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A family business founded by Chinese immigrants grew into a $133 million toy and costume maker by exploiting seasonal niche segments in the highly competitive, global toy industry. Sales of traditional toys stagnated when replaced by game consoles and electronic toys. Unable to compete in high tech toys, MegaToys moved instead toward seasonal products. In 2007, brothers Peter and Charlie Woo were about to pitch what they hoped would be $63 million in Easter basket sales to Wal-Mart. If Wal-Mart took the full order, it would come to represent over half of MegaToys' revenue.

The company was faced with the dilemma of how to grow, and at what pace. Charlie Woo knew that MegaToys could continue to grow as long as it was able to satisfy Wal-Mart's demands. Peter Woo wondered if this was the smartest way to grow the business. “Growth is a good thing as long as you don't sell your shirt to get it,” he noted. Should MegaToys continue to increase its sales to Wal-Mart, or would dependence on Wal-Mart eventually threaten the firm's success? Were there other, untapped opportunities for MegaToys that were well aligned with its strengths, resources, and capabilities?

This chapter describes, both from a personal and historical perspective, the ascendancy and incumbency of Leroy D. Baca as sheriff of Los Angeles County, comparing and contrasting his leadership, ensconced in new age terminology, with that of his predecessors, Sherman Block and Peter J. Pitchess. Of immediate concern were his personal decisions, in particular the appointment of Paul Tanaka to be his undersheriff after many years serving as his campaign treasurer. What was considered a marginally functional merit-based promotional system was transformed into a political patronage model, with the attendant loss of organizational legitimacy and tarnished public reputation. The chapter will compare and contrast life within the “car,” as the term is commonly used within the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department, and life outside the car, through first-hand accounts, testimony from the Citizen’s Commission on Jail Violence, depositions, and published reports. Using the concept of representative bureaucracy, I will track organizational diversity as a performance measure, using the relative inclusion of all employee groups in the rank structure of the department and how each group fared under the Baca/Tanaka administration. In conclusion, this chapter will present different coping mechanisms utilized by employees confronting serious corruption issues that impacted them directly, and indirectly through the organization.

Adaptive reuse of older commercial buildings, particularly in countries such as the USA, has been regarded by building owners and developers as uneconomic. Retention of older commercial buildings has commonly been regarded as a barrier to progress and a hindrance to the regeneration of older urban areas. This paper aims to examine the program and legislation that is adopted to encourage the adaptive reuse of commercial buildings in the downtown area of Los Angeles (LA) in the USA, as it is considered to be an exemplar example of how a regeneration strategy makes a contribution to sustainability. It seeks to assess the effectiveness of adaptive reuse of redundant buildings as a commercially viable and effective strategy for urban regeneration that meets the criteria of sustainability.

A case example is used to examine the underlying factors that have contributed to LA being an exemplar for adaptive re‐use and its contribution to sustainability.

Urban regeneration requires a vision and a continued commitment to sustainability. In the case of LA, there is clearly evidence of a commitment to sustainability through the implementation of an adaptive re‐use program. A key to this strategy's success is the offering of incentives. Such incentives are required to entice investment and involvement in the program. The ability to make commercial buildings attractive to developers as viable reuse projects relied heavily on the use of legislation that reduces code and zoning requirements and offers substantial financial incentives in the form of tax concessions. The advantages of adaptive reuse in terms of sustainability appear to outweigh the advantages of demolition and new development as experienced in LA. Certainly in terms of urban regeneration the adaptive reuse program in the downtown area appears to have been something of a catalyst in prompting investment in major developments.

The sharing of experiences is pivotal to learning. Such situated learning can provide clients, and industry practitioners with insights about how adaptive re‐use can be used to promote sustainable outcomes. The experiences of LA emphasize the need to consider emphasis on not only environmental and economic benefits but also issues of social equity such as low cost housing for lower income groups. Generally, the objectives of reusing old buildings appear to coincide with many of the desired outcomes of sustainability, but further research is needed to assess the viability of adaptive reuse as a strategy for urban regeneration and sustainability.

Children are becoming heavy users of communication and information technologies from an early age. These technologies carry risks to which children may be exposed. In collaboration with the Israel Ministry of Education (IME), the authors launched a week-long safe online awareness program for school children in 257 elementary and middle schools in Israel. Each class independently composed a safe and ethical code of online behavior following two classroom debate sessions. The purpose of this study was to analyze these codes and learn how school children perceive and understand the proper use of the network using thematic analysis.

A total of 8,181 students between the ages of 8 and 14 years in 303 classes from 257 schools participated in the program. These classes composed 303 ethical codes, which were decomposed into 2,201 elements (phrases, sentences, or paragraphs). Using mixed-methods research combining quantitative and qualitative methodologies, the elements of the ethical codes were analyzed, interpreted, and classified to identify the dominant themes and discourses used by the students when addressing issues related to safe online use.

Findings indicate that Israeli students are aware of the dangers and risks of the internet, and these concerns are reflected in their own ethical codes. The students discouraged online self-exposure and encouraged precautions and wariness towards members of out-groups. The themes included sentences which asked for responsible, appropriate, and lawful use, expressed concern about privacy issues, and stated the need for adult involvement. Most of them reflected an “us against them (strangers)” perspective.

The current study presents an innovative “bottom-up” program based on wisdom of the crowd approach, that can be implemented in schools internationally in order to encourage reflexivity and teach children the necessary skills for safe online experiences. In addition, this study analyses the school children’s own views of the dangers of social media and learn about their perspective and understanding of internet use.

A lot has been discussed about Peter Drucker, and there exists significant written content admiring or criticizing his work as a management writer. This paper aims to offer a holistic analysis of Peter Drucker’s written contributions to better understand his views of society, government and organizations of all kinds.

Many have written about Peter Drucker and his considerable impact on the practical and philosophical foundations of modern management. Yet, there has been no systematic scholarly evaluation of Drucker as a writer, although many have praised and criticized his written work on management. In this study, the authors offer an analysis of Peter Drucker’s written contributions to evaluate his central contributions, as well as how he communicated his ideas on society and management.

A comprehensive analysis of Drucker’s word usage and writing style throughout his writing career forms an evidence-based approach to better understand his viewpoints and objectively evaluate the criticisms surrounding his work.

This research contributes to a better understanding of Peter Drucker’s central contributions, concerns and sentiments, as it relates to not only business management but also to his views of society, government and organizations of all kinds. A reconsideration of Drucker as a writer presents possible implications for the practice of management.

The purpose of this study is to mirror the late guitarist Peter Green’s life experiences through insights from Andrew Voyce, who recovered from mental illness, and expertise from Peter Bryngelsson, a Swedish professional musician and author.

The authors used a mixed method of collaborative autoethnography, psychobiography and digital team ethnography.

Despite having not previously attracted academic interest, Peter Green’s experiences of mental health problems and his return to recording and performance provide a rich data source when mirrored and compared to the lives and experiences of Andrew Voyce and Peter Bryngelsson.

The main limitation of this piece of work is that Peter Green died in 2020. During the process of writing, the authors have had to follow different, mostly unacademic, sources that have described various parts of Peter Green’s life. The authors have given examples and drawn conclusions from their own lives as well as from academic sources, which they have found appropriate.

Both Andrew Voyce and Peter Bryngelsson’s stories would be helpful when it comes to a deeper understanding as to why Peter Green “took a left turn”, i.e., turned his back on an accepted lifestyle.

Acid casualty is a problem connected to both mental distress and to the music industry. Peter Bryngelsson’s story tells us that one can remain sane and drug free and still be an influential and creative musician.

The analysis has brought together two stories of mental distress in combination with insights.

Rebuild L.A. was the organizational response to the 1992 riots/rebellion in Los Angeles, created to promote economic development in the affected areas. This research links the initial failure of RLA to tensions in the public—private partnership concept on which it was based. While these tensions emanated from broader issues of state-market realignment, they were institutionalized within RLA by its chair. Peter Ueberroth, drawing from his previous public leadership positions with the Los Angeles Olympic Organizing Committee and the Council on California Competitiveness. Analysis explains how those tensions shaped organizational processes within RLA and limit its policy legacy. Conclusions address the lessons which RLA offer for future utilization of public—private partnerships in American cities — focusing on the minimum requisites of participatory processes, role definition, and accountability.

Increasingly, managers are harried by rapidly accelerating technological changes, globalization, and new competitors. How can they cope with the mercurial environments their firms are facing today? Should they stop wasting precious time thinking strategically and instead concentrate on action? Should they forget about careful pre‐planning and use their energy to try enough different approaches so some will surely succeed? Has strategizing as we know it become obsolete in today's chaotic environment?