An exploration of the determinants of innovation:the top management team, organisational climate and organisational learning

Some researchers argue that the top team, rather than the CEO, is a better predictor of an organisation’s fate (Finkelstein & Hambrick, 1996; Knight et al., 1999). However, others suggest that the importance of the top management team (TMT) composition literature is exaggerated (West & Schwenk, 1996). This has stimulated a need for further research on TMTs. While the importance of TMT is well documented in the innovation literature, the organisational environment also plays a key role in determining organisational outcomes. Therefore, the inclusion of both TMT characteristics and organisational variables (climate and organisational learning) in this study provides a more holistic picture of innovation. The research methodologies employed includes (i) interviews with TMT members in 35 Irish software companies (ii) a survey completed by managerial respondents and core workers in these companies (iii) in-depth interviews with TMT members from five companies. Data were gathered in two phases, time 1 (1998-2000) and time 2 (2003). The TMT played an important part in fostering innovation. However, it was a group process, rather than team demography, that was most strongly associated with innovation. Task reflexivity was an important predictor of innovation time 1, time 2). Only one measure of TMT diversity was associated with innovation - tenure diversity -in time 2 only. Organisational context played an important role in determining innovation. This was positively associated with innovation - but with one dimension of organisational learning only. The ability to share information (access to information) was not associated with innovation but the motivation to share information was (perceiving the sharing of information to be valuable). Innovative climate was also associated with innovation. This study suggests that this will lead to innovative outcomes if employees perceive the organisation to support risk, experimentation and other innovative behaviours.

The surface of Pseudomonas aeruginosa in cystic fibrosis lung infection

Chronic experimental lung infection in rats was induced by intratracheal inoculation of agar beads containing Pseudomonas aeruginosa. Bacteria were recovered directly without subculture from the lungs of rats at 14 days post-infection and the outer membrane (OM) antigens were studied. The results indicated that bacteria grew under iron-restricted conditions as revealed by the expression of several iron-regulated membrane proteins (IRMPs) which could also be observed when the isolate was grown under iron-depleted conditions in laboratory media. The antibody response to P. aeruginosa OM protein antigens was investigated by immunoblotting with serum and lung fluid from infected rats. These fluids contained antibodies to all the major OM proteins, including the IRMPs, and protein H1. Results obtained using immunoblotting and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay indicated that lipopolysaccharide (LPS) was the major antigen recognised by antibodies in sera from infected rats. The animal model was used to follow the development of the immune response to P. aeruginosa protein and LPS antigens. Immunoblotting was used to investigate the antigens recognised by antibodies in sequential serum samples. An antibody response to the IRMPs and OM proteins D, E, G and H1 and alao to rough LPS was detected as early as 4 days post-infection. Results obtained using immunoblotting and crossed immunoelectrophoresis techniques indicated that there was a progressive increase in the number of P. aeruginosa antigens recognised by antibodies in these sera. Both iron and magnesium depletion influenced protein H1 production. Antibodies in sera from patients with infections due to P. aeruginosa reacted with this antigen. Results obtained using quantitative gas-liquid chromatographic analysis indicated that growth phase and magnesium and iron depletion also affected the amount of LPS fatty acids, produced by P. aeruginosa. The silver stained SDS-polyacrylamide gels of proteinase K digested whole cell lysates of P. aeruginosa indicated that the O-antigen and core LPS were both affected by growth phase and specific nutrient depletion.

Editorial

This second issue of Knowledge Management Research & Practice (KMRP) continues the international nature of the first issue, with papers from authors based on four different continents. There are five regular papers, plus the first of what is intended to be an occasional series of 'position papers' from respected figures in the knowledge management field, who have specific issues they wish to raise from a personal standpoint. The first two regular papers are both based on case studies. The first is 'Aggressively pursuing knowledge management over two years: a case study a US government organization' by Jay Liebowitz. Liebowitz is well known to both academics and practictioners as an author on knowledge management and knowledge based systems. Government departments in many Western countries must soon face up to the problems that will occur as the 'baby boomer' generation reaches retirement age over the next decade. This paper describes how one particular US government organization has attempted to address this situation (and others) through the introduction of a knowledge management initiative. The second case study paper is 'Knowledge creation through the synthesizing capability of networked strategic communities: case study on new product development in Japan' by Mitsuru Kodama. This paper looks at the importance of strategic communities - communities that have strategic relevance and support - in knowledge management. Here, the case study organization is Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corporation (NTT), a Japanese telecommunication firm. The third paper is 'Knowledge management and intellectual capital: an empirical examination of current practice in Australia' by Albert Zhou and Dieter Fink. This paper reports the results of a survey carried out in 2001, exploring the practices relating to knowledge management and intellectual capital in Australia and the relationship between them. The remaining two regular papers are conceptual in nature. The fourth is 'The enterprise knowledge dictionary' by Stuart Galup, Ronald Dattero and Richard Hicks. Galup, Dattero and Hicks propose the concept of an enterprise knowledge dictionary and its associated knowledge management system architecture as offering the appropriate form of information technology to support various different types of knowledge sources, while behaving as a single source from the user's viewpoint. The fifth and final regular paper is 'Community of practice and metacapabilities' by Geri Furlong and Leslie Johnson. This paper looks at the role of communities of practice in learning in organizations. Its emphasis is on metacapabilities - the properties required to learn, develop and apply skills. This discussion takes work on learning and core competences to a higher level. Finally, this issue includes a position paper 'Innovation as an objective of knowledge management. Part I: the landscape of management' by Dave Snowden. Snowden has been highly visible in the knowledge management community thanks to his role as the Director of IBM Global Services' Canolfan Cynefin Centre. He has helped many government and private sector organizations to consider their knowledge management problems and strategies. This, the first of two-part paper, is inspired by the notion of complexity. In it, Snowden calls for what he sees as a 20th century emphasis on designed systems for knowledge management to be consigned to history, and replaced by a 21st century emphasis on emergence. Letters to the editor on this, or any other topic related to knowledge management research and practice, are welcome. We trust that you will find the contributions stimulating, and again invite you to contribute your own paper(s) to future issues of KMRP.

The drying of small drops of particulate slurries

The literature on the evaporation of drops of pure liquids, drops containing solids and droplet sprays has been critically reviewed. An experimental study was undertaken on the drying of suspended drops of pure water and aqueous sodium sulphate decahydrate with concentrations varying from 5 to 54. 1 wt. %. Individual drops were suspended from a glass filament balance in a 26 mm I.D. vertical wind tunnel, designed and constructed to supply hot de-humidified air, to simulate conditions encountered in commercial spray driers. A novel thin film thermocouple was developed to facilitate the simultaneous measurement of drop weight and core temperature. The heat conduction through the thermocouple was reduced because of its unique design; using essentially a single 50μ diameter nickel wire. For pure water drops, the Nusselt number was found to be a function of the Reynolds, Prandtl and Transfer numbers for a temperature range between 19 to 79°C.                  Nu = 2 + 0.19 (1/B)0.24 Re0.5 Pr0.33 Two distinct periods were observed during the drying of aqueous sodium sulphate decahydrate. The first period was characterised by the evaporation from a free liquid surface, whilst drying in the second period was controlled by the crust resistance. Fracturing of the crust occurred randomly but was more frequent at higher concentrations and temperatures. A model was proposed for the drying of slurry drops, based on a receding evaporation interface. The model was solved numerically for the variation of core temperature, drop weight and crust thickness as a function of time. Experimental results were in excellent agreement with the model predictions although at higher temperatures modifications to the model had to be made to accommodate the unusual behaviour of sodium sulphate slurries, i.e. the formation of hydrates.

Are there two distinct populations of cored senile plaques in senile dementia of the Alzheimer type?

The relationship between plaque diameter (PD) and core diameter (CD) was studied in four brains from each of four SDAT brains. The regions studied were parahippocampal gyrus (PHG), hippocampus, frontal and inferior temporal lobes. The largest diameters of 100 cored classical plaques and their cores were measured. CD was positively correlated with PD (Pearson's 'r' 0.4 - 0.95) in all region studied. Significant linear regressions of CD on PD with positive slopes (0.10 - 0.65) were found. Two distinct types of regression were found. Type A had a steep slope and a negative intercept on the ordinate whereas Type B had a shallow slope and a positive intercept. Both types can be found within the same brain but Type A or B predominate in a particular tissue. The data suggest that core development may occur either early or late in the development of the plaque. The two types of plaque may thus have different aetiologies. Such an interpretation is consistent with current ideas of plaque formation.

Mechanisms of drying of skin forming materials

The literature relating to evaporation from single droplets of pure liquids, and to the drying of droplets containing solids and of droplet sprays has been reviewed. The heat and mass transfer rates for a single droplet suspended from a nozzle were studied within a 42mm I.D. horizontal wind tunnel designed to supply hot dry air, to simulate conditions encountered in a practical spray dryer. A novel rotating glass nozzle was developed to facilitate direct measurements of droplet weight and core temperature. This design minimised heat conduction through the nozzle. Revised correlations were obtained for heat and mass transfer coefficients, for evaporation from pure water droplets suspended from a rotating nozzle. Nu = 2.0 + 0.27 (l/B)°-18Re°-5Pr°-83 Sh = 2.0 + 0.575 ((T0-T.)/Tomfc) -o.o4Reo.5 ^0.33 Experimental drying studies were carried out on single droplets of different types of skin-forming materials, namely, custard, gelatin, skim milk and fructose at air temperatures ranging from 19°C to 198°C. Dried crusts were recovered and examined by Scanning Electron Microscopy. Skin-forming materials were classified into three types according to the mechanisms of skin formation. In the first type (typified by droplets of custard and starch) skin formed due to gelatinisation at high temperatures. Increasing the drying temperature resulted in increased crust resistance to mass transfer due to increased granule swelling and the crust resistance was completely transferred to a skin resistance at drying temperatures > 150°C. In the second type e.g. gelatin droplets the skin formed immediately drying had taken place at any drying temperature. At drying temperature > 60° C a more resistant skin was formed. In the third type (typified by droplets of skim milk and fructose) the skin appeared on the droplet surface at a certain stage of the drying process under any drying conditions. As the drying temperature was increased the resistance of the skin to mass transfer increased. The drying rate history of any material depended upon the nature of the skin formed which, in turn, depended upon the drying conditions. A mathematical model was proposed for the drying of the first type of skin-forming material. This was based on the assumption that, once all the granules gelatinised at the gelatinisation temperature, a skin appeared instantaneously on the droplet surface. The experimentally-observed times at which the skin appeared on the droplets surfaces were in excellent agreement with those predicted from the model. The work should assist in understanding the fundamentals of paniculate drying processes, particularly when skin-formation occurs and may be a crucial factor in volatiles retention.

The antioxidant enzyme peroxiredoxin-2 is depleted in lymphocytes seven days after ultra-endurance exercise

Purpose: Peroxiredoxin-2 (PRDX-2) is an antioxidant and chaperone-like protein critical for cell function. This study examined whether the levels of lymphocyte PRDX-2 are altered over one month following ultra-endurance exercise. Methods: Nine middle-aged men undertook a single-stage, multi-day 233 km (145 mile) ultra-endurance running race. Blood was collected immediately before (PRE), upon completion/retirement (POST), and following the race at DAY 1, DAY 7 and DAY 28. Lymphocyte lysates were examined for PRDX-2 by reducing SDS-PAGE and western blotting. In a sub-group of men who completed the race (n = 4) PRDX-2 oligomeric state (indicative of redox status) was investigated. Results: Ultra-endurance exercise caused significant changes in lymphocyte PRDX-2 (F (4,32) 3.409, p=0.020, ?(2) =0.299): seven-days after the race, PRDX-2 levels in lymphocytes had fallen to 30% of pre-race values (p=0.013) and returned to near-normal levels at DAY 28. Non-reducing gels demonstrated that dimeric PRDX-2 (intracellular reduced PRDX-2 monomers) was increased in 3 of 4 race completers immediately post-race, indicative of an "antioxidant response". Moreover, monomeric PRDX-2 was also increased immediately post-race in 2 of 4 race-completing subjects, indicative of oxidative damage, which was not detectable by DAY 7. Conclusions: Lymphocyte PRDX-2 was decreased below normal levels 7 days after ultra-endurance exercise. Excessive accumulation of reactive oxygen species induced by ultra-endurance exercise may underlie depletion of lymphocyte PRDX-2 by triggering its turnover after oxidation. Low levels of lymphocyte PRDX-2 could influence cell function and might, in part, explain reports of dysregulated immunity following ultra-endurance exercise.

DISCUS : an end-to-end solution for ubiquitous broadband optical access

Fiber to the premises has promised to increase the capacity in telecommunications access networks for well over 30 years. While it is widely recognized that optical-fiber-based access networks will be a necessity in the shortto medium-term future, its large upfront cost and regulatory issues are pushing many operators to further postpone its deployment, while installing intermediate unambitious solutions such as fiber to the cabinet. Such high investment cost of both network access and core capacity upgrade often derives from poor planning strategies that do not consider the necessity to adequately modify the network architecture to fully exploit the cost benefit that a fiber-centric solution can bring. DISCUS is a European Framework 7 Integrated Project that, building on optical-centric solutions such as long-reach passive optical access and flat optical core, aims to deliver a cost-effective architecture for ubiquitous broadband services. DISCUS analyzes, designs, and demonstrates end-to-end architectures and technologies capable of saving cost and energy by reducing the number of electronic terminations in the network and sharing the deployment costs among a larger number of users compared to current fiber access systems. This article describes the network architecture and the supporting technologies behind DISCUS, giving an overview of the concepts and methodologies that will be used to deliver our end-to-end network solution. © 2013 IEEE.

Enterprise resource planning and the post bureaucratic organization:'formalization' as trust in the system versus 'solidarity' as trust in individuals

Purpose – The purpose of the paper is to use a case study setting involving the implementation of an enterprise resource planning (ERP) system to expose and analyze the conflicts in the characterizations of the post bureaucratic organisation (PBO) in the literature. ERP implementations are often accompanied by increasing levels of stress in organizations that place pressures on organizational relationships and structures. Additionally, ERPs are regarded as introducing their own techno-logic of centralization, standardization and formalization that provides an apparent contrast to the exhortations about employee empowerment. Design/methodology/approach – A case study of ERP implementation in a medium-sized entity is presented. The paper explores aspects of ERP and PBO from the context of postmodern organization theory. Findings – Some concerns about PBO identified in the literature are reflected in the case situation. For example, there is a commitment to give up private time and work flexibly by some employees. The paper also provides evidence of the way the management team substitute their reliance on a key individual knowledge worker for that of an ERP system and external vendor support. Paradoxically, trust in that same knowledge worker and between core users of the system is essential to enable the implementation of the system. Originality/value – This paper adds empirical insight to a predominantly theoretical literature. The case evidence indicates some conflicting implications in the concurrent adoption of PBO and ERP.

Expression of the proteolysis-inducing factor core peptide mRNA is upregulated in both tumour and adjacent normal tissue in gastro-oesophageal malignancy

Gastro-oesophageal cancer is associated with a high incidence of cachexia. Proteolysis-inducing factor (PIF) has been identified as a possible cachectic factor and studies suggest that PIF is produced exclusively by tumour cells. We investigated PIF core peptide (PIF-CP) mRNA expression in tumour and benign tissue from patients with gastro-oesophageal cancer and in gastro-oesophageal biopsies for healthy volunteers. Tumour tissue and adjacent benign tissue were collected from patients with gastric and oesophageal cancer (n = 46) and from benign tissue only in healthy controls (n = 11). Expression of PIF-CP mRNA was quantified by real-time PCR. Clinical and pathological information along with nutritional status was collected prospectively. In the cancer patients, PIF-CP mRNA was detected in 27 (59%) tumour samples and 31 (67%) adjacent benign tissue samples. Four (36%) gastro-oesophageal biopsies from healthy controls also expressed PIF-CP mRNA. Expression was higher in tumour tissue (P = 0.031) and benign tissue (P = 0.022) from cancer patients compared with healthy controls. In the cancer patients, tumour and adjacent benign tissue PIF-CP mRNA concentrations were correlated with each other (P<0.0001, r = 0.73) but did not correlate with weight loss or prognosis. Although PIF-CP mRNA expression is upregulated in both tumour and adjacent normal tissue in gastro-oesophageal malignancy, expression does not relate to prognosis or cachexia. Post-translational modification of PIF may be a key step in determining the biological role of PIF in the patient with advanced cancer and cachexia. © 2006 Cancer Research.