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Lauren Tate began a new career at a new organization. Based on information she learned in a recent MBA Leadership course, Lauren approached her new workplace with the goal of being more strategic in her interpersonal interactions. She focussed on identifying and building sources of power in this new career and proactively managed her evolving relationships. At some levels, she was very successful and effective but some relationships were characterized by stress. The case asks students to analyze Lauren's actions to determine which were effective and how her actions could have been even more effective.

The purpose of this paper is to examine the theoretical interface between statistical thinking, the statistical method of the control chart, and contemporary theories of organisational learning in regard to processes and their improvement.

Theoretical discussion results in an integrated model showing how statistical thinking and methods relate to organisational learning. This is supported by findings from a food industry research project following a design of: exploration (stage 1); theory development (stage 2); and theory testing/refinement (stage 3) incorporating surveys, case studies and key informant interviews.

Empirical evidence shows that statistical techniques such as the control chart can be of benefit to organisations for creating process improvement and organisational learning, providing the charts are utilised to actively convert the data they contain into information and knowledge about the process. Four distinct categories of use of control charts were observed which impacted on the effectiveness with which the charts were able to achieve this.

The findings have come from a study conducted only on the food industry. The implications are generalisable, however, to the wider industry context.

Findings illustrate problems with control chart application and the vital role of statistical thinking in ensuring that maximum benefit is derived from the charts. We argue that statistical thinking is a fundamental prerequisite to achieving effective double loop learning when using control charts as a basis for process monitoring and improvement

Statistical thinking and knowledge management are both growing areas of interest within the quality management and process improvement literature. The paper examines their interrelationship.

The paper aims to describe a recently completed research project on the use of statistical quality control (SQC) methods in the context of food and drinks manufacturing. It discusses issues surrounding the successful uptake of such methods, including organisational motivation, possible application, costs and benefits, critical success factors and the central importance of prerequisite statistical thinking (ST).

A three stage, mixed methods approach was adopted, incorporating surveys augmented by case studies and key informant interviews with industry managers and providers of relevant industry training. All data were combined to produce the final model.

The paper finds that SQC methods are of relevance in the industry, providing the process is appropriate and management have a basic awareness of the fundamentals of ST. Certain organisational and external factors were found to progressively reduce the effectiveness with which such methods are introduced and sustained. The paper ends with discussion of an original model, developed from the research, which illustrates the “filters” that tend to reduce the effectiveness with which methods are used in the industry, with a discussion of how each can be overcome.

The research in this paper is focused on the European food manufacturing and legislative context, and predominantly UK. Low survey response rates numbers necessitated a nonparametric approach to survey analysis.

The paper shows that the filters model is of generic applicability and interest to current and future managers, and to other researchers in this area.

The paper addresses the “how to” of SQC, and examines an industry where there is not yet widespread literature on the benefits of SQC methods. It presents an original model of the barriers to effective use of statistical methods within a process knowledge and improvement cycle.

Presents a synthesis of the early findings from an ongoing project researching the issues surrounding the use of SPC in a food packing environment. A cognitive mapping approach has been utilised to make sense of the complex and varied data resulting from the survey, case studies and interviews carried out to date. This methodological approach is described, and its application illustrated in relation to the research topic. Argues that SPC is one weapon in an arsenal of quality management techniques that food companies can use to consolidate or improve their position in an increasingly competitive marketplace. Once successfully adopted SPC can offer proven operational and financial benefits, but the ability of the organisation to successfully achieve implementation will depend upon a number of organisational factors. Finally, presents the agenda for further research which outlines how this ongoing project is intended to be taken forward from this point.

Globally, over 95% of fire related deaths and injuries occur in low- and middle-income countries. Within informal settlements, the risk of fire resulting in injury or death is particularly high. This paper examines fire risks in informal settlements in New Delhi and Cape Town, and tented informal settlements in Lebanon.

Our analysis draws on primary sources, secondary literature, statistical data and qualitative interviews.

The distribution of fire risk across urban societies is a fundamentally political issue. Residential fire risk can be tackled by accessible, affordable, safety-compliant housing. That said, important interim measures can be taken to mitigate fire risk. Some of the risks requiring attention are similar across our case studies, driven by high population densities; flammable housing materials; unreliable or inaccessible access to safe power sources; and – in the case of Cape Town and New Delhi particularly – the inability of fire services to reach sites of fire. However, these common risks are embedded in distinct social, economic and political contexts that must be placed at the center of any intervention. Interventions must also be aware that the risk of fire is not spread evenly within informal settlements, intersecting as it does with factors like gender, age, health and disability.

Informal settlement fires have been under-studied to date. The studies that do exist tend to operate within disciplinary silos. This paper represents an important interdisciplinary approach to fire within informal settlements, which grounds technical data, modeling and experiments in political, social and economic realities.

This study aims to identify the extent of intended interorganisational collaboration in the implementation of management objectives at World Heritage Sites (WHSs). These sites represent a unique management challenge in terms of the number and diversity of organisations involved both in terms of ownership and in the interface between the site and the wider tourism environment.

The research is based on content analysis of 12 management plans. Analysis focuses on the types and frequency of organisations involved in the joint implementation of sustainable tourism objectives. Ratio analysis is used to develop a ratio of collaboration which provides a measure of the numbers of organisations involved and the level of collaborative activity across sites.

There is higher commitment towards interorganisational collaboration at complex sites, comprising a range of attractions, compared with single‐focus sites. This was unsurprising, given that complex ownership of sites necessitates collaboration. However, when data relating to site owners was eliminated to reveal a truer picture of collaboration, the findings indicated that single‐focus sites were committed to jointly implementing a higher proportion of objectives compared with complex sites organisations. A number of mechanisms are in place to facilitate collaboration, but again, these are more prominent in the management plans of complex sites. The findings indicate that interorganisational collaboration is currently underutilised in the strategic management of WHSs.

The study is exploratory, given that this is the first time that World Heritage Sites have had published management plans. Measuring comparative activity using ratio analysis is one‐dimensional. The research is also based on intended activity over the next five years and would need to be followed up by further research based on the reality of implemented objectives.

The study assesses the extent of intended interorganisational collaboration in the public‐sector context of WHSs and contributes to the literature in both areas of study.

The purpose of this paper is to outline and reflect on the new research agenda for the Great Zimbabwe World Heritage property. This research agenda was jointly developed by academics and practitioners from Great Zimbabwe University (GZU) and the National Museums and Monuments of Zimbabwe (NMMZ) respectively. This Research-Practice Team was put together for the Heritage Place Lab (HPL), a pilot project of the ICCROM-IUCN World Heritage Leadership programme.

A series of steps were undertaken to come up with research priorities and a new research agenda that are presented in this paper. The HPL project involved online workshops, due to the COVID-19 travel restrictions, that were held between September 2021 and April 2022. The HPL methodology involved six assignments that were based on the Enhancing Our Heritage Toolkit 2.0 (EOH) which was being designed by UNESCO and its Advisory Bodies. This toolkit encouraged the team to establish site-specific management issues and research needs. The toolkit helped the team to have a detailed appreciation of the site's Outstanding Universal Value as well as other heritage values of national and local importance. The toolkit also involved the mapping of site attributes and multiple actors as well as the analysis of governance and legal frameworks. The toolkit also required the team to identify factors affecting the heritage property.

The Research-Practice Team highlighted challenges that resulted from the legacy of ill-informed research activities and conservation efforts at the World Heritage property. It became more apparent that the site managers were prioritizing the physical fabric of the site at the expense of the spiritual aspects. Lack of coordination among the actors was also undermining the governance structure. Four thematic strands which included local values and intangible cultural heritage elements; heritage governance; climate change and environmental sustainability and incorporation of local knowledge systems were identified for further research.

The paper is an outcome of collaborative efforts that were done by academics and practitioners. Researchers and site managers at Great Zimbabwe had hitherto worked in silos. The majority of previous and ongoing research on the World Heritage property falls short of addressing the dire management challenges. The paper is an attempt to broaden the scope in terms of the management of the site. In the past focus has been on the monumental aspects of the site with specific reference to the dry-stone walled structures. However, in this instance, the Research-Practice Team has integrated new interests such as the intangible aspects of Great Zimbabwe, spirituality and community beneficiation.

Meetings with colleagues are an essential activity in workplace collaboration. The iterative nature of collaborative work demands spaces that team members can access quickly and easily. Creating suitable meeting spaces will become more critical if the hybrid work model continues and the workplace environment becomes the hub for face-to-face collaborative time, learning and training. Workspace and fit-out is expensive so it is crucial that the investment in meeting spaces supports employees’ collaboration activities.

This paper presents a case study of a corporate organisation undertaken in New Zealand to investigate how employees from two business units use their workspace to collaborate within their own team and across other teams in their organisation. The study uses ethnographic techniques, including participant observation and in-depth face-to-face interviews.

The findings show that the frequency and nature of small group work in collaboration was underestimated in the initial planning of the new workspace. Although participants found the design and fit-out of the formal meeting rooms supportive of collaborative work, the meeting rooms were in high demand, and it was difficult to find a room at short notice. The breakout spaces were confusing because they lacked key design attributes identified by the participants as conducive to small group work. Design shortfalls together with fit-out features perceived as supportive of collaborative work are identified.

The research reports on employees’ perceptions and experiences across two functionally diverse business units, reflecting their different needs and concerns.

According to the critic Tom Lubbock, ‘Cloth is the universal free element. It doesn't have to explain itself. It performs’ (Lubbock, 2002). Cloth drapes and folds, becoming a membrane separating what is outside from what is inside. In this chapter, I draw on the writings of de Certeau, Rendell, Tschumi, etc. to develop ideas concerning the ways in which the use and understanding of textiles may move our perceptions of the boundaries of space, and the location of place. I argue that cloth may contain the identity of place, and that lace and lace net-works provide a starting point for the exploration of fluid space as described by Isozaki, Ishigami, etc. ¹ I also discuss those structures/mise-en-scène which frame our awareness and interpretation of place and space. Examples of work drawn from art, cinema and architecture are used to illuminate those ideas which question the materiality and purpose of form and enclosure.