On 2 September 2015, it was announced that Tom Ford would again be ‘dressing James Bond’, Daniel Craig, in Spectre (Mendes, 2015) after tailoring his suits for Quantum of Solace…
Abstract
On 2 September 2015, it was announced that Tom Ford would again be ‘dressing James Bond’, Daniel Craig, in Spectre (Mendes, 2015) after tailoring his suits for Quantum of Solace (Forster, 2008) and Skyfall (Mendes, 2012). Ford noted that ‘James Bond epitomises the Tom Ford man in his elegance, style and love of luxury. It is an honour to move forward with this iconic character’.
With the press launch of ‘Bond 25’(and now titled No Time to Die) on 25 April 2019, it is reasonable to speculate that Ford will once again be employed as James Bond’s tailor of choice, given that it is likely to be Craig’s last outing as 007. Previous actors playing the role of James Bond have all had different tailors. Sean Connery was tailored by Anthony Sinclair and George Lazenby by Dimitro ‘Dimi’ Major. Roger Moore recommended his own personal tailors Cyril Castle, Angelo Vitucci and Douglas Hayward. For Timothy Dalton, Stefano Ricci provided the suits, and Pierce Brosnan was dressed by Brioni. Therefore, this chapter will analyse the role of tailoring within the James Bond films, and how this in turn contributes to the look and character of this film franchise more generally. It aims to understand how different tailors have contributed to the masculinity of Bond: an agent dressed to thrill as well as to kill.
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The study was designed to generate and test a model of employee cynicism toward organizational change from the communication perspective in a higher education institution.
Abstract
Purpose
The study was designed to generate and test a model of employee cynicism toward organizational change from the communication perspective in a higher education institution.
Design/methodology/approach
Using the theoretical framework of social information processing (SIP), the study investigated the communication processes in the social context, which contributed to employee cynicism toward organizational change in the higher education setting. Path analysis was used to test the overall model fit.
Findings
The findings suggest that the three variables, perceived quality of information, cynicism of colleagues, and trust in the administration, predict change‐specific cynicism, which, in turn, lead to intention to resist change.
Research limitations/implications
As an initial attempt to explain employee cynicism toward organizational change in higher education settings, this model inevitably has loose ends. Further research is needed to expand the model from a communication perspective.
Practical implications
The research provided administrators with strategies and advices to cope with employee cynicism during organizational change.
Originality/value
This is the first known study to examine the concept of change‐specific cynicism within the theoretical framework of SIP. It points to a new direction which warrants the attention of communication scholars.
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Tom Daniels, Iestyn Williams, Suzanne Robinson and Katie Spence
The aims of this paper are to explore the experiences of budget holders within the English National Health Service (NHS), in their attempts to implement programmes of…
Abstract
Purpose
The aims of this paper are to explore the experiences of budget holders within the English National Health Service (NHS), in their attempts to implement programmes of disinvestment, and to consider factors which influence the success (or otherwise) of this activity.
Design/methodology/approach
Between 24 January and 15 March 2011 semi-structured, telephone interviews were conducted with representatives of 12 Primary Care Trusts in England. Interviews focussed on: understanding of the term “disinvestment”; current activities, and perceived determinants of successful disinvestment decision making and implementation. Data were organised into themes according to standard qualitative data coding practices.
Findings
Findings indicate that experiences of disinvestment are varied and that organisations are currently adopting a range of approaches. There are a number of apparently influential determinants of disinvestment which relate to both health system features and organisational characteristics. According to the experiences of the interviewees, many of the easier disinvestment options have now been taken and more ambitious plans, which require wider engagement and more thorough project management, will be required in the future.
Research limitations/implications
Findings from the research suggest that issues around understanding and usage of disinvestment terminology should be addressed and that a more in-depth and ethnographic research agenda will be of most value in moving forward both the theory and practice of disinvestment.
Originality/value
This research suggests that, in the English NHS at least, there is a disjuncture between common usage of the term “disinvestment” and the way that it has previously been understood by the wider research community. In addition to this, the research also highlights a broader range of potential determinants of disinvestment than are considered in the extant literature.
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This paper aims to show that India is decoupling its international investment law obligations from its international trade law obligations. This decoupling goes beyond the split…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to show that India is decoupling its international investment law obligations from its international trade law obligations. This decoupling goes beyond the split between investment protection rules and trade agreements. If investment protection rules are missing from the trade agreement, it is a case of partial decoupling. If India does not legalize its investment relations with a country with whom it has signed a free trade agreement (FTA), either within or outside the trade agreement, it becomes a case of complete decoupling.
Design/methodology/approach
This paper follows doctrinal methodology. It compares India’s past FTA practice with the new one to show the dissimilarity between India’s FTA 1.0 and 2.0.
Findings
India’s new FTAs differ from the FTAs signed in the 2000s. Unlike the previous FTAs, the new ones do not contain investment protection rules. India is indulging in decoupling because it wants to de-legalize its international investment relations to exercise greater control over foreign investment. The paper concludes by observing that as India’s fundamental reason for signing FTAs is to be part of global value chains, it should consider including investment protection rules within its trade agreements.
Originality/value
No research yet compares India’s past FTAs with the new ones to show that investment protection is no longer part of India’s trade agreement practice.
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AMR A G Hassanein and Bahaee N L Khalil
The main objective of this study is to initiate general building cost indicators to serve as cost indicators for the construction industry in Egypt. The two models (Egypt 1 and…
Abstract
The main objective of this study is to initiate general building cost indicators to serve as cost indicators for the construction industry in Egypt. The two models (Egypt 1 and Egypt 2 Indices) developed for building the indices in this paper have been derived based on the “Engineering News Record” (ENR) Indices model with modifications to better suit the Egyptian market. Egypt 1 Indices is comprised of three indices which serve as a general cost indicator for the construction industry price movement in Egypt. Egypt 2 Indices is comprised of two indices which serve as a construction cost indicator for the reinforced concrete structures price movement in Egypt. The period analyzed in this research is 11 years (1988 through to 1998). The validation of index numbers produced showed that each index does indeed represent the respective type of building for which it was computed. Further, the analysis of Egypt Indices compared to the ENR Indices revealed that both indices exhibited trends that are generally similar from the year 1992 up to 1998.
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Hans W. Klar, Kristin Shawn Huggins, Frederick C. Buskey, Julie K. Desmangles and Robin J. Phelps-Ward
The ever-increasing pressure for school improvement has led to a related increase in research-practice partnerships (RPPs) that address problems of practice. Yet, little research…
Abstract
Purpose
The ever-increasing pressure for school improvement has led to a related increase in research-practice partnerships (RPPs) that address problems of practice. Yet, little research has centered on how the myriad challenges to such partnerships can be overcome, such as bridging the cultural divide between universities and their school-based partners. Thus, the purpose of this paper is to examine how social capital was developed among the members of a steering committee in a RPP between a university and a 12-district consortium of predominantly rural, high-poverty school districts to develop and implement a professional development initiative for rural school leaders.
Design/methodology/approach
Data for this phenomenological single case study were collected over a one-year period through participant observations, document analysis and semi-structured interviews with ten steering committee members. Data were inductively and deductively coded through multiple rounds of analysis, which drew on the structural and cognitive elements of social capital (Uphoff, 2000). Findings were triangulated and member checked for trustworthiness.
Findings
The analysis of the data revealed three key ways in which social capital was developed among members of the steering committee to overcome the cultural challenges of RPPs to develop and implement a professional development initiative for rural school leaders: providing an open but focused structure, ensuring inclusive and respectful discussion and negotiating roles and ideas.
Originality/value
The findings provide a fine-grained illustration of how intentional efforts to develop social capital among members in a co-design team can assist in bridging the cultural boundaries often encountered in RPPs.
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Christopher Cain, Daniel Huerta, Norman Maynard and Bennie Waller
This paper aims to investigate the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic market shock on house pricing, time-on-market (TOM) and probability-of-sale functions using local multiple…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to investigate the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic market shock on house pricing, time-on-market (TOM) and probability-of-sale functions using local multiple listing service data from Richmond, Virginia, USA.
Design/methodology/approach
The empirical analyses use a two-stage residual inclusion model to simultaneously address endogeneity and nonlinearity in modeling sales price and TOM, and a Heckman two-stage procedure to account for sample selection bias in estimating the probability-of-sale.
Findings
The pandemic shock not only directly impacted average home prices, TOM and probability-of-sale, but it also caused the coefficients of some of the factors that influence these metrics to change while others were stable to the exogenous shock of the pandemic. The authors find that coefficients in the hedonic pricing, TOM and probability-of-sale models did not shift instantaneously; instead, the impact evolved over several months at the beginning of the pandemic until stabilization.
Originality/value
The results should be of interest to buyers and sellers of residential properties, agents specializing in residential properties and researchers looking to better capture the impact of exogenous events on housing prices and buyer preferences.
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Jeffrey Gauthier, Jeffrey A. Kappen and Justin Zuopeng Zhang
This paper aims to consider the legitimacy challenges faced by hybrid organizations, examining the narrative strategies hybrids use in responding to these challenges and offering…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to consider the legitimacy challenges faced by hybrid organizations, examining the narrative strategies hybrids use in responding to these challenges and offering a framework for managers to consider in their choice of narratives.
Design/methodology/approach
A narrative analysis of texts addressing the legitimacy of the business models used by four hybrid organizations is conducted.
Findings
The results of the analysis suggest that the nature of conflicting stakeholder demands – centered on goals or means – is an integral factor influencing hybrids’ choice of narrative strategies to emphasize distinctiveness or conformity.
Research limitations/implications
This paper adds to extant research examining the challenges hybrid organizations face and emphasizes that the choice of narrative strategies is an important factor hybrids must consider when managing legitimacy. Generalizability is a notable limitation of the case approach; the authors suggest areas for future research to address this limitation.
Practical implications
The research offers a practical framework for hybrids’ leaders, as they manage legitimacy, choosing to emphasize distinctiveness or conformity in the face of conflicts regarding goals or means.
Originality/value
By studying the legitimacy challenges faced by hybrid organizations, this study can form a more complete view of legitimation, encompassing different types of enterprises offering distinct value propositions.