This article has been withdrawn as it was published elsewhere and accidentally duplicated. The original article can be seen here: 10.1108/eb038843. When citing the article, please…
Abstract
This article has been withdrawn as it was published elsewhere and accidentally duplicated. The original article can be seen here: 10.1108/eb038843. When citing the article, please cite: SAMUEL EILON, (1972), “The Computer in Distribution”, International Journal of Physical Distribution, Vol. 2 Iss: 1, pp. 14 - 16.
Caroyln Garrity, Eric W. Liguori and Jeff Muldoon
This paper aims to offer a critical biography of Joan Woodward, often considered the founder of contingency theory. This paper examines Woodward’s background to develop a more…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to offer a critical biography of Joan Woodward, often considered the founder of contingency theory. This paper examines Woodward’s background to develop a more complete understanding of the factors that influenced her work.
Design/methodology/approach
This paper draws on insights gained from personal correspondence with two colleagues of Woodward, one who recruited her to the Imperial College where she conducted her most prominent work and one whom she recruited while at the college. In addition, Woodward’s original work, academic literature, published remembrances and a plethora of other secondary sources are reviewed.
Findings
By connecting these otherwise disparate sources of information, a more complete understanding of Woodward’s work and its context is provided. It is argued that Woodward’s education, training, brilliance, values, the relative weakness of British sociology and the need to improve the economy helped to make Woodward’s work both original and practical.
Originality/value
The originality of this work is to examine the work of Woodward through the lens of critical biography. Despite Woodward’s contributions, Woodward remains an underappreciated figure. The purpose is to provide her contribution against the backdrop of the British industrial and educational sphere.
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The problem of multi‐criteria optimisation has attracted a great deal of attention in the literature (for a brief discussion of various approaches see), one of the favourite…
Abstract
The problem of multi‐criteria optimisation has attracted a great deal of attention in the literature (for a brief discussion of various approaches see), one of the favourite methods of solution being that of goal programming. An example of how this method can be applied in the multi‐criteria warehouse location problem is described in a case study by Green et al, and because both the methodology and the solution raise several important issues, it has been chosen here for further discussion.
The functions of the board of directors of an enterprise include the formulation of policy and objectives, the selection of strategies and the evaluation of corporate performance…
Abstract
The functions of the board of directors of an enterprise include the formulation of policy and objectives, the selection of strategies and the evaluation of corporate performance. It is sometimes convenient to distinguish between direction and management, the former being concerned with policy and objectives, the latter with planning, execution and control. Such a distinction can take the form of organising the board as a two‐tier or two‐part board, and the differences between the two approaches are discussed. Problems relating to worker‐directors and non‐executive directors are also briefly alluded to.
The paper makes a distinction between management tasks which are associated with day‐to‐day operations in the distribution field and tasks which can be grouped under the title of…
Abstract
The paper makes a distinction between management tasks which are associated with day‐to‐day operations in the distribution field and tasks which can be grouped under the title of planning and control. The first are concerned with tactical problems, usually on a short time scale, the fatter concentrate on strategy. The use of management science and the computer in some of these problems is briefly discussed.
The AUTHOR USED A LABORATORY TEST rig rather than an engine in order to eliminate unwanted variables and to bring the remaining ones under the eye of the operator. The test rig is…
Abstract
The AUTHOR USED A LABORATORY TEST rig rather than an engine in order to eliminate unwanted variables and to bring the remaining ones under the eye of the operator. The test rig is illustrated diagrammatically in Fig. 1, and contains a piston which can be fitted with any desired combination of rings and is reciprocated in a vertical cylinder by an electric motor. The piston is rigidly fixed to a piston rod closely guided above and below the cylinder, but in some tests the upper guide was removed so that the piston then contacted the cylinder as in a normal engine. Cyclic pressure variations were avoided by mounting a reservoir above the cylinder giving a clearance volume of ten times the swept volume and keeping the cylinder pressure within 7 per cent of the mean pressure. Mean pressure could be maintained at any value from a vacuum to 150 lb/sq.in. Commercial nitrogen cylinders were used. The oil jets to the lower side of the piston could supply 1.0 pint/min. An SAE 30 oil was used. Speeds used varied from 750 to 3,000 r.p.m. Differential thermal expansion between piston and cylinder assembly was kept small by operating both cylinder‐jacket water and oil supply at 86°F. (30°C).
Computer‐based educational information systems can extend the “bounded rationality” of administrative decision making. They structure the administrator's problem‐solving approach…
Abstract
Computer‐based educational information systems can extend the “bounded rationality” of administrative decision making. They structure the administrator's problem‐solving approach and systematize the communication linkages within organizations. They produce information for providing decision makers with a more complete knowledge, an increased range of alternatives, and an improved capability for anticipating decision consequences.
In the last four years, since Volume I of this Bibliography first appeared, there has been an explosion of literature in all the main functional areas of business. This wealth of…
Abstract
In the last four years, since Volume I of this Bibliography first appeared, there has been an explosion of literature in all the main functional areas of business. This wealth of material poses problems for the researcher in management studies — and, of course, for the librarian: uncovering what has been written in any one area is not an easy task. This volume aims to help the librarian and the researcher overcome some of the immediate problems of identification of material. It is an annotated bibliography of management, drawing on the wide variety of literature produced by MCB University Press. Over the last four years, MCB University Press has produced an extensive range of books and serial publications covering most of the established and many of the developing areas of management. This volume, in conjunction with Volume I, provides a guide to all the material published so far.
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Rupert Fisher and Melvyn Hirst
Makes a timely assessment of the specifically British contribution in the field of marketing models, which provides a useful basis for further development. Reviews UK writing on…
Abstract
Makes a timely assessment of the specifically British contribution in the field of marketing models, which provides a useful basis for further development. Reviews UK writing on models of market behaviour, advertising models, distribution models, pricing models and new‐product models. Makes a distinction between macro‐ and micro‐models: a macro‐model does not require information about individual units in the market, such as households: micro‐models need data about individual units, therefore require much more information. Concludes that the findings give valuable insight into consumer purchasing patterns – providing early prediction of future success or failure.