The present study highlights earning management optimization possibilities to constrain the events of earning management and financial fraud. Our study investigates the existing stock of knowledge and strand literature available on earning management and fraud detection. It aims to review systematically the methods and techniques used by prior research to determine earning management and fraud detection. The results indicate that prior research in earning management optimization is diverged among several techniques and none of these techniques has provided an ideal optimization for earning management. Further, the results reveal that earning management determinants are complex based on the type and size of business entities which complicate the optimization possibilities. The current research brings useful insights for predicting and optimization of earnings management and financial fraud. The present study has significant implications for policymakers, stock markets, auditors, investors, analysts, and professionals.

This study explores the impact of corporate governance mechanisms (CGMs) of compliance with Indian Accounting Standards (Ind-AS). A sample of 70 firms listed on Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) over a period of two years from 2016–2017 to 2017–2018 was used. The results revealed that board independence, size, expertise, size of the audit committee, expertise and independence exhibit a significant influence on compliance with Ind-AS. However, no significant effect was found regarding the board and audit committee diligence, foreign ownership and audit quality by Big-Four. The current study fills an existing gap in compliance of accounting standards and corporate governance literature in the context of the emergent market. It uses a methodology of comprehensive compliance index to evaluate the level of disclosure of Ind-AS that could generalize the results and benefit other listed firms. Finally, as a practical contribution, the present study brings useful insights and empirical evidence which are very beneficial and are of significant importance to investors, practitioners, academicians and policymakers. It is considered as one of the pioneering studies in this context and a battery for further research. The study recommends that more prominence should be given to compliance with Ind-AS and an overseeing body for compliance with Ind-AS should be created.

The present study investigates the impact of board characteristics on environmentally friendly production. The current research uses secondary data extracted from the Refinitiv Eikon database. The data is extracted from the database for a sample of 8094 corporates from 2 continents, Asia and Europe, from 2016 to 2021. Panel data analysis with fixed effect models is used to estimate the results. The findings reveal that board size, independence, and industry expertise significantly impact environmentally friendly production. The results also indicate that board diversity correlates positively with environmentally friendly production in European corporates but negatively in Asian corporates. Findings show that the moderating role of environmental teams has a greater interaction effect with board characteristics in Europe than in Asia. Finally, the results also show that higher environmental performance and environmental, social, and governance scores lead to higher levels of environmentally friendly production. The study has valuable insights and implications for board members, practitioners, academicians, and policymakers. Further, the study contributes to the strand literature by investigating the role of environmental teams on the relationship between board characteristics and environmentally friendly production. The findings are supported by agency, legitimacy, and stakeholder theories, which contribute to a better understanding of the relationship between board characteristics and environmentally friendly production. The evidence about this issue is still unknown and critical, particularly in the context of developing countries where there is a lack of regulatory enforcement related to environmental, social, and governance disclosures.

After countries recognized the profound significance of assessing social and environmental performance as a prerequisite for sustainable business existence, various nongovernmental organizations as well as regulatory bodies developed measurement scales to gauge this performance. In this paper, we refer to one such assessment tool, B Impact Assessment (BIA), proposed by B Corps to benchmark the reporting framework of Indian companies for their social and environmental performance. The listed Indian companies were required to publish business responsibility reporting (BRR) which lacks generalization with other international standards.

In this study, we consider BRR and propose a revised Business Responsibility and Sustainability Report (BRSR) framework to make it comparable and compatible with BIA, which is acceptable worldwide. Also, we introduce measurement scores of the BRR at a granular level—taking 109 items of the existing scale and 13 items identified after benchmarking with BIA, together aggregating to maximum score of 200. In addition, to support the Indian Institute of Corporate Affairs (IICA) to analyze the completeness, accuracy, and clarity of BRR, we apply scoring mechanism to develop sections A and B of the BRSR. The universal applicability of scale and benchmarking with internationally acceptable BIA will encourage more Indian companies to adopt social responsibilities and will make the assurance of annual report simple. Moreover, the proposed scale can also be used to identify companies that are eligible for the proposed Social Security Exchange in India. We expect that the findings will contribute to the literature on social responsibility and corporate sustainability and in practice accelerate the “CSR movement” in India.

The study investigates what causes non-performing loans (NPLs) in developed and developing countries. To identify the relationship between bank-specific, macroeconomic determinants, and institutional environment non-performing loans on country-level panel data of Developing nations for the period extending from 2010 to 2020, the author used panel system GMM methodology. The long-held hypothesis that NPLs contribute to economic growth is tested using the Panel Granger causality test. Further panel cointegration tests were run to see whether the two variables have a long-term relationship. According to the study, loan defaults frequently happen at a lower rate during a rapid economic expansion, resulting in lower levels of non-performing loans. If there is a robust regulatory framework for systemic risk, a larger banking sector should be more stable than a smaller one. The current study also demonstrates the institutional environments importance in improving banks credit quality. In developing and developed countries, NPLs are significantly reduced when the institutional environment is improved.

The construction industry in India holds second place in the development of the country after the agriculture industry. The construction industry consists of the employment of the most diverse culture of people employed, and the issue of gender inequality is one of the main problems associated with this industry. This chapter focuses on the various issues related to the diversity of the people employed and the gender inequality prevailing among them. A questionnaire was designed which was to be filled by the workers, and a total of 220 respondents were interviewed from different sites of Delhi and NCR. Various questions related to the issues such as gender inequality and other problems faced by the female employees apart from the troubles of the routine problems were asked. The application of various tests applied on the data collected helped to study the issues in detail. Based on the field study, various suggestions and recommendations are provided.

COVID-19 has shown its pandemic powers to the whole world. At times when many countries are forced to go for total lockdown of its economic activities, unusual economic crisis is inevitable. Amid all the crisis, the impact on education sector was also massive. In India also COVID-19 has resulted in a country-wide lockdown, which led to closure of schools and colleges. University Grant Commission, an apex educational body has come up with several guidelines for higher education institution. This study is an attempt to understand the perceptions of Indian tertiary students toward online teaching which has become the no-other-choice method of instruction for educational institutes during the pandemic. An online survey was conducted in October 2020, to collect information from the students through Google form about their perceptions and experiences with online learning. A total of 248 students completed the survey. Factor analysis has been applied on the collected data to understand the factors which most impacted the students. Results showed that “less effectiveness,” “stress and boredom” and “connectivity challenges” were among the major challenges faced by these students in their online learning experience. This study urges the need for an educational strategy to be set by policy makers to respond to the challenges encoutered during online learning. 

Purpose International Integrated Reporting Council is in its 10th year of establishment and the integrated reporting (IR) framework released in 2013 was under revision in the year, 2020. Despite some significant developments in the past 10 years, the authors know very little about the perception of preparers towards IR. This paper aims to study the perception of the preparers and to understand the current status of the adoption of IR in India. Design/methodology/approach The top 500 companies from ET 500 list have been analysed. Banks and financial institutions (a total of 69) have been excluded for the study. Out of 431 companies, the status of IR has been checked by the questionnaire-based survey. Principle component analysis, a dimensionality reduction technique was performed on the responses to understand the important components impacting the perception of companies. Also, a case study methodology has been adopted to compare and analyse the IR trends in the manufacturing and industrial sector. Findings The result shows that the majority of companies have a positive opinion about IR and the three major components impacting their perception are - concise reporting, effective and transparent reporting and finally, better decision-making. Practical implications The result of this study will be useful for the policymakers, regulators, companies who have or will adopt IR. Paper gives a relevant view to academicians for assessing the effectiveness and perception of IR. Originality/value Very few studies can be found in India which focusses on analysing the perception of preparers towards the IR. Specially after the circular of SEBI in 2017, it becomes even more important to analyse the insight and awareness of the companies who have adopted IR. The paper is a timely and relevant contribution to the literature by providing insight over the opinion of preparers in India.

The purpose of this study is to examine the effect of intellectual capital on its component of firm’s financial performance and market valuation. It also draws a comparison between service and manufacturing sector. The study applies panel data analysis for examining the effect of IC on financial performance and a primary survey is conducted to understand the impact of components of IC namely, human capital, structural capital and relational capital on firms’ organisational performance. Understanding the components of IC as the vital drivers of organisational effectiveness helps a company to derive the full value from them. The importance of various aspects of IC can be extracted from this research will provide opportunity for strategic approaches and reveals the correct path for efficient and suitable management of resource. This study offers a critical review of the impact of IC on firm’s performance and the components which will have more impact on organisational performance. 

Stock markets are volatile and continue to alter based on the functioning of the company, historical documents, market-rate, and news updates with the timings. Stock price prediction is the utmost stimulating assignment. In the present communication, a study with data on the stock prices of the top small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in the National Stock Exchange of India (NSE) was utilized to estimate the functioning of the technique executed. The results of this study demonstrate the impact of COVID-19 on the financial distress of SMEs and also helps us in understanding how a better prediction model can help in predicting financial distress. Many studies have been conducted to estimate the bankruptcy of the SME sector using accounting-based financial. But in this study, the leading principle was to exemplify the means to utilize machine learning (ML) algorithms in the bankruptcy prediction of SMEs. The outcomes from the proposed a decision tree and a random forest prototype are observed to be effective with a high accuracy rate. The study has practical implications on the prediction accuracy and practical value for banks in supporting the financial decision and can be used to access the loan applications of SMEs.

Versteht man Werbung als Ausdruck und Spiegelbild gesellschaftlich-relevanter Themenfelder, so fällt auf, dass wir in diesem Bereich eine Renaissance des Nationalen erleben. Vor allem in der Automobilbranche werden Marken und Branding mit „Country of Origin“ gleichgesetzt und in Online- Werbespots offen mit nationalen Symbolen und Bildern gespielt. In diesem Beitrag soll dieses Phänomen näher untersucht und analysiert werden – und anhand der Online-Werbefilme von Renault und Volvo herausgearbeitet werden, mit welchen Bildern in unseren Köpfen (Lippmann 1964) an die nationale Stereotype angeknüpft und damit diese auch immer wieder neu reaktiviert werden. Speziell in der Werbekampagne „Made by Sweden“ von Volvo wird dies besonders deutlich und anschaulich. 

Interessant ist dabei allerdings auch deren Fortsetzungskampagne unter dem Slogan „Made by People“, in der ebenfalls gesellschaftliche Themenfelder mit aktuellem Zeitbezug gespiegelt und aufgegriffen werden. Diesmal sind sie jedoch mit einem klareren politischen Statement verbunden, ein Trend, der sich auch in anderen Werbekampagnen wiederfinden lässt. Die neue Kernbotschaft, das Bekenntnis zur „Vielfalt“, wird dabei allerdings im Falle Volvos immer noch als Teil nationaler (schwedischer) Kultur vermarktet und verkauft.

Der (Fremd-)Sprachenunterricht (Deutsch) steckt an ausländischen Universitäten in einer generischen Krise. Speziell in Schweden ist die drastisch sinkende Anzahl von Studierenden – wie in allen modernen Sprachen – ein Faktum. Gleichzeitig besteht ein Bedarf an Sprachkompetenz in einem immer stärker globalisierten Berufsleben international agierender Unternehmen. Die Bedarfsorientierung und der Anspruch an eine potenzielle Anstellbarkeit in Kombination mit wirtschaftlichen Sachzwängen machen eine Umstrukturierung und neue Ausrichtung von Forschung und Lehre, zumindest in Schweden, notwendig. Das ist auch gut so, denn so wird die Auslandsgermanistik vorangetrieben – ins innovativeNeuland.

An der Universität Linköping z.B. sind seit dem letzten Semester die traditionellen Ausrichtungen des Faches (Literaturwissenschaft und Sprachwissenschaft) im Bereich der Auslandsgermanistik abge- schafft worden – und eine Neuorientierung gerade unter dem Label „Professionssprache“ von der Universitätsleitung in Auftrag gegeben worden. Es ist sicherlich erfreulich, dass die Relevanz von Fremd-/Zweitsprachen nicht generell in Frage gestellt wird, und das Kind Auslandsgermanistik nicht generell mit dem Bade ausgeschüttet wurde. Aber es stellt uns auch vor neue Herausforderungen nicht nur organisatorischer, sondern auch wissenschaftsdisziplinärer und nicht zuletzt auch pädagogischer Art, auf die es Antworten zu geben gilt. Wie soll sich die Professionssprache definieren und institutionell verorten? Wie und wo will sich die Professionssprache wissenschaftlich verankern? Ersetzt sie die Auslandsgermanistik ganz und bildet ein neues, eigenständiges Studienfach? Wie positioniert sie sich in Bezug auf die interkulturelle Kommunikationsforschung und Wirtschaftskom- munikation? Wo und wie grenzt sich die Professionssprache von Alltagssprache, Fachsprache, inter-kultureller Kommunikation und Interaktionsanalyse ab, wo ergänzen sie sich? In diesem Vortrag will ich aus der universitären Alltagspraxis der Umgestaltung berichten und den in Linköping anvisierten Lösungsweg zum Studienfach „professionsspråk“ vorstellen und zur Diskussion stellen. Die Stichworte Sprachkompetenz, Fachkommunikation, Kulturalitätskommunikation, Wirtschaftskommunikation und multimodale Interaktionsanalyse spielen dabei eine entscheidende Rolle für den Linköpinger Weg. Der schlussendliche Outcome ist allerdings noch relativ offen, die Präsentation ein Werkstattbericht der „work in progress“.

Hofstede erzielte mit seinen polaren Dimensionen eine enorme (populär-)wissenschaftliche Durchschlagskraft. Durch die Generalisierung von einzelnen Verhaltensweisen auf ganze Nationen bediente er gleichzeitig stereotype Vorstellungen. Auch die Ratgeberliteratur zur Geschäftsetikette (re-)produziert stereotype Vorstellungen vom Verhalten ganzer Nationen. Unbeantwortet ist dabei aber bisher immer die Frage geblieben, ob oder wie sich die generalisierenden Verhaltensmuster auch tatsächlich in der kommunikativen Praxis niederschlagen bzw. dort belegen lassen.

Auf der Basis schwedischer und deutscher Tischgespräche unter männlichen Arbeitskollegen soll dieser Frage nachgegangen werden und anhand der 3. Dimension bei Hofstede „Femininität“ versus „Maskulinität“ und einigen weiteren Beispielen ethnologischer Beschreibungen von „Schweden“ und „Deutschen“ analysiert werden, ob sich national-stereotype Vorstellungen in alltäglicher Kommunikation überhaupt wiederfinden lassen, bzw. rekonstruiert werden können. Gibt es tatsächlich „feminine“ kommunikative Muster in der schwedischen Gesprächspraxis, die im Deutschen eher weniger vorkommen oder sogar eher weniger situationsinadäquat wirken würden? Welche (anderen) kommunikativen Muster lassen sich in authentischer kommunikativer Praxis wiederfinden, die als sprachenspezifisch gewertet werden könnten und sich so vielleicht sogar besser als eine potentielle Ressource für die Werbung anbieten (und auch schon genutzt werden) als die Stereotype?

India has committed to achieving sustainable development goals by 2030 and has an ambitious target of achieving net zero emissions by 2070. This has led to the rise of ESG and green stocks/indices in the capital market which are new investment alternatives alongside conventional stocks/indices. These indices have witnessed modest growth since their inception in the capital markets. There has been an increased inter-connectedness (movement in volatilities and returns) amongst various ESG/green indices with other indices components of the capital markets and macroeconomic factors. In this context, the present chapter investigates the dynamic interconnectedness between ESG/green indices, macroeconomic factors, and alternative investment instruments. Using the Vector Error Correction Model (VECM) and cointegration technique, the study concludes sovereign bond returns, gold prices, inflation, and exchange rate negatively affect the ESG/green indices return while benchmark stock index Sensex had a positive impact on the returns of Indian ESG/green indices. Further, the study also confirmed the presence of structural breaks during the COVID-19 period and ESG/green indices, and the financial performance of ESG/green indices were not significantly different from the benchmark index (Sensex).

This electronic book is a longitudinal investigation into the ways in which oil companies have adapted their advertising to both influence and appeal to their contemporary publics. Taking a dramaturgical approach, it examines the roles and attitudes attributed to the characters that populate the advertisements and with whom the intended audiences should identify. 

The analysis shows that despite the fact that society is striving towards increased gender equality, the general narrative of oil companies remains unchanged. The casting of the advertisements shows that oil and its derivatives are provided and developed by strong, heroic and competent men to ease and facilitate the lives of the weaker, dependent female population.

The internationalisation of university studies has resulted in an increasing use of English, a language which many students assume they master sufficiently well. This can lead to resistance to devoting time to language improvement. The motivation to work with language skills can be promoted by integrating language classes into discipline specific summary writing. This approach is showing some potential and incorporates reading skills with writing, grammar, peer critique and discussion. Summary writing also facilitates a critical study of different texts and their structure.

Sustainable development is currently one of the most significant goals of humankind. Sustainable growth requires reducing carbon emissions and maintaining a rise in global temperatures within acceptable limits. Renewable energy sources, such as wind, solar, water, biomass, wave energy, and green investments, are substitutes for fossil fuels that significantly reduce carbon emissions. This study examines the volatility spillover of green bonds with renewable energy and the crypto market using daily data from October 1, 2015, to February 24, 2022. The results reveal the presence of spillovers from green bonds to renewable energy and the cryptocurrency market in the long run. Additionally, the results of the B&K tests indicate that the spillover among all the considered series under examination is lower in the short run than in the medium and long run, furnishing more opportunities to diversify the portfolio in the short run. This study has several implications for investors, portfolio managers, and policymakers.

This paper examines the dynamic connectedness between green bonds and OECD financial markets of European countries. The study is conducted on daily price of green bonds and selected European stock markets from January 27, 2015, to August 4, 2021. Top ten European countries namely Luxembourg, Switzerland, Norway, Denmark, Germany, Netherlands, Iceland, Austria, Sweden, and Belgium are included within the OECD economies. The study uses Diebold and Yilmaz and Barunik & Krehlic tests to examine the connectedness between the economies and green bonds in short, medium, and long term. Result exhibits volatility across all frequency cycles. Brussel Stock Exchange and Euronext Amsterdam are identified as high-risk markets in the OECD European market. Evidence emerging from this study advocate the inclusion of green bonds in these financial markets for shorter time periods only. Results from this study are expected to have practical implications for portfolio managers, investors, and market regulators, suggesting incorporation of green bonds in investor portfolio for efficient diversification of risk.

Purpose – This paper aims to examine the comovement among green bonds, energy commodities and stockmarket to determine the advantages of adding green bonds to a diversified portfolio.Design/methodology/approach – Generic 1 Natural Gas and Energy Select SPDR Fund are used asproxies to measure energy commodities, bonds index of S&P Dow Jones and Bloomberg Barclays MSCI areused to represent green bonds and the New York Stock Exchange is considered to measure the stock market.Granger causality test, wavelet analysis and network analysis are applied to daily price for the select marketsfrom August 26, 2014, to March 30, 2021.Findings – Results from the Granger causality test indicate no causality between any pair of variables,while cross wavelet transform and wavelet coherence analysis confirm strong coherence at a high scaleduring the pandemic, validating comovement among the three asset classes. In addition, network analysisfurther corroborates this connectedness, implying a strong association of the stock market with the energycommodity market.

Originality/value – This study offers new evidence of the temporal association among the US stockmarket, energy commodities and green bonds during the COVID-19 crisis. It presents a novel approach thatmeasures and evaluates comovement among the constituent series, simultaneously using both wavelet andnetwork analysis

This study investigates the relationship between the Indian stock market price behaviour and macro-economic variables. The proxy for the Indian stock market is the BSESENSEX while Foreign Reserve, Exchange Rate (Indian vs. US Dollar) and CPI are proxies for the macroeconomic variables. The Johansen Cointegration Test and the Vector Error Correction Model (VECM) on monthly data collected from websites of Reserve Bank of India and Bombay Stock Exchange within the time period of January 2000 and February 2020 have been applied. We observe a contradiction between the results of trace statistics and the maximal eigenvalue of the Johansen Cointegration. The -trace statistics of cointegration allude to the long-run association between the Indian stock market and its constituent macroeconomic vari-ables. The VECM is then applied to examine the long-run and short-run causalities and the results reveal the same. This study has profound implications for investors to diversify their portfolio, considering the impact of the constituent selected macroeconomic variables in the short run and long run