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1 – 10 of over 15000Matthew Eriksen and George H. Tompson
This case describes a real family that has been running a labor-intensive business since 1992. The father, Phil Mason, runs the business with the help of his wife and two of his…
Abstract
This case describes a real family that has been running a labor-intensive business since 1992. The father, Phil Mason, runs the business with the help of his wife and two of his sons in southwestern Rhode Island. The business is a franchisee of ServiceMaster Clean. In 2006, the franchise employed 20 full-time employees and was the 50th largest ServiceMaster Clean franchise among the approximately 1,200 franchises located in the United States. Annual revenue is approximately $2.5 million. In late 2005, one of Phil℉s sons began researching the biodiesel industry. As he was growing weary of the labor-intensive nature of his franchise business, Phil fully researched the industry himself. By the middle of 2006, Phil was convinced that he could profitably manufacture biodiesel in his spare warehouse space. In July 2006, he formed Mason Biodiesel, LLC and financed the $1.5 million start-up costs through a combination of personal savings and bank debt.
Lisa Gring-Pemble and Germán Perilla
As the Academy for Business in Society considers the theme “Business in Society: Measuring Impact and Creating Change,” one fundamental question emerges and that is how to…
Abstract
Purpose
As the Academy for Business in Society considers the theme “Business in Society: Measuring Impact and Creating Change,” one fundamental question emerges and that is how to collaborate with universities to create positive impact and sustainable business models. The purpose of this paper is to address that question and offer one apt illustration for how to collaborate effectively across sectors.
Design/methodology/approach
This paper offers a case study of the Honey Bee Initiative (HBI) from George Mason University’s School of Business.
Findings
In this case study, the authors discuss the Initiative’s tri-sector domestic and global partnerships, community-driven development approach and innovative solutions as an exemplar of business as a force for good.
Originality/value
This paper provides unique insight into how universities can partner with non-profits, business and policy leaders to effect positive change. As such, the HBI program contributes to the growing body of research on the benefits of tri-sector partnership models as a means of addressing global goals and provides a valuable case study to understand better the necessity of multi-stakeholder partnerships. Moreover, the HBI’s tri-sector partnership model offers important insights into what makes these partnerships successful and serves as a replicable model that can be instituted in other regions around the globe.
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An examination from an historical perspective of the stereotype applied to constructors, with an emphasis on the contemporary stereotype of constructors within the UK construction…
Abstract
An examination from an historical perspective of the stereotype applied to constructors, with an emphasis on the contemporary stereotype of constructors within the UK construction industry, indicates that constructor stereotypes have become increasingly negative. Over the same period, the stereotype of architects has become increasingly positive and the status of architects has increased, whereas that of constructors has decreased. Possible factors in the development of such a situation are considered, as is the possibility of moving the constructor's negative stereotype to a more positive position through an awareness of the effects of the Bob the Builder cartoon character. There is evidence that Bob has become a hero to the current generation of pre‐school children, with the consequence that this generation is more receptive to the possibility of constructors exhibiting behaviour which can be characterized in positive terms. Little evidence exists of the UK industry's reaction to this situation.
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D. MIDGLEY and RICHARDSON
Signal flow graphs for networks of electronic systems are often reduced to transfer functions by Mason's theorem. An interactive software package is presented to make this process…
Abstract
Signal flow graphs for networks of electronic systems are often reduced to transfer functions by Mason's theorem. An interactive software package is presented to make this process fully automated. The nodes are numbered. Input to the program specifies the transmittance between node pairs, first noting the start‐node‐number followed by that of the destination‐node. Transmittances are represented either as real numbers or as a string of characters. With real transmittances the output of the program takes the form of a numerator and a denominator of the transfer function, each as a real number. With character‐string transmittances the numerator and denominator of the output are available both as strings and as arrays of products of prime numbers, where each prime number has uniquely represented an input character string.
Karl Mason, Rosslyn Dray, Jane C. Healy and Joanna Wells
The purpose of this paper is to consider what safeguarding responses to discriminatory abuse and hate crime might learn from existing research on restorative justice and to drive…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to consider what safeguarding responses to discriminatory abuse and hate crime might learn from existing research on restorative justice and to drive practice development based on available evidence.
Design/methodology/approach
This paper is based on a scoping review of literature using four academic databases and reference harvesting. This comprised a critical appraisal of 30 articles, which were thematically analysed to appreciate the benefits and challenges of restorative justice responses to hate crime and how this might inform safeguarding responses to discriminatory abuse and hate crime.
Findings
The analysis identifies four domains where learning can be drawn. These relate to theory on restorative justice; restorative justice practices; perspectives from lived experience of restorative justice and hate crime; and an appraisal of critiques about restorative justice.
Originality/value
This paper connects the emerging evidence on restorative criminal justice responses to hate crime to the “turn” towards strengths-based practices in adult safeguarding. Although this provides a fertile environment for embedding restorative practices, the authors argue certain precautions are required based on evidence from existing research on hate crime and restorative justice.
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To explore the experience of a key member of the UK equalities policy‐making elite, interrogating her shift from activist to top‐ranking equalities professional. To focus…
Abstract
Purpose
To explore the experience of a key member of the UK equalities policy‐making elite, interrogating her shift from activist to top‐ranking equalities professional. To focus attention on the under‐explored area of lesbian, gay bisexual and transgender equalities work.
Design/methodology/approach
The interview is prefaced with a critical commentary on current UK equalities policy, contextualising the interview discussion, which links personal and collective histories and provides a comparison of equalities work over time.
Findings
Angela Mason, while top‐ranking civil servant, continues to claim the label activist. Like a variety of other equalities workers she uses multiple tactics to appeal to different constituents at different times and in different contexts.
Originality/value
This is an interview with one of the key protagonists in the development of UK equalities policies over the last 30 years. It is unique in its focus on the current overhaul of UK equalities policy from an “insider” and in its timing at the interim point of this reorganisation (October 2006).
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Triya Tessa Ramburn, Yufei Mandy Wu and Rachel Kronick
Community gardens are increasingly used as interventions during the resettlement of refugees and other migrants. Little is known about how garden programs might support their…
Abstract
Purpose
Community gardens are increasingly used as interventions during the resettlement of refugees and other migrants. Little is known about how garden programs might support their mental health and wellbeing. Given the links between climate change and forced migration, community gardens are especially relevant, as they can also support climate change mitigation. This study aims to document psychosocial outcomes of gardening programs for refugees and migrants, and mechanisms leading to these outcomes.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors searched major databases and the grey literature up to 2021, resulting in the inclusion of 17 peer-reviewed and 4 grey literature articles in a thematic, qualitative analysis.
Findings
Four consistent themes arose from the analysis: community gardening programs promoted continuity and adaptation (81% of articles), social connectedness (81%), overall wellbeing (95%) and a sense of meaning and self-worth (67%). The results suggest that community gardens can strengthen psychosocial pillars that are key to the recovery and resettlement of refugees and migrants. The land-based and social nature of community gardening may enable connections to the land and others, nurture a sense of belonging in the host country and provide a link to the past for those from agricultural backgrounds.
Research limitations/implications
Further participatory action research is needed to develop guidelines for the successful implementation of community gardens by resettlement organisations.
Originality/value
This review indicates that community gardens can be effective psychosocial interventions as part of a network of services supporting the resettlement of refugees and migrants.
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Vasco Sanchez Rodrigues, Damian Stantchev, Andrew Potter, Mohamed Naim and Anthony Whiteing
Much of the recent research on supply chain uncertainty has focused on relationships between manufacturers and suppliers and existing models have therefore been based on this…
Abstract
Purpose
Much of the recent research on supply chain uncertainty has focused on relationships between manufacturers and suppliers and existing models have therefore been based on this dyadic structure. The aim is to establish a supply chain uncertainty model that explicitly incorporates transport operations and hence the logistics triad; supplier, customer and transport carrier.
Design/methodology/approach
This is a literature‐based activity that synthesises and extends existing models of supply chain uncertainty.
Findings
The paper develops a new model to reflect the nature of transport operations. Consequently, it identifies five main categories of uncertainty, namely from the points of view of the supplier, the customer and the carrier, respectively, the control systems used in the supply chain and external factors. The interfaces between the uncertainty categories involving all three parties of the logistics triad are identified, so as to develop a more holistic perspective on supply chain uncertainty and how it can be reduced.
Research limitations/implications
This paper is conceptual in nature and empirical research into the area of transport uncertainty will be required to validate its findings. Following this, the model can be used to investigate and evaluate improvements in the economic and/or environmental performance of freight transport within supply chains.
Practical implications
The model is intended to provide a framework within which organisations, including logistics providers, can develop a supply chain strategy to mitigate the effects of uncertainty. By categorising uncertainty into the types described, organisations may determine where the greatest uncertainties lie and hence develop a prioritised plan for supply chain re‐engineering by initially targeting those uncertainties with the most significant implications for supply chain efficiency.
Originality/value
Little research has been undertaken on the impact of uncertainties on transport in the context of collaborative supply chain management. The model rationalises uncertainties into various types taking into account the nature of the logistics triad.
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Daniel Mason, Stacy-Lynn Sant and Brian Soebbing
The purpose of this paper is to examine how North American professional team owners are engaging in broader urban development projects that have their teams as anchor tenants in…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to examine how North American professional team owners are engaging in broader urban development projects that have their teams as anchor tenants in new sports facilities, by examining the case of Rogers Arena in Edmonton, Canada.
Design/methodology/approach
Approached from a constructionist perspective, the study employed an instrumental case study strategy as it facilitates understanding and description of a particular phenomenon and allows researchers to use the case as a comparative point across other settings (with similar conditions) in which the phenomenon might be present.
Findings
Using urban regime theory as a framework, the authors found that in Edmonton, the team owner was able to align his interests with other political and business interests by engaging in a development strategy that increased the vibrancy of Edmonton’s downtown core. As a result, the owner was able to garner support for both the arena and the surrounding development.
Research limitations/implications
The authors argue that this new model of team owner as developer has several implications: on-field performance may only be important insofar as it drives demand for the development; the owner’s focus is on driving revenues and profits from interests outside of the sports facility itself; and the team (and the threat of relocation) is leveraged to gain master developer status for the ownership group.
Originality/value
This paper adds to the understanding of owner interests and how franchise profitability and solvency can be tied to other related business interests controlled by team owners.
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Lucia Luce Quinn and David H. Mason
This case study of scenario planning at Digital shows how top management uses the process for testing, probing, pushing, and provoking strategic thinking about the future. Middle…
Abstract
This case study of scenario planning at Digital shows how top management uses the process for testing, probing, pushing, and provoking strategic thinking about the future. Middle managers find the scenarios helpful for modeling their current businesses.