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A Conference on Industrial Training Research was held on 15 November last, organised by the Industrial Training Research Unit jointly with the Ergonomics Research Society. The purpose was to give training officers and researchers an idea of the range and type of projects currently sponsored by the Department of Employment and some of the Industrial Training Boards. It has been decided that the best way to do this was to have several short papers rather than three or four longer and more detailed presentations.

The aim is to expose shoddy and unprofessional thinking and activity amongst some trainers.

The paper uses dictionary definitions and experience to expose linguistic errors by trainers who label their courses as workshops – when they are not.

The analysis shows that trainers mis‐use the English language in order to promote their courses.

The practical implications for the buyers of learning and development activity is to beware of trainers disguising their courses as workshops.

One implication is the waste by organizations on courses that masquerade as workshops – hence reducing practical application and transfer of learning.

No‐one has written on this subject before.

Reflects on the development of the concept of a learning organisation as a tool for business success. Argues that, unlike many management ideas, organisational learning is not a “fad” but is increasingly accepted as a vital strategy for organisational survival and development in a continually changing environment. The learning organisation is seen as an aspiration for a continuous process with the potential to energise people for very long periods of time, rather than providing a quick‐fix solution. Whilst creating sustainable knowledge which can be valued as an asset on the balance sheet it also makes organisations more productive, profitable and more humane places to work.

Looks at, discussing in depth, a number of works based on the learning organization. Compares, their strengths and weaknesses, and uses them to illustrate the possibilities and dangers of the current excitement regarding the learning organization. Concludes by redefining the learning organization, suggesting that it is the final level in a learning pyramid.

The paper is aims to promote both dialogue and action around learning in organizations.

The basis of the paper is in the collective experience of the 13 authors who produced the Declaration.

The paper argues for the central importance of learning for all organizations.

The research for the paper is in the collective writings of the 13 authors.

The practical implications of the ideas promoted can be considerable. Very few organizations practise what is suggested in the paper.

The paper is of value to anyone working in organizations, not just learning and development professionals. It can be the basis for developing organizational learning strategies.

Introduces a process capability index which indicates the incapability of a process to meet its specifications. This incapability index is obtained by a transformation of the C*pmindex, and it is more informative than C*pm. This transformation allows one to separate information concerning the process variation from information concerning the departure from the process target. As a result, departure from the process target can be assessed without process variation, and vice versa. Presents a number of practical estimators and confidence bounds (intervals).

Examines both consultant and client perceptions of the consulting relationship, focusing on internal process consultants and a sample of their clients. Employs a procedure based on repertory grid technique to elicit dimensions of client‐consultant relationships from 22 consultants and 16 of their clients within a major UK company. Develops a questionnaire in order to determine the importance and frequency of these dimensions, and also to investigate any perceived differences between the views of clients and consultants. Dimensions fell within four broad categories: clients’ skills and behaviours; consultants’ skills and behaviours; contract details or the logistics of the project; and dimensions focusing specifically on the client‐consultant relationship. Clients focused particularly on the contract details, placing less emphasis on the importance of either their own skills and behaviours or the relationship they formed with the consultant. Consultants, on the other hand, viewed relationship building as most important. Makes recommendations for establishing and enhancing client‐consultant relationships.

The purpose of the paper is the construction of confidence intervals for the ratio of the values of process capability index C_pm for two processes. These confidence intervals can be used for comparing the capability of any pair of competitive processes.

Two methods for constructing confidence intervals for the ratio of the values of process capability index C_pm for two processes are proposed. The suggested techniques are based on a two-step approximation of the doubly non-central F distribution. Their performance is tested via simulation.

The performance of the suggested techniques seems to be rather satisfactory even for small samples, as illustrated through the use of simulated data.

The practical implication of the suggested techniques is that they can be implemented in real-world applications, since they can be used for comparing the capability of any pair of competitive processes.

The paper presents two new methods for constructing confidence intervals for the ratio of the values of process capability index C_pm for two processes.

The purpose of this paper is to review the literature on organisational cultural change and problems in its implementation, focussing on the case of building a learning organisation (LO) within university library context.

Key literature published within Library and Information Science, Business and Management and other related fields were reviewed to identify themes regarding organisational cultural change in relation to development of an LO emerging in the recent years.

Reviewed literature in this paper highlights key challenges in examining organisational cultural change for the purpose of building an LO. These include a lack of an agreed definition of the LO concept, practical approaches and measure for assessing achievement of the cultural change. A need for in-depth studies which focus on current practices and related problems in this regard is also revealed, and the systems approach is proposed as a suitable approach for holistic investigation of all critical elements that possibly affect establishment of an LO.

The paper raises awareness of the importance of examining organisational cultural change as a critical supportive influence of developing an LO. Problems to be considered in its implementation are synthesised and served as a basis for further investigation in the author’s doctoral research project.