Enhancing business intelligence traceability through an integrated metadata framework

The Business Intelligence (BI) system provides users with multi-dimensional information (so-called BI product) to support their decision-making. However, very often business users still could not fully understand the BI product, nor have a clear picture of the entire information manufacturing chain of the BI product. In response to this situation, this paper presents an integrated metadata framework (“BIP-Map”) to facilitate the traceability and accountability of a BI product following the design science research approach. Specifically, the salient modelling and management techniques from the business process modelling notation (BPMN), the information product map (IP-Map), and the metadata management are adapted to construct a three-layered integrated metadata framework enabling the business users to make timely and informed decisions. A BIP-Map informed prototype system has been developed in collaboration with online job recruitment firms. The authors conducted in-depth interviews with seven key BI stakeholders of the recruitment firms to evaluate the usefulness of the BIP-Map. It is envisaged that the metadata framework allows the technical personnel to understand the business processes that relate to certain information provided in the BI reports. Business users will also be able to gain insights into the logic behind any BI report.

Proposal of a tiered conceptual framework for sustainable design and planning of large-scale development projects in the metropolitan context

The overwhelming threat posed by climate change means that increasingly, emphasis is being placed on the need to integrate sustainability considerations into all areas of policy making, planning and development. Actors in the built environment are progressively considering environmental and social issues alongside functional and economic aspects of development projects. However, to date in Australia and internationally, there have been few practical examples of integrated applications of sustainability principles in the built environment across design, planning, construction, operation and de-construction phases. Notable initiatives have tended to be narrow in scope, focusing on either mitigation or adaptation strategies. Integrated considerations of impacts from component and building scales to city and regional scales and across physical and socio-economic dimensions are urgently needed, particularly for long-life major infrastructure projects. This paper proposes a conceptual framework based on the principal that early intervention is the most cost-effective and efficient means of implementing effective strategies for mitigation and adaptation. A Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) approach is forwarded as an umbrella analytical framework, assembled from analytical methods which are strategically ‘tiered’ to inform different stages of the planning and decision-making process. Techniques such as Ecological footprint, Life cycle costing and Risk analysis may be applied to integrate sustainable design, construction and planning considerations which address both mitigation and adaptation dimensions, results of each analysis ultimately being collated into the overall SEA. This integrated conceptual framework for sustainable, resilient and cost-effective infrastructure development will in practice be applied to assess selected case-studies of major development projects in Australia, focusing on the area of stadium development. Practically applied and timed accordingly, the framework would allow assessments to be targeted towards appropriate decision making levels and enable better decision-making and more efficient resource allocation for major infrastructure development projects.

Are metropolitan planning frameworks healthy? The case of Melbourne 2030

This paper presents preliminary findings of a project investigating the integration and application of ecological public health principles in Melboume 2030, the Victorian Government's urban planning blueprint for Melboume for the next 30 years. The study examines the political, organisational, social, and inter-personal factors that impact on the integration and application of broad health considerations into urban planning policy in Victoria. We are testing the premise that achieving integrated planning requires a systematic integration of government activity across sectors. Using discourse analysis and key informant interviews, we examined relevant government policy and legislation and its implementation against world's best practice. Preliminary findings show that the degree of leadership in relation to deploying the mission, and implementation processes sustain or impede integrated planning at a whole-of-government and intersectoral level.

These findings may inform a much-needed national agenda on promoting health through integrated planning. Findings will identify future research directions and action to bridge the gap between urban planning and health planning systems

Evaluation of the environments for health framework

Environments for Health, Five Years On…
Since its release in 2001, Victoria’s Environments for Health Municipal Public Heath Planning Framework, has represented a leading edge approach to supporting quality public health planning at the local government level.

In 2006 the Department of Human Services appointed an external evaluation team from Deakin and Melbourne Universities to assess the introduction of the Environments for Health framework to municipal public health planning and to make recommendations for its future direction.

The evaluation aimed to determine the extent to which Environments for Health and related implementation activities had:

* been incorporated by local governments in their policies and practices
* created greater opportunities for health gain, and
* been supported effectively by the Department of Human Services and other stakeholders

The evaluation project involved participation from a broad range of key stakeholders, including all local Councils within Victoria. Data collection covered four distinct stages - document analysis, key informant interviews, state-wide survey of practitioners, and council and stakeholder forums, all with opportunities for input to the evaluation.

Small firm e-business adoption : a critical analysis of theory

Purpose – The paper critiques a range of theories and evaluates their ability to provide a lens for explaining the idiosyncratic nature of small firms and their e-business adoption decisions.

Design/methodology/approach – This literature review firstly summarises the existing research evidence that shows that small firms are idiosyncratic when it comes to e-business adoption. It then critiques theories commonly used in the literature in this field to examine the extent to which they take this small firm idiosyncrasy into account when explaining e-business adoption decisions.

Findings – The critical analysis shows that no commonly-used theory adequately explains small firm adoption of e-business because each omits important aspects of small firm idiosyncrasy. The analysis suggests that an integrated theoretical framework is needed. Preliminary ideas on this framework are provided.

Originality/value – Existing research generally applies a small number of selected theories and formulates research models of adoption factors. However, there is no systematic analysis of theories in this field and no consensus about theoretical frameworks. This paper addresses this limitation of the literature by critically evaluating the commonly used theories in terms of their individual suitability as lenses for explaining small firm e-business adoption.

The place of place : case studies of place in Victorian planning schemes

Built environment and lived experience are inextricably interwoven. The Australian State of Victoria’s planning framework prioritises the physical characteristics of space above their socio-psychological correlates, as reflected in the relatively limited remit of ‘place’ in formal decision-making. The Victorian planning model struggles to accommodate the uniqueness of specific places in the process of development, despite the driving role it plays in expansion. A literature review investigating definitions of place and place identity determined that although place has been defined variously, and at times with some contradiction, there is broad consensus that it can be understood as the interrelation between the physical characteristics of a landscape and the sensory faculties of an individual and an individual’s experience. This interrelationship is in turn determined by social constructs. Depending on an individual’s length of residence in a particular physical location, place influences individual and social psychology through both the formation of place attachment and identity. While place attachment to landscapes has been described using a variety of complex methodologies, translation of this work into architectural and planning practice has been limited within Australia in general and Victoria in particular. The Victorian Shires of Surf Coast and Frankston are considered as examples of current best practice in integrating place into planning. Key issues highlighted in the conclusion include: the difficulties of incorporating qualitative information within the Victorian Planning Scheme; the importance of correctly measuring place attachment, rather than landscape preference; and the complexities, costs and ethical implications of describing place attachment for integration within the planning system.

Human dignity and vulnerable agency : an ethical framework for forensic practice

In this paper, we present an integrated ethical framework that covers the different levels of ethical tasks inherent in forensic and correctional work. First, we briefly give an overview of the ethical framework and its component notion of human dignity. Second we analyze in depth the concept of dignity and its relationship to normative theories and ethical concepts that are particularly relevant for forensic practitioners. Third, we explore the capacity of the conceptions of human dignity and vulnerable agency to integrate principles typically contained in ethical codes and practice, such as beneficence, autonomy, and justice. Fourth, we discuss how conflict between ethical codes or duties of station adhered to by practitioners can be effectively addressed in light of the model of dignity and agency outlined earlier. Fifth, we explain how individuals' specific ethical judgments and actions should proceed in light of our framework model.

Can a modelling exercise be developed to aid and foster sustainable planning processes and guide the future growth of a small coastal Australian city?

Over the past few decades coastal cities around the world have grown at an incredible rate. With this growth have come major challenges relating to land use planning, social relationships, economic development, bio diversity and the ecological footprint. Three forces are working to influence the growth rate in coastal cities. They include: -population growth (i.e. the type and quantity of human demand for land), the existing and future properties of the land (i.e. current land status or changes due to nature and human activities), and finally technical changes to a land system (i.e. rezoning or the influence of other external factors). The goal of this research was to determine whether a planning framework could model the three (population growth, the existing and future properties of land and technical changes to a land system) variables in order to assist smaller councils undertaking long term land use planning decisions. The test site for the research was the City of Portland in western Victoria, Australia.

The Challenges of Developing, Implementing, and Evaluating Interventions

This article discusses the practical challenges and difficulties in introducing and evaluating organizational interventions. Its overall purpose is to examine the key steps involved in planning, implementing, and evaluating organizational well-being interventions and identify the major challenges confronting coordinators at each stage of the program planning, implementation, and evaluation cycle. It draws on the literature to identify the strategies coordinators can employ to help overcome these challenges. The intervention development and evaluation framework presented in this article, as well as the likely challenges and suggested means of addressing these challenges, have been largely informed by the workplace health promotion and organizational development literature. These disciplines are underpinned by guiding principles and values that have influenced both the content of the planning framework and the methods for overcoming key challenges.

Improving the health of Australians by applying evidence from behavioural epidemiology to urban design projects

Rapid urban population growth in Australia requires an expansion of supporting hard and soft infrastructure. In the State of Victoria, directing this growth are a number of urban design and planning mechanisms that provide a ‘blueprint for development and investment’. Although topics revolving around physical health are present in these and other planning related documents, largely absent from this literature are ‘tools’ to assist decision makers in determining whether or not an urban setting supports physical health and provides opportunities for physical activity. Insufficient physical activity is a risk factor contributing to Australia’s growing and significant burden of chronic disease including cardiovascular disease, Type 2 diabetes and overweight/obesity. The potential of the built environment to influence population-level physical activity is well recognised. A key element in Victoria’s planning framework that can help address these health concerns is the provision and redevelopment of open space(s) in urban areas that provide opportunities for people of all ages and abilities to engage in physical activity. However, in the realisation of these settings, evidence informing the design of urban open space(s) that promote opportunities for physical activity is needed to produce evidence based decision making. Using the three geo-spatial visioning layers embedded in Victoria’s planning framework (i.e. Growth Area Framework Plans, Precinct Structure Plans and Planning Permits) as positioning instruments, this paper merges the fields of behavioural epidemiology and urban design to: i) provide a brief overview of current research relating to design of open space to optimise usage and physical activity, ii) consider what type of evidence relating to features of open space is needed to help inform decision makers, iii) consider the methods and procedures practitioners may use to incorporate evidence in to their planning, and iv) discuss the geo-spatial development level that the respective data can best assist decision making to achieve positive gains in physical health.

A multi-agent framework for financial investment planning

If a company or person wants to invest a lot of money, where, when, and how should the investment go? A multi-agent based Financial Investment Planner may give some reasonable answers to the above question. Good advice is mainly based on adequate information, rich knowledge, and great
skills to use knowledge and information. To this end, this planner consists of four principal components information gathering agents that are responsible for gathering relevant information on the Internet, data mining agents that are in charge of discovering knowledge from retrieved information as well as other relevant databases, group decision making agents that can effectively use available knowledge and appropriate information to make reasonable decisions (investment advice), and a graphical user interface that interacts with users. This paper is focused on the group decision making part. The design and implementation of an agent-based hybrid intelligent system - agent-based soft computing society are detailed.

From policy to practice: the development of an integrated health promotion plan for children's services at Plenty Valley Community Health Inc.

Current changes in the funding of health promotion in community health in Victoria require community health agencies to integrate health promotion with service delivery. This provides both opportunities and challenges for community health staff. Members of the Children’s Service Team at Plenty Valley Community Health Inc. addressed these changes by developing an integrated health promotion plan. The approach used involved identifying client pathways and then integrating opportunities for health promotion interventions into these pathways. Staff perceptions of the process involved in developing the plan were examined. The use of client pathways to integrate health promotion into everyday practice proved a successful approach for members of the Children’s Services Team, and provides a useful model for health promotion planning in community health that helps staff to see the relevance of health promotion to their practice, and engages staff in the planning process. Members of the Children’s Services Team reported that the process involved in developing their integrated health promotion plan was a very worthwhile experience that allowed them a strong sense of ownership of the plan.

A conceptual framework of e-fraud control in an integrated supply chain

The integration of supply chains offers many benefits; yet, it may also render organisations more vulnerable to electronic fraud (e-fraud). E-fraud can drain on organisations’ financial resources, and can have a significant adverse effect on the ability to achieve their strategic objectives. Therefore, efraud control should be part of corporate board-level due diligence, and should be integrated into organisations’ practices and business plans.
Management is responsible for taking into consideration the relevant cultural, strategic and implementation elements that inter-relate with each other and to coordinating the human, technological and financial resources necessary to designing and implementing policies and procedures for controlling e-fraud. Due to the characteristics of integrated supply chains, a move from the traditional vertical approach to a systemic, horizontal-vertical approach is necessary. Although the e-fraud risk cannot be eliminated, risk mitigation policies and processes tailored to an organisation’s particular vulnerabilities can significantly reduce the risk and may even preclude certain classes of frauds.
In this paper, a conceptual framework of e-fraud control in an integrated supply chain is proposed. The proposed conceptual framework can help managers and practitioners better understand the issues and plan the activities involved in a systemic, horizontal-vertical approach to e-fraud control in an integrated supply chain, and can be a basis upon which empirical studies can be build.