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Argues that effective quality review techniques can improve software development projects. Highlights the need for an adequate definition of requirements, to implement a quality approach throughout the project′s lifecycle. Proposes a method of specifying software quality and examines peer review techniques, including the ISO 9000 TickIT guide and Department of Trade & Industry STARTS initiative.

This study aims to elaborate on the interface between water scarcity and consumption and, specifically to focus on, how consumers’ perceptions and views towards (un)sustainable water consumption can inform the development of sustainable water practices and environmental policies.

A qualitative methodology was adopted, consisting of 34 in-depth interviews with consumers, in four cities in the United Kingdom (UK). The semi-structured interviews sought to examine sustainable water consumption practices in more depth within an unexplored context, and secondary data were also used to explore the phenomenon in more depth.

The findings provide novel theoretical and empirical insights around the invisibility and imperceptibility of (un)sustainable water consumption. The findings suggest how interdisciplinary and collaborative practices can enhance more responsible and sustainable consumption of water resources in the UK.

The study can inform marketing strategies on community engagement with localised water sustainable actions and encourage policymakers to develop concrete marketing communications and increased public awareness regarding water scarcity.

Considering the slow growth of water scarcity, the findings can prompt marketing scholars to explore similar phenomena, within seemingly unaffected countries, urban centres, industries and marketplaces.

Previous studies focused on the measurement of household water consumption in the water-scarce context of the Southern Hemisphere. Challenging geographical perceptions of water shortage, this study focuses on the UK and highlights how the multidimensional, finite and invisible nature of water consumption requires collaborative efforts in tackling water scarcity.

Thatch roofs are an important part of our heritage. Describes the history of thatch, the fire precautions necessary, its thermal properties and life span. Many thatch roofed properties are supported by cob walls. Describes the history of cob walls, the repair of existing cob walls, new work and the building regulations. Suggests that the Government should give more incentive to the use of thatch and cob walls, both for the purposes of construction and to keep alive the rural crafts associated with them.

This study sought to identify teachers' overall experiences in teaching social studies, the considerations they make in planning and implementing social studies lessons in the absence of mandated curriculum, approaches to social studies instruction and the role of legislation on social studies instruction.

Two practicing teachers at different grade levels participated in this study to allow for comparative case study analysis. Teachers were observed teaching social studies lessons and then were interviewed to gain an understanding of their perspectives on teaching social studies at the elementary level and the role that administrative and legislative messaging played in their decision-making.

The lack of a scripted and formal program for social studies created opportunities for teacher autonomy and content integration in lessons. This is especially true for teachers that place a high value on social studies content and skills. Persistent issues, such as limited time and mandated testing pressures, continue to create barriers that teachers must work to overcome.

Since teachers play a critical role in the enactment of policy and curriculum, when a formal curriculum program is absent, opportunities arise. Control of the classroom and inherent messaging therein continues to create a high value battleground. When teachers are given the autonomy to set lesson outcomes, opportunities for quality instruction, such as project based learning and content integration, are possible.

One of the most important developments in portfolio risk management in the 1990s was the increased use of Value at Risk (VaR). VaR has enjoyed a spectacular rise, from being largely unknown at the beginning of the 1990s, to prominence among financial institutions and, more recently, also in the corporate world. VaR is particularly useful because it measures aggregate portfolio risk by accounting for correlations between the individual risk factors in a portfolio.

The purpose of this paper is to explore a dynamic version of the service-profit chain. The paper examines the relationship between daily leadership behaviors, daily job satisfaction and daily employee engagement on customer outcomes in a service-based context.

Using multi-level, dyadic data from employees and customers, the paper used a diary (within-person) approach to investigate the proposed relationships on a daily basis. Data from employees (n = 29) collected over five days were matched specifically to customer data (n = 592) during the same time period.

The findings suggest that daily transformational leadership behaviors positively affect daily job satisfaction and employee engagement, which subsequently affect beneficial customer outcomes (i.e. perceptions of quality, satisfaction and loyalty).

The relationship between employee attitudes and performance may have been underestimated in the past due to the way the relationship has been studied and that the inclusion of additional predictors better defines this relationship. Methodologically, the use of a daily diary study suggests that it may be much more advantageous to study the theorized relationship in its transient form (i.e. daily, weekly, etc.) versus as stable and enduring attitudes as leaders’ behaviors and employees’ level of engagement will change from day to day in most service-based contexts due to its dynamic nature.

The results equip organizations with a clearer picture in delivering high-quality service and its associated beneficial customer outcomes (i.e. perceptions of quality, satisfaction and loyalty). Such insight may be used to influence leadership training that aims to create and maintain an engaged and productive workforce, ultimately providing increased bottom-line performance for the organization.

By including additional linkages into a model that aids in predicting important customer outcomes allows us to better understand the relationship. In addition, by studying the relationships from a transient perspective, it provides important information to service organizations that operate in extremely dynamic environments.

Among the ten Canadian provinces, Quebec has experienced the most significant excess mortality of older persons during COVID-19. This practice paper aims to present the chronology of events leading to this excess mortality in long-term care facilities (LTCFs) and a comprehensive analysis of the phenomenon.

Documented content from three official sources: daily briefings by the Quebec Premier, a report from the Canadian Armed Forces and a report produced by Royal Society of Canada experts were analysed.

Two findings emerge: the lack of preparation in LTCFs and a critical shortage of staff. Indeed, the massive transfer of older persons from hospitals to LTCFs, combined with human resources management and a critical shortage of permanent staff before and during the crisis, generates unhealthy living conditions in LTCFs.

To our knowledge, this paper is the first to analyse official Quebec and Canadian statements concerning COVID-19 from the angle of quality of life and protection of older adults in LTCFs.

This paper aims to investigate the impacts of rumors' information characteristics on people's believing and spreading of rumors online.

This study employed a mixed-methods approach by combining qualitative and quantitative methods. In study 1, the authors explored different types of rumors and their information source characteristics through qualitative research. In study 2, the authors utilized the findings from study 1 to develop an empirical model to verify the impact of these characteristics on the public's behaviors of believing and spreading rumors by content analysis and quantitative research.

The results show that five information source characteristics – credibility, professionalism, attractiveness, mystery and concreteness – influence the spreading effect of different types of rumors.

This study contributes to rumor spreading research by deepening the theory of information source characteristics and adding to the emerging literature on the COVID-19 pandemic.

Insights from this research offer important practical implications for policymakers and online-platform operators by highlighting how to suppress the spread of rumors, particularly those associated with COVID-19.

This research introduces the theory of information source characteristics into the field of rumor spreading and adopts a mixed-methods approach, taking COVID-19 rumors as a typical case, which provides a unique perspective for a deeper understanding of rumor spreading's antecedences.

Reviews skills for supervision in the twenty‐first century, tools for identifying current knowledge and skills, and a transformation learning plan. Essential new skills are based on the 12 key skills areas (KSAs). Identifies essential components of the KSA gap analysis, a daily task trade‐off plan, a three‐year learning plan and a daily personal vision message. These may need to be modified to fit a particular organization.

The purpose of this paper is to provide an overview of the current landscape of training strategies being implemented and a view of the future.

This paper was written based on the findings and observations from our consulting work with organizational clients, placing them in an historical perspective.

While technologies change, how we learn does not. If you want to be strategic about the technologies you use, look for the underlying principles of learning upon which they are built.

This paper can help an organization be more thoughtful and intentional about the training/learning strategies they use rather than be drawn to the new shining object or latest fad of trend.