P. Ryalls and A. Stevens
Outlines the methods used to construct two basements at the newBritish Library, and the precautions taken to monitor and prevent groundmovement and related damage to adjacent…
Abstract
Outlines the methods used to construct two basements at the new British Library, and the precautions taken to monitor and prevent ground movement and related damage to adjacent buildings and London Underground tunnels. Discusses the proposed construction sequence, the prediction of ground movements and the comprehensive survey and ground instrumentation programme installed. Explains the type, purpose and criteria for the instrumentation required and details their positioning in order to monitor possible damage, with particular reference to London Underground and St Pancras Station. Details the results of the survey over the nine‐year construction period, in comparison with predictions, and the plans for continuation of surveys until work is complete.
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This paper aims to argue that the principal components of the Resource‐Based View (RBV) as a theory of sustained competitive advantage are not a sufficient basis for a complete…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to argue that the principal components of the Resource‐Based View (RBV) as a theory of sustained competitive advantage are not a sufficient basis for a complete and consistent theory of firm behaviour. Two missing elements are value theory and accountability mechanisms.
Design/methodology/approach
The paper proposes a link between value theory and accountability using a Resource Value‐Resource Risk perspective as an alternative to the Capital Asset Pricing Model. The link operates first from the labour process, where value is created but is imperfectly observable by intra‐firm mechanisms of organizational control and outside governance arrangements without incurring monitoring costs. Second, it operates through contractual arrangements which impose fixed cost structures on activities with variable revenues.
Findings
The paper thereby explains how value originates in risky and difficult to monitor productive processes and is transmitted as rents to organizational and capital market constituents. It then reviews recent contributions to the RBV, arguing that the proposed new approach overcomes gaps inherent in the alternatives, and thus offers a more complete and integrated view of firm behaviour.
Originality/value
The RBV can become a coherent theory of firm behaviour, if it adopts and can integrate the labour theory of value, associated measures of risk arising from the labour process and mechanisms of accountability.
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Farida Ashraf Ali, Gouranga Bose, Sushanta Kumar Kamilla, Dilip Kumar Mishra and Priyabrata Pattanaik
The purpose of this paper is to examine the growth and characterization of the two different compound semiconductors, namely, n-zinc oxide (ZnO) and p-gallium antimonide (GaSb)…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to examine the growth and characterization of the two different compound semiconductors, namely, n-zinc oxide (ZnO) and p-gallium antimonide (GaSb). In this paper, fabrication and characterization of n-ZnO/p-GaSb heterojunction diode is analyzed.
Design/methodology/approach
Thermo vertical direction solidification (TVDS) method was used to synthesize undoped GaSb ingot from high purity Ga (5N) and Sb (4N) host materials. Thermal evaporation technique is used to prepare a film of GaSb on glass substrate from the pre-synthesized bulk material by TVDS method. Undoped ZnO film was grown on GaSb film by sol–gel method by using chemical wet and dry (CWD) technique to fabricate n-ZnO/p-GaSb heterojunction diode.
Findings
The formation of crystalline structure and surface morphological analysis of both the GaSb bulk and film have been carried out by x-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis and scanning electron microscopy analysis. From the XRD studies, the structural characterization and phase identification of ZnO/GaSb interface. The current–voltage characteristic of the n-ZnO/p-GaSb heterostructure is found to be rectifying in nature.
Originality/value
GaSb film growth on any substrate by thermal evaporation method taking a small piece of the sample from the pre-synthesized GaSb bulk ingot has not been reported yet. Semiconductor device with heterojunction diode by using two different semiconductors such as ZnO/GaSb was used by this group for the first time.
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In Australia, interest in women in organisations has been overtaken by a focus on “managing diversity”. The first part of this paper describes this trend and the accompanying…
Abstract
In Australia, interest in women in organisations has been overtaken by a focus on “managing diversity”. The first part of this paper describes this trend and the accompanying diversity discourse before reviewing the arguments for and against subsuming women as one category within a diversity framework. The second part draws on three examples to explore how working within a managing diversity brief allows and advances analyses of gender. The paper concludes by arguing the possibilities of working critically with diversity, including being reflective about one’s purposes and using the power that diversity offers for, hopefully, transformational ends.
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The annual report of the Board of Agriculture and Fisheries for 1905, which has just been issued, is a very interesting booklet, which the Board's elder brother, the Local…
Abstract
The annual report of the Board of Agriculture and Fisheries for 1905, which has just been issued, is a very interesting booklet, which the Board's elder brother, the Local Government Board, might in some respects imitate with advantage in its publications dealing with kindred topics—but in some respects only.
In current research on market categories, hybridity (i.e., the association of organizations and/or the products they offer with multiple category memberships) represents an…
Abstract
In current research on market categories, hybridity (i.e., the association of organizations and/or the products they offer with multiple category memberships) represents an important issue with many practical implications, especially for project-based forms of organizations. This chapter explores the evolution of hybridity and the conditions under which different kinds of project-based organizations develop hybrid projects. By studying the feature film industry in the United States from 1920 until 1970, this chapter contrasts the current perspective based on status-organizing processes and suggests that hybridity is a population-level process that can be interpreted as the result of the construction and interplay of different identities, and on the dynamic of the identity dimensions employed by different actors in such effort. The chapter shows that the development and construction of the identity of a temporary organization is different from other types of organizations, and is linked to identification processes both at the organizational level, with the company or with specific individuals in key roles, and at the institutional/collective level, with pure (single-category) and hybrid (multi-category) genres. This chapter highlights the mutual interactions and constraints between these two levels in different life stages of the film industry.
The purpose of this paper is to examine service level agreements (SLAs) in the retail industry and uses empirical data to draw conclusions on the relationships between SLA…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to examine service level agreements (SLAs) in the retail industry and uses empirical data to draw conclusions on the relationships between SLA parameters and retailer financial performance.
Design/methodology/approach
Based on prior SLA theories, hypotheses about the impacts of SLA confidentiality, choice of chargeback mechanisms and chargeback penalty on retailer inventory turnover are tested.
Findings
Retailer inventory turnover could vary by the level of SLA confidentiality, and the variation of retailer inventory turnovers could be explained by chargeback penalty.
Research limitations/implications
The research findings may not be readily applicable to SLAs outside of the retail industry. Also, most conclusions were drawn from publicly available SLAs.
Practical implications
The significant relationships between SLA parameters and retailer inventory turnover imply that a retailer could improve its financial performance by leveraging its SLA design.
Originality/value
Not only does this study contribute to the understanding of retail SLA design in practice, but it also extends prior theories by investigating the implications of SLA design on the retailer inventory turnover.
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Robin Gauld and Simon Horsburgh
The work environment is known to influence professional attitudes toward quality and safety. This study sought to measure these attitudes amongst health professionals working in…
Abstract
Purpose
The work environment is known to influence professional attitudes toward quality and safety. This study sought to measure these attitudes amongst health professionals working in New Zealand District Health Boards (DHBs), initially in 2012 and again in 2017.
Design/methodology/approach
Three questions were included in a national New Zealand health professional workforce survey conducted in 2012 and again in 2017. All registered health professionals employed with DHBs were invited to participate in an online survey. Areas of interest included teamwork amongst professionals; involvement of patients and families in efforts to improve patient care and ease of speaking up when a problem with patient care is perceived.
Findings
In 2012, 57% of respondents (58% in 2017) agreed health professionals worked as a team; 71% respondents (73% in 2017) agreed health professionals involved patients and families in efforts to improve patient care and 69% (65% in 2017) agreed it was easy to speak up in their clinical area, with none of these changes being statistically significant. There were some response differences by respondent characteristics.
Practical implications
With no change over time, there is a demand for improvement. Also for leadership in policy, management and amongst health professionals if goals of improving quality and safety are to be delivered upon.
Originality/value
This study provides a simple three-question method of probing perceptions of quality and safety and an important set of insights into progress in New Zealand DHBs.
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Bader Khamis Al Nuaimi, Mehmood Khan and Mian Ajmal
Despite making significant strides in transforming its environmental outlook over the past few years and promoting sustainable procurement (SP) in the public sector, the United…
Abstract
Purpose
Despite making significant strides in transforming its environmental outlook over the past few years and promoting sustainable procurement (SP) in the public sector, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) is still facing serious challenges in moving up the global sustainability ranks. Thus, this study aims to assess and prioritize critical factors, including cost, organization, innovation capability, stakeholder, culture and market-related factors, and their respective sub-factors for the implementation of SP, and come up with recommendations.
Design/methodology/approach
This study uses the analytical hierarchy process model to prioritize the main factors and sub-factors that can critically affect the implementation of SP in the UAE public sector. Data were collected through a survey of 17 procurement experts working in procurement departments in public organizations in Abu Dhabi, UAE.
Findings
The results reveal that cost is the highest ranked critical factor, followed by an organization, whereas innovation capability is the lowest ranked of the main factors. The initial cost of green products and their life-cycle cost are the most prioritized of cost factors. An individual’s commitment to change, top management support and organizational commitment are the highest-ranked sub-factors. Social awareness is the most important sub-factor among culture, and the supplier’s capability is the highest ranked sub-factor in the market.
Social implications
The government should issue a standard practices handbook for SP to be used by public organizations to provide public procurers a clear method for conducting a proper cost–benefit analysis to evaluate and decide on sustainable purchases that fit the economy and society and meet the national sustainability agenda. Furthermore, additional attention needs to be paid to cultural factors such as social and environmental awareness by policymakers to succeed in achieving SP. Finally, top management and government officials must reevaluate their own personal values and commitment to sustainability issues as they participate in forming policies, rules, regulations and training programs designed for procurement managers within government organizations.
Originality/value
Although considerable research has been conducted on this topic, this study is unique in its presentation of a critical understanding of which factors and sub-factors are likely to significantly affect SP implementation in the UAE, which shall provide the relevant researchers and practitioners with the necessary knowledge to be ready for the changes that may lie ahead.