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Market liberalisation has resulted in significant changes not only in the way electricity is traded, but also for the market participants themselves. The bidding behaviour of market participants who are active in a liberalised UK‐like market has been modelled. Both operational and technical parameters associated with the market and its participants are accounted for. Explicit characterization of risk (value at risk) is made with respect to market participants and their attitude to trading. Profit maximization strategies for market participants are then developed based on the minimization of price‐risk under uncertainty. Results are presented for a selected case study and the effect of alternative strategies is compared. The case study concerns several generators who need to determine what proportion of their production they should sell to the market. The results show that based on cost and price forecasts there is scope for generators to profitably take advantage of both contractual and within‐day market trades.

At almost 1,500 feet above sea level Wanlockhead is the highest village in Scotland, lying in the Lowther Hills some eight miles above Sanquhar in Nithsdale and a similar distance from Abington in Lanarkshire, above the Clyde Valley. The name of its close neighbour, Leadhills, gives the clue to why inhabitants could have been induced to settle in such a remote, bleak and inhospitable location, for lead had been mined in the area since the Middle Ages. It was during the Seventeenth Century that mining in the area became a significant activity and in the Eighteenth Century the numbers of miners and their employees increased dramatically and social and village life developed.

This chapter begins with a reflection on the call for investigating how entrepreneurial competencies are developed (Bird, 1995) in the context of university-based entrepreneurship centers. Through clarifying the nature of entrepreneurial competencies and applying a social constructivist perspective of learning, it is proposed that effective nurturing of entrepreneurial competencies for university students through entrepreneurship centers shall be based on five key characteristics; namely, active experimentation, authenticity, social interaction, sense of ownership, and scaffolding support. The chapter contributes to the literature through establishing a link between entrepreneurship education and entrepreneurial competencies in the context of university-based entrepreneurship centers, which have become an increasingly popular way for promoting entrepreneurial development. The practical implications on nurturing entrepreneurs through entrepreneurship centers are discussed, together with the directions for further research. This chapter is designed as a refection upon Bird’s original article articulating the concept of entrepreneurial competencies. In this chapter, the author outlines how entrepreneurial competencies can be developed through education programs, specifically via entrepreneurship centers.

States that there is continuing difficulty in achieving success with information systems, particularly in the sense of meeting users’ expectations and offers a fresh examination of those attributes of information systems by which users perceive success and failure, and through which they establish their expectations. Reviews existing research literature and suggests that, in addition to the process and product viewpoint, an important factor in achieving success is the service management perspective. Applies repertory grid techniques to uncover a total of 43 constructs which relate to users’ perceptions of success with information systems in business. Reduces these to 21 attributes which provide the basis of a new assessment and measurement framework, incorporating and augmenting the attributes found in previous work in this area. Illustrates the practical use of these attributes using two case studies: an information service provider and a hospital equipment supplier.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the number of children diagnosed with autism has increased dramatically, especially over the past decade. Most recently, the CDC estimates that an average of one in 88 children have an autism spectrum disorder (ASD). In terms of numbers, this translates into approximately 730,000 people between the ages of 0 and 21 who have ASD. While the primary cause(s) of increases in the identification of autistic students continue to generate debate school officials across the nation need to be prepared for the changing legal landscape associated with children diagnosed with ASD. The primary purpose of this chapter is to provide a detailed legal/policy update of the leading legal considerations and concerns involving K-12 students with autism. The chapter will discuss four specific legal topics involving the identification and eligibility of K-12 students with autism. These four legal topics include: Changes in the New DSM-5 Diagnostic Manuel and its Impact on Legal Definitions of Autism; Insurance Reform and Autism Coverage: A Comparison of the States; Developing Legally Compliant Individualized Education Plans (IEPs) for High-Functioning Students with Autism, and; Recent Legal Developments in Case Law Involving K-12 students who are autistic. The chapter will conclude with a detailed discussion of how today’s school officials can become more legally literate and better serve the legal needs of students with autism in their schools.

We explore how NGO’s local entrepreneurial initiatives to empower women entrepreneurs can compensate for weak state policies for women in a context of male-dominated socio-cultural norms.

We use the case of a local entrepreneurial initiative launched in the Atlas region of Morocco, the Empowering Women in the Atlas Initiative (EWA). We collected data through 51 semi-structured interviews of women entrepreneurs in three cooperatives which exploit the natural resources of their region to establish a social venture. Our data are longitudinal as they were collected at two time periods: before and after the initiative.

The findings of this study suggest that local entrepreneurial initiatives can have a significant impact on rural women entrepreneurs’ empowerment. The improved perception of empowerment has not only helped them develop capacities to leverage the business opportunities linked to the natural resources of their region, but it has also increased their status and role within their family and community.

We make recommendations for policymakers to encourage this type of initiative to compensate for the absence of supporting policies geared toward women.

Our study is one of the first to look at empowerment as a policy instrument to develop women entrepreneurial activities in rural areas of developing countries. Our paper uses a unique hierarchical perspective and a multidimensional framework for analyzing social cooperative ventures and rural women entrepreneurs’ empowerment. Our paper unravels interesting insights for women entrepreneurs’ narration strategies.