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1 – 10 of over 2000Johan Hylander, Britt-Inger Saveman, Ulf Björnstig, Lina Gyllencreutz and Anton Westman
Major incidents in road tunnels remain a collaborative challenge for the emergency services (fire and rescue service, police and ambulance), emergency dispatch centres (EDCs) and…
Abstract
Purpose
Major incidents in road tunnels remain a collaborative challenge for the emergency services (fire and rescue service, police and ambulance), emergency dispatch centres (EDCs) and infrastructure owners. The aim of this paper is to investigate how collaborative partners to the ambulance services perceive the rescue effort and to identify factors that may influence its efficiency.
Design/methodology/approach
Focus group and individual interviews were conducted with 19 participants who were infrastructure owners or had operational or tactical responsibilities with the emergency services or EDCs in two regions in Sweden with multiple road tunnels. The collected data were analysed using qualitative content analysis.
Findings
Three main categories described efficiency factors during and after an incident: (1) coordinating the initial information (using a shared terminology), (2) achieving situational awareness (identifying those persons in need) and (3) lessons (not) learnt (lack of joint tactical plans and exercises). The emerging theme was access, assess and evaluate.
Practical implications
The findings suggest that establishing national policies and collaborative forums might yield more efficiently managed rescue efforts in road tunnel incidents in Sweden and other countries with similar organisational structures.
Originality/value
This study offers new insights on interoperability during responses to complex underground incidents.
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Tadele Shimels and Lemma Lessa
Information systems' security is more critical than ever before since security threats are rapidly growing. Before putting in place information systems' security measures…
Abstract
Purpose
Information systems' security is more critical than ever before since security threats are rapidly growing. Before putting in place information systems' security measures, organizations are required to determine the maturity level of their information security governance. Literature review reveals that there is no recent study on information systems' security maturity level of banks in Ethiopia. This study thus seeks to measure the existing maturity level and examine the security gaps in order to propose possible changes in Ethiopian private banking industry's information system security maturity indicators.
Design/methodology/approach
Four private banks are selected as a representative sample. The system security engineering capability maturity model (SSE-CMM) is used as the maturity measurement criteria, and the measurement was based on ISO/IEC 27001 information security control areas. The data for the study were gathered using a questionnaire.
Findings
A total of 93 valid questionnaires were gathered from 110 participants in the study. Based on the SSE-CMM maturity model assessment criteria the private banking industry's current maturity level is level 2 (repeatable but intuitive). Institutions have a pattern that is repeated when completing information security operations but its existence was not thoroughly proven and institutional inconsistency still exists.
Originality/value
This study seeks to measure the existing maturity level and examine the security gaps in order to propose possible changes in Ethiopian private banking industry's information system security maturity indicators. This topic has not been attempted previously in the context of Ethiopian financial sector.
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Florian Fahrenbach, Kate Revoredo and Flavia Maria Santoro
This paper aims to introduce an information and communication technology (ICT) artifact that uses text mining to support the innovative and standardized assessment of professional…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to introduce an information and communication technology (ICT) artifact that uses text mining to support the innovative and standardized assessment of professional competences within the validation of prior learning (VPL). Assessment means comparing identified and documented professional competences against a standard or reference point. The designed artifact is evaluated by matching a set of curriculum vitae (CV) scraped from LinkedIn against a comprehensive model of professional competence.
Design/methodology/approach
A design science approach informed the development and evaluation of the ICT artifact presented in this paper.
Findings
A proof of concept shows that the ICT artifact can support assessors within the validation of prior learning procedure. Rather the output of such an ICT artifact can be used to structure documentation in the validation process.
Research limitations/implications
Evaluating the artifact shows that ICT support to assess documented learning outcomes is a promising endeavor but remains a challenge. Further research should work on standardized ways to document professional competences, ICT artifacts capture the semantic content of documents, and refine ontologies of theoretical models of professional competences.
Practical implications
Text mining methods to assess professional competences rely on large bodies of textual data, and thus a thoroughly built and large portfolio is necessary as input for this ICT artifact.
Originality/value
Following the recent call of European policymakers to develop standardized and ICT-based approaches for the assessment of professional competences, an ICT artifact that supports the automatized assessment of professional competences within the validation of prior learning is designed and evaluated.
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Diogo Cotta and Fabrizio Salvador
The purpose of this paper was to explore individual- and firm-level antecedents of the ability of a manufacturing firm's personnel to collaborate and integrate knowledge for…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper was to explore individual- and firm-level antecedents of the ability of a manufacturing firm's personnel to collaborate and integrate knowledge for organizational resilience practices.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors apply hierarchical regression analysis to study a sample of 192 European industrial equipment manufacturers. Data for each firm are collected from surveys of two key informants in each firm, as well as from public sources.
Findings
Firms' personnel’s ability to integrate information and knowledge for organizational resilience practices was positively related with the extent of the head of manufacturing's network of personal contacts inside the firm. This effect was stronger in firms with more formalized job descriptions and clearly defined roles. The head of manufacturing's orientation to teamwork and cooperation impacted this ability only in firms that did not financially incentivize cooperation. The authors also found that cooperation incentives and role formalization directly relate to firms' personnel’s ability to integrate information and knowledge for organizational resilience practices.
Originality/value
The study proposes to study organizational resilience practices through a transactive memory systems lens. The study is also the first to link characteristics of individual managers to firm-level resilience practices by examining the antecedents of firms' ability to integrate information and knowledge to recover from operational disruptions. Furthermore, the study serves to enhance the knowledge of resilience practices by examining the role of firm-level antecedents and their interplay with characteristics of individual managers.
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Sataporn Roengtam, Achmad Nurmandi, David N. Almarez and Anwar Kholid
This research aims to investigate the impact of the use of social media on the organizational form and function in selected local governments of Indonesia, Thailand and the…
Abstract
Purpose
This research aims to investigate the impact of the use of social media on the organizational form and function in selected local governments of Indonesia, Thailand and the Philippines.
Design/methodology/approach
This research used quantitative and qualitative methods. The researchers not only conducted comparative– explanatory studies among the three ASEAN cities but also used multiple-informant and secondary data analyses. All variables are operationalized into indicators and transformed into a questionnaire in three languages: English, Indonesian and Thai. Primary data for the research were collected using a cross-sectional survey conducted in Bandung City, Indonesia; Iligan City, the Philippines; and Pukhet City, Thailand.
Findings
This research found that social media use has not yet affected the internal organizational processes in the three cities. Also, social media use is not appropriated as a space for citizen–government interaction. It is used for only information dissemination to the public; social media seems to have been used for only collecting information from citizens but not for involving them in the decision-making process.
Research limitations/implications
This research covers only three cities in the ASEAN countries, and the findings cannot be generalized to others. Moreover, this research looks at the supply-side dimension or government organization side only. However, the findings confirm that findings of previous research studies that social media use in the local government is only for information dissemination.
Practical implications
Legal bases for social media use could be an urgent matter to address to advance more fundamental changes in government processes.
Originality/value
There is no prior comparative study on the use of social media by local governments in the ASEAN countries. Social media owing to its sense of personalization or sense of community improves communication between citizens and government better than e-government sites; however, as articulated by Mirchandani et al. (2008), social media may hinder rather than facilitate the delivery of services (Mirchandani et al., 2008). This is due to the absence of a legal basis of its use, as well as agreements on the manner of its use, which prevents full integration of social media into the governance process, particularly in the cases of the cities of Iligan, the Philippines, and Phuket, Thailand.
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Divaries Cosmas Jaravaza, Joshua Risiro, Paul Mukucha and Nomuhle Jaravaza
The main purpose of the study was to synthesise the role of COVID-19 social media messages and indigenous religious beliefs on public health promotion initiatives among rural…
Abstract
Purpose
The main purpose of the study was to synthesise the role of COVID-19 social media messages and indigenous religious beliefs on public health promotion initiatives among rural consumers in Zimbabwe.
Design/methodology/approach
A qualitative approach was adopted. Population consisting of 15 interviews and six focus groups was purposively sampled from Manicaland, Mashonaland Central and Masvingo provinces in Zimbabwe. A thematic approach was used to present and analyse the data.
Findings
Rural consumers believed WhatsApp messages posted by people whom they know or influential personnel like health workers. Credibility of WhatsApp messages was enhanced through its ability to send videos and audios. Teachings and indoctrination by indigenous churches and misinformation were found to be an impediment in believing COVID-19 WhatsApp messages and vaccination by rural consumers. Faith healers in indigenous churches used various practices and artefacts like holy water, stone pebbles, clay pots, flags and wooden rods to pray and treat patients suffering from COVID-19 and other ailments.
Practical implications
Social media messages, religious teachings and indoctrination may be a hindrance to rural consumers in adopting government public health promotion initiatives; hence, public health professionals need prior emic understanding and co-option of local leadership in vaccination campaigns.
Originality/value
This study outstretches the theoretical landscape in consumer behaviour and also practical contribution to health practitioners and marketers on breaking indigenous religious barriers and social media misconceptions on vaccination uptake through promotional strategies earmarked for rural consumers.
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Xueyan Yang, Changxi Ma, Changfeng Zhu, Bo Qi, Fuquan Pan and Chengming Zhu
For the purpose of reducing the incidence of hazardous materials transport accident, eliminating the potential threats and ensuring their safety, aiming at the shortcomings in the…
Abstract
Purpose
For the purpose of reducing the incidence of hazardous materials transport accident, eliminating the potential threats and ensuring their safety, aiming at the shortcomings in the process of current hazardous materials transportation management, this paper aims to construct the framework of hazardous materials transportation safety management system under the vehicle-infrastructure connected environment.
Design/methodology/approach
The system takes the intelligent connected vehicle as the main supporter, integrating GIS, GPS, eye location, GSM, networks and database technology.
Findings
By analyzing the transportation characteristics of hazardous materials, this system consists of five subsystems, which are vehicle and driver management subsystem, dangerous sources and hazardous materials management subsystem, route analysis and optimization subsystem, early warning and emergency rescue management subsystem, and basic information query subsystem.
Originality/value
Hazardous materials transportation safety management system includes omnibearing real-time monitoring, timely updating of system database, real-time generation and optimization of emergency rescue route. The system can reduce the transportation cost and improve the ability of accident prevention and emergency rescue of hazardous materials.
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Usanun Intamas, Tassanee Rawiworrakul, Kwanjai Amnatsatsue, Sutham Nanthamongkolchai and Mary H. Palmer
This study aims to describe survivors of stroke circumstances, issues with providing care for survivors of stroke and services expected by caregivers and survivors of stroke.
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to describe survivors of stroke circumstances, issues with providing care for survivors of stroke and services expected by caregivers and survivors of stroke.
Design/methodology/approach
A qualitative research design was conducted in Singburi Province. Data collection methods included in-depth interviews, focus groups and participatory observations. Semi-structured in-depth interview guides, quality-of-life scale and depression scale were used to collect data from survivors of stroke, their caregivers, health personnel, local governors and village health volunteers. Naturalistic research tradition was used for qualitative data analysis and descriptive statistics for quantitative data analysis.
Findings
The majority of survivors of stroke had hemiplegic limb and severe deficits in their activities of daily living. Caregivers were family members, and they often developed depression. Issues with providing care to stroke survivors included lack of knowledge about stroke and home care, inadequacy and discontinuity of care and the shortage of stroke care personnel in the community. A stakeholder's expected stroke services included the provision of effective continuing care, community participation in care and enhancing the village health volunteer's capacity.
Originality/value
This study illustrated the stroke service systems in rural Thai communities. The study's findings could be applied when planning future research using community participation to test a model of care for stroke survivors to promote better outcomes and be responsive to the needs of stroke survivors, especially those who are disabled.
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Ahmed H. Al-Dmour, Masam Abood and Hani H. Al-Dmour
This study aims at investigating the extent of SysTrust’s framework (principles and criteria) as an internal control approach for assuring the reliability of accounting information…
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims at investigating the extent of SysTrust’s framework (principles and criteria) as an internal control approach for assuring the reliability of accounting information system (AIS) were being implemented in Jordanian business organizations.
Design/methodology/approach
The study is based on primary data collected through a structured questionnaire from 239 out of 328 shareholdings companies. The survey units were the shareholding companies in Jordan, and the single key respondents approach was adopted. The extents of SysTrust principles were also measured. Previously validated instruments were used where required. The data were analysed using t-test and ANOVA.
Findings
The results indicated that the extent of SysTrust being implemented could be considered to be moderate at this stage. This implies that there are some variations among business organizations in terms of their level of implementing of SysTrust principles and criteria. The results also showed that the extent of SysTrust principles being implemented was varied among business organizations based on their business sector. However, there were not found varied due to their size of business and a length of time in business (experience).
Research limitations/implications
This study is only conducted in Jordan as a developing country. Although Jordan is a valid indicator of prevalent factors in the wider MENA region and developing countries, the lack of external validity of this research means that any generalization of the research findings should be made with caution. Future research can be orientated to other national and cultural settings and compared with the results of this study.
Practical implications
The study provides evidence of the need for management to recognize the importance of the implementation of SysTrust principles and criteria as an internal control for assuring the reliability of AIS within their organizations and be aware which of these principles are appropriate to their size and industry sector.
Originality/value
The findings would be valuable for academic researchers, managers and professional accounting to acquire a better undemanding of the current status of the implementation of the SysTrust principles (i.e., availability, security, integrity processing, confidentiality, and privacy) as an internal control method for assuring the reliability of AIS by testing the phenomenon in Jordan as a developing country.
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Petteri Annunen, Juho Tella, Sini Pekki and Harri Haapasalo
This study describes how maintenance capability should be created during the design and construction phases of construction projects. Purpose of the abstract to define the…
Abstract
Purpose
This study describes how maintenance capability should be created during the design and construction phases of construction projects. Purpose of the abstract to define the elements for creating the maintenance capability and the process to be used in construction life cycle projects for buildings.
Design/methodology/approach
An inductive and qualitative research method was used to construct the proposed process based on the literature and 18 interviews in two large construction companies.
Findings
The results indicate that the maintenance phase is usually overlooked during the design and construction phases, and capabilities are not systematically built. In particular, processes are lacking in data management, causing severe problems in maintenance.
Originality/value
This study presents a process including key requirements and activities for creating maintenance capability in conjunction with the design and construction phases, which is novel to the literature. The validated process can be adapted based on the needs of the construction company.
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