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Over the past fifteen years, many organisations have restructured and, in the process, reduced their workforces dramatically. Some of this re‐engineering has been due to such influences as global competition, economic uncertainty, technological change, government deregulation as well as a growing demand for better and faster goods and services. The overall effect of such “downsizing” has not always resulted in desirable outcomes. What lessons have been learned? Are managers using these lessons to reshape organisational strategies, especially those dealing with human resource management?

Discusses an aspect of leadership that is beyond technical competence and practiced by highly successful people. Mental toughness is defined as “between the ears” toughness. Provides the reader with methods to deal with stressful situations and despotic bosses. The author emphasizes that the mind is where battles are truly won and lost. Depicts expanding the circle of influence by; never letting the enemy into your mind; maintaining the ability to choose; projecting a positive attitude; and defining goals. Provides examples of mental toughness and survivability in prisoners of war. Explains techniques for nurturing and practicing mental toughness. Establishes a sound philosophy for increasing the probability of long‐term success and professional advancement in stressful environments. Includes quotes from contemporary as well as historical leaders.

The purpose of this paper is to investigate an underexplored aspect of outsourcing involving a mixed strategy in which parallel production is continued in-house at the same time as outsourcing occurs.

The study applied a multiple case study approach and drew on qualitative data collected through in-depth interviews with wood product manufacturing companies.

The paper posits that there should be a variety of mixed strategies between the two governance forms of “make” or “buy.” In order to address how companies should consider the extent to which they outsource, the analysis was structured around two ends of a continuum: in-house dominance or outsourcing dominance. With an in-house-dominant strategy, outsourcing complements an organization's own production to optimize capacity utilization and outsource less cost-efficient production, or is used as a tool to learn how to outsource. With an outsourcing-dominant strategy, in-house production helps maintain complementary competencies and avoids lock-in risk.

This paper takes initial steps toward an exploration of different mixed strategies. Additional research is required to understand the costs of different mixed strategies compared with insourcing and outsourcing, and to study parallel production from a supplier viewpoint.

This paper suggests that managers should think twice before rushing to a “me too” outsourcing strategy in which in-house capacities are completely closed. It is important to take a dynamic view of outsourcing that maintains a mixed strategy as an option, particularly in situations that involve an underdeveloped supplier market and/or as a way to develop resources over the long term.

The concept of combining both “make” and “buy” is not new. However, little if any research has focussed explicitly on exploring the variety of different types of mixed strategies that exist on the continuum between insourcing and outsourcing.

Adoption of Clinical Decision Support Systems (CDSS) is a crucial step towards the digital transition of the healthcare sector. This review aims to determine and synthesise the influential factors in CDSS adoption in inpatient healthcare settings in order to grasp an understanding of the phenomenon and identify future research gaps.

A systematic literature search of five databases (Medline, EMBASE, PsycINFO, Web of Science and Scopus) was conducted between January 2010 and June 2023. The search strategy was a combination of the following keywords and their synonyms: clinical decision support, hospital or secondary care and influential factors. The quality of studies was evaluated against a 40-point rating scale.

Thirteen papers were systematically reviewed and synthesised and deductively classified into three main constructs of the Technology–Organisation–Environment theory. Scarcity of papers investigating CDSS adoption and its challenges, especially in developing countries, was evident.

This study offers a summative account of challenges in the CDSS procurement process. Strategies to help adopters proactively address the challenges are: (1) Hospital leaders need a clear digital strategy aligned with stakeholders' consensus; (2) Developing modular IT solutions and conducting situational analysis to achieve IT goals; and (3) Government policies, accreditation standards and procurement guidelines play a crucial role in navigating the complex CDSS market.

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first review to address the adoption and procurement of CDSS. Previous literature only addressed challenges and facilitators within the implementation and post-implementation stages. This study focuses on the firm-level adoption phase of CDSS technology with a theory refining lens.

The purpose of this paper is to contribute to a grounded understanding of how mobility impacts talent designation and with what consequences.

An exploratory qualitative case study was conducted of a global medical technology corporation, based on interviews with HR managers, line managers and non-managerial employees.

The findings illustrate that mobility plays a significant role in how employees are assigned talent status, and that mobility manifests and impacts talent designation through two types – geographical and lateral mobility. Mobility is not determined based on abilities and competencies, but rather on an employee’s overall personal situation, including age, family status and relationship status. Two main practices emerged through which these determinants were decided: direct questioning and guesswork. The consequences that follow are that individuals are left with little room to influence their own talent situation, and that there is a risk of discriminatory and exclusionary consequences arising.

The study makes two main contributions. First, it provides a more nuanced understanding of how talent designation unfolds in practice, showing that performance and potential alone cannot explain the process and emphasizing the consequential role of mobility. Second, it contributes with knowledge about the consequences of basing talent designation heavily on mobility. Individual employees are left with significantly less room for enacting agency and playing active roles in relation to TM than has been suggested. Added to this are the potential discriminatory and exclusionary consequences.

The overall goal of science is to build a valid and reliable body of knowledge about the functioning of the world and how applying that knowledge can change it. As personnel and human resources management researchers, we aim to contribute to the respective bodies of knowledge to provide both employers and employees with a workable foundation to help with those problems they are confronted with. However, what research on research has consistently demonstrated is that the scientific endeavor possesses existential issues including a substantial lack of (a) solid theory, (b) replicability, (c) reproducibility, (d) proper and generalizable samples, (e) sufficient quality control (i.e., peer review), (f) robust and trustworthy statistical results, (g) availability of research, and (h) sufficient practical implications. In this chapter, we first sing a song of sorrow regarding the current state of the social sciences in general and personnel and human resources management specifically. Then, we investigate potential grievances that might have led to it (i.e., questionable research practices, misplaced incentives), only to end with a verse of hope by outlining an avenue for betterment (i.e., open science and policy changes at multiple levels).

In 2015, Idris Elba declared ‘I’m probably the most famous Bond actor in the world … and I’ve not even played the role’. Speculation about Elba taking on the role of the world’s most famous spy has circulated for over a decade, fuelled by current Bond Daniel Craig’s assertion that the role has ruined his life. This chapter will examine the role of fans in driving hype about the future of Bond, focusing on the case study of alt-right outrage at the potential casting of Elba. The anti-Elba camp have framed their outrage as informed by authorial intent, and the desire to maintain canon, with claims that Ian Fleming’s Bond was, and should always be white and Scottish. Bond’s expansive narrative universe has remained constant since its inception, enabling fans of the series to form an emotional connection and sense of ownership over the text as a cohesive brand, a form of ‘affective economics’ (Hills, 2015; Jenkins, 2006a). By situating the debate over Elba’s suitability within the timeline of the Bond franchise, the author will posit that the rigid casting and structure of the film series to date enables feelings of fan ownership to flourish. Whilst the influence of vocal fan groups has altered the future direction of numerous popular texts, this chapter will suggest that the sameness of Bond-as-brand provides the justification for fan backlash towards potential change. In sum, this chapter will highlight the Elba-as-Bond rumours as a reflection of the contemporary political moment which seeks to flatten out difference under the auspice of protecting the canon and tradition of ‘brand Bond’.