Farhad Analoui and Pauline Fell
Little has been reported in the literature on the perception and understanding of administrative staff regarding the processes involved in performance appraisal within the higher…
Abstract
Little has been reported in the literature on the perception and understanding of administrative staff regarding the processes involved in performance appraisal within the higher educational establishments. At the University of Bradford appraisal for this cadre of employees has hitherto taken a voluntary form. In response to this vacuum, an empirical survey has been carried out in four departments in order to explore the perception, views and preferences of the administrative staff of the entire process and its related issues. The results indicated that lack of provision for formal appraisal has often resulted in inconsistencies, little or no provision for establishing formal dialogue between management and the staff concerning their performance expectations, misplacement of personal goals, and realistic opportunities for personal and career development. Therefore concludes that there is an urgent need for the university to disseminate its policies widely and maintain uniformity of practice throughout its departments. Moreover, attention ought to be paid to the effective training and the role and responsibilities of line managers.
Details
Keywords
This article examines efforts of late nineteenth century educational reformers in Boston, Massachusetts (USA), to meet the pedagogical needs of an industrial age by balancing…
Abstract
This article examines efforts of late nineteenth century educational reformers in Boston, Massachusetts (USA), to meet the pedagogical needs of an industrial age by balancing manual work and intellectual activity. Led by Swedish educator Gustaf Larsson and Boston philanthropist Pauline Agassiz Shaw, they employed traditional Swedish wood handcrafts (slojd, or ‘sloyd’ in English) to teach theoretical academic subjects and foster individualised learning. The reformers hoped to create, for students in kindergarten through to twelfth grade, a progression of manual work to parallel intellectual activities in the curriculum. That task became difficult as tool work moved from wood to steel, machines replaced hand tools, and artistic handcraft fell victim to efficient production. The school failed to sustain itself following the deaths of Shaw and Larsson. Today sloyd is credited as being a forerunner of technology education as well as an important influence on arts education in the United States.
Details
Keywords
The Bureau of Economics in the Federal Trade Commission has a three-part role in the Agency and the strength of its functions changed over time depending on the preferences and…
Abstract
The Bureau of Economics in the Federal Trade Commission has a three-part role in the Agency and the strength of its functions changed over time depending on the preferences and ideology of the FTC’s leaders, developments in the field of economics, and the tenor of the times. The over-riding current role is to provide well considered, unbiased economic advice regarding antitrust and consumer protection law enforcement cases to the legal staff and the Commission. The second role, which long ago was primary, is to provide reports on investigations of various industries to the public and public officials. This role was more recently called research or “policy R&D”. A third role is to advocate for competition and markets both domestically and internationally. As a practical matter, the provision of economic advice to the FTC and to the legal staff has required that the economists wear “two hats,” helping the legal staff investigate cases and provide evidence to support law enforcement cases while also providing advice to the legal bureaus and to the Commission on which cases to pursue (thus providing “a second set of eyes” to evaluate cases). There is sometimes a tension in those functions because building a case is not the same as evaluating a case. Economists and the Bureau of Economics have provided such services to the FTC for over 100 years proving that a sub-organization can survive while playing roles that sometimes conflict. Such a life is not, however, always easy or fun.
Details
Keywords
Ian Seymour Yeoman and Pauline Joy Sheldon
As the Journal of Tourism Futures (JTF) celebrates its 10th Anniversary, Dr Ian Yeoman (Hotel Management School Leeuwarden) interviews Emeritus Professor Pauline Sheldon…
Abstract
Purpose
As the Journal of Tourism Futures (JTF) celebrates its 10th Anniversary, Dr Ian Yeoman (Hotel Management School Leeuwarden) interviews Emeritus Professor Pauline Sheldon (University of Hawaiʻi) about transformation and the regenerative future of tourism, a special issue published by the journal in 2022.
Design/methodology/approach
A personal interview.
Findings
Emeritus Professor Pauline Sheldon highlights the importance of regenerative tourism for the future and the role the JTF plays in this field. In particular, Sheldon highlights the pioneering research and practice of Dr Dianne Dredge, who has championed a pathway on regenerative tourism.
Originality/value
The interview provides insights into the directions of regenerative tourism and research about the future of tourism.
Details
Keywords
In 1994, a leaked council report revealed that, for more than ten years, Gordon Rowe, a former social worker, had been beating, raping and ill‐treating the adults with learning…
Abstract
In 1994, a leaked council report revealed that, for more than ten years, Gordon Rowe, a former social worker, had been beating, raping and ill‐treating the adults with learning difficulties who lived in the residential homes run by his company, Longcare. This paper describes the effect of this abuse on some of those residents.
Details
Keywords
Gina Pauline and Jeffrey S. Pauline
The purpose of the paper is to examine the demographic make‐up of volunteers and their motives for participating in a professional tennis event.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of the paper is to examine the demographic make‐up of volunteers and their motives for participating in a professional tennis event.
Design/methodology/approach
This study uses a cross‐sectional descriptive study to investigate the primary motivation of volunteers from a US Open Series professional tennis event. A MANOVA was also conducted to compare the volunteer motivation factors (purposive, egoistic, leisure, material, external) by demographic factors (gender and age).
Findings
Volunteers' demographics closely resemble the tennis participation population and are similar to other tournament volunteers in the sport of golf. Volunteers were strongly motivated by material and purposive factors. Gender and age had no significant effect on the motivation to volunteer.
Research limitations/implications
The sample being from a single event can limit the generalizations, but the work can serve as a framework for more extensive studies, including focusing on a women's event to examine the differences in motivation.
Practical implications
Implications of the results are provided in an effort to assist sport managers to design quality volunteer experiences that enhance the overall experience, supporting episodic volunteers' work ethic, and management of the event. There is clear evidence that volunteer satisfaction is higher when their motives are met. It is intended that this research will offer more support for event organizers based on the growing usage of volunteers and concerns in the sport industry.
Originality/value
This study is the only one that examines tennis volunteers in general as well as exploring the effect of the dependent variables of gender and age on motivation.
Details
Keywords
Alan Vaughan Hughes and Pauline Rafferty
This paper seeks to report a project to investigate the degree of inter‐indexer consistency in the assignment of controlled vocabulary topical subject index terms to identical…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper seeks to report a project to investigate the degree of inter‐indexer consistency in the assignment of controlled vocabulary topical subject index terms to identical graphical images by different indexers at the National Library of Wales (NLW).
Design/methodology/approach
An experimental quantitative methodology was devised to investigate inter‐indexer consistency. Additionally, the project investigated the relationship, if any, between indexing exhaustivity and consistency, and the relationship, if any, between indexing consistency/exhaustivity and broad category of graphic format.
Findings
Inter‐indexer consistency in the assignment of topical subject index terms to graphic materials at the NLW was found to be generally low and highly variable. Inter‐indexer consistency fell within the range 10.8 per cent to 48.0 per cent. Indexing exhaustivity varied substantially from indexer to indexer, with a mean assignment of 3.8 terms by each indexer to each image, falling within the range 2.5 to 4.7 terms. The broad category of graphic format, whether photographic or non‐photographic, was found to have little influence on either inter‐indexer consistency or indexing exhaustivity. Indexing exhaustivity and inter‐indexer consistency exhibited a tendency toward a direct, positive relationship. The findings are necessarily limited as this is a small‐scale study within a single institution.
Originality/value
Previous consistency studies have almost exclusively investigated the indexing of print materials, with very little research published for non‐print media. With the literature also rich in discussion of the added complexities of subjectively representing the intellectual content of visual media, this study attempts to enrich existing knowledge on indexing consistency for graphic materials and to address a noticeable gap in information theory.
Details
Keywords
At the beginning of January this year, The Body Shop's Training School opened its doors. Andrew Ede spoke to Pauline Lalor, the manager of the school, about The Body Shop…
Abstract
At the beginning of January this year, The Body Shop's Training School opened its doors. Andrew Ede spoke to Pauline Lalor, the manager of the school, about The Body Shop, training, franchising, and Pauline Lalor.
Pauline Assenza and Alan B. Eisner
After decades of successful expansion, The Reader's Digest Association's products were mature. With an average readership age for the flagship Reader's Digest magazine of 50.3 in…
Abstract
After decades of successful expansion, The Reader's Digest Association's products were mature. With an average readership age for the flagship Reader's Digest magazine of 50.3 in 2004, efforts to develop new products had so far failed to entice a significant number of younger customers. Following a financial downturn in 1996, positive financial results remained illusive. Several major changes instituted by Thomas O. Ryder, CEO since 1998, including acquisitions, re-capitalization, restructuring and systematic re-engineering of the corporate culture, had proven mildly successful, but RDA, as well as the entire publishing industry, faced a persistent decline in profitability. Could RDA fulfill its stated mission to create “products that inform, enrich, entertain and inspire people of all ages and cultures around the world”, and could it do this by continuing to rely on the 80-year old Reader's Digest magazine?