Sonia Patton, Anne McGlade and Joe Elliott
This paper explores the perceptions of a small cohort of participants in the “Involving People” programme. This 35-week course recruited staff from across statutory, voluntary and…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper explores the perceptions of a small cohort of participants in the “Involving People” programme. This 35-week course recruited staff from across statutory, voluntary and charity sectors who aimed to lead and develop change initiatives within their respective organisations. The study captured staff views on the extent to which their training in co-production enabled them to deliver sustainable service improvement within their organisations.
Design/methodology/approach
This was a small scale, qualitative study, using a purposive sampling approach. Of the 18 staff participants, 5 agreed to participate in face-to-face semi-structured interviews. Through a process of free text analysis, several themes and sub-themes were identified.
Findings
Several barriers and opportunities were highlighted coupled with suggestions on changes to public service delivery based on equal and reciprocal relationships between professionals, service users and their families. Organisational structures and silo working still act as an inhibiter for real change.
Research limitations/implications
Additionally, it was demonstrated that training in the area of co-production can act as a catalyst for wider service improvements. It can enhance staff confidence to profile the importance of service user involvement, persuading their colleagues of its benefits and challenging practice where co-production is not happening. However, a collective leadership and a shared language on co-production are still needed to develop inclusive organisational cultures.
Originality/value
This was the first study of its kind in Northern Ireland which highlighted that there was a need for a collective leadership and a shared language on co-production to develop inclusive organisational cultures.
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The purpose of this paper is to examine the challenges facing the Australian fashion industry (textile, clothing and footwear or TCF sector). Just at the point where Australian…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to examine the challenges facing the Australian fashion industry (textile, clothing and footwear or TCF sector). Just at the point where Australian fashion has achieved international attention for its distinctive design practice, the industry is on the point of collapse. Since the 1980s, radical re-structuring aimed at reducing industry protection to encourage greater international competitiveness and innovation. Key policies have included tariff reduction, new forms of industry assistance, new manufacturing techniques, changing retail forms, and reform of employment and workplace conditions.
Design/methodology/approach
Overview of recent trends in the Australian fashion industry due to industry policies and the effects of globalisation.
Findings
Severe decline in industry viability.
Originality/value
Important multifaceted analysis of the state of the industry and tracking of effects of government policies.
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The three‐day working week, with the Machine as master of man, never materialized. But, as Simon Peterson reports, automation has found a new area in tackling the problems of the…
Abstract
The three‐day working week, with the Machine as master of man, never materialized. But, as Simon Peterson reports, automation has found a new area in tackling the problems of the environment. Joe Wiltshire, pictured right, managing director of GEC‐Elliott Automation, points out that there is an increase in all things which help to control the quality of life.
Film provides an alternative medium for assessing our interpretations of cultural icons. This selective list looks at the film and video sources for information on and…
Abstract
Film provides an alternative medium for assessing our interpretations of cultural icons. This selective list looks at the film and video sources for information on and interpretations of the life of Woody Guthrie.
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Rebecca Goldberg, Tim Kraft, Elliott Weiss and Oliver Wight
Joe Smith, senior director of merchandise management at Beautiful Bags (BB), was about to place a large order for the upcoming winter season. He had to decide how many pieces he…
Abstract
Joe Smith, senior director of merchandise management at Beautiful Bags (BB), was about to place a large order for the upcoming winter season. He had to decide how many pieces he should order of each product. But another big question whether BB should source the product from its domestic manufacturing facility, its Chinese suppliers, or some combination of the two given the timing needs, labor costs, minimum order requirements, and BB's expanding product assortment?
The purpose of this paper is to describe a pilot learning study (LS) comprising of three biology pre-service teachers (PSTs) in British Columbia, which took place during an…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to describe a pilot learning study (LS) comprising of three biology pre-service teachers (PSTs) in British Columbia, which took place during an initial teacher education (ITE) course and school-based practicum. The study explored PSTs’ learning experiences, and identified conditions that supported and challenged their engagement with the LS discourse.
Design/methodology/approach
Drawing from a variety of methods including teacher semi-structured interviews and reflective entries, the PSTs’ experiences of teaching and reflection were described and themes were constructed; course assignments, classroom materials, meeting notes and fieldnotes served triangulation purposes. Variation theory framed the LS and analysis of this case study.
Findings
Findings highlight how the PSTs developed comfort with the tension of making mistakes that supported their interpretation of classroom pedagogy and refining of instructional strategies. As the study alluded to how LS is “hard,” the PSTs demonstrated how positive experiences in the course-based cycle sustained their pursuit of learning despite challenges faced in the school-based practicum.
Research limitations/implications
This small-scale study has limited generalizability.
Practical implications
Exposing PSTs to a variety of “mistakes” in ITE and to approach them not merely as ontological objects of pedagogical shortcomings are discussed together with factors that promoted teacher learning.
Originality/value
This study contributes to literature exploring the organization of LS within ITE, as situated in educational contexts where LS is unfamiliar and organizational structures are not readily in place to fully support its implementation.
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David Wadley, Jung Hoon Han and Peter Elliott
Professionals’ market knowledge and business experience can facilitate transactions of residential property potentially impacted by stigmatised installations, such as large-scale…
Abstract
Purpose
Professionals’ market knowledge and business experience can facilitate transactions of residential property potentially impacted by stigmatised installations, such as large-scale public infrastructure. The purpose of this paper is to explore perceptions and assessments among homeowners, valuers (appraisers) and real estate agents (realtors) regarding infrastructure in general and high voltage overhead transmission lines (HVOTLs) in particular.
Design/methodology/approach
Informed by a literature review, separate surveys in Queensland, Australia, analyse via non-parametric and parametric means informational and perceptual variables concerning HVOTLs among 600 homeowners, 90 valuers and 90 real estate agents.
Findings
The findings reveal statistically significant differences in risk and valuation perceptions of homeowners, valuers and real estate agents relating to the placement of major linear forms of infrastructure.
Research limitations/implications
This study adds to a now-solid body of literature pertaining to property effects of HVOTLs. It extends the analysis among classes of real estate professionals and provides new comparisons for further analysis and commentary.
Practical implications
The results speak to property professionals, land use planning and electricity authorities. Prior research can be triangulated with that obtained here from valuers and real estate agents who act as informants, gatekeepers and confidants in the market place. Various hypotheses address specific points of professional practice.
Social implications
This study shows that property professionals’ disposition to HVOTLs and other large-scale infrastructure is likely to be a good deal more measured than that of homeowners, so that valuers and real estate agents might exercise a mediating influence in placement and installations decisions.
Originality/value
This research raises understanding of differences in market knowledge and perception of essential infrastructure among clients and property agents. As a point of difference, it concentrates on examining empirically what texts refer to as “information asymmetry” in residential real estate markets.
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The Glacier Metal Company is one of the largest manufacturers of plain bearings in Europe. Their products are used largely in the motor car industry, but extend to all areas of…
Abstract
The Glacier Metal Company is one of the largest manufacturers of plain bearings in Europe. Their products are used largely in the motor car industry, but extend to all areas of engineering application. The considerable interest shown by the company in industrial relations problems had caught the attention of researchers at the end of the Second World War. When the Human Factors Panel of the Committee of Industrial Productivity financed a research project into the sources of group stress in industry, the Tavistock Institute of Human Relations was asked to conduct this research. The Institute chose the Glacier Metal Company as one of the very few which could provide the collaborative basis for such a creative research, which became known as the Glacier Project. The author of this article was a member of the original research team which commenced its study in 1948.
Historically, Panama has always been “a place of transit.” While technically the isthmus formed part of Colombia in the nineteenth century, it was linked geopolitically to the…
Abstract
Historically, Panama has always been “a place of transit.” While technically the isthmus formed part of Colombia in the nineteenth century, it was linked geopolitically to the United States soon after the California gold rush, beginning in the late 1840s. The first attempt at building a canal ended in failure in 1893 when disease and poor management forced Ferdinand de Lesseps to abandon the project. The U.S. undertaking to build the canal could only begin after Panama declared itself free and broke away from Colombia in 1903, with the support of the United States.