A university e-learning system to enhance higher education teaching environments: a model-base innovative service-orientated clouds intensive evolution approach.

The International Conference on Advanced Materials, Structures and Mechanical Engineering 2015 (ICAMSME 2015) was held on May 29-31, Incheon, South-Korea. The conference was attended by scientists, scholars, engineers and students from universities, research institutes and industries all around the world to present on going research activities. This proceedings volume assembles papers from various professionals engaged in the fields of materials, structures and mechanical engineering.

Achieving intention-centric BPM through automated planning

As a result of the more distributed nature of organisations and the inherently increasing complexity of their business processes, a significant effort is required for the specification and verification of those processes. The composition of the activities into a business process that accomplishes a specific organisational goal has primarily been a manual task. Automated planning is a branch of artificial intelligence (AI) in which activities are selected and organised by anticipating their expected outcomes with the aim of achieving some goal. As such, automated planning would seem to be a natural fit to the BPM domain to automate the specification of control flow. A number of attempts have been made to apply automated planning to the business process and service composition domain in different stages of the BPM lifecycle. However, a unified adoption of these techniques throughout the BPM lifecycle is missing. As such, we propose a new intention-centric BPM paradigm, which aims on minimising the specification effort by exploiting automated planning techniques to achieve a pre-stated goal. This paper provides a vision on the future possibilities of enhancing BPM using automated planning. A research agenda is presented, which provides an overview of the opportunities and challenges for the exploitation of automated planning in BPM.

Achieving whole-life value: The challenges of service-led construction

Major construction clients are increasingly looking to procure built facilities on the basis of added value, rather than capital cost. Recent advances in the procurement of construction projects have emphasised a whole-life value approach to meeting the client’s objectives, with strategies put in place to encourage long-term commitment and through-life service provision. Construction firms are therefore increasingly required to take on responsibility for the operation and maintenance of the construction project on the client’s behalf - with the emphasis on value and service. This inevitably throws up a host of challenges, not the least of which is the need for construction firms to manage and accommodate the new emphasis on service. Indeed, these ‘service-led’ projects represent a new realm of construction projects where the rationale for the project is driven by client’s objectives with some aspect of service provision. This vision of downstream service delivery increases the number of stakeholders, adds to project complexity and challenges deeply-ingrained working practices. Ultimately it presents a major challenge for the construction sector. This paper sets out to unravel some of the many implications that this change brings with it. It draws upon ongoing research investigating how construction firms can adapt to a more service-orientated built environment and add value in project-based environments. The conclusions lay bare the challenges that firms face when trying to compete on the basis of added-value and service delivery. In particular, how it affects deeply-ingrained working practices and established relationships in the sector.

Dual semiosis analysis model managing customer-focused service innovation

Customers will not continue to pay for a service if it is perceived to be of poor quality, and/or of no value. With a paradigm shift towards business dependence on service orientated IS solutions [1], it is critical that alignment exists between service definition, delivery, and customer expectation, businesses are to ensure customer satisfaction. Services, and micro-service development, offer businesses a flexible structure for solution innovation, however, constant changes in technology, business and societal expectations means an iterative analysis solution is required to i) determine whether provider services adequately meet customer segment needs and expectations, and ii) to help guide business service innovation and development. In this paper, by incorporating multiple models, we propose a series of steps to help identify and prioritise service gaps. Moreover, the authors propose the Dual Semiosis Analysis Model, i.e. a tool that highlights where within the symbiotic customer / provider semiosis process, requirements misinterpretation, and/or service provision deficiencies occur. This paper offers the reader a powerful customer-centric tool, designed to help business managers highlight both what services are critical to customer quality perception, and where future innovation

El uso y efectividad de la relación estratégica comunitaria y el marketing en las organizaciones de comercio al por mayor especializadas en productos agropecuarios

El mercadeo relacional no sólo implica desarrollar relaciones con los clientes y satisfacer efectivamente sus necesidades, sino que también implica la vinculación de la empresa con la comunidad, y para esto se deben utilizan estrategias comunitarias generando así un desarrollo y beneficio recíproco a largo plazo. La empresa mayorista del sector agropecuario analizada en este proyecto dentro de su concepto de comunidad tiene claro quiénes son sus principales agentes (clientes externos, proveedores, clientes internos y comunidades vulnerables) y cómo relacionarse con ellos mediante el uso efectivo y equilibrado de las estrategias de marketing y de las estrategias orientadas a la comunidad, lo cual se ve reflejado en sus resultados financieros y en el impacto que ha generado en el desarrollo integral de la comunidad rural y del sector agropecuario. No obstante, la empresa si bien mantiene una relación permanente con sus clientes, proveedores y empleados y algunas fundaciones, se observa que la relación con otros agentes pierde continuidad al ser una iniciativa a corto plazo como respuesta a un cambio.

Moving beyond the restrictions : the evaluation of the Alice Springs alcohol management plan

There have been a number of evaluations of alcohol management in the Alice Springs region. Interestingly, an evaluation in 1975 emphasised the need for government and other agencies to view the issues holistically and to address them accordingly. The outcomes of this evaluation point to a similar situation with comparable recommendations.

The situation in Alice Springs is unique in some respects but has parallel characteristics to other towns and communities in Australia. Alice Springs is an important regional supply, service-orientated, and tourism town. Its people have diverse backgrounds and appear as durable as the environment they live in. Associated with this is a hard drinking culture that permeates the community with a range of issues regardless of one’s cultural background.

The research group found a community that in many ways is ruptured and fragmented when it comes to the ways and means of how such challenges can be confronted. This situation is exemplified by the perception that alcohol problems are confined to a minority of drinkers that seemingly pervades the dialogue surrounding drinking and its effects in the town.

Nevertheless, a positive outcome of such discourse is the fact that people do care about their community and are very keen to live in a town where there are more responsible attitudes toward drinking. There is some way to go; the first thing that everyone needs to accept is that it is a community problem. Non-Indigenous and Indigenous individuals, groups and organisations all have a responsibility therefore in addressing the challenges and working toward better solutions. Government have an important role of course, however the acceptance by the community that it is a community problem is paramount.

Some of the community and government initiatives are having a positive effect on drinking in the town. However, some of the initiatives, such as certain restrictions, can and should not be considered, on their own, as long-term solutions. Other processes need to be implemented, oversighted and managed in an effective manner. An important component of such processes is data that is well managed, available, and appropriate for those agencies involved.

A atitude como linha de ação do endomarketing: um estudo de caso sobre as possibilidades de aprendizagem para o hospital geral de Santo Antônio do Porto em Portugal

o objetivo deste estudo é verificar até que ponto o Endomarketing, por intermédio da sua linha de ação da atitude, pode contribuir para a expansão de um serviço orientado para o paciente, por parte dos funcionários do Hospital Geral de Santo António. Para responder a essa questão, analisamos a teoria do Endomarketing, sob o ponto de vista do seu criador (Saul Faingaus Bekin) e de outros autores, fazendo o seu contexto temporal e refletindo acerca da sua importância no setor público de saúde português. Os dados foram obtidos mediante uma pesquisa bibliográfica e documental e por intennédio da aplicação de um questionário a alguns funcionários da instituição analisada. Os resultados da pesquisa demonstram que, nessa instituição, já existe uma consciência em tomo da pertinência de um serviço orientado para o paciente, porém essa consciência deve ser mais efetiva e só pode ser realmente implantada com a aplicação do Endomarketing. Embora, para a maioria das pessoas inquiridas, comprometer, envolver, valorizar e qualificar ajudem a expandir um serviço orientado para o paciente, esses fatores não parecem ser os mais importantes para elas, o que nos leva a crer que talvez isto ocorra por esses fatores não serem levados em consideração o suficiente ao longo do seu cotidiano profissional, razão pela qual o Endomarketing se torna importante. Finalmente, foram detectadas grandes falhas ao nível da comunicação interna da instituição, o que também torna pertinente a aplicação de uma estratégia de Endomarketing.

Towards the strategic adoption of Lean in aviation Maintenance Repair and Overhaul (MRO) industry:an empirical study into the industry's Lean status

Purpose - Despite many Maintenance Repair and Overhaul (MRO) organisations alluding their positive business performances to the adoption Lean initiatives, there is a paucity of direct literature that validates this assertion. Thus, the purpose of this paper is to study empirically via the use of an industry-wide survey to establish and extent of Lean adoption and to verify its suitability in mitigating prevalent MRO challenges. Design/methodology/approach - The empirical study contained in this paper is facilitated by an industry-wide survey to collect data from several firms across the MRO spectrum. The analysed responses from industry leaders, professionals and executives synthesised with existing literature was used in ascertaining the extent of Lean adoption within the operational framework of the industry. Findings - The empirical study helped in validating the suitability of Lean in MRO context. However, it was also observed that the focus of its application was skewed towards its production-orientated functions more than its service-orientated functions. Nonetheless, this paper presents results of the positive influence of Lean in MRO context. Research limitations/implications - This empirical study presented in this paper was carried out within a framework of key characteristics of operation. Although this approach is sufficient in assessing the industry's Lean status, further assessment can also be achieved within the context of relevant performance metrics which was not included in this paper. Practical implications - By exploring the industry's Lean status within the context of operational characteristics of operation, this study provides MRO practitioners with more awareness into some of the critical factors required for successful holistic Lean realisation. Social implications - The state-of-the-art of Lean within the aviation MRO context established through this research also contributes to the wider product-centric service environment by providing a platform that facilitates strategy development which ensures Lean success within this environment. Originality/value - Apart from validating the suitability of Lean in MRO contexts, by establishing the extent of Lean adoption within the context of the operational framework, this paper provides a clearer insight as to how successful Lean implementation can be achieved via a holistic implementation strategy balanced between the product-centric and service-centric aspects of the industry.

Client adaptiveness in entrepreneurship and its effect on sustained competitive advantage in project-orientated service firms

Important differences exist in how service firms operate in comparison with manufacturing firms (c.f. Johne & Storey, 1998; Tether, 2002). Despite these significant differences, not much is known whether these differences extrapolate to entrepreneurship in the services industry. This study seeks to address this gap by investigating how value creation occurs when project-oriented firms1 adopt client adaptiveness as part of their entrepreneurial posture. Specifically, we examine the effect of client adaptiveness on sustained competitive advantage. Client adaptiveness is conceptualized as the extent to which an organization engages in identifying and responding to perceived client needs and wants which reflects the service firm’s propensity to dynamically synchronize with the project/client requirements.

A network DEA quantity and quality-orientated production model: An application to Australian university research services

The motivation for this analysis is the recently developed Excellence in Research for Australia (ERA) program developed to assess the quality of research in Australia. The objective is to develop an appropriate empirical model that better represents the underlying production of higher education research. In general, past studies on university research performance have used standard DEA models with some quantifiable research outputs. However, these suffer from the twin maladies of an inappropriate production specification and a lack of consideration of the quality of output. By including the qualitative attributes of peer-reviewed journals, we develop a procedure that captures both quality and quantity, and apply it using a network DEA model. Our main finding is that standard DEA models tend to overstate the research efficiency of most Australian universities.

The relationship between transformational leadership and customer-orientated boundary-spanning behaviours:examining the role of compassion

Customer-oriented boundary-spanning behaviours (COBSBs) are critical to the success of service organisations. Transformational leadership, with its emphasis on the social elements of the leader-subordinate dyad, is a likely antecedent to COBSBs. Similarly, the interpersonal nature of services suggests leader compassion could have a significant effect on the saliency of the relationship between transformational leadership and COBSBs. This paper reports on a study of the moderating effect of leader compassion on the relationship between transformational leadership and COBSBs (service delivery behaviours, internal influence and external representation). Transformational leadership and compassion both have significant and positive influences on COBSBs. However, compassion plays no moderating role. These findings are discussed and avenues for further research are proposed.

Toward Self-Organising Service Communities

This paper discusses a framework in which catalog service communities are built, linked for interaction, and constantly monitored and adapted over time. A catalog service community (represented as a peer node in a peer-to-peer network) in our system can be viewed as domain specific data integration mediators representing the domain knowledge and the registry information. The query routing among communities is performed to identify a set of data sources that are relevant to answering a given query. The system monitors the interactions between the communities to discover patterns that may lead to restructuring of the network (e.g., irrelevant peers removed, new relationships created, etc.).