The disassembly line: balancing and modeling,by S.M. McGovern and S.M. Gupta

This note addresses a problem faced by an actual firm. The problem is to decide on the optimal level of product quality. In performing the economic analysis to determine product quality level, the firm considers revenue, production costs, and research and development costs. However, this note shows that ignoring inventory costs in the analysis will lead to suboptimal product quality levels. Also, including inventory costs in the analysis will lead to reduced production lot sizes. Numerical examples are used to illustrate the results of the model.     

Explaining Investment Dynamics in U.S. Manufacturing: A Generalized (S,s) Approach

In this paper we derive a model of aggregate investment that builds from the lumpy microeconomic behavior of firms facing stochastic fixed adjustment costs. Instead of the standard sharp (S,s) bands, firms' adjustment policies take the form of a probability of adjustment (adjustment hazard) that responds smoothly to changes in firms' capacity gap. The model has appealing aggregation properties, and yields nonlinear aggregate time series processes. The passivity of normal times is, occasionally, more than offset by the brisk response to large accumulated shocks. Using within and out-of-sample criteria, we find that the model performs substantially better than the standard linear models of investment for postwar sectoral U.S. manufacturing equipment and structures investment data.     

The Courage Factor: Living People-Based Leadership by Geller,E. S. & Veazie,B

We adapted the Performance Diagnostic Checklist to analyze the environmental events contributing to safe and at-risk behaviors by employees in organizations. We then used the resulting tool, the Performance Diagnostic Checklist–Safety (PDC-Safety), to identify variables contributing to unsafe equipment usage by 3 members of a landscaping crew at a private university. Based on PDC-Safety results, an intervention consisting of graphic feedback was implemented. The intervention increased safe performance for all participants.     

Performance-Based Budgeting: The U.S. Experience

In the United States, it is premature to claim that performance-based budgeting (PBB) will replace line-item budgeting in near future, particularly at the federal and state level. This article attempts to (1) provide a brief historical context of PBB in the U.S.; (2) identify some challenges associated with the theoretical underpinnings and operational principles of PBB; (3) document current practice and research pertaining to designing and implementation; and (4) discuss the prospect of PBB. The locus of PBB in the 21St century will be local, the focus will be comparative, and the impetus will come mainly from the media.