Muhammad Mohiuddin

Leadership Style and Employee Job Satisfaction: Evidence from Malaysian Semiconductor Industry

Abstract This paper discusses the results of the first comprehensive study of semiconductor industry in Malaysia. It primarily consists of the operations set up by transnational corporations in high technology centres of Penang and Kuala Lumpur. The goal of this study was to determine the most effective leadership style to increase employee job satisfaction and to offer recommendations to improve the industry. We examined the relationship between three independent variables, two moderating factors, and employee job satisfaction as the dependent variable. In establishing a research framework, we formed hypotheses, collected extensive data, developed statistical models, and used multiple regression technique to analyze the field data. It is concluded that collaboration among the transnational semiconductor corporations, Malaysias government investment agency MIDA, and the Malaysian semiconductor firms have succeeded in creating a semiconductor workforce that is productive and enjoys a reasonably high level of job satisfaction.

Relocating high-tech industries to emerging markets: case of pharmaceutical industry outsourcing to India

Abstract Offshore outsourcing has evolved from cost-only strategy to growth strategy in knowledge-intensive industries (KIIs) such as the pharmaceutical industry. This paper explores the case of offshore outsourcing of pharmaceutical manufacturing to India. An extensive literature review shows that firms do engage in offshore outsourcing to India have access to talents, infrastructure as well as markets. Despite the bright future of offshore outsourcing of pharmaceutical industries to India, inadequate protection of intellectual property rights (IPRs), scarcity of highly skilled manpower and institutional shortcomings can pose serious challenges. The study finds that institutional policy framework for promotion of collaborative research and development (R&D) as well as investment in infrastructures and human capital development can keep the momentum in this sector of high-tech industry.

The determinants of FDI location choice in China: a discrete-choice analysis

ABSTRACT This study addresses two questions: What are the determinants of foreign direct investment (FDI) location choice in China? What are the factors that determine investors’ choice between ‘Economic zones’ in China on one hand, and ‘other cities’ of China on the other hand? This study shows that FDI location choice is sensitive both on the endowment conditions in different regions/cities/economic zones in China as well as on the country of origin of the FDI. Based on a data set of 1218 observations, the results of the binary logit regressions indicate that the protection of intellectual rights, agglomeration economies, investments in education and gross regional product affect the location choice of FDI in China. This choices, however, varies depending on the origin of the FDI. Policy makers can use these findings to channel FDI to targeted regions/ cities.

Entrepreneurial Motivation and Social Enterprises: An Empirical Analysis on Founders of Social Ventures in Bangladesh

Abstract Success of market based entrepreneurial projects embedded with a social mission contributed to growing interest to social entrepreneurship in existing entrepreneurship literature. The purpose of this study is to examine whether the widely accepted motivational factors influencing entrepreneurial process have similar influence on social entrepreneurs in Bangladesh. Based on the seminal work of Shane et al. (2003) on entrepreneurial motivation, a survey was conducted among the social entrepreneurs in Bangladesh and collected data was analyzed. A regression analysis shows that some of widely accepted factors have significant influence while others have less or non-significant influence on Bangladeshi social entrepreneurs. This empirical paper contributes to better understanding of behavioral aspect of social entrepreneurship in Bangladesh where a high number of worlds leading social ventures were formed and expanded world-wide.

Economic Impact of Tourism - A Review of Literatures on Methodologies and Their Uses: 1969-2011

Tourism-based economic growth and development, a recent strategic phenomenon, has been attracted the attention of government, businesses, policy makers and other stakeholders of world economies. Tourism-based development is playing a pivotal role by contributing significantly to the GDP of developed and developing economies. Besides, it also receives a wide-spread recognition because of its ability to eliminate the disparities in the balance of payment (BOP) conditions by contributing positively to the services account of the BOP. The continuous expansion of the tourism sector made it possible to recognize it as the largest and fastest growing industry, considering either in a country specific or an aggregate global perspective. According to Eadington and Redman (1991), tourism industry is one of the largest and fastest expanding sectors of the world economy, and is thus experiencing an expansion faster than any other industry, exposing a post-industrial society. The economic repercussions of tourism are occurring in extensive latitude, within the evolution of the globalization process (Sugiyarto, Blake & Sinclair, 2003) that is, in turn, helping the acceleration of this industry’s expansion around the globe.

The effects of smartphone users’ core self-evaluations and stickiness on intentions to download free social media apps

Abstract This research investigates the influence of core self-evaluations (CSE), stickiness, positive emotion and trust on smartphone users’ intentions to download free social media apps. An online questionnaire was used to collect data, and 477 valid questionnaires were collected. The outcomes show that CSE and the smartphone users’ stickiness significantly influence their positive emotion. Comparing with CSE, stickiness plays a key role in affecting users’ emotion. Smartphone users’ emotions are found to positively influence their trust, which in turn positively influences their intentions to download free social media apps. The findings provide insights into how an app developer can improve users’ emotions and their associated behaviours.

External financial inflows and domestic investment in the economies of WAEMU: Crowding-out versus crowding-in effects

This paper analyzes the effects of capital inflows on domestic investment in the Economic and Monetary Union of West Africa (WAEMU). The WAEMU countries are Benin, Burkina Faso, Côte d’Ivoire, Guinea Bissau, Mali, Niger, Senegal, and Togo. Several studies have examined the conditions of attracting foreign capitals and their contributions to economic growth in sub-Saharan economies of WAEMU. However, very few studies have examined the effects of capital on domestic investment in national economies. In this respect, there are three types of foreign capital to be taken into account namely Foreign Direct Investment (FDI), Official development Assistance (ODA) and Migrants Remittances (MR). FDI, ODA and MR are major sources of external capital flows in developing countries. The current empirical study is based on the theoretical model of to test the hypothesis of crowding-out and crowding-in of domestic investments by different types of foreign capitals considered. The econometric estimates are based on the GMM method of Arellano and Bond (1991) applied to a panel of WAEMU countries over the period 1996-2011. The results of the study show that FDI crowds-out domestic firms in both the short and long term. Similarly, ODA have a lasting crowding-out effects on local investment. As for migrants’ remittances, the econometric results show that they do not have a significant effect on domestic investment in the countries of the union. These findings imply that the host countries of the WAEMU should invest more on developing their absorptive capability to attract technology transfer oriented FDI, channel the ODA to develop vital infrastructure for rapid economic development and create conducive environment for the MR to divert towards productive investments to create more crowding-in effects in lieu of the crowding-out effects. Practically, the results of this study show that multinationals have a lasting crowding-out businesses in the WAEMU region. This is mainly due to the low technological absorption capacity of local firms and the lack of complementarity between local enterprises and multinational companies. Several future research on capital flows will better appreciate the impact of foreign investment on the economies of developing countries especially those in Africa.

Motivational Factors Influencing Social Entrepreneurship in Bangladesh

Growing interest has been observed regarding social entrepreneurs in existing literature. The purpose of this study is to examine whether the widely accepted motivational factors have influence on entrepreneurial process of social entrepreneurs in Bangladesh. It concludes that some of those factors have significant influence while others has less or non-significant influence on Bangladeshi social entrepreneurs. This paper also complements the lack of empirical investigation in the behavioral aspect of social entrepreneurship in Bangladesh.

Intention and behavior towards green consumption among low-income households

In order to address the issues of climate change through wise management of resources and environmental conservation, this study examined the intention and behavior towards green consumption among low-income households. This study was a cross-sectional that relied on 380 low-income household respondents who lived in coastal areas of Peninsular Malaysia. The findings revealed a positive effect of eco-literacy and self-efficacy on attitude towards green products. Subsequently, the findings also ascertained a positive effect of attitude and perceived behavioral control on intention and consumption of green products. In addition, both scholars and policymakers can rely on these findings to increase the intention and behavior towards the consumption of green products in order to reduce the environmental vulnerability to the coastal communities. Therefore, responsible organizations should implement programs and policies that minimize the adverse effects of climate change through resource management and environmental conservation by promoting the use of green products among Malaysians.

Back-shoring or re-shoring: determinants of manufacturing offshoring from emerging to least developing countries (LDCs)

ABSTRACT Offshore outsourcing is mainly the flow of tasks from developed to emerging country firms in search of low cost production facilities. Many of these firms are now shifting their outsourcing activities from emerging to least developing countries. This paper shed light on determinants of firms based in emerging countries’ decision on shifting their outsourcing to least developing countries and to what extent it differs from developed country firm’s offshoring to emerging countries. Survey based data collected from offshoring client firms based first in South Korea and Taiwan and then engaged in re-shoring their outsourcing activities to Bangladesh and data was analyzed by multiple regression analysis. The current study found that offshoring firms enter into re-shoring to least developing countries to avail cost advantages; to have access to supplier capabilities and to focus more on strategic activities as well as to reap advantages from the institutional policy oriented advantages available in least developed countries. The findings revealed that several production factors have effects on firm’s re-shoring decision to LDCs. Transferring offshoring to LDCs and exporting from there to the developed country markets, the offshoring creates the global production network (GPN) integrating developing, emerging and developed countries.