In these difficult economic times, many practices are looking for ways to improve profitability. It is strange, however, that when economic conditions improve, improving profitability seems to become less a priority. Why not strive for better profitability all the time? If a practice is well run in good times, it will be better positioned to weather difficult times. Patient satisfaction can be ...

In this paper we investigate the presence of the following asset pricing anomalies viz. size, value, momentum, liquidity, accruals, profitability and net stock issues in India. Size effect is the strongest with a difference of 4.4 % per month between small and big stock returns. A positive relationship is reported between accruals, stock issues and returns and a negative relation between profit...

In this paper we use micro data on both trade and production for a sample of large Chinese manufacturing firms in the footwear industry from 2002-2006 to estimate an empirical model of export demand, pricing, and market participation by destination market. We use the model to construct indexes of firm-level demand, cost, and export market profitability. The empirical results indicate substantia...

Age and Gender Composition of the Workforce, Productivity and Profits: Evidence from a New Type of Data for German Enterprises This empirical paper documents the relationship between composition of a firm’s workforce (with a special focus on age and gender) and its performance (productivity and profitability) for a large representative sample of enterprises from manufacturing industries in Germ...

—Energy gain is thought to play a central role in prey selection by most foragers, but it may conflict with food theft avoidance and be constrained by undeveloped foraging skills. We investigated predation by the Glaucous-winged Gull (Larus glaucescens) on the ecologically important Ochre Sea Star (Pisaster ochraceus). We tested the hypothesis that Pisaster size selection by gulls was based on ...

Loyalty programs, as a prevalent CRM strategy, aim to enhance customers’ loyalty and thereby increase a firm’s long-term profitability. Recent analytical and empirical studies demonstrate inconsistent findings on the efficacy of loyalty programs in fulfilling these goals. In this study, an analytical model is developed to analyze the effect of customers’ valuation and their post-purchase satisf...

C management activities at firms involve making consistent decisions over time, about: (a) which customers to select for targeting, (b) determining the level of resources to be allocated to the selected customers, and (c) selecting customers to be nurtured to increase future profitability. Measurement of customer profitability and a deep understanding of the link between firm actions and custom...

Banks today are the largest financial institutions around the world, with branches and subsidiaries throughout everyone’s life. However, commercial banks are facing risks when they are operating. Credit risk is one of the most significant risks that banks face, considering that granting credit is one of the main sources of income in commercial banks. Therefore, the management of the risk relate...

This dissertation examines debt ratios, profitability, and commercial activity of the following hospitals: (i) for-profit hospitals [FP hospitals], (ii) nonprofit hospitals engaging in joint ventures [JV NP hospitals], and (iii) nonprofit hospitals that do not engage in joint ventures [Non-JV NP hospitals]. Financial variables are measured using Form 990 tax return data of nonprofit hospitals a...

The dynamics characteristic has been considered one of the crucial characteristics of the knowledge assets of a firm. However, many studies to date merely focus on stressing the existence of this characteristic, and very little attention has been given to why this characteristic exists or to find an appropriate way for describing it. The major obstruction, in our opinion, may be the lack of und...