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1 – 10 of 278States that broadband radar is a relatively recent technology which is finding many new applications such as sensing the position and movement of objects in and around vehicles…
Abstract
States that broadband radar is a relatively recent technology which is finding many new applications such as sensing the position and movement of objects in and around vehicles, fluid level measurement in storage tanks, and detecting intruders. Its advantages over competing technologies (ultrasonics, optical and conventional radar) include: low cost implementation; very low power consumed and radiated; accurate position information; unobtrusive, i.e. radar can be mounted within a sealed plastic enclosure; tolerant of dust, spray and other contaminants. Describes the application of broadband radar to consumer, automotive and industrial sensing, and illustrates how a sensor can be used in two modes, first to sense intrusion within a volume and, second, to provide a distance measuring capability.
Examines Secretary of War Elihu Root’s 1903 reorganization of the US Army. Prior to Root, the Army suffered major organizational problems, including no central authority and an…
Abstract
Examines Secretary of War Elihu Root’s 1903 reorganization of the US Army. Prior to Root, the Army suffered major organizational problems, including no central authority and an ambiguous chain‐of‐command. Post‐Civil War antimilitary sentiment had left the Army poorly funded, undermanned and barely capable of waging war on the Indians. In 1898, the ineptly fought Spanish‐American War highlighted Army deficiencies. Root’s modernization created the Chief of Staff, a senior general who reported to the Secretary of War, controlled the previously independent bureaus, prepared war plans and coordinated military activities with the Navy. Root also increased Army manpower and funding, reformed state militia into what is now the National Guard, and overhauled military training. Root laid the foundation for the complex defense management of the present day. His doctrine of civilian supremacy and concept of clear command relationships are as sound now as in 1903.
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War is one of the worst characteristics of human nature. Wars over territory, religion, and governance were and are always present through history. War and tourism seem dissonant…
Abstract
War is one of the worst characteristics of human nature. Wars over territory, religion, and governance were and are always present through history. War and tourism seem dissonant at first glance. However, the post effects of war enable its components, such as battlefields and artefacts, to become tourist attractions. People share the impetus to visit war attractions such as battlefields, military museums, cemeteries, memorials, and other war-related sites. There is a supply for this type of tourism in exchange for the demand. This type of tourism is referred to in the literature as battlefield tourism. The meaning and definition of battlefield tourism are the main aim of this chapter. What is battlefield tourism? What are the components of battlefield tourism? How can battlefield tourism be defined? These are the primary questions this study tries to address.
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The purpose of this paper is to examine the life and work, both fiction and nonfiction, of the American author Upton Sinclair, for the purposes of better understanding his impact…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to examine the life and work, both fiction and nonfiction, of the American author Upton Sinclair, for the purposes of better understanding his impact on management theory and practice.
Design/methodology/approach
Critical biography is a historiographical approach that analyzes aspects of an individual’s life events and the context that surrounds those events to better understand the contributions of an individual. In this case, this paper analyzes Sinclair’s biography, his work-related fiction and nonfiction and his interactions with business leaders and management thinkers of the day, including scientific management founder Frederick Winslow Taylor, auto industry leader Henry Ford and safety razor magnate King Gillette.
Findings
This paper identified four themes which are related to management and workplace history that pervade his fiction and nonfiction writing and link these events to the events of his life as well as the context of the times.
Originality/value
Although others have cited certain aspects of Sinclair’s work for specific purposes, this paper presents a systematic review of Sinclair’s broad oeuvre and its relevance to management and workplace history using a critical biography approach.
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Brian Lam, Lina Z. Li, Byron Y. Song and Li Yao
This study aims to investigate the influence of social capital on firms’ business strategies, focusing on Miles and Snow (1978) dichotomy between “prospector” and “defender”…
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to investigate the influence of social capital on firms’ business strategies, focusing on Miles and Snow (1978) dichotomy between “prospector” and “defender” strategies.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors perform multivariate regression analyses using a sample of US firms spanning the period from 1995 to 2021. The authors use a two-stage least squares model to alleviate endogeneity concerns and perform several cross-sectional tests and path analyses.
Findings
The authors find a significant and positive association between social capital and defender-type business strategies. Results from cross-sectional analyses reveal that this relationship is more pronounced in highly competitive product markets and among firms led by highly qualified CEOs. In addition, the authors find that CEO compensation mediates the effect of social capital on business strategy. Overall, the results suggest that low social capital regions foster prospector strategies due to managers’ self-maximizing incentives. Finally, the authors find that business strategy acts as a mediating factor, connecting social capital to firms’ financial reporting outcomes.
Social implications
In light of recent public concerns over declining social capital in major economies and the growing globalization and multiculturism in societies, the findings are of interest to policymakers and the wider society by highlighting the far-reaching implications of social capital on businesses and the capital market.
Originality/value
To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this study documents the first empirical evidence on the association between a society’s social capital and firms’ business strategies. The study contributes to the research on the determinants of a firm’s business strategy and extends the literature on the relationship between social capital and firm behavior.
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December 20, 1968 Occupiers' liability — Common duty of care — Duty owed to visiting workmen by main contractors — Whether visiting workman's knowledge of danger absolving main…
Abstract
December 20, 1968 Occupiers' liability — Common duty of care — Duty owed to visiting workmen by main contractors — Whether visiting workman's knowledge of danger absolving main contractors from liability — Safe means of access — Duty to comply with regulations — Whether owed to non‐employee — Construction (General Provisions) Regulations, 1961 (S.I. 1961, No. 1580), regs. 3(1) (a), 7(1) — Occupiers' Liability Act, 1957 (5 & 6 Eliz.II, c. 31), s.2(l),(2).
Jarrett B. Warshaw and Stevie Upton
As researchers and analysts apply the theory of institutional logics to higher education, they may choose from a variety of methods and analytical techniques by which to proceed…
Abstract
As researchers and analysts apply the theory of institutional logics to higher education, they may choose from a variety of methods and analytical techniques by which to proceed. This chapter focuses on qualitative document analysis as one helpful approach to capturing logics–organising principles and underlying theories of action–in colleges and universities. It builds on the recent call to mobilise the institutional logics perspective for higher education research by offering a conceptual framework for qualitative document analysis, and an example of analytical and coding procedures applied to documentary materials on financing and resourcing strategies of US public research universities. The chapter concludes with implications for theory as gleaned from using this method, such as its value in probing emergent combinations of multiple logics in contexts of institutional complexity, and addresses broader methodological considerations to support future work in this arena.
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Lara Penco, Teresina Torre and Roberta Scarsi
The purpose of this paper is to examine the impact of strategic orientation (defined using the Miles and Snow’s paradigm) on the processes of strategic decision-making and…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to examine the impact of strategic orientation (defined using the Miles and Snow’s paradigm) on the processes of strategic decision-making and organisational design in medium-sized firms (MEs) operating in the Italian family food and beverage industry (F&B). It answers the following research questions: Does the orientation towards market development lead to different strategic formulation styles and developing innovative approaches towards organisational design?
Design/methodology/approach
The study is based on five cases of Italian family MEs operating in the F&B industry with a focus on premium segments, following the Mediobanca and Unioncamere criteria.
Findings
The strategy formulation process and the organisational design are affected by strategic orientation, highlighting the relevance of the “prospector” orientation in modifying the behavioural models among the selected companies.
Research limitations/implications
The limitations concern the number of examined case studies and the geographical location of firms.
Practical implications
The attitude to plan and develop new organisational designs is required by a more “prospector” strategic orientation due to the increasing level of work complexity and the process of innovation to manage the market share. Thus, the emergence of a prospector attitude must be reinforced with specific managerial competencies and suggested as necessary support for development strategies.
Originality/value
This study focusses on strategic and organisational profiles of MEs operating in the F&B context, where literature is still fragmented. It explores the relationship between strategic orientation, strategic formulation and organisational design by analysing all constructs simultaneously, thereby bridging the theoretical gap in the existing literature.
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Domingo García Pérez de Lema and Antonio Duréndez
The aim of the present study is to test the main differences between private small/medium‐sized family businesses and non‐family businesses with regard to management variables…
Abstract
Purpose
The aim of the present study is to test the main differences between private small/medium‐sized family businesses and non‐family businesses with regard to management variables such as: strategy, strategic planning, manager's training and professionalism and financial techniques implementation.
Design/methodology/approach
In this empirical research, we use a sample of 639 small and medium‐sized industrial firms, distributed in 456 family and 183 non‐family firms, with the intention of determining whether family SMEs possess specific structural characteristics distinct from non‐family ones. The data collection technique used was a questionnaire obtained from a postal survey, and addressed to the manager of the company.
Findings
Results show that managers of family firms use some management tools such as management accounting systems and cash budgets for the decision making process and also give less importance to strategic planning and personnel training programmes as a competitiveness factor.
Research limitations/implications
There is a need for additional research because the findings indicate that there are different managerial behaviours between family and non‐family firms, but we need to corroborate and look for the basis of such differences, in order to address what the advantages and disadvantages of family firms are.
Practical implications
The results lead us to support the need for family firms to focus on “management development”, which should be understood as the general enhancement and growth of management skills through a learning process.
Originality/value
The paper contributes with new empirical evidence about the management function in family businesses. It is also expected that the results of the study help policy makers to make further efforts facilitating the progress of family firms, knowing they are the real engine driving and contributing to welfare of developed economies.
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Rico Baldegger, Pascal Wild and Patrick Schueffel
Today, newly founded businesses are inevitably driven to start in a digital form from day 1. Moreover, most existing businesses conceive digitalization as an important part of…
Abstract
Today, newly founded businesses are inevitably driven to start in a digital form from day 1. Moreover, most existing businesses conceive digitalization as an important part of their strategic orientation by developing and improving their digital assets and digitalizing their processes. By taking account of this development, this chapter investigates how entrepreneurial orientation (EO) affects a small firm’s proclivity to both digitization and internationalization and their performance that comes from it. Internationalization has been a key topic for many small- and medium-sized companies (SMEs) over the past decades. As digitization is currently taking over the helm from internationalization as the most pressing topic affecting business, we carried out research among SMEs to understand the interplay of these factors influencing business performance. The focus of the research was on the precursory factors inducing firm performance as well as on their interrelationships. Using a sample of 357 SMEs, EO is found to be significantly closely associated with an SME’s degree of digitization as well as with its overall performance. In contrast, EO does not affect the SME’s level of internationalization. This result is surprising considering that proactive and risk-taking firms tend to be more inclined to enter foreign and distant markets.
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