Leadership jellemvonások és lean menedzsment – elmélet és gyakorlat = Leadership attributes and lean management in theory and practice

A műhelytanulmány két kutatási kérdést vizsgál. Egyrészt kiemelt szakirodalom alapján megvizsgálja, hogy az elméleti ajánlások milyen vezetési stílust és vezetői stílusjegyeket fogalmaznak meg követendőnek egy lean vállalat számára. Másrészt megvizsgálja, hogy a lean menedzsment gyakorlatának alkalmazásában fejlettebb vállalatok vezetői valóban az irodalom által javasolt, kívánatosnak tekintett vezetői stílusjegyeket tekintik-e pozitívnak. Vizsgálatunkat a Versenyképesség Kutató Központ 2009-es kérdőívének adatbázisán végeztük el, melyben mintegy 300 vállalat négy vezetőjének válaszai állnak rendelkezésre. A rendelkezésre álló mintából mi az 50 fő feletti foglalkoztatottal rendelkező, feldolgozóipari vállalatokra fókuszáltunk, esetükben elemeztük a vezérigazgató és a termelésvezető által követendőnek, jónak tartott vezetői stílusjegyek alkalmazását. ----- Abstract: The working paper focuses on two connected research quesions: Ono ne hand based on selected literature it systematically looks at the ideal leadership style and connected leader attributes that help in transforming a company into a real lean organization. On the other hand the paper analyzes whether leaders of companies with more developed lean practice do or do not follow these leadership related suggestions formulated in the literature. The study uses the fourth round of the Hungarian Competitiveness Research Survey from 2009. The survey has 300 valid observations. Four different respondents in each company filled in questionnaires, all of them were top managers (CEO, marketing /sales, finance, production). Plants were quite different alongside the most important organizational dimensions (volume, number of employee, industry, ownership). Previous researches pointed out that lean management is more likely applied by larger manufacturer. Hence, this study is limited to the analysis of questionnaires filled in by producers that have more than 50 employees. We analyze the leadership styles of two managers, namely the CEO and production manager.

Preferences of Hungarian consumers for quality, access and price attributes of health care services — result of a discrete choice experiment

In 2010, a household survey was carried out in Hungary among 1037 respondents to study consumer preferences and willingness to pay for health care services. In this paper, we use the data from the discrete choice experiments included in the survey, to elicit the preferences of health care consumers about the choice of health care providers. Regression analysis is used to estimate the effect of the improvement of service attributes (quality, access, and price) on patients’ choice, as well as the differences among the socio-demographic groups. We also estimate the marginal willingness to pay for the improvement in attribute levels by calculating marginal rates of substitution. The results show that respondents from a village or the capital, with low education and bad health status are more driven by the changes in the price attribute when choosing between health care providers. Respondents value the good skills and reputation of the physician and the attitude of the personnel most, followed by modern equipment and maintenance of the office/hospital. Access attributes (travelling and waiting time) are less important. The method of discrete choice experiment is useful to reveal patients’ preferences, and might support the development of an evidence-based and sustainable health policy on patient payments.

A lean menedzsment és a leadership jellemzők kapcsolata a hazai vállalati gyakorlatban (Lean management and leadership attributes in the practice of Hungarian firms)

A nemzetközi szakirodalom a vezetőt a lean termelés bevezetésében és fenntartásában is kulcsszereplőként határozza meg. Ennek ellenére nagyon kevés empirikus elemzés vizsgálja a vezetőkkel kapcsolatos kérdéseket. A szerzők a kontingencialista leadership elmélet keretei között a lean termelési rendszer és a vezetési jellemzők kapcsolatát vizsgálják elméleti szempontból és empirikusan egyaránt. Bár a kérdés nem került korábbi munkák fókuszába, az elméleti és empirikus megfontolások alapján egyaránt megállapítható, hogy több vezetési jellemző is szorosan kapcsolható egy jól működő lean termelővállalat vezetőjéhez. Követendő vezetési jellemzőként jelenik meg többek között az együttműködő, a delegáló, a teljesítményorientált vagy fejlődésorientált. Azonosíthatók olyan jellemzők is, amelyek elméletileg nem egyeztethetők össze a lean termelési rendszer logikájával, pl. autokrata, diktatórikus vagy mikrovezető ______ The working paper focuses on two connected research questions: on one hand based on widely accepted literature it systematically maps the ideal leadership style and related leader attributes that help in transforming a company into a real and well-functioning lean organization. On the other hand the paper analyzes whether leaders of companies with more developed lean practice do or do not follow these leadership attributes recommended by literature. The study uses the fourth round of the Hungarian Competitiveness Research Survey from 2009. This study is limited to the analysis of questionnaires filled in by producers that have more than 50 employees (about 65 manufacturing firms). The authors analyze the leadership styles of two managers, namely the CEO and production manager. Results of the empirical analysis revealed astonishing and contradictory attitudes toward ideal leadership attributes of leaders operating in more developed lean companies.

The Attributes of Social Media as a Strategic Marketing Communication Tool

New digital trends are transforming the media industry landscape, modifying elemental characteristics and attitudes of companies as well as of consumers. Firms often claim that their presence in social media (SM) is a key element to success. SM helps companies rethink the traditional one-way flow of their marketing messages and to incorporate a new interactive pattern into their communications. Nevertheless, these tendencies involve problems of strategic myopia for firms that do not structurally integrate these tools. One main problem is that institutions can rarely differentiate between the various types of SM and the attributes thereof, while the literature equally reveals a number of contradictions in the subject. The present conceptual paper lays the foundations of a strategic approach to SM and discusses its theoretical implications. Following an overview on the concept of SM, through a content analysis of the specialized management literature (n = 14), we present various best practices and reflect on the apparent lack of strategic thinking in using SM as a marketing application. Then, we compare these practical examples with general marketing strategy theory. By merging theory and practice, we aim to provide an insight towards a well-founded application of SM as a genuinely strategic marketing tool.

Attributes of identity document credibility: A synthesis of expert knowledge

In broad terms — including a thief's use of existing credit card, bank, or other accounts — the number of identity fraud victims in the United States ranges 9-10 million per year, or roughly 4% of the US adult population. The average annual theft per stolen identity was estimated at $6,383 in 2006, up approximately 22% from $5,248 in 2003; an increase in estimated total theft from $53.2 billion in 2003 to $56.6 billion in 2006. About three million Americans each year fall victim to the worst kind of identity fraud: new account fraud. Names, Social Security numbers, dates of birth, and other data are acquired fraudulently from the issuing organization, or from the victim then these data are used to create fraudulent identity documents. In turn, these are presented to other organizations as evidence of identity, used to open new lines of credit, secure loans, “flip” property, or otherwise turn a profit in a victim's name. This is much more time consuming — and typically more costly — to repair than fraudulent use of existing accounts. ^ This research borrows from well-established theoretical backgrounds, in an effort to answer the question – what is it that makes identity documents credible? Most importantly, identification of the components of credibility draws upon personal construct psychology, the underpinning for the repertory grid technique, a form of structured interviewing that arrives at a description of the interviewee’s constructs on a given topic, such as credibility of identity documents. This represents substantial contribution to theory, being the first research to use the repertory grid technique to elicit from experts, their mental constructs used to evaluate credibility of different types of identity documents reviewed in the course of opening new accounts. The research identified twenty-one characteristics, different ones of which are present on different types of identity documents. Expert evaluations of these documents in different scenarios suggest that visual characteristics are most important for a physical document, while authenticated personal data are most important for a digital document. ^

Personal Care Amenities: Are They Important Attributes in the Selection of Hotels?

Personal care amenities (PCA) are a big business in the lodging industry today. For several years hotel industry vendors and marketing consultants have claimed that PCA are very important to hotel guests and are a "must" for every hotel operation. The purpose of this study was to make one attempt to validate or discredit these claims based on actual guest feedback.

Identifying the Components of Job Satisfaction Attributes: A Focus on Private Club Managers

The objectives of this study were to determine job attribute factors affecting overall job satisfaction and satisfaction factors predicting intention to choose and stay within a current job among managers of private clubs in the U.S. The findings indicate that selfworth and salary and benefits are significantly related to the overall job satisfaction. In addition, overall job satisfaction was a strong predictor for private club managers’ intention to choose the current job held, if given a second chance

Achievement motivation attributes of international students attending a *postsecondary institution

The purpose of this study was to identify and compare the causal attributes of achievement motivation for academic success possessed by international students to those causal attributes of achievement motivation by other legal immigrant student groups attending a postsecondary institution. In this study, F-1 international students have obtained permission from the federal Department of Immigration and Naturalization Services to attend Miami-Dade Community College in Miami, Florida. There were two additional groups of students selected to participate in this study: Permanent Resident students and Others comprised of asylees, refugees and paroles, which are specific categories of legal immigrant students.^ From the observations of the investigator, international students were more successful at the institution as compared to the other two student groups as measured by such variables as Grade Point Average, Number of Credits Earned and Honors Day awards. By identifying these attributes of achievement motivation, additional curricula, support services and activities can be developed to meet the needs of these highly motivated students.^ Incorporating the theories of McClelland and Weiner in the theoretical framework of the study, both quantitative and qualitative data were collected from 150 subjects using the Measurement of Achievement Motivation Questionnaire and the Guided Biography Interview as data collection instruments. Statistical analyses on the data collected from the three groups of foreign born students at the institution indicated differences in these identified attributes and their effects on academic success.^ Results indicated that F-1 international students at Miami-Dade Community College were highly motivated to achieve, possessed different causal attributes of achievement motivation and displayed their need for achievement in different activities and in different ways as compared to the Permanent Resident and Other student groups. Further investigation on the importance of residency status as an influencing factor of achievement motivation is suggested. ^

The Influence of Servicescape and Local Food Attributes on Pleasure and Revisit Intention in an Upscale-Casual Dining Restaurant

The current study looks at the relationship between servicescape, emotional product involvement, perceived quality of local foods, the positive emotion of pleasure, and revisit intention in an upscale buffet style restaurant on a university campus in the Southeastern U.S. Test results show positive relationships between all of the constructs in the proposed conceptual model. The study also gives practitioners and academics insights into practices that can help to market the use of local foods through the restaurant environment in order to engage emotionally involved customers. This marketing can illicit pleasurable feelings and increase perceived product quality of local foods with the purpose of getting customers to revisit the restaurant. Suggestions for further research on the subject are proposed.

Predicting Lodging Manager Annual Salary Based on Metropolitan Statistical Area Attributes and Lodging Industry Performance: Exploring the Concept

Using multiple regression analysis, lodging managers’ annual mean salaries in 143 Metropolitan Statistical Areas (MSA) within the U.S. were analyzed to identify what relationships existed with variables related to general MSA characteristics, along with the lodging industry’s size and performance. By examining the relationship between these variables, the authors predict the long-term possibility of predicting lodging industry managers’ salaries. These predictions may have an impact on financial performance of an individual lodging property or organization. Through this paper, this concept was applied and explored within U.S. MSAs. These findings may have value for a variety of stakeholders, including human resources practitioners, the hospitality education community, and individuals considering lodging management careers.

Attributes of Identity Document Credibility: A Synthesis of Expert Knowledge

In broad terms — including a thief's use of existing credit card, bank, or other accounts — the number of identity fraud victims in the United States ranges 9-10 million per year, or roughly 4% of the US adult population. The average annual theft per stolen identity was estimated at $6,383 in 2006, up approximately 22% from $5,248 in 2003; an increase in estimated total theft from $53.2 billion in 2003 to $56.6 billion in 2006. About three million Americans each year fall victim to the worst kind of identity fraud: new account fraud. Names, Social Security numbers, dates of birth, and other data are acquired fraudulently from the issuing organization, or from the victim then these data are used to create fraudulent identity documents. In turn, these are presented to other organizations as evidence of identity, used to open new lines of credit, secure loans, “flip” property, or otherwise turn a profit in a victim's name. This is much more time consuming — and typically more costly — to repair than fraudulent use of existing accounts. This research borrows from well-established theoretical backgrounds, in an effort to answer the question – what is it that makes identity documents credible? Most importantly, identification of the components of credibility draws upon personal construct psychology, the underpinning for the repertory grid technique, a form of structured interviewing that arrives at a description of the interviewee’s constructs on a given topic, such as credibility of identity documents. This represents substantial contribution to theory, being the first research to use the repertory grid technique to elicit from experts, their mental constructs used to evaluate credibility of different types of identity documents reviewed in the course of opening new accounts. The research identified twenty-one characteristics, different ones of which are present on different types of identity documents. Expert evaluations of these documents in different scenarios suggest that visual characteristics are most important for a physical document, while authenticated personal data are most important for a digital document.

Breads Fortified with Freeze-Dried Vegetables : Quality and Nutritional Attributes. Part II: Breads Not Containing Oil as an Ingredient

Acknowledgments: Funds for the study were provided by the Scottish Government's Rural and Environment Science and Analytical Services Division and conducted as part of the Scottish Government Strategic Research programme (Diet and Health Theme of the Food Land & People Programme). The authors are grateful to Phillip Morrice, Vivian Buchan, and Donna Henderson for helping with the nutritional analysis of the breads. The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

Automated Assessment of Image Quality and Dose Attributes in Clinical CT Images

Computed tomography (CT) is a valuable technology to the healthcare enterprise as evidenced by the more than 70 million CT exams performed every year. As a result, CT has become the largest contributor to population doses amongst all medical imaging modalities that utilize man-made ionizing radiation. Acknowledging the fact that ionizing radiation poses a health risk, there exists the need to strike a balance between diagnostic benefit and radiation dose. Thus, to ensure that CT scanners are optimally used in the clinic, an understanding and characterization of image quality and radiation dose are essential.

The state-of-the-art in both image quality characterization and radiation dose estimation in CT are dependent on phantom based measurements reflective of systems and protocols. For image quality characterization, measurements are performed on inserts imbedded in static phantoms and the results are ascribed to clinical CT images. However, the key objective for image quality assessment should be its quantification in clinical images; that is the only characterization of image quality that clinically matters as it is most directly related to the actual quality of clinical images. Moreover, for dose estimation, phantom based dose metrics, such as CT dose index (CTDI) and size specific dose estimates (SSDE), are measured by the scanner and referenced as an indicator for radiation exposure. However, CTDI and SSDE are surrogates for dose, rather than dose per-se.

Currently there are several software packages that track the CTDI and SSDE associated with individual CT examinations. This is primarily the result of two causes. The first is due to bureaucracies and governments pressuring clinics and hospitals to monitor the radiation exposure to individuals in our society. The second is due to the personal concerns of patients who are curious about the health risks associated with the ionizing radiation exposure they receive as a result of their diagnostic procedures.

An idea that resonates with clinical imaging physicists is that patients come to the clinic to acquire quality images so they can receive a proper diagnosis, not to be exposed to ionizing radiation. Thus, while it is important to monitor the dose to patients undergoing CT examinations, it is equally, if not more important to monitor the image quality of the clinical images generated by the CT scanners throughout the hospital.

The purposes of the work presented in this thesis are threefold: (1) to develop and validate a fully automated technique to measure spatial resolution in clinical CT images, (2) to develop and validate a fully automated technique to measure image contrast in clinical CT images, and (3) to develop a fully automated technique to estimate radiation dose (not surrogates for dose) from a variety of clinical CT protocols.

Assistant Professor and FCE Co-PI, John Kominoski and collaborators, Chris McVoy and Jim Brock, are investigating the foundational role of floc in the structural and functional attributes of the ridge and slough ecosystems of the Central Everglades.

http://digitalcommons.fiu.edu/fce_lter_photos/1336/thumbnail.jpg

Pileated Woodpecker Occupancy and the Occurrence and Recruitment of Key Habitat Attributes in a Managed Forest

Thesis (Master's)--University of Washington, 2016-08