Engaging Élitism: the Mediating Effect of Work Engagement on Affective Commitment and Quit Intentions in Two Australian University Groups

Some universities rely on their élitism as one mechanism to attract and retain talented faculty. This paper examines two groups of élite and non-élite universities and the mediating effect that work engagement has on affective commitment and intention to quit. Findings indicate partial support for the mediating effect of work engagement in the non-élite group but no support in the élite university group. The implications of these diverse results are posed for the management of academics in élite and non-élite universities, suggesting that a ‘one size fits all approach’ to performance outcomes does not always fit.

Profiling the Australian high performance and sports science workforce

Australia is viewed as leader in the field of sports science, with Australian sports scientists highly sought after and respected worldwide. However, despite the important contribution of sports scientists to the development of professional sport in Australia, we know little about these sport professionals who play an important role in the development and success of athletes, teams and sport organisations.
This report provides a more formal understanding of the high performance and sports science workforce with the purpose of informing the policy development of Australia’s sport governing bodies and education providers to inform sport management practices that will enhance the support and development of current and future high performance managers and sports scientists. The data presented in this report provides valuable insight about the scope of the profession to enable further development of strategic plans for the industry.

Family firms, board structure, political connections and performance: evidence from Bangladesh

This thesis provides critical empirical evidence on Bangladeshi family firm governance structures and their impacts on firm performance while taking political connections into consideration. Based on some theoretical argument the thesis presents some unique and robust results which are consistent with the Bangladeshi institutional characteristics.

Contributions to high performance liquid chromatography

High performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) is an enabling science with application in all scientific disciplines requiring analysis or purification. The research described here details performance aspects of the chromatography column, which lead to a new design concept in the chromatography column. Studies were also undertaken to characterise selectivity leading to new stationary phases. Research on fluid dynamics in packed beds showed how a mismatch in solvent viscosities between the injection plug and mobile pahse influences the performance of on-line multidimentional HPLC. Selectivity id detection was also examined in an effort to better understand sample analysis. 

The expectation-performance gap in generic skills in accounting graduates : Evidence from Sri Lanka

Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to investigate the generic skills that are important for the career success of accounting graduates in Sri Lanka from the perspectives of university educators and employers.

Design/methodology/approach
Bui and Porter's (2010) expectation-performance gap framework was modified to match with the context of the current study. Data collected via questionnaire survey was analysed for non-parametric tests: the Wilcoxon signed-rank test and the Mann-Whitney test, using SPSS version 20, and quantified the expectation-performance gap and its components.

Findings
The major finding of this research is that the main cause for the expectation-performance gap, as identified in the analysis of the constraint gap is university educators’ low confidence in teaching the required generic skills for career success of graduates. However, university educators are aware of the employer expectations of graduate accountants in terms of generic skills. Employers indicated that many of the generic skills are not achieved by the accounting graduates.

Practical implications
Findings of this study reflect the importance of expanding the accounting curricula by embedding and assessing generic skill development activities. In addition, it is vital to develop the capacities of university educators in terms of teaching and assessing generic skills in accounting degree programmes.

Originality/value
This study contributes to the literature as one of few studies that investigate the generic skills development of accounting graduates in Asia, particularly in Sri Lanka.

Assessing the impact of HRM on dairy farm performance: an Australian study

This thesis explains the benefits of HRM policies and practices for Australian dairy farmers. A conceptual roadmap for rural industry policy-makers and farm owner-managers is presented in this thesis. It helps farmers to enhance dairy farm performance through HRM practices, which in turn would contribute to regional economic development.

Presents//presence: Telematics, performance and embodiment

Of giving and receiving // Of giving and taking // Of exchanges
Reciprocity // Mutuality // Expectations

A performance of liveness in which the presence of the performer is interrogated.

Drawing on Dan Graham's (1974) Two Consciousness Project, Presents//Presence plays on Object = Space relationships. Engaging with contemporary notions of thinking and consciousness, the performance plays with time - the here and now, the passage of time, time zones, and timing.

Lovers. An anniversary. Fine Dining. Distance. Skype.

Presents disrupt subject positions of audience, of performer; something happens while we are waiting for something else to happen. Through the use portable computers and hand-held (smart) devices for the capture and 'projection' of action in real time, the exploration sets out to engage with notions live and remote, absence and presence, the play of embodied transmission and live performance and the perception of absence.

Through a simulation of the simultaneous presences (performances) of performers Magda Miranda and Rea Dennis, Presents//Presence is a performative event that (re) activates live/d moments in the lives of the artists. Such presence characterizes computer time – “a permanent present, an unbounded, timeless intensity” (Virilio in Dixon 90). Such presence could also be said to characterize the intra-subjective experience of intimacy. The piece draws on the languages of live theatre, elements of autobiographical performance, inter- and intra-subjective perception, and an understanding of time as a spatial metaphor. This paper reports on the performance event Presents//Presence. In it, we outline the narrative and structural anchors that frame the piece and discuss some of the theoretical threads informing the research. The paper is accompanied by a recording of the performance that was delivered to a live audience at University of South Wales, Cardiff during the Remote Encounters conference in April 2013.

CEO tenure and other determinants of bank performance in Nigeria

 In 2010, the Central Bank of Nigeria announced a tenure limit policy for bank CEOs in Nigeria. Designed to evaluate this policy, this thesis found that a longer CEO tenure is actually associated with superior bank performance in Nigeria. It has therefore provided solid research evidence on the debatable policy.

An empirical analysis of environmental strategy, eco-controls, environmental and economic performance

 This study provides empirical evidence on the role of eco-controls, in terms of both the style of use and bureaucratic stance towards eco-controls, as a critical mediating variable between an organisation’s level of proactive environmental strategy and its environmental and economic performance outcomes.

Study of the road construction industry in Sri Lanka: emphasis on improving performance of the industry

Outcome of the research is to identify significant factors influencing the productivity and performance of the road construction industry in Sri Lanka and to compare the identified factors with the Australian construction industry. Also to recommend strategies to improve productivity and performance of the Sri Lankan Industry.