Michael F. Kipp and Mary Ann Kipp
In this article, the authors discuss the characteristics and dynamics of effective teams. They consider the factors influencing interpersonal interactions within a team and…
Abstract
In this article, the authors discuss the characteristics and dynamics of effective teams. They consider the factors influencing interpersonal interactions within a team and consequently propose that there is a variety of strategies which may be employed in any teambuilding initiative. The authors suggest a number of key points which they consider to be vital to any intervention to improve team effectiveness.
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Michael F. Kipp, Robert Hunter and Mara Aspinall
Governing boards are a bit like meteors above an organizational “planet”. If they position themselves too far above it all, they are likely to float at an innocuous distance…
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Governing boards are a bit like meteors above an organizational “planet”. If they position themselves too far above it all, they are likely to float at an innocuous distance, meaningless and without impact. On the other hand, if they plunge too deeply and quickly they are likely to burn up in the atmosphere, dissipating their well‐intentioned energy in a spate of “micromanagement”. This article describes a process for capitalizing on a market “crossroad” as an opportunity for board and staff alike to “rehearse” alternative views of the future, gain experience in the process of grappling with associated policy matters and make peace with both a shared vision and a more appropriate relationship with one another. Relevant concepts, tools and processes are outlined for adaptation by governing bodies in similar circumstances.
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Each year, thousands of companies go through a ritualized process they hope will prompt new vision, renewed energy, and sufficient focus to enable them to prevail into the next…
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Each year, thousands of companies go through a ritualized process they hope will prompt new vision, renewed energy, and sufficient focus to enable them to prevail into the next century. Nearly 70 percent are disappointed.
A whitewater ride calls for a particular type of leader – one with an acute sensitivity to the situation, a high degree of personal autonomy and the ability to discern and convey…
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A whitewater ride calls for a particular type of leader – one with an acute sensitivity to the situation, a high degree of personal autonomy and the ability to discern and convey to others how things might play out more favorably for everybody. With the rapids as a backdrop, the author considers seven fundamental lessons on strategic leadership when navigating “permanent whitewater,” drawing on his career and experience as an executive coach and consultant.
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Arguably, businesses are facing their most challenging moment in time as we enter the twenty‐first century. Companies that have relied on industrial‐age advantages such as access…
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Arguably, businesses are facing their most challenging moment in time as we enter the twenty‐first century. Companies that have relied on industrial‐age advantages such as access to distribution channels, mass production, economies of scale, capital investments, switching costs, and even government policy, have all but been rendered obsolete in today’s blisteringly fast‐paced business environment ‐ an environment that is now based on information and knowledge. Today’s business environment is anything but stable and predictable. In fact, it moves in real time. Technological advancements, deregulation, and globalization are generating upheavals in both organizations and products and services. Markets are fragmenting. Barriers to entry are crumbling ‐ even in capital‐intensive industries. New businesses are starting up in venues that did not even exist a few years ago. The Internet and its World Wide Web alone have created ‐ almost overnight ‐ a borderless global economy. Customers can be of any creed, religion, color or race. Matching products, services and employees to customers will become a key and critical ingredient for business and financial survival in the twenty‐first century. The challenge will be to find, acquire and retain the right customers ‐ who could come from anywhere in the world ‐ in order to fuel long‐term business success. This will require keen attention, and a holistic focus, on customers themselves. This will require customer relationship management.
Michael Kipps, Carol Noble and James Thomson
In early April this year there was much media coverage of a government preliminary report that was stated to have commented about the eating habits of a sample of 3000 children…
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In early April this year there was much media coverage of a government preliminary report that was stated to have commented about the eating habits of a sample of 3000 children aged 10–15 years old. The report was said to have contained results which indicated that many children were eating foods high in animal fat and sugar, while low in fibre. Diets were said to be deficient in vegetables and fruit, and in lean meat. Concern was expressed about the levels of vitamins and minerals in children's diets. We will have to await publication of the full report before commenting further, but it is appropriate to mention it now because it provides a useful context in which to view the results of a study of school meals in the ILEA carried out at the University of Surrey. Michael Kipps MSc, Carol Noble BSc and James Thomson PhD describe their study and summarise the results.
Carol Noble, Michael Kipps and James Thomson
In an article in Nutrition and Food Science in August 1982 a case was put forward for a closer co‐operation between those involved in nutrition education in schools and those…
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In an article in Nutrition and Food Science in August 1982 a case was put forward for a closer co‐operation between those involved in nutrition education in schools and those concerned with the provision of school meals in the hope that this would help children to choose wisely from the increasing numbers of cash cafeterias now appearing in schools. But before such a meal choice scheme can be developed for use in guiding children's selection of food, a sound knowledge of their present food habits, particularly foods commonly chosen at lunchtime, is needed. A study being carried out at the University of Surrey on schools meals has provided the opportunity to collect baseline data concerning children's choice and their consumption of food at lunchtime in a variety of situations. Information relating food consumption at lunchtime to food intake for the whole day is also being collected.
Few make any mental preparation for old age, and for many who give it any thought at all, its prospects can be depressing. However, old age comes to most and its attendant losses…
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Few make any mental preparation for old age, and for many who give it any thought at all, its prospects can be depressing. However, old age comes to most and its attendant losses can be daunting for those who are unprepared
In the United Kingdom, the 1980s saw a dramatic rise in the number of reported cases of food‐poisoning. Data provided by the Communicable Disease Surveillance Centre (CDSC) in…
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In the United Kingdom, the 1980s saw a dramatic rise in the number of reported cases of food‐poisoning. Data provided by the Communicable Disease Surveillance Centre (CDSC) in London, indicated that formal notifications increased by more than 250% between 1980 and 1988. Table 1 shows what has been happening in England and Wales over this period. The provisional cumulative total for 1990 to mid‐August was over 28,000.
Carol Noble, Michael Kipps and James Thomson
The food habits of generations of people in the UK were subtly influenced by the traditional school dinners. Today those adults who love or loathe gravy, custard, mashed potatoes…
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The food habits of generations of people in the UK were subtly influenced by the traditional school dinners. Today those adults who love or loathe gravy, custard, mashed potatoes, boiled greens, prunes and semolina pudding may be able to trace their attitudes to school meals eaten ten, twenty or thirty years ago. Nowadays, when school caterers make every effort to serve only those foods which children will eat and enjoy — and which in many cases are identical with the foods children eat everywhere else — is it possible that school meals can influence and improve the food habits of future generations?