ARIES WP3 – Needs and Requirements Analyses

Information and communication technologies have increasingly influenced and changed our daily life. They allow global connectivity and easy access to distributed applications and digital services over the Internet. This report analysis security requirements on trust establishment and trust evaluation based on two different use case scenarios: "Trusted Communication using COTS" and "Trust Establishment for Cross-organizational Crises Management". A systematic needs analysis is performed on both scenarios which haver resulted in a large and well documented set of requirements. This is the first step in a large effort to define a security architecture for the two use case scenarios.

Policy Lessons from the Fifth EWCS: The Pursuit of More and Better Jobs

[Excerpt] This report examines the evidence and policy lessons that can be drawn from the findings of the fifth European Working Conditions Survey (EWCS) carried out in 2010. The focus is on the links between working conditions and labour market participation in the light of the EU’s longstanding policy pursuit of more and better jobs. The report also assesses how the EWCS is valued by policy users and researchers, and where its further development or usage could enhance EU policy on employment and social developments. The contribution of the fifth EWCS was assessed on the basis of the mix of evidence available to policymakers, including: the extent to which EWCS data or findings are cited or used by representatives of European and national authorities, research centres and researchers; secondary analyses of EWCS data and other research which addresses current policy concerns; interviews with key users of EWCS data, especially those working in EU-level policymaking and research centres. The current economic and social policy concerns and objectives of the Europe 2020 strategy are not dramatically different from those in earlier times. However, there has been a steady increase in the level of cooperation between Member States around a mutual learning and target-based approach, supported by greater use of monitoring indicators. While the EWCS initially focused on evidence on working conditions, it has progressively developed its coverage. Today it embraces a range of issues including workplace organisation and innovation, patterns of working time and job quality. The EWCS has been particularly successful in highlighting trends, convergences and divergences through the development of indicators of policy concerns such as the quality of jobs or workplace risks (physical or psychological). It has provided new insights and understanding – often through innovative multidisciplinary research – on matters such as the relationship between different aspects of life at the workplace, and between the workplace and the household

Assessing Needs of Care in European Nations. ENEPRI Policy Brief No. 14, 28 December 2012

This Policy Brief presents the research questions, main results and policy implications and recommendations of the seven Work Packages that formed the basis of the ANCIEN research project, financed under the 7th EU Research Framework Programme of the European Commission. Carried out over a 44-month period and involving 20 partners from EU member states, the project principally concerns the future of long-term care (LTC) for the elderly in Europe and addresses two questions in particular: How will need, demand, supply and use of LTC develop? How do different systems of LTC perform

Parallel statistical model checking for safety verification in smart grids

By using small computing devices deployed at user premises, Autonomous Demand Response (ADR) adapts users electricity consumption to given time-dependent electricity tariffs. This allows end-users to save on their electricity bill and Distribution System Operators to optimise (through suitable time-dependent tariffs) management of the electric grid by avoiding demand peaks. Unfortunately, even with ADR, users power consumption may deviate from the expected (minimum cost) one, e.g., because ADR devices fail to correctly forecast energy needs at user premises. As a result, the aggregated power demand may present undesirable peaks. In this paper we address such a problem by presenting methods and a software tool (APD-Analyser) implementing them, enabling Distribution System Operators to effectively verify that a given time-dependent electricity tariff achieves the desired goals even when end-users deviate from their expected behaviour. We show feasibility of the proposed approach through a realistic scenario from a medium voltage Danish distribution network

Human Resource Practices as Predictors of Work-Family Outcomes and Employee Turnover

Drawing on a non-random sample of 557 dual- earner white collar employees, this paper explores the relationship between human resource practices and three outcomes of interest to firms and employees: work-family conflict, employees’ control over managing work and family demands, and employees’ turnover intentions. We analyze three types of human resource practices: work-family policies, HR incentives designed to induce attachment to the firm, and the design of work. In a series of hierarchical regression equations, we find that work design characteristics explain the most variance in employees’ control over managing work and family demands, while HR incentives explain the most variance in work-family conflict and turnover intentions. We also find significant gender differences in each of the three models. Our results suggest that the most effective organizational responses to work-family conflict and to turnover are those that combine work-family policies with other human resource practices, including work redesign and commitment-enhancing incentives

MATHEMATICAL PROGRAMMING FOR RESOURCE POLICY APPRAISAL UNDER MULTIPLE OBJECTIVES

Mathematical programming is one technique that can be used for resource policy appraisal. Multiple objectives are usually involved in resource policy considerations. This paper discusses issues regarding the use of mathematical programming techniques for the multiobjective resource policy arena. Theoretical models are introduced with a separation called for between producer response models and policy maker models due to a disparity of objectives. The paper draws on the literature citing cases where producer level models have been utilized to simulate the policy outcome implications of alternative policies.Resource /Energy Economics and Policy,

Policy Conflict Analysis in Distributed System Management

Accepted versio