Information Technology has come to the revolution in every field of human activity including the way we live and work. There is at least one product involving the use of information technology, including washing machine, microwave,... more
Information Technology has come to the revolution in every field of human activity including the way we live and work. There is at least one product involving the use of information technology, including washing machine, microwave, computer and many others. With the rapid growth of Information technology and introduction of internet, we now will be able to order good, reserve seat, arrange anything from our personnel computer no matter where we are.
Research Interests:
Generating,Significant future economic income
Since the large number of parties involved in corporate failure or 'business failure', the avoidance of failure has always been an important issue in the field of corporate finance and business management. In this paper, the model was... more
Since the large number of parties involved in corporate failure or 'business failure', the avoidance of failure has always been an important issue in the field of corporate finance and business management. In this paper, the model was developed to predict business failure in Thailand particular in technology industry by using four variables from Altman's model and adding one variable to the model. Descriptive statistics, correlation, and independent T-test are used for testing to see the characteristics of each variable on both failed and non-failed companies. The model was developed by using the stepwise logistic regression. Samples were developed by using financial information from private limited companies based on technology industry in Bangkok. The result from this empirical study can conclude that financial ratios are useful analytical techniques for forecasting financial health of companies in technology industry. The result of independent T-test has pointed out sales to total assets ratio is the only significant independent variable indicating significant differences between failed and non-failed group. The Nagelkerke R 2 indicated 42.4% of the variation in the outcome variable. The predictability accuracy of the model is 77.8% which is under 95% confidence level.
This paper discusses the potential challenges and Benefits of Implementing E-Learning in Sri Lanka by reviewing the awareness and readiness of the selected higher educational institutes. This study also identifies the enabling factors,... more
This paper discusses the potential challenges and Benefits of Implementing E-Learning in Sri Lanka by reviewing the awareness and readiness of the selected higher educational institutes. This study also identifies the enabling factors, the bottlenecks and, forecasts the future growth of E-learning in Sri Lanka as a host in Asia. Of 50 Educational institutes selected from different specialization areas, 24 responded with usable answers. The response rate was 48%, which is an expected rate for such surveys. Awareness of e-learning among the educational Institute is very high but investment to develop an e-learning application is very poor according to the survey. Most of them use Internet related e-learning site just for the sake of it and not to do real online learning. There is a trend of creating a web page in most of the Institutes. Further, findings reveal that these Institutes have also been using e-mail and Internet in addition to developing web pages for transaction of students. They have planned to invest number of funds in future in the selected areas of the e-application. The ANOVA result shows that there are significant differences across both forms of e-learning and type of educational Institutes.
TheOlympic Game being considered as the most competitive and major sport event in the world. Consequently, studies based on Olympic performance yield an important place in the sport studies. The main purpose of this study is to examine... more
TheOlympic Game being considered as the most competitive and major sport event in the world. Consequently, studies based on Olympic performance yield an important place in the sport studies. The main purpose of this study is to examine thepredication capacity of predicators which have been reviled by several authors previously. Among those studies predicting Olympic performance takes a significant stand. This study reviled the significance of political, economic, socio-cultural, and ecological (PESE) factors in predicting the performances of Olympic Game. The basic political background, GDP per capita, population size, HDI and host city advantages were considered to represent those factors respectively. Year 2000, 2004, 2008 and 2012 Olympic Games, and countries at least taken one medal in each game were selected for the sample. As the nature of the study, secondary data were associated and used official published reports that relevant to those dimensions of variables to maintain the validity of the data. The step wise multiple regression analysis was employed to measure the predication capacity of the independent variables with the inferential statistics of the model. The degree of determinants of the overall model was 0.32 means that the reading capacity of the dependent variable by the independent variables is 32%. All estimation of the model were statistically significance at 95% level of confidence.. The above results shows that weak relationship of all factors with Olympic performance and therefore it can be concluded PESE related factors do not help considerably to predict the Olympic performance.
An alternative for a short-term investment, IPO return is one of the most attractive investments in every stock market. In the past Stock Exchange of Thailand, the rate of stock listing or IPO issue is less when compare to the other... more
An alternative for a short-term investment, IPO return is one of the most attractive investments in every stock market. In the past Stock Exchange of Thailand, the rate of stock listing or IPO issue is less when compare to the other markets and the number of overpriced firms less than number of under priced firms. After the crisis period in 1997, the number of IPO issues is reduced to almost zero for a few years. Then SET has implemented the new regulation and procedure to control all listed and will be listed companies and also pursue them to be corporate governance. Nowadays 2004, the rate of stock listing increase to almost one a week, in the other words there is an IPO issued every week and the number of positive return IPO also increase. This study reported 14% to 24% IPO Returns in Thai stock market in given period. This figure is same with international Stock markets. In addition to that the factors affect the initial return of IPOs also disclosed. By using the publish data that can be acquired by general investor, we investigate those data which have relations to the return of IPOs. Finally, develop and test the initial return prediction model.
The literature on Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) has recently analyzed the nature of the firm's entry mode choice in a foreign market, particularly the choice between a joint venture and a wholly owned subsidiary. Foreign-based companies... more
The literature on Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) has recently analyzed the nature of the firm's entry mode choice in a foreign market, particularly the choice between a joint venture and a wholly owned subsidiary. Foreign-based companies are defined as having one or more overseas manufacturing subsidiaries or joint venture relationship. Foreign-based companies can be divided into following three groups in descending order: multinational, transnational and ventures. Most of these companies are using Advanced Manufacturing Technologies (AMT) in manufacturing operations conducted in host country. Therefore experience, initial investment, and location of the host country and number of employees are variables of AMT for conducting this research. This paper aims at providing further empirical evidences on the influence of some key variables in explaining issues related to transfer of AMT. Advanced Manufacturing Technologies are integral part of the production process. It is important to understand the factors that are associated with differences in technology use at the plant level. This paper examines the relationship between the use of AMT at the plant level and the characteristics of these plants. The researchers have analyzed information collected from 1026 foreign-based companies operating business in Sri Lanka and developed two models-Regression based model and Artificial Neural network based model. It was found that the ANN model and regression model guide same prediction of AMT use by foreign-based companies contributing to developing countries.
E-government is a subject which requires a great amount of local knowledge in order to implement successfully. An E-government model which has been successfully implemented in another country may not be directly applicable in to a Sri... more
E-government is a subject which requires a great amount of local knowledge in order to implement successfully. An E-government model which has been successfully implemented in another country may not be directly applicable in to a Sri Lankan environment without applying the required adjustments. Since e-government efforts are leading to socio economic transformation, great resistance towards such initiatives can be seen from participants. In the Sri Lankan context locally generated knowledge on e-government field is lacking, which has resulted in slower progress in local e-government developments. In order to address the above void, this research has built a model with the help of previous researches which consists of six variables. During the research the importance of each of those variables towards the sustainable development of Sri Lankan e-government capabilities will be checked.
This paper focuses on Sri Lankan apparel manufacturing industry in relation to carbon off setting targets to mitigate emissions by reviewing the industry contribution to increasing levels of atmospheric Carbon-dioxide (CO2) which is the... more
This paper focuses on Sri Lankan apparel manufacturing industry in relation to carbon off setting targets to mitigate emissions by reviewing the industry contribution to increasing levels of atmospheric Carbon-dioxide (CO2) which is the governing factor in global warming. This paper attempts to highlight that all stakeholders of this aspect of the industry to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and the significance of neutrality which is ever so important indeed for the entire country coming from the Industry that occupies the topmost position of its economy. The ultimate objective of this study is to review the extent of fossil fuel burning the sector is responsible and the pragmatic carbon offsetting steps taken by the apparel organizations with commitment. The findings reveal a significant relation between carbon neutrality and offsetting targets towards greenhouse gas emission. It was also revealed that in order to neutralize emissions merely buying credits is inadequate compared to in-house off settings planning. Currently there are around 270 apparel factories in Sri Lanka, among the ones in operation a sample of 50 apparel companies were selected.
In response to the winds of change world over, as a result of rapid advance in science and technology, it has strengthened the Small and Medium Scale Enterprises (SMEs) to exert themselves as engines of their economy in the sphere of... more
In response to the winds of change world over, as a result of rapid advance in science and technology, it has strengthened the Small and Medium Scale Enterprises (SMEs) to exert themselves as engines of their economy in the sphere of production as a whole economy as well as increase of production and competition in the market. This situation is augmented as a result of consumer demand. Its impact is such that we discern a rapid increase of population, urbanization, social mobility and transition with vigorous competition. Looking at opportunities to maximize production to satisfy customer needs, SMEs do not consider the factors that affect environment during manufacturing process, selling and distribution and consumption stages. Considering the magnitude of the excessive toxic effect on the bio-sphere and in order to protect the natural environment for the sustenance and conservation of organisms , it is imperative for all the parties concerned to take up responsibility to include carbon footprint mitigating measures during industrial processes. Available literature revealed that different types of systems have been set up to minimize carbon footprint by the industry at both national and international levels, but still there are issues on identifying carbon footprint usage and emission levels along with implementation systems/methodologies introduced. Researchers identified energy consumption being largely associated at the rubber mill and emissions are extraordinarily connected to productivity of kW/H of energy consumption. In order to carry out research goal barriers in implementing energy-efficient carbon footprint minimization measures, responses to one hundred questionnaires were collected from rubber product manufacturing SMEs registered under the Ministry of Industry and Commerce, Sri Lanka. Twenty five unstructured interviews were conducted with relevant professionals in order to ascertain their opinion. There are vital findings in this research d mainly the correlation of factors affecting relationship on minimizing energy efficient carbon footprint effects which will phase-in obliging emphasis on policy makers to rethink their planning. This was proved by using the fishbone model. Major barriers were identified by using content analysis of respondents. In order to identify the CO 2 emission level, the researcher examined the calculation model developed from the results to quantify carbon emission level from the three rubber-band manufacturing factories that were selected as case study domains. Case-studies revealed the overall emissions from the production of rubber band amounting to 1.16, 1.53 and 1.23 ton CO 2-eq/ton product respectively. These findings could be directly benefited by any country where rubber production is being put into practice; in order to identify factors that would minimize global warming potentials of rubber manufacturing SMEs, by the application of cleaner manufacturing model to achieve sustainable production.
This study develops an extended model to predict customer adoption of Internet banking based on the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) integrating with perceived risks, perceived web site features. In particular, drawing from the perceived... more
This study develops an extended model to predict customer adoption of Internet banking based on the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) integrating with perceived risks, perceived web site features. In particular, drawing from the perceived risk construct, six specific risk facets; security, privacy, social, time, performance and financial risk synthesized with the construct perceived web site features which has two variables; perceived system quality and perceived information quality which are integrated with the technology acceptance model (TAM) variables; perceived usefulness and perceived ease of use to propose a theoretical model to predict customers' adoption of Internet banking. An online questionnaire was designed and sent out to Internet banking users in the selected three local commercial banks in Sri Lanka. Respondents participated through extensive personalized e-mail invitations through the selected commercial banks. The extended model is then tested using the data collected and analyzed using multiple-regression. The results indicated that the adoption of Internet banking is positively affected by perceived usefulness, perceived security, perceived social facet, and perceived system quality and those variables were found to be the most influential factors explaining the adoption of Internet banking services. In addition, analysis has revealed that there is a moderated impact on the relationship between the independent variables and dependent variable through respondents' age, income levels and working hours.
The proliferation and popularity of mobile phone usage in Sri Lanka has created an untapped potential for educators and organizations. The very recent introduction of m-learning to the higher education sector of the country is set to... more
The proliferation and popularity of mobile phone usage in Sri Lanka has created an untapped potential for educators and organizations. The very recent introduction of m-learning to the higher education sector of the country is set to exploit much of this opportunity, but there remains some doubt on the readiness of people toward this revolutionary distance learning method. This paper critically evaluates the factors that would affect the intention to use m-learning among medical representatives, and also intends to shed some light on the barriers that hold the pharmaceutical sector back from utilizing it as a training tool. A sample of 210 medical representatives was selected, from an urban population of 450. The instrument of data collection was a Likert scale questionnaire. Data analysis was carried out using the statistical software SPSS 16.0. Correlation studies, simple linear regression and one-way ANOVA tests were conducted to establish relationships and test hypotheses. The results supported past literature through ten of the hypotheses with the exception of perceived self-efficacy and present level of education, which were not found to bear an impact on the intention to use m-learning. This empirical study is a first of its kind in Sri Lanka, and hopes to contribute to the existing body of literature on technology acceptance, in addition to providing invaluable insights to the pharmaceutical, mobile telephony and education sectors of this country.
This paper presents an overview and guidance for manufacturing companies which are preparing to invest in Advanced Manufacturing Technology (AMT). The purpose of this paper is to introduce AMT to Local context and explain the reasons why... more
This paper presents an overview and guidance for manufacturing companies which are preparing to invest in Advanced Manufacturing Technology (AMT). The purpose of this paper is to introduce AMT to Local context and explain the reasons why the company may encounter problems with adopting AMT. In addition to that, the author suggests many avenues to look at AMT applications and the many suggestions offered by the relevant literature for improving the performance of using AMT investment. Further, the research work here aims to assist managers to understand the benefits, types and investment of AMT and identify the problems in the local context. The author of this paper believes that proper understanding of AMT will encourage more firms to invest in AMT and to realize the benefits to make more contributions to society by improving world standard quality of product.
The core objective of this research is to identify the carbon footprint of rubber based products in relevance to different phases of the manufacturing process to identify greenhouse gas emission effect correlated at different stages to... more
The core objective of this research is to identify the carbon footprint of rubber based products in relevance to different phases of the manufacturing process to identify greenhouse gas emission effect correlated at different stages to establish mitigation strategies. In order to carry out research objectives; ten unstructured interviews were conducted with the relevant professionals to identify the propelling and the restraining forces to product carbon footprint. The Case study revealed that the product carbon footprint for non-organic scope was calculated as 6.67 kg CO2e per kg of latex foam produced an organic scope of 3.34 kg CO2e per kg respectively. It is clear that application of fertilizers during the cultivation would double the emissions in the final product. It further revealed that carbon emission in one kg of latex foam contribute to global warming of 47 percent due to cultivation, 45 percent due to foam production and 8 percent due to centrifuging.
The importance of understanding student perceptions is to enhance student satisfaction which in turn can be used to successfully market private education in Sri Lanka. This study is further important due to increasing demand of education... more
The importance of understanding student perceptions is to enhance student
satisfaction which in turn can be used to successfully market private education in Sri
Lanka. This study is further important due to increasing demand of education in the
country and the increasing number of ‘institutes’ mushrooming in the Western
Province. Through this research the relationship between the perceptions of students
with respect to implementing eLearning in selected higher educational institutions will
be examined. The research methodology was a survey approach where students were
questioned from 5 quality institutes. SPSS v.16 was used to analyse the data.
The literature for this study has been drawn mainly from educational management
journals however there is also reference to information technology and business
management. The factors suggested in the literature review that affect students
perception of eLearning will be viewed in the local context.
The secondary research for this report was mainly obtained from stakeholders of
the various institutes’ under analysis as well as their websites and from the research
done by the World Economic Forum. Primary data was obtained from questionnaires
given to students.
The ultimate goal of identification of student perceptions is so that a proposed
eLearning model can be identified for the private higher education context benefiting
students, teachers, the organization and eventually society
satisfaction which in turn can be used to successfully market private education in Sri
Lanka. This study is further important due to increasing demand of education in the
country and the increasing number of ‘institutes’ mushrooming in the Western
Province. Through this research the relationship between the perceptions of students
with respect to implementing eLearning in selected higher educational institutions will
be examined. The research methodology was a survey approach where students were
questioned from 5 quality institutes. SPSS v.16 was used to analyse the data.
The literature for this study has been drawn mainly from educational management
journals however there is also reference to information technology and business
management. The factors suggested in the literature review that affect students
perception of eLearning will be viewed in the local context.
The secondary research for this report was mainly obtained from stakeholders of
the various institutes’ under analysis as well as their websites and from the research
done by the World Economic Forum. Primary data was obtained from questionnaires
given to students.
The ultimate goal of identification of student perceptions is so that a proposed
eLearning model can be identified for the private higher education context benefiting
students, teachers, the organization and eventually society
Research Interests:
The following research study has been designed in order to investigate an important issue “The Glass Ceiling effect” which still prevails in many organizations in Sri Lanka. The banking sector which is a very vibrant industry in Sri Lanka... more
The following research study has been designed in order to investigate an important issue “The Glass Ceiling effect” which still prevails in many organizations in Sri Lanka. The banking sector which is a very vibrant industry in Sri Lanka has been selected to conduct the analysis. The core objective of this study is to identify the barriers which prevail and have an impact on women participation in senior management positions in licensed commercial banks in relationship with organizational performance.
The research has conducted by taking in to account 9 domestic licensed commercial banks in Sri Lanka. Thus both secondary as well as a primary research has conducted in order to critically analyze the “Glass Ceiling Effect” in banking sector in Sri Lanka. Secondary data analyzing has addressed two objectives to identify the challenges in acquiring skills and challenges in women participation in upper management. The research findings showed that there are 9% of females in director board, 16% females in corporate management and 13% females as the management team. In overall perspective the research highlighted that there are 13% of female participants in the managerial positions in banks. According to the primary research which was conducted, the level of women participation was identified in-terms of organizational performance. Thus questionnaire findings showed a moderate level of perception about women participation in the banking sector. Finally a series of quality solutions were recommended in order to eliminate the “Glass Ceiling Effects” in the banking industry.
The research has conducted by taking in to account 9 domestic licensed commercial banks in Sri Lanka. Thus both secondary as well as a primary research has conducted in order to critically analyze the “Glass Ceiling Effect” in banking sector in Sri Lanka. Secondary data analyzing has addressed two objectives to identify the challenges in acquiring skills and challenges in women participation in upper management. The research findings showed that there are 9% of females in director board, 16% females in corporate management and 13% females as the management team. In overall perspective the research highlighted that there are 13% of female participants in the managerial positions in banks. According to the primary research which was conducted, the level of women participation was identified in-terms of organizational performance. Thus questionnaire findings showed a moderate level of perception about women participation in the banking sector. Finally a series of quality solutions were recommended in order to eliminate the “Glass Ceiling Effects” in the banking industry.
Employees are generally considered as the most important resource needed for an organization to achieve its main goals. Realization of goals achievement heavily depends on the extent to which these employees are engaged in their jobs and... more
Employees are generally considered as the most important resource needed for an organization to achieve its main goals. Realization of goals achievement heavily depends on the extent to which these employees are engaged in their jobs and their organization. Employee engagement is a factor that contributes positively to employee productivity and then organizational effectiveness. It reveals that a conceptual confusion exists with regard to the meaning of employee engagement owing to that the concept has been defined by different scholars in different ways and also that there are several associated terms such as job satisfaction, job involvement, work involvement, organizational commitment and organizational citizenship behavior which have been used in the literature, either synonymously or non-synonymously. Further a question arises to decide whether employee engagement is an attitude or a behavior. This paper seeks to provide a comprehensive conceptualization of employee engagement that results in formulating a working definition for research purposes involving the construct, and to explore its dimensions and elements for the purpose of measuring the construct.
This paper presents the impact of Organizational Commitment (OC) on Strategic Information System Planning (SISP) in Sri Lankan banking sector. SISP is an important management function and has consistently been identified as one of the... more
This paper presents the impact of Organizational Commitment (OC) on Strategic Information System Planning (SISP) in Sri Lankan banking sector. SISP is an important management function and has consistently been identified as one of the most critical issues facing IS executives. Organizational Commitment plays a critical role when planning information systems strategically in an organization. The paper identified that the Organizational Commitment means company support for SISP. When compared to all other sectors Information Technology usage in banking sector is at the highest level in Sri Lanka. So that it was a need to find out the relationship between OC and SISP particularly in the banking sector. The study mainly answers the questions of how Organizational Commitment contributes to the degree of success of SISP and to understand the present level of Organizational Commitment on SISP in the sector. Further the study examines the most important factors of the Organizational Commitment on existing SISP and measures the relationship between Organizational Commitment and SISP. Finally, the study aims to develop a model to improve the success of SISP in Sri Lankan banking sector./ The empirical data was drawn from 30 licensed commercial banks and licensed specialized banks to analyze the data by using correlation. The regression analysis was used to build the model to improve the success of SISP. The findings specify that there is a positive relationship between SISP success and Organizational Commitment. Correlation elaborates the relationship between the OC factors and SISP. The major implication of the study is that the Organizational Commitment is a main factor for the success of SISP.
; The growth of information technology in the business world is spreading at a phenomenal rate. The success of a business organization stands at the usage of IT in their business. Growth of E-Commerce is the new born business method,... more
; The growth of information technology in the business world is spreading at a phenomenal rate. The success of a business organization stands at the usage of IT in their business. Growth of E-Commerce is the new born business method, which has originated through an extensive usage of IT in their business. SMEs under the BOI in Sri Lanka are far behind the fast moving world of IT. Though E-Commerce is accelerating at a high pace, most of the SMEs are still at the lower level compared to their competitors in business. This study will focus on the level of adoption of E-Commerce in a population of 30 SMEs under the BOI, the relationship between firm-based characteristics and the adoption of E-Commerce and also more importantly find out the critical success factors and discover potential benefits of adoption of E-Commerce in SMEs. The results on the Adoption of E-Commerce showed a significant relationship with the two firm based characteristics. That is Management Involvement and Adoption of IT. The study also identified E-Marketing and Supplier service as the critical success factors in adoption of E-Commerce. Therefore, this research is conducted to assess the readiness for E-Commerce among the SME in Sri Lanka, and hopefully the research will help to convey the awareness among the SME towards ecommerce and help them to speed up their involvement in e-business.
— Today there is a rapidly changing business world. Therefore most of the growing organizations are moving towards Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems in order to integrate their cross functional business units. This is crucial for... more
— Today there is a rapidly changing business world. Therefore most of the growing organizations are moving towards Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems in order to integrate their cross functional business units. This is crucial for those organizations, to be stable and competitive in the industry. The objective of the research is to decipher the impact of Enterprise Resource Planning in Management accounting activities. A set of hypothesis is developed to evaluate how the training on ERP and vendor support has impacted on the usage of ERP system and decision making in five Management Accounting functions identified as Capital Budgeting, Budgeting, Forecasting, Activity based Costing, and Operating Statement and Reporting by means of a questionnaire. The results shows that ERP system has improved the quality of management accounting process, and the training as well as vendor support has an impact on the usage of ERP system but there is low impact on decision making process. From the results it is possible to conclude that ERP system has an impact on management accounting. As an operational system, the possibility to exploit the potential of ERP system can be achieved by having proper training as well as vendor support.
This paper will be discussed the corporate managers attitudes towards the E-Learning applications in Sri Lanka. The sample is drawn from registered listed companies in Colombo stock market. This study also identifies the enabling factors,... more
This paper will be discussed the corporate managers attitudes towards the E-Learning applications in Sri Lanka. The sample is drawn from registered listed companies in Colombo stock market. This study also identifies the enabling factors, the bottlenecks and, forecasts the future growth of corporate sector There are positive attitudes among the corporate sector managers towards the e-learning but most of them prefer traditional learning because of lack of timing for studies in their business ventures. The Awareness of e-learning among the corporate sector managers is very high but investment to develop e-learning applications in their companies is very poor according to the survey. Most of the companies sponsored their employees traditional learning, training, educational programs than registering e-learning site. However there is significant number use Intranet for training purpose among the companies. They conduct real online learning via intranet for new training. There is a trend of using intranet in most of the companies. Further, findings reveal that these companies have also been using e-mail and Internet in addition to training their employees. They have planned to invest number of funds in future in the selected areas of the e- application. The ANOVA result shows that there are significant differences across both forms of corporate sector e-learning.
Research Interests:
An alternative for a short-term investment, IPO return is one of the most attractive investments in every stock market. In the past Stock Exchange of Thailand, the rate of stock listing or IPO issue is less when compare to the other... more
An alternative for a short-term investment, IPO return is one of the most attractive investments in every stock market. In the past Stock Exchange of Thailand, the rate of stock listing or IPO issue is less when compare to the other markets and the number of overpriced firms less than number of under priced firms. After the crisis period in 1997, the number of IPO issues is reduced to almost zero for a few years. Then SET has implemented the new regulation and procedure to control all listed and will be listed companies and also pursue them to be corporate governance. Nowadays 2004, the rate of stock listing increase to almost one a week, in the other words there is an IPO issued every week and the number of positive return IPO also increase. This study reported 14% to 24% IPO Returns in Thai stock market in given period. This figure is same with international Stock markets. In addition to that the factors affect the initial return of IPOs also disclosed. By using the publish data that can be acquired by general investor, we investigate those data which have relations to the return of IPOs. Finally, develop and test the initial return prediction model.