Are knowledge management infrastructructures capable of managing knowledge?: Case study of a major construction firm in Taiwan

This paper addresses knowledge management (KM) in a project management organisation through a case study.

The case study organisation is a small-medium sized Taiwanese-owned construction company (staff size of approximately 50) with an annual turnover of approximately TWD50 (AUD$1.85) billion. Approximately one half of the company comprised project-related staff (e.g. construction project management, project documentation, estimation, procurement, and design), while the other comprised administrative and business-related staff (e.g. office administration and management, business development, and finance and accounting).

The researcher undertook a series of surveys and one-on-one interviews whilst ‘embedded’ for several months with the organisation. This study is part of an on-going international comparison involving major construction organisations in Singapore, Australia, and Taiwan.

This study examines the recognition, importance and commitment of organisational culture to KM, and the effects the knowledge management initiatives have on the organisation’s ability to manage knowledge across its projects and deliver the projects at various ‘levels’ of the organisation (individual, project, departmental, and corporate).

It concludes that a technologically and functionally sound KM infrastructure did not necessarily assure that an organisation had a capability to manage knowledge. Organisations need to ensure that their KM repository is made up of relevant and quality contents (not just quantity), and that corporate culture (especially the willingness of individuals to share what they know) is a critical determining factor to the organisation’s ability to share, apply and create knowledge (i.e. low sharing capability leads to low application and creation capabilities).

The tsunami of independent directors - how to handle the demand

Good governance is recognized as a fundamental indicator of the success of a company. For a small- midsized company, this is particularly so, as such companies must be able to competitively demonstrate their flexibility in the face of market forces. This flexibility is the primary advantage they hold over larger firms (Dalton, Daily, Ellstrand and Johnson, 1998).

Such companies, however, can find it difficult to attract good directors (Daum and Neff, 2003) and this makes developing improved strategies of governance a challenge. Taylor, Chait and Holland suggest top directors are not attracted to small/ medium companies because "the stakes remain low, the meetings process-driven, the outcomes ambiguous, and the deliberations insular" (Taylor, Chait and Holland, 2001). We suggest that the attraction of quality directors is a uniquely impacting situation for small and mid-size firms, as it is there where additional management resources should be needed most urgently.

Directors on the boards of small-medium sized businesses are often lagging behind directors of large companies in that they are less likely to be independent external directors and are less likely to represent a diversity of attributes (Dalton, Daily, Ellstrand and Johnson, 1998). Arthur Levitt, former United States Securities and Exchange Commission Chair, describes the culture of medium sized business directorships as a "kind of a fraternity of CEOs who serve on one another's boards" (Stainburn, 2005). In addition, evidence suggests directors of small- medium businesses are often insufficiently trained for the role. Uncertain directors may, for example, be unwilling to ask crucial questions of managers before making major decisions. "Board members sometimes are made to feel that asking a thorny question or advancing an alternative opinion is disloyal to the administration" (Taylor, Chait and Holland, 2001).

Small and medium businesses, however, are a growing contributor to the national economies of countries internationally. In New Zealand, small and medium-size firms recording large GDP values, ahead of many large businesses, which makes our investigation into good governance practices of SMEs relevant to suggest areas in which these firms can improve their governance policies and practices.

We have reviewed more than 2,000 directors, executives and investors in New Zealand, making this one of the largest non-government surveys in governance. Supported by 16 large corporate organizations, such as KPMG, Business New Zealand, Simpson Grierson, Brook Asset Management, Porter Novelli, Sheffield and 'Management' Magazine, this work suggests that the current processes through which directors are selected and trained to serve on Boards of small and medium businesses needs to be altered. We are also concerned over the lack of director education and the close involvement of the Chief Executives as members of the Boards. There is a general concern over the lack of director independence and whether directors are effective in their roles.

We are recommending an alternative process for SMEs to select directors, which will hopefully expand the available pool of directors in quantity and quality.

Good governance - not just for the big boys governance in organizations in New Zealand

Good governance is recognized as a fundamental indicator of the success of a company. For a small- midsized company, this is particularly so, as such companies must be able to competitively demonstrate their flexibility in the face of market forces. This flexibility is the primary advantage they hold over larger firms (Dalton, Daily, Ellstrand and Johnson, 1998). Such companies, however, can find it difficult to attract good directors (Daum and Neff, 2003) and this makes developing improved strategies of governance a challenge. Taylor, Chait and Holland suggest top directors are not attracted to small/ medium companies because “the stakes remain low, the meetings process-driven, the outcomes ambiguous, and the deliberations insular” (Taylor, Chait and Holland, 2001). We suggest that the attraction of quality directors is a uniquely impacting situation for small and mid-size firms, as it is there where additional management resources should be needed most urgently. Directors on the boards of small-medium sized businesses are often lagging behind directors of large companies in that they are less likely to be independent external directors and are less likely to represent a diversity of attributes (Dalton, Daily, Ellstrand and Johnson, 1998). Arthur Levitt, former United States Securities and Exchange Commission Chair, describes the culture of medium sized business directorships as a “kind of a fraternity of CEOs who serve on one another's boards” (Stainburn, 2005). In addition, evidence suggests directors of small- medium businesses are often insufficiently trained for the role. Uncertain directors may, for example, be unwilling to ask crucial questions of managers before making major decisions. “Board members sometimes are made to feel that asking a thorny question or advancing an alternative opinion is disloyal to the administration” (Taylor, Chait and Holland, 2001). Small and medium businesses, however, are a growing contributor to the national economies of countries internationally. In New Zealand, small and medium-size firms recording large GDP values, ahead of many large businesses, which makes our investigation into good governance practices of SMEs relevant to suggest areas in which these firms can improve their governance policies and practices. We have reviewed more than 2,000 directors, executives and investors in New Zealand, making this one of the largest non-government surveys in governance. Supported by 16 large corporate organizations, such as KPMG, Business New Zealand, Simpson Grierson, Brook Asset Management, Porter Novelli, Sheffield and ‘Management’ Magazine, this work suggests that the current processes through which directors are selected and trained to serve on Boards of small and medium businesses needs to be altered. We are also concerned over the lack of director education and the close involvement of the Chief Executives as members of the Boards. There is a general concern over the lack of director independence and whether directors are effective in their roles. We are recommending an alternative process for SMEs to select directors, which will hopefully expand the available pool of directors in quantity and quality.

Project quality management for small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in trade

Managing project quality is becoming focal issue in major enterprises as popular quality programs from International Standard Organization (ISO) such as ISO9000 certification processes gain momentum. Large organizations as well as small-medium enterprises (SMEs) seem to implement this program, albeit for varied reasons. In this paper, we have reported the findings from an action research project conducted in SMEs who are implementing quality management. The findings indicate that external pressures such as regulations, competition and perceived success - defined on their own parameters, may be the drivers and the certification does not necessarily result in better performance. We are in the process of developing a cost-effective guideline/framework - based on this research, for SMEs involved in the certification process. In addition, the results are aimed at informing academia as well as certification bodies of specific concerns with SMEs.

A hazardous substance exposure prevention rating method for intervention needs assessment and effectiveness evaluation: the small business exposure index

Aims This paper describes the refinement and adaptation to small business of a previously developed method for systematically prioritizing needs for intervention on hazardous substance exposures in manufacturing worksites, and evaluating intervention effectiveness. Methods We developed a checklist containing six unique sets of yes/no variables organized in a 2 × 3 matrix of exposure potential versus exposure protection at three levels corresponding to a simplified hierarchy of controls: materials, processes, and human interface. Each of the six sets of indicator variables was reduced to a high/moderate/low rating. Ratings from the matrix were then combined to generate an exposure prevention 'Small Business Exposure Index' (SBEI) Summary score for each area. Reflecting the hierarchy of controls, material factors were weighted highest, followed by process, and then human interface. The checklist administered by an industrial hygienist during walk-through inspection (N = 149 manufacturing processes/areas in 25 small to medium-sized manufacturing worksites). One area or process per manufacturing department was assessed and rated. A second hygienist independently assessed 36 areas to evaluate inter-rater reliability. Results The SBEI Summary scores indicated that exposures were well controlled in the majority of areas assessed (58% with rating of 1 or 2 on a 6-point scale), that there was some room for improvement in roughly one-third of areas (31% of areas rated 3 or 4), and that roughly 10% of the areas assessed were urgently in need of intervention (rated as 5 or 6). Inter-rater reliability of EP ratings was good to excellent (e.g., for SBEI Summary scores, weighted kappa = 0.73, 95% CI 0.52–0.93). Conclusion The SBEI exposure prevention rating method is suitable for use in small/medium enterprises, has good discriminatory power and reliability, offers an inexpensive method for intervention needs assessment and effectiveness evaluation, and complements quantitative exposure assessment with an upstream prevention focus.

The impact of management style on the employment relations of different sized organisations

Purpose of the research/paper: The views and values of managers are typically noted as being wedded to unitarist or pluralist ideals. This paper disaggregates these views and values by looking at the impact of various managerial styles on employment relations in different sized organisations.
Methodology: Conceptual with applied support from the secondary literature.
Findings: The paper concludes that large organisations confront conditions and contingencies which allow them to make certain choices about employment relations in ways that are not always available to small to medium sized organisations.

Tracking and tracing applications of 3G for SMEs

With dynamic growth and acceptance of mobile devices, many innovative business applications are beginning to emerge. Tracking and tracing seems to be one of the popular applications which many organisations have initiated, often facilitated by location based services provided by mobile network operators. However, there are many issues associated with the provisioning of this application with current technologies and business models. Small and Medium-size Enterprises (SMEs) that make up a significant segment of businesses worldwide do not yet seem able to benefit widely from these services. In this chapter, we initially review current technologies/ applications and the issues associated with them, drawing from research and the experiences of a long term ongoing action research project with SMEs in the trade sector. Subsequently, we explore the opportunities offered by 3G services/business applications to SMEs, and provide a broad critical outlook on future opportunities for SMEs to benefit from 3G services.

Building health promoting work settings : identifying the relationship between work characteristics and occupational stress in Australia

Occupational stress is a serious threat to the health of individual workers, their families and the community at large. The settings approach to health promotion offers valuable opportunities for developing comprehensive strategies to prevent and reduce job stress. However, there is evidence that many workplace health promotion programs adopt traditional, lifestyle-oriented strategies when dealing with occupational stress, and ignore the impact that the setting itself has on the health of employees. The aim of the present study was to address two of the barriers to adopting the settings approach; namely the lack of information on how psycho-social work characteristics can influence health, and not having the confidence or knowledge to identify or address organizational-level issues. A comprehensive occupational stress audit involving qualitative and quantitative research methods was undertaken in a small- to medium-sized public sector organization in Australia. The results revealed that the work characteristics ‘social support’ and ‘job control’ accounted for large proportions of explained variance in job satisfaction and psychological health. In addition to these generic variables, several job-specific stressors were found to be predictive of the strain experienced by employees. When coupled with the results of other studies, these findings suggest that work characteristics (particularly control and support) offer valuable avenues for creating work settings that can protect and enhance employee health. The implications of the methods used to develop and complete the stress audit are also discussed.

Spatio-temporal selectivity of loss of colour and luminance contrast sensitivity with mutiple sclerosis and optic neuritis

Colour and luminance-contrast thresholds were measured in the presence of dynamic Random Luminance-contrast Masking (RLM) in individuals who had had past diagnoses of optic neuritis (ON) some of whom have progressed to a diagnosis of multiple sclerosis (MS). To explore the spatio-temporal selectivity of chromatic and luminance losses in MS/ON, thresholds were measured using three different sizes and modulation rates of the RLM displays: small checks modulating slowly, medium-sized checks with moderate modulation and large checks modulating rapidly. The colour of the chromatic stimuli used were specified in a cone-excitation space to measure relative impairments in red–green and blue–yellow chromatic channels. These observers showed chromatic thresholds along the L/(L + M) axis that were higher than those along the S-cone axis for all display sizes/modulation rates and both red-green and blue-yellow colour thresholds were higher than luminance-contrast thresholds. The principal change in thresholds with spatio-temporal changes in the display was a reduction in thresholds for L/(L + M) and S-cones with increasing check size and modulation rate. However, luminance contrast thresholds did not change with display size/rate. These results are consistent with MS/ON selectively affecting processing in colour pathways rather than in the magnocellular pathway, and that within the colour pathways neurones with opposed L- and M-cone inputs are more damaged than colour-opponent neurons with input from S-cones.

Australian SMES and e-security guides on trusting the internet

There have been many standards and guides written for the implementation of computer security and information security concentrating on appropriate implementation of procedures for effective information security management. Such guides are limited when dealing with e-business and its implementation by Small and Medium Business Enterprises (SMEs). In Australia the National Office for the Information Economy (NOIE) has released a small business guide for e-security for performing such services while fulfilling the necessary security requirements. This paper presents an overview of this current small business guide to e-security with special reference to deriving a common set of criteria for implementing security measures in the SME e-business environment.

E-business security strategies for SMEs

The major barriers to the Implementation of electronic commerce by businesses globally arc well understood. These comprise security and pnvacy issues, the lack of established regulations governing commercial behaviour and liability, and the lack of universally accepted standards. In this article. we focus on the security concerns of Australian SMEs. Medium, and especially small, enterprises are hindered in the implementation of communications security technology by a lack of expertize and a poor understandmg of the services and resources available to them. As a response to this situation, we examme the facilities avallable to Australian SMEs which help them to make reasonable e- secunty decisions as part of an overall e-busmess strategy. We demonstrate that there are sufficient resources at appropnate levels of availability to enable small and medium Australian enterprises to implement communicatlons security effectively.

Understanding transition towards information security culture change

Transitioning towards an information security culture for organisations has not been adequately explored in the current security and management literature. Many authors have proposed how information security culture can be created, fostered and managed within organisations, but have failed to adequately address the transition process towards information security culture change, particularly for small medium enterprises (SMEs). This paper aims to (1) recapitulate key developments and trends within information security culture literature; (2) explore in detail the transition process towards organisational change; (3) adapt the transition process with respects to the key players involved in transition and propose a transition model for information security culture change; and (4) consider how this model could be used by managers and employees of Australian SMEs. A major intention of this paper is to provide academic researchers and practicing managers with an understanding of the transition process towards achieving information security culture change within SMEs.

E-business security management for Australian micro SMEs - a case study

Small and Medium Business Enterprises (SMEs) make a significant contribution to the economic viability of the Australian economy. The benefits of performing business in an on-line environment has been realised by Australian SMEs as the use of the Internet for performing business activities both with consumers and other businesses continues to increase. The findings of an empirical study and other evidence available indicate the uptake and advancement of performing e-business activities shall be dependent on two key complementary elements: first, the ability of Australian SMEs to secure their e-business systems; and second, the availability of an approach to recommend a practical e-business security management strategy. This paper presents the results of a case study which applied a previously developed methodology to a micro SME e-business system. The purpose was to validate the ability of the Australian Small to Medium Enterprise E-business Security Methodology (ASME-EBSM) to provide an effective security management strategy for Australian SMEs. The outcome demonstrated that this approach was both feasible and realistic for providing recommendations to secure the e-business activities performed and to protect the micro SME e-business system.

The Permian brachiopod genus Trigonotreta Koenig and its occurrence in Argentina

A review of the Permian spiriferid brachiopod genus Trigonolrela and its occurrence in the Early Permian of Argentina is provided herein. Several species are known from the Late Palaeozoic sequences of the Argentinean Precordillera. These include Trigonolrela sp. and Trigonolrela riojanensis (Lech and Acenolaza), from the Rio del Peii.on Formation (Rio Blanco Basin), Trigonolrela pericoensis (Leanza), from the Tupe Formation at the La Herradura creek locality (Paganzo Basin) and Trigonolrela sanjuanensis (Lech and Acenolaza), from Del Salto Formation (Calingasta-Uspallata Basin). These species are characterised by being small to medium sized, relatively transverse, with cardinal extremities often strongly angular. Costae are weakly bifurcated and superimposed on weakly developed lateral flank plications adjacent to the fastigium and sulcus. The Argentinean species are close to the oldest known Indian species of the genus, Trigonotreta hesdoensis (Salmi and Dutt), particularly with respect to the nature of its weakly fasciculated costae. Further study will refine the details of the relationship of the South American species with those from elsewhere in Gondwana and may permit the recognition of a distinctive lineage. The presence of the genus in Argentina in the earliest Permian is an important palaeobiogeographical observation that raises questions about the probable migration routes of the genus from the western Gondwanan South American margin to eastern Australia and India. The Precordilleran region appears to be the likely site of the first appearance of Trigonolrela. Species with relatively simple costae appeared first. These gave rise to more complex species with a more elaborate costal pattern indicating an evolutionary progression through time.