This research applies a technique that identifies areas of improvement that can be addressed by managerial decisions or policy activities. It extends the application of partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) using an importance-performance map analysis (IPMA). The IPMA determines priority factors that should receive management’s attention. The PLS path model was tested by comparing 140 failed U.S. banks with the same number of nonfailed banks from 2006 to 2008. This model assembles 15 indicators with four predecessor constructs (i.e., profitability of 2006, profitability of 2007, risk of 2006, and risk of 2007) and one final target construct (i.e., profitability of 2008). Profitability and risk of 2007 mediate the path of profitability and risk of 2006 and profitability of 2008. The IPMA indicated that failed banks were predisposed to decreasing financial performance in 2008 because of their poor performance in 2006 and 2007. Conversely, nonfailed banks were more likely to experience increasing financial performance in 2008 because of their positive performance in 2006 and 2007. This study indicates that managers who use IPMA to prioritize their financial decisions will obtain useful conceptual insights and are unlikely to be misled. Although IPMA can be conducted on the indicator level as well, this article limits its analysis by focusing on the construct level only. The use of IPMA is ubiquitous in end-user surveys, but its application to banking is still in its embryonic state. For originality, this work prioritizes the application of IPMA using secondary data collected from financial statements to assess the performance of American banks during the crisis.

Many studies by researchers and accounting educators explore various factors associated with the success or failure of accounting majors in college level accounting courses. This paper identifies and summarizes the main obstacles associated with low student academic achievement in introductory courses in the College of Accounting at Al-Jabal Al-Gharbi University, Libya. The research empirically investigates student perceptions of the difficulties of academic achievement in principles of accounting courses. The research method was a survey that involved classifying students as either accounting majors or non-accounting majors. Data was collected through a questionnaire with 28 items related to five primary groups: an instructor's teaching style, exams and quizzes, students, accounting textbooks, and general groups plus one open-ended question. Findings show that the major obstacles of learning and source of negative perceptions students have toward accounting courses are: lack of teaching assistants, lack of computer laboratories and computer applications, crowded dormitories, lack of interaction between students and faculty, a gap between what is taught and practical applications, irrelevant textbooks and exams, and lack of proficiency in English. Solutions offered include: greater emphasis on teaching computer accounting technology, improving effectiveness of accounting instructors and textbooks, and offering pre-college accounting courses. This study focuses on one public university, which limits its generalisability. For future research, the author suggests interviews with students upon collecting their questionnaires to elicit more complete responses, and greater attention to perspectives based on gender in order to discover and understand any differences among male and female attitudes toward accounting courses.

This paper aims to examine if using video recordings help students raise their awareness of the development of their oral presentation skills by reviewing video recordings of their presentations. For this study, all students who took a Financial Accounting class in the academic year 2018–2019 at Lincoln University (LU) were video-recorded when presenting. Participants were asked to review their video recordings, assess their performance, and record their reflections by using a Self-Assessment Questionnaire (SAQ). The results indicated that the students’ attitude toward recording the presentations was highly positive. The predominant response was that this new learning activity increased students’ awareness of the importance of presentation skills without provoking their anxiety. Participants were able to observe that certain delivery skills such as good preparation, self-confidence, eye contact, and voice quality needed improvement. For managerial implications, LU, through its Writing and Speaking Center (WSC), offered thirty-minute sessions with a presentation coach to improve students’ communication skills and prepare them to give a more polished presentation in class. In comparing the practice presentation at the WSC with the final in-class presentation, students were observed to be more confident, better prepared, and less nervous during the final presentation. However, we observed that the practice presentation did not carry the same weight as the final presentation as the practice presentation was neither graded nor delivered in front of an instructor or a wider audience.

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine how chief executive officers’ (CEOs) narcissism impacts firm performance and how this, in turn, affects a CEO’s positive rhetorical tone. Design/methodology/approach The narcissism score is measured by using an analytical composite score for each CEO based on eight factors. The paper uses textual analysis on a sample of 848 CEO letters of US firms over the period 2010–2019. WarpPLS software, version 7.0 was used to conduct structural equation modeling through the partial least squares because a non-linear algorithm exists between CEO narcissism, firm performance and positive tone, and the values of path coefficients moved from non-significant to significant. Findings The results suggest that performance partially mediates the relationship between CEO narcissism and positive tone. This indicates that not all the positivity expressed by narcissistic CEOs is opportunism; some of it is indeed driven by better performance. The reported findings indicate that firm performance explains one-quarter of a CEO’s positive words, whereas some three-quarters of the positivity is driven by a narcissistic CEO (i.e. opportunism). A comparison of letters signed by highly narcissistic and less narcissistic leaders reveals that among those letters signed by highly narcissistic leaders, firm performance plays a significant mediating role between narcissistic tendencies and positive tone. However, among those with less narcissistic score, there is no evidence that performance mediates the tone and narcissism. Interestingly, both highly narcissistic and less narcissistic CEOs use positive words and optimistic expressions even when their firms perform poorly or negatively. Research limitations/implications The results help shareholders be aware that CEOs may opportunistically use their personal characteristics and language to manipulate them. Data limitations about women CEOs were one of the reasons behind the small proportion of women CEOs in this study, making it low in generalizability. Originality value A comprehensive review showed that none of previous studies examined the more ambiguous relationship between a CEO’s narcissist tendency, the firm’s performance, and CEO rhetorical tone. As one set of studies focused on Narcissism → Performance, and the other one on Performance → Tone, this current study completes the picture with Narcissism → Performance → Tone.

This research applies a technique that identifies areas of improvement that can be addressed by managerial decisions or policy activities. It extends the application of partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) using an importanceperformance map analysis (IPMA). The IPMA determines priority factors that should receive management's attention. The PLS path model was tested by comparing 140 failed U.