BPR Implementation in Ministry of Federal Affairs: A Study on Identifying Attitude Influential Factors of Employees, Achievements and Critical Challenges towards BPR

Implementation is the most difficult phase. In implementing BPR, employees have different attitudes towards BPR and depend on those factors the organization faces a lot of challenges. Whereas, if the organization passes those challenges, there are an appreciated achievements. The objective was to assess the implementation of Business Process Re-engineering in the Ministry of Federal Affairs. The research project was engaged with both the qualitative and quantitative research strategies. A cross sectional research design was conducted. In order to substantiate the results the data's were collected by using structured questionnaires and in-depth interviews research techniques were entered in SPSS version 16.00. 147 and 10 key- informant’s participants were involved. Bivariate and multivariate linear regression model was adopted. In the quantitative part, variables having mean scores > 2.5 had high and < 2.5 had less influential impact on employees attitude towards BPR. Work experience only in MOFA and educational status were significant with attitude influential factors towards BPR. Because of BPR: high impact intervention areas were selected, a shift from here to there types of job to sedentary ways of job, a shift from fire brigade approach to immediate solution, critical role and responsibilities for some work unit developed and identified, advanced ways of registration for new Religion and Faith institutions were developed. Almost all employees have awareness on BPR. The organization acquired better performance in terms of speed, cost, quality, quantity and level of customer satisfaction. Similarly, the challenges were Lack of proper and consistent handling of the program, leaving ownership for performer than owning it, Performing the program for the seeks of survival than internalizing, Performing based on the BPR requirements but poor documentation system, Lack of commitment on engagement in the sides of independent stockholders, Accountability problems, and disagreements on selecting the goals and thematic results. Employees who serve more in the organizations and those who have certificate and others out of Master, Degree, Diploma education status had positive attitude while the organization implemented BPR. MOFA should give more emphasize on the factors which have high influential impact on employees to developed a negative attitudes. MOFA should develop a team charter with stockholders to create accountability and responsibility

Economy, Efficiency, and the General Welfare: M.G. George Leach’s Doctrine for Motorizing the National Guard in the Interwar Era

Current scholarship casts the National Guard as a provincial and narrowly political organization. This dissertation reframes the institution as a catalyst for change in the interwar years of evolving technology, politics, and society. This research expands the argument beyond the debate over motorization by analyzing the geographic, social, and economic factors impacting the overall decision-making processes. It highlights how the National Guard’s adoption of motorization had a cascading effect on the regular army that eventually spurred vehicle standardization. Examining primary source material gleaned from period publications, state archives, the personal papers of George Leach, and other key figures, we gain fresh insight into the factors involved. Compared to other National Guard histories, this dissertation shifts the focus from the political power of the National Guard Association to the pivotal role Bureau Chiefs played in transforming the institution into a modern The findings uncovered in the research reveal three equally important aspects of National Guard culture. First, the dissertation showcases how the institution favored experiential learning beyond classroom instruction. Secondly, it stresses the significance that time restrictions played in the decision-making processes. Finally, it demonstrates the necessity for self-representation within the Bureau Department in advocating for change. The decision to motorize the National Guard’s artillery was based on economic and efficient principles that upheld its dual role as a reliable expeditionary and constabulary force. Consequently, this research expands our past perceptions of the National Guard as an agent of change

Decentralization in Ethiopia

Ethiopia officially launched the District Level Decentralization Program (DLDP) by the year 2002. The program flagged core objectives such as institutionalizing viable development centers at local levels, deepening devolution of power, enhancing the democratization process through broad-based participatory strategy, promoting good governance and improving service delivery. Since the inception of this program two strategic planning terms (one strategic term is five years) have already elapsed and the third is in a process. However, various program implementation reports and results on the ground narrowly justified the success of this program. Perception, conscious and voluntary participation of all the various stakeholders in general and communities at grassroots level in particular were not as apparent as initially desired. Thus, a cross-sectional, embedded single case study, which is essentially qualitative, was conducted in Dendi district of Oromia State to find out how this program proceeds, focusing on: institutional strengths, transfer of authority and resource, implementation, perception and participation of the stakeholders and actual benefits gained at grassroots level. Data were collected through interviews, observation and focus group discussions. Conceptual analyses and explanations were presented to show how the program progressed and stumbling blocks encountered. While the theory of democratic decentralization was taken as a domain theory, theories such as neopatrimonialism, congruence, equilibrium view of institutions, sequential theory of decentralization and other theories relating to people’s participation were selectively reviewed in the literature and pervasively taken on when successive analyses, explanations and reflections were made. The findings indicate a need for more focused and planned approaches for the success of the program. Institutionalizing the district and the lowest tiers has not yet been achieved. While no inconsistency was observed in models used to transfer resources and authority, shortages and lack of dynamic capability of local implementers to properly utilize the power and resources transferred were evident at all levels. Perception and participation of stakeholders is an area that needs a paradigm shift. Achievements on the ground have not yet justified the efforts made or the program goals. Besides generating valuable ideas for scientific discourse, critical reflections and a set of proposals and recommendations - as possible solutions for some of the problems observed - have been provided in this work. Introduction of appropriate planning, enhancing the capability of local bodies to match the ever changing local and global conditions, rethinking on certain policy and program changes and meaningful participation of stakeholders, efficient use of available resources, etc. were among issues identified for consideration

Compilation of thesis abstracts, December 2006

NPS Class of December 2006This quarter’s Compilation of Abstracts summarizes cutting-edge, security-related research conducted by NPS students and presented as theses, dissertations, and capstone reports. Each expands knowledge in its field.http://archive.org/details/compilationofsis109452750

The Stability/Sustainability Dynamics: The Case of Marine Environmental Management in Somalia

Since January 1991, Somalia has been a war-torn society without law and order machinery. After a decade of chaos, in January 2001, an interim government formed in Djibouti was brought to Mogadishu, albeit it failed to function. Two similar others followed; one in 2004 and the other in 2007. In 2012, a federal government was elected by 275 members of parliament, but it is yet to govern most of the countrys regions. Consequently, over 25 years, there has been sociopolitical and economic instability which jeopardised Somalias environment and security (land and marine). Now, who are the actors of socio-political and economic instability, and can marine sustainability be achieved in the absence of stability? This doctoral study identifies, defines, examines and analyzes each of the state and non-state actors/networks operating in Somalia, at the international, regional, national, provincial, and local levels. I investigated who are they and what are their backgrounds/origins? What are their objectives and strategies? What are their capacities and economic status? What are their motives and manoeuvres? and what are their internal and external relationships? I categorised each one of them based on these scales: instability, potential stability or stability. I adopted a multi-dimensional approach which aims at tackling both marine environmental degradation and insecurity in the Somali basin, while establishing a community-based policy as a milestone for the formulation of a national/provincial policy. The study finds out that the competing multifaceted and multipurpose (economic, political or social gains) networks deliberately or inadvertently destroy the countrys environment and contribute to instability. Yet, in the countrys post-conflict situation, environmental traditional-based policy and socio-legal systems can be practiced at the grassroots level. I then proposed the roles to be played by individuals, local communities, provincials, and national, as well as regional, and international communities in the implementation of this bottom-up approach policy. While showing the relationship between environmental sustainability and sociopolitical stability, I argue that marine problems are borderless and as such, need global attention. I shed light on how war-torn states and post-conflict countries can establish vital means of environmental sustainability by applying community-based policy, implemented through self-help programs

The politics of public silence: civil society – state relations under the EPRDF regime

Contributing to a larger canon of work that investigates how the presence of civil society organisations in authoritarian settings influences the durability of regimes in power, this thesis sets out to explain how the relationship between the Ethiopian state, under the rule of the Ethiopian People’s Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF), and civil society organisations, affected regime stability. I demonstrate that the EPRDF tried to use civil society organisations to bolster its rule through: (1) curbing the power of civil society organisations to prevent challenges to its rule; and (2) mobilising civil society organisations as part of its developmental state programme. However, I argue that the EPRDF prioritised control at times at the expense of developmental objectives. While this prevented open contestation from civil society organisations, it indirectly weakened the EPRDF’s rule in two ways. First, the oppression of civil society organisations reduced their ability to function as a bridge between the Ethiopian people and the state, creating a vacuum between the state and citizens. Second, the control established over civil society organisations decreased the EPRDF’s ability to mobilise them behind its developmental state programme on which it tried to build political legitimacy. Drawing on 14 months of fieldwork, this thesis renders the micro-politics of civil society - state relations visible. The analysis goes beyond the publicly observable “silence”, characterised by the absence of open contestation by civil society organisations, and demonstrates the existence of negotiation and conflicts between actors and organisations operating in both spheres. Instead of taking the concepts of civil society and the state for granted, the thesis explores their empirical manifestations in Ethiopia. The contribution of this thesis lies in the nuance of the analysis, shedding light on how different state and civil society organisations, and the actors working within them, are linked and engage with each other

Semantic discovery and reuse of business process patterns

Patterns currently play an important role in modern information systems (IS) development and their use has mainly been restricted to the design and implementation phases of the development lifecycle. Given the increasing significance of business modelling in IS development, patterns have the potential of providing a viable solution for promoting reusability of recurrent generalized models in the very early stages of development. As a statement of research-in-progress this paper focuses on business process patterns and proposes an initial methodological framework for the discovery and reuse of business process patterns within the IS development lifecycle. The framework borrows ideas from the domain engineering literature and proposes the use of semantics to drive both the discovery of patterns as well as their reuse

EQUITY IN COVID-19

This Open Access edited volume presents twelve African case studies that systematically reconstruct, document and analyse how national governments and other stakeholders took equity into account in their initial policy responses to the COVID-19 pandemic. At the onset of the pandemic, many African governments acted quickly to suppress the virus through various public health measures, including lockdowns, mobilizing healthcare resources and designing responses to support the economy and the population. There were, however, significant variations in the severity and type of measures taken, as well as their accessibility and impacts. Equity was not a given and, therefore, important questions have been raised about who benefitted and who were left unprotected from the interventions, particularly those designed to protect income and basic services? The book, based on a variety of empirical data and disciplinary perspectives of research teams from across the continent, examines the inclusivity of mitigation and policy responses. It situates these findings on short-term interventions and impact in debates about the longer-term implications of the COVID-19 pandemic on the development of the African continent and proposes new directions for policy, research and practice in responses and interventions during crises

General Course Catalog [2012/14]

Undergraduate Course Catalog, 2012/14https://repository.stcloudstate.edu/undergencat/1119/thumbnail.jp