An emperical study of performance management systems in SMEs in the Republic of Ireland and the People's Republic of China : a cultural perspective

The objectives of this thesis are three. Firstly, finding and analyzing the differences of performance management system in SMEs in Ireland and China. Secondly, finding the cultural differences between China and Ireland and thirdly, integrating the research outcomes of the above research objectives, and then analyzing the effect of these cultural differences on performance management system in SMEs in China and Ireland.

Implementation of a customer relationship management system in an SME

The research conducted for this thesis has been carried out over a two year period as part of the Mobile Tools and Technology for customer care (MOTTO) project. The project was funded under the Applied Grant scheme administered by Enterprise Ireland and Nortel Networks Ltd. It was a partnership project between Galway-Mayo Institute of Technology, University of Limerick, National University of Ireland Galway, and a global Internet and communications company, Nortel Networks. The project aimed to investigate the enabling mobile communications technologies in e-Business and mobile communications in the area of Business-to-Business (B2B) customer care. The development of the application discussed in this thesis was developed in conjunction with the Galway-Mayo Institute of Technology, University of Limerick and AMT Ireland. The decision to develop the application in the Electronics Company of AMT in Limerick came about as a result of the contact established by Mark Southern from the University of Limerick. Mark was involved in overseeing the development and assisted in establishing the user requirements.

The concept of risk management in the renewable sector.

This study explores the perception of risk and the level of risk management implementation in the renewable sector. Risk management is emerging as a key issue due to the loss of confidence amongst banks, causing the attainment of financing to be difficult over the next few years. To attract financing, there is a fundamental requirement to manage risk in a way that minimizes the probability of a negative financial impact on the project. Miller and Lessard (2001) argue that successful projects are not selected but shaped with risk resolution in mind. Rather than evaluating projects at the outset based on projections of the full set of benefits, costs and risks over their lifetime, successful developers start with project ideas that have the potential of becoming viable. Therefore, this study bridges the gap that exists within the renewable sector in relation to risk management literature. This study succeeds through a detailed comparative case study analysis where two developers and two financiers were questioned through qualitative semi-structured interviews on the concept of risk management and its level implementation within the industry. It is believed that the growth in financed renewable energy projects depends on the adequate design and implementation of risk management to mitigate inherent project risks. However, this study revealed that are certain types of developers in existence within the renewable sector, which underestimate the magnitude of risk and view the development of projects as a ‘money racket’. Therefore, it can be concluded that perception of risk will also differ, causing risk and uncertainty to vary from project to project, resulting in investment reluctance to be associated with certain projects. The study originality lies in how it demonstrates to developers the concept of risk management, outlining the simplicity and benefits of implementing it in project development. Finally, this study contributes to the knowledge by enhancing the awareness and understanding of the presence and nature of risk in a RE project environment.

Age, growth and reproductive biology of whiting Merlangius merlangus (Linnaeus 1758) in the Celtic Sea

Age, growth and reproductive biology were investigated for whiting (Merlangius merlangus) captured from the Celtic Sea (ICES division Vllg), for the period January 2001 to January 2002. Females dominated the sex ratio of 1: 2.25. The relative abundance of females exceeded the number of males in all length classes. The relationship between weight (g) and total length (cm) was the same for male and female whiting. A total of 973 fish were aged and the maximum age recorded was 11 years. Results from an intercalibration exercise showed 87% agreement in age readings between the author and an expert in ageing whiting at the Marine Institute. Females were dominated by 2 year olds, while males were dominated by 3 year olds. Lx was estimated as 38cm and a growth rate was calculated K = 0.3769 year'1. Females were fully recruited to the fishery at 3 years of age, while the age at full recruitment (tr) for males was 4 years. Female whiting spawned from late February to June 2001 and matured at a total length of 23 cm in their first year. Female whiting reached L5o at a total length of 28 cm and 2.7 years of age. Male whiting spawned from February to June 2001. They matured at a total length of 21 cm and in their first year. Male whiting reached L50 at a total length of 30.4 cm and 3.6 years of age. The following critical points should be taken into account in the management of the Celtic Sea whiting stock: An Fpa should be established in order to assess the current level of fishing mortality; The maturity ogives need further study; The extent of gutting of large fish before landing by fishers in the fleet should be investigated and the apparent decline in size of 4 - 7 year old fish in the Celtic Sea between 1996 and 2001 needs to be assessed.

Ireland’s understudied flatfish: reproduction, age and growth of the dab Limanda limanda (L.) in Irish coastal waters

In Ireland, although flatfish form a valuable fishery, little is known about the smallest, the dab Limanda limanda. In this study, a variety of parameters of reproductive development, including ovarian phase description, gonadosomatic index (GSI), hepatosomatic index (HSI), relative condition (Kn) and oocyte size were analysed to provide information on the dab’s reproductive cycle and spawning periods. Sampling were collected monthly over an 18-month period using bottom trawls of the Irish coastline. A six phase macroscopic guide was developed for both sexes of dab, and verified using histology. In comparisons of macroscopic and microscopic phases, there was high agreement in the proposed female guide (86%), with males demonstratively lower (62%). No significant bias was observed between the the two reproductive methods. When the male macroscopic guide was examined, misclassification was high in phase 5 and phase 5 (41%), with 96% of misclassification occurring in adjacent phases. The sampled population was primarily composed of females, with ratios of females to males 1:0.6, although the predominance of females was less noticeable during the reproductive season. Oocyte growth in dab follows asynchronous development, and spawn over a protracted period indicating a batch spawning strategy. Spawning occurred mainly in early spring, with total regeneration of gonads by May. The length at which 50% of the population was reproductively mature was identified as 14cm and 17cm, for male and female dab, respectively. Precision and bias in age determinations using whole otoliths to age dab was investigated using six age readers from various institutions. Low levels of precision were obtained (CV: 10-23%) inferring the need for an alternative methodology. Precision and bias was influence by the level of experience of the reader, with ageing error attributed to interpretative differences and difficulty in edge determination. Sectioned otolith age determinations were subsequently compared to whole otolith age determinations using two age readers experienced in dab ageing. Although increased precision was observed in whole otoliths from previous estimates (CV=0%, 0% APE), sectioned otoliths were used for growth models. This was based on multinominal logistic regression on age length keys developed using both ageing methods. Biological data (length and age) for both sexes was applied to four growth models, where the Akaike criterion and Multi model Inference indicated the logistic model as having the best fit to the collected data. In general, female dab attained a longer length then males, with growth rates significantly different between the two sexes. Length weight relationships between the two sexes were also significantly different.