Engaging decision makers in the business case for biophilic urbanism

The cognitive benefits of biophilia have been studied quite extensively, dating as far back as the 1980s, while studies into economic benefits are still in their infancy. Recent research has attempted to quantify a number of economic returns on biophilic elements; however knowledge in this field is still ad hoc and highly variable. Many studies acknowledge difficulties in discerning information such as certain social and aesthetic benefits. While conceptual understanding of the physiological and psychological effects of exposure to nature is widely recognised and understood, this has not yet been systematically translated into monetary terms. It is clear from the literature that further research is needed to both obtain data on the economics of biophilic urbanism, and to create the business case for biophilic urbanism. With this in mind, this paper will briefly highlight biophilic urbanism referencing previous work in the field. It will then explore a number of emergent gaps in the measurable economic understanding of these elements and suggest opportunities for engaging decision makers in the business case for biophilic urbanism. The paper concludes with recommendations for moving forward through targeted research and economic analysis.

Education critical to going beyond business as usual

As government and industry grapple with 21st century challenges, building the capacity to look at complex problems through fresh eyes is critical.

A robust optimization approach for index tracking problem

Index tracking is an investment approach where the primary objective is to keep portfolio return as close as possible to a target index without purchasing all index components. The main purpose is to minimize the tracking error between the returns of the selected portfolio and a benchmark. In this paper, quadratic as well as linear models are presented for minimizing the tracking error. The uncertainty is considered in the input data using a tractable robust framework that controls the level of conservatism while maintaining linearity. The linearity of the proposed robust optimization models allows a simple implementation of an ordinary optimization software package to find the optimal robust solution. The proposed model of this paper employs Morgan Stanley Capital International Index as the target index and the results are reported for six national indices including Japan, the USA, the UK, Germany, Switzerland and France. The performance of the proposed models is evaluated using several financial criteria e.g. information ratio, market ratio, Sharpe ratio and Treynor ratio. The preliminary results demonstrate that the proposed model lowers the amount of tracking error while raising values of portfolio performance measures.

A service-oriented architecture for text analytics enabled business applications

Experiences showed that developing business applications that base on text analysis normally requires a lot of time and expertise in the field of computer linguistics. Several approaches of integrating text analysis systems with business applications have been proposed, but so far there has been no coordinated approach which would enable building scalable and flexible applications of text analysis in enterprise scenarios. In this paper, a service-oriented architecture for text processing applications in the business domain is introduced. It comprises various groups of processing components and knowledge resources. The architecture, created as a result of our experiences with building natural language processing applications in business scenarios, allows for the reuse of text analysis and other components, and facilitates the development of business applications. We verify our approach by showing how the proposed architecture can be applied to create a text analytics enabled business application that addresses a concrete business scenario. © 2010 IEEE.

Linking business goals to process models in semantic business process modeling

Broad knowledge is required when a business process is modeled by a business analyst. We argue that existing Business Process Management methodologies do not consider business goals at the appropriate level. In this paper we present an approach to integrate business goals and business process models. We design a Business Goal Ontology for modeling business goals. Furthermore, we devise a modeling pattern for linking the goals to process models and show how the ontology can be used in query answering. In this way, we integrate the intentional perspective into our business process ontology framework, enriching the process description and enabling new types of business process analysis. © 2008 IEEE.

The impact of project announcements on property values: An empirical analysis

The study examines the property value impacts of an announcement of a project which has potential environmental impacts as distinct from other studies that address costs associated with under-construction and the operating impacts of developments. The hypothesis is that the announcement of a proposed project with potential environmental impact creates uncertainty in the property market of the affected area, and this impact is greater on properties closer to the project than those farther from it. The results of the study confirm the hypothesis and indicate that the marginal willingness to pay for properties within a 5 km distance declined by AU$17,020 per km proximity to the proposed heavy vehicle route, after the proposed route was announced. The results support the need for more holistic measurement of cost–benefit analysis of projects and provide a basis for improved consideration by policy makers of the rights of affected parties.

An experimental investigation of moral commitments

This thesis explored the impact of non-contractual agreements in economic decisions. These statements of intent serve as a commitment device in strategic decisions and have been found to be an effective alternative to strong regulations in promoting social behaviour. Three studies have been undertaken using conceptual and methodological approaches from Behavioral and Experimental Economics. The first study explored in a public good setting the effect of public statements about intended social behaviour. The second study tested whether promises can help to promote co-operation in environments with uncertain choice options. The third study investigated a possible application of statement of intent and tested the effect of payment promises in a tax setting.

The use of embodiments in distributed collaborative business process modelling

Remote networked collaboration with business model documentation has many communication problems. The aim of this project is to solve some of these communication problems by using digital 3D representations of human visual cues. Results from this project increased our understanding of the role and effects of visual cues in remote collaboration, specifically for validating business process models. Technology designs to support such cues across a distance have been proposed in this thesis with qualitative and quantitative methods of analysis being combined to analyse the impact of these cues on the communication, coordination and performance of a team collaborating remotely.

Global business services: Increasing specialization and integration of the world economy as drivers of economic growth

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to explore the contribution of global business services to improved productivity and economic growth of the world economy, which has gone largely unnoticed in service research. Design/methodology/approach The authors draw on macroeconomic data and industry reports, and link them to the non-ownership-concept in service research and theories of the firm. Findings Business services explain a large share of the growth of the global service economy. The fast growth of business services coincides with shifts from domestic production towards global outsourcing of services. A new wave of global business services are traded across borders and have emerged as important drivers of growth in the world’s service sector. Research limitations/implications This paper advances the understanding of non-ownership services in an increasingly global and specialized post-industrial economy. The paper makes a conceptual contribution supported by descriptive data, but without empirical testing. Originality/value The authors integrate the non-ownership concept and three related economic theories of the firm to explain the role of global business services in driving business performance and the international transformation of service economies.

Investigating the concept of potential quality: An exploratory study in the real estate industry

Purpose The purpose of this research is to examine the concept of “potential quality” – that is, a company's tangible search qualities (such as the physical servicescape and virtual servicescape) – within the context of the real‐estate industry in the USA. Design/methodology/approach This qualitative study collects data by conducting personal in‐depth interviews with 34 respondents who had been recent buyers or renters of property. The data are then coded and themed to identify quality dimensions relevant to this industry. Findings The results indicate that a buyer's perception of the overall service quality of real‐estate service consists of two components: the interaction with a realtor (process quality); and the virtual servicescape, especially the firm's website design and content (potential quality). The study concludes that existing scales (such as SERVQUAL and RESERV) fail to capture the tangible component of service quality sufficiently in the real‐estate industry. Research limitations/implications The study uses data from only one industry (real estate) and from only one demographic segment (professionals in higher education). Practical implications Service providers of intangible, high‐contact services must appreciate the importance of the virtual servicescape as a surrogate quality indicator that can help to reduce information asymmetries and consumers' uncertainty with regard to initiating a business relationship. Real estate firms need to pay attention to the training of agents and the design and content of their e‐service systems. Originality/value This study integrates potential quality, process quality, and outcome quality in a comprehensive proposed model. In particular, the study identifies “potential quality” as a combination of the attributes of the virtual service environment and the physical service environment.

The paradox of creative uncertainty in learning and teaching

In an ever-changing and globalised world there is a need for higher education to adapt and evolve its models of learning and teaching. The old industrial model has lost traction, and new patterns of creative engagement are required. These new models potentially increase relevancy and better equip students for the future. Although creativity is recognised as an attribute that can contribute much to the development of these pedagogies, and creativity is valued by universities as a graduate capability, some educators understandably struggle to translate this vision into practice. This paper reports on selected survey findings from a mixed methods research project which aimed to shed light on how creativity can be designed for in higher education learning and teaching settings. A social constructivist epistemology underpinned the research and data was gathered using survey and case study methods. Descriptive statistical methods and informed grounded theory were employed for the analysis reported here. The findings confirm that creativity is valued for its contribution to the development of students’ academic work, employment opportunities and life in general; however, tensions arise between individual educator’s creative pedagogical goals and the provision of institutional support for implementation of those objectives. Designing for creativity becomes, paradoxically, a matter of navigating and limiting complexity and uncertainty, while simultaneously designing for those same states or qualities.

A decision-analysis-based framework for analysing stakeholder behaviour in scenario planning

Scenario planning is a method widely used by strategic planners to address uncertainty about the future. However, current methods either fail to address the future behaviour and impact of stakeholders or they treat the role of stakeholders informally. We present a practical decision-analysis-based methodology for analysing stakeholder objectives and likely behaviour within contested unfolding futures. We address issues of power, interest, and commitment to achieve desired outcomes across a broad stakeholder constituency. Drawing on frameworks for corporate social responsibility (CSR), we provide an illustrative example of our approach to analyse a complex contested issue that crosses geographic, organisational and cultural boundaries. Whilst strategies can be developed by individual organisations that consider the interests of others – for example in consideration of an organisation's CSR agenda – we show that our augmentation of scenario method provides a further, nuanced, analysis of the power and objectives of all concerned stakeholders across a variety of unfolding futures. The resulting modelling framework is intended to yield insights and hence more informed decision making by individual stakeholders or regulators.

Analysis of Business Process Variants in Apromore

In this paper we illustrate a set of features of the Apromore process model repository for analyzing business process variants. Two types of analysis are provided: one is static and based on differences on the process control flow, the other is dynamic and based on differences in the process behavior between the variants. These features combine techniques for the management of large process model collections with those for mining process knowledge from process execution logs. The tool demonstration will be useful for researchers and practitioners working on large process model collections and process execution logs, and specifically for those with an interest in understanding, managing and consolidating business process variants both within and across organizational boundaries.

A decision support framework for prioritization of engineering asset management activities under uncertainty

Engineers and asset managers must often make decisions on how to best allocate limited resources amongst different interrelated activities, including repair, renewal, inspection, and procurement of new assets. The presence of project interdependencies and the lack of sufficient information on the true value of an activity often produce complex problems and leave the decision maker guessing about the quality and robustness of their decision. In this paper, a decision support framework for uncertain interrelated activities is presented. The framework employs a methodology for multi-criteria ranking in the presence of uncertainty, detailing the effect that uncertain valuations may have on the priority of a particular activity. The framework employs employing semi-quantitative risk measures that can be tailored to an organisation and enable a transparent and simple-to-use uncertainty specification by the decision maker. The framework is then demonstrated on a real world project set from a major Australian utility provider.