營運管理外文翻譯----對整個行業(yè)中營運資金管理的研究

1、An Analysis of Working Capital Management Results Across IndustriesGreg Filbeck. Schweser Study ProgramThomas M. Krueger. University of Wisconsin-La CrosseAbstract Firms are able to reduce financing costs and/or increas

2、e the funds available for expansion by minimizing the amount of funds tied up in current assets. We provide insights into the performance of surveyed firms across key components of working capital management by using th

3、e CFO magazine’s annual Working Capital Management Survey. We discover that significant differences exist between industries in working capital measures across time. In addition. we discover that these measures for work

4、ing capital change significantly within industries across time. Introduction The importance of efficient working capital management is indisputable. Working capital is the difference between resources in cash or readily

5、 convertible into cash (Current Assets) and organizational commitments for which cash will soon be required (Current Liabilities). The objective of working capital management is to maintain the optimum balance of each o

6、f the working capital components. Business viability relies on the ability to effectively manage receivables. inventory. and payables. Firms are able to reduce financing costs and/or increase the funds available for expa

7、nsion by minimizing the amount of funds tied up in current assets. Much managerial effort is expended in bringing non-optimal levels of current assets and liabilities back toward optimal levels. An optimal level would b

8、e one in which a balance is achieved between risk and efficiency. A recent example of business attempting to maximize working capital management is the recurrent attention being given to the application of Six Sigma

9、74; methodology. Six Sigma® methodologies help companies measure and ensure quality in all areas of the enterprise. When used to identify and rectify discrepancies. inefficiencies and erroneous transactions in the

10、financial supply chain. Six Sigma® reduces Days Sales Outstanding (DSO). accelerates the payment cycle. improves customer satisfaction and reduces the necessary amount and cost of working capital needs. There appe

11、ar to be many success stories. including Jennifer Towne’s (2002) report of a 15 percent decrease in days that sales are outstanding. resulting in an increased cash flow of approximately $2 million at Thibodaux Regional

12、 Medical Center. Furthermore. bad debts declined from $3.4 million to $600.000. However. Waxer’s (2003) study of multiple firms employing Six Sigma® finds that it is really a “get rich slow” technique with a rate o

13、f return hovering in the 1.2 – 4.5 percent range. 2sample. Weinraub and Visscher (1998) observe a tendency of firms with low levels of current ratios to also have low levels of current liabilities. Simultaneously inves

14、tigating accounts receivable and payable issues. Hill. Sartoris. and Ferguson (1984) find differences in the way payment dates are defined. Payees define the date of payment as the date payment is received. while payor

15、s view payment as the postmark date. Additional WCM insight across firms. industries. and time can add to this body of research. Maness and Zietlow (2002. 51. 496) presents two models of value creation that incorporate

16、effective short-term financial management activities. However. these models are generic models and do not consider unique firm or industry influences. Maness and Zietlow discuss industry influences in a short paragraph

17、that includes the observation that. “An industry a company is located in may have more influence on that company’s fortunes than overall GNP” (2002. 507). In fact. a careful review of this 627-page textbook finds only s

18、poradic information on actual firm levels of WCM dimensions. virtually nothing on industry factors except for some boxed items with titles such as. “Should a Retailer Offer an In-House Credit Card” (128) and nothing on

19、WCM stability over time. This research will attempt to fill this void by investigating patterns related to working capital measures within industries and illustrate differences between industries across time. An extens

20、ive survey of library and Internet resources provided very few recent reports about working capital management. The most relevant set of articles was Weisel and Bradley’s (2003) article on cash flow management and one of

21、 inventory control as a result of effective supply chain management by Hadley (2004). Research MethodThe CFO Rankings The first annual CFO Working Capital Survey. a joint project with REL Consultancy Group. was publishe

22、d in the June 1997 issue of CFO (Mintz and Lezere 1997). REL is a London. England-based management consulting firm specializing in working capital issues for its global list of clients. The original survey reports seve

23、ral working capital benchmarks for public companies using data for 1996. Each company is ranked against its peers and also against the entire field of 1.000 companies. REL continues to update the original information o

24、n an annual basis. REL uses the “cash flow from operations” value located on firm cash flow statements to estimate cash conversion efficiency (CCE). This value indicates how well a company transforms revenues into cash

25、 flow. A “days of working capital” (DWC) value is based on the dollar amount in each of the aggregate. equally-weighted receivables. inventory. and payables accounts. The “days of working capital” (DNC) represents the t

26、ime period between purchase of inventory on acccount from vendor until the sale to the customer. the collection of the receivables. and payment receipt. Thus. it reflects the company’s ability to finance its core opera