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A one‐dimensional finite difference scheme adapted to high order moment equation models arising in the approximate description of semiconducting submicron structures is presented. The new scheme is a natural extension of the Scharfetter‐Gummel scheme used in drift‐diffusion models. Through local analytic solutions an accurate representation of exponentially varying solution components is realised.

The chapter investigates the relationship between environmental management practices (EMPs) and financial performance (FP).

The study is based on a sample of 187 SMEs and uses data on six EMPs (energy, water, waste, material, emissions, and biodiversity) collected through a self-administered questionnaire from owner-managers of SMEs. Ordinary least squares regression is employed to model the hypothesized paths.

The results suggest a positive and significant relationship between EMPs (energy, water, and material) and FP. There is also a significant positive relationship between an aggregate EMP measure and FP. However, other EMPs (waste, emissions, and biodiversity) are not significantly associated with FP. Overall, these results provide empirical support to the mostly normative suggestion that the conflicting results on the environmental management and financial performance relationship are partly due to the EMP measure used.

The study is based on cross-sectional data, and therefore, it is impossible to determine any changes over time. Longitudinal studies could help confirm the relationship between EMP and FP over a longer period. From a policy perspective, this results mean that the Ghanaian EPA must monitor more closely for violations of laws and regulations relating to waste, emissions, and biodiversity since SMEs do not have incentives to manage these impacts without commensurate return.

The study contributes by documenting evidence of the relationship between multiple measures of EMP and FP. This unlike most existing studies has enabled us to report evidence of how each EMP measure affects FP differently and where win–win opportunities are for SMEs. Thus, the win–win opportunities are associated with some EMP measures but not all.

Health is distributed unequally by occupation. Workers on a lower rung of the occupational ladder report worse health, have a higher probability of disability and die earlier than workers higher up the occupational hierarchy. Using a theoretical framework that unveils some of the potential mechanisms underlying these disparities, three core insights emerge: (i) there is selection into occupation on the basis of initial wealth, education and health, (ii) there will be behavioural responses to adverse working conditions, which can have compensating or reinforcing effects on health and (iii) workplace conditions increase health inequalities if workers with initially low socio-economic status choose harmful occupations and don’t offset detrimental health effects. We provide empirical illustrations of these insights using data for the Netherlands and assess the evidence available in the economics literature.

For the purpose of decision-making in real estate portfolio management, alternatives are to be collected, assessed and prioritized. Due to the complexity of real estate markets, investment products and management processes, the respective decision situations are subject to several parameters. Multi-criteria models must be used to exactly evaluate and prioritize alternatives. Such models can be found in other economic and social areas but must be transferred or re-developed for the purposes of real estate management. The paper aims to discuss these issues.

The paper includes the transfer of the basic outranking methodology, the PROMETHEE (Preference Ranking Organization METHod für Enrichment Evaluations) method in particular, to real estate issues. Methods used outside the real estate industry are analyzed, selected and adapted by using real estate parameters (transfer approach).

Structured multi-criteria processes such as PROMETHEE are suitable for the solution of complex real estate selection decisions. The methodology with regard to the respective issues is much more consistent and efficient. PROMETHEE avoids the restriction of criteria in mathematical calculations and the restriction of quality in simple scorings.

The target system and decision criteria of investors were used exemplarily. The individual parameters and criteria can lead to new model solutions.

Multi-criteria models such as PROMETHEE stringently and transparently solve complex decision problems and alternative evaluations in real estate portfolio management. They can be developed for strategic, tactical and operative decision situations. The decision quality and verification for compliance requirements improve.

Multi-criteria models such as PROMETHEE can also be developed for social, societal and political decision situations.

First adaption of the outranking procedure PROMETHEE to a real estate decision situation in market analysis and portfolio management.

This paper examines an employee's recovery process in the remote-working context. It explores which elements of remote work are energy-consuming for employees and what action they can take to instigate the essential recovery strategy of psychological detachment.

The study adopts a qualitative research approach based on 89 semi-structured interviews with employees working from home with six large corporations from multiple industries. The data were interpreted using thematic analysis.

The study identifies a main theme – the energy-consuming elements of remote work – and three sub-themes: extended working hours, intensive working and reduced social support. Each theme incorporates elements controlled by individuals (internal) and those beyond their control (external). Second, the authors identified strategies that helped individuals to detach from work, and devised four sub-themes, the authors labeled cognitive controlling, physical disconnection from work, time-bound routines and non-work activities.

This is the first study to focus on recovery as a process in the context of remote working, and it contributes to the knowledge of psychological detachment and strategies for recovery and to the literature on contemporary remote working.

This paper aims to study turbulent dispersion of a passive plume emitting from a single elevated line source of different elevations in a plane channel flow by using direct numerical simulation (DNS).

The investigation was conducted in both physical and spectral spaces, which includes an analysis of statistical moments and pre-multiplied spectra of the velocity and concentration fields. The pre-multiplied power spectra of the velocity and concentration fields are compared to identify the transition of the plume development from the turbulent convective stage to the turbulent diffusive stage.

It is observed that due to the presence of wall shear, the mean plume drifts toward the wall for the near-wall source release case. It is also observed that streamwise development of the plume is sensitive to both the source elevation and the downstream distance from the source. For the line source placed near the center of the channel, the plume development is dominated by the bulk meandering effects. However, for the plume emitting from the near-wall line source, it hits the ground soon after its release and becomes dominated by the wall shear. As the downstream distance from the line source increases, the streamwise development of the plume released from the near-wall line source transitions from a turbulent convective stage to a turbulent diffusive stage.

This paper represents an original DNS study of turbulent mixing and dispersion of a passive plume emitting from a line source of different elevations in a wall-bounded flow. This paper proposes a practical method to identify the transition of the plume development from the turbulent convective to the turbulent diffusive stages.

This paper focuses on not‐for‐profit (NFP) general management competencies and examines the predominant desired knowledge skills and abilities as a key component of general management responsiveness capability in empirically validated strategic success hypothesis. The strategic success hypothesis postulates that the performance of an organization will be optimized when the strategic aggressiveness and the responsiveness capability of general management is aligned with the respective environment.

The research utilizes a content analysis approach whereby the contents of job postings for the top positions in NFP organizations from different sources were analyzed and summarized. The analysis involved the collection of a comprehensive list of the top‐level general management position or job advertisements posted in both print and electronic media. Some of the sources include the Non‐Profit Times, job postings by agencies, and electronic job posting boards.

One of the key findings was that the NFP sector utilizes the top‐level general management to address the fiscal management dynamics. Fundraising experiences and skills are emphasized and were listed as the key responsibility of the top‐level general management. There was also some emphasis on not‐for‐profit organization management skills and experiences along with communication, governance, interpersonal skills, budgets and fiscal management. The other finding was that in addition to the above sector related desired competencies, generic experience, skills and position responsibilities were emphasized.

The limitations of this study include: Using job postings as a proxy for actual preferences for certain competencies has certain disadvantages. For instance, the quality of job postings in terms of information included might be a reflection of the writing skills and depositions of the drafters. The size and the life cycle stage of the organization might impact the need for certain competencies. For example, a small start‐up agency might not be concerned with governance or ethics issues like a huge organization such as the United Way. The nature of the NFP's activity may also influence the type of competencies sought.

The most important feature of any organization is the quality of its human resources. The NFP sector is currently faced with many challenges which include fiscal, technological, human resources, governance and overall effectiveness. While leadership is recognized as a powerful resource in determining the direction and the future of the organization, leadership alone is not sufficient to address all the problems facing the sector. Firms do need effective managers, good strategic management systems, motivated staff, and adequate financial resources to drive success.

The study found that formal educational requirements were emphasized with over 77 percent of the job postings listing bachelor degree and above as criteria for selection. This indicates that there is need to develop curriculum at the higher education level aimed at addressing the specific needs of the NFP sector. About 23 percent of the job postings did not specifically state formal education as criteria for selection; it might have been an oversight because it is unlikely an organization would hire a CEO with no reasonable formal education.

The purpose of this paper is to explore the relationship between quality management (QM) and performance, specifically how the infrastructure and core QM practices affect quality and business performance, in Indian manufacturing organizations.

In this study, the empirical data were drawn from 262 manufacturing organizations in India. The research model was tested using the structural equation modeling technique.

The findings of the empirical study revealed that infrastructure QM practices have a positive effect on core QM practices and indirectly on quality performance, whereas, core QM practices have a positive effect on quality performance. Also, quality performance has a positive effect on business performance.

This study considered QM from two dimensions (infrastructure and core quality practices), the study further contributes to the understanding of the different roles played by diverse QM dimensions in determining business performance in terms of increased return on investment, shareholder and stakeholder value.

The study showed that infrastructure quality practices support the application of core quality practices. Therefore, managers must develop and maintain their organization’s quality system and sufficient resources need to be allocated to both types of practices in order to achieve the superior business performance.

This study considers both total quality management and Six Sigma practices for defining a new set of infrastructure and core QM practices in Indian manufacturing organizations.

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the relationship between transformational and transactional leadership, and labour flexibility within small to medium‐sized enterprises (SMEs). Using a sample comprising 755 employees, rating 121 supervisors within 50 Dutch small and medium‐sized companies, the authors examined the relationship between transformational and transactional leadership on the one hand, and temporal and functional flexibility on the other. Further, to test whether the expected associations could be perceived as a social exchange between supervisor and employees, this study investigated the mediating role of affective organisational commitment.

Because data were nested, the authors used multilevel analysis for hypothesis testing.

Both dimensions of transformational leadership, visionary leadership and coaching, were positively related to temporal flexibility; also two dimensions of transactional leadership, contingent reward and active management by exception, were also positively associated with temporal flexibility. All of these associations were mediated by affective organisational commitment, indicating social exchange relationships. As opposed to expectations, passive management by exception, representing poor transactional leadership, was positively related to temporal and functional flexibility. Affective commitment did not mediate these relationships.

SMEs are therefore advised to improve visionary leadership, coaching skills, contingent reward, and active management by exception.

The paper shows that, remarkably, labour flexibility can be increased by both effective and poor leadership. On the one hand, effective leadership seems to promote temporal flexibility by creating employees’ commitment to the organisation. Poor leadership, on the other hand, does not call for people's affective commitment and thus seems to be forcing employees into demonstrating flexible behaviours, as a way of compensating for bad management.