Donald McLagan and Robert Gough
Although this autumn sees the recovery of the economy well underway, the form this upswing is taking is very different from previous ones. The recession of the early 1980s has…
Abstract
Although this autumn sees the recovery of the economy well underway, the form this upswing is taking is very different from previous ones. The recession of the early 1980s has been more severe and more long lasting than any since the Great Depression. There has been no sustained economic growth from 1980 to 1983, and despite two recent quarters of surprisingly high GNP growth, that three‐year gap will not soon close.
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Brian R. Hopkins and Robert L. Williams
The Department of Mechanical Engineering at Ohio University has designed, constructed, and controlled a new 6‐dof in‐parallel‐actuated platform, a combination and modification of…
Abstract
The Department of Mechanical Engineering at Ohio University has designed, constructed, and controlled a new 6‐dof in‐parallel‐actuated platform, a combination and modification of existing designs. The 6‐PSU platform consists of six legs with a prismatic joint, spherical joint, and universal joint connecting links in each leg which move the platform in the six Cartesian freedoms with respect to the base. The prismatic joint is actuated while the other two joints in each leg are passive. The six prismatic joints move vertically with respect to the base, which appears to be a big improvement over the standard Gough/Stewart platform. Experimental results from the Ohio University manipulator are presented.
Alison Leary, Robert Cook, Sarahjane Jones, Mark Radford, Judtih Smith, Malcolm Gough and Geoffrey Punshon
Incident reporting systems are commonly deployed in healthcare but resulting datasets are largely warehoused. This study explores if intelligence from such datasets could be used…
Abstract
Purpose
Incident reporting systems are commonly deployed in healthcare but resulting datasets are largely warehoused. This study explores if intelligence from such datasets could be used to improve quality, efficiency, and safety.
Design/methodology/approach
Incident reporting data recorded in one NHS acute Trust was mined for insight (n = 133,893 April 2005–July 2016 across 201 fields, 26,912,493 items). An a priori dataset was overlaid consisting of staffing, vital signs, and national safety indicators such as falls. Analysis was primarily nonlinear statistical approaches using Mathematica V11.
Findings
The organization developed a deeper understanding of the use of incident reporting systems both in terms of usability and possible reflection of culture. Signals emerged which focused areas of improvement or risk. An example of this is a deeper understanding of the timing and staffing levels associated with falls. Insight into the nature and grading of reporting was also gained.
Practical implications
Healthcare incident reporting data is underused and with a small amount of analysis can provide real insight and application to patient safety.
Originality/value
This study shows that insight can be gained by mining incident reporting datasets, particularly when integrated with other routinely collected data.
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Chris Brown, Robert White and Anthony Kelly
Change agents are individuals who can successfully transform aspects of how organisations operate. In education, teachers as change agents are increasingly seen as vital to the…
Abstract
Change agents are individuals who can successfully transform aspects of how organisations operate. In education, teachers as change agents are increasingly seen as vital to the successful operation of schools and self-improving school systems. To date, however, there has been no systematic investigation of the nature and role of teacher change agents. To address this knowledge gap, we undertook a systematic review into five key areas regarding teachers as change agents. After reviewing 70 outputs we found that current literature predominantly positions teacher change agents as the deliverers of top-down change, with the possibility of bottom-up educational reform currently neglected.
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The purpose of this paper is to examine the role of graduate recruitment in the professional socialisation and subjectification of Big Four professionals.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to examine the role of graduate recruitment in the professional socialisation and subjectification of Big Four professionals.
Design/methodology/approach
The paper draws on documentary data and interviews conducted at one British university. It adopts an interpretive perspective and is informed by Foucault’s work on technologies of power and technologies of the self.
Findings
The paper argues that the graduate recruitment practices of Big Four firms represent a series of examinations which produce the category of ideal recruits. It moreover suggests that this category serves as the ultimate objective of an ethical process whereby aspiring accountants consciously and deliberately seek to transform themselves into the type of subjects they aspire to be – ideal recruits.
Research limitations/implications
The findings of the paper are primarily based on interviews conducted at one university. Future research could explore if students at other universities experience graduate recruitment in similar or different ways.
Originality/value
The paper highlights the constitutive role of graduate recruitment practices and shows that they can construct ideal recruits as much as they select them. It also shows that graduate recruitment is an important anticipatory socialisation mechanism that can compel aspiring accountants to learn how to look, sound and behave like Big Four professionals long before they join such organisations. Finally, the paper discusses its implications for the future of the profession, social mobility and the use of Foucault’s work on technologies of power and the self in studying subjectivity at elite professional service firms.
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Stephen Dakin and Harcourt Gough
Concern over the shortage of managerial talent in New Zealand led a privately owned company in the capital goods market to establish its own management development programme…
Abstract
Concern over the shortage of managerial talent in New Zealand led a privately owned company in the capital goods market to establish its own management development programme in‐house, custom‐built on assessment centre principles. The programme recognises that training needs of supervisors and managers fall into three main categories: technical skills, people skills and conceptual and administrative skills. Experience with the programme shows that it is possible and worthwhile for small‐to‐medium sized companies to establish such programmes. The involvement of managers as counsellors is significant in their success. Such a programme must be easy to administer and should keep concurrent assessment to the minimum. Reasons for the failure of previous management training and specific features of the programme are outlined.
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Most young men who are homosexual are not raised in an environment in which homosexual development is even recognized, much less encouraged. It is not unusual for men who have…
Abstract
Most young men who are homosexual are not raised in an environment in which homosexual development is even recognized, much less encouraged. It is not unusual for men who have recently identified themselves as gay to not have any idea what being gay is all about. It is common, even typical, for the gay male to “come out” during his late teens or early twenties and to begin both exploring his sexuality and developing a sense of what it means to be gay. There are many resources available which will be of great use to the newly “out” gay male. The resources in this guide may also be of interest to other gay men, but the purpose of the pathfinder as it has been constructed is to provide a strategy for: