Search results

The purpose of this paper is to explore the operational implications and strategic actions involved in talent management (TM) in Scotland.

The paper is based on a literature review and focus groups comprising members of the Board of the Scottish Tourism Forum.

This paper finds that, in an industry with generally high labour turnover and rather negative public image as an employer, TM – in attracting, developing and retaining people – has significant potential to contribute to changing approaches to managing people and to improving opinions on careers in this sector.

Practical implications are that: individual businesses adopt TM approaches that best suit their business, employees and customers; industry bodies and leaders present exemplary practice in TM; business strategies including TM initiatives are actively supported by senior and operational managers in organisations; and educators develop, in liaison with the industry, toolkits for the implementation and evaluation of TM initiatives.

Any practitioner or academic interested in gaining insight into the practice and potential of TM, especially in the Scottish context, will find the paper valuable.

The industry standard for applying the identification nomenclature to Printed Circuit Boards (PCBs) is silkscreen legend printing, using white ink. This multi‐step process has minimal flexibility for applying unique legends e.g. serialization numbers to individual boards. This paper describes a new, alternative single step direct legend printing system which uses piezoelectric inkjet technology, the leading digital imaging method for a variety of industrial applications. The advantages that this, inherently clean and efficient, drop‐on‐demand, printing process brings to legend printing include increased flexibility, shorter process times, good legend definition, accurate placement, small footprint equipment and reduced labour and material usage.

The process is reviewed by which the development needs of trainers in one organisation were established. A programme of workshops and related activities are shown to have met those needs. The model of learning need in the design is set out, and the processes necessary to ensure that a programme does not concentrate too much on one part of the learning cycle are discussed.

The purpose of this paper is to report an investigation of the effect of location on refurbishment strategies to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions using the temperate and sub-tropical urban locations in Australia. This occurred within a larger research project that investigated methods for sustainable refurbishments to office buildings and their optimized timing from an investment perspective.

An office building in Melbourne was used to develop seven sets of improvements using an integrated approach to upgrade mechanical services and the building envelope. Using asset management trigger points the impact on net present value and internal rate of return were calculated, taking into account the capital expenditure required, the energy savings due to the refurbishment, as well as a possible rental increase due to the upgrade and lesser operational energy bills for the tenants. To investigate the importance of the location attribute the upgraded building’s performance was modelled in a different climate by using a Brisbane weather file.

A number of unexpected results were found, including that the same sets of improvements had similar reductions in GHG emissions in the two locations, they had similar impacts on the investment criteria and when using the National Australian Building Energy Rating System it was shown that it was easier and cheaper to get an uplift in stars in Melbourne than Brisbane.

This location-specific analysis is the result of using a more sophisticated and holistic methodology to analyse sustainable refurbishments that more closely resembles the complexity of the decision making required to make buildings more sustainable.

This paper provides a basis for property investors to make decisions about sustainable investments when location is important. This can occur when a portfolio is distributed across various climate zones.

The research project that the paper reports addresses the complexity of building attributes, possible sets of improvements to reduce GHG emissions and their investment decisions, within a life cycle view of assets. It is rare that this complexity is addressed as a whole, and rarer that locational climatic differences are examined.

Having worked in India for the last three years where I have met and talked to many Indian librarians, taken part in their discussions, and visited 100 or more libraries of all types and sizes, Frank M. Gardner's article in the Summer, 1953, issue of the LIBRARY REVIEW had a particular interest for me. The problems touched upon by Mr. Gardner are problems that I see and talk about almost every working day, and it is because of my up‐bringing in the earthy, matter‐of‐fact school of public librarianship no less than the dictates of my official capacity that I ally myself to my Indian colleague in his search for a solution to the complex problem that faces him in his fight to provide a reasonable and efficient library service for his countryman; to gain a suitable recognition for his profession and so obtain for himself adequate salary and good working conditions.

It has often been said that a great part of the strength of Aslib lies in the fact that it brings together those whose experience has been gained in many widely differing fields but who have a common interest in the means by which information may be collected and disseminated to the greatest advantage. Lists of its members have, therefore, a more than ordinary value since they present, in miniature, a cross‐section of institutions and individuals who share this special interest.

The purpose of this paper is to explore the nature of leadership learning in the entrepreneurial context, by building a dynamic learning perspective of entrepreneurship. It draws on contemporary leadership literature to appreciate entrepreneurial leadership as a social process of becoming located in particular contexts and communities.

Through qualitative phenomenological interviews with nine entrepreneurs the lived experience of learning to lead is explored. The principles of interpretative phenomenological analysis (IPA) are utilised to analyse the data and enable inductive theory‐building.

The findings illustrate situated leadership patterns and relationships unique to the entrepreneurial context. A number of significant structural and experiential factors are identified that both shape and restrict the development of leadership practice in small ventures. Specifically, the limited opportunities for leadership enactment and observation, the dominance of the business as the crucible for leadership learning, the influence of the family and the low salience of leadership are highlighted.

In appreciating the leadership learning task that nascent entrepreneurs are faced with it is vital that further research delves deeper into the varying levels of “leadership preparedness” brought to new venture creation. From a policy perspective, there is significant value in enabling entrepreneurs to engage in meaningful dialogue, critical reflection and purposive action with their peers through the creation of leadership “learning networks”.

The research demonstrates leadership learning processes and pathways that are significantly different to those experienced by managers in the employed context. In so doing, this article represents the first systematic attempt to apply a learning perspective to the subject of entrepreneurial leadership.

The purpose of this paper is to provide a model of thinking for managers that is readily applicable in their situation and which will foster effective decision making.

The paper examines some of the thinking challenges facing contemporary business leaders and provides a sound philosophical basis for a cognitional theory.

The paper demonstrates that effective execution results from effective thinking, that a learning organisation is a result of becoming a thinking organisation, which is a collection of thinking people, and that people and organisations benefit from having a common cognitional method which can help overcome embedded mental models.

The paper introduces readers to the cognitional model of Bernard Lonergan, shows the application of that model to contemporary business challenges, and provides an easily‐learned model for thinking, which will aid managers at every level and lead to better decisions.

THE Newcastle school, like most others, was established after the second world war to provide full‐time education in librarianship as an alternative to the part‐time system which until 1946 was the only one available to the majority of librarians. At first most of the students were returning servicemen whose library careers had been interrupted by the war and they were followed by students direct from libraries, universities and schools. From a handful of students and one full‐time member of staff in the first year the school has grown steadily until there were 53 students and five staff during the session 1962–3 which was the last course held for the Registration Examination.