IDEAS for Strategic Technology Management: Design of an electronically mediated scenario method

The age-old adage goes that nothing in this world lasts but change, and this generation has indeed seen changes that are unprecedented. Business managers do not have the luxury of going with the flow: they have to plan ahead, to think strategies that will meet the changing conditions, however stormy the weather seems to be. This demand raises the question of whether there is something a manager or planner can do to circumvent the eye of the storm in the future? Intuitively, one can either run on the risk of something happening without preparing, or one can try to prepare oneself. Preparing by planning for each eventuality and contingency would be impractical and prohibitively expensive, so one needs to develop foreknowledge, or foresight past the horizon of the present and the immediate future. The research mission in this study is to support strategic technology management by designing an effective and efficient scenario method to induce foresight to practicing managers. The design science framework guides this study in developing and evaluating the IDEAS method. The IDEAS method is an electronically mediated scenario method that is specifically designed to be an effective and accessible. The design is based on the state-of-the-art in scenario planning, and the product is a technology-based artifact to solve the foresight problem. This study demonstrates the utility, quality and efficacy of the artifact through a multi-method empirical evaluation study, first by experimental testing and secondly through two case studies. The construction of the artifact is rigorously documented as justification knowledge as well as the principles of form and function on the general level, and later through the description and evaluation of instantiations. This design contributes both to practice and foundation of the design. The IDEAS method contributes to the state-of-the-art in scenario planning by offering a light-weight and intuitive scenario method for resource constrained applications. Additionally, the study contributes to the foundations and methods of design by forging a clear design science framework which is followed rigorously. To summarize, the IDEAS method is offered for strategic technology management, with a confident belief that it will enable gaining foresight and aid the users to choose trajectories past the gales of creative destruction and off to a brighter future.

Ammatillisen osaamisen tukeminen muuttuvissa toimintaympäristöissä : tutkimus ikääntyvien työntekijöiden näkökulmasta

The purpose of the study was to describe the experiences of received support of aging employees and their work related self-image in changing working environments. Firstly, theaim was to discover how the support from organisations and leaders was verified. Secondly, the aim was to get answers how employees experienced themselves as workers and as learners in the current work context. Thirdly, the aim was to compare different knowledge information stages and company cultures and how they have influenced the experiences of professional competence development among aging employees. In addition the education- and career backgrounds were investigated to gain more understanding of their role in experiencing support and relation to the occupational self-image. The theoretical frame of reference of this researchis multidisciplinary. The theoretical part focuses on the meaning of work for human being from a sociological, late-modern perspective. On the other hand it examines the ageing process from a physiological and also from a perspective of age discrimination and life control. The occupational selfimage and the strength of motivation has an effect on learning in working life which is crucial and firmpart individual trajectories. According to the theoretical review company culture, leadership and especially the managers' role as a creator of a learning atmosphere are increasingly critical for aging adults' learning when the role of informal work-based learning is increasing. The empirical data was collected with aquestionnaire and interviews, which were carried out in May to October 2001. The data consists of 263 respondents of which further eight persons were interviewed. All respondents were over the age of 45 and represented all levels of their organisations in an IT-technology firm and a chemical industry plant. The central findings in this research show that the aging adults have experienced that theemployers do care about the development of their occupational skills. On the other hand there are fewer concrete activities to reveal this support. There is anobvious disproportion between the expressed aims and the realisation of the activities. Signs of age discrimination are few. The style of management has becomemore supporting for self directed activities which are seen to support adults learning. Higher education and individual activity to seek possibilities to learnwere encouraging the development of occupational skills. Age itself was not a crucial aspect when comparing the experiences among younger (45-54 years) and older (55-64 years) groups. Job satisfaction and professional self esteem seemed tobe considerably strong. The individual characteristics were more important elements in developing occupational skills than the age. The degree of anxiety at work was low. In addition among the older group the strong feeling of coherence and the occupational self image were significant for supporting the professional competence. The motivation to learn was also stable. Among the seniors there was some slight evidence of declining motivation. In the IT-firm the support was experienced stronger for aging employees than in the chemical industry plant. Thosewho had experienced support in the chemical industry plant had higher educational background than the others. In IT-firm they also experienced more support from the manager than in the chemical industry plant. The results show that it is more likely that the differences are caused mostly by the stage of information intensity and the character of company culture which is determined by the activities. IT-business demands constantly accommodation to changes and the chemical industry plant which is representing more traditional business field, where the atmosphere of learning is determined by the traditions of company culture, the changes are carried out slowly.

Convergence and divergence in global economy and social development : global perspectives on the contents of economic and soical development policy and its effects on rich and poor countries

The study of convergence and divergence in global economy and social development utilises comparative indicators to investigate the contents of economic and social development policy and their effects on the global samples that represent the rich industrial, semi-industrial and the poor developing nations. The study searchesfor answers to questions such as "what are the objectives of economic growth policies in globalisation under the imperatives of convergence and divergence, and how do these affect human well-being in consideration to the objectives of social policy in various nations?" The empirical verification of data utilises the concepts of the `logic of industrialism´ for comparative analysis that focuses mainly on identifying the levels of well-being in world nations after the Second World War. The perspectives of convergence and divergence in global economy and social development critically examine the stages of early development processes in global economy, distinguish the differences between economy and social development, illustrate the contents of economic and social development policies, their effects on rich and poor countries, and the nature of convergence and divergence in propelling economic growth and unequal social development in world nations. The measurement of convergence and divergence in global economy and social development utilised both economic and social data that were combined into an index that measures the precise levels of the effects of economic and social development policies on human well-being in the rich and poor nations. The task of finding policy solutions to resolve the controversies are reviewed through empirical investigations and the analyses of trends indicated within economic and social indicators and data. These revealed how the adoption of social policy measures in translating the gains from economic growth, towards promoting education, public health, and equity, generate social progress and longer life expectancy, higher economic growth, and sustain more stable macro economy for the nations. Social policy is concerned with the translation of benefits from objectives of global economic growth policies, to objectives of social development policy in nation states. Social policy, therefore, represents an open door whereby benefits of economic growth policies are linked with the broader objectives of social development policy, thereby enhancing the possibility of extending benefits from economic growth to all human being in every nation.

Customer Driven Service Development – Technology-based Care and Services for the Elderly

The objective of this master’s thesis was to examine technology-based smart home devices and services. Topic was approached through basic theories, transaction cost theory and resource-based view in order to build basis for this thesis. Conceptual framework was discussed by means of networks, value networks and service systems which provide a useful framework for service development. The needs of the elderly living at home were discussed in order to find out which technology-based services could be used to satisfy the needs. Segmentation and need data collected previously during proactive home visits was exploited and additionally a survey targeted to experts and professionals of social and health care sector was done to verify the needs. Finally, the results of the survey were analyzed using quality function deployment method to figure out the most important and suitable service offerings for the elderly. As a conclusion of analysis, social media and monitoring services are the most useful technology-based services. However, traditional home services will still maintain their necessity too.

Experiences of Organising the Master of Science Programme in Packaging Technology

Organising the PT- programme for full-time working adult students is a challenging task as it is an international programme with both domestic and foreign students with different educational background. The purpose of this project work is to provide both student and lecturer feedback for improving Master Of Science Degree Programme in Packaging Technology to meet better the requirements of part-time studying. The objective of this work is in accordance with the Lappeenranta University of Technology’s strategy to improve continuously degree programmes and courses and to use student feedback in this development work of education. Matters, such as lecture schemes, distance material distribution, distance assignment handling, course assessments, and guidance of thesis work will be under scrutiny.

Yritysvastuu ympäristönäkökulmasta

Diplomityön tavoitteena on selvittää yritysvastuun sisältöä ja merkitystä yritysten toiminnassa. Vastuullinen yritystoiminta sisältää taloudellisen, sosiaalisen ja ympäristön näkökulman. Ne ovat yksi edellytys yrityksen toiminnan jatkuvuudelle ja menestykselle. Työssä keskitytään erityisesti yritysvastuun ympäristönäkökulmaan, sillä ympäristöasiat ovat yhä enemmän esillä. Huoli ympäristön tilasta on lisääntynyt selvästi ja myös kuluttajat vaativat yrityksiltä vastuullista toimintaa. Lisäksi ympäristöön liittyvä lainsäädäntö kiristyy ja säädökset lisääntyvät. Kestävän kehityksen mukainen toiminta säästää luonnonvaroja ja vähentää ympäristön saastumista. Ympäristöasiat on huomioitava yrityksen kaikessa toiminnassa. Vihreässä taloudessa ympäristölle aiheutuu mahdollisimman vähän haittaa. Yrityksillä on merkittävä asema vihreän talouden kehittämisessä, sillä yritykset voivat vähentää toiminnasta aiheutuvia ympäristövaikutuksia, tuottaa ympäristöä säästäviä tuotteita sekä tarjota ratkaisuja ympäristövaikutusten pienentämiseen. Uuden teknologian kehittäminen on kestävän kehityksen kannalta oleellista ja siten voidaan myös saavuttaa kilpailuetua. Yritysten ympäristövastuullista toimintaa tukevat ympäristöpolitiikka ja –strategia, ympäristöjohtaminen, ympäristöjärjestelmät, ympäristöriskianalyysit, ympäristölaskenta sekä ympäristönmyötäinen tuotesuunnittelu. Nämä ovat työkaluja, jotka selventävät yritysten ympäristöön liittyviä tavoitteita ja päämääriä. Niitä voidaan hyödyntää päätöksenteon tukena ja ympäristöasioiden kehittämisessä. Ympäristökysymykset on myös tärkeää saada yhdistetyksi yritysten taloudelliseen ohjaukseen ja tuotesuunnitteluun. Työn perusteella voidaan todeta, että vastuullinen toiminta on merkittävä osa yritysten kilpailukykyä ja se on tärkeää yrityksen tulevaisuuden kannalta. Vastuullisuus on ehdottomasti yksi edellytys yritysten toiminnan jatkuvuudelle. Vastuullinen toiminta edistää yrityksen kilpailukykyä ja sen avulla voidaan saavuttaa myös uusia asiakkaita ja markkina-alueita. Ympäristöystävällisempien tuotteiden kehittäminen, jätteen määrän vähentäminen ja prosessien tehostaminen tuovat yrityksille kustannussäästöjä. Vastuullinen toiminta lisää yritysten innovatiivisuutta ja uusien liiketoimintamallien syntymistä. Kuluttajavalinnoissa painottuvat enemmän myös ympäristöön ja yhteiskuntaan liittyvät arvot, joten vastuullisuus voi lisätä kysyntää ja asiakkaiden määrää. Myös rahoittajat ja uudet työntekijät ovat kiinnostuneita vastuullisista yrityksistä. Vastuullinen yritys nähdään houkuttelevana ja luotettavana yhteistyökumppanina.

Towards adoption of eLearning technologies at Lappeenranta University of Technology: Understanding Teachers‟ Adoption of Blackboard Learning System

The electronic learning has become crucial in higher education with increased usage of learning management systems as a key source of integration on distance learning. The objective of this study is to understand how university teachers are influenced to use and adopt web-based learning management systems. Blackboard, as one of the systems used internationally by various universities is applied as a case. Semi-structured interviews were made with professors and lecturers who are using Blackboard at Lappeenranta University of Technology. The data collected were categorized under constructs adapted from Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT) and interpretation and discussion were based on reviewed literature. The findings suggest that adoption of learning management systems by LUT teachers is highly influenced by perceived usefulness, facilitating conditions and gained experience. The findings also suggest that easiness of using the system and social influence appear as medium influence of adoption for teachers at LUT.

Upconverting Phosphor Technology: Exceptional Photoluminescent Properties Light Up Homogeneous Bioanalytical Assays

The aim of the present study was to demonstrate the wide applicability of the novel photoluminescent labels called upconverting phosphors (UCPs) in proximity-based bioanalytical assays. The exceptional features of the lanthanide-doped inorganic UCP compounds stem from their capability for photon upconversion resulting in anti-Stokes photoluminescence at visible wavelengths under near-infrared (NIR) excitation. Major limitations related to conventional photoluminescent labels are avoided, rendering the UCPs a competitive next-generation label technology. First, the background luminescence is minimized due to total elimination of autofluorescence. Consequently, improvements in detectability are expected. Second, at the long wavelengths (>600 nm) used for exciting and detecting the UCPs, the transmittance of sample matrixes is significantly greater in comparison with shorter wavelengths. Colored samples are no longer an obstacle to the luminescence measurement, and more flexibility is allowed even in homogeneous assay concepts, where the sample matrix remains present during the entire analysis procedure, including label detection. To transform a UCP particle into a biocompatible label suitable for bioanalytical assays, it must be colloidal in an aqueous environment and covered with biomolecules capable of recognizing the analyte molecule. At the beginning of this study, only UCP bulk material was available, and it was necessary to process the material to submicrometer-sized particles prior to use. Later, the ground UCPs, with irregular shape, wide size-distribution and heterogeneous luminescence properties, were substituted by a smaller-sized spherical UCP material. The surface functionalization of the UCPs was realized by producing a thin hydrophilic coating. Polymer adsorption on the UCP surface is a simple way to introduce functional groups for bioconjugation purposes, but possible stability issues encouraged us to optimize an optional silica-encapsulation method which produces a coating that is not detached in storage or assay conditions. An extremely thin monolayer around the UCPs was pursued due to their intended use as short-distance energy donors, and much attention was paid to controlling the thickness of the coating. The performance of the UCP technology was evaluated in three different homogeneous resonance energy transfer-based bioanalytical assays: a competitive ligand binding assay, a hybridization assay for nucleic acid detection and an enzyme activity assay. To complete the list, a competitive immunoassay has been published previously. Our systematic investigation showed that a nonradiative energy transfer mechanism is indeed involved, when a UCP and an acceptor fluorophore are brought into close proximity in aqueous suspension. This process is the basis for the above-mentioned homogeneous assays, in which the distance between the fluorescent species depends on a specific biomolecular binding event. According to the studies, the submicrometer-sized UCP labels allow versatile proximity-based bioanalysis with low detection limits (a low-nanomolar concentration for biotin, 0.01 U for benzonase enzyme, 0.35 nM for target DNA sequence).

Reglering och förvaltning av produktions- och slaktdjurs välbefinnande : en offentligrättslig undersökning

Djur och djurskyddet hör till ett rättsligt regleringsområde som inte varit föremål för omfattande rättsvetenskaplig forskning i vårt land även om intresset för djurs välbefinnande ökat både i samhället och inom EU. Avhandlingen har avfattats som en artikelavhandling och är en offentligrättslig studie om djurskyddslagstiftningen och förvaltningen av djurskyddsärenden i Finland. Tematiken har behandlats både ur djurens och djurens ägares eller innehavares synvinkel med utgångspunkt i djurskyddslagstiftningen och förvaltningen av djurskyddsärenden i Finland. Forskningen är fokuserad huvudsakligen på skyddet av och välbefinnandet hos produktions- och slaktdjur även om bland annat de begrepp som granskas också berör andra djurkategorier. De övergripande frågeställningarna i avhandlingen är två. För det första, vad är det som avses med djurs välbefinnande och skydd i regleringen av djurskyddet och för det andra, hur realiseras dessa i djurskyddsmyndigheternas förvaltningsverksamhet? I forskningen presenteras och diskuteras bland annat en ny begreppskonstruktion: djurs rättsliga välbefinnande. Den empiriska delen i avhandlingen omfattar förvaltningsverksamheten inom området av djurskydd under åren 1996–2006. Sammanlagt 10468 dokument som upprättats av djurskyddsmyndigheten i samband med verkställandet av djurskyddsövervakning ingår i undersökningen. Forskningen utmynnar i en åtgärdsförteckning med förslag till utvecklingen av området för djurskydd.

Adoption of information technology based patient education in psychiatric nursing

The overall goal of the study was to describe adoption of information technology (IT)-based patient education (PE) developed for patients and nurses use in psychiatric nursing. The data were collected in three phases during the period 2000-2006 in a variety of psychiatric settings in Finland. Firstly, the development process of IT-based PE for patients with schizophrenia spectrum psychosis was described. Secondly, nurses’ adoption of IT-based PE and the variables explaining adoption were demonstrated. Moreover, use of daily IT-based PE in clinical practice and factors associated with use were identified and described. And thirdly, nurses’ experiences of the IT-based PE after one year clinical use were evaluated. IT-based PE program was developed in several stages based on users’ needs and it included information and multimedia applications. Altogether, almost 500 IT-based PE sessions were carried out by the nurses on the study wards and revealed nurses’ activity in educating patients using IT to vary and depend on the hospital in which they worked. Almost 80% of all the possible IT-based PE sessions involved 93 patients and 83 nurses. Less than 2% of the IT-based PE sessions were interrupted and less than 10% suffered disturbances due to the patients or external causes. Moreover, the patients whose education took more days had poorer mental status than those whose education was carried out over a shorter period. After a year’s experience, advantages and disadvantages were described by the nurses for both patients and nurses of the IT-based PE. IT-based PE can be used even on closed acute psychiatric wards with patients with serious mental health disorders. However, technology adoption requires time, and therefore, it must fit in with clinical practice. Collaboration between users and developers is needed when developing user-centered methods in the area of mental health services. Moreover, it is important to understand factors that affect IT adoption in healthcare settings. IT-based PE is one option in interactive and co-operative health care practice between patients and nurses. Therefore the staff should begin to refer patients to established, credible and well-maintained Internet sites that provide information on common psychological problems. Even if every nurse should be trained and engaged to carry out IT-based PE, by targeting the training especially for the most active nurses aids them to support the less active ones. Adoption should also be understood from a perspective that includes aspects related to the context where it is implemented and examine how and in what circumstances it works.

Integrating professional education, research and extensionin irrigated agriculture technology centers

With the objective to stimulate the use of irrigation and the electric energy fee reduction during night time program granted by the 2004 Federal law, the Government of the state of Paraná, Brazil launched the Night Irrigation Program - NPI. Beyond this discount, the farmer that adheres to NPI will get additional benefits, as completion of the electric grid without cost, subsidized financing of equipment, technical assistance, support with environmental farm compliance, and the possibility of replacing the entire pump energy matrix. As part of the NPI strategy of action, installation of learning centers for irrigation technology was planned in agricultural schools, thus contributing both to improve technical professional training in agriculture, and for the dissemination of knowledge in irrigated agriculture, in order to increase agricultural productivity.

Technology for sugarcane agroindustry waste reuse as granulated organomineral fertilizer

Aiming to evaluate the use of sugarcane industry waste such as byproducts from vinasse concentration process, it was assessed the organomineral fertilizer BIOFOM (concentrated vinasse, filter cake, boiler ash, soot from chimneys and supplemented with mineral fertilizers). The study included characterization and agronomic potential analysis of a test plant (corn), by noting the differences between mineral fertilizers and BIOFOM fertilization until 45 days after sowing. The technology traditionally used to produce BIOFOM was based on vinasse evaporation with high heat transfer coefficients. It was observed that the technology, which can be formulated according to the needs of any crop, could be used in many cases as mineral fertilizer. Therefore, the use of this organomineral fertilizer reduces waste generation of sugarcane industry.