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Article
Publication date: 5 October 2021

Niamh Murtagh, Alice M. Owen and Kate Simpson

To improve building performance and meet statutory carbon reduction targets, a radical transformation of existing UK building stock is needed. Much previous research on building…

263

Abstract

Purpose

To improve building performance and meet statutory carbon reduction targets, a radical transformation of existing UK building stock is needed. Much previous research on building performance has focussed on large-scale construction. However, retrofit of existing housing stock – which will contribute the majority of the requisite efficiency improvement – is carried out by practitioners in the repair–maintain–improve (RMI) subsector. These practitioners are the sole traders and micro-firms who constitute two-fifths of employment in the construction sector. The study aims to examine the factors influencing these practitioners in RMI work to understand how better to engage them with improved building performance.

Design/methodology/approach

A total of 31 semi-structured interviews were conducted with RMI professionals from around the UK and analysed using template analysis.

Findings

The analysis identified capabilities of the practitioners who influence building performance, including knowledge and co-ordination of people and resources; opportunities including state action and customer demand; and motivations including pride in work, customer care and satisfaction, maintaining a viable business and working relationships.

Research limitations/implications

The participants were a small, mixed group in terms of firm size and specialisation. The qualitative approach adopted provided detailed insights but does not make claims for statistical generalisability or representativeness of the findings. Future work could look to extend the findings with a statistically representative survey.

Practical implications

For a successful transition to high standards of building performance, modelling is not enough. Initiatives are needed to address the multiple factors which determine engagement in energy-efficient retrofit: capacities, opportunities and motivations. The desire of RMI practitioners to meet customer expectations could be used to develop pragmatic building performance evaluation, guided by householder satisfaction criteria.

Originality/value

The study examined the attitudes and experiences of an under-researched sector who are essential to the delivery of improved building performance. This study makes a novel contribution by applying an established psychological model of behaviour change, the capability, opportunity, motivation – behaviour model, for the first time in this domain.

Details

International Journal of Building Pathology and Adaptation, vol. 41 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2398-4708

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Article
Publication date: 9 March 2021

Angeliki Maria Toli, Niamh Murtagh and Hedley Smyth

Smart city projects typically operate in consortia of actors that lead to the co-creation of jointly owned intellectual property (IP) and data. While IP and data are significant…

317

Abstract

Purpose

Smart city projects typically operate in consortia of actors that lead to the co-creation of jointly owned intellectual property (IP) and data. While IP and data are significant for economic development, there are very limited studies on their co-ownership regimes especially on co-ownership of open data and open intellectual property. This study address this gap.

Design/methodology/approach

This study is qualitative. In total, 62 in-depth semi-structured interviews were carried out, with predominantly senior members of organisations actively involved in smart city projects. Thematic analysis was used to analyse the data.

Findings

There are three models of co-ownership of IP and data: contractual joint ownership, undetermined or not-yet-determined ownership and open ownership. Each ownership model impacts differently the value-in-use. The relationships between actors in the consortia affect the way in which they co-create IP and data.

Originality/value

This study demonstrates how projects that operate in new models of innovation-led consortia produce new types of resources that are not simply co-created but co-owned. Co-owned resources have different value-in-use for each one of the different actors, independently of the fact that they jointly own them. This is influenced by the type of ownership model and predisposition of the actors to initially share resources and be flexible. Co-owned resources may generate future value propositions, act as interconnected operant resources and lead to the creation of new business models.

Details

Journal of Service Theory and Practice, vol. 32 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2055-6225

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Article
Publication date: 4 September 2007

Niamh Murtagh, Paulo Lopes and Evanthia Lyons

The purpose of this paper is to present research findings on the experience of career barriers by women who have changed career, and to suggest the practical implications of these

1912

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to present research findings on the experience of career barriers by women who have changed career, and to suggest the practical implications of these findings for career management.

Design/methodology/approach

An established, qualitative methodology, interpretative phenomenological analysis, was used to explore participants' experiences. Semi‐structured interviews were conducted with eight women who had changed careers and were analysed to identify the salient themes.

Findings

Participants experienced career barriers, but their subjective experience did not necessarily match objectively defined barriers. One participant, for example, experienced redundancy not as a barrier to her career path but as an opportunity. It was only when situations or events threatened the self‐concept that problems were experienced as barriers. These barriers were not insurmountable and participants used a number of strategies to overcome potential barriers.

Practical implications

The findings suggest that career management or counselling should acknowledge and explore the client's subjective experience of career barriers. Strategies such as challenging or reframing potential barriers can be effective methods for helping clients to dismantle them.

Originality/value

This research points to the gap in career theory and research on the experience of barriers in adult careers. It presents evidence on the subjective nature of barriers and on strategies used to overcome them.

Details

Industrial and Commercial Training, vol. 39 no. 6
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0019-7858

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