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The Cooperative Extension Service has been a key partner in the design, implementation and evaluation of leadership development programs. To evaluate the effectiveness of their training and the effects of response shift bias on outcomes using a self-report measure, one hundred forty-seven County Extension Agents participated in this leadership study. Participants were randomly assigned to one of two treatment groups or to a control group. Two different evaluation designs (pre-posttest and then-post) were used. The then-post design asks participants to first report their behavior or understanding as a result of the training (post) and then to retrospectively report this behavior before the training. The then-post evaluation design provided more significant change data than did the traditional pre-posttest design indicating a response shift occurred. Such differences in evaluation findings suggest that the educational benefit of such trainings may be underestimated when using the traditional pre-post evaluation design.

Measuring the Return on Investment (ROI) in training and development has consistently earned a place among the critical issues in the human resource development (HRD) field. Leadership educators may soon find that program sponsors and administrators asking for ROI information as well. This paper reports the ROI of the Southern Extension Leadership Development (SELD) program as implemented at The University of Georgia. To calculate the return on investment, the ROI model proposed by Phillips (2002) was used. New extension agents hired between 1995 and 2001 who completed the probationary period with the Cooperative Extension Service formed the population for this analysis. Analysis of the data indicated that the employee turnover rate for the participant group was significantly lower than for the non-participant group. Based on the ROI model calculations, every one-dollar spent in the SELD program returned $3.86 in benefits and $2.86 (286%) in net benefits were returned on Investment.

According to a survey of professionals in agricultural education, The Journal of Leadership Education (JOLE) is a new and primary outlet of leadership education research and professional scholarship. The purpose of this study was to assess five years of JOLE’s primary and secondary research theme areas, frequent primary and secondary research themes by year, prolific authorship, and research methods and types using a mixed-methods design. A compilation of the research results is reported. Research themes appear cyclic and add little to improving an apparent lack of research continuity. Research must continue to determine cycle depth and the influence on research in leadership education as an integrated specialization area of agricultural education. This research may be used comparatively with the National Research Agenda to determine where future research should be focused.

This paper reports on an investigation of the integration of symbolic computation and reasoning into highly computerized numerically‐based realtime control systems for complex plant process management. This is the natural next step in an evolving maturation of the use of computers for automated monitoring and control of continuous processes. A particular implementation involving nuclear power plant intelligent monitoring is being developed from which overall principles and specifications can be distilled, ultimately leading to a general methodology that can be applied to other continuous plant processes.

Stakeholder theory has become one of the main theoretical foundations of corporate social performance (CSP) (Clarkson, 1995; Margolis & Walsh, 2003; van der Laan, van Ees & van Witteloostuijn, 2008). There are three interconnected constructs related to CSP in the literature, and referring to different aspects of business involvement in social issues. First, corporate social responsibility (CSR, or CSR1) refers to the business philosophy that directs managers making policy and management decisions towards normatively correct performance regarding expectations of multiple stakeholders of the firm (Dentchev, 2009; Van der Laan et al., 2008). Carroll (1979, 1991) distinguishes social expectations as four dimensions of CSR: economic, legal, ethical, and discretionary.

Lager beer is a bottom fermentation beer which is characterised by having in general a low alcohol content and a high proportion of extractive matters in comparison with the top fermentation beer that is still, by far, the main brew of this country. It may be pointed out that in the top fermentation process the variety of yeast which is used rises to the top of the liquid in the fermentation vat. In the bottom process the yeast sinks to the bottom, and fermentation takes place at a lower temperature. Lager has been described, among other things, as “liquid food” as an aperitif; as a non‐intoxicant. It would therefore seem to possess a rare combination of good qualities. While we submit that excessive praise may be sometimes almost as effective as an agent of damnation as faint praise, there is no doubt that genuine lager beer is a thoroughly wholesome drink.

The purpose of this paper is to examine how clarity of corporate social responsibility (CSR) orientation of Japanese small and medium enterprises (SMEs) achieves constructive firm performance outcomes.

On the basis of the literature review, the authors present a research model that defines key constructs and provide propositions that explain the interrelationships with theoretical rationale and practical implications. Using careful selection criteria, the authors have further conducted the in-depth interviews of the executives of two prominent Japanese SMEs.

The results suggest that CEOs with strong CSR orientation are more likely to influence their firms to achieve effective firm performance. If CSR philosophy is strategically formulated, clearly communicated, and widely accepted, then such firm is more likely to attain desirable business performance outcomes for larger stakeholders. Furthermore, CSR implementation of SMEs is not necessarily too costly; in fact, the long-term rate of return on SMEs’ CSR investment, with proper priority and prudent focus, is quite competitive.

In spite of the specificity of the two case studies, the research model and the study findings give valuable insight on the role of CEO’s philosophy on CSR implementation in the international market. The linkage mechanism between business operation and CSR by these SMEs is applicable to many innovative entrepreneurial firms that target beyond domestic markets.

The authors highlight how the clarity of CSR philosophy in terms of firm orientation and linkage mechanism aids SMEs in overcoming their resource constraints. Furthermore, well-implemented CSR activities may become instrumental in achieving long-term desirable performance in the form of customer loyalty, employee’s sense of pride, and corporate socio-economic reputation.

We publish elsewhere a report of the judgment delivered by Mr. LOVELAND‐LOVELAND, K.C., Chairman of the County of London Sessions, in the case of the Kensington Borough Council versus Bugg. The termination of this case has been called a “compromise” by some of the trade journals, and it is well to point out that it was nothing of the kind. When a conviction is confirmed in a higher court, and when proceedings are stayed upon an undertaking being given by the defendants that they will do what they were proceeded against for not doing, the description of such circumstances by the term “compromise” is ridiculous—particularly when a judgment is accompanied by remarks so decisive and uncompromising as those which were made by the learned Chairman in reference to this case. The suggestion that the case should bo brought to a conclusion in the manner indicated came from the Bench, who were evidently perfectly satisfied as to the meaning which attaches to the word “Cornflour,” and the course suggested was obviously intended merely to save the time of the Court; while the fact that the defendants submitted to the terms imposed without oven attempting to bring forward such evidence as they might have been able to get to support their position, is in itself amply sufficient to show that their advisers had appreciated the weakness of their case. There has been the usual outery in the trade journals about the sufferings of the innocent tradesman, and about “interference with the liberties of manufacturers.” In the whole history of the administration of the Food Acts in this country there are hardly any instances of prosecutions for the sale of an article under a name which is properly applicable to another, in which such outcries have not been raised. Such outcries may, however, be taken as blessings in disguise, since they mainly serve to emphasise the facts and to educate the public. The term “Cornflour” is well known to have originated from the expression “Indian Corn Flour,” and it unquestionably has a specific meaning which is not applicable to either of the two words of which the term is made up. Originally, perhaps, the term “Indian Corn Flour” may have meant the actual meal of Indian Corn or Maize, but, by the usage of more than forty years the term “ Cornflour” means the prepared starch of Maize. No doubt it has been honestly thought by some that in view of this fact any starch might bo described as “Cornflour,” but such a position is quite untenable There is no argument which can bo adduced in support of the contention that rice starch may bo described as Cornflour, which cannot also be brought forward in support of a statement that any starch whatever may be sold as Cornflour. The absurdity of this position is so obvious that it is needless to discuss it. The starches obtained from different sources are different in physical characters, in structure, and in other respects. For these reasons they are differently acted upon by the digestive juices. Moreover different starch preparations exhibit differences which are due to the presence of minute amounts of special flavouring substances derived from the raw material; and these differences it is most important to consider since they often give to an article certain characters which are required by the purchaser. A number of instances in point could be brought forward. It is no more permissible to substitute rice starch for maize starch than it is to substitute potato starch for arrowroot starch, and, for reasons which are perfectly well known and always acted upon in the medical profession, a medical man who orders a patient to be fed on a particular starch food, such as cornflour, would strongly and rightly object—particularly in certain cases —to the substitution of another starch preparation for that which he had ordered. The matter has been settled in such a way and with so strong an expression of opinion on the part of the tribunal which dealt with it, that we think it unnecessary to discuss it further.

The purpose of this paper is to use an inter-disciplinary approach to examine the relevance of F.W. Taylor’s principles to modern shop-floor practices in the context of a manufacturing organization.

Standard time study guidelines laid out by the ILO were adopted and random observations made between two operators independently performing an identical operation in the shop-floor premises of a particular factory.

It was evident from the study that modern management has developed the science for each element of the operator’s manual work, as postulated and proposed by F.W. Taylor. It was also evident that completion of the operation on time was necessary for the operators but not as important as the total number of jobs performed during the duration of the shift. These empirical findings highlighted the high relevance of F.W. Taylor’s principles to modern shop-floor practices.

The authors adopted time study observation as the single method to collect real data from real practices but this could be considered as a biased approach. Since the time study observation is a slow, time consuming, and expensive process of obtaining data, the authors restricted the study to only two operators. Further, the study was carried out in a real setting under several assumptions that may limit its wider applications and practical implications. The study findings suggest that measuring the operator’s performance in terms of time consumption and resource utilization is necessary but not sufficient to evaluate and improve his/her productivity because operators evaluate their performance in terms of the total number of jobs completed during the duration of the shift. Therefore, it is suggested that the managers on the modern shop-floor measure the output at the aggregate level for the given input, while developing new work methods as well as devising performance management and reward systems.

The study has contributed to the body of knowledge by conducting a complete assessment of F.W. Taylor’s first principle from its origin to its application in modern shop-floor practices. Also, the authors empirically examined the relevance of Taylor’s principles to modern shop-floor practices in the context of a manufacturing organization. The study supports the descriptive work of Freeman (1996), who envisaged the relevance of Taylor’s ideas to modern management practices; also, it gives a few directions to test behavioral operations theory in terms of using real operational data to examine an established organization theory (Gino and Pisano, 2008).