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This paper seeks to identify variables which explain variations in budget allocations in a UK university using a pooled database relating to two periods: one of resource availability, the other of resource scarcity. The results over both periods indicate, consistent with previous research, that a combination of workload and power proxies explains a very high proportion of budget allocations. However, analysis of the two periods revealed that: (i) incremental budgeting, which was observed to be in operation during the period of resource availability, was not supplanted by comprehensive budgeting during the period of resource scarcity, (ii) the impact of power proxies on budget allocation did not materially change in response to changes in levels of resource availability, and (iii) compared with internally based power, externally based power (as proxied) had neither a greater impact on resource allocation during the period of resource scarcity nor a lower impact during the period of resource availability as hypothesized. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Syndicates are a form of inter-firm alliance in which two or more venture capital firms co-invest in an investee firm and share a joint pay-off. Syndication is a significant part of the venture capital market yet little research has been conducted into the process of structuring syndicate deals and the management of syndicates following deal completion. This paper analyses the neglected issues concerning the structuring and management of syndicated venture capital investments from the perspectives of both lead and non-lead syndicate members using two surveys of venture capital firms and examination of syndication documents. Lead investors typically have larger equity stakes and the syndicated investment agreement is a document that enshrines the rights of participants rather than specifying behaviour. Contractual arrangements typically serve as a back drop to relationships as non-legal sanctions are important and decisions are typically reached following discussion and consensus, but lead venture capital investors' residual and specific powers are important in ensuring timely decision-making. The findings extend previous work on alliances by emphasizing the importance of non-legal sanctions, especially reputation effects, in mitigating opportunistic behaviour by dominant equity holders. The paper also adds to the limited research on the dynamics of alliances by highlighting the role of repeat syndicates. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We document an apparently widespread violation of dominance in the horse-racing betting market in the UK, and use the systematic variation in the incidence of this violation to estimate the consumption value of gambling. Betting-shop gamblers in the UK face a tax on gambling of 10%, but have the choice of paying the tax either at the time of wager or on any return on a successful bet. It can be shown, however, that the latter act is strictly dominated by another action in which tax is paid on the wager. Despite this, more than 18% of bets appear to be placed by gamblers who choose to pay tax on the return. We explore the hypothesis that this apparent violation of rationality may be explained by a component of utility which represents the consumption value of gambling, which in turn varies with the amount wagered. We then estimate this component from a dataset consisting of a record of 25,000 individual bets using probit analysis of the tax decision. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper results from parallel large scale studies of strategic decision making in Sweden and the United Kingdom are reported. Swedish decision makers arc found to employ a decision making style which emphasizes negotiation within a restricted group. This style, which involves considerable information search, leads to very long decision times. Strategic decisions in Britain are made among groups which include fewer strongly committed participants. Delays are common and often serious, but do not lengthen the process unduly. Decision styles in both countries include contrasting tendencies which produce a dynamic tension in the decision arena. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Internationally, national risk assessment (NRA) is rapidly gaining government sympathy as a science-based approach toward prioritizing the management of national hazards and threats, with the Netherlands and the United Kingdom in leading positions since 2007. NRAs are proliferating in Europe; they are also conducted in Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and the United States, while regional RAs now exist for over 100 Dutch or British provinces or counties. Focused on the Dutch NRA (DNRA) and supported by specific examples, summaries and evaluations are given of its (1) scenario development, (2) impact assessment, (3) likelihood estimation, (4) risk diagram, and (5) capability analysis. Despite the DNRA's thorough elaboration, apparent weaknesses are lack of stakeholder involvement, possibility of false-positive risk scenarios, rigid multicriteria impact evaluation, hybrid methods for likelihood estimation, half-hearted use of a 'probability × effect' definition of risk, forced comparison of divergent risk scenarios, and unclear decision rules for risk acceptance and safety enhancement. Such weaknesses are not unique for the DNRA. In line with a somewhat reserved encouragement by the OECD (Studies in Risk Management. Innovation in Country Risk Management. Paris: OECD, 2009), the scientific solidity of NRA results so far is questioned, and several improvements are suggested. One critical point is that expert-driven NRAs may preempt political judgments and decisions by national security authorities. External review and validation of major NRA components is recommended for strengthening overall results as a reliable basis for national and/or regional safety policies. Meanwhile, a broader, more transactional concept of risk may lead to better national and regional risk assessments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]