Capturing the essence of change: a study about change in Rockwell schools

The purpose of my study is to investigate what a school system did to stimulate change and discover the qualitative outcomes of shifting from a common bureaucratic school culture to that of Performance Excellence. The methodology is a case study approach of the change in the Rockwell School district (pseudonym) from 2000 to the present day. Elementary, middle, and high school teachers, central office personnel, and school board members were interviewed as part of this qualitative study. Results of the study showed that Rockwell School's implementation of Performance Excellence impacted the district's academic ranking over the implementation period and has become institutionalized as the way the district operates. Whether an organization chooses Baldrige or some other change initiative, it is key that the steps outlined here be considered. These include planning for the change initiative by gaining shared meaning across the organization on what the change should look like. The steps are (a) developing a systems approach, (b) building a school system instead of a system of schools, (c) using data driven decision making to implement change, (d) shifting from a culture of teaching to one of learning, (e) implementing an infrastructure that helps employees gain new knowledge and skills, and (f) moving toward a continuous improvement process

The Ecosystem Approach to Fisheries: Issues, Terminology, Principles, Institutional Foundations, Implementation and Outlook

Ecosystems are complex and dynamic natural units that produce goods and services beyond those of benefit to fisheries. Because fisheries have a direct impact on the ecosystem, which is also impacted by other human activities, they need to be managed in an ecosystem context. The meaning of the terms 'ecosystem management', 'ecosystem based management', 'ecosystem approach to fisheries'(EAF), etc., are still not universally defined and progressively evolving. The justification of EAF is evident in the characteristics of an exploited ecosystem and the impacts resulting from fisheries and other activities. The rich set of international agreements of relevance to EAF contains a large number of principles and conceptual objectives. Both provide a fundamental guidance and a significant challenge for the implementation of EAF. The available international instruments also provide the institutional foundations for EAF. The FAO Code of Conduct for Responsible Fisheries is particularly important in this respect and contains provisions for practically all aspects of the approach. One major difficulty in defining EAF lies precisely in turning the available concepts and principles into operational objectives from which an EAF management plan would more easily be developed. The paper discusses these together with the types of action needed to achieve them. Experience in EAF implementation is still limited but some issues are already apparent, e.g. in added complexity, insufficient capacity, slow implementation, need for a pragmatic approach, etc. It is argued, in conclusion, that the future of EAF and fisheries depends on the way in which the two fundamental concepts of fisheries management and ecosystem management, and their respective stakeholders, will join efforts or collide

Wellness Lessons From Transportation Companies, Research Report WP 11-01

The purpose of this report is to describe wellness programs and offer two suggestions for improving how they are delivered to commercial drivers and operators. It is not a large sample empirical study from which generalizations can be made. Rather, the Mineta Transportation Institute commissioned brief case studies of transportation companies to show what several organizations have done. Stress, nicotine use, sleep apnea, obesity and lack of information are significant barriers to wellness in commercial drivers/operators. Many wellness programs ask the individual driver/operator to lose weight; exercise more; and monitor blood pressure, glucose, cholesterol and other such indicators of health. However, little is done to change the environment or adopt structural interventions such as forbidding nicotine use, as is possible in 20 states. Other structural interventions include those possible at the levels of the company and community, including access to healthy food rather than the junk food drivers often can find on the road. At the societal level, more public transit that gets people walking and out of their cars, cities designed for people to walk and cycle in rather than drive from work to a sprawling suburb, and encouraging food manufacturers to make healthy food (rather than a toxic mix of sodium, fat and sugar to boost one’s craving for a particular food) are just a few measures that could improve the health and well being of the public. The Union Pacific Corporation (rail transportation), and Con-way Freight (trucking) are included because they were willing to share information and are large publicly traded companies. The Utah Transit Authority (UTA) is included because other transit authorities recommended it to the authors, as it has a long history in wellness as part of local government and it too chose to participate. Two issues are discussed: the first is the importance of using the mitigation of erectile dysfunction in the promotion of wellness programs to commercial drivers/operators and the second issue is to urge employers to consider banning tobacco use, both on and off the job, where legal

MINERVA : Model drIveN and sErvice oRiented framework for the continuous improVement of business process & relAted tools

Organizations are facing several challenges nowadays, one of the most important ones being their ability to react quickly to changes either to their business process (BP) models or to the software implementing them. These changes can come from different sources: external requirements from partners or the market, or new internal requirements for the way that things are carried out by the defined BPs; they may also arise from improvement opportunities detected for the BPs defined, based on BPs execution monitoring and execution evaluation that is done by the organization, and/or its partners and customers. The increasing complexity of both BPs models and the software implementing them, requires the changes needed or the improvements to be carefully weighed against the impact their introduction will have; they ought also to be carried out in a systematic way to assure a successful development. Two key elements are to provide these requirements: the separation of BPs definition from their implementation to minimize the impact of changes in one to the other, and a process to introduce the changes or improvements in the existing BPs and/or software implementing them. Business Process Management (BPM) provides the means for guiding and supporting the modeling, implementation, deployment, execution and evaluation of BPs in an organization, based on the BP lifecycle. The realization of BPs by means of services provides the basis for separating their definition from the technologies implementing them and helps provide a better response to changes in either of the layers defined -definition and implementation of business processes- with minimum impact on the other. Modeling of both BP and services is a key aspect to support this vision, helping provide traceability between elements from one area to the other, so easing the analysis of the impact of changes, among other things. Models have proven to play an important role in the software development process, one of its key uses in the context of BP realization by means of services is that of designing services at a more abstract level than with specific technologies, also promoting reuse by separating services logic from its implementation. MINERVA: Model drIveN & sErvice oRiented framework for the continuous business process improVement & relAted tools is the framework that has been defined in this thesis work; it takes into account all the aspects mentioned, in which the SOC and MDD paradigms are applied to BPs focusing on their continuous improvement, extending an existing BP lifecycle with explicit execution measurement and improvement activities and elements. It is made up of three dimensions: i) conceptual, which defines the concepts that are managed throughout the framework. ii) methodological, which defines a methodology for service oriented development from BPs with automatic generation of SoaML service models from BPMN2 models, along with a continuous improvement process based on execution measurement of the occurrences of BPs in the organization to carry out the improvement effort. iii) tools support for the whole proposal based on several existing tools we have integrated, along with new ones we have developed. The proposals in MINERVA have been validated by means of an experiment and two case studies carried out in the context of real projects in two organizations, from which, as the main result of the applications performed, it can be concluded that MINERVA can be a useful and key guide for the continuous improvement of BPs realized by services and for the development of service oriented systems from BPs, with automatic generation of service models from BP models.Las organizaciones se enfrentan en la actualidad a varios retos, siendo uno de los más importantes su capacidad para reaccionar rápidamente a los cambios ya sea en sus modelos de procesos de negocio (PN) o en el software que los implementa. Estos cambios pueden provenir de distintas fuentes: requisitos externos de socios o del mercado, o nuevos requisitos internos para la forma en que las cosas se llevan a cabo por los PNs definidos; también pueden surgir de las oportunidades de mejora detectadas para los PNs definidos, en base al monitoreo y evaluación de la ejecución de los PNs llevada a cabo por la organización, y/o sus socios y clientes. La creciente complejidad de los modelos de PNs y del software que los implementa, requiere que los cambios o las mejoras sean sopesados cuidadosamente contra el impacto que su introducción tendrá; también deben llevarse a cabo de manera sistemática para asegurar un desarrollo exitoso. Dos elementos son clave para proveer estos requisitos: la separación de la definición de los PNs de su implementación, para minimizar el impacto de los cambios de uno en otro, y un proceso para introducir los cambios o mejoras en los PNs y/o en el software que los implementa. La Gestión de Procesos de Negocio (Business Process Management, BPM) proporciona los medios para guiar y apoyar el modelado, implementación, despliegue, ejecución y evaluación de PNs en una organización, basado en el ciclo de vida de PNs. La realización de PNs con servicios proporciona la base para la separación de su definición de las tecnologías para implementarlos, y ayuda a proporcionar una mejor respuesta a los cambios en cualquiera de las capas definidas -definición e implementación de procesos de negocio- con un impacto mínimo sobre la otra. El modelado de PNs y servicios es un aspecto clave para apoyar esta visión, ayudando a proveer trazabilidad entre los elementos de un área a la otra, por lo tanto facilitando el análisis del impacto de los cambios, entre otras cosas. Los modelos han demostrado jugar un papel importante en el proceso de desarrollo de software, uno de sus usos principales en el contexto de la realización de PNs con servicios es el de diseñar servicios a un nivel más abstracto que con tecnologías específicas, promoviendo la reutilización separando la lógica de los servicios de su implementacion. MINERVA: Model drIveN & sErvice oRiented framework for the continuous business process improVement & relAted tools es el marco que se ha definido en este trabajo de tesis, que toma en cuenta todos los aspectos mencionados, en el cual los paradigmas de Computación Orientada a Servicios (Service Oriented Computing, SOC) y Desarrollo Dirigido por Modelos (Model Driven Development, MDD) se aplican a los PNs con foco en su mejora continua, extendiendo un ciclo de vida PN existente con actividades y elementos explícitos para la medición de la ejecución y mejora de PNs. El marco se compone de tres dimensiones: i) conceptual, que define los conceptos que se manejan en todo el marco. ii) metodológica, que define una metodología para el desarrollo orientado a servicios desde PNs, con generación automática de modelos de servicio en SoaML desde modelos en BPMN2, junto con un proceso de mejora continua basado en la medición de la ejecución de las ocurrencias de los PNs en la organización para llevar a cabo el esfuerzo de mejora. iii) soporte de herramientas para la propuesta completa basado en la integracion de varias herramientas existentes, junto con otras nuevas que hemos desarrollado. Las propuestas de MINERVA han sido validadas por medio de un experimento y dos casos de estudio realizados en el marco de proyectos reales en dos organizaciones, de los cuales, como resultado principal de las aplicaciones realizadas, se puede concluir que MINERVA puede ser una guía útil y clave para la mejora continua de PNs realizados por servicios y para el desarrollo de sistemas orientados a servicios desde PNs, con generación automática de modelos de servicio a partir de modelos de PN

African review of economics and finance 2018 conference proceedings

Abstract: This paper draws from research that applied Systems Thinking to the development of suitable social structures that may aid or enhance social learning within the South African context. The South African social system is rigid and top-down. Communities use protest as a bottom-up form of participation to control the lack of procedural clarity that hinders sustainable social transformation. A qualitative research approach was adopted using Grounded Theory methodology to investigate the social system structure in South Africa. Thirty-five (35) participants were interviewed and three focus groups were convened. The analysis showed that the South African social system structure is characterised by a lack of openness, inflexibility, non-adaptability and an inability to learn. Based on the findings, recommendations are shared on the validity of an appropriate social system structure for South Africa that may facilitate stakeholder/citizen participation in social transformational activities

A systemic study of learners' knowledge sharing and collaborative skills development : a case study in a British business school

Knowledge management, as Leistner (2010) argues, is a “misnomer”. Knowledge cannot be managed since it relates to prior experience and is present merely in the mind of individuals (p. 4). We can manage knowledge flow, but not the knowledge itself. Leistner states that ‘‘you can enable a flow by creating an environment that people find safe, attractive, and efficient, and that motivates them to share their knowledge. This could be either face-to-face or by recording relevant information that can be used by others to re-create knowledge in their own frame of reference’’ (p. 10). Therefore, managing the flow is “as much about creating conditions that will make sharing more likely as it is about trying to have a direct influence on people’’ (pp. 17-18).In the arena of creating such conditions, operational research (OR) is assumed to offer special capacities to lead the advancements in knowledge management and knowledge sharing research. However, the role of OR is not clear in knowledge management. There is also very little account of OR studies concerning knowledge management in combination with social network analysis. This situation has not changed over past years. In addition, although soft-OR tools promote specific solutions with which to tackle complexity management in organisations, there are very few studies concerning the use of action research and soft-OR tools such as the Viable System Model, which are designed specifically for knowledge sharing projects and simulating social networks.This research intends to design, develop and implement a soft canonical operational research (SCOR) methodological framework for the processes of knowledge sharing. The researcher combines Davison et al.’s (2012) canonical action research and Checkland’s (1985) F-M-A soft account of action research. The framework has, in itself, an embedded solution for skill development and performance improvement through collaborative knowledge sharing and experiential learning/practising. In this research, a combinative perspective of VSM and SNA is considered.Adopting a pragmatic philosophy with an interpretivist ontology and relativist epistemology, the researcher inductively conducted two cycles of action research and analysed the outcomes. Four types of transformations occurred in (1) individuals’ skill level, (2) performance, (3) knowledge network and (4) gradual development of strategies across levels. This research elucidates said transformations and explains the key mechanisms for facilitating collective knowledge sharing in order to develop skills and to improve performance. It also brings to light the evidence regarding two unplanned phenomena that occurred in both cycles: leadership development and autopoiesis.Reflection is provided on the design of the soft-OR multi-methodology and on how this design has been useful and effective in the present research. In addition, the study’s contributions to knowledge and practice are also explained. This research suggests that guided self-organisation is a more effective approach for skill development than traditional methods and that it can create an effective context in which a knowledge network is able to reproduce itself. Finally, the limitations of the research and implications for future studies are clarified

Implementation and Development of Vehicle Tracking and Immobilization Technologies

Since the mid-1980s, limited use has been made of vehicle tracking using satellite communications to mitigate the security and safety risks created by the highway transportation of certain types of hazardous materials. However, vehicle-tracking technology applied to safety and security is increasingly being researched and piloted, and it has been the subject of several government reports and legislative mandates. At the same time, the motor carrier industry has been investing in and implementing vehicle tracking, for a number of reasons, particularly the increase in efficiency achieved through better management of both personnel (drivers) and assets (trucks or, as they are known, tractors; cargo loads; and trailers). While vehicle tracking and immobilization technologies can play a significant role in preventing truck-borne hazardous materials from being used as weapons against key targets, they are not a & ”silver bullet.” However, the experience of DTTS and the FMCSA and TSA pilot projects indicates that when these technologies are combined with other security measures, and when the information they provide is used in conjunction with information supplied outside of the tracking system, they can provide defensive value to any effort to protect assets from attacks using hazmat as a weapon. This report is a sister publication to MTI Report 09-03, Potential Terrorist Uses of Highway-Borne Hazardous Materials. That publication was created in response to the Department of Homeland Security´s request that the Mineta Transportation Institute´s National Transportation Security Center of Excellence provide research and insights regarding the security risks created by the highway transportation of hazardous materials

Academic middle manager-driven strategies for managing curriculum change in higher education

This study is an investigation of strategies that can be deployed by academic middle managers (AMMs) to support successful planning, implementation and management of curriculum change in higher education. It has been consistently shown in literature that well above half of curriculum improvements which fail to be successfully implemented are due to failure by the improvement sponsors to effectively plan particularly with regards to the identification and deployment of effective curriculum change strategies. Authorities in the field of curriculum change have identified two broad categories of curriculum change strategies namely the process management and the strategic management strategies. Drawing from the two broad categories of strategies above, this study has identified a number of specific strategies for planning, implementing and managing curriculum change and these include making curriculum change a high priority, providing support to achieve change, planning and resourcing for effective curriculum change, providing effective leadership to drive change, gaining the confidence of department staff, recognising and dealing effectively with staff wants and needs during curriculum change, and dealing with negative perceptions of change as well as ensuring professional development. Key words: curriculum change, strategies, process management strategies, strategic,  management strategies, shared approach