASEAN-5 countries (Malaysia, Indonesia, Philippines, Singapore and Thailand) as host country and eleven source countries for the years 1999-2010. The results show that all explanatory variables are significant except for property prices, real estate transparency, inflation and exchange rate. Then, AHP method is applied to prioritize the set of FDIRE criteria and to rank the ASEAN-5 countries based on significant variables in the GM. The results show that, among the seven significant variables (property registration, common language, infrastructure, market size, interest rate, openness and geographical distance), common language as a sociocultural factor is considered by international investors as most important in determining the attractiveness of a country for FDIRE while interest rate as an economic factor is least important. In general, results for year 2010 show that Singapore and Thailand are the most attractive countries for FDIRE to investors from all countries except from the European Union. Therefore, to attract more bilateral FDIRE into ASEAN countries, each country should improve its socio-culture by enhancing the use of English as global business language in their country, improve its technology by increasing the various components of the country's infrastructure, increase its openness by increasing the total number of import and export, consider economic issues when implementing and introducing new FDIRE. Countries should also expand bilateral FDIRE to a further location and reduce restrictions in real estate registration by reducing the number of procedures, the costs and duration for registering property
The role of regulatory pressure, performance measurement and risk management in enhancing accountability in Malaysian public sector
(Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, 2016) Abu Bakar, Bebe
The public sector is not an exception when it comes to risks, and the notion of modern accountability demands demonstration of risk management (RM) initiatives. However, the increasing trend of irregularities, non-compliance with regulation and mismanagement of government assets are deteriorating public sector accountability. This scenario has placed existing mechanisms of accountability under challenge as they have eroded public trust and confidence. There are scarce empirical studies on the effect of RM practices on accountability and the drivers of RM practices, in particular regulatory pressure and performance measurement system (PMS) use. To investigate the role of RM practices in enhancing public sector accountability, this study drew upon institutional theory and resource-based view to examine the relationships of regulatory pressure and RM practices, PMS use and RM practices, RM practices and accountability, mediating effect of RM practices in the relationship between regulatory pressure and accountability, and mediating effect of RM practices in the relationship between PMS use and accountability. Survey questionnaires were distributed to 217 Chief Risk Officers, top management and branch managers from the Malaysian Federal Statutory Bodies and their main branch offices. 110 usable responses were analyzed using partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) techniques. The results of the study demonstrated that regulatory pressure and all the dimensions of PMS use except for legitimization have significant positive effects on different dimensions of RM practices. In testing the relationship between RM practices and accountability, it indicated that only risk identification has a significant positive effect on accountability. Furthermore, although risk identification did not mediate the relationship between regulatory pressure and accountability, it mediated the relationship between PMS use for monitoring and accountability as well as the relationship between PMS use for attention-focusing and accountability. These findings have provided knowledge and guidance to public sector managers on the implementation of effective RM to enhance accountability and develop a comprehensive RM policy leading to competitive advantage and sustainable growth.
A hybrid multi-criteria decision making method for risk assessment of public-private partnership projects
(Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, 2016) Sarvari, Hadi
As governments embark on Public Private Partnership (PPP) projects to develop their infrastructure, effective risk assessment has become an important step to ensure success of these projects. However, there are many unsuccessful stories of PPP projects that have been reported all around the world. Thus, it is essential for both public and private sectors to apply efficient risk assessment approaches to allocate and manage risks more effectively. Literature review revealed a continuous endeavor for better PPP project risk modelling and assessment. Various techniques have been developed for use in the management of risks in construction. However, these techniques are limited to addressing risks relating to only cost, schedule, or technical performance individually or at best a combination of cost and schedule risks. Previous work so far is lacking a comprehensive model capable of handling impact of risks on all project objectives simultaneously; namely cost, time and quality. Thus, the main objective of this study is to develop a hybrid risk assessment method that capable of capturing impact of risks on the three project objectives comprehensively. To achieve this aim, this research explores the risk assessment approaches and proposes a hybrid alternative method based on the Fuzzy Analytic Network Process (FANP) and Multiple Objective Particle Swarm Optimization (MOPSO). The Fuzzy logic was used to convert linguistic principles into systematic quantitative-based analysis. Also, in order to consider the dependency and feedback between risks and criteria, ANP method is applied as a Multi-Criteria Decision Making (MCDM) method. Then, MOPSO, as a MCDM method, was used to assess the risks based on the project objectives. Objective functions have been developed to minimize the total time and cost of the project and maximize the quality. The research approach was a mixed-method approach and the field work included a series of questionnaires and interviews. It started with semi-structured interviews with PPP professionals. A mail survey was administered and more than 114 questionnaires were sent to construction and PPP professionals based in Malaysia. Out of 114, 88 valid responses have been received. An on-line survey was carried out as well in order to enrich the findings of the mail survey. The proposed hybrid approach was used to assess the collected data. A total of 30 significant risks were identified and evaluated. According to the results, it was found that “construction completion”, “construction cost overrun” and “interest rate volatility” are the highest ranks associated with the Malaysian PPP projects risks. Finally, the viability of the proposed hybrid approach was investigated through conducting semi-structured interviews with PPP professionals from construction and administration sector. It is concluded that the proposed hybrid MCDM method for risk assessment is a viable alternative to the existing practice. This may help bridging the gap between theory and practice of risk assessment in construction projects. It also can be applied through the public and private sectors to improve risk assessment and management. The research findings recommend further exploration of the potential applications of hybrid MCDM methods in construction management domain.
Factors that impact microfinance institutions performances in Sudan
(Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, 2017) Ahmed Mustafa, Abbas Kheder
Microfinance has attained a universal avowal as a vital tool for poverty alleviation. Microfinance Institutions (MFIs) provide financial services to the poor people who are deprived by mainstream commercial banks. MFIs face unique and unparalleled challenges of financial sustainability and outreach; therefore, a debate arises of whether microfinance worthwhile or worthless? Moreover, there are gaps in the existing literature of MFIs in less developed countries and Islamic MFIs. Consequently, this research studies the factors that influence the performances of microfinance sector in Sudan. The first three objectives of this research are to pursue an understanding of how microfinance interventions are implemented and how the mechanisms of the involvement namely; interest rate, client protection, financing method, microinsurance and institutional characteristic affect MFI’s performance from financial sustainability and outreach perspectives. The fourth objective is to assess the impacts of microfinance loans on the clients. This study deployed mixed methods, in the quantitative study 123 MFIs and 228 clients participated in two separate survey questionnaires and in qualitative study 18 managers from MFIs participated in the semi-structured interview. Smart PLS-SEM, Descriptive, and Chisquare techniques of analysis, were used to analyse the data collected. While comparing the results of qualitative data integrated along with quantitative results, it was found that predictors of interest rate, client protection, and lending method have significant and positive relationship with the performance of MFIs from financial sustainability and outreach perspectives, however, the predictor microinsurance shown no relationship with the performances of MFIs. Moreover, results of the structural analysis provided sufficient support that the institutional characteristics of client type, the type of organization and the years of establishment of MFIs have an effect on the performances of MFIs. On the other hand, results from client’s survey stated that microfinance loan has positive impact on MFI clients. This study contributes to the literature of microfinance industry by determining the factors that have impact in the performance of MFIs. In addition, the results proved that microfinance loans have significant effect on clients and provided social and economic security. This study contributed also to MFIs by proposing, as a future work, a theoretical Performance Measurement Frameworks (PMF), that is recognized by Consultative Group to Assist the Poor (CGAP). One of the recommendations for policy makers is that; encouraging institutional diversification, making MFIs a taxfree income, revising microinsurance policies, client-oriented regulations, and enforcing a positive interest rate ceiling, can assist MFIs in achieving their core objectives. Moreover, Government should not politicize microfinance programs.
The effect of top management's strategic thinking capacity of performance of yemeni small and medium enterprises
(Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, 2017) Yahya Nusair, Abdulmalek
To survive and achieve sustainable performance, companies must carefully and continuously plan their strategy innovatively. This research developed an integrated strategic thinking model and tested it empirically in an uncertain environment in a least developed country, specifically among small and medium Yemeni manufacturing enterprises. This study examined the impact of strategic thinking skills, strategic planning, incremental planning, and lower-level managers’ participation in the planning process, on the performance of small and medium enterprises (SMEs). A correlational test was conducted to measure the relationship of strategic thinking capacity and its factors on manufacturing SMEs’ performance in Yemen. Questionnaires were personally administered to a sample of 300 manufacturing SMEs based in four Yemeni governorates. 173 out of 213 returned questionnaires were appropriate and used in the analysis. Partial Least Squares- Structural Equation Modelling (PLS-SEM) techniques were used to test the interrelationships in the model. The results revealed that there was a significant direct relationship between strategic thinking capacity and its factors, and the manufacturing SMEs’ performance. However, the study found no significant relationship between strategic planning and SMEs’ performance. There were significant moderating effects of environmental uncertainty on the relationship between incremental planning and SMEs’ performance, and a direct significant negative effect of environmental uncertainty on the SMEs’ performance. The findings support most of the main hypotheses proposed in the preliminary research model. Besides, this study contributes to theory, methodology and practice as it incorporates strategic thinking skills, incremental planning, and lower-level managers’ participation in planning in the strategic thinking capacity model of manufacturing SMEs in Yemen
Impact of sectors and political influence on financial distress across Pakistani public listed firms
(Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, 2017) Amad, Agha
Identifying financial distress provides information on ways to control and direct firms in achieving their goals. The common approach is to study the relationship between set of explanatory variables and financial distress. However, in order to improve the firms‘ financial structure, there is a need to understand the impact of sectors and different political conditions that affect financial distress. This study investigated the industry effects on financial distress as it is identified that financial distress might differ for firms due to the unique nature of each industry. The study dealt with projected key ideas to evaluate and compare diverse financial distress models to show the robustness of Pakistani listed firms across industries, and study how good financial distress can be predicted. Finally, to alleviate the severe consequences of political instability, the current study underlined the differences in financial distress determinants during different political regimes (Dictatorship and Democratic). The study analysed 153 non-financial firms listed on Karachi Stock Exchange (KSE) during a ten-year period (2004-2013) featuring two political periods; 2004 to 2008 as dictatorship period and 2009 to 2013 as democratic period. Four models were employed, namely logit analysis, decision tree, neural network and paired t-test. A diversity of models was employed to check the strength and prediction correctness of the models and t-test was employed to compare two different political regimes. From the findings, the indirect impact is clearly noticeable due to changes in the signs and magnitude of determinants across sectors. Logit analysis shows better results as compared to the other models as it was based on different industry-level variables and two different political regimes. The mechanism among the variables and financial distress is dependent on different political conditions of the country. The result shows that the impact of different political conditions varies across sectors. In addition, the results of this study are valuable for financial institutions to forecast financial distress and estimate minimum capital requirements to reduce the cost of risk management
The effects of social marketing concepts towards proenvironmental intention and behaviour among female consumers
(Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, 2017) Mas'od, Adaviah
Behavioural change intervention is one of the most challenging aspects of social marketing. High failure rate of environmental campaigns has encouraged social marketers, policymakers and researchers to propose best intervention approach to motivate pro-environmental behaviours. Using the context of No Plastic Bag Day campaign in Malaysia, this study applied Comprehensive Action Determination Model (CADM). The aim was to evaluate the effects of habits, attitudes, personal norms, social norms, and perceived behavioural control on pro-environmental intentions and pro-environmental behaviours. In addition, this study investigated the moderating role of Integrated Persuasive Communication Messages (IPCM) and campaign frequencies towards the relationships with all CADM constructs. Quantitative approach, using questionnaires were distributed to respondents of female consumers aged 18 years and above with shopping experiences. Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling technique was used to test the hypotheses. Results showed that attitudes, personal norms and social norms, have significant relationships with pro-environmental intentions, while habits and perceived behavioural control have significant relationships with pro-environmental behaviours. Perceived behavioural control emerged as the most important construct. Through mediator analysis, it is proven that pro-environmental intention mediates attitudes, personal norms, and social norms. Multiple Group Analyses highlighted that IPCM moderates the relationship of social norms, perceived behavioural control and pro-environmental intentions toward pro-environmental behaviours. Meanwhile, campaign frequency shows no moderating effects on the relationship with all constructs. The findings extended the application of CADM in pro-environmental behaviour study which added to the limited literature. Several limitations have led to future research recommendations such as; to extend the methods qualitatively, enlarge the sample size and incorporate improved experiment stimuli
Determinants of e-banking continuance usage in Jordanian banks
(Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, 2017) Ahmad Harasis , Ahmad Ali
The present study is an endeavour to investigate the relationship of factors influencing the customers in regard to the continuance usage of e-banking in Jordan based on the Technology Continuance Theory (TCT). It started with an investigation of individual factors on customers’ continuance usage of e-banking in Jordan, namely (i) perceived confirmation, (ii) perceived usefulness, and (iii) perceived ease of use. It also investigated the mediating effects of attitude and satisfaction on the relationship of the aforementioned individual factors and customers’ continuance usage of e-banking. Subsequently, the moderating effects of Big Five personality traits (extraversion, openness to experience, agreeableness, conscientiousness, and neuroticism) on the relationship between satisfaction and continuance usage of ebanking were investigated. Quantitative approach was applied for the present study and 823 questionnaires were collected from the bank customers who were selected using multistage sampling technique. Multivariate data normality tests, descriptive statistics, and structural equation modelling (SEM) were used for data analysis. The proposed model of the present study supported the results, revealing a significant direct relationship of the relationship between perceived confirmation, perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use, and attitude with the continuance usage of ebanking. The results showed a partial mediating effect of attitude on the relationship between perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use, and continuance usage of ebanking, while satisfaction failed to function as a mediator. Additionally, the results indicated a significant moderating effect of extraversion, openness to experience, agreeableness, and conscientiousness on the relationship between satisfaction and continuance usage of e-banking – only neuroticism failed to function as a moderator. On the one hand, five out of 19 tested hypotheses were rejected. The present study also raised an ongoing debate in organisational studies related to the continuance usage of e-banking, making it noteworthy for the e-banking customers and bank managers in Jordan to understand the significant factors which directly or indirectly affect the continuance usage of e-banking. The implications for research and practice, limitations, future research, and conclusion are discussed at the end of this study

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