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Purpose – The purpose of this study is to understand the effectiveness of national crisis response networks (NCRN) in a broad sense, including the domains of governance, and strategic and tactical management. The chapter thus moves beyond views considering crisis response a reactive, tactical level effort. Specifically, it focuses on the role of military organizations in NCRNs.

Methodology/approach – After building a research framework based on organization and military studies, this case study examines the organizational response to the disaster that was caused by the tropical cyclone “Katrina”; the data used are qualitative.

Findings – The results highlight the ex-ante lack of preparedness of organizations to cooperate in a NCRN. Once Katrina hit in 2005, confusion and tensions permeated interorganizational relationships for a number of days.

Research limitations/implications – Implications for researchers and practitioners center on the NCRN's backbone organizations and communities potentially affected. Through tension management and network-level investments in knowledge and routines they can contribute to effective crisis response. The framework could be applied to other national crises. Case studies can be generalized in a conceptual sense.

Originality/value of paper – Katrina has been studied quite extensively yet from a crisis response perspective. This chapter offers a reflection that broadens the scope of our understanding of NCRNs, with an emphasis on the military.

This paper aims to report on a study that aims to establish a list of systematically classified key performance indicators (KPIs) that are useful for hospital facilities management (FM).

A review of literature was conducted to identify indicators that are applicable to hospital FM. Each indicator was classified using a phase–hierarchy (P-H) model, which is a two-dimensional matrix comprising three phases (input, process and output) of facilities services delivery and three hierarchical FM levels (operational, tactical and strategic). The classified indicators were further shortlisted via a focus group study.

From the literature review, 61 indicators were identified as applicable to hospital FM. Most of the indicators, according to the P-H model, are for evaluating the FM input or output phase, at the strategic or tactical level. Further refinement and shortlisting of the indicators by the focus group experts resulted in 18 KPIs, which fall into 4 aspects: “physical”, “safety”, “environmental” and “financial”.

The study illustrates that the P-H model is useful for classifying the performance indicators systematically along the two fundamental FM dimensions – phase and hierarchy. Further research may use this model to classify performance indicators in other contexts.

The method of this study can be adapted for use in identifying, classifying and shortlisting FM performance indicators for other types of buildings. The shortlisted KPIs can be used for assessing the FM performance of hospitals.

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this study is the first of its kind that used the P-H model to classify hospital FM performance indicators.

Contractor selection is critical in green buildings (GBs) since the preferred contractor has the responsibility to achieve construction sustainability as well as relationship sustainability. The developer satisfaction reflecting requirements can boost the cooperative relationship among stakeholders and act as an evaluation scale for the success of GB projects, which needs to be emphasized in the selection process but little involved in the existing research. This study explores improving GB contractor (GBC) selection by integrating developer satisfaction into selection procedures.

A systematic framework of GBC selection including twenty-five criteria from literature review and experts survey is firstly constructed. Both tactical and strategic criteria are further classified into Kano categories (must-be, one-dimensional, and attractive categories) using the fuzzy Kano model (FKM), and weighted by the developer satisfaction index. The model proposed by this study combining FKM and TOPSIS divides the selection process into the filtration phase and selection phase by Kano categories. The proposed model is finally verified through performance comparison among multiple methods in a case.

Selection criteria are measured linearly and nonlinearly, showing criteria having nonlinear satisfaction change accounts for two-thirds of all. Criteria at tactical level tend to be must-be or one-dimensional categories for the developer, and most strategic criteria are classed as the attractive category, indicating that adding strategic criteria is necessary for long-term cooperation. The proposed model, using developer satisfaction to improve the selection process, ensures the selected GBC to be the most satisfactory with requirements of the developer and makes the performance of GBCs easily distinguishable.

This study contributes to the existing body of knowledge for promoting relationship sustainability by supplementing an integrated model with emphasis on developer satisfaction in GBC selection, so as to establish a good initial foundation due to the match between performances of GBCs and needs of developers. It not only helps maximize developer satisfaction in GBC selection by applying satisfaction to pre-construction management, but also instructs GBCs to prioritize performance improvements. The framework is also conducive for developers to classify selection criteria and select other participants (like green suppliers) from the satisfaction perspective in GBs.

The objective of this monograph is to describe the industrial logistics structure within consumer goods industries and to provide a framework upon which the significance of the integrated industrial logistics system could be determined. The method of approach adopted is to define those problems which may occur within the logistics structure, define an ideal type of organisational structure and to monitor the effect of each type of decision within the established framework. Since all the elements of logistics add cost to a product, throughout the latter half of the discussion there is considerable emphasis upon methods of achieving the minimum cost throughout the channel.

The success of every business depends to a large extent on its corporate real estate (CRE), given that, it is the physical assets that support its operations. To achieve this success, organizations must adopt a strategic approach to CRE management. The purpose of this paper is to examine the extent of adoption of strategic corporate real estate management (SCREM) practice in Ghana based on the views of CRE managers.

The embedded mixed method approach was adopted for the study. In total, 72 CRE managers were selected from 35 institutions in 5 sectors (tertiary education, health, banking, security and service industry) where real estate is a requirement for accreditation using a multi-stage sampling technique.

An analysis of the existing practices underpinning SCREM in Ghana showed that SCREM has not been adopted completely in Ghanaian institutions. No organization has a complete systematic structure in place for SCREM as the practice is evolving. This finding correlates the global trend that CRE is not strategically managed like other corporate resources.

Current SCREM practices in Ghana, as divulged by this research, provide useful insight into the current status quo of SCREM and what must be done to ensure that CRE achieves its attribute of value adding.

The paper outlines the elements of SCREM practice, adding to the limited literature on the practice in Ghana and worldwide. It also sets the stage for further research in SCREM practice and CRE performance.

This paper aims to evaluate a range of best practice knowledge management (KM) ideas used to manage knowledge resources. In total, four KM toolkits and 16 KM tools were tested over a five-year period (2008-2013), as part of a large-scale longitudinal change project. Each tool was assessed against an evaluative framework designed to test criticisms of KM: strategy, implementation and performance. The results provide empirical evidence about which KM tools work and which do not and why, and outcomes for practitioners, researchers and consultants.

The case study organization participating in the study was selected because it was a knowledge-intensive organization, with an ageing workforce. An invitation and cover letter explaining the study were sent via email to all 150 engineering and technical staff at the case study organization. Therefore, the entire population was included in the study. Respondents were asked to attend training workshops. Following each workshop, respondents were asked to complete feedback in the form of learning journals and to be involved in work-place based trials of the KM tools. Both management and staff participated in the project.

The results provide empirical evidence that KM can be used to manage knowledge resources. The highest rating toolkit was knowledge strategy, followed by knowledge measurement. The most value was created by using KM to introduce objectivity into future thinking (future capability requirements) and decisions when filling competency gaps (sourcing). The results tended to support criticism that KM is difficult to implement and identified the main barriers as participation located at the operational action research level, i.e. how do we make this work? Evidence that KM works was found in progress towards learning organization capacity and in practical outcomes.

The action research cycle and learning flows provide opportunities to examine barriers to KM implementation. The research also presents opportunities for further research to examine the findings in other organizational and industry settings, for example, the relationship between the KM toolkits and organizational change and performance, presents an important area for further research. Researchers might also consider some of the toolkits which rated poorly, e.g. knowledge creation (KC), and challenge these findings, perhaps selecting different KC tools for testing. The paper has limitations. It is based on a single case study organization, offset, to some degree, by the longitudinal nature of the empirical evidence. It is ambitious, and the findings may be controversial. However, the depth of the study and its findings provide rare longitudinal empirical evidence about KM, and the results should be useful for practitioners, researchers and consultants.

There are many critics of KM. It has been described as overwhelmingly optimistic and managerial rhetoric; that its claims are false; and that many KM initiatives fail and, therefore, it does not create value for the firm, and its return on investment is unlikely. There is a shortage of empirical studies demonstrating an actual connection between KM and organizational performance. Despite widespread interest and growth in investment by practitioners and growth in research, KM needs validation to give people confidence in its value and some of the problems associated with implementation. This paper provides rare empirical evidence gathered from a five-year (2008-2013) large-scale longitudinal change project to address this gap. For practitioners, the research findings provide management with an evaluative framework to use when making decisions regarding KM.

Much of the previous research on this topic looks at specific KM tools only, and often at one point in time. This study examined a wide range of best-practice KM tools as part of an integrated set of KM systems, launched at the same time and studied over five years. The study did not examine what the case study does in terms of KM. Instead, it deliberately introduced tools which were new to the case study organization. The results provide practical outcomes in terms of the effectiveness of KM when introduced to an organization as a system of integrated tools, and what happens in the five years that follow.

The tourism sector of the state of Kerala in India is highly vulnerable and has been extensively impacted by the global pandemic disaster. This paper aims to analyze the impact of COVID-19 (Corona virus pandemic) on houseboat operators and homestay managers.

This paper indicates a multi-stakeholder assessment method to examine various pandemic disaster facets through a structured discussion with different destination stakeholders. This study examines qualitative data collected through semi-structured interviews from homestay owners, houseboat operators and government designators in Kerala. This study proposes a conceptual community resilience competency framework that could facilitate speedy crisis management responses. In this study, the sample comprises of nine respondents who play a pivotal role in the travel business, comprising the public sector, private sector, NGO's and community leaders.

The qualitative findings identify India’s and the state of Kerala's roles in handling crisis management scenarios over internal strategies and strategy formulation. The results indicate that the supplementary industry practitioners explore tactical and strategic management initiatives to sustain their businesses. The dynamics of stakeholder engagement adopted by the state is given prominence.

This study suggests mechanisms to re-establish the brand image and the possible strategies and suggestions that could help in the survival of the Kerala tourism industry in the post-disaster period. The “new normal” has been substantiated in the study by incorporating strategies and precautionary methods adopted by the homestay and houseboat operators so as to address the guests' safety concerns.

The world of business is changing as never before. Faced with unrelenting pressures to achieve and maintain a competitive position, businesses are developing new work processes and channels to market, which render obsolete previously accepted practices for the deployment of workspace. Consequently, managers of workspace have to make a paradigm shift from their traditional transactional and reactive focus to one which is strategic and proactive. At its heart is an accommodation planning process that links effectively the strategic and tactical components, and in so doing ensures the close alignment of provision to the ongoing needs of business through time. Additionally, the performance of the work environment is subjected to rigorous evaluation, where the principal assessment criterion is the extent to which the work environment not only supports, but adds value to, business processes through enabling people to work anytime, any place and anywhere.

There has been increased attention and focus on the importance of intellectual capital disclosure. Several Scandinavian companies have ventured forward by publishing intellectual capital statements. However, despite the global appeal and changing beliefs surrounding the value of intellectual capital, it continues to be excluded from Canadian corporate annual reports. This paper outlines a study in which content analysis was conducted on the annual reports of 10,000 Canadian corporations. A list of intellectual capital related terms was searched within the annual reports yielding a significantly small number of instances in which intellectual capital disclosure took place. A major recommendation for corporations who are concerned with their relationship with the capital markets is to develop strategic and tactical initiatives that provide for voluntary disclosure of intellectual capital. These initiatives may initially be used for internal management purposes only, however, an external stakeholder‐focus report will more than likely should be the ultimate goal.