THE FEASIBILITY OF USING WEB-BASED TECHNOLOGY FOR THE MANAGEMENT OF DREDGING PROJECTS

The research investigates the feasibility of using web-based project management systems for dredging. To achieve this objective the research assessed both the positive and negative aspects of using web-based technology for the management of dredging projects. Information gained from literature review and prior investigations of dredging projects revealed that project performance, social, political, technical, and business aspects of the organization were important factors in deciding to use web-based systems for the management of dredging projects. These factors were used to develop the research assumptions. An exploratory case study methodology was used to gather the empirical evidence and perform the analysis. An operational prototype of the system was developed to help evaluate developmental and functional requirements, as well as the influence on performance, and on the organization. The evidence gathered from three case study projects, and from a survey of 31 experts, were used to validate the assumptions. Baselines, representing the assumptions, were created as a reference to assess the responses and qualitative measures. The deviation of the responses was used to evaluate for the analysis. Finally, the conclusions were assessed by validating the assumptions with the evidence, derived from the analysis. The research findings are as follows: 1. The system would help improve project performance. 2. Resistance to implementation may be experienced if the system is implemented. Therefore, resistance to implementation needs to be investigated further and more R&D work is needed in order to advance to the final design and implementation. 3. System may be divided into standalone modules in order to simplify the system and facilitate incremental changes. 4. The QA/QC conceptual approach used by this research needs to be redefined during future R&D to satisfy both owners and contractors. Yin (2009) Case Study Research Design and Methods was used to develop the research approach, design, data collection, and analysis. Markus (1983) Resistance Theory was used during the assumptions definition to predict potential problems to the implementation of web-based project management systems for the dredging industry. Keen (1981) incremental changes and facilitative approach tactics were used as basis to classify solutions, and how to overcome resistance to implementation of the web-based project management system. Davis (1989) Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) was used to assess the solutions needed to overcome the resistances to the implementation of web-base management systems for dredging projects.

National evaluation of NHS genetics service investments: emerging issues from the cancer genetics pilots

In seeking to fulfil the ambition of the 2003 genetics white paper, Our Inheritance, Our Future, to ���mainstream��� genetic knowledge and practices, the Department of Health provided start-up funding for pilot services in various clinical areas, including seven cancer genetics projects. To help to understand the challenges encountered by such an attempt at reconfiguring the organization and delivery of services in this field, a programme-level evaluation of the genetics projects was commissioned to consider the organizational issues faced. Using a qualitative approach, this research has involved comparative case-study work in 11 of the pilot sites, including four of the seven cancer genetics pilots. In this paper, the researchers present early findings from their work, focusing in particular on the cancer genetics pilots. They consider some of the factors that have influenced how the pilots have sought to address pre-existing sector, organizational and professional boundaries to these new ways of working. The article examines the relationship between these factors and the extent to which pilots have succeeded in setting up boundary-spanning services, dealing with human-resource issues and creating sustainable, ���mainstreamed��� provision which attracts ongoing funding in a volatile NHS commissioning environment where funding priorities do not always favour preventive, risk-assessment services.

Suosittelulla lis���� uusia asiakkaita

Asiakashankintaa tehd����n monin tavoin. Suosittelua asiakashankinnan keinona on tutkittu tieteellisiss�� tutkimuksissa melko v��h��n. T��m��n tutkimuksen tavoitteena on selvitt���� asiakashankinnan ja suosittelun nykytilaa kohdeorganisaatiossa, kehitt���� suosittelua osaksi myyntiprosessia ja tunnistaa aineettomia resursseja, joita voidaan hy��dynt���� asiakashankinnan ja suosittelun tehostamisessa tietojohtamisen avulla. Tutkimus on kvalitatiivinen tapaustutkimus ja sen tavoitteisiin pyrit����n vastaamaan survey kyselyn sek�� puolistrukturoitujen haastatteluiden (14kpl) avulla. Tutkimuksen kohdeorganisaationa on Suomessa toimiva pankki- ja rahoitusalan yhti��. Suosittelun k��ytt���� asiakashankinnan keinoa tutkittiin kohdeorganisaation yrityksen pankkineuvojien ja heid��n esimiesten n��k��kulmasta. Empiirinen tutkimus antaa vastauksen asetettuihin tutkimuskysymyksiin sek�� vastaa tutkimuksen tavoitteisiin. Tutkimuksessa l��ydettiin suositteluun ja yleisesti asiakashankintaan liittyvi�� aineettomia resursseja, joita hy��dynt��m��ll�� ja johtamalla suosittelun nykyist�� k��ytt���� voidaan kehitt���� tehokkaammaksi.

Internationalization of IT company: Case study of a Finnish MOOC platform

The interest to small and media size enterprises��� (SMEs) internationalization process is increasing with a growth of SMEs��� contribution to GDP. Internet gives an opportunity to provide variety of services online and reach market niche worldwide. The overlapping of SMEs��� internationalization and online services is the main issue of the research. The most SMEs internationalize according to intuitive decisions of CEO of the company and lose limited resources to worthless attempts. The purpose of this research is to define effective approaches to online service internationalization and selection of the first international market. The research represents single holistic case study of local massive open online courses (MOOCs) platform going global. It considers internationalization costs and internationalization theories applicable to online services. The research includes preliminary screening of the markets and in-depth analysis based on macro parameters of the market and specific characteristics of the customers and expert evaluation of the results. The specific issues as GILT (Globalization, Internationalization, Localization and Translation) approach and Internet-enabled internationalization are considered. The research results include recommendations on international market selection methodology for online services and for effective internationalization strategy development.

Pillars and Elements to Develop an Open Business Model for Innovation Networks

Part 9: Innovation Networks

A mensura����o e articula����o de objetivos qualitativos na avalia����o de desempenho : o caso do Grupo Pestana

Mestrado em Contabilidade, Fiscalidade e Finan��as Empresariais

A import��ncia dos m��dulos log��sticos do SIG na reorganiza����o logistica e financeira do Ex��rcito

No ��mbito do plano curricular do Mestrado em Administra����o Militar (AdMil) procedemos �� realiza����o do presente Trabalho de Investiga����o Aplicada (TIA) intitulado de ���A import��ncia dos m��dulos log��sticos do SIG na reorganiza����o log��stica e financeira do Ex��rcito���. �� de referir que este assunto �� de total interesse porque se enquadra no objetivo estrat��gico do Ex��rcito (OEPB10) que visa incrementar a gest��o de recursos apoiada em sistemas de informa����o publicados na Diretiva de Planeamento do Ex��rcito para o bi��nio 2015 e 2016. O objetivo geral desta investiga����o �� explicar se as funcionalidades do m��dulo MM do SIG respondem ��s necessidades do Ex��rcito. Pretendemos tamb��m identificar se o processo de compras log��stico �� utilizado em pleno, determinar se �� poss��vel fazer uma an��lise das compras j�� efetuadas e em curso, determinar se o Ex��rcito em SIG consegue gerir as suas exist��ncias em quantidade e valor, identificar se existe gest��o de necessidades de reabastecimento das U/E/O em SIG e expor as vantagens e inconvenientes da sua utiliza����o, descrever as vantagens da migra����o dos dados para a aplica����o SIG de outras aplica����es usadas para a gest��o de stocks. O m��dulo MM do SIG integra a administra����o de materiais, planeamento, controlo dos materiais, compras, recebimentos de mercadorias, administra����o de stocks e verifica����o de faturas. A presente investiga����o trata-se de um estudo de caso, para tal recorremos ao m��todo hipot��tico-dedutivo e aplic��mos um estudo explorat��rio/descritivo. Nesta investiga����o procedeu-se �� recolha de informa����o atrav��s de inqu��ritos por entrevista e por question��rio, tendo sido selecionado consequentemente um m��todo misto (qualitativo e quantitativo). Ap��s a an��lise e discuss��o dos resultados conclu��mos que as funcionalidades do m��dulo MM do SIG implementado no Ex��rcito n��o respondem na totalidade ��s necessidades do Ex��rcito, em determinadas classes de abastecimento no ��mbito das exist��ncias. Assim �� de salientar que do antecedente foram implementadas as ferramentas MM compras centrais e locais, e desde o ano de 2014, t��m sido implementados em sistema a gest��o dos combust��veis e neste momento o fardamento. Acrescentamos que o m��dulo MM est�� integrado e como tal h�� necessidade de resolver v��rios problemas considerados externos, nomeadamente a agiliza����o do processo da cataloga����o, a descentraliza����o das compras que leva a que as U/E/O recorram maioritariamente �� utiliza����o de NNA gen��ricos, n��o possibilitando a gest��o dos materiais em sistema SIG, o que resulta posteriormente numa apresenta����o incorreta da conta 3 das exist��ncias no balan��o.

Management of industrialization projects

Short time-to-market is a key success factor in the todays��� dynamic business environment and many companies are trying to improve their product development processes. A challenge is to develop products according to the time plan and at the same time keeping the cost low and the quality high. This study focuses on the project management within the product development process in an automotive industry. The background of this study started as a request from the research and development department at the automotive company, which led to the following questions; 1) what are the most crucial factors for project success? 2) How can these factors contribute to a more successful outcome? 3) How can project management decrease product development lead time by sharing knowledge? The research approach is a case study and the data collection consist of interviews and questioners at two companies connected to project management in product development projects. Spider charts are created from the collected data containing eleven dimensions to show similarities and differences between the project managers working within the research and development department as well as between the two companies. The main conclusions are that there is a need to allow a certain level of flexibility when managing projects, in order to more easily handle late changes. Being involved in a project from the concept phase could facilitate the product development activities later on, due to a deeper understanding regarding previous decisions. Further, knowledge sharing methods, such as databases, has to be designed to be suitable for a specific organization and user friendly which enables the users to more easily search for specific types of knowledge. Lastly, a low level on the detailed focus is shown to be another success factor, however, in some cases there is still a need of this detailed focus to solve specific problems but the details may never become a higher focus than the holistic view.

The characteristics of depressive symptoms in medical students during medical education and training: a cross-sectional study

Background: Medical education and training can contribute to the development of depressive symptoms that might lead to possible academic and professional consequences. We aimed to investigate the characteristics of depressive symptoms among 481 medical students (79.8% of the total who matriculated). Methods: The Beck Depression Inventory (BDI) and cluster analyses were used in order to better describe the characteristics of depressive symptoms. Medical education and training in Brazil is divided into basic (1(st) and 2(nd) years), intermediate (3(rd) and 4(th) years), and internship (5(th) and 6(th) years) periods. The study organized each item from the BDI into the following three clusters: affective, cognitive, and somatic. Statistical analyses were performed using analysis of variance (ANOVA) with post-hoc Tukey corrected for multiple comparisons. Results: There were 184 (38.2%) students with depressive symptoms (BDI > 9). The internship period resulted in the highest BDI scores in comparison to both the basic (p < .001) and intermediate (p < .001) periods. Affective, cognitive, and somatic clusters were significantly higher in the internship period. An exploratory analysis of possible risk factors showed that females (p = .020) not having a parent who practiced medicine (p = .016), and the internship period (p = .001) were factors for the development of depressive symptoms. Conclusion: There is a high prevalence towards depressive symptoms among medical students, particularly females, in the internship level, mainly involving the somatic and affective clusters, and not having a parent who practiced medicine. The active assessment of these students in evaluating their depressive symptoms is important in order to prevent the development of co-morbidities and suicide risk.

Environmental sustainability in superior education: case study of Lisbon College of Health Technology

Over the centuries there has been a growing trend of societies and it is possible to verify their economic growth. This growth has provided an increased pressure on natural resources, often over-reaching the boundaries of each country, which has called into question the level of environmental sustainability in different countries. Sustainability is understood as a complex concept involving ecological, social, economic dimensions and temporal urban processes. Therefore, Firmino (2009) suggests that the ecological footprint (EF) allows people to establish dependency relations between human activities and the natural resources required for such activities and for the absorption of waste generated. According to Bergh & Verbruggen (1999) the EF is an objective, impartial and one-dimensional indicator that enables people to assess the sustainability. The Superior Schools have a crucial role in building the vision of a sustainable future as a reality, because in transmitting values and environmental principles to his students, are providing that they, in exercising his professional activity, make decisions weighing the environmental values. This ensures improved quality of life. The present study aims to determine the level of environmental sustainability of the Academic Community of Lisbon College of Health Technology (ESTeSL), by calculating the EF, and describe whether a relation between Footprint and various socio-demographic characteristics of the subjects.

Knowledge sharing and learning processes: case study of portuguese technological schools and higher education institutions

Paper to be presented at the ESREA Conference Learning to Change? The Role of Identity and Learning Careers in Adult Education, 7-8 December, 2006, Universit�� Catholique Louvain, Louvain���la-Neuve, Belgium

Developing corporate image in higher education sector: a case study of University of East Anglia Norwich, United Kingdom��� [de] Muhammad Amjad, Muhammad Moazam Fraz [recens��o cr��tica]

Recens��o cr��tica do livro "AMJAD, Muhammad; FRAZ, Muhammad Moazam - Developing corporate image in higher education sector: a case study of University of East Anglia Norwich, United Kingdom. Lisboa: LAP LAMBERT Academic Publishing, 2012���.

Comparison of internet usage habits in two generations of higher education students: a case study

Posters

Gender differences in internet usage habits: a case study in higher education

The usage of information and communication technologies has been growing among students and teachers. In order to improve the use of the Internet as a tool to support teaching and learning it is necessary to understand the Internet usage habits of students. Thus, a study was conducted with 1397 students from five schools of the Polytechnic of Porto. The data was collected through an online questionnaire abd was analized by age range, gender and scientific field. In this paper,gender differences are analyzed and presented in 3 dimensions: type of Internet usage, communication tools and the role of the Internet tools in education.