The Use of Trademarks in Empirical Research: Towards an Integrated Framework

This paper represents an early attempt to develop an integrated framework linking empirical studies that make use of trademark statistics. Despite its youth, this field of scholarly activity has already accumulated a critical mass of papers that allow us to draw first general conclusions about the trademark lifecycle and its impact on organisational functioning. Based on a systematic review of 64 articles with some elements of empirical trademark analysis, five broad research areas have been identified, namely: the determinants of trademark deposits; the relationship between trademarks and innovation processes; the role of trademarks in differentiating product offerings; the strategic use of trademarks; and the impact of trademarks on firm performance. Within each category, a more detailed aggregation of articles has also been proposed. Overall, the analysis has shown that the performance-based perspective currently dominates the research landscape, with studies on trademark deposits and the trademark-innovation link to follow. At the same time, there is still little known about micro-foundations of a company's trademarking behaviour; the use of trademarks and other intellectual property rights in a complementary way and its effect on value transference; as well as the performance implications of differentiation strategy. This paper considers these and other findings to outline directions for future research

The rise and demise of Lucent Technologies

We analyze the rise and demise of Lucent Technologies from the time that it was spun off from AT&T in April 1996 to its merger with Alcatel in December 2006. The analysis, contained in the three sections that form the body of this paper, considers three questions concerning Lucent’s performance over the decade of its existence. 1.How was Lucent, with over $20 billion in sales in 1995 as a division of AT&T, able to almost double its size by achieving a compound growth rate of over 17 percent per year from 1995 to 1999? 2.What was the relationship between Lucent’s growth strategy during the Internet boom and the company’s financial difficulties in the Internet crash of 2001-2003 when the Lucent was on the brink of bankruptcy? 3.After extensive restructuring during the telecommunications industry downturn of 2001-2003, why was Lucent unable to re-emerge as an innovative competitor in the communications equipment industry when the industry recovered?Communications equipment; innovation; global competition; financialization

The Business Consortium Fund: working capital for MBEs

The New England Minority Purchasing Council offers minority business enterprises (MBEs) help in obtaining short-term working capital.Commercial loans - New England ; Small business - New England ; Minority business enterprises - New England

Student-Centered Learning: Functional Requirements for Integrated Systems to Optimize Learning

The realities of the 21st-century learner require that schools and educators fundamentally change their practice. "Educators must produce college- and career-ready graduates that reflect the future these students will face. And, they must facilitate learning through means that align with the defining attributes of this generation of learners."Today, we know more than ever about how students learn, acknowledging that the process isn't the same for every student and doesn't remain the same for each individual, depending upon maturation and the content being learned. We know that students want to progress at a pace that allows them to master new concepts and skills, to access a variety of resources, to receive timely feedback on their progress, to demonstrate their knowledge in multiple ways and to get direction, support and feedback from—as well as collaborate with—experts, teachers, tutors and other students.The result is a growing demand for student-centered, transformative digital learning using competency education as an underpinning.iNACOL released this paper to illustrate the technical requirements and functionalities that learning management systems need to shift toward student-centered instructional models. This comprehensive framework will help districts and schools determine what systems to use and integrate as they being their journey toward student-centered learning, as well as how systems integration aligns with their organizational vision, educational goals and strategic plans.Educators can use this report to optimize student learning and promote innovation in their own student-centered learning environments. The report will help school leaders understand the complex technologies needed to optimize personalized learning and how to use data and analytics to improve practices, and can assist technology leaders in re-engineering systems to support the key nuances of student-centered learning

Scalable agile frameworks in large enterprise project portfolio management

Con un alcance de estudio exploratorio, debido a que se ha investigado poco y se encuentra en un estado emergente, el propósito de la investigación fue explorar la implementación de los marcos ágiles escalables en la gestión del portafolio de proyectos (PPM) de grandes empresas. Además, este estudio de caso cualitativo planteó la siguiente pregunta principal de investigación: ¿De qué manera los marcos ágiles escalables se implementan en la PPM de grandes empresas, y por qué? Este estudio recopiló información de 59 portafolios de proyectos en 22 empresas con implementaciones de métodos ágiles y marcos ágiles escalables de las industrias tecnologías de la información (IT- por sus siglas en inglés), financiera y telecomunicaciones, de México, Colombia, Perú, Ecuador, Costa Rica y Chile, mediante 43 entrevistas en profundidad semiestructuradas. Los hallazgos revelan que existen portafolios de proyectos con alta variabilidad en servicio, producto e innovación, y con implementaciones híbridas de Scaled Agile Framework (SAFe), Spotify Model y Scrum. Además, enfrentan diferentes desafíos relacionados con la implementación de los marcos ágiles escalables en la PPM, la cultura organizacional, resistencia al cambio y liderazgo estratégico. Del mismo modo, los hallazgos demuestran que los marcos ágiles son una opción viable para optimizar el time-to-market, aumentar la productividad de los equipos y mejorar la comunicación a nivel general. Este estudio es uno de los primeros en explorar cómo implementan las grandes empresas los marcos ágiles escalables en la PPM para llenar el vacío en la literatura relacionado con cómo y cuándo las empresas deben abordar un proceso de transformación ágil que funcione de manera exitosa en su PPM. Por lo tanto, este estudio proporciona evidencia empírica de seis países latinoamericanos como base potencial para futuras investigaciones y publicaciones.With an exploratory study scope, due to little research and in an emerging state, the purpose of the research was to explore the implementation of scalable agile frameworks in project portfolio management (PPM) of large enterprises. This qualitative case study posed as its primary research question: How and why are scalable agile frameworks implemented in the PPM of large companies? Further, this study used the purposive sampling method and the snowball technique. Data were collected from 59 project portfolios in 22 companies with agile and scalable agile framework implementations in the information technology (IT), financial and telecommunications industries in Mexico, Colombia, Peru, Ecuador, Costa Rica and Chile, through 43 semi-structured in-depth interviews. The findings reveal that there are project portfolios with high variability in service, product and innovation, and with hybrid implementations of Scaled Agile Framework (SAFe), Spotify Model and Scrum. In addition, they face different challenges related to the implementation of scalable agile frameworks in PPM, organizational culture, resistance to change, and strategic leadership. Similarly, the findings demonstrate that agile frameworks are a viable option to optimize time-to-market, increase team productivity and improve communication across the board. This study represents one of the first to explore how large companies implement scalable agile frameworks in PPM to fill the gap in the literature related to how and when companies should approach an agile transformation process working successfully in their PPM. Accordingly, this study provides empirical evidence from six Latin American countries as a potential basis for future research and publications

Marshall Application Realignment System (MARS) Architecture

The Marshall Application Realignment System (MARS) Architecture project was established to meet the certification requirements of the Department of Defense Architecture Framework (DoDAF) V2.0 Federal Enterprise Architecture Certification (FEAC) Institute program and to provide added value to the Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC) Application Portfolio Management process. The MARS Architecture aims to: (1) address the NASA MSFC Chief Information Officer (CIO) strategic initiative to improve Application Portfolio Management (APM) by optimizing investments and improving portfolio performance, and (2) develop a decision-aiding capability by which applications registered within the MSFC application portfolio can be analyzed and considered for retirement or decommission. The MARS Architecture describes a to-be target capability that supports application portfolio analysis against scoring measures (based on value) and overall portfolio performance objectives (based on enterprise needs and policies). This scoring and decision-aiding capability supports the process by which MSFC application investments are realigned or retired from the application portfolio. The MARS Architecture is a multi-phase effort to: (1) conduct strategic architecture planning and knowledge development based on the DoDAF V2.0 six-step methodology, (2) describe one architecture through multiple viewpoints, (3) conduct portfolio analyses based on a defined operational concept, and (4) enable a new capability to support the MSFC enterprise IT management mission, vision, and goals. This report documents Phase 1 (Strategy and Design), which includes discovery, planning, and development of initial architecture viewpoints. Phase 2 will move forward the process of building the architecture, widening the scope to include application realignment (in addition to application retirement), and validating the underlying architecture logic before moving into Phase 3. The MARS Architecture key stakeholders are most interested in Phase 3 because this is where the data analysis, scoring, and recommendation capability is realized. Stakeholders want to see the benefits derived from reducing the steady-state application base and identify opportunities for portfolio performance improvement and application realignment