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1 – 9 of 9Matthias Helbig, Silke Helbig, Heike A. Kahla‐Witzsch, Tobias Kroll and Angelika May
Against statutory duties to introduce quality management systems, the increased importance of this subject has led to numerous activities in various public health institutions…
Abstract
Purpose
Against statutory duties to introduce quality management systems, the increased importance of this subject has led to numerous activities in various public health institutions. Following the International Standardization Organization (ISO 9001:2000) prerequisites, Frankfurt Goethe University Hospital ENT clinic staff introduced a quality management system. This paper aims to investigate this process.
Design/methodology/approach
Designing, planning and implementing the quality management system is described. Under the supervision of an executive quality management board, clinic quality goals were defined. Thereafter, several quality management teams performed an actual state analysis as well as developing and realising improvement proposals. Finally a quality management manual containing binding standards and working instructions concerning all patient care, research and teaching aspects was written.
Findings
Successful certification by a neutral body ascertained that the clinic's quality management system conformed to current national and international standards while restructuring and reform improved procedural efficiency.
Originality/value
The paper shows that mplementing the quality management system requires considerable effort but patients as well as staff profit considerably from the innovation. On the whole, the positive impact on structure and workflow in a specialist clinic predominates. Therefore, implementing a quality management system in all the clinic's wards and departments is recommended.
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Benedikt Simon Hitz-Gamper, Oliver Neumann and Matthias Stürmer
Linked data is a technical standard to structure complex information and relate independent sets of data. Recently, governments have started to use this technology for bridging…
Abstract
Purpose
Linked data is a technical standard to structure complex information and relate independent sets of data. Recently, governments have started to use this technology for bridging separated data “(silos)” by launching linked open government data (LOGD) portals. The purpose of this paper is to explore the role of LOGD as a smart technology and strategy to create public value. This is achieved by enhancing the usability and visibility of open data provided by public organizations.
Design/methodology/approach
In this study, three different LOGD governance modes are deduced: public agencies could release linked data via a dedicated triple store, via a shared triple store or via an open knowledge base. Each of these modes has different effects on usability and visibility of open data. Selected case studies illustrate the actual use of these three governance modes.
Findings
According to this study, LOGD governance modes present a trade-off between retaining control over governmental data and potentially gaining public value by the increased use of open data by citizens.
Originality/value
This study provides recommendations for public sector organizations for the development of their data publishing strategy to balance control, usability and visibility considering also the growing popularity of open knowledge bases such as Wikidata.
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THE list given below is based on the selection presented in Dr. Joris Vorstius's Ergebnisse und Fortschritte der Bibliographie in Deutschland seit dem ersten Weltkrieg…
Abstract
THE list given below is based on the selection presented in Dr. Joris Vorstius's Ergebnisse und Fortschritte der Bibliographie in Deutschland seit dem ersten Weltkrieg (Zentralblatt für Bibliothekswesen, Beiheft 74. Leipzig: Harrassowitz 1948, pp.v.172). Up to recently Dr. Vorstius was Director of the Öffentliche Wissenschaftliche Bibliothek in Berlin, the former Prussian State Library, and he has been the editor of the Zentralblatt since 1947. In addition to this survey of bibliographical work done in Germany, he has recently published a study of subject cataloguing in several of the large German learned libraries (Die Sachkatalogisierung in den wisseuschaftlichen Allgemeinbibliotlieken Deutschlands. Leipzig: Harrassowitz 1948, pp.viii.58) and a revised edition of his sketch of library history (Grundzüge der Bibliotheksgeschichte. Vierte, erweiterte Auflage. Leipzig: Harrassowitz 1948, pp.vii.114). In his survey of German bibliography Dr. Vorstius has aimed at making his selection in such a manner as to give a representative cross‐section of the bibliographies devoted to all important fields of scholarship. Works are listed according to their significance irrespective of the form in which they were issued, as monographs, appendixes to books, or contributions to serials. As the book is not likely to come the way of many British librarians, it has been thought useful to give a tabulated survey of bibliographical work done in Germany during the war years covering the period when there was least cultural contact between Germany and England. While thus cutting off a good slice at the beginning of the period covered by Dr. Vorstius's book, I have been able to extend the time range to include the post‐war period. When Dr. Vorstius surveyed the field in 1947, German bibliographical activity had reached a nadir after declining steeply from the second half of the war onwards. For the whole of 1945 Dr. Vorstius lists one single bibliography, devoted to the literature on doves and pigeons. From this trough of the graph, a slightly ascending curve led to the compilation of the first three German post‐war bibliographies, all of them black lists of Nazi literature compiled for purge purposes. That was the only sign of any revival of bibliographic production Dr. Vorstius was able to record. Writing two years later I have been in a position to expand the post‐war component of the list considerably, at least, relatively speaking. Again, in a field where Germany could take a justified pride in her achievement, in the publication of the numerous current bibliographies, Dr. Vorstius's survey of the numerous Zentralblätter and Jahresberichte is a list of war casualties. All these publications had come to an end, most of them long before the end of the war. Dr. Vorstius's book only records the revival of two, the Deutsche National‐bibliographie and the Deutsche Literaturzeitung. Now the list is considerably longer. Considerations of space have prevented me from listing all the extinct current bibliographies with their dates of stoppage under their appropriate headings; I have limited myself to listing those which have been revived or started since the end of the war and those which were started (and in practically all cases came to a speedy end) during the war.
Lorenzo Ardito, Roberto Cerchione, Erica Mazzola and Elisabetta Raguseo
The effect of the transition toward digital technologies on today’s businesses (i.e. Industry 4.0 transition) is becoming increasingly relevant, and the number of studies that…
Abstract
Purpose
The effect of the transition toward digital technologies on today’s businesses (i.e. Industry 4.0 transition) is becoming increasingly relevant, and the number of studies that have examined this phenomenon has grown rapidly. However, systematizing the existing findings is still a challenge, from both a theoretical and a managerial point of view. In such a setting, the knowledge management (KM) discipline can provide guidance to address such a gap. Indeed, the implementation of fundamental digital technologies is reshaping how firms manage knowledge. Thus, this study aims to critically review the existing literature on Industry 4.0 from a KM perspective.
Design/methodology/approach
First, the authors defined a structuring framework to highlight the role of Industry 4.0 transition along with absorptive capacity (ACAP) processes (acquisition, assimilation, transformation and exploitation), while specifying what is being managed, that is data, information and/or (actual) knowledge, according to the data-information-knowledge (DIK) hierarchy. The authors then followed the systematic literature review methodology, which involves the use of explicit criteria to select publications to review and outline the stages a process has to follow to provide a transparent and replicable review and to analyze the existing literature according to the theoretical framework. This procedure yielded a final list of 150 papers.
Findings
By providing a clear picture of what scholars have studied so far on Industry 4.0 transition, in terms of KM, this literature review highlights that among all the studied digital technologies, the big data analytics technology is the one that has been explored the most in each phase of the ACAP process. A constructive body of research has also emerged in recent years around the role played by the internet of things, especially to explain the acquisition of data. On the other hand, some digital technologies, such as cyber security and smart manufacturing, have largely remained unaddressed. An explanation of the role of these technologies has been provided, from a KM perspective, together with the business implications.
Originality/value
This study is one of the first attempts to revise the literature on Industry 4.0 transition from a KM perspective, and it proposes a novel framework to read existing studies and on which to base new ones. Furthermore, the synthesis makes two main contributions. First, it provides a clear picture of the different digital technologies that support the four ACAP phases in relation to the DIK hierarchy. Accordingly, these results can emphasize what the literature has looked at so far, as well as which digital technologies have gained the most attention and their impacts in terms of KM. Second, the synthesis provides prescriptive considerations on the development of future research avenues, according to the proposed research framework.
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The purpose of this paper is to determine the factors that affect Industry 4.0 applications, the expected impacts of Industry 4.0 applications in companies and to analyze the…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to determine the factors that affect Industry 4.0 applications, the expected impacts of Industry 4.0 applications in companies and to analyze the importance of these factors and the importance of expected impacts correlatively.
Design/methodology/approach
This paper provides an empirical analysis of the factors affecting the adoption of Industry 4.0 transformation and its impacts on the companies. The paper is based on 103 valid answers to a questionnaire-survey distributed among companies in Turkey. The Pearson correlation analysis was conducted to determine the correlation between independent variables and dependent variables. Regression analyses were used to test the proposed hypotheses. A multiple regression analysis was used to investigate the causal relationship between independent and dependent variables. Linear regression method and stepwise regression method was employed for regression analyses. The factors that influence Industry 4.0 applications were determined as company size, technological level of products, budget allocation for R&D department, level of lean applications, level of agility/flexibility and level of automation; and the expected impacts of Industry 4.0 applications were determined as traceability of production processes, traceability of supply chain, flexibility of supply chains, communication between the partners of supply chain, productivity, real-time data analysis, integration between companies and integration in the company according to the literature review
Findings
The results of this research study revealed that, there is a stronger relationship between level of Industry 4.0 transformation and level of automation than there is between Industry 4.0 transformation and the other independent variables. From the analyses conducted, it can be stated that budget allocation for R&D and level of lean applications and level of automation had greater impacts on Industry 4.0 transformation than company size has. The independent variables included in the regression analysis had a positive effect on Industry 4.0 transformation of companies. However the effects of company size, technological level of products and level of agility/flexibility on Industry 4.0 transformation was weak. When the impacts of Industry 4.0 on companies were analyzed, it can be stated that there is a stronger relationship between Industry 4.0 transformation and real-time data analysis, traceability of production processes, integration in companies and productivity than there is between Industry 4.0 transformation and integration between companies, traceability of supply chains, flexibility of supply chains and communication between the partners of supply chain. It was determined that Industry 4.0 transformation generally impacts internal factors of company, while Industry 4.0 had limited impacts on the supply chains.
Originality/value
Although there are studies that separately investigated the factors affecting Industry 4.0 transformation and the impacts of Industry 4.0 transformation on companies, the present study provides important contributions to the literature in terms of considering the importance levels of the factors affecting Industry 4.0 transformation and the importance level of impacts of Industry 4.0 transformation on companies as a whole and in relation to each other.
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Rafael Lorenz, Christoph Benninghaus, Thomas Friedli and Torbjørn H. Netland
Manufacturers seek to innovate and improve processes using new digital technologies. However, knowledge about these new technologies often resides outside a firm's boundaries. The…
Abstract
Purpose
Manufacturers seek to innovate and improve processes using new digital technologies. However, knowledge about these new technologies often resides outside a firm's boundaries. The authors draw on the concept of absorptive capacity and the literature on open innovation to explore the role of external search in the digitization of manufacturing.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors developed and distributed a survey to manufacturing firms in Switzerland, for which 151 complete responses were received from senior managers. The authors used multiple linear regressions to study the relations among the breadth and depth of external search, firms' adoption of digital technologies and operational performance outcomes.
Findings
External search depth was found to relate positively to higher adoption of computing technologies and shop floor connectivity technologies. No significant correlation was found between external search breadth and firms' adoption of digital technologies. Regarding performance outcomes, there is some evidence that increased adoption of digital technologies relates positively to higher volume flexibility, but not to increased production cost competitiveness.
Practical implications
Manufacturing firms that aim to digitize their processes can benefit from inbound open process innovation, but its utility varies for different clusters of digital technologies. Generally, the findings suggest that firms should build strong ties with a few external knowledge partners rather than surface relations with many.
Originality/value
This study contributes to the growing literature on the digitization of manufacturing with an analysis of the relation between firms' external search and their adoption of digital technologies. It adds early empirical insights to the literature on open process innovation.
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This paper explores the convergence of Education 4.0 and Industry 4.0 and presents a Twin Peaks model for their seamless integration.
Abstract
Purpose
This paper explores the convergence of Education 4.0 and Industry 4.0 and presents a Twin Peaks model for their seamless integration.
Design/methodology/approach
A high-level literature review is conducted to identify and discuss the important challenges and opportunities offered by both Education 4.0 and Industry 4.0. A novel Twin Peaks model is devised for the convergence of these domains and to cope with the challenges effectively.
Findings
The proposed Twin Peak model for the convergence of Education 4.0 and Industry 4.0 suggests that the development of these two domains is interdependent. It emphasizes ethical considerations, inclusivity and understanding the concerns of stakeholders from both education and industry. We have also explained how continuous incremental adaptation within the proposed Twin Peaks model might assist in addressing concerns of one sector with the opportunities of the other.
Originality/value
First, Education 4.0 and Industry 4.0 are reviewed in terms of opportunities and challenges they present. Second, a novel Twin Peaks model for the convergence of Education 4.0 and Industry 4.0 is presented. The proposed discovers that the convergence is adaptive, iterative and must be ethically sound while considering the broader societal implications of the digital transformation. Third, this study also acts as a torch-bearer for the necessity for more research of this kind to guarantee that our educational ecosystem is adaptable and capable of producing the skills required for success in the era of IR4.0.
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