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The globalisation of markets, emerging concepts of sustainable development, and circular economy have defined the boundaries within which organisations must compete and address the needs of key stakeholders. As circumstances change, boundaries are often replaced by the relationships between companies and the communities they serve. Consequently, strategy has become a central aspect of sustainable leadership and the foundation for implementing strategic management in a dynamic system of relationships. Every company is born and grows within social and economic ecosystems. Drawing on the metaphor of biology, ecosystems are described as dynamic interconnections among various elements that influence and foster entrepreneurship. Interconnections between players (such as marketplaces, organisations, governments, and universities) create a flow of expertise, abilities, knowledge, experience, and tangible resources. Economic and social ecosystems involve various actors and components that continuously coexist and interact, leading to the creation of numerous mutual relationships. Consequently, it is crucial for managers to gain a comprehensive understanding of the internal and external environments. Various decision-making tools and strategies can be used to achieve this goal. These tools were developed to assist managers, researchers, and consultants in making informed decisions under complex scenarios. This chapter presents several decision-making strategies and tools, including the Boston Consulting Group (BCG) matrix, General Electric (GE) matrix, Balanced Scorecard (BSC), PEST, PESTEL analysis, and SWOT analysis.

Adapting to external and internal transformations is a difficult task that managers and scholars must face while attempting to keep their organisations alive and well-established. This chapter explores the various decision-making tools that can assist practitioners and scholars to improve their understanding of the external scenario to determine the contemporary appropriateness of these approaches for analysing the environment and their implications for various types of organisations. The chapter investigates the barriers and drivers of these methods and proposes existing alternative paradigms created by academics and practitioners to analyse and comprehend the context. It demonstrates how these decision-making tools can be implemented by providing examples and case studies.

This chapter provides a review of the literature relating to intellectual capital and firm performance in the context of corporate reputation. Section 2.2 outlines the definitions of intellectual capital and how they differ from the definitions offered for intangibles by accounting regulators. Section 2.3 reviews the categorisation of intellectual capital and looks at two major models of categorisation. Section 2.4 examines the definition of intellectual capital disclosure. Section 2.5 examines firm performance from the viewpoint of firm reputation for value-relevant disclosure. Section 2.6 discusses firm reputation in the context of intellectual capital disclosure. Section 2.7 provides a summary of the chapter.

As more students take online courses as part of their college curricula, the integrity of testing in an online environment becomes increasingly important. The potential for cheating on exams is generally considered to be higher in an online environment. One approach to compensate for the absence of a physical proctor is to use a remote proctoring service that electronically monitors the student during the examination period.

We examined the exam grades for 261 students taking two different upper division accounting courses to determine if a computer-based remote proctoring service reduced the likelihood of cheating, measured through lower exam scores, as compared to classroom proctoring and no proctoring. We examined both online and on-campus courses.

In qualitative and quantitative accounting courses, evidence shows that grades were significantly lower for students who were proctored using a remote proctoring service compared to students who were not proctored. In the quantitative course, remote proctoring resulted in significantly lower final exam scores than either classroom or no proctoring. However, in the qualitative course, both remote proctoring online and live proctoring in a classroom resulted in significantly lower final exam scores than no proctoring, and they are not statistically different from each other.

Academics and administrators should find these results helpful. The results suggest that the use of proctoring services in online courses has the potential to enhance the integrity of online courses by reducing the opportunities for academic dishonesty during exams.

Research has found a subgroup of conservative white males have lower perceptions of risk across a variety of environmental and health hazards. Less research has looked at the views of these “low risk” individuals in group interactions. Through qualitative analysis of a technology deliberation, we note that white men expressing low risk views regarding technologies for energy and the environment also often express high social risks around potential loss of control. We argue these risk perceptions reflect identification with corporate concerns, usually framed in opposition to government and mirroring arguments made by conservative organizations. We situate these views within the broader cultural struggle over who has the power to name and address risks.

Open Courseware, in many ways, was the starting point towards mainstream discussion and adoption of open learning, particularly in higher education. In its first iteration, the concept specifically excluded assessment recognition, and credentialisation, which aims to ‘liberate’ knowledge without shattering the designing, teaching and awarding processes traditional education has relied upon for decades, if not centuries.

Sociology promotes and describes public health, helping to explain macro-social dynamics of mental health care through studies of organizations, networks, and systems of care.

This chapter summarizes sociological research on mental health care organizations and systems, illustrating a macro-social perspective by examining the problem of transitions in care for young adults. Summary findings from a regional mental health services research project describe a system of care that includes 100 organizations. This system helps young adults with mental health needs.

The scope and management of care involves a focus on modes of treatment supported by research evidence and delivered effectively by people with cultural competencies. Care and continuity of care are delivered through coordinated systems of inter-organizational networks, linking organizations and providers. Active inter-organizational linkages are needed to support mental health for young adults during challenging and sometimes difficult transitions.

This research summarizes original and regional data on mental health care organizations within a regional system of care. Practical implications include support for the importance of coordination, transition planning, and cultural competence within and among organizations. Sociological and original research on organizations and systems should continue to elaborate the needs and values of mental health services for regional planning and public health.