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After a degree of retrenchment in the late 1970s and early 1980s, the late 1980s has brought a burst of enthusiasm and almost frenzied activity on the management education and development front. Consultants specialising in management development activities appear to be flourishing. The private sector management colleges offering “executive programmes” are enjoying a boom period. The MBA, having survived a period of intense scrutiny and criticisms earlier in the decade, appears to be going from strength to strength; scarcely a day goes by without an announcement by a university or polytechnic that it is launching a new MBA or a variant of an existing programme.

The past two years have seen considerable changes in the organisation of the Industrial Relations Research Unit (IRRU) at the University of Warwick as well as its personnel. It is now a Designated Research Centre (DRC) for which the university is responsible, as opposed to the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC). The unit now comprises members of the DRC and of the industrial relations teaching staff of the school. An overview of the main research projects being undertaken during the first phase of the eight‐year term of the DRC is given. These can be divided into three broad areas: those concerned with managing industrial relations; trade unions and collective bargaining; and the law and industrial relations. Some of the thinking behind these projects is given. It is argued that continuity is as important as change in the work of the unit, in particular in the value placed on theoretical developments and interdisciplinary research. There is no reason why new areas of investigation cannot be accommodated within additional definitions of industrial relations

Surveys based on standard questionnaires have long been a major research tool of the social scientist. The great majority have focused on one type of respondent — the workers of a given firm, the voters in a particular constituency, or whatever. For one sort of survey, namely, those that seek to know about the individuals in question, this is plainly sensible. But another sort of survey uses a respondent to provide information about the organisation for which he/she can be taken to be an authoritative informant. Questionnaires sent to the head offices of companies or unions and asking about the organisation's policy are a good example. How do we know whether the replies are in some sense representative of the organisation or are just the views of the respondent chosen?

Over the last decade, writings on the personnel profession have been pervaded by a sense of exclusion from the major management decisions. For example, Hunt and Lees report that human assets are rarely considered in decisions on company acquisition policy and that personnel managers are only involved in relatively peripheral aspects, such as the transfer of pension rights. Daniel found that personnel managers are normally excluded from decisions on re‐organisation which follow the introduction of new technology, although they are sometimes involved in other forms of organisational change. In fact even this latter involvement may be of a fairly passive character in view of Evans and Cowling's finding that personnel managers do not usually take an executive role in company re‐organisation.

SYD and the disabled ‐ Do you remember the International Year of Disabled People? I know we have had Information Technology Year since then and are now in Beautiful Britain Year (which we shall be able to appreciate as soon as the weather lets us), but the good work started during IYDP in 1981 didn't end there. I was reminded of this recently when I received a copy of a remarkable document called the SYD squad report published by Nottinghamshire County Council's Leisure Services. SYD squads (SYD means Survey for the Year of the Disabled) were composed of equal numbers of physically handicapped and able‐bodied young people, engaged under the government backed Youth Training Opportunities Programme, to take a long hard look at everything that affects the lives of disabled people in Nottinghamshire, from personal relationships and access to buildings to leisure, education, employment and welfare. Using questionnaires, disabled ‘guinea‐pigs’ and incognito researchers, the youngsters set out to survey the current ‘state of play’ for the disabled. Their report takes opinion and fact to paint a complete picture of disabled living and prospects for improvement in Nottinghamshire—though its findings are likely to have a much wider impact. Libraries on the whole come out well, though there were difficulties with heavy doors, high counters and use of card catalogues. The height of bookshelves was also mentioned but it was recognised that there was no easy solution to this problem. The report, which is excellently produced and illustrated with photographs and cartoons, is a mine of sensible and practical information that should be of benefit to all whose services are used by the disabled. Copies cost £5.50 from Nottinghamshire County Council, Leisure Services Department, Trent Bridge House, Fox Road, West Bridgford, Nottingham NG2 6BJ.

This paper aims to clarify the need for Chief Knowledge Officers (CKOs) and explain how some recent views on competencies for educational guidelines, a Knowledge Management (KM) competency model and expansion of practice management concepts make the need for CKOs clearer.

This viewpoint was developed in response to recent publications disparaging the idea of a CKO. The method used was to extract ideas from published and in-work papers to establish the basis for and explain the postulated Unified Competency Theory of KM and its implications regarding the need for CKOs.

CKOs are needed to ensure that all organizationally relevant functions’ knowledge and KM assessments and/or audits are individually complete and collectively sufficient. A risk/opportunity management role also provides justification.

This paper mainly limits its discussion to the papers that comprise research leading to the Unified Competency Theory of KM, its implications and an updated practice management model. Other points of view that might substantiate or refute the conclusions have not been addressed.

The KM field needs to better identify KM’s risk and opportunity management role and functional imperative. Organizations may need to reevaluate their directions with regards to KM and a CKO.

It extends the concept of practice management to permit differentiating disciplines. It provides new rationale for CKOs.

Index by subjects, compiled by K.G.B. Bakewell covering the following journals: Facilities Volumes 8‐17; Journal of Property Investment & Finance Volumes 8‐17; Property Management Volumes 8‐17; Structural Survey Volumes 8‐17.

Compiled by K.G.B. Bakewell covering the following journals published by MCB University Press: Facilities Volumes 8‐17; Journal of Property Investment & Finance Volumes 8‐17; Property Management Volumes 8‐17; Structural Survey Volumes 8‐17.