Close the deal: Mechanisms for the payment of the purchase price in share purchase and sale agreements

The past events that have shaped our world, such as the COVID-19 Pandemic and the different political outcomes, entailed a scenario of major economic uncertainty in the global market that remains, particularly, in our country. Admittedly, mergers and acquisitions of companies (M&A) in Peru have also been heavily affected. However, it is the market agents' duty to find new strategies to mitigate the economic uncertainty by generating incentives through legal and financial security to the foreign and national investors. Consequently, in this article, the authors have identified the pricing mechanism, employed in Shares Purchase Agreements, as a key element in the recovery and boosting of M&A deals in the Peruvian market driven by uncertainty. Thus, the authors present the pricing mechanisms that have been traditionally used in Shares Purchase Agreements but also introduce the new trends in global pricing mechanisms that have come to stay and fit. © 2022, Pontificia Universidad Catolica del Peru. All rights reserved.

Mergers and acquisitions: does performance depend on managerial ability?

Companies in difficult financial situations may seek to survive through mergers and acquisitions. Managers must be able to use company resources efficiently to maintain and improve competitiveness and sustainable advantages. Managers' ability to make strategic decisions may determine whether a merger and acquisition is successful. This study aims to reveal the role of the acquirer's managerial ability in mergers and acquisitions based on short- and long-term performance as well as the type of M&A. Two metrics are used to assess short- and long-term performance: the market-to-book ratio (MTBR) as an indicator of operating performance and the buy-and-hold abnormal return (BHAR) as an indicator of stock return performance. The research sample consists of 153 M&A cases conducted by companies registered with the Business Competition Supervisory Commission in Indonesia between 2010 and 2017, and the performance till 2020. We used regression and difference analysis to analyze the data. We find that managerial ability has a positive impact on MTBR operating and BHAR stock performance. This result confirms that the higher ability of the acquirer's manager will ensure a successful M&A in the long run. Investors and potential investors might consider managerial ability in choosing investments in companies after an M&A. This study contributes to the M&A literature by examining the role of MA in the short- and long-term performance of acquiring firms following M&As in Indonesia.

Institutional Differences and the Choice of Outward Foreign Direct Investment Mode under the "Belt and Road” Initiative: Experience Analysis Based on China's Manufacturing Enterprises

Based on 1692 outward foreign direct investment (OFDI) events of 735 A-share listed companies in China's manufacturing industry from 2010 to 2019, this paper empirically examines the effect of investment motivation and the impact of institutional differences between China and the host country on the choice of OFDI entry mode;the paper also investigates the moderating effect of the "Belt and Road” Initiative (BRI) on Chinese manufacturing enterprises (CMEs) through use of the logit model. The empirical results show that, with greater institutional differences, CMEs become more inclined to choose cross-border mergers and acquisitions (M&A). Furthermore, a positive moderating effect of resource-seeking motivation on the choice of M&A OFDI by CMEs is observed. The signing of the "Belt and Road” cooperation document positively moderates institutional differences in promoting CMEs—especially state-owned CMEs—to choose the M&A mode. The "Belt and Road” Initiative provides an efficient supply system for OFDI by CMEs. This study enriches and extends existing institutional theories and provides suggestions for the promotion of the geopolitical pattern and international cooperation regarding the "Belt and Road” Initiative.

Risk and synergy of multinational enterprise mergers and acquisitions under the background of the COVID-19 pandemic

This study includes economic policy uncertainty measures and the magnitude and frequency of Asia pacific multinational business Mergers and acquisitions in 11 countries from 2009 to 2019 to evaluate the impact of uncertainty in economic policies (E.P.U) of global organizations mergers and acquisitions (M&A). To demonstrate that uncertainty in the home nation's economic policy significantly restricts multinational enterprise Mergers and acquisitions, uncertainty in the nation's economic policy significantly enhances Mergers and acquisitions, and that when the economy is in a pro-cyclical phase, these effects are reduced. Furthermore, the economic crisis has different effects of the country's uncertain economic policies on worldwide firm M&As. There is a significant negative correlation between the country's economic policy uncertainty and multinational firm Merger and acquisitions. Third, multinational firm Mergers and acquisitions are significantly impacted by economic policy uncertainties in the ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) but not much in emerging countries. The size of M&A is considerably positively connected with foreign market expansion and variations in uncertainties.

Financial Reportings and Analysis Practices in Tata Steel and Corus Acquisition: Their Association with Growth Rate and Financial Performance

This research article examined the financial reporting and analysis practices in Tata steel and Corus acquisition: Their association with growth rate and financial performance. This article analyzes the reasons and the effect of the Acquisition of Corus by paying 12.33 billion dollars to buy which is one of the biggest acquisitions by an Indian Company at the cross border. This paper also emphasizes this acquisition led to global growth in Steel Industry. The sample size of this research consists of Tata Steel and Corus Company which underwent acquisitions during 2007–08. This paper also emphasizes the significance of developing skills in analyzing and interpreting financial statements to maintain financial position and progress. To understand the distinguishing characteristics, problems and needs of the organization's growth performance, the published audited report from 2002–2022 was studied and interpreted. To measure the significance of the organization's performance the author adopted comparative, ratio analysis and other statistical tools were adopted. The study shows that there is important growth in income and financial position of companies after the merger, the growth can result in financial stresses and excessive use of debts as such cash flow difficulties. But the coronavirus (Lockdown) the company faced a downfall in their profits. © 2023, The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG.

Mind the Gap: The Illusion of Skill Acquisition in Computational Thinking

With the advent of online educational platforms and the advances in pedagogical technologies, self-directed learning has emerged as one of the most popular modes of learning. Distance education - -elevated by the COVID-19 pandemic - -involves methods of instruction through a variety of remote activities which often rely on educational videos for mastery. In the absence of direct student engagement, the asynchronous nature of remote activities may deteriorate the quality of education for learners. Students often have an illusion of skill acquisition after watching videos, which results in overestimation of abilities and skills. We focus on the efficacy of skill acquisition through interactive technologies and assess their impact on computational thinking in comparison with delivery through other traditional media (e.g. videos and texts). In particular, we investigate the relationship between actual learning, perception of learning, and learners' confidence in adult learners. Our results reveal intriguing observations about the role of interactivity and visualization and their implications on the pedagogical design for self-directed learning modules. © 2023 ACM.

PROJECT PORTFOLIO SELECTION BASED ON MULTI-PROJECT SYNERGY

To date, the selection of a project portfolio that maximises the decision-making outcome remains essential. However, existing research on project synergy has mainly focused on two projects, while there are multiple projects in some cases. Two kinds of synergies among multiple projects are proposed. First, multiple projects must be selected together, in order to produce synergy. Second, some projects depend on synergy with other projects, leading to a synergetic increase in performance. Furthermore, we present strategic synergy, with benefits, resources, and technology, which is quantified for a procurement project concerning a COVID-19 pandemic recovery plan. A design structure matrix is used to describe the technology diffusion among the projects. Then, strategic alignment is utilised to measure the strategic contribution of projects. Next, a portfolio selection model considering uncertainty is established, based on the strategic utility. Finally, our results indicate that selecting projects considering multi-project synergy is more advantageous. © 2023, Journal of Industrial and Management Optimization. All Rights Reserved.

Gamification for the Acquisition of Leadership Skills and Formation of Efficient Work Teams: An Interactive Workshop Based on an Analysis of the Film "The Seven Samurai”

In this work, we present a teaching experience based on emerging pedagogies and gamification to improve leadership skills and achieve efficient teamwork in scientific-technical areas of Engineering Projects. We designed the contents of a workshop and a virtual tool to create emotional contexts that improved the acquisition of soft skills. The combination of multi-sensory pedagogical strategies and hybrid inductive-deductive methodologies based on tests and team games, inspired by the story line of the classic film "The Seven Samurai” (Kurosawa, 1954), allowed us both to carry out, over a period of two academic years, an "on-the-ground” workshop-game, and a virtual tool to interact in the workshop, while under the COVID-19 restrictions. Despite the different formats and gamification elements used over the two academic years, the metrics for evaluating the efficiency of acquiring these soft skills produced very positive results and, on the whole, did not show significant differences. The cinematographic language and empathy with the story and the characters led the students to identify with and internalize the elements of efficient teamwork and leadership. Movies can provide simple but effective narrative lines on which to build games. Here, we present the contents and details of both workshops as a transferable experience, as well as making the open virtual tool available for the educative community. © 2022, International Journal of Emerging Technologies in Learning. All Rights Reserved.

The Hospitality Industry's Impact on the COVID-19 Epidemic: A Case Study of Ukraine

The global COVID-19 pandemic has had a tremendous effect on tourism industries and allied businesses, including the hotel industry. Even though in Ukraine this business does not make a major contribution to GDP, the presence of development potential, deferred demand, and performed functions makes it an important component of Ukraine, Therefore, there is a need to assess the impact of COVID-19 on the activities of hospitality entities and justify measures to restore it. The comparison of the main indicators of the functioning of the tourism and hotel business of Ukraine before and during the pandemic period demonstrates significant reductions. However, some businesses and destinations, due to the rapid response to the new reality and the reorientation to domestic tourism, on the contrary, improved pre-epidemic indicators. The unpredictability and scale of the pandemics revealed structural problems in the sector and the need for coordinated activities to address them. The review of measures accepted by the state authorities of Ukraine to minimize the effects of COVID-19 on the tourism and hotel business by 2020 revealed their fragmentation and inconsistency. For the macroeconomic level, there offered a set of institutional and state-legal measures, and there is a partnership of stakeholders at the theme level and the micro level—the systematic operation of various innovative and digital technologies (management, sanitation, technology, and communication). The partnership activities of stakeholders contribute to the innovative recovery of this field, a special place among which is the state and legal support of tourism and business: the introduction of compensation programs for owners and employees, off tax bills, reduction of individual taxes, exemption from liability and/or enforcement contractual relations due to force majeure, and the introduction of state insurance programs to protect against the risks of pandemics. © 2023, The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd.

Ageing and Technology – Systematic Review of the Merger of Ageing & Technology in the New Normal Era

Technology is massive support in the current times in living our lives. Technology surrounds every day and every bit of our daily lives. The technological advancements and their acceptance also justify the need for a complete understanding across generations. We live in a society where older people are also an integral part of society. When we check them and their needs, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic and in these new normal times, we can see that their need and quick adaptation to the surrounding seem more obligatory. Therefore, the merger of technology with age is critical. Assessing their need and looking at their well-being and better living becomes the priority for every stakeholder living in our society. Technology comes as a powerful, liberating way of backing older adults. This research follows a systematic review of journal papers published between 2000–2022 and tries to check how other researchers looking for this merger of technology and ageing are reporting in this synthesis. A detailed scientific plan is followed in extraction and analysing the seminal work done in this area in the considered time period. The research identified and reported many diverse areas where researchers worked on understanding the merger between technology and ageing. The study reported the critical areas of the technology amalgamation with age and identified the gaps in the existing theories where the future direction of work can take place. The study also highlighted specific vital takeaways for the practitioner that can be considered the next big step in this advanced technology adoption in this new normal era. © The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2022.

Reimagining Collaboration in Family-School Partnerships

Drawing on an equitable collaboration framework (Ishimaru, 2019), this study examines how teachers and families collaborated virtually to support children's' learning during the Covid-19 pandemic. The study was part of a research practice partnership with 31 teachers and their students across 14 schools in a large urban school district in California. Case study analyses of teacher and caregiver interviews reveal four dimensions of effective family-school partnerships: 1) having the "classroom in the living room,” 2) open strengths-based communication, 3) social and emotional support, and 4) active partnership. Furthermore, family-school partnerships led to positive outcomes including greater windows into children's learning and empathy between families and teachers. This work has significant implications for how families and schools can move forward to leverage these practices to have more equitable, collaborative, and authentic family-school partnerships in distance learning and beyond. © 2022 International Society of the Learning Sciences (ISLS). All rights reserved.

Kinect-based 3D Human Motion Acquisition and Evaluation System for Remote Rehabilitation and Exercise

With the increasingly serious aging situation, more and more elderly people are physically disabled. In addition, the current rehabilitation resources have the problems of shortage and uneven distribution, coupled with the impact of COVID-19 in early 2019, most patients have been greatly restricted from going to the rehabilitation center for training. To solve these problems, we propose a "Kinect-based 3D Human Motion Acquisition and Evaluation System for Remote Rehabilitation and Exercise"which uses the Kinect3 camera to obtain human motion with an error rate of only 3% when the body is in front of the camera. Then we use Unity to create a humanoid virtual model and interactive scene and synchronize the real body motion to the virtual model with an average error less than 1%. At the same time, our system provides reliable and highly accurate methods for evaluating actions based on angles and trajectories. What's more, users don't need to wear any wearable devices when using the system. It is a mark-less motion acquisition system, which reduces the cost and improves the usability and scalability of the system. And the interactive virtual scenes also increase the training motivation of users. © 2022 IEEE.

Profile of Character Education in Indonesian Elementary Schools During the Covid-19 Pandemic

The negative impact of technological developments in the 21st century, if not balanced with the development of character education, will lead to a character crisis. This literature review aims to systematically review the literature on profile of character education in indonesian elementary schools during the covid-19 pandemic. The literature search was carried out through the Google Scholar database in the 2018-2021 period. The inclusion criteria used are articles that specifically discuss the moral degradation due to the character education crisis during the COVID-19 pandemic in primary schools in Indonesia. Based on article extraction, 10 articles were selected that met the criteria. The results of the review show that currently there are many events that show the lack of positive character possessed by students in Indonesia. Factors causing the decline in the character of the nation's children include a mindset that emphasizes the formation of knowledge. The solution that can be developed is to utilize social capital in the form of synergy in three educational centers, namely families, schools and communities in developing character education based on humanistic education, religious education, and exemplary. Therefore, it is important for schools to create synergies between families, schools, and communities. © 2021 ACM.

Planning the Attraction and Retention of Young ICT Talents

Information and communication technologies (ICT) are a significant driver of economic development and generate jobs not only for the IT industry, but also for other sectors of the economy. Globally, the shortage of highly skilled labour in the ICT field is increasing and this can affect economic growth. The COVID-19 pandemic has contributed to a further growth in the demand for such specialists. That is why attracting and retaining such experts is a big challenge, especially in small towns and municipalities. To fill this gap, it is necessary that all stakeholders be actively involved with developing local plans for attracting and retaining young ICT talents.The introduction of the present paper presents a global view of the demand for ICT specialists in the EU and in Bulgaria in particular. Under the TalentMagnet project a guide for preparing and governing local talent attraction and retention plans (TARP) is developed. The paper outlines the main aspects of the guide. A study of global challenges associated with the competition for ICT talent is presented. One of the guide chapters analyses how organizational and cooperation models for talent attraction and retention can be built and offers directions for development of successful talent-related partnerships. To attract and retain young ICT talents, building strong partnerships among stakeholders is crucial. Academics at the Telecommunications department of the University of Ruse have extensive experience in such cooperation. The article presents good practices for attracting and retaining young ICT talents. Their specific activities at the local Ruse city level are presented and the contributions for attracting young people to ICT professions are analyzed. Conclusions on the importance of developing a TARP of young ICTs are presented. © 2022 IEEE.

Money Manager Capitalism and the Coronavirus Pandemic: A Post-Keynesian Institutionalist Analysis of Inadequate Industrial Capacity

The COVID-19 pandemic shook the world economy and triggered one of the worst economic downturns in U.S. history. Fundamental features of the current economic era—known as “money manager capitalism” (MMC)—have contributed to the severity of the crisis, and this article focuses on the era’s extreme subordination of industrial production to financial pursuits. This post-Keynesian institutionalist analysis begins with a brief overview of MMC and then traces inadequate industrial capacity during the pandemic to several consequences of the single-minded focus on shareholder value: offshore outsourcing, corporate mergers and acquisitions, and stock buybacks. The article closes by stressing that it will not be easy to fix the systemic problems that the pandemic has exposed;the necessary reforms must be far reaching, and the opposition will surely remain fierce. © 2022, Journal of Economic Issues / Association for Evolutionary Economics.

Selling a business after the pandemic? How crisis and information asymmetry affect deal terms

Prepandemic, small business exits were expected to increase dramatically owing to pent-up supply and the aging business owner population. COVID-19 may have dampened those expectations because of increasing information asymmetries that limited selling options for the small business owner (SBO). SBOs exit for many reasons (e.g., illness, family, retirement), so postponing a sale may not be a viable option. Alternately, SBOs can absorb crisis uncertainty by accepting different deal terms. We propose that one such strategy is to include seller financing as part of the deal terms, thereby signaling to the acquirer the SBOs’ confidence that the purchase is sound. We examine the results of 1,909 exit transactions from both before and after the financial crisis of 2007–2009 and over a 10-year postcrisis horizon. We find that sellers accept a lower price and less favorable terms with increased seller financing in the 24 months postcrisis, and that waiting longer to sell after the crisis improves deal terms for sellers, as this affords SBOs time to exit. Additionally, reduced information asymmetry improves deal terms. Finally, we provide strategies for SBOs to lower information asymmetry in small business exits. © 2021 Kelley School of Business, Indiana University