Population ageing generates problems of financial sustainability for unfunded pension systems in many developed countries. Immigration is often presented as one potential solution to this problem, mainly in countries with high migration inflows. The authors propose a model to analyse the impact of immigration flows on the financial sustainability of the pay-as-you-go method, using Spain as a test case. They show that, despite their size, these inflows do not solve the Spanish pension system's sustainability problem, leading to the need for parametric reforms. The article also presents the intensity of the reforms required to maintain the system's financial equilibrium.

Snappy Auctions presents the story of an online auction business founded from the personal aspirations and efforts of Debbie Gordon who sought to bring together sellers lacking technological expertise and potential buyers. Having rapidly expanded Snappy Auctions to 100 franchise agreements since its launch in 2003, Gordon confronted the challenge in 2006 of evaluating the sustainability of her drop-off store business model and of deciding whether to seek external financing to support further rapid venture growth.

This paper develops an organizational identity-based rationale for why family firms strive for nonfinancial goals. We show that the visibility of the family in the firm, the transgenerational sustainability intentions of the family, and the capability of the firm for self-enhancement of the family positively influence the importance of identity fit between family and firm as well as the family's concern for corporate reputation. We suggest that the concern for corporate reputation leads the family to pursue nonfinancial goals to the benefit of nonfamily stakeholders. We also discuss reinforcing feedback loops in these processes.

Publication year: 2011
Source: European Journal of Operational Research, Available online 1 December 2011

Maria Besiou, Patroklos Georgiadis, Luk N. Van Wassenhove

Nowadays, especially in developed countries, the traditional collection of end-of-use products by scavengers has been displaced by formal waste recovery systems. However, scavenging still exists, especially in places with collection capacity shortages and/or low living standards. Besides its obvious social implications, the financial and environmental aspects of scavenging are certainly not trivial. Informal recycling of waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE) by scavengers not only constrains profits of the formal system. In their effort to recover the value of end-of-use products, scavengers also pollute the environment if toxic substances leak when WEEE is not properly disposed of. We investigate the impact of scavenging on the operations of the formal recovery system of WEEE, under three regulatory measures, using system dynamics methodology. By using data from a real world closed-loop supply chain that operates in Greece extended numerical experimentation revealed that a legislation incorporating scavengers into the formal waste recovery system (instead of either ignoring or prohibiting their participation) is beneficial for economical, environmental and social sustainability.

Highlights

â–º We model the impact of scavenging on the operations of a formal recovery system. â–º The formal system collects and recovers waste electrical and electronic equipment. â–º We investigate the impact of 3 different regulatory measures on sustainability. â–º We incorporate the economical, environmental and social aspects of sustainability. â–º Incorporating scavengers into the formal system is beneficial for sustainability.