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A survey of small businesses in Kentucky was conducted in the area of total quality management. The objective of the research was to determine the level of effort of small manufacturing firms in quality management and the degree to which their managers are currently guided by the TQM model as opposed to the economic conformance model. Preliminary results indicate the degree of penetration of the TQM philosophy and concepts among managers in small manufacturing firms. Also studied were the important elements in the operation and management of these firms that promote or discourage the successful implementation of TQM.

From the perspective of lecturers in English and Humanities, this paper addresses the current crisis of managerialism in higher education, grounding the discussion in the realities of smaller institutions in Northern Ireland. It begins with the premise that the language of auditing, bureaucracy and accountability has achieved hegemony within such institutions and within the broader academic community. In Field Day's notion of a “fifth province”, we find a particularly useful model for developing the case that the space sought is most likely extra‐mural with respect to institutions, but critically engaged with those institutions at the same time. We then ask what intellectual and educational role the activity of such a “Field Day” should play with respect to public discourse and to the role of the public intellectual.

THE joint publication, by the Institute and Society of County Treasurers, of Public Library Statistics for 1963–4 provides material of considerable topical interest at this time. The Public Libraries and Museums Act 1964 came into force on 1 April 1965 and only a day or so before this date the Department of Education and Science issued Circular 4–1965, which, in addition to giving a general description of the provisions of the Act, includes an appendix drawing attention to the report of the Ministry of Education published in 1962 (“Standards of Public Library Service in England and Wales”) which, the Circular says, “gives guidance on the factors to be taken into account in considering the adequacy of the service”.

This paper aims to highlight recent resources on information literacy (IL) and library instruction, providing an introductory overview and a selected annotated bibliography of publications covering all library types.

This paper introduces and annotates English-language periodical articles, monographs, dissertations and other materials on library instruction and IL published in 2015.

This paper provides information about each source, describes the characteristics of current scholarship and highlights sources that contain either unique or significant scholarly contributions.

The information may be used by librarians and interested parties as a quick reference to literature on library instruction and IL.

The aim of this exploratory, mixed methods study was to develop and test a tool that identifies foundational dimensions of work integration social enterprises (WISEs) for use in empirical studies and enterprise self-assessment. Construction of the initial prototype was based upon a review of the literature and prior qualitative research by the authors.

A 20-item question pool with a four-point response scale was constructed to explore WISE business and employment practices and strategies for worker growth and development. Three sequential field tests were conducted with the prototype – the first with 5 Canadian WISEs, the second with 14 WISEs in the UK and the third with 6 Canadian WISEs involved in an outcome study in the mental health sector. Each field test included completion of the questionnaire by persons with managerial responsibility within the WISE and evaluative feedback captured through questions on the applicability and interpretability of the items.

Testing of the prototype instrument revealed the inherent diversity in the field and the difficulty in creating questions that both embrace that diversity and produce unidimensional variables definable along a spectrum. A number of challenges with question structure were identified and have been modified throughout the iterative testing process.

This study identified central domains for inclusion in a multi-dimensional WISE assessment tool. Further testing will help further refine scaling and establish psychometric properties.

This measure will provide a descriptive profile of WISEs across sectors and identify WISE core dimensions for research and organizational development.

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has led to a global digitalization of organizational activities: the pandemic forced people and organizations to profoundly review values, purposes and norms. However, the research on how digital technologies impact human relationships and interactions at work results fragmented. Still, the importance of understanding which behaviors and norms enhance social interactions and organizational performances in digital environments remains critical, especially after COVID-19 advent. Therefore, this study explores how human relationships change in a wholly digital environment and what to expect for the new normal.

The study first explores the research gap through a systematic literature review to clearly understand what emerged so far. Second, through semi-structured interviews and a focus group, an empirical analysis was conducted.

Findings suggest that both work and emotional dimensions are crucial to nurturing human relationships in a digital environment. More precisely, the study unveils the need for innovative leaders to review their approaches to communication and the work experience and consider the emotional dimension in terms of community purpose and individual well-being, while identifying rituals as an overlapping tool. Finally, the authors propose a parallelism between these results and the agile revolution to inspire leaders to rethink their leadership and behaviors getting closer to the agile approach, which may represent a valuable way to rethink human relations in our professional environment.

The paper sheds light on an ongoing phenomenon that touches the lives of each organizational actor. The two-step structure hopes to provide both a structured base of the knowledge developed to date, proposing a systematic view of what has been studied since the outbreak of the pandemic to date and to provide insights for future developments.

The purpose of this paper is to investigate if religious food laws can provide answers to current issues with the food systems.

This paper provides a discussion of the dietary and food system principles from a Judaism, Christianity and Islamic perspective for the design of a more sustainable and healthy food system.

The commercialisation of the natural resources, industrial food production approach and consumerism is endangering the food security, health and environment. Current industry practices are not sustainable and do not comply with Jewish, Christian and Islamic scriptures. Kosher, Christian and halal food laws share common principles in prohibition of certain animals (like pig), prohibition of blood, role of fasting and animal welfare. As a change in the diet is the solution, there is a key role for the food industry to comply and for religious leaders to radically reduce meat consumption and food waste of its followers.

This viewpoint paper shows that religious food laws provide answers to current problems with the industrialised food production approach and consumerism.

New food industry directives should convert meat-based to plant-based ingredients and additives; replace porcine by bovine sources; and emphasise on animal welfare to better serve the Jewish, Christian and Muslim consumer. Religious logos (kosher and halal) should incorporate nutrient profiling through a traffic light system to promote healthy food choice.

Religious food laws are important for a big part of the world population (Jews, Christians and Muslims), which share many common principles. This study contributes to a better understanding of the commonalities and differences in these religious food laws.

The Inspiring Change Manchester (ICM) programme has aimed to improve outcomes, including employability, for people experiencing multiple disadvantage in Manchester. This paper aims to compare learning from the ICM partnership with wider literature to demonstrate what helps people with experience of multiple disadvantage to achieve training, volunteering or work outcomes and what may prevent this.

Semi-structured interviews with people with experience of multiple disadvantage and employers in Manchester working with this group were thematically analysed, and the findings were compared to wider literature, previous ICM research and programme data. The primary research took a peer research approach. Peer researchers co-designed the topic guides, co-facilitated interviews where possible and helped to identify key themes.

Entering and succeeding in training, volunteering and/ or paid work has many positive impacts for people experiencing multiple disadvantage. Ongoing and better awareness raising will be key for more individuals to benefit from such pathways, alongside accessible recruitment processes. Continuous personal and professional development opportunities are important to positive experiences, as is organisational culture. Short-term contracts arose as an issue in the research, more needs to be done to support people with experience of multiple disadvantage into secure work.

Although there is a range of literature on good practice and challenges to enable people to engage in training or employment, this often focuses on a particular characteristic or need, rather than experiences of people facing a combination of interrelated needs. This paper also includes first-person lived experience voice, rather than this perspective being interpreted through a particular lens.

The primary purpose of this paper is to examine the role of perceived trust, information quality, positive word of mouth and societal norms toward real estate purchase intention. The study also examines how pro-environmental self-identity mediates the relationship between positive word of mouth and real estate purchase intent, as well as between societal norms and real estate purchase intention. This research aims to delve into these intricate dynamics through a multidimensional lens.

The research employs existing scholarly works and measurable variables evaluated through a five-point Likert scale, hypothesis testing and mediation analysis to examine the proposed framework. A structured survey comprising six sections was administered, yielding 385 valid responses. The data analysis process included the use of confirmatory factor analysis and structural equation modelling techniques.

The analysis indicates that pro-environmental self-identity has the most significant influence on real estate purchase intention, closely followed by positive word of mouth. Incorporating eco-friendly themes in marketing campaigns significantly boosts purchase intentions. However, perceived trust does not significantly impact purchase intentions. Other factors, such as information quality and societal norms, also play significant roles, underscoring the importance of understanding the complex dynamics shaping consumer decisions in the real estate market.

This research exclusively targets responses from young consumers in specific regions of India. Future studies should aim for a more extensive geographic scope, encompassing a diverse global population for a broader understanding of the subject.

Based on previous literature, this study is the first to identify the elements influencing the inclination to buy environmentally friendly real estate through social commerce.