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Growing evidence suggests regional economic factors impact on individual outcomes, such as life expectancy and well-being. The purpose of this paper is to investigate the impact that player-specific and regional differences have on the number of senior international appearances football players accumulate over the course of their careers, for six UEFA member countries, from 1993 to 2014.

The research employs a Poisson regression model to analyse the impact of individual and regional factors on the number of senior international caps a footballer receives over the course of their career.

The results indicate that both individual and regional variables can explain the number of caps a player receives over the course of their career. The authors find that an individual’s career length positively influences the number of international caps accrued. Players born in wealthier and more populous regions accumulate a greater number of international appearances. Distance from the capital has no effect, however, the number of youth academies in the player’s region of birth has a significant positive effect.

The analysis is limited to regional variations within economically developed states. It would be interesting to test whether the correlation between relative regional development and international success exists in less developed countries. The authors only address mens international football in this study and cannot comment on the generality of the findings across genders or sports.

The results can provide insights for local football authorities and policy makers concerned with regional characteristics and those interested in the development of elite talent.

This is the first study to analyse a pan-European data set, using an increasingly adopted econometric method to understanding regional economic development – Poisson modelling.

Landslides are common occurrences in the US West. Some of these events cause injury and even death to visitors to these landscapes. Investigates changes in visitor perceptions of the likelihood and location of landslide events in Glacier National Park, Montana, in the wake of a series of hazardous debris flow occurrences. The initial surveying was completed at the Logan Pass Visitor Center on 17 July 1998 using a specially created survey. On 28 July 1998, a series of debris flows crossed Going‐to‐the‐Sun Road and trapped several cars between flow deposits. The road was blocked for more than 24 hours as debris was cleared. In an attempt to examine perception differences after the slide event visitors were resurveyed at the same location on 30 July 1998. Results from statistical analyses and maps created from the survey revealed no significant changes in public perception of danger to self from landslides, nor in the perceived locations of where landslides may occur.

It is still not completely understood what speeds up or slows down the decision‐making process. The duration of decision making may range from a month to four years, but usually takes about 12 months. Most processes run into disruptions and interruptions, which lengthen the time taken. Measuring decision making is difficult since it is virtually impossible to define the beginning and end of the process. The evidence for this comes from an extensive study of how top managers and administrators in the public and private sectors move towards a conclusion. A database was established of 150 cases of strategic decision making obtained by interviewing. Six cases were traced back by intensive case study methods. Short, medium and long decision processes are examined using case examples. One of the curious features of decision making is what happens before the deliberation process starts. Impediments and delays are discussed and whether committees slow the process.

Using local historical data, the purpose of this paper is to compile a chronology of high‐magnitude snow avalanches to illustrate the effectiveness of information published in newspapers in assisting the management of natural hazards.

Major transportation lines parallel the southern boundary of Glacier National Park, Montana, USA, an area where snow avalanches occur frequently and occasionally block transportation corridors. A 1986 study presented an avalanche chronology for the study area based on information collected from the 1946 to 1982 issues of a local weekly newspaper. We extend that existing data set here by using the same newspaper, recording avalanche occurrences and impacts reported in the newspaper from 1982 to 2005.

The newly updated chronology is presented, with trends and temporal patterns for the entire 1946‐2005 data set analyzed. A decrease in reported avalanches, from the 1960s onward, is noted. Additionally, reported avalanches shifted from occurring most frequently in February to January in the last 20 years.

The results of this research illustrate the use of newspaper reports as an inexpensive, but effective, way to compile a chronology of high‐magnitude snow avalanches. This research method tends to underreport smaller magnitude events that do not affect the transportation linkages.

Snow avalanche managers could use this method to compile a chronology of events when other, more traditional techniques, are not available or too expensive.

This paper uses a rarely utilized but inexpensive and widely available data source to construct a 59‐year avalanche chronology in an area constantly threatened by snow avalanches.

The management of children′s literature is a search for value and suitability. Effective policies in library and educational work are based firmly on knowledge of materials, and on the bibliographical and critical frame within which the materials appear and might best be selected. Boundaries, like those between quality and popular books, and between children′s and adult materials, present important challenges for selection, and implicit in this process are professional acumen and judgement. Yet also there are attitudes and systems of values, which can powerfully influence selection on grounds of morality and good taste. To guard against undue subjectivity, the knowledge frame should acknowledge the relevance of social and experiential context for all reading materials, how readers think as well as how they read, and what explicit and implicit agendas the authors have. The good professional takes all these factors on board.

The paper sets out to identify the challenges and potential responses Ireland has related to the potential loss of jobs due to offshoring in a key Irish employment sector. The following research question is addressed. How can Irish call centers effectively respond to offshore competition?

This case study is a based on a field research project including interview and survey data. The project was supported by The Irish Development Agency (IDA) to obtain data about the workers, management and demographic trends of the Irish call center sector. A review of literature available on the subject and observations made during the data gathering phase of a field research project run during the summer of 2004.

Shows that the global market for offshoring is growing at an accelerated rate due to economic drivers, cultural perceptions and expectations of corporate managers, SMEs, and IT systems integrators. Illustrates how Ireland can turn the problems associated with offshoring into strategic advantage.

The paper proposes responses to the threat of lost jobs in Ireland due to the forces of globalization may offer useful insights for other countries facing similar economic threats.

Very few papers have been published related to Irish job migration. The value is the paper studies a significant Irish industry sector in terms of employment and very real issues related to the globalization of jobs via offshoring. This is important to the IDA and to economic development practitioners in other countries facing the loss of jobs to globalization and offshoring.

This paper seeks to build on a previous article published in International Journal of Social Economics Vol. 33 No. 10 titled, “A case study in the globalization of jobs in Ireland” by objectively assessing many socioeconomic implications of the call center industry in Ireland. The paper first builds a foundation of understanding on what comprises the call center sector and highlights the fact that it is a large, complex and stratified business. It investigates the socioeconomic impact of this industry on Ireland by analyzing how Irish call center jobs pay compared with other Irish industry sectors and the impact of immigration on salary levels. The paper also assesses the evolution of the business model of Irish call centers and Ireland's international recruiting patterns as they impact the Irish labor pool. Finally, it seeks to explore in depth the nature of call center sociopolitical activity and influence.

This general review is based on a field research project including survey data obtained by a team from the University of Southern Mississippi and supported by The Irish Development Agency (IDA). The survey collected data about the workers, management and demographic trends of the Irish call/contact center sector. This information is enhanced by review of literature and available secondary data.

This paper builds a foundational understanding for the reader of the true nature of the call center business within Ireland and in global terms. It offers a balanced assessment to the common perception that call centers are white‐collar sweatshops and articulates the true nature of this stratified and evolving business sector. The paper then explores the socioeconomic impact of the evolution of this key employment sector in Ireland.

It builds on the case study paper featured in Vol. 33 No. 10 of the International Journal of Social Economics by investigating in greater detail the social and economic impact of this research on Irish workers. The value is that the paper studies a significant Irish industry sector in terms of social effects brought on by change due to advances in technology and the globalization of jobs. This is important to economic development groups such as IDA Ireland and development agencies in other countries facing similar situations.

The purpose of this paper is to explore the relationship between being a “great place to work” (GPTW) and firm performance. While lists such as the “Fortune 100 best places to work” were initially regarded solely as publicity vehicles for ranked firms, researchers have since tried to untangle the relationship between being a GPTW and firm performance, often by focussing on HRM systems and practices. In contrast, the study focusses on the valuable, rare, costly to imitate, and organization-exploitability aspects of being a trustworthy employer, place where workers take pride in their work and enjoy the people with whom they work.

This study uses four distinct samples of firms drawn from Fortune’s best companies to work for, Glassdoor.com’s Employees’ Choice Awards, Careerbliss.com’s 50 Happiest Companies in America, and Achievers.com’s 50 Most Engaged Workplaces Awards databases in a longitudinal design to compare performance attributes of listed firms to their respective industry peer groups.

Being a GPTW is associated with greater productivity, growth potential, and higher operating profits.

Some GPTW firms are privately held and were excluded from analysis.

Rather than focussing on individual HRM practices and techniques, employers may realize greater performance improvements by focussing on building a reputation as a trustworthy employer and fostering an environment where employees take pride in their work and enjoy working with each other.

Other GPTW studies have focussed on HRM practices as antecedents to performance outcomes, which may not accurately reflect the attributes of the GPTW construct. This study focusses squarely on the underlying attributes of being a GPTW: employer trustworthiness, worker pride, and camaraderie and how they affect firm performance.

Central to the concerns of management and to writers of organisation theory are the considerations of strategic decision making. The Organisational Analysis Research Unit, in the Management Centre, University of Bradford, has been researching the process of strategic decision making in thirty British organisations, a sample ranging from orchestras to a police force with industrial and service organisations in between. The research was initiated in response to the apparent lack of any systematic comparative studies of decision making appearing elsewhere.

Existing earlier supplier involvement (ESI) models mostly emphasize the product development perspective with limited attention to the process development dimension. Towards this end, this paper aims at a tailored framework for semiconductor manufacturing firms by taking into account the implementation of ESI in process development as well as product development.

A number of well‐recognized propositions are examined through a case study of MIC Semiconductors Asia. Based on observations from the case study, the problems of existing frameworks are analyzed and accordingly possible solutions are explored.

The case study reveals the importance of process development in ESI implementation. It is imperative to build up on some fundamentals of the company before ESI can be carried out successfully. Also observed is that the effectiveness of a supplier selection criterion should be gauged from the performance of the suppliers. It is also found out what type of relationships with suppliers are favorable to ESI, regardless whether the length of the relationship can be translated to trust in technical capability in practice.

Examining existing ESI models through a real case study sheds light on the practical application of ESI. In particular, the semiconductor manufacturing process is emphasized in addition to the general ESI focus on product development.