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Being a dissertation on the measures needed to combat the present illiteracy of technical students

An executive information system (EIS) is a high‐reward, high‐risk project and is often developed with high expectations which end in failure. There exist significant barriers to the creation of a successful EIS. However, as more lessons are learned from previous failed attempts, many innovations have been put in place by EIS practitioners to overcome these barriers. This article presents an empirical study to find out what the significant barriers are and how best practices have been adopted to achieve a successful EIS implementation. By linking the implications of best EIS practice to TQM disciplines, a model of successful EIS implementation is proposed.

The purpose of this article is to examine a sample of paper‐based incident reports concerning drug incidents to assess the utility of a reporting system.

A 50 per cent random sample of drug‐related incident reports between 1999 and 2003 (n=1,253) was reviewed. Details of the incident including error type and contributory factors were identified, as was status of the reporter. Content analysis of the free text established whether the data provided could promote medication safety and organisational learning.

The paper finds that all definitive drug errors (n=991) allowed an error type to be identified, but 276 (27.8 per cent) did not include the contributory factor(s) involved. Content analysis of the errors demonstrated an inconsistent level of completeness, and circumstances, causation and action taken were not always logically related. Inter‐rater reliability scores were varied. There was sometimes a significant focus on the actions of one individual in comparison to other factors.

Incident reports can be biased by psychological phenomena, and may not be representative of the parent organisation other than those who report. This study was carried out in a single health care organisation and generalisability may be questioned.

How health professionals interpret drug errors and their reporting could be improved. Reporting can be further developed by reference to taxonomies, but their validity should be considered. Incident report analysis can provide an insight into the competence of individual reporters and the organisation's approach to risk management.

This paper highlights the various data that can be captured from drug error reports but also their shortfalls which include: superficial content, incoherence; and according to professional group – varied reporting rates and an inclination to target individuals.

This is a case study discussion drawn from scholarly publishers Emerald, formerly MCB University Press. It discusses the unusual “supply circle” phenomenon in scholarly publishing, where authors (suppliers) are often the same people as readers (customers). It addresses this from the standpoint of trying to measure and manage performance in an area where measures are highly subjective – where, like art, performance is typically judged on “I know what I like”. The paper suggests areas for further research, and points to some steps taken by the firm to make the intangible more tangible.

This paper attempts to rebut criticisms of, and give further clarifications to, arguments about the nature of sociological explanation previously made by Martin (2011).

Here, arguments initially derived through historical reconstruction of theory are instead drawn out from our common stock of experiences. Aspects of the argument that were complex as initially presented are simplified here, and the maximum contrast between this approach and the more conventional is made.

The implications for practice are many; most important, the claim of Martin (2011) – rejected by Bradford (2013), as critiqued herein – to offer a coherent alternative to our current understanding of the task of explanation, if successfully demonstrated, suggests a reorientation of sociological research toward the production of intersubjectively valid cartographies and away from causal or pseudo-causal accounts.

Social theorists who are willing to seriously think about what lies in between our practice and knowledge as sociologists and as actors – to do the research.

The value of the paper, therefore, derives from its capacity to dispel common misunderstandings of Martin (2011), and to allow social researchers as well as social theorists, to make use of a coherent vocabulary for the development of social research, which otherwise would remain inaccessible to them.

This article aims to introduce the special issue which arose from a conference about urban regeneration in post industrial cities hosted at Bradford University in 2008. The event focused on the sustainable and intangible aspects of individual and community well‐being.

The article discusses the background to urban regeneration and introduces the papers in the issue.

The papers investigate and understand how policies, programmes and projects can increase well‐being in the built environment, and what this means for those involved. Specifically the papers address key features of well‐being in terms of the economics of regeneration, participation, sustainability, social enterprise, migration, partnership, management, and the importance of place and space.

The article focuses on the papers of the special issue that encourage pragmatic and workable solutions based on sound theory and practice.

Evaluates current evidence on contemporary gift giving, drawing some tentative marketing conclusions. Draws evidence from surveys carried out in Bradford, UK and those carried out by Gallup and the National Opinion Polls on Christmas shopping. Looks at the role of gift giving in society while interpreting data and drawing marketing conclusions and contrasting with primitive societies.

Describes the major influences directing the growth and development of marketing theory. Assesses the relative value of holistic and piecemeal approaches to this theory. Suggests that the most important advances in marketing management will stem from development of models of the market, advocating on piecemeal approach.

The notion, that people management can be a key source of sustained competitive advantage, calls for the integration of Human Resource Management (HRM) and business strategy. Not surprisingly, the main debate in HRM is nowadays concerned with the relationship between strategic management and employee relations in the firm and therefore strategic HRM focuses on the overall direction of the organisation in pursuit of its stated goals and objectives. This paper explores the above relationship in the electronic manufacturing industry. It is based on empirical evidence and the findings of a survey of senior managers’ perception and views on strategic HRM.It is concluded that increasing core competencies of the firm, in particular HR, is one of the key elements to the success of the firm performance and that HR involvement in the development and implementation of business strategy leads to organisational effectiveness in this industry.

Reviews the literature dealing with the nature and characteristics of service and applies it to 30 selected services with the objective of synthesizing a classification scheme to recognize operational similarities between services. This has the purpose of enabling learning by comparison of services which would normally be thought of as being different, and also to enable examination of service quality in the other two articles completing the series. Some of the reasons given for the growth of services are found to be the provision of new services, the possibilities created by new technology, the development of producer services and introduction and emphasis of services to differentiate and augment goods products. Given the resultant diversity of service the Standard Industrial Classification is a poor indicator of service content. In what ways should service be studied? One view is that study should be unified and theories developed which are capable of embracing both goods and services. A second view is that distinctions need to be studied to avoid any assumption that theories and approaches developed in a manufactured goods context automatically can be applied to services. In contrast to both of these, what actually happens in many services is that they are often developed and staffed by people who have little direct experience of, and have no accessible means of building on, the successful approaches taken by other services. Uses several of the theoretical and empirical ways in which services have been categorized to classify the range of services. Resolves subjective assessment of labour intensity, contact, interaction, tailoring, intangibility, and recipient into five groups –personal, shop, professional, mass and factory services – which partially confirms but also extends earlier classification schemes.