Factors Influencing Tech-Focused Government Agency in Funding Tech Start-ups: The Evidence from Thailand

This study aims to analyze factors that influence tech-focused government agencies’ decision-making process to evaluate tech start-ups for supporting funds. The conceptual framework was based on qualitative research principles from in-depth interviews with seven tech-focused government agencies and confirmed the factors used in their decision-making processes. It was confirmed that the main factors consist of entrepreneurship characteristics, product/service characteristics, market characteristics, financial consideration, and capability of the management team. Furthermore, our findings revealed additional factors that influence tech-focused government agencies’ decision-making process, namely technology and innovation, business potential, and personnel and team.

How Does COVID-19 Pandemic Influence the Sense of Belonging and Decision-Making Process of Nursing Students: The Study of Nursing Students’ Experiences

Financial consideration, internal and external influence, personal goal, and educational achievement always influence the decision-making process and behavior of individuals. Using nursing students as the population, the researcher employed the Social Cognitive Career Theory as the theoretical framework to examine the nursing human resources shortages and how would the COVID-19 pandemic influence the experiences, sense of belonging, and career decision-making process of 58 nursing students in South Korea. The researcher categorized the sharing into two groups, which were before the influence of the COVID-19 pandemic, and the changes during the COVID-19 pandemic. The results indicated that financial consideration was the significant reason why South Korean nursing students decided to study nursing regardless of the COVID-19 pandemic. More importantly, almost all participants decided to leave the nursing profession due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the consideration between financial factor and personal sacrifice. The outcomes of this study provided a blueprint for human resources professionals, government leaders, policymakers, school leaders, and hospital managers to reform their current curriculum and human resources planning to overcome the potential human resources gaps in the soon future due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Big data for small businesses: Abstracting security and decision-making tools

The study delineates the understanding of big data as an emergent phenomenon that has brought a notable shift in the relationship between technology and business decision- making. Using grounded theory techniques, the study espouses opportunities and alternative perceptions from small businesses regarding the value that big data may offer in contrast to usage experience by big businesses. Information security lies at the heart of these consideration. The study draws on concepts and tenets from the discipline of information security to support a theoretical underpinning for big data usage in small businesses. A substantive theory has been developed from this work with three distinct concepts emerging that show that financial consideration, management mindset and size consideration play a big part in influencing small business perceptions.

Moderating effects of marketing communication and financial consideration on customer attitude and intention to purchase Islamic banking products

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to introduce a conceptual framework that can facilitate investigations concerning the impact of marketing communication and financial consideration on the relationship between customer attitude and purchase intention of Islamic banking products and services. Design/methodology/approach This conceptual paper is structured based on the extant literature; it provides a review of theoretical perspectives, highlights the gap and illustrates the significance for developing a framework. Findings The authors identify notable patterns and limitations in previous empirical studies. Specifically, despite increasing interest in Islamic banking customer behavior, prior research has not given much attention to explore moderating effects on the customer attitude–intention link. This has left researchers and bank managers with very limited information to explain the conditions that enhance customers’ attitude and intentions toward Islamic banking products. Based on this backdrop, the paper displays a viable research model with propositions that assess potential moderating effects on the domain relationship. Research limitations/implications This paper contributes to Islamic banking and management literature because prior research has predominantly focused on variables that directly influence customers’ behavior. This novel conceptual framework enables managers to better understand their customers and has implications for emerging themes, such as formulating strategies for specific customer groups and internationalization process. In addition, this paper provides a starting point to empirically examine whether and how the proposed moderators affect the link between customer attitude and behavioral intentions to purchase Islamic banking products. Originality/value To the best of knowledge, this is the first attempt to introduce relevant moderating variables for investigating the attitude and intention nexus in an Islamic banking context. Furthermore, the authors propose a new measure, namely, profit-loss sharing proportions which could enhance customers’ intention to purchase Islamic banking products.

Ecosystem services in adaptation projects in West Africa

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to assess the extent to which adaptation projects have incorporated ecosystem services, as well as their redesigning options. The projects selected are listed under National Adaptation Programme of Action in West African region. Design/methodology/approach A desktop survey approach was used to review 168 projects from 13 countries across West Africa. The projects were categorized and analyzed according to their adaptation goal, thematic focus, their implementation duration and level of investment. Findings The adaptation initiatives are dominated by actions in the agricultural sector accounting for 32 per cent of the total. Further, they were characterized by small grants consideration with 63 per cent falling under US$1m budget, short-term implementation duration with 46 per cent having three years’ execution period. A large portion of projects (55 per cent) mentioned directly one or more ecosystem services, with provisioning services being referred to in 50 per cent of the cases. Originality/value Adaptation projects with ecosystem services components are more sustainable and beneficial to the community. Hence, more consideration of nature benefits during project design, more financial consideration and localizing of the projects to realize the global adaptation goal should be considered.

Financial Inclusion in Bangladesh: Policy Recommendations for Modified Unit Banking System

The financial inclusion, including all the people with the finance, is very concerned issue all over the world where Bangladesh is also trying to include all the people with the finance. Bangladesh lies in such a group of countries where only 17.6% - 38.6% adults are presently under the reach of the formal financial services. This is because the present banks and other formal financial modes consider the outcome and profitability in a way that, the rural and non-developed areas are always out of the consideration. But these areas consist of the most population of Bangladesh. And only then financial inclusiveness will be successful in Bangladesh when people from these regions will be under formal financial consideration. The paper seeks for a solution to the issue and presents the Unit Banking System as a probable way towards financial inclusion. For implementing the system in Bangladesh, the system needs a slight modification to cope in Bangladeshi economic condition and address the specific needs without hampering the surroundings. Considering all these, the paper shows the status, problems and key points of financial scenario of inclusion in Bangladesh and shows policy for a Modified Unit banking System.

Identification and prioritization of factors affecting venture capitalists’ investment decision-making process

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to identify and rank critical factors influencing investment decisions of venture capitalists. Design/methodology/approach To identify and prioritize factors affecting investment decisions of venture capitalists, a two-phase methodology was adopted: in the first phase, critical factors influencing venture capitalists’ investment decisions were identified using exploratory factor analysis; the second phase entailed the use of a multi-criteria decision-making technique – analytical hierarchal process (AHP) which involved assigning weights to, and prioritizing the identified criteria and sub-criteria. Findings Seven factors were found to significantly influence investment decisions of venture capitalists: entrepreneur’s characteristics, product or services, market characteristics, management skills, financial consideration, economic environment and institutional and regulatory environment. Findings revealed that entrepreneur’s characteristics, financial consideration and product or services were prime influencers of venture capitalists’ investment decisions. Research limitations/implications As for limitations, first, the study considers limited number of factors influencing investment decisions of venture capitalists; there may be other influencers not considered in this study. Second, the AHP methodology assumes that the various decision-making criteria and sub-criteria are independent of each other; in real life, there may be inter-dependency among criteria. Third, the hierarchal model has been tested in the Indian venture capital industry only, and generalizability of results with respect to other industries is questionable. Practical implications The present study identifies and ranks seven factors found to significantly influence investment decisions of venture capitalists. Venture capitalists could use this list of factors as a guideline before making investment decisions, and if considering all factors is not possible, take into account the factors given top rank so that they arrive at informed and intelligent decisions. Originality/value This study is the first to identify economic factors (economic environment and institutional & regulatory environment) as influencers of venture capitalists’ investment decisions. Further, no study in the past has attempted to rank or prioritize factors influencing venture capitalists’ investment decisions; this is the first attempt of the kind.

Hermeneutical Reading of Ṭalāq

This paper deals with the hermeneutical reading of divorce (Ṭalāq), one of the sensitive issues in Islamic family law. It is concluded that the existence of Islamic law of divorce is not to denigrate women; however, it is to give respons to the injustice suffered by women by giving regulations that are more friendly to women. The regulations of the Quran on the subject of divorce are designed to restrict the practice which had prevailed among the Arabs that they are free to divorce his wife at any time without any reason, and remarry her in unlimited ways. This is indicated that Islam stipulates that divorce is two times: then one may retain with goodness (and reasonable terms), or let go with goodness and reasonable terms. If divorce occurs, a divorced woman should the prescribed period (‘iddah) and financial consideration (mut‘at al-Ṭalāq).

International Perspectives on Retention and Persistence

<p>Access to higher education globally is increasing dramatically; attainment of tertiary degrees is a high priority, as educational attainment is associated with increased personal incomes as well as growth of the middle class in developing countries. The purpose of this essay is to briefly examine retention and persistence issues from a global perspective, review some retention strategies that have been employed at schools outside the United States, and to identify several key factors that related to retention and persistence globally, including access, infrastructure, financial consideration, and readiness for tertiary education. There exists an opportunity to utilize knowledge gained in the evolution of the higher education system in the United States to help address the problems associated with retention and persistence.</p>

Jurisdictional protectionism in online news: Am erican journalists and their perceptions of hyperlinks

Because of their widespread use on the internet, hyperlinks have become a useful tool in information sharing and knowledge distribution in online communication, particularly in the realm of journalism. Their importance has received little scholarly attention, however. Against the backdrop of the sociology of professions, the purpose of this study is to determine how journalists approach hyperlinks and what they perceive to be their functions in online news. A national survey of newspaper editors and TV news directors in the United States shows that American journalists exhibit a sense of jurisdictional protectionism in online news. They appear to privilege US hyperlinks over foreign ones, especially internal links to their own websites. They are also predominantly against linking to foreign news media that cover the same events or issues. Financial consideration seems to be the main reason behind the journalistic preference.