A literature review and Research Agenda of Value Stream Mapping addressing Study Population and Sample Design

The Purpose of this literature review is to provide a taxonomy of value stream mapping research and, based on that, to develop a research agenda for this field of study in relation to study population and research design. The proposed value stream mapping research classification framework is based on a comprehensive literature review, which concentrates on peer-reviewed journal papers published within the period 2002-2020. A total of 83 academic sources have been retrieved and analyzed interms of research purpose and nature, methodology employed, theoretical approach and level of analysis. The review reveals that value stream mapping research is empirical-descriptive in nature and that it generally lacks a sampling design foundation and a tin study population. It identifies certain knowledge gaps and develops sixe propositions for future research. It suggests that focus should be directed towards more conceptual model, mathematical model, interviews, empirical triangulation (mixed methods) and simulation based studies. It also argues that further empirical research in relation to value stream mapping in relation to study population and sample design needed. This paper fulfils an identified need for a comprehensive classification framework of value stream mapping studies. It essentially provides both academics and practitioners with a conceptual map of existing value stream mapping research and also points out opportunities for future research

Boosting Total Relationship Marketing

This paper explores the track of marketing, by referring to the literature, through the advancements in digitalized technological systems particularly Information Technologies (IT), the emergence of a more broadly educated and more discerning consumer with increasing discretionary spending and purchasing power, the adoption of Total Quality Management (TQM) as the biggest competitive issue of 1990s, the growth of the service economy, the increase of competitive intensity and its impact on customer retention, and finally from a production-oriented definition of marketing to customer-oriented one(transaction to relationships). Actually all these variables are considered to be the main drivers of Relationship Marketing (RM) that led the pathway to Total Relationship Marketing (TRM).Relationship Marketing; Marketing; Total Quality Management; Total Relationship Marketing

Global Innovations in Measurement and Evaluation

We researched the latest developments in theory and practice in measurement and evaluation. And we found that new thinking, techniques, and technology are influencing and improving practice. This report highlights 8 developments that we think have the greatest potential to improve evaluation and programme design, and the careful collection and use of data. In it, we seek to inform and inspire—to celebrate what is possible, and encourage wider application of these ideas

Principles in Patterns (PiP) : Institutional Approaches to Curriculum Design Institutional Story

The principal outputs of the PiP Project surround the Course and Class Approval (C-CAP) system. This web-based system built on Microsoft SharePoint addresses and resolves many of the issues identified by the project. Generally well received by both academic and support staff, the system provides personalised views, adaptive forms and contextualised support for all phases of the approval process. Although the system deliberately encapsulates and facilitates existing approval processes thus achieving buy-in, it is already achieving significant improvements over the previous processes, not only in reducing the administrative overheads but also in supporting curriculum design and academic quality. The system is now embedded across three faculties and is now considered by the University of Strathclyde to be a "core institutional service". Alongside the C-CAP system the PiP Project also cultivated a suite of approaches: an incremental systems development methodology; a structured and replicable evaluation approach, and; Strathclyde's Lean Approach to Efficiencies in Education Kit (SLEEK) business process improvement methodology Each is based on recognised formal techniques, providing the basis for a rigorous approach. This is contextualised within and adapted to the HE institutional context thus building the foundation not only for the project but ultimately for institution wide process improvement. This "institutional story" report summarises the principal outcomes of the Project

Construction Innovation: The Implementation of Lean Construction towards Sustainable Innovation

The prevalent theory of construction has been seen as a hindrance to construction innovation. The concept of lean construction is concerned with the application of lean thinking to the construction industry. However, in lean construction there are many arguments supporting the view that ‘the prevalent theory of production (or specifically, theory of construction) is counterproductive, and leads to added costs and reduced overall performance through the deficient production control principles based on the theory’. Presently, the construction industry and all other organisations face various problems as a result of the uncertainties of the global economic climate; including labour redundancies, delayed projects and zero margin contract bids. The construction industry is seen as one of the worst performing industry as regards innovation. This calls for concern about the poor state of construction innovation. The emergence of lean construction is to bring significant reform to the construction industry to achieve the objectives of sustainability within the built environment in the critical social, economic and environmental aspects. Increasingly, lean construction offers new techniques of constructing sustainable projects. It is about reducing costs by cutting waste, innovating by engaging people and organising the work-place to be more efficient. Hence, the aim of this paper is to highlight the cost and benefits of the potential contribution of lean construction to the attainment of sustainable innovation in construction. An exploratory method of investigation is adopted in achieving the aim of this paper by critically reviewing, exploring, and synthesising literature and industry case studies related to the subject matter. Evidence from the literature reveals that innovation through lean improvement in construction processes has provided proof of sustainability outcomes in terms of reduced waste, effort and time. Hence, lean construction impacts significantly on innovation by enhancing competitiveness, innovativeness, and resource efficiency within the construction industry. Keywords: Construction industry, Construction innovation, Lean construction, Sustainabilit

The ArT\'eMiS wide-field submillimeter camera: preliminary on-sky performances at 350 microns

ArTeMiS is a wide-field submillimeter camera operating at three wavelengths simultaneously (200, 350 and 450 microns). A preliminary version of the instrument equipped with the 350 microns focal plane, has been successfully installed and tested on APEX telescope in Chile during the 2013 and 2014 austral winters. This instrument is developed by CEA (Saclay and Grenoble, France), IAS (France) and University of Manchester (UK) in collaboration with ESO. We introduce the mechanical and optical design, as well as the cryogenics and electronics of the ArTeMiS camera. ArTeMiS detectors are similar to the ones developed for the Herschel PACS photometer but they are adapted to the high optical load encountered at APEX site. Ultimately, ArTeMiS will contain 4 sub-arrays at 200 microns and 2x8 sub-arrays at 350 and 450 microns. We show preliminary lab measurements like the responsivity of the instrument to hot and cold loads illumination and NEP calculation. Details on the on-sky commissioning runs made in 2013 and 2014 at APEX are shown. We used planets (Mars, Saturn, Uranus) to determine the flat-field and to get the flux calibration. A pointing model was established in the first days of the runs. The average relative pointing accuracy is 3 arcsec. The beam at 350 microns has been estimated to be 8.5 arcsec, which is in good agreement with the beam of the 12 m APEX dish. Several observing modes have been tested, like On-The-Fly for beam-maps or large maps, spirals or raster of spirals for compact sources. With this preliminary version of ArTeMiS, we concluded that the mapping speed is already more than 5 times better than the previous 350 microns instrument at APEX. The median NEFD at 350 microns is 600 mJy.s1/2, with best values at 300 mJy.s1/2. The complete instrument with 5760 pixels and optimized settings will be installed during the first half of 2015.Comment: 11 pages, 11 figures. Presented at SPIE Millimeter, Submillimeter, and Far-Infrared Detectors and Instrumentation for Astronomy VII, June 24, 2014. To be published in Proceedings of SPIE Volume 915

Sustainability management : insights from the viable system model

A review of current literature on sustainability standards reveals a significant gap between their adoption and the implementation of sustainability into every level of the organisation. In this paper, it is argued that in order to overcome this challenge, an appropriate model of an organisation is needed. The Viable System Model (VSM) is proposed as such a model and, in order to illustrate this argument, it is used to interpret the ISO 26000 standard on Social Responsibility (SR). First, the VSM theory is introduced and presented by modelling the hypothetical company Widget Co. Then, the clauses of ISO 26000 are mapped on the Widget Co. model, together with detailed descriptions and examples on the organisational and managerial implications of its adopting the standard's guidelines. The result is the identification of generic SR functions that need to be performed by the various organisational governance systems, as well as their dynamic interrelations, thus clarifying implementation issues. Moreover, by identifying different SR management layers, VSM is suggested as a way forward to develop an integration model for SR issues and respective sustainability tools. Finally, a discussion is given on the implications of using this approach to integrate sustainability standards and the way this research contributes to recent developments in sustainability research

Knowledge Management for Public Administrations: Technical Realizations of an Enterprise Attention Management System

The improvement of governments’ efficiency has gained great importance and validity especially in the current times of economic downturn. E-Government constitutes the most contemporary techno-managerial proposition in the track of possible interventions. The paper addresses, more specifically, empowerments necessitated by Public Administration (PA) organizations. Anchored on the needs of three real-life cases, the paper describes the conception and the realization of an IT artefact together with its methodological appeals aiming at improving information access and delivery and thus PAs’ decision making capacity. Our proposition constitutes a novel approach for managing users’ attention in knowledge intensive organizations which goes beyond informing a user about changes in relevant information towards proactively supporting the user to react on changes. The approach is based on an expressive attention model, which is realized by combining ECA (Event-Condition-Action) rules with ontologies. The technical realizations described in the paper constitute the underlying infrastructure of an Enterprise Attention Management System