Vol. 2 Issue 2, June 2011

Article 1: CRITICAL SUCCESS FACTORS AND IMPROVEMENTS IN ISO 9000 MAINTENANCE, pp. 1-13
By: Roslina Ab Wahid, Universiti Teknologi MARA
James Corner, University of Waikato, New Zealand and Research Fellow, Bordeaux Management School, France

The purpose of the ISO 9000 standards is to facilitate the multinational exchange of products and services by providing a clear set of quality systems requirements. It is also to assist organisations of all sectors and sizes to implement and operate an effective quality management system (QMS). The generic nature of the standards allows interested companies to determine the specifics of how the standards apply to its organisation. Registration or certification to the standards demonstrates to customers that the supplying organisation has achieved a basic level of quality assurance by the formalisation and documentation of its quality management system. However, there is a lacking in the literature on the post-certification period as most of the published work focuses on how to obtain certification and the impact of certification on ISO 9000-certified companies. Thus, studies do not generally address what happens after the companies have obtained their certification.
Keywords: ISO 9000 maintenance, quality systems, quality management systems

Article 2: MP3 IN MALAYSIA: CREATIVITY OR PRIRACY?, pp. 14-24
By: Fadli Fizari Abu Hassan Asari, Khadijah Nik Muhd Naziman and Tismazammi Mustafa, Universiti Teknologi MARA, Terengganu

In Malaysia, MP3 was started in late 1990s when locals developed some websites for Malay MP3. Rising numbers of these websites and CDs sold throughout the nation has produced a new dilemma. MP3 stands for Moving Picture Experts Group, Audio Layer III, which was on track in the mid-1980s, at the Fraunhofer Institute, Germany. Is this MP3 a form of creativity or piracy? Is it legal to have this MP3 format while at the same time there is no royalty earned by the music industry and income collected by the government? Should the consumer be punished for using the MP3 format while in chorus there is almost no MP3 produced by the music industry? This paper contains the history, production and distribution stages, advantages, as well as the pros and cons of this issue. The argument will be based on the Copyright Act 1987 (Amendment 2002) and Optical Disc Act 2000, with the focus on local MP3.
Keywords: MP3, creaticity, priracy, Malaysia

Article 3: REVISITING FINANCIAL DISTRESS PREDICTION IN THE DEVELOPMENT SECTOR IN MALAYSIA, pp. 25-38
By: Mohd Norfian Alifiah, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia
Norhana Salamudin and Ismail Ahmad, Universiti Teknologi MARA, Shah Alam, Malaysia

This study revisited the prediction of financial distress companies in the development sector in Malaysia using PN4 companies as the dependent variable and financial ratios or accruals-based ratios as the independent variables. Logit Analysis was used because the dependent variable is binary or dichotomous in nature. This study found that only debt ratio can be used to predict financial distress companies in the development sector in Malaysia. The findings from the internal validation showed that the prediction model provided a more than 50% chance that the model is accurate. Furthermore, the findings from the external validation showed that the model might be able to be used outside the estimation time period because the overall percentage accuracy were more than 50% for five years before distress. This study not only provides the prediction model of financial distress companies in the development sector in Malaysia but it also validates the findings internally and externally. Internal and external validations were seldom conducted in previous studies on the prediction of financial distress in Malaysia due to lack of data.
Keywords: Bankruptcy, financial distress, development sector, Malaysia

Article 4: DETERMINING EMOTIONAL INTELLIGENCE DIMENSIONS AMONG WORKERS: EMPIRICAL EVIDENCE IN MALAYSIAN ZAKAT INSTITUTIONS, pp. 39-48
By: Rozman Md Yusof, Universiti Teknologi MARA, Melaka, Malaysia
Abd Hair Awang, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia
Arifin Md Salleh, Universiti Teknologi MARA, Melaka, Malaysia
Mustafa Mohamad, Universiti Teknologi MARA, Negeri Sembilan, Malaysia

This study explored the emotional intelligence dimensions (self-awareness, self-management, social awareness and social skills) of employees employed in Zakat Centers. Data were collected from 113 randomly selected from three zakat centers: Melaka, Negeri Sembilan and Selangor using self-administered questionnaires of Emotional Competence Inventory (ECI) (108 items) that measured emotional intelligence. Overall, the study revealed that the employees’ emotional intelligence and its dimensions level: self-awareness, social-awareness and social skills are proficient, except for self-management, which was slightly low proficient. T-tests revealed that there was a significant difference in the self-awareness, social awareness and social skills between male and female of zakat personnel. One-way ANOVA test found that there was a significant difference in the mean score of social awareness across the work load of zakat personnel. Posthoc Turkey test also revealed that there was a significant difference in social awareness between the two groups being compared, Low level and Moderate level of work load of zakat personnel.
Keywords: Zakat personnel, emotional intelligence, self-awareness, self-management, social awareness, social skills

Article 5: THE THEORIES OF THE DETERMINANTS OF MIGRATION. WHAT CAN WE LEARN FROM THE SCOTTISH EXPERIANCE?, pp. 49-60
By: Baayah Baba, Universiti Teknologi MARA, Shah Alam, Malaysia

There are many theories of migration. The human capital, search and the gravity models are among the most widely referred to by researchers. The influence of house prices, job vacancies, wage differentials on the migration decisions have widely been noted and have the expected signs. However, in a study done using the Scottish data the house price variables seem to give an opposite sign that contradicts previous findings. This could be due to the change in the determinants of migration whereby it is not just available house or accommodation that matters, it is something more than that. This finding could lead to further research on why there is a change in the determinants of migration in Scotland and what can Asians learn from the Scottish experience.
Keywords: Migration, house prices, real wage, job vacancy