Biz Student Research Conference [BSRC] 2019
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Publication Embargo Corporate Governance on Capital Structure Decisions: Evidence from Listed Non-financial Companies in Sri Lanka – Quantile Regression Approach(SLIIT Business School, 2019-12-10) Chathurya, P.A.D.; Perera, D.K.T.S.; Perera, G.K.S.S.; Fernando, W.C.The main objective of this study is to discuss about how corporate governance has an impact on the capital structure decisions. The focus of this empirical study emphasis on the top 100 market capitalization non-financial companies as at 31st December 2018 in CSE for 2012- 2018-year period. Quantile regression analysis is used to determine the relationship between corporate governance variables such as, CEO duality, Board size, Number of committees, Board balance, and gender diversity on capital structure decisions of the listed non-financial companies. Due to non-normal distribution of data which was identified using higher variance in kurtosis and skewness created a disadvantage of using OLS model which shows the results conditional to the mean. Therefore, quantile regression method was used in order to determine the above mentioned objective in an accurate manner. The results indicate that, gender diversity has significant negative relationship and board committees have statistically significant positive relationship to different levels of capital structure. Board size, board balance, CEO duality, doesn’t have significant impact on different levels of capital structure decisions. The interpretation of the results and the reasons for such variations were identified.Publication Embargo Determinants of Turnover Intention of Sewing Machine Operators in Sri Lanka(SLIIT Business School, 2019-12-10) Nagendrakumar, N.; Dissanayake, L.D.A.D.; Guruge, P.R.G.; Panagoda, K.D.; Jayasekara, M.E.N.; Kavindya, M.A.P.This study aims to identify the relationship between the determinants of the turnover intention of SMO’s in the apparel industry in Sri Lanka. The study adopted the deductive approach using the judgmental sampling in selecting the factories of four and the convenient sampling in selecting the respondents of 321. A structured questionnaire was administered, and the number responded was 274. The Pearson correlation was employed in testing the hypotheses and the study found that the job condition, living and social condition, personal characteristics, HRM activities, negating sexual harassment, and responsibilities are the significant determinants of the turnover intention of SMO's in the apparel industry in Sri Lanka. This study highlights the importance of having a policy decision to reduce the turnover intention of SMOs in the apparel industry since the apparel exports hold a prominent place in Sri Lankan economy as its contributions cover a significant portion of the country's exports.Publication Open Access e Behavioral Advertising Avoidance in Online Retailing in Sri Lanka: Through the Mediating Role of Ad Skepticism(SLIIT Business School, 2019-12-10) niya, U.P.R.P.; Yalegama, M.M.H.H.; Mannapperuma, M.Y.S.S.; Wickramasinghe, A.K.K.D.; Jayasuriya, K.K.N.A.As the rapid growth of technology, there’re new advertising trends which can deliver the communication messages to the people more accurately. Therefore, every business connecting with the advertising to aware people and to promote their business. Online Behavioral Advertising (OBA) is a trend which developed with the innovation of technology. It’s an advertising technique which decides what to show to the audience after tracking their surfing behavior and purchase history. Though these advertisements are beneficial for the business firm to target their audience accurately, the online users tend to avoid these advertisements due to some reasons. However, there are no adequate studies done on finding the factors behind this ad avoidance behavior. Thus this study shed light on this under-researched area focusing on the development of a conceptual framework based on the identified major reasons behind this ad avoidance.Publication Embargo Employing the deaf community: challenges and opportunities for companies in the developing world(SLIIT Business School, 2019-12-10) Charuka, W.A.A.; Samarakkody, N.W.; Senaviratne, V.E.M.G.; Wijayanayaka, K.A.M.S.This research investigates opportunities and challenges of employing deaf personnel in organisations in developing world. Though much research related employing people with disabilities is done in western countries, only a few similar empirical studies have been published in this part of the world. Hence an exploratory investigation is carried out adopting a grounded theory approach. Accordingly, five companies in Sri Lanka, both large and small, employing deaf people have been investigated. 23 operational-level deaf employees (DEs), with five supervising managers are the subjects involved. The results brought a number of opportunities for hiring DEs from strategic, productivity and customer satisfaction perspectives. Managers of all companies confirmed that their skills, ability to learn, concentration on work and the productivity are much higher than their parallel workers. The DEs are not provided with any special privileges (e.g. remuneration, leave, infrastructure facilities). Thus, there is no extra burden, financially or otherwise, to the company for hiring them. However, as a safety initiative all DEs are assigned to work together with a parallel worker with no hearing impairments. Two companies where DEs deal directly with customers confirmed that customer feedback on DEs are very positive. All managers indicated a negative comment that the DEs become emotionally disturbed when their communication is not heard well. The existed negative connation of all managers on DEs had disappeared after orientation. It can be concluded that employing DEs appear to be me more productive to the company, as highlighted in the past research studies of the developed world.Publication Embargo The Impact of Board Diversity on Firms Financial Performance in Sri Lanka.(SLIIT Business School, 2019-12-10) Herath, H.M.C.K.; Madushani, A.D.K.P.; Mel, H.D.R.M.; Weerasooriya, W.M.B.K.; Gunawardena, M.M.D. de S.This study’s purpose was to explore the impact of board diversity to the firm’s financial performance in Sri Lankan context. Specifically, the study aimed at determining the effect of board diversity on financial performance of public listed companies in Sri Lanka to ascertain whether there is a causal association between the specific board characteristics of age, gender, ethnicity, nationality, organizational membership, educational background and industrial experience of the company board members on the financial performance of listed companies in Sri Lanka. Thus, the research adopted an exploratory design. All listed companies in the country is the population of this study. There are 291 listed companies in the country. This study tries to identify the reasons behind low board diversity in Sri Lanka. The analysis of the semi structured interviews provides five reasons driving low board diversity in Sri Lanka; appoint family members as the board of directors, invite Allies to perform as a board member, male dominant culture in Sri Lanka, conflicts of interest in women, weak corporate governance codes can identify as the reasons behind low board diversity in the firms. According to the results of the study, diversity variables do not have significant impact on firms ROA. However, age diversity, ethnic diversity and academic qualification diversity variables shows significant impact on firms’ financial performance measured in terms of Tobin's Q.Publication Open Access The Impact of Online Customer Reviews on Purchase Intention with Special Reference to Sri Lanka Tour Packages(SLIIT Business School, 2021-12-10) Fernando, W.M.R.N.; Jeyaramanan, S.; Kothalawala, R.U.; Vithanage, G.Y.Most of the businesses were used to rely heavily on word of mouth to carry out their business activities. But nowadays, online society dominated by the usage of mobile devices and search results, word of mouth has been replaced by online review sites and social media. The social proof contained within reviews and star ratings helps consumers make decisions faster with greater confidence than ever before. Companies can get the use of information provided by consumers on a variety ofwebsites ranging from blogs to rating and review site to understand customer concerns and complaints to take corrective actions. Through the findings it is examined that consumers are influenced by their own and other consumers' customer care experiences in choosing brand/ company to make purchases The population is consisted on huge number of respondents so it is hard to use an information gathering. Because of that researcher could be selected sample by applying convenience sampling techniques. The selected sample size consisted with 150 respondents who have booked Sri Lanka tour packages. A structured questionnaire developed to collect primary data .form the sample of the respondents. For the study independent variables are being tested with their impact on purchase intention. Through the study, four independent variables tested. Those are source credibility, timeliness, valance and length of reviews. All alternative hypotheses were accepted and those variables were positively impact on purchase intention. In order to test the hypotheses correlation was calculated and regression analysis has been processed to determine the impact. Online reviews can develop or destroy a business. Therefore, understanding about the impact of these reviews and social media activities are important. The improvement of this side is not only good for consumers but also good for business as well.Publication Embargo The Influence of Interpersonal Communication Skills on Job Satisfaction of Front Line Managers in FMCG Industry(SLIIT Business School, 2019-12-10) Wijedasa, V. S.; Somawardana, W.S.D.; Gunaweera, T.; Madhubhani, M.A.H; Weligodapola, H.W.M.C.The purpose of this research is to investigate the impact of Interpersonal Communication Skills on Job Satisfaction, identify the determinants, current level of Interpersonal Communication Skill level and methods to enhance the Interpersonal Communication Skills of Front Line Managers in FMCG sector. The questions that answer through this research are, what is the impact of Interpersonal Communication Skills on Job Satisfaction of Front Line Managers, what are the determinants and current level of Interpersonal Communication Skills of the Front Line Managers, what are the methods to enhance the Interpersonal Communication Skills of the Front Line Managers. Data were gathered via questionnaire survey, results were analysed through SPSS, in order to investigate the impact of Interpersonal Communication Skills, identify the current Interpersonal Communication Skills. The results of observations and interviews determine the methods to enhance Interpersonal Communication Skills of Front Line Managers. The qualitative data from the interview with area sales managers and Front Line Managers were analysed through the pattern matching. Through the results it identified that there is a positive impact with Interpersonal Communication skills on job satisfaction which impact six determinants on Job Satisfaction of the Front Line Managers in the FMCG industry. Cultural Communication Skill and Conversational Skill have highest impact while Assertiveness Skill has the least impact on Job Satisfaction. Current Interpersonal Communication Skill Level is in moderate level. Organizations arrange Interpersonal Communication skills workshops which including crosscultural and Assertiveness Skill workshops to enhance the skill level.Publication Open Access Measuring the RQ Between Celebrity Endorsement and Young Femalé’s Purchase Intention (Study of Fairness Cream Industry)(SLIIT Business School, 2019-12-10) Bandaranayake, R. S.; Kulacathe, P. S. C.; Pathirage, H. C.; Perera, D. P. S H.; Bernard, D.T.K.The celebrity endorsement's involvement in advertising is gradually becoming essential in modern marketing. This study investigates the relationship between celebrity endorsement and the consumer purchase intention of young females in Sri Lanka. Considering the intense celebrity endorsement attachment, the study was based on the fairness cream industry in Sri Lanka. The attractiveness, trustworthiness, expertise, and the country of origin of celebrities were established as variables in the study. The required data was obtained from young females aged between 18-25 belong to 4 major subgroups namely; school students, undergraduate students, postgraduate students, and salon clients. The findings suggest that there is a weak positive relationship between celebrity endorsement and consumer purchase intention, and the strength of the relationship between each variable to purchase intention is discussed separately. This paper offers useful information to practitioners on selecting the best celebrity match for endorsing their brand as well as the study would facilitate effective brand promotion to develop existing business and upcoming entrepreneurs to assist competing with current and potential competitors in the market.Publication Open Access Perception of Foreign Tourists on Dual-Pricing of Entrance Fees: Case of Sri Lankan Tourists Destinations(SLIIT Business School, 2021-12-10) Wijesuriya, T.; Saythyapala, C.; Sachintha, S.; Dhanushka, R.Dual-pricing is a strategy used in a number of avenues with respect to consumer pricing. Adopting this pricing policy on the entrance fees for tourists' destinations is a heavily argued concern among travelers and industry critics. Rationales to reject and embrace dual-pricing have been highlighted, while the matter is more prominent in the global south countries in comparison to the western nations. Previous studies on dual-pricing have often adopted a contingency valuation method or a prospect theory to determine willingness to pay. This study is· based on a qualitative approach to understand the perception of foreign tourists on the dual pricing policy for entrance fees at tourists' sites in Sri Lanka using a thematic analysis. A structured questionnaire was used to collect data. Themes of; Agree to pay a higher price, Transparency and visibility of information, Extremely high should not be charged, Dual pricing gap should be reasonable, The invested amount should go into a sustainable initiatives - infrastructure, were derived with balanced opinions on the issue at hand. It was deemed that the findings of this study is helpful in strategizing future pricing policies with regards to the tourism sector in the country.Publication Embargo The Relationship Between Financial Literacy and Household Indebtedness in Sri Lanka(SLIIT Business School, 2019-12-10) Wijayathunga, W.M.T.N.B.; Hettiarachchi, R.M.; Saparamadu, P.A.D.A.K.; Somawardhana, W.P.H.; De Silva Gunawardena, M.M.D.This study focused on identifying and investigating the factors affecting household indebtedness and the relationship between financial literacy and household indebtedness in Sri Lanka. This study contributes to new knowledge through identifying the significant factors that impact the household indebtedness in Sri Lanka and identifying the impact and the relationship between financial literacy and household indebtedness in Sri Lanka. The data was collected through a questionnaire survey using the systematic probability sampling technique. The collected data was analyzed using SPSS and AMOS software. The study concludes that the most affecting factor for household indebtedness in Sri Lanka as income and the ethnicity as the least affecting factor. The regression analysis shows that there is a weak negative relationship between financial literacy and household indebtedness in Sri Lanka. The analysis also revealed that this weak negative relationship is could be attributed to the households’ weaknesses in managing their personal finances, poor financial planning behavior as well as the poor knowledge in key financial concepts. Lastly, the study concludes that there could be reasons other than the financial literacy that drive the household indebtedness in Sri Lanka to be considerably high.Publication Embargo The Role of Human Resource Information System (HRIS) in Human Resource Planning in Banking Sector of Sri Lanka.(SLIIT Business School, 2019-12-10) Tharushika, G.D.R.; Withana, L.K.N.; Jayasinghe, P.D.P.; Kumari, P.D.S.C.; Dissanayake, L.D.A.D.Despite its wide variety of uses, the management of the banks in Sri Lanka is using HRIS (HRIS) for fundermental operations. In the study, it focuses on the utilization of HRIS in the Human Resource Planning (HRP), with special focus on the banking sector in Sri Lanka. The study focuses on one sub function in HRP: recruitment and selection. The problem arises as how HRIS contributes towards the planning of recruitment and selection in the banking sector. Thus, the aim of the research is to analyse how recruitment and selection sub function efficiently affected by HRIS towards the achievement of HRP. There are three constructs, developed through the literature survey to achieve the main objective of analysing the impact of recruitment and selection sub system done through HRIS on the HRP. Result of the analysis determine, “Job Analysis” and “E-Recruitment” have positive impact for HRP in Banking sector while “Skill inventory” result in negative impact. Authors suggest to use this study as a guide or a base for future researchers who were willing to research related to HRIS, HRP and banking industry.Publication Embargo Senior Citizens’ Intention to use Digital Banking - with Special Reference to a Selected Commercial Bank in Sri Lanka(SLIIT Business School, 2019-12-10) Kuruppu, C.; Jayawardena, A.; Weerasinghe, S.; Samarathunga, D.; Mihipal, R.With the technological advancement, digital banking became imperative in contemporary financial institution. It was revealed that most of the senior citizens are away from the digital banking platform even though bank has made huge investment for the implementation of the digital banking systems It is anticipated that the senior citizen's population in Sri Lanka will be increased by 100% (5.3 million) in 2041 which was stated as 2.5 million in 2010. Thus, this study conducted to investigate the impact of Perceived usefulness, Perceived ease of use, Perceived security and Social influence on the intention of senior citizens to use the digital banking systems with the application of Technology Acceptance Model (TAM). A structured questionnaire served as the main instrument in gathering primary data from 200 respondents from 20 branches of the selected commercial bank in Sri Lanka by using convenience sampling method. The necessary data were analyzed through the demographic analysis, descriptive analysis, and correlation and regression analysis to test and identify the impact of variables. This study investigated that there is a positive relationship and impact between perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use, perceived security, social influence and senior citizen intention to use digital banking. This study recommended the digital banking platforms need more friendly interfaces to the senior citizen. Furthermore, it is recommended to invent the digital banking software with new features and attractive colors which will be more easy for the adults to capture and to provide more trust to the customers through advising towards the digital banking.Publication Open Access The Study on Brand Awareness & Purchase Intention of the Shampoo Market in Sri Lanka(SLIIT Business School, 2021-12-10) Kodippili, N.; Perera, K.M.; Priyadarshani, L.; Wijesekera., B.D.; Jayasuriya, N. A.Brand Awareness is the ability for a brand to stand out amidst its competition. Customers that recognize a particular brand against their competitors are a huge asset to a company since it means that the brand is present in the customers: mind. Purchase intention is when a product is repurchased based on a previous purchase and its experience. If understood properly, the relationship between brand awareness and purchase intention can help companies prepare sound strategies led the market. The purpose of this research therefore is to study if brand awareness has an impact on purchase intention in the shampoo market in Sri Lanka. The objective is to identify the impact between brand awareness and purchase intention. In order to study this relationship, the non-probability convenience sampling technique and was tested on a sample of 384 people residing in the Colombo district in Sri Lanka. One of the major findings of this research is that males use shampoo more than females within the Colombo district and one of the most favorite brands of the population is Dove. In conclusion, the study also proves that purchase intention and brand awareness have a positive relationship with brand awareness having a significant impact on a customer's eventual purchase intention.Publication Embargo Technology in retail marketing and the way forward with Gamification: An exploratory study(SLIIT Business School, 2019-12-10) Alles, T.; Jayasooriya, S.The retail landscape is evolving rapidly as firms embrace innovative technologies in an attempt to stay ahead of the aggressive competition prevalent within the industry. The focus of this paper deems to be to explore technologies used by retail firms in the execution of their marketing efforts as well as the drivers and challenges in adopting Gamification for such efforts. A qualitative inductive research approach was taken whereby critical analysis of literature was followed through with in-depth interviews with marketing professionals in the moderntrade retail industry. The interviewees were selected through judgmental purposive sampling technique and the thematic analysis was conducted in generating insights. Findings show that the retail firms currently employ several technologies in line with those discussed in existing literature such as loyalty card systems, digital signage, VR technologies, online Gamification amidst others in carrying out their marketing efforts. Mobile Instant Messaging & Autonomous shopping carts are to be employed in the near future while firms are receptive to experiment on Hologram technologies and In-store Gamification. Furthermore, key drivers that propel firms to implement novel technology like Gamification are; to generate customer insights, enhance customer experience and achieve marketing related KPI targets. Conversely, inadequate technology infrastructure, justifying focus on a niche crowd of tech-oriented customers and slow ROI pose as challenges in the process of Gamification adoption. The study offers theoretical contribution to the knowledge gap in this domain especially in the Sri Lankan context and while it is limited to modern-trade retailers future research can be extended to other formats of retail.