Susanne Jansen, Marie-Christine P.J. Knippels and Wouter R. van Joolingen
The purpose of this paper is to explore the merits of lesson study (LS) as a research approach for research in (science) education. A lesson was developed to introduce students to…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to explore the merits of lesson study (LS) as a research approach for research in (science) education. A lesson was developed to introduce students to model-based reasoning: a higher order thinking skill that is seen as one of the major reasoning strategies in science.
Design/methodology/approach
Participants of the LS team were three secondary school teachers and two educational researchers. Additionally, one participant fulfilled both roles. Both qualitative and quantitative data were used to investigate the effect of the developed lesson on students and to formulate focal points for using the LS as a research approach.
Findings
The developed lesson successfully familiarized students with model-based reasoning. Three main focal points were formulated for using LS as a research approach: (1) make sure that the teachers support the research question that the researchers bring into the LS cycle, (2) take into account that the lesson is supposed to answer a research question that might cause extra stress for the teachers in an LS team and (3) state the role of both researchers and teachers in an LS team clearly at the beginning of the LS cycle.
Originality/value
This study aims to investigate whether LS can be used as a research approach by the educational research community.
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Sylwia Przytuła, Susanne Rank and Katarzyna Tracz-Krupa
Due to the global labor market challenges, international companies react and adjust fast to these circumstances by implementing digital solutions into all business processes…
Abstract
Due to the global labor market challenges, international companies react and adjust fast to these circumstances by implementing digital solutions into all business processes. Organizational ambidexterity is seen as the response of digital transformation and it can be divided into structural, contextual, and sequential dimensions. In this context, organizations representing the smart industry will need employees with specific competencies which let them meet technological challenges.
This chapter aims to clarify the state of opinion on expectations towards, and preparedness for, the impact of Industry 4.0 on human resources management and the implementation of various types of ambidexterity in these companies. We have conducted interviews with key HR informants from manufacturing companies operating in Germany and Poland. We have found that Industry 4.0 has a significant impact on HR practices. In both international companies, various digital solutions in employee recruitment, development, and performance, have been implemented. There have also been mature examples in both companies of structural, contextual, and sequential ambidexterity.
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Susanne Scheibe and Hannes Zacher
Researchers in the field of occupational stress and well-being are increasingly interested in the role of emotion regulation in the work context. Emotion regulation has also been…
Abstract
Researchers in the field of occupational stress and well-being are increasingly interested in the role of emotion regulation in the work context. Emotion regulation has also been widely investigated in the area of lifespan developmental psychology, with findings indicating that the ability to modify one’s emotions represents a domain in which age-related growth is possible. In this chapter, we integrate the literatures on aging, emotion regulation, and occupational stress and well-being. To this end, we review key theories and empirical findings in each of these areas, summarize existing research on age, emotion regulation, and stress and well-being at work, and develop a conceptual model on how aging affects emotion regulation and the stress process in work settings to guide future research. According to the model, age will affect (1) what kinds of affective work events are encountered and how often, (2) the appraisal of and initial emotional response to affective work events (emotion generation), and (3) the management of emotions and coping with affective work events (emotion regulation). The model has implications for researchers and practitioners who want to understand and facilitate successful emotion regulation and stress reduction in the workplace among different age groups.
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Susanne Durst, Christoph Hinteregger, Serdal Temel and R. Baris Yesilay
The understanding of the later stage (i.e. the exploitation phase) in the new product development (NPD) process by companies from emerging markets is underdeveloped. The purpose…
Abstract
Purpose
The understanding of the later stage (i.e. the exploitation phase) in the new product development (NPD) process by companies from emerging markets is underdeveloped. The purpose of this paper is to address this lack and, by drawing upon a data set from Turkish firms, explore how different factors affect the exploitation phase of the NPD process.
Design/methodology/approach
Multiple hierarchical regression analyses were carried out on a sample of 671 Turkish firms operating in five industries (i.e. information and communication technologies, biomedical, machinery, chemical and plastic, and food and beverage) in the Izmir region (Turkey) to test the hypotheses.
Findings
Results reveal major differences regarding human capital, leadership, marketing capabilities, and business and institutional networks in terms of the commercialization of newly developed products in domestic and international markets.
Originality/value
By focusing on the exploitation stage, this paper extents the growing research efforts to study the NPD process of companies in emerging economies other than China by using primary data from Turkey.
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Karl Aschenbrücker and Tobias Kretschmer
The authors examine how firms can achieve organizational ambidexterity, that is, how they can successfully engage in concurrent exploitation of existing competencies and…
Abstract
The authors examine how firms can achieve organizational ambidexterity, that is, how they can successfully engage in concurrent exploitation of existing competencies and exploration of new competencies in their search for new products. Existing research has identified three enablers to manage these fundamentally different activities: temporal separation, structural separation, and the creation of context. Studying the strategic orientation, organization design, and performance of a unique sample of mid-sized German manufacturing firms, the authors find that the controlled interplay of decentralized decision making and formalized processes and goals is another effective means to manage the challenges of pursuing an innovation strategy balancing both exploitative and exploratory activities. The findings of this study suggest that this balanced control constitutes a fourth enabler of ambidexterity.
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Haakon Lund and Susanne Ørnager
The purpose of this paper is to explore theoretically and empirically the understanding and implementation of an information taxonomy in the UN organization World Food Programme…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to explore theoretically and empirically the understanding and implementation of an information taxonomy in the UN organization World Food Programme (WFP) by analysing users’ information behaviour and by establishing a minimum set of cross-silo metadata (taxonomy).
Design/methodology/approach
The study implies the use of both qualitative and quantitative methods. This includes desk review of key documents and interviews with information architecture staff from various WFP units; data collection carried out as semi-structured staff interviews in WFP; log analyses of search log-files from WFP intranet portal (WFPgo) from September to November 2013, the results were applied and a suggested taxonomy tested at workshops conducted for the staff in headquarters.
Findings
The results reveal an organization with a high demand for easier access to information and knowledge, greater internal collaborations and stronger links with various sources of knowledge. Staff participating in the various workshops pointed out that work processes as well as the human resources component cannot be left out of a solution development.
Originality/value
There has been little research carried out on current taxonomy projects in corporate environments and international emergency response organizations and few has touched on how knowledge organization systems can enhance or constrain staff’s ability to access online content.
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To share with readers the issues of an international conference.Design/methodology/approach – A brief review of the conference held in Germany, 7‐9 February 2006.
Abstract
Purpose
To share with readers the issues of an international conference.Design/methodology/approach – A brief review of the conference held in Germany, 7‐9 February 2006.
Findings
The conference focused on the future of information services in the digital world. Speakers from eight countries discussed joint strategies and transnational networks for academic libraries, innovative information services, and future challenges for academic libraries. Three hands‐on workshops reported on current projects in the fields of long‐term archiving, institutional repositories and marketing approaches in the library context.
Originality/value
Will be of interest to library and information professionals.
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Malgorzata Zieba, Susanne Durst and Christoph Hinteregger
The purpose of this study is to examine the effect of knowledge risk management (KRM) on organizational sustainability and the role of innovativeness and agility in this…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this study is to examine the effect of knowledge risk management (KRM) on organizational sustainability and the role of innovativeness and agility in this relationship.
Design/methodology/approach
The study presents the results of a quantitative survey performed among 179 professionals from knowledge-intensive organizations dealing with knowledge risks and their management in organizations. Data included in this study are from both private and public organizations located all over the world and were collected through an online survey.
Findings
The results have confirmed that innovativeness and agility positively impact the sustainability of organizations; agility also positively impacts organizational innovativeness. The partial influence of KRM on both innovativeness and agility of organizations has been confirmed as well.
Research limitations/implications
The paper findings contribute in different ways to the ongoing debates in the literature. First, they contribute to the general study of risk management by showing empirically its role in organizations in the given case of organizational sustainability. Second, by emphasizing the risks related to knowledge, this study contributes to emerging efforts highlighting the particular role of knowledge for sustained organizational development. Third, by linking KRM and organizational sustainability, this paper contributes empirically to building knowledge in this very recent field of study. This understanding is also useful for future development in the field of KM as a whole.
Originality/value
The paper lays the ground for both a deeper and more nuanced understanding of knowledge risks in organizations in general and regarding sustainability in particular. As such, the paper offers new food for thought for researchers dealing with the topics of knowledge risks, knowledge management and organizational risk management in general.
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Susanne Wisshak and Sabine Hochholdinger
This study aims to investigate whether soft-skills trainers and hard-skills trainers have different perspectives regarding their required instructional knowledge and skills.
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to investigate whether soft-skills trainers and hard-skills trainers have different perspectives regarding their required instructional knowledge and skills.
Design/methodology/approach
An online questionnaire was completed by 129 soft-skills trainers and 61 hard-skills trainers. The authors used 14 items covering relevant instructional knowledge and skills based on the training literature.
Findings
An exploratory factor analysis identified the following two factors: managing interactions and instructional activities. A multivariate analysis of variance showed significant differences in the assessments of managing interactions (p = 0.00) and instructional activities (p = 0.01) between soft- and hard-skills trainers. The differences in managing interactions were larger than those in instructional activities. The soft-skills trainers showed higher agreement with all items. Most individual items had medium effect sizes. The differing perspectives of soft- and hard-skills trainers are not an effect of different educational backgrounds.
Research limitations/implications
These findings suggest that differences exist in the required instructional knowledge and skills depending on whether trainers teach soft or hard skills. Further research should consider the training content.
Practical implications
Practitioners can ensure that soft-skills trainers meet the respective requirements.
Originality/value
This study is the first to investigate the differences in soft- and hard-skills trainers’ perceptions of instructional requirements.