Incentives, Policy and Voluntary Approaches to Improve Natural Resource Management in the Onkaparinga Catchment

Consultancy Report 3 for the Onkaparinga Catchment Water Management Board. The report lays out a set of recommendations regarding opportunities for consideration in future strategic planning in four areas of interest to the OCWMB.A portfolio of instruments to achieve the Board’s goals are also considered.Australia;water;natural resource management;catchment

Supply chain decision making supported by an Open books policy

Based on a study of a buyer–seller relationship in the automotive industry, this article identifies 17 different decision-making processes where openly sharing cost data—a so-called open books policy—plays an important supporting role. These processes relate to supplier selection, various activities that occur prior to production, and the full-speed production stage of the exchange process. Overall, open books plays the greatest role in the pre-production stage, although it is found to support decision-making relating to supplier selection and decision-making during full-speed production to a greater extent than the literature recognizes

More effective social services

In June 2014, the Productivity Commission was asked to look at ways to improve how government agencies commission and purchase social services. The final report was released in mid-September 2015. It makes several recommendations about how to make social services more responsive, client-focused, accountable and innovative. The final inquiry report has two key messages. First, system-wide improvement can be achieved and should be pursued. Second, New Zealand needs better ways to join up services for those with multiple, complex needs. Capable clients should be empowered with more control over the services they receive. Those less capable need close support and a response tailored to their needs, without arbitrary distinctions between services and funds divided into “health”, “education”, etc. These are significant, but extremely worthwhile, changes for New Zealand

Shaping up to improve health: the strategic leadership role of the new Health Authority

The latest return to service planning in the NHS, while harnessing the perceived benefits of previous market approaches, nevertheless signals a radical change in the long-term role of the Health Authority. It is timely to examine the actual objectives of Health Authorities in view of their envisaged strategic leadership role. The emphasis on improving health and ironing out unacceptable local inequalities places the ‘quality’ agenda at the forefront of Health Authority policies. Notwithstanding the role of Regional Offices, Health Authorities will in effect become the overseer of clinical governance arrangements, including the implementation of a more evidencebased approach to service delivery and organisation. The new all-inclusive Health Improvement Programmes represent the raison d’Ltre of the Health Authority of the future. It is argued that insufficient attention has been paid to the legal framework required to support prioritisation decisions for which Health Authorities and PCGs will be held accountable. Available case law suggests that the extent to which central guidance has been followed will be critical in reviewing commissioning decisions. Given the trend towards National Service Frameworks and the development of the National Institute for Clinical Excellence, the question arises of what incentives exist for Health Authorities to pursue the evidence-based approach to its natural conclusion (i.e. as one means of rationing scarce resources). Perhaps the key objective of commissioners will in fact be to avoid adverse publicity in the face of increasingly complex (and open) rationing decisions. In addition, the implication that national guidelines on clinical and cost-effectiveness will have to be adhered to sits somewhat uneasily with recent government assurances regarding clinical freedom and professional self-regulation. Attention is given to equity considerations, the difficulty of identifying common objectives and maintaining productive relationships across organisations, and barriers to changing clinical practice. Conflicting incentives are likely in applying different dimensions of the National Performance Assessment Framework, making the Health Authority’s long-term role (regulator of resource use, quality and service configuration?) a particularly difficult balancing act in ensuring administrative, clinical and political accountability in health care.Health Authorities

Recapturing Value Through Reverse Logistics: Wärtsilä Ship Power - shopping list

Every now and then Wärtsilä Ship Power faces problems with project cancellations from customer side or incorrect purchase orders. Unless capable of canceling the orders from external suppliers in time, materials are taken to warehouse and to a shopping list. From this list they can be used to a different project. Unfortunately the current process is ineffective and does not bring the savings that it could. Project execution, operative purchasing and business control all have their responsibilities but no dedicated resources appointed. Processes of reselling material back to suppliers or scrapping them don’t exist at all. Shopping list process has defects in the process itself; responsibilities and information sharing is inadequate. Internal marketing of the list is missing. Reverse logistics process in business to business relationship is shortly studied area. I reviewed business process and business process redesigning as well as reverse logistics and relocation options from the literature to get an overview of all possible options to re-create smooth and effective shopping list process. Besides the literature review, I got valuable info from my own work experience inside the supply management department. In my case, reverse logistics process was far from the core processes within Wärtsilä Ship Power. That is why I deemed it necessary to have only one person handling all operative work – the shopping list responsible. Other users of the list, both internal and external of the Ship Power department, need to be considered as customers, although they have some responsibilities in the process. Close cooperation between different functions is needed, especially with strategic purchasers who are in the best position to discuss about selling back the material to external suppliers. No process can work if it is not handled properly. Even a one person can be a good promoter.fi=Opinnäytetyö kokotekstinä PDF-muodossa.|en=Thesis fulltext in PDF format.|sv=Lärdomsprov tillgängligt som fulltext i PDF-format