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To examine how public servants are depicted in film, I discuss the changes over time of Batmanʼs Commissioner Gordon, particularly his character arc in the contemporary The Dark Knight trilogy. An important aspect of Gordonʼs evolution is in contrast to the filmsʼ other prominent public servant, District Attorney Harvey Dent. The Gordon-Dent contrast illustrates aspects of the Friedrich-Finer debate over administrative discretion, a classic debate in public administration. The trilogyʼs verdict on public service is mixed: the flawed, rule-bending, expedient public servant survives while the fabricated hero is a sham. Commissioner Gordon is far more interesting than he had been for decades, but is he just an expedient bureaucrat ultimately pursuing self preservation? In contrast, the (pre-villain) Harvey Dent, who refuses to compromise his principles, is ultimately undone by his absolutism. For the complexity of his character and its centrality to the plot, I judge the depiction of Commissioner Gordon-warts and all-to be better than simplistic caricatures of bureaucrats and promising for future public servants in film.

“What went wrong?” This was the question no doubt asked by the Bush campaign and the Republican Party after the 3 November 1992 presidential election.

This paper describes the process and outcomes by which an e‐learning strategy was developed for the Scottish further and higher education sectors. It summarises the context in which the Scottish Funding Councils have supported developments in Information and Communication Technology and e‐learning and identifies the main external drivers which shaped policy development. The paper presents the main conclusions of the e‐learning strategy and indicates the actions which the councils are now taking. The paper provides a useful case study of the process of strategy development at the national level and identifies key concepts which we in Scotland believe are essential components for the effective deployment of e‐learning in colleges and universities.

From what has been said in this journal regarding standards and associated regulations for jams and allied products, it appears that this is the only English‐speaking country where no standards and no regulations exist for this very important item of the food supply. We manufacture more jam than any other of these countries. We are the greatest consumers, per head of population, of jam. It is therefore a very serious disadvantage to the consumer that it should be left entirely to financially interested persons to formulate their own standards for their own advantage. It would be inexpedient in any case to allow this, but when such “standards” as those we have referred to have been adopted by a great combine, and the products made in conformity with those standards forced on the consumer, a case bad to begin with is made worse. The greater proportion of the jam and marmalade put on the market is either of poor quality or of very poor quality. The poor quality stuff may be labelled “Full Fruit Standard,” and the meaning that is to be attributed to these words is left to the purchaser to find out. We say that this legend is no recommendation, and in saying this we find our opinion to be supported by at least one important member of the combine. One of their labels is before us as we write. The words “This marmalade is guaranteed to conform to the agreed standard of the Food Manufacturers' Federation” is printed in such small type that it is by no means easy to read; it is printed at the very bottom of the label and in such a way that at first glance it appears to be merely an ornamental border. Now the object of making the marmalade is to sell it, and if in the opinion of the makers the words which we have quoted above would aid that sale they would have been conspicuously displayed and printed in large letters on the label. The label also says that the marmalade is made “from … oranges and sugar”; it does not say that it is made from oranges and sugar only. Now this label may be taken as a fair specimen of all the rest. It gives the purchaser no information about that which he is buying, and it is safe to say that not one person in ten thousand knows anything about the “standards” referred to. If the interests of the consumer were fairly balanced against the profits of the manufacturer, a label would read more or less as follows:—“This product conforms to the standard of the Food Manufacturers’ Federation.” “It consists of fresh (name) fruit or fruits and sugar only in the proportions — per cent. fruit and — per cent. sugar.” If there is nothing to fear there is nothing to conceal. Why then is such a label not used?

The five annual Design Council Molins Design Prize awards were presented in London last month, and four are to be developed and used by companies. Molins plc sponsor the scheme, the Design Council administer it, and the Institutions of Electrical Engineers and Mechanical Engineers support it. During the presentation it was stressed that R&D should properly become R, D & D — Research, Design and Development. Next year the prize money will be increased to £400 for each winning project.

The purpose of this paper is to examine the relationship of perceived transformative human resource (HR) practices and employee task performance. Drawing on evidence-based approach, the transformative HR practices intend to transform employees’ behavior to cope with organizational change. This study intends to answer how does the perceived transformative HR practices influence employees’ behavioral capability to enhance their task performance. This investigation proposes that the perceived transformative HR practices positively affect employees task performance, however, employee adaptivity mediates the relationship between them.

The authors used a random sample of 224 employees, from a large high-tech company in China, to test the hypotheses. Exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses were conducted to determine the perceived transformative HR practices in the context of a high-tech firm. The authors performed multiple linear regression analysis to examine the proposed model.

The results of this study indicate that the perceived transformative HR practices positively influence employee adaptivity and task performance. Furthermore, employee adaptivity mediates the relationship between the perceived transformative HR practices and employee task performance. Therefore, employee adaptivity illuminates and explains the underlying mechanism of how the perceived transformative HR practices lead to employee task performance.

Data collected from single firm may limit the generalizability of the findings and cross-sectional research design may raise the concern of common method bias. Future studies should test and validate the operationalization of the perceived transformative HR practices in different research contexts and with larger sample size. Organizations should design and implement transformative HR practices to cope with change. Furthermore, organizational managers should encourage and facilitate employee adaptivity to achieve better performance.

This study contributes to change management and the HR literature by identifying and operationalizing the perceived transformative HR practices as a predictor of employee adaptivity and task performance. Through the underlying mechanism of employee adaptivity between the perceived transformative HR practices and employee task performance, this study provides a new perspective to look at the HR-performance relationship in the change process.

This article describes how effective leaders become aware of what is different about them that makes them attractive to others, and learn to use these differences to their advantage in a leadership role.

Presents examples of the use of this technique, including Microsoft's Bill Gates, ICI's John Harvey‐Jones, Sony's Akio Morita, Kimberly‐Clark's Darwin E. Smith, and London mayor Ken Livingstone.

Shows that there is an almost endless list of differences that individuals might communicate, but the differences must be authentic to the individual as a leader, and must be significant, real and perceived.

Argues that, in all the examples, leaders are using personal differences that work for them appropriately in context. They convey the right message – and they are real. Ultimately, it is this sense of authentic self‐expression that makes them so convincing.

Demonstrates how John Harvey‐Jones built upon his entrepreneurial pizzazz, Bill Gates his technological “geekiness”, Darwin E. Smith his modesty, and Ken Livingstone's identification with Londoners.

In order to succeed in an action under the Equal Pay Act 1970, should the woman and the man be employed by the same employer on like work at the same time or would the woman still be covered by the Act if she were employed on like work in succession to the man? This is the question which had to be solved in Macarthys Ltd v. Smith. Unfortunately it was not. Their Lordships interpreted the relevant section in different ways and since Article 119 of the Treaty of Rome was also subject to different interpretations, the case has been referred to the European Court of Justice.

This paper aims to examine the entrepreneurial Fred Harvey Company's early public relations and publicity efforts to determine what they add to our knowledge of the development of public relations in the USA.

This historical analysis uses mainly data gleaned from an in‐depth examination of the two archival sources available: the Fred Harvey Company photographs and papers at the Heard Museum in Phoenix, AZ (at about ten linear feet, the most complete collection of Harvey materials), and the Fred Harvey Collection at the University of Arizona (photographs, correspondence, and miscellaneous records).

Although the dominant historical perspective has labeled this era the “Seedbed Years” and characterized them as “a day of business arrogance toward employee and citizen alike”, this case suggests that other models of practice were in use that developed out of differing cultural milieux. To the dominant view of public relations developing in the USA as a result of business pressures, then, should be added the perspective of organizational culture and the role it played in the development and professionalism of the field.

This one case study cannot be generalized to the whole field; however, the findings support those of a growing number of other scholars (Sullivan, Piasecki), suggesting that the dominant evolutionary paradigm of US public relations history artificially constricts our understanding of the field.

The insider's perspective gained through this study has implications for professionalism, integrated communications, and ethical practice.

This paper examines a previously unknown case in US public relations history and sheds light on early public relations and publicity methods that challenge the dominant paradigm in US scholarship. The notion of press agentry as the dominant practice is explored and challenged.