Managing in the middle: a review of the mddle management experience in the 21st century

Downsizing and organisational restructuring have impacted both the role and the number of middle managers in organisations. .This paper provides a review of recent research on middle management to seek an understanding of the current situation for middle managers as they face the start of the 2rt century. The literature review is presented in two parts - focusing on the position of middle managers as they emerge from downsizing, and drawing attention to the special circumstances for managers "in the middle". The research points to some of the challenges middle managers' experience as they work, live, and survive organisational life, as well as highlighting the need for ongoing investigation of their individual experiences.

Working mothers of children with chronic illness: narratives of working and caring

This paper reports the initial findings of an exploratory, qualitative study of the life and work of people who are working full-time and also caring for a child with chronic illness. The demands of such a lifestyle are significant. Respondents - all women - often reported 'doing-it-all' while constantly being frustrated and challenged in their mothering role.

Towards ending the silence: working women as carers of children with chronic illness/disability

This research presents stories from Australian women who work and care for a child with a significant chronic illness or disability. The paper considers the theory of Silencing the Self (Jack, 1991) in relation to the reported experiences and behaviours of these women. We report three themes of Caring and Working: "Otherness", "Doing it All" - but "Wanting to Live a Normal Life". As in Jack's study, these women engaged in silencing of the self. However, we also observed other people contributing to their silence and, unlike the respondents in Jack's study, many of these women fought the silence and did not accept that their unhappy situations should continue. They sought a life where silencing may not have been necessary.

"Your job no longer exists!" from experiences of alienation to expectations of resilience - a phenomenological study

We have entered the age of the contingent or temporary worker, the consultant and the subcontractor. Workers are expected to be pliable and tractable; to “fit in.” Being made redundant is also an area where modern workers are expected to be flexible and resilient. However, when these so-called “flexible” workers are told their job no longer exists, the accompanying sense of rejection and alienation can be excruciating. Stories of being made redundant were collected during an exploratory, qualitative study, using Heideggerian phenomenology as the methodological vehicle to capture the lived experiences of those affected. Focused, in-depth interviews were conducted with the ten respondents; nine men and one woman. The stories shared suggest that being made redundant is an alienating experience with respondents sharing feelings of powerlessness, shock, betrayal, shame and social isolation. Unfortunately, those having experienced redundancy were also not as resilient as is routinely assumed. They did not “bounce back” unchanged, but reported significant negative outcomes including fear for the future, underemployment, family disruptions and an erosion of trust. Recommendations are made orienting organisations towards a more human process of redundancy.

Preparation and characterisation of new titanium based alloys for orthopaedic and dental applications

Various types of titanium alloys with high strength and low elastic modulus and, at the same time, vanadium and aluminium free have been developed as surgical biomaterials in recent years. Moreover, porous metals are promising hard tissue implants in orthopaedic and dentistry, where they mimic the porous structure and the low elastic modulus of natural bone. In the present study, new biocompatible Ti-based alloy foams with approximate relative densities of 0.4, in which Sn and Nb were added as alloying metals, were synthesised through powder metallurgy method.
The new alloys were prepared by mechanical alloying and subsequently sintered at high temperature using a vacuum furnace. The characteristics and the processability of the ball milled powders and the new porous titanium-based alloys were characterised by X-ray diffraction, optical
microscopy and scanning electron microscopy .The mechanical properties of the new titanium alloys were examined by Vickers microhardness measurements and compression testing.

Stories of ambivalence : Australian executives' experiences of outplacement services

The increasing prevalence of organizational downsizing has been matched by growth in the provision of outplacement services. Yet there has been limited research on either the effectiveness of these programs or the experience of individuals undertaking them. Within a qualitative study investigating the experiences of Australian executives who had been made redundant, one of the focus areas explored was the experience of using outplacement services. Respondents' stories revealed a sense of ambivalence towards these programs. This paper discusses the conflicting experiences giving rising to this ambivalence, namely, positive outcomes with respect to the use of office services and the receiving of proactive support, and more negative aspects of an absence of counselling skills and impersonal treatment through the organizational exit process. It is argued that further research on the outplacement experience is required to determine the type and quality of services which will best serve those who have been made redundant.

The meaning of work : employees as stakeholders in organizational experience

Researchers and commentators have highlighted changes to individuals' understanding of the meaning of work over time, and particularly the increasing centrality of work in many people's lives today. This highlights the stakeholder role of employees not only in ensuring the organization's long-term viability, but for the organizational culture and overall workplace experience. The concepts of workplace spirituality and authentic leadership have both received attention as tools to aid in employees' connectedness wit the organization and in providing an environment where employees can bring their 'whole self' into the workplace. This paper discusses how these concepts assist in providing understanding of individuals' meaning of work, and highlights questions for future research consideration.

Telling it how it really is?

Heideggerian phenomenology is expounded here as a qualitative methodology of value in researching "how things really are" in organizational life. It is a methodology, and a philosophy, that recognizes a priori the value of the subjective, lived experience of the individual, and the physical, sociological, and psychological phenomena that come together to create a life-world. In this paper, the authors present three cases where this methodology successfully revealed the employee's reality. Stories about working in teams, being downsized, and having an unseen chronic illness at work are shared to demonstrate the ability of Heideggerian phenomenology to reveal how life really is in organizations. The benefit for HR practitioners and managers is an increased understanding of and, hence, ability to address these sensitive and often unspoken aspects of organizational life.

Towards ending the silence: working women caring for children with chronic illness

This paper presents stories from women who work and care for a child with a significant chronic illness or disability. The purpose of this paper is to move towards ending the silence on their lives. A three-phase emergent research design responds to the question: What is life like for a full-time worker who is concurrently the primary carer of a chronically ill child? This paper considers the theory of Silencing the Self (Jack, 1991) in relation to the emergent themes of “Otherness” and “Doing it All.” As in Jack’s study, these women also engaged in silencing of the self. However, unlike the respondents in Jack’s study, these women did not demonstrate feelings of worthlessness and hopelessness for the future, nor were they alone in contributing to their silence. Indeed, many experienced silencing behaviors from others around them, and many rallied against the silence, not accepting that their burden should continue. Consideration of Jack’s theory is made to point out the distinctions between the women in this study and Jack’s study, and analytical commentary is provided to demonstrate the relevance of this analysis in light of the current debates surrounding the Work–Home Conflict and the rising levels of informal care provided by women in our communities.

Verdi's Settings of Shakespeare : from Play to Liberetto to Opera

As a Senior Scholar pursuing the topic, Verdi's Settings of Shakespeare: From Play to Libretto to Opera, I have endeavoured to study a project relevant to my majors, Music and English. During first semester, I carefully analysed Shakespeare's plays, Macbeth, Othello and Falstaff. The highlight of my project was in January when I travelled to New York City and spent the day working with the Metropolitan Opera Guild. I was also able to see a performance of Verdi's Othello with Jon Vickers in the lead role. During the second semester, I studied the musical aspects of the compositions. I spent time analysing musical passages and relating them to the plays and the operas. I was also able to continue my study of Italian, which I find extremely beneficial while studying Verdi's libretti. On Monday, 13th May, 1974, I gave a lecture presentation of my project. At this time, I showed slides of Metropolitan productions of the operas, presented my own rendition of five arias (in costume) and talked about comparisions between the plays and the operas. I applied for a Rotary Fellowship to take my project to Europe and am presently waiting to hear the results. If I do receive the fellowship, I am planning to spend a year studying the plays and operas in England and Italy. Afterwards, I hope to publish a paper explaining my findings. The paper is divided into six sections. The first section is an introduction which explains the period of Romanticism and its relationship to Shakespeare and Verdi. The second section is devoted to discussing the librettist for Macbeth, Francesco Piave. Following this section the opera Macbeth is discussed. Arrigo Boito, the librettist for Otello and Falstaff is discussed in the fourth section. The last two sections deal with Otello and Falstaff. I have also included a number of musical selections to better explain certain passages. My project has been invaluable to me. My Senior Scholar project has allowed me the freedom of independent study as well as a means of tying my majors together.

Being made redundant: from 'the writing on the wall' to 'a bolt from the blue' - 'being disposed of' as a human tragedy

This paper focuses on the experience of being made redundant. A qualitative study conducted in Australia involved phenomenological, in-depth interviews with middle- and senior-level executives. Ten respondents were interviewed about their experiences of being made redundant. What is evident from their stories is a clear passage of "being disposed of" differing only in whether their fate was evident prior to their disposal - "the writing on the wall" - or whether it was a complete shock - "a bolt from the blue". Ultimately, whether respondents knew what was coming or not, the process was often shocking, hurtful, humiliating, and harsh. Many respondents reported going through the process of being made redundant more than once. All believed it could have been handled better.

Telling it how it really is? : life in organisations revealed using Heideggerian phenomenology

Heideggerian phenomenology is expounded here as a qualitative methodology of value in researching "how things really are" in organisational life. It is a methodology, and a philosophy, which recognises a priori the value ofthe subjective, lived experience of the informant, and the physical, sociological and psychological phenomena that come together to create their life-world. In this paper, the authors present cases where this methodology successfully revealed the respondents' reality. Stories about working in teams and being downsized are shared to demonstrate the ability of Heideggerian phenomenology to reveal how life really is in organisations.

Working parents of children with chronic illness/disability: narratives of concern

This paper reports some initial findings of an exploratory, qualitative study of the life and work of people who are, concurrently, parents of a child with chronic illness/disability and working full time. The respondents of this study happen to be all women. Two emerging themes of interest are explored here. The first is a revisit of traditional notions of the abusive workplace, which seems to be of special interest when considering the plight of these women. Secondly, the numerous work and home demands on the working mother, especially the working mother of a child with chronic illness or disability. [twas unsurprising that these women reported extensive and multiple physical and emotional demands while trying to manage full time work with significant home and caring responsibilities. What is surprising is that these narratives of concern have not previously been explored, and should be.

Gender and IT : ongoing challenges for computing and information technology education in Australian secondary education

# 1. Introduction. Exploring the gender and IT problem and possible ways forward /​ Julianne Lynch
# 2. The imagined curriculum: who studies Computing and Information Technology subjects at the senior secondary level? /​ Margaret Vickers and My Trinh Ha
# 3. A question of attention: challenges for researching the under representation of girls in Computing and Information Technology subjects /​ Leonie Rowan
# 4. The nature and purpose of Computing and Information Technology subjects in the senior secondary school curriculum in New South Wales /​ Toni Downes
# 5. The social construction of Computing and Information Technology subject subculture /​ Catherine Harris
# 6. Boy nerds, girl nerds: constituting and negotiating Computing and Information Technology and peer groups as gendered subjects in schooling /​ Kerry Robinson and Cristyn Davies
# 7. CIT teachers' cultures in a globalising world /​ Carol Reid and Jose van der Akker
# 8. Perceptions of changing pedagogies in Computing and Information Technology /​ Susanne Gannon