Holacracy as an alternative to organisations governance

Holacracy as an alternative to organisations governance A *TRS event, Room P1.2 (Fernando Pessoa Hall), University Fernando Pessoa 16th, November, 2016, Luis Borges Gouveia This presentation introduce holacracy and discuss its use as an alternative to organize people within a corporate environment. A holacracy is a governance structure characterized by a distribution of power among self-organizing groups, rather than the top-down authority in the typical hierarchical corporate culture model. A holacracy provides a flat management structure that distributes authority. The goal of a holacracy is to ensure that those responsible for completing the work have the authority to decide how that work should be carried out. Holacracy benefits are the promises to harness agility, transparency, accountability, employee engagement and innovation. It also potentiates greater efficiency. Main critics are that the model do not allow for sufficient lateral communication. Also, it use is still emerging and we do not have sufficient evidence on holacracy advantages to rely on its promises

Quality improvement within nonprofit social service providers

As a relatively new phenomenon in 2009, Swedish nonprofit social service providers proposed quality improvement as a way to reduce mistakes, use resources more effectively and meet the needs and expectations of clients in a better way. Although similar experiences have been studied in health care, the transfer of quality improvement to nonprofit social services gives a possibility for more knowledge on what enables, and constrains, systematic quality improvement in this specific context. This thesis is based on five years of supporting quality improvement in the Swedish nonprofit welfare sector. Specifically, it builds knowledge on which active mechanisms and enabling or constraining structures exist for nonprofit social service quality improvement. By studying quality improvement projects that have been conducted in the development program Forum for Values, critical cases and broad overviews are found valuable. These cases have resulted in four papers on quality improvement in nonprofit social services. The papers include: critical cases from a nursing home for elderly and a daycare for disabled children (Paper I); a critical case from a sheltered housing (Paper II); an overview of performance measurements in 127 quality improvement projects (Paper III); and an analytical model of how improvement policy and practice are bridged by intermediaries (Paper IV). In this thesis, enabled or constrained events and activities related to Deming's system of profound knowledge are identified from the papers and elaborated upon. As a basis for transforming practice into continuous improvement, profound knowledge includes the four knowledge domains: appreciation of a system, theory of knowledge, understanding of variation and psychology of change. From a realist perspective, the identified events are seen as enabled or constrained by mechanisms and underlying regularities, or structures, in the context of nonprofit social services. The emerging mechanisms found in this thesis are: describing and reflecting upon project relations; forming and testing a theory of action; collecting and displaying measurable results over time; and engaging and participating in a development program. The structures that enable these mechanisms are: connecting projects to shared values such as client needs; local ownership of what should be measured; and translating quality improvement into a single practice. Constraining structures identified are: a lack of generalizable scientific knowledge and inappropriate or missing infrastructure for measurements. Reflecting upon the emergent structures of nonprofit social services, the role of political macro structures, reflective practice, competence in statistical methods and areas of expertise becomes important. From this discussion and the findings some hypotheses for future work can be formulated. First, the identified mechanisms and structures form a framework that helps explain why intended actions of quality improvement occur or not. This frameworkcan be part of formulating a program theory of quality improvement in nonprofit social services. With this theory, quality improvement can be evaluated, reflected upon and further developed in future interventions. Second,new quality improvement interventions can be reproduced more regularly by active work with known enablers and constraints from this program theory. This means that long-lasting interventions can be performed and studied in a second generation of improvement efforts. Third, if organizations integrate quality improvement as a part of their everyday practice they also develop context-specific knowledge about their services. This context-specific knowledge can be adopted and further developed through dedicated management and understanding of variation. Thus, if enabling structures are invoked and constraining structures handled, systematic quality improvement could be one way to integrate generalizable scientific knowledge as part of an evidence-creating practice.

Staying healthy: industry organisations’ influence on behaviours and services used by fishers

This study emerged in response to a previous report that used a strength-based approach to identify best-practice good-health behaviours in a number of farming and fishing communities, titled Staying Healthy: Behaviours and services used by farmers and fishers. This earlier report found there was a need for specific attention to the physical and particularly the mental health of those in the Australian commercial fishing industry. This included a better understanding of the issues, logistical and social barriers to good-health practices, and avenues of health communication and treatment. The 2013 Staying Healthy study echoed the Rural Industries Research and Development Corporation (RIRDC) research and development Plan for 2008-2012, Collaborative Partnership for Farming and Fishing Health and Safety, which advocated research into health, well-being and resilience in rural primary industries. These reports are coupled with widespread anecdotal accounts describing very poor physical and mental health within the fishing industry, including accounts of suicide and attempted suicide. As a contributor to a body of scholarly research, this study is supported by other literature, which is addressed, below. In this short section we introduce research that is most relevant to appreciating the findings of this study on fisher health and well-being.

How can organisations help employees thrive? the development of guidelines for promoting positive mental health at work

Purpose - Benefits of positive mental health have been demonstrated across work and non-work domains. Individuals reporting positive mental health experience better work performance, better social relationships and better physical health. Additionally, positive work environments can contribute to employee mental health. The purpose of this paper is to develop "expert" consensus regarding practical, actionable strategies that organisations can implement to promote positive mental health in the workplace. Design/methodology/approach - A Delphi consensusmethod was used to establish expert consensus on strategies to promote positive workplace mental health. A 278-item questionnaire was developed and strategies were rated over three survey rounds by two panels comprising 36 workplace mental health practitioners and 36 employer representatives and employees (27 and 9, respectively), employees with experience of promoting positive mental health and well-being in the workplace (total - 72 panellists). Findings - In total, 220/278 strategies were rated as essential or important by at least 80 per cent of both panels. Endorsed strategies covered the topics of: mental health and well-being strategy, work environment that promotes positive mental health, positive leadership styles, effective communication, designing jobs for positive mental health, recruitment and selection, supporting and developing employees, work-life balance, and positive mental health and well-being initiatives. Originality/value - The guidelines arising from this study represent expert consensus on what is currently appropriate for promoting positive mental health at work from the perspectives of workplace mental health practitioners, employers and employees, and constitute a resource for translating the growing body of knowledge in this area into policy and practice.

The role of intragroup dynamics in nonprofit governance models: a systematic quantitative literature review

Nonprofit governance models rarely incorporate board intragroup dynamics as a significant board factor that influences performance. However, intragroup dynamics such 81 cohesion and conflicthave demonstrated a relationship with board performance suggesting that board Intragroup dynamics play a larger role than previously thought. ID order to better understand the relationship between lntragroup dynamics and performance, a systematic quantitative literature review was conducted.Through an extensive search process and the application of a series of inclusion criteria, 43 papers were identified and reviewed. Three types of lntragroup dynamics (cohesion, the board-CEO relationship, and boardroom climate) were shown to have a positive relationship with performance whereas the relationship between performance and two other lntragroup dynamics (conflict and power patterns) was mixed. It was concluded that lntragroup dynamics should be a central factor in board governance models. Using the findings of this review, directions for future research were identified.

The Larned A. Waterman Iowa Nonprofit Resource Center eNewsletter, Winter 2008-09, Vol. 5, no.1

The Larned A. Waterman Iowa Nonprofit Resource Center is a University of Iowa interdisciplinary collaboration created to make more accessible educational and service programs focused on strengthening the operational capacity of Iowa nonprofit organizations. The Center works collaboratively with government agencies, nonprofit organizations and educational institutions to impart new knowledge through activities and provide information and training resources to help nonprofit organizations and interested persons throughout Iowa. We seek to build the capacity and develop the effectiveness of community-based organizations and enhance the overall effectiveness of local organizations in building communities.

The Larned A. Waterman Iowa Nonprofit Resource Center e-Newsletter, Spring 2009, Vol. 5, no.2

The Larned A. Waterman Iowa Nonprofit Resource Center is a University of Iowa interdisciplinary collaboration created to make more accessible educational and service programs focused on strengthening the operational capacity of Iowa nonprofit organizations. The Center works collaboratively with government agencies, nonprofit organizations and educational institutions to impart new knowledge through activities and provide information and training resources to help nonprofit organizations and interested persons throughout Iowa. We seek to build the capacity and develop the effectiveness of community-based organizations and enhance the overall effectiveness of local organizations in building communities.

The Larned A. Waterman Iowa Nonprofit Resource Center e-Newsletter, Summer 2009, Vol. 5, no.3

The Larned A. Waterman Iowa Nonprofit Resource Center is a University of Iowa interdisciplinary collaboration created to make more accessible educational and service programs focused on strengthening the operational capacity of Iowa nonprofit organizations. The Center works collaboratively with government agencies, nonprofit organizations and educational institutions to impart new knowledge through activities and provide information and training resources to help nonprofit organizations and interested persons throughout Iowa. We seek to build the capacity and develop the effectiveness of community-based organizations and enhance the overall effectiveness of local organizations in building communities.

The Larned A. Waterman Iowa Nonprofit Resource Center e-Newsletter, Fall 2009, Vol. 5, no.4

The Larned A. Waterman Iowa Nonprofit Resource Center is a University of Iowa interdisciplinary collaboration created to make more accessible educational and service programs focused on strengthening the operational capacity of Iowa nonprofit organizations. The Center works collaboratively with government agencies, nonprofit organizations and educational institutions to impart new knowledge through activities and provide information and training resources to help nonprofit organizations and interested persons throughout Iowa. We seek to build the capacity and develop the effectiveness of community-based organizations and enhance the overall effectiveness of local organizations in building communities.

The Larned A. Waterman Iowa Nonprofit Resource Center e-Newsletter, Winter 2010 , Vol. 6, no.1

The Larned A. Waterman Iowa Nonprofit Resource Center is a University of Iowa interdisciplinary collaboration created to make more accessible educational and service programs focused on strengthening the operational capacity of Iowa nonprofit organizations. The Center works collaboratively with government agencies, nonprofit organizations and educational institutions to impart new knowledge through activities and provide information and training resources to help nonprofit organizations and interested persons throughout Iowa. We seek to build the capacity and develop the effectiveness of community-based organizations and enhance the overall effectiveness of local organizations in building communities.

The Larned A. Waterman Iowa Nonprofit Resource Center e-Newsletter, Spring 2010, Vol. 6, no. 2

The Larned A. Waterman Iowa Nonprofit Resource Center is a University of Iowa interdisciplinary collaboration created to make more accessible educational and service programs focused on strengthening the operational capacity of Iowa nonprofit organizations. The Center works collaboratively with government agencies, nonprofit organizations and educational institutions to impart new knowledge through activities and provide information and training resources to help nonprofit organizations and interested persons throughout Iowa. We seek to build the capacity and develop the effectiveness of community-based organizations and enhance the overall effectiveness of local organizations in building communities.