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Article
Publication date: 18 December 2007

Winston G. Lewis, Kit F. Pun and Terrence R.M. Lalla

This paper describes the development of a scale for measuring top management commitment towards continual quality performance improvement in small and medium‐sized enterprises…

Abstract

This paper describes the development of a scale for measuring top management commitment towards continual quality performance improvement in small and medium‐sized enterprises (SMEs). A set of self‐assessment questions of the ISO 9004: 2000 Standard was used to assess the adoption status of quality management practices. This paper investigates the inter‐item reliability and the content validity of the Quality Management Principles Scale (QMPS) in an integrated improvement process in SMEs. An empirical study was conducted to acquire senior management views on the use of the QMPS in manufacturing sectors in Trinidad and Tobago. Based on 328 responses from 110 SMEs, statistical software packages were used to analyse the empirical data and determine the reliability and validity of the QMPS. The paper contributes to develop a self‐assessment scale that can be used to measure top management commitment. It is anticipated that the findings would provide practical insights for evaluating the levels of maturity on performance improvement in SMEs.

Details

Asian Journal on Quality, vol. 8 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1598-2688

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 18 December 2005

Winston G. Lewis, Aaron O. Ameerali and Kit‐Fai Pun

This paper explores innovative manufacturing processes, which can be used to manufacture the national musical instrument of Trinidad and Tobago, the Musical Steel Drum or Steel…

Abstract

This paper explores innovative manufacturing processes, which can be used to manufacture the national musical instrument of Trinidad and Tobago, the Musical Steel Drum or Steel Pan. The main manufacturing process used today is the manual hand‐forming technique. In order to achieve more consistent and deeper formed components while maintaining the high quality of the instrument, it is proposed that the Marforming process and the Flow‐forming process, and adaptation of the Spinforming process, be used more frequently in the future to replace the traditional Hand‐forming method. In the traditional Spinforming technique material is pushed from the outer circumference of the metal disc to the center in progressive passes of the former. This results in a thinning of the outer region of the formed component with thickening of the center, however the opposite is required for the musical steel drum and by adapting the process the required strain distributions were achieved. Evaluation took the form of strain analyses of pre‐formed steel drums and visual inspection of the quality of the surface finish. It was found that the Marformed components had the smallest range of strain values while the Spinformed components had the largest range.

Details

Asian Journal on Quality, vol. 6 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1598-2688

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 1 September 2002

Kit‐Fai Pun, Ip‐Kee Hui, Henry C.W. Lau, Hang‐Wai Law and Winston G. Lewis

The increasing consciousness of sustainable development and reconciling production with ecosystem conservation have fostered the adoption and implementation of environmental…

4057

Abstract

The increasing consciousness of sustainable development and reconciling production with ecosystem conservation have fostered the adoption and implementation of environmental management systems (EMS). This paper investigates the critical processes and factors that may affect EMS planning. Empirical findings of a recent study in Hong Kong are presented, and a five‐stage EMS planning framework starting from strategy formulation to system implementation and evaluation is proposed. The framework integrates various perspectives of environmental management and strategy formulation. The paper provides organisations with a procedural guide for implementing environmental management practices. Flexible adaptation of the framework can help organisations derive potential benefits from the EMS implementation leading to sustainable competitive advantage. The framework can be modified to cater for varied business nature and operations in industry.

Details

International Journal of Quality & Reliability Management, vol. 19 no. 6
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0265-671X

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 1 August 2003

Kit‐Fai Pun, Richard C.M. Yam and Winston G. Lewis

Shipping is perhaps the most internationally recognized of all the world's great industries – and one of the most dangerous. It has always been accepted that the best way of…

3662

Abstract

Shipping is perhaps the most internationally recognized of all the world's great industries – and one of the most dangerous. It has always been accepted that the best way of improving safety at sea is by developing international regulations that are followed by most shipping nations. Since 1993, the International Maritime Organization (IMO) has adopted the International Safety Management (ISM) Code as a minimum statutory requirement for ship operating companies to establish, implement and maintain their safety management systems (SMS). This paper compares the ISM Code with the requirements of the ISO 9001:2000 quality management system and the OHSAS 18001:1999 Occupational Health and Safety Standards. It reviews the SMS registration process and discusses the problems and difficulties commonly faced by ship operating companies in the process. A 15‐step implementation strategy for SMS registration is presented. The model provides ship operating companies with a practical reference to manage the SMS registration in compliance with the statutory requirements of the IMO.

Details

International Journal of Quality & Reliability Management, vol. 20 no. 6
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0265-671X

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 1 October 2006

Winston G. Lewis, Kit Fai Pun and Terrence R.M. Lalla

This paper presents the main findings of an empirical study that investigates the effects of the “soft” and “hard” criteria of total quality management (TQM) in four ISO 9001…

3470

Abstract

Purpose

This paper presents the main findings of an empirical study that investigates the effects of the “soft” and “hard” criteria of total quality management (TQM) in four ISO 9001 certified small and medium‐sized enterprises (SME) in Trinidad and Tobago (T&T).

Design/methodology/approach

The study adopted an ethnographic research approach, and used the analytic hierarchy process (AHP) to determine the extent to which these criteria were implemented at the point of ISO 9001 certification. By complementing the literature review, a hierarchy framework of TQM implementation via ISO 9001 was developed. The framework comprised three levels of criteria, sub‐criteria and elements which determine the effectiveness of TQM implementation in SME. Inputs from 16 evaluators including senior executives and representatives from the studied companies were invited. The combined opinions from evaluators were used to identify and prioritize these criteria and components.

Findings

The results showed that the “soft” criteria were implemented less than the “hard” criteria in SME. The AHP findings supplement the body of knowledge existing in compliance requirements of ISO 9001 and provide insights on how SME perceive the importance of “soft” versus “hard” criteria in TQM implementation. These findings highlight the need to align SMEs' prevailing quality culture with top management and considers it as one of the focal compliance requirements for future revisions of the ISO 9001:2000 Standard.

Research limitations/implications

Because of the ethnographic nature of the study, it was possible to obtain data from only four SME.

Practical implications

SME in T&T may apply the findings of the empirical research to design, implement and continually improve their quality management system

Originality/value

This paper makes a contribution to the body of knowledge in the field of quality management in a region where such work is limited. It adds value by empirically measures TQM implementation by determining the extent to which its criteria is implemented in ISO 9001 certified SME.

Details

International Journal of Quality & Reliability Management, vol. 23 no. 8
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0265-671X

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 1 March 1992

John Conway O'Brien

A collection of essays by a social economist seeking to balanceeconomics as a science of means with the values deemed necessary toman′s finding the good life and society enduring…

1134

Abstract

A collection of essays by a social economist seeking to balance economics as a science of means with the values deemed necessary to man′s finding the good life and society enduring as a civilized instrumentality. Looks for authority to great men of the past and to today′s moral philosopher: man is an ethical animal. The 13 essays are: 1. Evolutionary Economics: The End of It All? which challenges the view that Darwinism destroyed belief in a universe of purpose and design; 2. Schmoller′s Political Economy: Its Psychic, Moral and Legal Foundations, which centres on the belief that time‐honoured ethical values prevail in an economy formed by ties of common sentiment, ideas, customs and laws; 3. Adam Smith by Gustav von Schmoller – Schmoller rejects Smith′s natural law and sees him as simply spreading the message of Calvinism; 4. Pierre‐Joseph Proudhon, Socialist – Karl Marx, Communist: A Comparison; 5. Marxism and the Instauration of Man, which raises the question for Marx: is the flowering of the new man in Communist society the ultimate end to the dialectical movement of history?; 6. Ethical Progress and Economic Growth in Western Civilization; 7. Ethical Principles in American Society: An Appraisal; 8. The Ugent Need for a Consensus on Moral Values, which focuses on the real dangers inherent in there being no consensus on moral values; 9. Human Resources and the Good Society – man is not to be treated as an economic resource; man′s moral and material wellbeing is the goal; 10. The Social Economist on the Modern Dilemma: Ethical Dwarfs and Nuclear Giants, which argues that it is imperative to distinguish good from evil and to act accordingly: existentialism, situation ethics and evolutionary ethics savour of nihilism; 11. Ethical Principles: The Economist′s Quandary, which is the difficulty of balancing the claims of disinterested science and of the urge to better the human condition; 12. The Role of Government in the Advancement of Cultural Values, which discusses censorship and the funding of art against the background of the US Helms Amendment; 13. Man at the Crossroads draws earlier themes together; the author makes the case for rejecting determinism and the “operant conditioning” of the Skinner school in favour of the moral progress of autonomous man through adherence to traditional ethical values.

Details

International Journal of Social Economics, vol. 19 no. 3/4/5
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0306-8293

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 1 June 2002

Barrie O. Pettman and Richard Dobbins

This issue is a selected bibliography covering the subject of leadership.

26512

Abstract

This issue is a selected bibliography covering the subject of leadership.

Details

Equal Opportunities International, vol. 21 no. 4/5/6
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0261-0159

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 29 September 2022

Suzanne Grossman, Lisa Jane Erwin, Ana Martinez-Donate, Denise E. Agosto, Mark Winston, Nancy Epstein and Ann C. Klassen

Public libraries can help immigrants adjust to life in the USA, including maintaining health and well-being. The purpose of this study was to understand how immigrants use public…

Abstract

Purpose

Public libraries can help immigrants adjust to life in the USA, including maintaining health and well-being. The purpose of this study was to understand how immigrants use public libraries and how library staff provide health-related information and services for immigrant audiences.

Design/methodology/approach

This study used semistructured interviews with library staff (n = 9) and immigrant library patrons (n = 10), representing multiple first languages and countries of origin from two different library locations within a large public library system in a US mid-Atlantic city.

Findings

Staff reported offering many health-related programs and services, but only one of the 10 patron respondents had used them. Patrons more commonly used the library in ways indirectly related to health (e.g. learning English) than direct health-related services. Staff reported comfort interacting with immigrant patrons, but lacked consensus on navigating language barriers and determining community needs.

Research limitations/implications

This qualitative study provides insights from a specific geographic and cultural setting. It focused on immigrants using the library and may have excluded vulnerable populations of immigrants who encounter barriers to using the library. Future research and practice should focus on how public libraries can better meet the health information needs of immigrant populations, including navigating controversial social and political topics, as well as emerging health-related information during a pandemic.

Originality/value

Public health practitioners often overlook public libraries as community collaborators. This research identifies that while there is important and essential work happening in public libraries to improve immigrant health, more can be done, especially in collaboration with public health professionals.

Details

International Journal of Migration, Health and Social Care, vol. 18 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1747-9894

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 26 July 2013

Lynn Oxborrow and Clare Brindley

A recent study has asserted that businesses need to adopt “eco‐advantage”. This paper aims to explore the viability of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) achieving…

2345

Abstract

Purpose

A recent study has asserted that businesses need to adopt “eco‐advantage”. This paper aims to explore the viability of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) achieving “eco‐advantage” by exploring their understanding of sustainability issues, how they adopt and innovate in terms of sustainability and the benefits and obstacles they face.

Design/methodology/approach

The research approach is exploratory, comprised of 15 SME embedded cases based in the UK. The cases are participants in short interventions in sustainable product and process design as a part of a university knowledge transfer project, representing the overall case. Cases are based on interviews with company participants and collaborating academics, supplemented by documentary and observational evidence.

Findings

The results build on the work on “eco‐advantage” found in a recent study, highlighting marketing, rather than compliance issues as a catalyst for change. The newly aware SME enters a development process which involves cumulative capabilities, gaining a nascent inner confidence, which includes espousing wider sustainable values.

Research limitations/implications

The results reveal the scope and challenges for SMEs to adopt more sustainable practices, encompassing innovations and a broad set of capabilities. Further research points to the need to monitor benefits as well as inputs in evaluating sustainability improvements and to consider longitudinal business sustainability issues.

Originality/value

The paper informs the emerging debate on sustainability in SMEs, providing a rich source of data to enhance the provision of business support and knowledge transfer activities, where a more holistic and customised approach is required to realise the real environmental and economic benefits accrued from implementing sustainable improvements.

Details

European Journal of Innovation Management, vol. 16 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1460-1060

Keywords

Book part
Publication date: 13 August 2018

Robert L. Dipboye

Abstract

Details

The Emerald Review of Industrial and Organizational Psychology
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-78743-786-9

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