CHORUS Deliverable 3.3: Vision Document - Intermediate version

The goal of the CHORUS vision document is to create a high level vision on audio-visual search engines in order to give guidance to the future R&D work in this area (in line with the mandate of CHORUS as a Coordination Action). This current intermediate draft of the CHORUS vision document (D3.3) is based on the previous CHORUS vision documents D3.1 to D3.2 and on the results of the six CHORUS Think-Tank meetings held in March, September and November 2007 as well as in April, July and October 2008, and on the feedback from other CHORUS events. The outcome of the six Think-Thank meetings will not just be to the benefit of the participants which are stakeholders and experts from academia and industry – CHORUS, as a coordination action of the EC, will feed back the findings (see Summary) to the projects under its purview and, via its website, to the whole community working in the domain of AV content search. A few subjections of this deliverable are to be completed after the eights (and presumably last) Think-Tank meeting in spring 2009

A critical investigation of the Osterwalder business model canvas: an in-depth case study

Although the Osterwalder business model canvas (BMC) is used by professionals worldwide, it has not yet been subject to a thorough investigation in academic literature. In this first contribution we present the results of an intensive, interactive process of data analysis, visual synthesis and textual rephrasing to gain insight into the business model of a single case (health television). The (textual and visual) representation of the business model needs to be consistent and powerful. Therefore, we start from the total value per customer segment. Besides the offer (or core value) additional value is created through customer related activities. The understanding of activities both on the strategic and tactical level reveals more insight into the total value creation. Moreover, value elements for one customer segment can induce value for others. The interaction between value for customer segments and activities results in a powerful customer value centred business model representation. Total value to customers generates activities and costs on the one hand and a revenue model on the other hand. Gross margins and sales volumes explain how value for customers contributes to profit. Another main challenge in business model mapping is in denominating the critical resources behind the activities. The Osterwalder business model canvas lacks consistency and power due to many overlaps which in turn are caused by the fixed architecture, the latter too easily leading to a filling-in exercise. Through its business model representation a company should first of all gain thorough understanding of it. Only then companies can evaluate the model and finally consider some adaptations

ILR Faculty Research in Progress, 2014-2015

The production of scholarly research continues to be one of the primary missions of the ILR School. During a typical academic year, ILR faculty members published or had accepted for publication over 25 books, edited volumes, and monographs, 170 articles and chapters in edited volumes, numerous book reviews. In addition, a large number of manuscripts were submitted for publication, presented at professional association meetings, or circulated in working paper form. Our faculty's research continues to find its way into the very best industrial relations, social science and statistics journals.ResearchinProgress_2014_15.pdf: 17 downloads, before Oct. 1, 2020

Constructing the legitimacy of a financial cooperative in the cultural sector : a case study using textual analysis

This paper investigates the foundations of cooperative identity and how it is constructed by the organisation. More specifically, our research focuses on a financial cooperative in the simultaneously emerging and consolidating cultural sector. The originality of this paper lies in the methodology used—textual analysis. We use the Economies of Worth model developed by Boltanski & Thévenot (2006), which accounts for a plurality of legitimate forms of evaluation used in the processes of critique and justification.COOPERATIVE ENTERPRISE;ECONOMIES OF WORTH;ORGANIZATIONAL VALUE;SOCIAL ECONOMY

Applications of lean thinking: a briefing document

This report has been put together by the Health and Care Infrastructure Research and Innovation Centre (HaCIRIC) at the University of Salford for the Department of Health. The need for the report grew out of two main simple questions, o Is Lean applicable in sectors other than manufacturing? o Can the service delivery sector learn from the success of lean in manufacturing and realise the benefits of its implementation?The aim of the report is to list together examples of lean thinking as it is evidenced in the public and private service sector. Following a review of various sources a catalogue of evidence is put together in an organised manner which demonstrates that Lean principles and techniques, when applied rigorously and throughout an entire organization/unit, they can have a positive impact on productivity, cost, quality, and timely delivery of services

EUROPEAN MIGRATION NETWORK. ATTRACTING HIGHLY QUALIFIED AND QUALIFIED THIRD-COUNTRY NATIONALS: IRELAND, AN EMN FOCUSSED STUDY

Since the early 2000s, Ireland has aimed to meet both labour and skills needs from within the EEA as far as possible, while limiting the issuing of employment permits to highly qualified and hard to find non-EEA workers. The employer-led employment permit system in Ireland comprises: Green Cards, work permits, Spousal/Dependent Employment Permit and Intra-company Transfers. National administrative data show that in recent years most employment permits issued were in respect of highly qualified and qualified workers. Separate permit types are available to self-employed third-country nationals and scientific researchers

Medical Malpractice and Managed Care Organizations: The Implied Warranty of Quality

Managed care organizations (MCOs) have become prime targets in the new medical malpractice litigation, but getting a judgment against an MCO can be difficult. It is argued that courts should impose a tort-based implied warranty of quality on MCOs, under which they would be liable for selling physician services that are negligently rendered

ERP implementation methodologies and frameworks: a literature review

Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) implementation is a complex and vibrant process, one that involves a combination of technological and organizational interactions. Often an ERP implementation project is the single largest IT project that an organization has ever launched and requires a mutual fit of system and organization. Also the concept of an ERP implementation supporting business processes across many different departments is not a generic, rigid and uniform concept and depends on variety of factors. As a result, the issues addressing the ERP implementation process have been one of the major concerns in industry. Therefore ERP implementation receives attention from practitioners and scholars and both, business as well as academic literature is abundant and not always very conclusive or coherent. However, research on ERP systems so far has been mainly focused on diffusion, use and impact issues. Less attention has been given to the methods used during the configuration and the implementation of ERP systems, even though they are commonly used in practice, they still remain largely unexplored and undocumented in Information Systems research. So, the academic relevance of this research is the contribution to the existing body of scientific knowledge. An annotated brief literature review is done in order to evaluate the current state of the existing academic literature. The purpose is to present a systematic overview of relevant ERP implementation methodologies and frameworks as a desire for achieving a better taxonomy of ERP implementation methodologies. This paper is useful to researchers who are interested in ERP implementation methodologies and frameworks. Results will serve as an input for a classification of the existing ERP implementation methodologies and frameworks. Also, this paper aims also at the professional ERP community involved in the process of ERP implementation by promoting a better understanding of ERP implementation methodologies and frameworks, its variety and history

Viral expression and molecular profiling in liver tissue versus microdissected hepatocytes in hepatitis B virus - associated hepatocellular carcinoma.

Background: The molecular mechanisms whereby hepatitis B virus (HBV) induces hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) remain elusive. We used genomic and molecular techniques to investigate host-virus interactions by studying multiple areas of the same liver from patients with HCC. Methods: We compared the gene signature of whole liver tissue (WLT) versus laser capture-microdissected (LCM) hepatocytes along with the intrahepatic expression of HBV. Gene expression profiling was performed on up to 17 WLT specimens obtained at various distances from the tumor center from individual livers of 11 patients with HCC and on selected LCM samples. HBV markers in liver and serum were determined by real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR)and confocal immunofluorescence. Results: Analysis of 5 areas of the liver showed a sharp change in gene expression between the immediate perilesional area and tumor periphery that correlated with a significant decrease in the intrahepatic expression of HB surface antigen (HBsAg). The tumor was characterized by a large preponderance of down-regulated genes, mostly involved in the metabolism of lipids and fatty acids, glucose, amino acids and drugs, with down-regulation of pathways involved in the activation of PXR/RXR and PPARα/RXRα nuclear receptors, comprising PGC-1α and FOXO1, two key regulators critically involved not only in the metabolic functions of the liver but also in the life cycle of HBV, acting as essential transcription factors for viral gene expression. These findings were confirmed by gene expression of microdissected hepatocytes. Moreover, LCM of malignant hepatocytes also revealed up-regulation of unique genes associated with cancer and signaling Pathways, including two novel HCC-associated cancer testis antigen genes, NUF2 and TTK. Conclusions: Integrated gene expression profiling of whole liver tissue with that of microdissected hepatocytes demonstrated that HBV-associated HCC is characterized by a metabolism switch-off and by a significant reduction in HBsAg. LCM proved to be a critical tool to validate gene signatures associated with HCC and to identify genes that may play a role in hepatocarcinogenesis, opening new perspectives for the discovery of novel diagnostic markers and therapeutic targets