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The effects of material parameters and processing conditions on the resistance drop by high voltage discharge in PVC – graphite thick film resistors are studied in this paper. The resistance drop increased upon an increase in graphite aggregate size, which is a function of material parameters and processing conditions. The resistance drop has been attributed to the dielectrophoretic motion of graphite particles in PVC by the application of high voltages to polymer thick film resistors.

Entrepreneurship.

The case can be taught for students at the Master's level and research scholars in management education.

Univexcellence was an idea conceived by Surbhi from her science project in 1997 when she was studying at Kendriya Vidyalaya, Jaipur, India. The science project model was based on the theme “World is a classroom, room is university”. It was shown that the world would be converted into a room, and the room itself would become a University through satellite communication. Surbhi decided to become a computer engineer and learn about it herself so as to become self-dependent as a business woman. Keeping this in mind, she completed a computer engineering course. A strong sense of efficacy enhances human accomplishment and personal well-being in many ways. Surbhi has proved it in her case.

The case describes challenges and setbacks faced by a woman entrepreneur and through her self-confidence and persistence, illustrate show she solved them to the benefit of her business.

Teaching notes are available for educators only. Please contact your library to gain login details or e-mail support@emeraldinsight.com to request teaching notes.

Vibratory weld conditioning parameters have a great influence on the improvement of mechanical properties of weld connections. The purpose of this paper is to understand the influence of vibratory weld conditioning on the mechanical and microstructural characterization of aluminum 5052 alloy weldments. An attempt is made to understand the effect of the vibratory tungsten inert gas (TIG) welding process parameters on the hardness, ultimate tensile strength and microstructure of Al 5052-H32 alloy weldments.

Aluminum 5052 H32 specimens are welded at different combinations of vibromotor voltage inputs and time of vibrations. Voltage input is varied from 50 to 230 V at an interval of 10 V. At each voltage input to the vibromotor, there are three levels of time of vibration, i.e. 80, 90 and 100 s. The vibratory TIG-welded specimens are tested for their mechanical and microstructural properties.

The results indicate that the mechanical properties of aluminum alloy weld connections improved by increasing voltage input up to 160 V. Also, it has been observed that by increasing vibromotor voltage input beyond 160 V, mechanical properties were reduced significantly. It is also found that vibration time has less influence on the mechanical properties of weld connections. Improvement in hardness and ultimate tensile strength of vibratory welded joints is 16 and 14%, respectively, when compared without vibration, i.e. normal weld conditions. Average grain size is measured as per ASTM E 112–96. Average grain size is in the case of 0, 120, 160 and 230 is 20.709, 17.99, 16.57 and 20.8086 µm, respectively.

Novel vibratory TIG welded joints are prepared. Mechanical and micro-structural properties are tested.

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the prominence of mechanical excitations at the time of welding. In the past years, the process of welding technology has expanded its influence in manufacturing. The crucial drawback of conventional welding is prompted by internal stresses and distortions, which is the focal reason for weld defects. These weld defects can be diminished by the process called post-weld heat treatment (PWHT), which consumes more working hours and needs skilled workers. To replace these PWHT processes, mechanical vibrations are introduced during the process of welding to diminish these weld defects.

In the current research, the mechanical vibrations are transferred to weld-pool through vibro-motor and DC motor connected to the electrode. As per standards, the tensile test specimens were prepared for welding with different voltages of vibro-motor and DC motor respectively. The weld joints were tested for tensile strength and analyzed the microstructure at the fusion zone.

Melt-ability at fusion zone of 1018 mild steel was investigated by the single-stroke intense heat process of fusion welding. It is observed that the mechanical vibrations technique has a profound influence on the enhancement of the fusion zone characteristics and grain structure. The peak value of the tensile strength is observed at 100 s of vibration, 190 V of vibro-motor voltage and 18 V of electrode voltage. The tensile strength of the welded joints with vibrations is increased up to 22.64% when it is compared with conventional welding. The enhancement of the tensile strength of the weld bead was obtained because of the formation of fine grain structure. So, mechanical vibrations are identified as the most convenient method for improving the mild steel alloys weld quality.

A novel approach called mechanical vibrations during the process of welding is implemented for fusion zone refinement.

The purpose of this paper is to develop a group acceptance sampling plan (GASP) for a resubmitted lot when the lifetime of a product follows odds exponential log logistic distribution introduced by Rao and Rao (2014). The parameters of the proposed plan such as minimum group size and acceptance number are determined for a pre-specified consumer’s risk, number of testers and the test termination time. The authors compare the proposed plan with the ordinary GASP, and the results are illustrated with live data example.

The parameters of the proposed plan such as minimum group size and acceptance number are determined for a pre-specified consumer’s risk, number of testers and the test termination time.

The authors determined the group size and acceptance number.

No specific limitations.

This methodology can be applicable in industry to study quality control.

This methodology can be applicable in health study.

The parameters of the proposed plan such as minimum group size and acceptance number are determined for a pre-specified consumer’s risk, number of testers and the test termination time.

This paper aims to focus on how reciprocal mentoring can be used to make employees culturally intelligent.

The authors conceptualize and present this framework based on their own experience in the industry and research experience in cross-cultural competence.

Workplaces today are characterized by high levels of multiculturalism. In such environments, being able to navigate this cultural diversity can be a challenge to many employees. Investing in cross-cultural training can be costly and time consuming. In such a situation, what better way to learn and appreciate cultural diversity than by bringing together two individuals from different cultural backgrounds. Reciprocal mentoring for developing cultural intelligence can be an effective practice that organizations can follow to develop intercultural competence amongst its employees.

The concept presented in the paper can help organizations use their own existing resources to develop cultural intelligence company-wide, rather than choosing third-party interventions/training.

This paper provides executives with a quick glimpse into the concept of cultural intelligence and its development through reciprocal mentoring.

Various research studies have been carried out to study Chief Executive Officers’ (CEOs’) transformational leadership in driving organizational performance and success. Evidence shows that few studies were carried out on CEO transformational leadership and top management team (TMT) performance in Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) region. Thus, this study aims to provide a unique contribution and the first of its kind to examine the CEO leadership–TMT performance link across GCC countries.

In this study, the researchers approached 500 employees and 30 CEOs working in 30 different organizations operating in the GCC countries. The firms were selected conveniently from different industries located in the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Oman and Bahrain. The researchers used the PASW (SPSS) program to analyze the data.

The findings show that psychological empowerment has no significant role in moderating the transformational leadership – TMT performance relationship. Internal support for innovation plays a significant role in mediating the relationship between transformational leadership and TMT performance.

The present study has not examined the behavioral aspects of CEO followers. Future research may study behavioral characteristics of the entire TMT.

This study contributes to body of research that identifies CEO transactional leadership as perceived by the followers was found to be more important in predicting TMT performance than transformational leadership in the context of organizations located in GCC countries. Managerial implications and future research areas are further discussed.

This paper elicits information, an excess of information and the stakeholders’ role in the use of information. The purpose of this paper is to create a “C5 model” (clients, connectivity, content, copyright and cost) for the consortium management to support and improve its academic and administrative decision-making skills and optimize returns.

The methodology used for this study was “strength, weakness, opportunity and threat” (SWOT) analysis. As a tool, it was used as one of the strategic analytical techniques to evaluate various aspects of consortium management. The purpose of choosing this method was to derive a set of strategies for comparing the internal (strengths/weaknesses) and external (opportunities/threats) forces of the “C5 model” of consortium management.

From the SWOT analysis of the “C5 model,” it was observed that four combinations, maxi-maxi (strengths/opportunities (SO), mini-maxi (weaknesses/opportunities (WO), maxi-mini (strengths/threats (ST)) and mini-mini (weaknesses/threats (WT)), were drawn to derive a set of strategies to benefit the consortium management. The SO strategies such as building a client-centric resource management system, centralized gateway, collaborative acquisition model, common copyright communication and clearance center and cost-benefit analysis were built on the basis of the strengths and opportunities identified. Likewise, the WO strategies such as organizational planning, equality in ICT infrastructure facilities, quality content, public disclosure of copyright obligations and effective economic models were drawn to minimize the weaknesses of each component by taking advantage of the identified opportunities. The ST strategies were worked out using strengths of the model to possibly mitigate its threats. Similarly, the WT strategies were created to minimize the weaknesses and avoid the threats as much as possible. However, these strategies would not only help consortium management in the decision-making process, but also optimize returns and improve the intellectual outcome of organizations.

Not many research studies have been developed regarding the SWOT analysis of the “C5 model” for consortium management. This study attempts to benefit a large community of library and information science professionals, consortia and their clients.

The purpose of this study is to explore the importance of vibrations during welding process. In recent years, welding has gained its supremacy in the field of production. The main set back of the welding process is induced residual stresses, which is a major cause for many welding defects. These defects can be minimized by post-weld heat treatment methods, which is a time consuming and laborious process. In the recent past, a technique of exciting the weld-pool by vibrating the work-pieces was also adopted to minimize the above-mentioned stresses. A novel technique of electrode vibration is another effective way of transferring the vibrations to the weld-pool to influence the induced residual stress.

In this research, the electrode is vibrated with the help of an electric motor. The specimens were prepared as per American Society for Testing and Materials standards and welded with varying frequencies and voltages. The weldments are tested for hardness along the weld bead and heat affected zone, also the microstructure of the fusion zone is analyzed.

It is observed that there is an improvement in the hardness because of the grain refinement, which is a result of proper excitation of the weld-pool. It is observed that there is an improvement in hardness test up to 28.69% when compared with the conventional welding process. The peak value of hardness is observed at a frequency of 4,450 Hz. This is because of fine grain structure at this frequency, which is observed through the microstructure analysis.

A novel technique is introduced to refine the weld-pool through electrode vibrations. To improve the hardness of the welded joints, vibrations play a major role by refining the grain structure. The vibrations are imparted with the help of a special equipment attached to the electrode.

The purpose of this study was to examine the impact of action learning programs on individual performance improvement and career progression in a large banking sector organization in the UAE.

A conceptual model was proposed and measured the outcomes of the action learning program variables in a public sector bank in the UAE. A total of 106 employees of the organization who had participated in a certified management program (CMP) have responded to the survey.

The outcomes of action learning program variables, such as self-efficacy, teamwork and performance management, were found to have an influence significantly on individual performance improvement.

As the current study was focused on banking sector only, similar studies from other industries/sectors (e.g. trading, services, etc.) can be taken up for further research by including antecedents and consequences of participants of action learning programs.

This study could offer specific guidance to managers as to how and what type of education and learning programs to be provided to their team members for competency development and career progression.

As the UAE economy is growing and population staying in the region is becoming multicultural, there is an ample need for managers to foster learning and education environment in various organizations to change culture and managerial practices toward achieving organizational objectives.

The study is original and provides value and direction for managers and senior management on talent development processes.