Budget Criteria Research Articles

Teaching, research, and third mission efficiency of universities: A data envelopment analysis and hybrid multi‐criteria decision‐making approach

AbstractPrevious studies on the efficiency of higher education institutions have generally approached the functions of higher education from a limited perspective, and the studies have followed traditional methods. The aim of this study is to determine the teaching, research, and third mission technical efficiency of universities, to rank efficient universities, to identify potential areas for improvement, and to examine the determinants of efficiency scores and the differences in scores in terms of various variables. In this study, the efficiency of 187 universities was measured by data envelopment analysis. Efficiency criteria were weighted by both objective and subjective multi‐criteria decision‐making (MCDM) methods and ranked by different MCDM methods. Beta and Linear regression were performed to determine the factors on efficiency scores. According to the results of the study, the most efficient universities are in the fields of research, teaching, and third mission, respectively. Budget criterion is the most important input criterion. Number of graduates, number of publications, and number of social responsibility projects are the most important output criteria. Having an older history positively predicts teaching and research efficiency. The size of universities and being located in developed regions negatively predict research and third mission efficiency. There is a positive relationship between rankings in teaching, research, and third mission. This research provides more comprehensive information to universities by considering teaching, research, and third mission efficiency separately. Second, this research proposes a new methodology for higher education efficiency measurement by integrating DEA and hybrid MCDM. Finally, this research provides new insights by analyzing factors related to teaching, research, and tertiary mission efficiency.

Budget myopia

Purpose- Myopia, which is defined as the inability to see clearly near and far, can be defined as the inability to determine the future projection and possible results of the enterprise in terms of business management. Budgets, which are the numerical form of the future plans of businesses, facilitate the decision-making process of the management and also help to determine new strategies. The inability to clearly see the opportunities and threats that may arise in the future for various reasons may lead to budget myopia. The aim of this research is to examine the situations that cause budget myopia in enterprises and to address the solution suggestions. Methodology- Within the scope of the research, it is planned to conceptualize budget myopia based on the concepts of business blindness and marketing myopia previously mentioned in the literature, and to determine the internal and external factors that may cause this problem. In addition, it is aimed to contribute to the literature in this field by discussing the solution suggestions for each possible cause. Findings- Business managers' focus on current income and expenditure, economic uncertainties, miscommunication between business departments, managers' vision, lack of alignment between strategic plan and budget, lack of an (effective) internal audit unit, uncontrolled growth, failure to keep up with technological transformation, failure to recognize new competitors, and lack of creative thinking are identified as factors that lead to budget myopia. Conclusion- Budget myopia causes businesses to be unable to accurately and rationally predict future revenue and expenditure forecasts. For this reason, firstly, it is necessary for the enterprise to objectively reveal its current situation and determine budget criteria in line with its strategies. An effective internal audit system is needed to manage budget monitoring and changes in forecasts. Keywords: Budget, budget myopia, internal audit JEL Codes: M40, M41, M42

Comparative global timber investment costs, returns, and applications, 2020

We estimated stand level timber investment returns for a range of 16 countries and 47 planted species/management regimes in 2020, using capital budgeting criteria, at a real discount rate of 8%, without land costs. Plantation management financial returns were estimated for the principal plantation countries in the Americas—Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Paraguay, Mexico, and the United States—as well as for China, Vietnam, Laos, Spain, New Zealand, Finland, and Poland. South American, New Zealand, and Spain plantation growth rates and their concomitant investment returns were generally greater, with the exception of some pulpwood regimes, with real Internal Rates of Return (IRRs) of more than 11%. Southeast Asia had the highest timber prices and highest calculated stand-level IRRs in the world, at more than 20%. Temperate forest plantations in the U.S. and Europe returned less, from 3% to 7%, but those countries have less financial risk, better timber markets, and more infrastructure. These timberland benchmarking research efforts can be used by the private sector for considering timber investments in different countries and regions in the world, or by government and nongovernment organizations to estimate their management costs and returns, or for providing government incentives for the provision of ecosystem services such as forest carbon storage.

Penerapan Sistem ERP pada UMKM Zevenstore Di Kota Batam

This research focuses on implementing the Enterprise Resources Planning (ERP) system in Zevenstore micro, small and medium enterprises. This study aims to analyze the Enterprise Resources Planning (ERP) system in integrated business management applications used by industry to perform all its functions such as Planning, Production Management, Sales Management, Financial Management, Human Resources. descriptive. data collection method using primary data and secondary data. The result of the research is that in determining the success of ERP, there are 5 criteria in the Zevenstore ERP module selection process, the first is the criteria for adjustment to needs, technical criteria, cost and budget criteria, service and support criteria, and the last is conformity criteria.

A Potential Framework for Allocating National Park Service Budgets

The US Department of Interior, including the National Park Service (NPS), has interest in developing a national fire budgeting process that reflects and promotes program (fuels and preparedness) efficiencies while being transparent, fair, stable, and predictable. A systematic approach should have the potential to operate at all scales (national, regional, and park). To accomplish these objectives, the research introduced a Budgeting Analysis that can be integrated into the STARFire (Strategic budgeting and planning system for wildland fire). The approach used is known as the “gradient method” reflecting the concept that budgets are allocated based on proportionate performance. Using the gradient method, budget increments were allocated to fuels and preparedness programs to improve return on investment (ROI). Three-dimensional performance surfaces were generated for each of the parks in the NPS’s Alaska Fire Management Zone and a gradient was fit to each surface. The individual park gradients were then used to allocate the zone budget increments to the parks and in turn, to the park’s fuels and preparedness programs. These allocations were then summed up to illustrate regional and park level allocations and allocations by program. The results show how a full range of budget increments can be allocated from the zone to each individual park and to each park’s program. The process and the allocations are repeatable and defensible while meeting the NPS budgeting criteria. They also address the concerns expressed by the US Government Accountability Office and reflect the objectives of the Cohesive Strategy. In the current study, we demonstrate a pragmatic example of implementing this method.

Entropy considerations in improved circuits for a biologically-inspired random pulse computer

We present five novel or modified circuits intended for building a universal computer based on random pulse computing (RPC) paradigm, a biologically-inspired way of computation in which variable is represented by a frequency of a random pulse train (RPT) rather than by a logic state. For the first time we investigate operation of RPC circuits from the point of entropy. In particular, we introduce entropy budget criterion (EBC) to reliably predict whether it is even possible to create a deterministic circuit for a given mathematical operation and show its relevance to numerical precision of calculations. Based on insights gained from the EBC, unlike in the previous art, where randomness is obtained from electronics noise or a pseudorandom shift register while processing circuitry is deterministic, in our approach both variable generation and signal processing rely on the random flip-flop (RFF) whose randomness is derived from a fundamentally random quantum process. This approach offers an advantage in higher precision, better randomness of the output and conceptual simplicity of circuits.

An Analysis of Project Management Competency Factors in the Construction Industry of Botswana

This study analysed project management competency factors which contribute to project success in the construction industry in Gaborone, Botswana. Primary data was collected from 60 randomly sampled project managers from construction companies in Gaborone using a questionnaire. Data was analyzed using Microsoft Excel and presented in the form of graphs and tables. Findings revealed that clear goals of project, roles and responsibilities of project team, communications and consultations with stakeholders and compliance with the planned budget, time frame and performance criteria have a high impact on the success of a project. It was also concluded that experience of a project manager has significant influence on their performance thus contributing to the overall project success. Furthermore, despite the technical nature of the construction industry, management competency has become almost as equally as important as technical competency in the undertaking of projects.

BIM-Based Co-Simulation of Fire and Occupants’ Behavior for Safe Construction Rehabilitation Planning

Construction renovation projects increase the risk of structural fire, mostly due to the accumulation of combustible construction materials and waste. In particular, when the building remains operational during such projects, the redistribution of occupants and interruptions with access corridors/exit egress can exponentially increase the risk for the occupants. Most construction projects are, however, planned and scheduled merely based on the time and budget criteria. While safety is considered paramount and is meant to be applied as a hard constraint in the scheduling stage, in practice, safe evacuation considerations are reduced to rules of thumb and general code guidelines. In this paper, we propose simulation as a tool to introduce safety under structural fire, as a decision criterion, to be mixed with time and budget for selecting the best construction schedule alternative. We have used the BIM (building information model) to extract the building’s spatial and physical properties; and have applied co-simulation of fire, through computational fluid dynamics (CFD), and occupants’ evacuation behavior, through agent-based modeling (ABM) to estimate the average and maximum required safe egress time for various construction sequencing alternatives. This parameter is then used as a third decision criterion, combined with the project’s cost and duration, to evaluate construction schedule alternatives. We applied our method to a three-floor fire zone in a high-rise educational building in Montreal, and our results show that considering the fire safety criterion can make a difference in the final construction schedule. Our proposed method suggests an additional metric for evaluating renovation projects’ construction plans, particularly in congested buildings which need to remain fully or partially operational during the renovation. Thus, this method can be employed by safety officers and facility managers, as well as construction project planners to guide accounting for fire incidents while planning for these types of projects.

A Feasibility Study of SCADA Implementation at an Indonesian Oil Company

The implementation of Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA) will make an activity more efficient because it will help control operation and production processes; control can be applied appropriately and at any time (real-time). This process will undoubtedly help the company to get maximum benefits. In 2020, the world oil price was very volatile and had touched a negative level. It is predicted that the uncertainty and low oil price will continue in the next few years. PT Pertamina Hulu Energi - Offshore South East Sumatra (PHE OSES), an Indonesian national company, plans to fully apply the SCADA system in its operational and production areas, because currently most of the PHE OSES areas still use the manual system. SCADA's estimated investment value of USD 8.6 million is a major investment for the company amidst the uncertainty of oil prices. Therefore, this project must get attention starting from the preparation, installation and implementation stages. In this article, economic analysis, cost & benefit analysis, and sensitivity test to factors that can affect economic value will be carried out. An analysis will also be carried out in terms of change management. All of these analyzes will answer whether the implementation of SCADA is feasible or not. The result of this research show that this project is feasible to be implemented in PHE OSES, it meets the capital budgeting criteria and has benefit to cost ratio larger than one. Oil price and oil losses recovery are the most affecting factors in the project’s feasibility. Company must do training, socialization, and hiring of experts play the vital role in the success of this project.

A Feasibility Study of SCADA Implementation at an Indonesian Oil Company

The implementation of Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA) will make an activity more efficient because it will help control operation and production processes; control can be applied appropriately and at any time (real-time). This process will undoubtedly help the company to get maximum benefits. In 2020, the world oil price was very volatile and had touched a negative level. It is predicted that the uncertainty and low oil price will continue in the next few years. PT Pertamina Hulu Energi - Offshore South East Sumatra (PHE OSES), an Indonesian national company, plans to fully apply the SCADA system in its operational and production areas, because currently most of the PHE OSES areas still use the manual system. SCADA's estimated investment value of USD 8.6 million is a major investment for the company amidst the uncertainty of oil prices. Therefore, this project must get attention starting from the preparation, installation and implementation stages. In this article, economic analysis, cost & benefit analysis, and sensitivity test to factors that can affect economic value will be carried out. An analysis will also be carried out in terms of change management. All of these analyzes will answer whether the implementation of SCADA is feasible or not. The result of this research show that this project is feasible to be implemented in PHE OSES, it meets the capital budgeting criteria and has benefit to cost ratio larger than one. Oil price and oil losses recovery are the most affecting factors in the project’s feasibility. Company must do training, socialization, and hiring of experts play the vital role in the success of this project.

Strategic R&D budget allocation to achieve national energy policy targets: the case of Korea

ABSTRACT While recent international negotiations about combating climate change have led governments around the world to invest in R&D in the energy sector, funds allocated to R&D investment have remained limited during global economic downturns and dependent on national economic conditions. A systematic approach and strategic budget allocation are required to achieve various national energy policy targets. In this study, we describe the optimal investment portfolio for achieving energy policy targets in Korea based on three budget allocation criteria: past investment performance, expected future effects and additional investment risk. We outline the analytic hierarchical process by which policy target priorities are set, developing a market allocation model to analyse expected future effects and a system dynamics model to calculate the investment volume. The systematic approach suggested in this study can increase the efficiency of budget spending by helping governments make investment decisions based on clear criteria and the results of our quantitative analysis regarding government investment in R&D.

A Fuzzy Techno-Financial Methodology for Selecting an Optimal Mining Method

The main purpose of this paper is to propose a solution to the problem of mining method selection in mining projects. To this aim, a novel fuzzy techno-financial methodology based on technical and capital budgeting criteria has been developed. The methodology embodies five capital budgeting techniques, i.e., real options analysis, net present value, modified internal rate of return, profitability index and discounted payback period. The developed methodology is based on the University of British Columbia mining method selection technique and two fuzzy multiple criteria decision-making techniques called the fuzzy technique for order of preference by similarity to ideal solution and fuzzy analytic hierarchy process. The proposed methodology also integrates a sensitivity analysis of technical and financial criteria to determine the stability of the solution. To illustrate the practical application of the proposed methodology, it was applied in the selection of an optimal mining method for Konkola East orebody in Zambia. The results showed that sub-level open stoping is the optimal mining method for Konkola East orebody as reflected by the highest closeness coefficient (CCi) value of 0.14. Sensitivity analyses revealed that this solution is most sensitive to − 50% weight change in technical criteria and + 50% weight change in financial criteria. This is because these changes alter the optimal mining method from sub-level open stoping to block caving.

Global timber investments, 2005 to 2017

We estimated timber investment returns for 22 countries and 54 species/management regimes in 2017, for a range of global timber plantation species and countries at the stand level, using capital budgeting criteria, without land costs, at a real discount rate of 8%. Returns were estimated for the principal plantation countries in the Americas—Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay, Chile, Colombia, Venezuela, Paraguay, Mexico, and the United States—as well as New Zealand, Australia, South Africa, China, Vietnam, Laos, Spain, Finland, Poland, Scotland, and France. South American plantation growth rates and their concomitant returns were generally greater, at more than 12% Internal Rates of Return (IRRs), as were those in China, Vietnam, and Laos. These IRRs were followed by those for plantations in southern hemisphere countries of Australia and New Zealand and in Mexico, with IRRs around 8%. Temperate forest plantations in the U.S. and Europe returned less, from 4% to 8%, but those countries have less financial risk, better timber markets, and more infrastructure. Returns to most planted species in all countries except Asia have decreased from 2005 to 2017. If land costs were included in calculating the overall timberland investment returns, the IRRs would decrease from 3 percentage points less for loblolly pine in the U.S. South to 8 percentage points less for eucalypts in Brazil.

Optimizing Cost and Quality of Innovative Solutions at Design Stages of Life Cycle of Engineering High-Tech Items

The article develops a method for optimizing the cost and quality of innovative solutions at design stages of a life cycle of engineering high-tech items. The method allows evaluating and comparing a whole set of permissible options of innovative solutions on the basis of all partial and generalized criteria at the stage of production design engineering.The method is based upon a bipartite graph model of component interconnections in engineering high-tech items and the criteria of optimal option selection. To evaluate the options of innovative solutions, the authors form a set of partial criteria united in the categories: production criteria; investment criteria; criteria of evaluating the quality of manufactured products while using a high-tech item; economic criteria; financial criteria; criteria of evaluation on risk types; social criteria; environmental criteria; budget criteria; integral criteria evaluating the quality of an engineering high-tech item on the basis of all indices. To evaluate the cost and quality of innovative solutions, the authors form integrated efficiency functions presented as additive convolutions of partial criteria.The developed method is automated with the use of software tools MS Excel, MS Access, C#. The method industrial approbation demonstrates its operation efficiency and universal nature for solving various problems of the comparative evaluation of innovative solutions at the design stages of a life cycle of engineering high-tech items.

Hybrid Stochastic Ranking for Constrained Optimization

Teaching learning based optimization (TLBO) algorithm is a distinguished nature-inspired population-based meta-heuristic, which is basically designed for unconstrained optimization. TLBO mimics teaching learning process through which learners acquire knowledge from their teachers, and improve their results/grades, accordingly. Stochastic ranking (SR) is a constrained handling technique (CHT), which produces greediness among solutions to improve their fitness values and feasibility. Violation constraint handling (VCH) technique produces more feasibility among the existing superiority of feasibility CHTs due to its additional factor of ranking based on the number of constraints violated (NCV). This work brings in a new variant of SR, namely hybrid stochastic ranking (HSR), which combines SR and VCH. For constrained optimization, the integration of some CHT with TLBO is essential. In this paper, HSR is integrated with TLBO and a new constrained version of TLBO called HSR-TLBO is designed. The efficiency of HSR-TLBO is checked on constrained test functions of the suit CEC 2017. The experimental results show that HSR-TLBO got prominent position when compared and ranked with the top four papers and our two newly designed constrained variants of TLBO, MSR-TLBO and MVCH-TLBO, based on the provided budget and ranking criteria of the mentioned suit.

Capital budgeting for information technology service management. Modeling, classifying, and disclosure from a structural capital perspective

Purpose of the paper : The study proposes a modeling, classifying and disclosure framework for investment evaluation in Information Technology Service Management (ITSM) considered as a component of structural capital, in order to communicate better with stakeholders in relation to ITSM value. Methodology : The research is based on a conceptual construction that also takes traditional capital budgeting criteria into consideration for Information Technology (IT) investments, and ITSM investments in particular, contextualizing them within the environment of structural capital. Results : In order to evaluate ITSM investments, blended methods (quantitative and qualitative) appear to be the most appropriate option, above all in order to better disclose their real value as fundamental components of structural capital to stakeholders. Research limitations : The study is mainly theoretical, with a single case of indirect practical evidence. Therefore, further empirical investigations would widen the conceptual framework, given growing interest for ITSM. Practical implications : Given the recent economic-financial crisis, a ’ back to basics ’ tendency has arisen, aiming at assigning the almost exclusive ability of assessment, even for IT investments, to fundamental methods. Appropriate evaluation methods, which are proposed in this study, will enable managers to communicate better with stakeholders about ITSM as a component of the structural capital. The use of blended methods of evaluation for structural investments, particularly ITSM, also highlights other appreciable factors, such as time saving, work wellbeing, pollution reduction, and others. Originality of the paper : The research focuses on ITSM and its activities, services, processes, procedures, and operations as innovative components of structural capital, proposing a conceptual framework to facilitate better communication to stakeholders in relation to the real value of such structural assets.

Strategic R&D Budget Allocation to Achieve National Energy Policy Targets

While recent international negotiations to combat climate change have led governments around the world to invest in R&D in the energy sector, funds allocated to R&D investment are limited during global economic downturns and depending on national economic conditions. A systematic approach and strategic budget allocation is required to achieve various national energy policy targets. In this study, we describe the optimal investment portfolio for achieving energy policy targets in any nation based on three budget allocation criteria: past investment performance, expected future effects, and additional investment risk. We outline the analytic hierarchical process by which policy target priorities are set, developing a market allocation model to analyze expected future effects and a system dynamics model to calculate the investment volume. Then, we apply these models to an example in an empirical analysis. The systematic approach suggested in this study may increase the efficiency of budget spending by helping government makes investment decisions based on clear criteria and the results of a quantitative analysis regarding government investment in R&D.

Reducing Rejected Workflows using WSHF Algorithm in Cloud

Workflow ensembles of interdependent tasks for a larger scale application have to be managed efficiently to get accurate results within a stipulated time and it is a challenging task. In this paper, we address a problem of efficient scheduling of workflow ensembles within the budget and deadline constraints and also the workflow ensembles that deviates the budget and deadline constraints. We consider the benefits of both the resource providers and the users in our paper. We simulate our work and analyze the performance of our paper using cloudsim. The incoming tasks with respect to any criteria are admitted based on the admission and feedback procedure. The proposed work also concentrates on the workflows that is of beyond the budget and deadline The tasks that are within the budget and deadline criteria are handled directly and admitted by the queue, whereas the tasks that isof beyond the budget and deadline are readmitted by Workflow Shuffling and Hole Filling Algorithm (WSHFA). The algorithm achieves the minimization of rejected tasks by recycling it, thereby reducing the idleness of resources and maximizing the resource utilization in cloud.

Alternative Generation Sources Portfolio: Optimal Resources Allocation and Risk Analysis Supported by Genetics Algorithms

The natural resources characteristics and current economic factors encourage investments in alternative sources of electric power generation in Brazil. Different technologies can compose a portfolio of generating plants with energetic synergism as a function of the seasonal diversity of their potential production. In such portfolios, it is sought to obtain financial gains by virtue of complementarity generation among candidates sources, under investor's pre-established risk control criteria. From this perspective, our study aims to present an optimization model - supported by genetic algorithms - to define the optimal financial resources allocation for composing renewable sources portfolio (wind, small hydro and biomass cogeneration), given a specified budget and risk-aversion criteria measured by means of the Conditional Value-at-Risk. Case studies involving the cited sources illustrate the application of the model and its potential for supporting analysis and decision making.

On the Separability of Real and Financial Decisions

The financial manager faces two basic problems: first, the firm’s investment or capital budgeting decision, and second, the financing decision. Capital investment and financing decisions are typically analyzed independently. Capital budgeting criteria proceeds under the simplest possible assumption about financing, namely all-equity financing. The only link between investment and financing decisions is the cost of capital. The basic idea behind Modigliani and Miller’s famous proposition I is that in perfect markets, changes in capital structure do not affect value. As long as the total cash flow generated by the firm’s assets is unchanged by capital structure, value is independent of capital structure. This paper is the first attempt to prove that leverage affects the mathematical structures of the cash flow of financing, and that different mathematical structures of financing cash flows may change the total cash flows generated by the firm or the project, thus altering the value of the firm even in perfect markets. The purpose of this paper is to explore the validity of the separation rule through net present value (NPV) and internal rate of return (IRR) rules, as representatives of academic and business practice, and compare their results with simulations that will include the financial decision of the firm. A singular experiment proving that we can change the IRR or NPV of an investment modifying the financial structure cannot be used to affirm a universal statement, but it can be used to show that a theory is wrong.