Applicability of non-modular assessment in construction management and allied undergraduate programmes:perspective of the academics involved

Undergraduate programmes on construction management and other closely related built environment disciplines are currently taught and assessed on a modular basis. This is the case in the UK and in many other countries globally. However, it can be argued that professionally oriented programmes like these are better assessed on a non-modular basis, in order to produce graduates who can apply knowledge on different subject contents in cohesion to solve complex practical scenarios in their work environments. The examples of medical programmes where students are assessed on a non-modular basis can be cited as areas where this is already being done. A preliminary study was undertaken to explore the applicability of non-modular assessment within construction management undergraduate education. A selected sample of university academics was interviewed to gather their perspectives on applicability of non-modular assessment. General acceptance was observed among the academics involved that integrating non-modular assessment is applicable and will be beneficial. All academics stated that at least some form of non-modular assessment as being currently used in their programmes. Examples where cross-modular knowledge is assessed included comprehensive/multi-disciplinary project modules and creating larger modules to amalgamate a number of related subject areas. As opposed to a complete shift from modular to non-modular, an approach where non-modular assessment is integrated and its use further expanded within the current system is therefore suggested. This is due to the potential benefits associated with this form of assessment to professionally aligned built environment programmes

Implementing innovation management in project based firms:a perspective from project management

Project-based firms currently follow an organizational structure whereby all projects are dealt with using a functionalist perspective which is integrated with projects so as to support a project-based structure. Project-based firms are increasingly moving towards the realization that innovation management is an integral part of any organizational strategy and the same is true for project-based firms. Moreover, the current body of knowledge regarding project-based firms does not incorporate any findings regarding the integration or use of innovation management in project management. As a result, it becomes important to research organizations to see how innovation management is applied in organizations and what the perspective is regarding innovation in organizations. Secondly, the question of whether slack resources can contribute to higher levels of innovation must also be researched. It has been a longstanding viewpoint that a lack of resources or limited resources results in higher levels of innovation. This study analyzes these two main viewpoints using qualitative analysis of 12 firms. The findings add to the current literature on innovation in organizations and project based firms while expanding the knowledge on innovation.

The impact of marketing oriented product development on new product performance = A marketing orientált termékfejlesztés hatása az új termék teljesítményre

In the new product innovation management literature a lot of empirical studies have supported the importance of marketing orientation as a key success factor of new products. The purpose of this paper is to examine on a Hungarian sample if there is a connection between marketing oriented product development and new product performance. Firms were clustered into two product performance categories. ANOVA analysis showed significant correlation between R&D/marketing interface and new product performance, while variables associated with costumer orientation were not significant. The study was based on data “In Global Competition 2004 – 2006” survey. This paper was presented at the INCODE conference (INCODE, 2008). = Számos felmérés bizonyítja, hogy az új termékek sikerét nagyban elősegíti a marketing orientált fejlesztési gyakorlat. A „Versenyben a világgal 2004-2006” felmérés adatbázisán ennek relevanciáját vizsgáltuk. A vonatkozó szakirodalomból kiindulva, a felmérés kérdőívéből kiválasztottuk azokat a változókat, amelyekkel a marketing orientált termékfejlesztés leginkább jellemezhető. Öt változóval írtuk le a fogyasztó orientációt, míg egy változónk volt a K+F/marketing együttműködésre. Eredményeink szerint azok a vállalatok, amelyeknél a K+F és a marketing részlegek szorosan együttműködnek, jobb termékfejlesztési teljesítményt érnek el. Ugyanakkor a fogyasztó orientáció és a termékfejlesztési teljesítmény között nem találtunk szignifikáns kapcsolatot. A tanulmány megjelent a pécsi INCODE konferencia kötetében (INCODE, 2008).

Contradictions inherent in the management of natural and industrial disasters

These days people keep wondering whether the world is more dangerous now than it was before. Do natural disasters really happen more frequently or is it just that the damage they cause that has become greater? The situation is not quite clear. As a result of the globalizing world and advanced communication infrastructure, the number of known / reported catastrophes is relatively high, but that does not necessarily mean there has been an actual increase in frequency. The red mud spill in Hungary was a special combination of industrial and natural disasters. This is one of the reasons why it is very hard to pinpoint who is responsible for the event. Natural disasters tend to raise questions about responsibility that are different from those concerning industrial catastrophes. Interestingly enough, however, nature often plays an important role in industrial disasters. The present article is concerned with how the issues of responsibility are handled in the case of industrial disasters.

Menedzsment képességek és döntéshozatali közelítésmódok longitudinális elemzése a versenyképesség kutatások alapján = Longitudinal analysis of management skills and decision making approaches in Competitiveness Research

Absztrakt: Tanulmányunkban a menedzsment képességek és döntéshozatali közelítésmódok szerepét a versenyképesség alakításában immáron negyedik alkalommal elemezzük. Hogy megértsük, milyen tulajdonságokkal, egyéni képességekkel kell a menedzsmentnek rendelkeznie ahhoz, hogy önmaga is versenyképes legyen, és feltárjuk, melyek a mintában szereplő menedzserek erősségei, illetve gyenge pontjai – a korábbi kutatások hagyományait követve – azt vizsgáltuk, hogy a mintában szereplő menedzserek hogyan értékelik önmagukat bizonyos készségek, képességek szerint, valamint azt is áttekintettük, hogy a menedzserek milyen döntéshozatali közelítésmódokat alkalmaznak. A megkérdezett menedzserekre - akárcsak a korábbi válaszadókra - a gyakorlatorientáltság, a magas szintű szakmai ismeretek birtoklása és a fejlett problémamegoldó képesség jellemző leginkább, illetve a nemzetközi trendekkel némiképp szemben a racionális döntéshozatali megközelítést preferálják. _____ We have been analyzing the role of management skills and decision making approaches in firm level competitiveness for the fourth time already. In order to understand what characteristics and individual capabilities a manager must have to be competitive him/herself, and what the main strengths and weaknesses of the Hungarian managers are, following the methodologies of our earlier studies, self assessment of the skills and capabilities of the managers in our sample were examined. The managers – similarly to the earlier results – are practice oriented, they possess up-to-date professional knowledge, and they have good problem solving skills. Our findings demonstrate that they prefer rational decision making approaches, which contradicts to the international tendencies.

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.

Tudásmenedzsmentet támogató szervezeti megoldások (Knowledge management supported by organizational solutions)

A tudás a vállalatok egyre fontosabb erőforrásává vált, ezért tudatos megoldásokkal kell törekedni a szervezeti tudásban rejlő lehetőségek hatékony kihasználására. A tudás kezelésére irányuló tevékenységeket mind technológiai-informatikai, mind HR-, mind pedig szervezeti megoldásokkal lehet támogatni. Jelen cikkben a vállalatok szervezeti megoldásait elemzi a szerző: rámutat a szervezeti struktúrák, a szervezeti kultúra, a vezetői megközelítések (leadership) szerepére, valamint a kommunikáció különböző formáinak lehetőségeire. ______ Knowledge management activities became important part of knowledge oriented organisations, like software development companies. These activities can be supported by technological and organisational solutions. This paper concentrates on the organisational support factors of knowledge management activities in the software development industries, and examines the role of organisational design, structures, processes, communication and management support, while highlights the challenges.

Válságkezelés Európában: új gazdaságfilozófia felé? (Towards a New Philosophy of Crisis Management in Europe?)

Az évek óta tartó európai válságkezelés leírása és a részletek bemutatása helyett a rögtönzött, politikai alapon hozott lépések gazdaságelméleti értelmezésére törekszünk. Kutatási alapkérdésünk a következő: igaz-e még a 70-es évek végének felismerése, ami szerint sem szerkezeti, sem szabályozási eredetű válságot nem lehet keresletélénkítéssel leküzdeni? Igaz-e, hogy a szuverén EU-tagállamokon belül bármi okból hiányzó belső elköteleződést nem lehet pótolni a külső fegyelmezéssel? Ennek fényében vizsgáljuk a költségvetési és a bankunió 2012 októberében körvonalazott és jóváhagyott tervezetét is. _____ This paper attempts to provide a theoretical interpretation of new policy initiatives in the EU culminating in the launching of a fiscal and banking union in June, 2012. This step is reinforced by the new ECB strategy launched in September 2012. These measures were a result of a series of policy improvisations rather than of any secret master plan, still they add up to a new model of European integration. Our research question is if, and to what degrees the insights from the crisis of the 1970s hold. Accordingly no amount of easy money may remedy ills deriving from regulatory and structural inefficiencies. Second, we contend that no amount of external straightjacket/disciplining may replace domestic commitment of national governments in implementing structural reforms rather than fiscal adjustments on the margin.

Speciális kockázatok és kockázatkezelés a kockázatitőke-finanszírozásban (The special risks and risk management of venture capital)

A tanulmányban a szerzők arra a kérdésre keresik a választ, hogy az aszimmetrikus információk hatására a vállalkozók és a befektetők között kialakuló megbízó-ügynök viszonynak melyek a speciális vetületei a kockázatitőke-finanszírozás vonatkozásában. A szerzők arra a következtetésre jutottak, hogy a hiányos információk, a megbízó-ügynök viszony, illetve az ügyletek speciális jellege miatt fokozottan jelentkező ügynökprobléma kezelésére a kockázatitőke-finanszírozás szereplői speciális kockázatkezelési technikákat alkalmaznak. Ilyenek a magas elvárt hozamok, a szigorú kiválasztási kritériumok, a speciális befektetési vagy szindikátusi szerződések, a befektetést követő monitoring tevékenység, a több lépcsőben történő finanszírozás és a portfólióvállalatok hálózatba szervezése. A speciális kockázati megközelítés következtében a befektetéseket opciós szemlélet is áthatja. _____ This paper focuses on the special aspects of imperfect information in case of venture capital financing including principal-agent relationship between entrepreneurs and investors as well as adverse selection that evolves as a result of information asymmetries. The authors’ finding is that venture capital is able to manage the problems caused by imperfect information via applying divers risk management techniques such as high profit expectations, scrutiny of portfolio-companies, the use of special contracting stipulations and syndicate agreements, the monitoring of investments, multi-staged financing of companies and the integration of portfolio-companies into networks. In addition to the risk management techniques the authors also give the interpretation of the unique attitude of venture capital toward uncertainty and its special real option-like risk valuation approach that makes venture capitalists capable of handling high uncertainty under imperfect information.

Vágyott kultúra és reális értékítélet - Tudásmenedzsment-rendszer kiépítésének előfeltétele egy felsőoktatási intézményben (Desired culture and real value judgement – Precondition of development a knowledge management system in a higher education institution)

A tudásmenedzsment-rendszerek kiépítése és működtetése egyre népszerűbb vállalati cél. A legnagyobb igyekezet ellenére is kudarccal végződhet egy ilyen változás megvalósítása, ha a szükséges feltételek nélkül próbálkozunk ezzel a beavatkozással a szervezet életében. Az egyik legfontosabb előfeltétel a bizalomra, közös tanulásra, fejlődésre épülő, nyitott szervezeti kultúra, mely a tanulószervezeti jellemzőkkel írható le. A szerzők kutatásukban arra voltak kíváncsiak, milyen elképzeléseik, vágyaik vannak a felsőoktatásban oktató kollégáknak az ideálisnak nevezett szervezeti kultúráról. Ezeket az elképzeléseket egy külső tanácsadó cég által végzett kérdőíves felmérésen alapuló vizsgálat segítségével tudták meg, melynek kiértékelésére a circumplex-módszer szolgált. Az eredményeket összevetették a tanulószervezeti jellemzőkkel, vizsgálva azt a hipotézist, miszerint az oktató kollégák tudat alatt is olyan ideális szervezetet képzelnek el, mely a tanulószervezeti kultúra jellemzőivel azonos. _________ To create and to operate a knowledge management system is becoming a more and more popular target of the companies. Realizing the changes above can result in a failure – in spite of the biggest will – if organizations lack certain prerequisites which are necessary in companies’ lives. One of the most important prerequisites is organizational culture which can be characterized by confidence, common learning, development and open atmosphere. This is called a learning organizational culture. In their research the authors would have liked to know what kind of dreams the colleagues have about their own organizational culture. They achieve these results from an investigation with questionnaires which were realized by an advisory team. To evaluating the results of this investigation circumplex method was used. These results were compared with the characteristics of learning organization to confirm our hypothesis. According to this idea colleagues have the same images about their successful organization as the characteristics of learning organizations.

A tudományterületi sajátosságok következményei a kutatásban, az oktatásban és a felsőoktatási intézmények vezetésében (The consequences of disciplinary difference on teaching, research and institutional management of higher education)

A szerző tanulmányában vizsgálja a tudományterületek különbségeinek következményeit az oktatásban, a kutatásban és a felsőoktatási intézmények irányításában. A tanulmány első felében a tudományterületek episztemológiai és közösségi különbségeit tárgyalja Becher és Trowler (2001) népszerű kategorizálása alapján. A tanulmány második felében a tudományszerveződésre, a publikációs gyakorlatra, a doktori képzésre, az oktatás céljára és formáira, a diákok tudásképére, valamint a menedzsmentfelfogásra gyakorolt hatást mutatja be. A konklúzióban egyrészt a minőség- és teljesítményértékelési rendszerek differenciált megközelítésének szükségességére hívja fel a figyelmet, másrészt arra, hogy a Bologna-rendszer és az élethosszig tartó tanulás erősödésének következményeként egy-egy mesterszakon nemcsak a hallgatóság háttere, előismerete lesz sokszínű, hanem a tudásról alkotott képe is. Ez újfajta oktatói szerepeket és oktatási megközelítéseket tesz szükségessé. ________ In the article the consequences of disciplinary difference on teaching, research and institutional management is examined. In the first part of the paper the epistemological and sociological differences of scientific disciplines are summarized based on the popular typology of Becher and Trowler (2001). In the second part the influence of differences on organisation of sciences, publication practices, PhD studies, the goal and form of teaching, students’ conception of knowledge as well as on the understanding on management and leadership are discussed. In the conclusions, attention is drawn on the necessity of differentiation in quality and performance management processes. Another conclusion is that new roles for teachers and approaches for teaching is required if students’ conception of knowledge become more heterogeneous which is the result of result of life long learning and Bologna-reform.

Content and drivers of performance management in agency-type organizations of the hungarian public administration

The improving performance of public administration and the reform of public financing system have been on agenda in Hungary for many years, in accordance with the international trends. However, governments have not expected and supported creating of a performance-oriented public administration in a comprehensive and explicit way. Nevertheless, there are bottom-up initiatives at organizational level, which target performance-oriented organizational function. The research focuses on organizations of central public administration where the successful application of performance management methods is most likely based on the international literature. These are the so called agency-type organizations, which are in Hungary called autonomous state-administration organizations independent of the Government (e.g. Hungarian Competition Authority), government bureaus (e.g. Hungarian Central Statistical Office), and central offices subordinated to the government (either the cabinet or a ministry) (e.g. Hungarian Meteorological Service). The studied agencies are legally independent organizations with managerial autonomy based on public law. The purpose of this study is to get an overview on organizational level performance management tools applied by Hungarian agencies, and to reveal the reasons and drivers of the application of these tools. The empirical research is based on a mixed methods approach which combines both quantitative methods and qualitative procedures. The first – quantitative – phase of the author’s research was content analysis of homepages of the studied organizations. As a results she got information about all agencies and their practice related to some performance management tools. The second – qualitative – phase was based on semi-structured face-to-face interviews with some senior managers of agencies. The author selected the interviewees based on the results of the first phase, the relatively strong performance orientation was an important selection criteria.

Managing conflict in user-oriented development environments: Effects on information systems success

Today, many organizations are turning to new approaches to building and maintaining information systems (I/S) to cope with a highly competitive business environment. Current anecdotal evidence indicates that the approaches being used improve the effectiveness of software development by encouraging active user participation throughout the development process. Unfortunately, very little is known about how the use of such approaches enhances the ability of team members to develop I/S that are responsive to changing business conditions.^ Drawing from predominant theories of organizational conflict, this study develops and tests a model of conflict among members of a development team. The model proposes that development approaches provide the relevant context conditioning the management and resolution of conflict in software development which, in turn, are crucial for the success of the development process.^ Empirical testing of the model was conducted using data collected through a combination of interviews with I/S executives and surveys of team members and business users at nine organizations. Results of path analysis provide support for the model's main prediction that integrative conflict management and distributive conflict management can contribute to I/S success by influencing differently the manifestation and resolution of conflict in software development. Further, analyses of variance indicate that object-oriented development, when compared to rapid and structured development, appears to produce the lowest levels of conflict management, conflict resolution, and I/S success.^ The proposed model and findings suggest academic implications for understanding the effects of different conflict management behaviors on software development outcomes, and practical implications for better managing the software development process, especially in user-oriented development environments. ^

Earnings management using estimates and the timing of adoption of accounting standards: An empirical examination of pensions

This study investigates the relationship between adoption timing of Statement of Financial Accounting Standards 87 and earnings management after adoption. Earnings management, defined consistent with Schipper (1989), is tested through hypotheses using (1) a portfolio approach and (2) pension rates. One Hypothesis uses a Modified Jones (1991) Model as a proxy for discretionary accruals and the other uses pension rate estimates.^ Statistically significant relationships are found between adoption timing and (1) discretionary accruals and (2) estimated rate-of-return (ROR) on pension plan assets. Early adopting firms tend to have lower discretionary accruals after adoption than on-time adopters. They also tend to use higher ROR estimates which are not supported by higher actual returns. Thus, while early adopters may be using ROR to manage income, this tends to not result in higher discretionary accruals. ^

A semantic paradigm for intelligent data access

An implementation of Sem-ODB—a database management system based on the Semantic Binary Model is presented. A metaschema of Sem-ODB database as well as the top-level architecture of the database engine is defined. A new benchmarking technique is proposed which allows databases built on different database models to compete fairly. This technique is applied to show that Sem-ODB has excellent efficiency comparing to a relational database on a certain class of database applications. A new semantic benchmark is designed which allows evaluation of the performance of the features characteristic of semantic database applications. An application used in the benchmark represents a class of problems requiring databases with sparse data, complex inheritances and many-to-many relations. Such databases can be naturally accommodated by semantic model. A fixed predefined implementation is not enforced allowing the database designer to choose the most efficient structures available in the DBMS tested. The results of the benchmark are analyzed. ^ A new high-level querying model for semantic databases is defined. It is proven adequate to serve as an efficient native semantic database interface, and has several advantages over the existing interfaces. It is optimizable and parallelizable, supports the definition of semantic userviews and the interoperability of semantic databases with other data sources such as World Wide Web, relational, and object-oriented databases. The query is structured as a semantic database schema graph with interlinking conditionals. The query result is a mini-database, accessible in the same way as the original database. The paradigm supports and utilizes the rich semantics and inherent ergonomics of semantic databases. ^ The analysis and high-level design of a system that exploits the superiority of the Semantic Database Model to other data models in expressive power and ease of use to allow uniform access to heterogeneous data sources such as semantic databases, relational databases, web sites, ASCII files, and others via a common query interface is presented. The Sem-ODB engine is used to control all the data sources combined under a unified semantic schema. A particular application of the system to provide an ODBC interface to the WWW as a data source is discussed. ^