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The purpose of this paper is to present a case study around an approach to team performance management being deployed within the BELRON group of companies. The device being deployed is the climate measure (OCSII), which is being used within the organisation as an indicator of leadership capability. Although the results of climate surveys may be reported at both team and individual levels, this paper seeks to focus on team climate and how this may be linked to changes in business performance.

The performance management approach has been aligned to a strategic intent, as championed by the CEO, to focus on leadership development as a key enabler of BELRON's future success. The paper considers the deployment of the climate tool within the Top Teams of three different business units and this is linked to available information relating to performance.

The paper finds that, within BELRON, there is a belief that the emphasis on climate has been a major contributor to its enhanced business performance over recent years. The paper presents information from three BELRON contexts where changes in climate would appear to precede improvements in business performance. However, despite these examples, i.e. where “high performing climates” appear to be linked with profitability, or other measures of business performance, this is not seen to be universal within the company.

The work reported has limitations in that it focuses on only three positive examples of a possible climate/performance link at BELRON.

The paper makes a key contribution for practitioners, particularly HR, OD professionals and consultants as well as any senior manager concerned with managing performance. The climate survey being deployed in this context (the OCSII) is a tool which has been in use since the 1960s, with many claims made about its links to performance. However, the vast majority of the work has been conducted in a consultancy setting without much coverage in academic literatures.

The paper describes for the reader how the OSCII tool may be deployed to support team performance management. It then describes how the instrument has been deployed within the Top Teams of three business units within BELRON.

This paper was intended to explore the concept of learning in networks using recent literature from this emerging field. In order to do so, it takes as a case study a pan‐European e‐learning project, which required collaborative working and learning within a distributed team.

The approach has been qualitative and exploratory. Data have been collected via interviews with project partners and participant observation of the steering group meetings. Analysis has similarly been qualitative in nature.

Analysis suggests that there are links with earlier literature on inter‐organisational learning networks, particularly around culture, management style and leadership in virtual collaboration. Interestingly, even supposed “experts” in the field of e‐learning technologies showed a preference to work face‐to‐face.

The research to date has been exploratory and small‐scale. More work is required to test the findings in a wider context.

The findings are believed to have considerable practical value, both for the European Union, as the funding body, but also for one's own practice, and that of others as they attempt to facilitate learning and collaborating in networks.

The paper adds value as it is one of only a small number to approach networked learning from a non‐experimental standpoint. It is also original in its application of the frameworks around network learning and learning in networks, as advanced by Knight in 2002 and Knight and Pye in 2002.

Details how the organizational climate measure OCSII is being used in the BELRON group of companies as an indicator of leadership capability. Focuses on team climate and how this may be linked to changes in business performance.

Considers the deployment of the climate tool in the top teams of three BELRON business units and links the results to available information relating to performance.

Reveals that, within BELRON, there is a belief that the emphasis on climate has been a major contributor to its enhanced business performance over recent years. Presents information from three BELRON contexts where changes in climate would appear to have preceded improvements in business performance. Concedes, however, that despite these examples of ‘high‐performing climates’ appearing to be linked with profitability, or other measures of business performance, this is not seen to be universal within the company.

Provides plenty to interest human‐resource management and organizational‐development specialists, as well as other senior managers.

Describes how the OSCII tool may be deployed to support team‐performance management.

The purpose of this editorial is to introduce the special issue on the relationship of strategic performance management to team strategy, company performance and organizational effectiveness.

The paper explains each of the components in this relationship before introducing the problematic issues regarding this relationship and where the gaps are missing in the extant literature; hence the need for the special issue is justified.

The paper finds that the concluding remarks are offered to suggest that strategic performance management can take place at top management, middle management, or strategic operations levels, and the their impact on team strategy, company performance and organizational effectiveness can be regarded as a special phenomenon, termed “strategic team performance management”.

This editorial provides an overview of this compilation which comprises five original papers that are examples of latest developments in this research area, and each of these articles contains a brief introduction on how they contribute to filling in gaps in the literature.

The first International Conference on Education for Scientific Information work was held at Queen Elizabeth College, London, from 3rd to 7th April 1967. It was organized by Aslib, the Institute of Information Scientists and OSTI, on behalf of the FID. Fifty‐six delegates from sixteen countries, most of them representing organizations actually engaged in training scientific information workers, attended the conference. Thirty‐three papers had been prepared and preprinted, and formed the basis of the discussions at the sessions. The discussions, which were at a high level, showed that there were many problems common to all countries. A number of subjects for action and discussion were passed on to the Training Committee of the FID, which met on the day after the conference. Interest was shown in developing a basic core curriculum, which could be adapted to local circumstances in each country. Several delegates expressed an opinion that not enough attention had been paid in the past to the needs of the small organization and the small country. There was some discussion of the need for clearing‐houses for audio‐visual materials and other teaching aids, both on the national and international levels. There was great interest in the idea of a high‐level international seminar for people from the smaller and less‐developed countries, who would go back to their own countries and train teachers of information work. A seminar on these lines may be organized in Western Germany late in 1967. The proceedings of the conference will be published by the FID, probably in September 1967.

Month after month we bring forward additional evidence of the injury resulting from the use of chemical “preservatives” in food, while the Authorities feebly hesitate to give specific legal effect to the recommendations of the Departmental Committee which made such a complete inquiry into this question. The evidence upon which those recommendations were based has been fully corroborated by a number of different observers. FERE and others have shown that, as regards boric acid and borax, even when administered in the smallest medicinal doses, there is always the risk that these drugs may aggravate, or even produce, renal diseases. These observations have been confirmed by the work of Dr. CHARLES HARRINGTON, an account of which has been recently published. Twelve cats were fed on the same food; six were treated with borax, one had no preservative, and five were given a preservative which had no apparent effect. The experiment extended over a period of 133 days, the quantity of borax given averaging about 0.5 grms, per diem. Three of the borated cats soon became ill, and one died at the end of six weeks. On the termination of the experiment the cats were all killed, and upon examination it was found that the organs of the six cats which had not taken borax were in perfectly sound and healthy condition, while the others, with one exception, were all suffering from nephritis. Of course, instances are recorded in which patients have been treated with borax and boracic acid with apparently no injurious result, but as a general rule these experiments have been of too short duration to allow of the desired information being arrived at, and the results must therefore be regarded as inconclusive and unreliable. It is perfectly evident that the kidneys may be for a short time quite capable of eliminating many objectionable substances, but the long‐continued use of such bodies, as Dr. HARRINGTON'S researches clearly indicate, sets up an inflammatory condition of the kidneys which, of course, interferes with the effective performance of their proper functions, and lays the foundations for complications of the most serious nature.

THE sudden death, at a comparatively early age, of Mr. Franklin Trengrouse Barrett, of the Fulham Public Libraries, removes from the ranks of librarians, one of the most promising, highly‐trained, and best‐loved of those younger men whose work is making itself so strongly felt in this country. His death came as a severe shock to most of his friends, and particularly to his father, Mr. Francis T. Barrett, the universally‐esteemed City Librarian of Glasgow, who was quite unprepared for such a sudden and bitter bereavement. To him, as to Mrs. Franklin Barrett, a lady well‐known and much respected by London librarians, I am sure the deepest sympathy of all librarians and other colleagues will go forth. The sad event has already produced a great many messages of sympathy from many kind friends, and for these, and other efforts of consolation and comfort, the family are deeply grateful.