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Two New I.C.I. Directors G. K. HAMPSHIRE, chairman of Imperial Chemical Industries Ltd.'s general chemical division, and DR. J. S. GOURLAY, chairman of the paints division, have been appointed to the board of I.C.I.

THE phenomenon of curling of systems comprising colloids such as cellulose nitrate, deposited on non‐rigid substrates such as paper or fabric, has been known for nearly a century. There is, however, no indication in the literature of any attempt to correlate this behaviour with, for example, the phenomenon of the bending of plates. The present investigation presents certain analogies, which enable us to interpret much of the behaviour of these colloid systems on substrates.

If a key purpose of higher education is the development of students into ”critical lifelong learners” then first destination employment for graduates choosing professionally‐oriented careers provides the initial ”testing ground” for its application/practice through ongoing “professional development“. It is principally the workplace that provides the context in which the graduate must now learn and develop. At the heart of the issue is ”professional learning” yet the processes and the complexities of this in respect of new graduates remain unresearched and problematic. The paper reports on the development and design of an exploratory study addressing new graduate engagement with professional development in order to find more adequate ways to conceptualise this process and sharpen the research agenda. It seeks to generate discussion and feedback to assist the further progress of the research project.

The purpose of this paper is to explore and describe how the decision to outsource human resources was made by 12 large and five small organisations.

Desk research and key informant interviews with senior HR staff who lead the decision to outsource human resources in a purposive sample of organisations identified through an initial search of the professional literature and nomination by an expert panel.

The research identifies a number of drivers that lead organisations to consider outsourcing their HR. In large organisations cost considerations are dominant, but other factors arise out of the organisational history and context, and very often, senior managers from outside the HR function are very influential. For most organisations, paradoxically, the decision to outsource appears not to be made on the basis of a thorough analysis of costs, with consequences for the quality of HR service offered to line managers, and also for the career paths and skill sets required from HR staff.

This study focuses upon the perceptions and experiences of senior HR managers, but excludes the perceptions and experiences of all staff employed in the HR function. Also, while the use of a qualitative research design makes it possible to uncover the individual perceptions and motivations of the key informants in the sample, there are obvious limitations in respect of statistical generalisation.

The findings relate mainly to the future shape of the HR function in organisations where HR activity is outsourced, with consequent implications for the skill sets and career paths for HR professionals.

The views of HR directors and senior managers have provided a valuable insight into the strategic decision to outsource HR activity and will be of interest to those involved in the same field.

To communicate the development and results of strategic human resource management (HRM) research to the audit research community in order to stimulate audit research specific to HRM audits.

Prior research that served as impetus for this paper is discussed. The findings of other studies are presented to make a case for the business impact of strategic human resource management practices.

Studies on the competitive environment of firms, theoretical development in HRM, empirical work on the link between HRM practice and firm performance, and emerging models based on intellectual capital, suggest that there are compelling reasons for internal audit to devote substantial resources to the evaluation of strategic risk in HRM audits.

The literature is still developing. The literature presented here is not an exhaustive list and does not include all findings, but rather what we perceive to be the most important findings.

Both “high performance work systems” and “strategic fit” should guide internal audit in planning, designing audit programs, and executing strategic audits of human resources consistent with the risk management paradigm.

This paper bridges a gap between the human resource management literature and the internal auditing literature.

Since the late 1970s, the study of the role, structure and functions of personnel management in the United Kingdom has been greatly facilitated by surveys emerging from a number of large‐scale surveys. A major interest in interpreting the data from these surveys has been to evaluate the impact of recession, and, latterly, recovery on the power, structure and roles of personnel departments and personnel specialists in recent years. The survey data are used comparatively to evaluate the empirical plausibility of the different scenarios which have arisen, and to account for the results that emerge.

This paper aims to explore the role of retention strategies and psychological contract (PC) factors in private hospitals.

The current study is an empirical research. The study was conducted by receiving responses from a sample size of 190 respondents who participated in the Doctors and Nurses’ survey.

The study results show the relationship between PC and the retention strategies of employees in hospitals. The research found that employees try to be committed to the hospital due to the image of the hospital and career development opportunities. Creating a sense of commitment among the employees towards their job and organisation, making to feel pride in the job, creating an attitude among the employees, a willingness to advocate the benefits and advantages and satisfaction among the employee towards the job and organisation.

With a population of more than one million employees (Doctors and Nurses) in the Indian health-care sector, the sample needs to be more adequate. However, these limitations present scope for future studies on this topic bearing on the aspiration for generalisation of the findings on the entire population.

The study has strong practical implications in strengthening the relationships by identifying the factors of PC and influencing the retention strategies of health-care professionals in the hospital.

This research explores the changing dynamics of the Indian health-care sector. Health-care professionals may perceive and react differently to the retention strategies and policies of the HR system in the health-care sector and have more expectations of PC fulfilment that enhance their capability to use professional skills and resources in the realisation of their organisational goals.

The purpose of this paper is to provide an overview of approaches to outsourcing HRD in the UK.

This paper employs semi‐structured interviews and case studies. The research model was developed from a literature review.

There are many problems associated with outsourcing any or all aspects of the HRD function. Approaches to outsourcing vary between firms, largely because their impetus for taking training outside is likely to differ. There are certain key issues that need to be considered when trying to make an outsourced HRD strategy successful in any organization: making the right decision about what to outsource; engaging the right providers; and putting measures in place to build and maintain a strong, trusting, effective relationship.

The model should be further tested, applied and refined as necessary.

Organizations wishing to outsource HRD could be guided by the model and findings of this research.

A novel and innovative two‐part model was developed from a literature review and tested against two large well‐known UK organizations. It will be of value to HRD managers and researchers.

The purpose of this paper is to investigate perceived stressors and coping behaviours in student nurses on a pre-registration programme of study. Stress in student nurses has been identified with decreased emotional well-being and poor academic achievement. The significance of stress and coping behaviours in students during training has implications for education and practice.

The present study recruited 87 pre-registration student nurses in a cross-sectional design. Bivariate and multivariate analyses assessed the differences in field and year of study and the students’ perceived stress and coping behaviours.

The findings showed that stress is a significant issue in nurse training. Fifty-three per cent of the participants had levels higher than the mean. Interestingly, the present study found that high-perceived stress was associated with avoidance behaviours. The most common type of perceived stress and ranked by highest factor were from written assignments and a lack of professional skills and knowledge. Their peer group and everyday life activities were shown as potential ways of coping with stressors. Thus, it seems reasonable to focus support on decreasing avoidant and enhancing stress-reducing behaviours.

Psychological stress and coping behaviours must be considered together, as perceived stress is bound by the ability to ameliorate stress by managing helpful and unhelpful behaviours.

The findings may suggest that a potential benefit could come from the provision of helpful strategies such as peer group support and reduction of avoidant behaviours. Also, there seems to be a need for greater mental health literacy in dealing with stress during training.

The monograph analyses (a) the potential impact of information technology (IT) on organisational issues that directly concern the personnel function; (b) the nature of personnel’s involvement in the decision making and activities surrounding the choice and implementation of advanced technologies, and (c) their own use of IT in developing and carrying out their own range of specialist activities. The monograph attempts to explain why personnel’s involvement is often late, peripheral and reactive. Finally, an analysis is made of whether personnel specialists – or the Human Resource Management function more generally – will play a more proactive role in relation to such technologies in the future.