When electronic management tools work - and don't work - in social-based distribution channels:a study of IT manufacturers and resellers

Electronic information tools have become increasingly popular with channel manufacturers in their efforts to manage resellers. Although these tools have been found to increase the efficiency of communications, researchers and practitioners alike have questioned their effectiveness. To investigate how top-down electronic information affects social channel relationships we consider the use of such tools in information technology distribution channels. Using electronic communications theory and channel governance theory we hypothesize that the usefulness of the tools is a function of the type of information inherent in each tool (demand creation information or supply fulfillment information) and the particular communications characteristics of this information.

Strategic human resource management:building research-based practice

Strategic Human Resource Management: Building Research-Based Practice is a challenging and engaging student-focussed text written by a team of world-class researchers and experienced HRM tutors at Aston University. It is ideal for students taking a HRM or Strategic HRM module at postgraduate and upper-undergraduate level. Structured around contemporary and emerging issues this critical text is designed to encourage students to think analytically about Strategic HRM and builds real-world practice on the basis of solid research evidence. With a unique and thought-provoking range of contents that explores the links between Strategic HRM, Strategic Management and Organisational Behaviour, this text connects theory, research evidence and real-world practice. It also provides examples and case studies covering a variety of organisations, cultures and contexts, with access to the latest in leading-edge thinking. The text also includes integrated consideration of Strategic HRM in an international context, including coverage of emerging markets such as China and India.

The adoption of value-based management in large UK companies:a case for diffusion theory

Purpose – In the 1990s, a growing number of companies adopted value-based management (VBM) techniques in the UK. The purpose of this paper is to explore the motivations for the adoption or non-adoption of VBM for managing a business. Design/methodology/approach – An interview-based study of 37 large UK companies. Insights from diffusion theory and institutional theory are utilised to theorise these motivations. Findings – It was found that the rate of adoption of VBM in the sample companies does follow the classical S-shape. It also suggests that the supply-side of the diffusion process, most notably the role played by consultants, was an influence on many companies. This was not, however, a sufficient condition for companies to adopt the technique. The research also finds evidence of relocation diffusion, as several adopters are influenced by new officers, for example chief executive officers and finance directors, importing VBM techniques that they have used in organizations within which they have previously worked. Research limitations/implications – It is quite a small scale study and further work would be needed to develop the findings. Practical implications – Understanding and theorising the adoption of new management techniques will help understand the management of a business. Originality/value – This research adds further evidence to the value of studying management accounting, and more specifically management accounting change, in practice. It shows the developments in the adoption of a new technique and hence how a technique becomes accepted in practice.

Innovation management using logical framework in hospital-based healthcare units

Innovation is part and parcel of any service in today's environment, so as to remain competitive. Quality improvement in healthcare services is a complex, multi-dimensional task. This study proposes innovation management in healthcare services using a logical framework. A problem tree and an objective tree are developed to identify and mitigate issues and concerns. A logical framework is formulated to develop a plan for implementation and monitoring strategies, potentially creating an environment for continuous quality improvement in a specific unit. We recommend logical framework as a valuable model for innovation management in healthcare services. Copyright © 2006 Inderscience Enterprises Ltd.

The impact of the language barrier on the management of multinational companies : a case study and survey, based exploration of the impact of the language barrier on the strategies, policies and systems by which multinational companies manage their subsidaries

The thesis begins with a conceptual model of the way that language diversity affects the strategies, organisation and subsidiary control policies of multinational companies. The model is based solely on the researcher'’ personal experience of working in a variety of international management roles, but in Chapter 2 a wide-ranging review of related academic literature finds evidence to support the key ideas. The model is developed as a series of propositions which are tested in a comparative case study, refined and then re-tested in a global survey of multinational subsidiaries. The principal findings of the empirical phases of the thesis endorse the main tenets of the model: - That language difference between parent and subsidiary will impair communication, create mistrust and impede relationship development. - That subsequently the feelings of uncertainty, suspicion and mistrust will influence the decisions taken by the parent company. - They will have heightened sensitivity to language issues and will implement policies to manage language differences. - They will adopt low-risk strategies in host countries where they are concerned about language difference. - They will use organisational and manpower strategies to minimise the consequences and risks of the communications problems with the subsidiary. - As a consequence the level of integration and knowledge flow between parent and subsidiary will be curtailed. - They will adopt styles of control that depend least on their ability to communicate with their subsidiary. Although there is adequate support for all of the above conclusions, on some key points the evidence of the Case Studies and Survey is contradictory. The thesis, therefore, closes with an agenda for further research that would address these inconsistencies.

Technical entrepreneurship in the UK:an examination of the relationship between the previous occupational background of the technical entrepreneur and the management of the small technology-based venture

With the growing appreciation of the contribution of small technology-based ventures to a healthy economy, an analysis of the individual who initiates and manages such ventures - the technical entrepreneur - is highly desirable, predominantly because of the influence of such an individual on the management and future strategy of the venture. An examination of recent research has indicated that a study of the previous experience and expertise of the entrepreneur, gained in previous occupations, may be highly relevant in determining the possible success of a new venture. This is particularly true where the specific expertise of the entrepreneur forms the main strategic advantage of the business, as in the case of small technology-based firms. Despite this, there has been very little research which has attempted to examine the relationship between the previous occupational background of the technical entrepreneur, and the management of the small technology-based firm. This thesis will examine this relationship, as well as providing an original contribution to the study of technical entrepreneurship in the UK. Consequently, the exploratory nature of the research prompted an inductive qualitative approach being adopted for the thesis. Through a two stage, multiple-site research approach, an examination was made of technical entrepreneurs heading award-winning technology-based small firms in the UK. The main research questions focused on management within the firm, the novelty and origin of the technology adopted, and the personal characteristics of the entrepreneur under study. The results of this study led to the creation of a specific typology for technical entrepreneurs, based on the individual's role in the development of technology within his previous occupation.

Dynamic QoS management and optimisation in service-based systems

Service-based systems that are dynamically composed at run time to provide complex, adaptive functionality are currently one of the main development paradigms in software engineering. However, the Quality of Service (QoS) delivered by these systems remains an important concern, and needs to be managed in an equally adaptive and predictable way. To address this need, we introduce a novel, tool-supported framework for the development of adaptive service-based systems called QoSMOS (QoS Management and Optimisation of Service-based systems). QoSMOS can be used to develop service-based systems that achieve their QoS requirements through dynamically adapting to changes in the system state, environment and workload. QoSMOS service-based systems translate high-level QoS requirements specified by their administrators into probabilistic temporal logic formulae, which are then formally and automatically analysed to identify and enforce optimal system configurations. The QoSMOS self-adaptation mechanism can handle reliability- and performance-related QoS requirements, and can be integrated into newly developed solutions or legacy systems. The effectiveness and scalability of the approach are validated using simulations and a set of experiments based on an implementation of an adaptive service-based system for remote medical assistance.

The knowledge-based perspective of risk management in healthcare organisations

The aim of this research is to investigate how risk management in a healthcare organisation can be supported by knowledge management. The subject of research is the development and management of existing logs called "risk registers", through specific risk management processes employed in a N.H.S. (Foundation) Trust in England, in the U.K. Existing literature on organisational risk management stresses the importance of knowledge for the effective implementation of risk management programmes, claiming that knowledge used to perceive risk is biased by the beliefs of individuals and groups involved in risk management and therefore is considered incomplete. Further, literature on organisational knowledge management presents several definitions and categorisations of knowledge and approaches for knowledge manipulation in the organisational context as a whole. However, there is no specific approach regarding "how to deal" with knowledge in the course of organisational risk management. The research is based on a single case study, on a N.H.S. (Foundation) Trust, is influenced by principles of interpretivism and the frame of mind of Soft Systems Methodology (S.S.M.) to investigate the management of risk registers, from the viewpoint of people involved in the situation. Data revealed that knowledge about risks and about the existing risk management policy and procedures is situated in several locations in the Trust and is neither consolidated nor present where and when required. This study proposes a framework that identifies required knowledge for each of the risk management processes and outlines methods for conversion of this knowledge, based on the SECI knowledge conversion model, and activities to facilitate knowledge conversion so that knowledge is effectively used for the development of risk registers and the monitoring of risks throughout the whole Trust under study. This study has theoretical impact in the management science literature as it addresses the issue of incomplete knowledge raised in the risk management literature using concepts of the knowledge management literature, such as the knowledge conversion model. In essence, the combination of required risk and risk management related knowledge with the required type of communication for risk management creates the proposed methods for the support of each risk management process for the risk registers. Further, the indication of the importance of knowledge in risk management and the presentation of a framework that consolidates knowledge required for the risk management processes and proposes way(s) for the communication of this knowledge within a healthcare organisation have practical impact in the management of healthcare organisations.