Search results

In order to work more efficiently with internal and external processes, public organisations are working with reorganisation and centralisation of documentation practices as part of a holistic approach to manage and control information flows. The registry function has a long tradition built on legislative requirements concerning registration of official documents in order to fulfil the citizens' rights to access information. The purpose of this paper is to demonstrate challenges related to recordkeeping legislative awareness within a public organisation and how a changing context may impact on the registrars' status.

The data presented and analysed are based on a longitudinal case study of a centralised registry function project undertaken by a Swedish local government body (a municipality). Interviews have been used as the primary data collection method.

The findings identify challenges that result from a lack of recordkeeping skills and recordkeeping legislative awareness that needs to be solved in order to reach a successful implementation. Even though the registry function is identified as strategically important, the registrars have not reached the status “expert”. Changing context does not necessarily lead to a change in status. It is a more complex process, which includes attitudes, knowledge and skills.

The research is limited by being a case study in a single organisation in the Swedish public sector context.

The findings could be useful for public organisations that intend to reorganise and centralise documentation practices. Furthermore, the findings contribute to record keeping practitioners and also to stakeholders within public organisations.

Registrars as an occupational group in Sweden have not been the focus of any extensive academic research. In view of its new strategic importance the registry function has benefitted from organisational restructuring; research is needed on registrars as a possible future “records management profession”, which does not currently exist in Sweden.

Public organizations are investing in e‐government development and e‐services to improve the interaction and services to the citizens. Archivists need to act more pro‐active to capture and manage records in order to be accessible both in the present and in the long‐term. Archivists need to understand the conceptual context and business processes in which the records are created. This study aims to focus on an ongoing process within a specific context, which may have direct, but also future implications for archivists' professional identity. Professional identity is understood as a sense of shared understandings and skills, experiences, common way of perceiving problems and their possible solutions. The study is meant to answer the overall research question and sub‐questions: What is the status of archivist professionals' positions and practice within public organizations? What organizational effect has the change from paper‐based to electronic record keeping had on archivists' professional positions and practice within organizations? How do archivists perceive themselves in their professional roles, i.e. identity? Are there any critical competence issues that need to be solved that are connected to new requirements in working methods related to electronic record keeping? and How do archivists define their skills and working performance?

The data presented and analyzed in this article are based on a literature review and an empirical study. The literature covers areas related to archivists' professional practice and future role. The empirical study is based on interviews with nine municipality archivists at nine different Swedish municipalities identified by the Swedish Association of Local Government and Regions as “good example” e‐government municipalities. All interviews were undertaken during January and March 2011.

The findings provide information on how archivists define their current and future professional role in relation to the organization and the development of information technology: the status of archivist professionals' positions and practice, for example, within public organizations. It explores the importance of strategic approaches to managing electronic records – from their creation throughout their whole existence, including long‐term preservation – and considers necessary changes to the professional image of archivists and the skills they need.

This article will be of interest to record keeping practitioners working in the shift to e‐government in local contexts and also to educators, as there appears to be a shift in the skills and knowledge required by those working in local government.

Various levels of government offer citizens different channels and services using information technology (IT). Within e‐government different types of “e‐services” are used. The communications are made through a user interface consisting of an e‐service application. E‐services are used for digital management of routine matters: records are created, received, maintained, used and disposed during the processes of capturing and maintaining evidence about business activities and transactions. Besides e‐services, public administrations are establishing new channels organised as contact centres, in order to interact more efficiently with the citizens. The establishment of contact centres could be seen as an expression of an integrated approach to manage and control information flows in order to improve and ensure effective services. The purpose of this paper is to identify recordkeeping challenges related to public organisations' e‐government development and documentation practice.

The data presented and analysed are based on a qualitative study of Swedish local governments' (municipalities) establishment and implementation of contact centres during 2011. The study was designed as a multiple case study, using interviews as a data collection method.

The findings demonstrate that the establishment of contact centres has other motives than the traditional need to use information as evidence for decision making: namely internal business process development and cost savings. The information is captured proactively and serves different purposes, which challenges the strong bond between processes, legislation, organisation and accountability.

This paper will be of interest to record‐keeping practitioners working in the shift to e‐government.

Information is captured in new ways where the same information serves several interests. This research addresses the importance of including research in the beginning of the life of the record in relation to the influence made by the creator and the social construction of the record as part of archival thinking and research.

The purpose of this editorial is to highlight the potential challenges and opportunities for information and records managers of the “open access” agenda. This is becoming increasingly high profile not only in the research sector, but also the public sector as a result of a number of key drivers, namely, research funder requirements, regulatory compliance, and the demand for greater openness, transparency and accountability.

The article is a viewpoint informed by the findings from two recent projects directed by the author and on wider conversations and publications. It is not an in‐depth analysis of the literature.

The author suggests that the increasing profile and importance of “open access” and “open data” offer new opportunities for information and records managers. They provide technical as well as people challenges and a new context in which information and records managers can apply their expertise. This will be different to the compliance agenda; it will be focused more on economic and competitor advantage.

The viewpoint brings together thoughts on the information and records management implications of open access and the potential value and role of records professionals. Its purpose is to stimulate debate and action.

In terms of entrepreneurship, open data benefits include economic growth, innovation, empowerment and new or improved products and services. Hackathons encourage the development of new applications using open data and the creation of startups based on these applications. Researchers focus on factors that affect nascent entrepreneurs’ decision to create a startup but researches in the field of open data hackathons have not been fully investigated yet. This paper aims to suggest a model that incorporates factors that affect the decision of establishing a startup by developers who have participated in open data hackathons.

In total, 70 papers were examined and analyzed using a three-phased literature review methodology, which was suggested by Webster and Watson (2002). These surveys investigated several factors that affect a nascent entrepreneur to create a startup.

Eventually, by identifying the motivations for developers to participate in a hackathon, and understanding the benefits of the use of open data, researchers will be able to elaborate the proposed model and evaluate if the contest has contributed to the decision of establish a startup and what factors affect the decision to establish a startup apply to open data developers, and if the participants of the contest agree with these factors.

The paper expands the scope of open data research on entrepreneurship field, stating the need for more research to be conducted regarding the open data in entrepreneurship through hackathons.

This paper aims to analyse the open data business models (ODBMs) as a source of knowledge and innovation to generate economic and social value. A framework for understanding ODBMs is presented. First, the knowledge structure of the ODBMs literature is identified. Second, a conceptual model for analysing the ODBMs is proposed. And finally, the future trends in ODBMs research are discussed.

In this paper, co-word analysis is performed to identify the topics related with ODBMs.

The ODBMs structure of knowledge is articulated in five themes: business model, smart city, business ecosystem, decision-making and innovation. Based on these results, a five-step model for analysing ODBMs is proposed. Finally, a discussion of the future trends of ODBMs focussed on a knowledge management perspective, open data ecosystems and business intelligence is presented.

The paper presents a picture of what, where, for whom and for what ODBMs have been studied and develops a new model to explain the value creation process of ODBMs. Taking a step further, applying the principles and models of knowledge management and business intelligence to ODBMs is also recommended in order to transfer and transform open data into valuable knowledge that can be used for developing apps. In that context, the importance of encouraging collaboration between different agents in the so-called open data ecosystem is presented.

This paper aims to analyse the corporate rent-vs-buy decision on real estate through the trade-off theory and default option in the framework of a corporation that aims to optimise its capital structure.

The methodological core of this paper comprises the trade-off theory that approaches the optimal capital structure by counterbalancing debt tax savings with bankruptcy costs. Impacts on the default option and the default barrier are made explicit. The paper also explores the practical applicability of the renting scenarios in the European context by examining the regimes of real estate investment trusts in different countries from the demand-side of commercial renting.

Analytical relationships with tax savings, bankruptcy costs, default option and default barrier are identified for the renting-vs-buying real estate decisions.

The theoretical model assumes simplifications, such as constant debt, to make it operational. The paper centres exclusively on the trade-off capital structure theory.

This paper is an analysis of corporate real estate decisions together with capital structure. Applications are not only quantitative but also conceptual and strategic.

Identifying the main variables that govern the impact of corporate real estate decisions on capital structure and interweaving different approaches generates a conceptual framework that enlightens strategic thinking in this field.

Major shifts in the southern hemisphere circulation occurred during the mid‐1970s concurrent with large reductions in southern Australian winter rainfall associated with decreased cyclogenesis. The purpose of this paper is to study changes in cyclogenesis over southern Australia during the last 50 years, examine the ability of coupled climate models to simulate the winter circulation changes, and discuss projected changes in winter circulation and rainfall under different climate change scenarios.

Three dimensional instability theory is used to study changes in cyclogenesis. The response of 22 coupled model intercomparison project three (CMIP3) IPCC climate models to observed increases in greenhouse gases, from pre‐industrial to the end of the twentieth century, is examined. The authors focus on two diagnostics closely related to the changes in cyclogenesis: changes in the 300 hPa zonal wind strength; and changes in the baroclinic instability. Projected changes in baroclinic instability and rainfall are investigated in SRESB1, SRESA1B and SRESA2 scenarios.

There has been a 30 per cent reduction in the growth rate of the leading storm track mode crossing southern Australia in the 1975‐1994 period, and a 37 per cent reduction in the 1997‐2006 period, when compared to 1949‐1968. Most of the CMIP3 models capture the changes in the zonal wind; only about a third the changes in baroclinic instability. Projected changes in baroclinic instability and rainfall suggest further reductions in the growth rate of storm track modes and further large reductions in rainfall over southern Australia.

The paper addresses a major cause of the reduction in Australian winter rainfall, and provides guidance on future‐projected changes.