A multi-level approach to e-HRM motives and consequences in an MNC: A Case Study X

The advancements in technology are changing the way human resources (HR) are man-aged. While electronic human resource management (e-HRM) is becoming increasingly popular among multinational corporations (MNC), the MNC context in the field of e-HRM suffers from a fundamental lack of empirical evidence. Therefore the purpose of this study is to analyze the perceptions different stakeholders have on e-HRM which was being implemented in the case company during the time of research. Three research questions were formed to deliver understanding to this purpose. The first research question aimed to understand the motives behind the implementation of e-HRM, why e-HRM is implemented, and what goals is the company aiming to achieve with e-HRM. The second research question focuses on the possible impacts e-HRM has on its end users. The final research question is aimed to deliver understanding on what the strategic potential of e-HRM covers and how the strategic potential is realized and why that does not necessarily happen. This study was conducted by following a qualitative case study method as it is the most eligible method in terms of the objectives of this study. The empirical data was gathered through conducting semi-structured interviews and secondary data provided by the case company. The interviewees represented three groups; top management, HR professionals and line managers. The data was analyzed using the content analysis method. Main findings suggest that the implementation of e-HRM is a multilevel phenomenon in several senses. It might change everyone’s roles, but the impacts can also be divided into operational and strategic ones. If the strategic potential realize by utilizing the new data transparently e-HRM can help the company gain competitive advantage.fi=Opinnäytetyö kokotekstinä PDF-muodossa.|en=Thesis fulltext in PDF format.|sv=Lärdomsprov tillgängligt som fulltext i PDF-format

Project Risk Management Strategies for IT Project Managers

Utilizing information technology (IT) to enable new organizational capabilities to achieve near-term objectives and long-term sustainability is a top priority for many business leaders seeking to maintain or increase market share. However, organizational leaders face significant challenges to their strategy execution because the percentage of challenged IT projects has remained relatively static for decades. The purpose of this qualitative case study was to explore risk management strategies used by 7 purposely selected IT project managers (PMs) from a pharmaceutical company located in the northeastern United States who have effectively managed IT project performance by using risk management strategies, leading to the successful delivery of an IT project. The conceptual framework that guided the research was actor-network theory. The data collection included semistructured interviews and the collection of internal organizational risk registers and other project risk management documentation. An inductive content analysis followed the procedures outlined in Malterud\u27s systematic text condensation strategy, yielding the following major strategies to increase IT project performance: performing knowledge management, promoting a positive risk culture, utilizing an existing risk management framework, and performing risk-related communication. The implications for positive social change include the potential to help IT PMs deliver the expected business value on time and within budget, which, in turn, may enable pharmaceutical companies to improve the quality of life of afflicted individuals and populations in need of safe, economical, and innovative therapies

A model for effective use of human resource information systems in South African State Owned Agencies

The relevance of this thesis is in addressing information systems business leadership HRIS use issues.The thesis explains acceptance and use issues central to Human Resource Information Systems (HRIS) within South African State Owned Agencies (SOAs). Organisations typically deploy HRIS with a view to automate Human Resource (HR) service delivery and administrative functions. Among other values, HRIS produces useful data and information which optimises HR operations and improves decision-making. However, the use of HRIS, notably within SOAs, is poorly understood owing to inadequate literature and contextualised studies. Despite the tremendous amount of investment into such systems, SOAs continuously identify emerging challenges and issues pertinent to HR operations and administration. For instance, despite HRIS automation, job applications and recruitment are still manually processed, which means that the costly implemented HRIS is not effectively used, and is thus underutilised. The burning questions for business leadership remain - why is HRIS not optimally utilised given significant organisational investment on such systems, and the mixed return-on-investments? The other question relates to what the level of acceptance is and actual use of these HR systems. There is also a need to determine to what extent do these systems enable or improve the delivery of human resource services and administration. Moreover, what influences the use of HRIS? Previous literature and organisational practice inadequately addresses these questions. This thesis, therefore, addresses these key issues to bridge these preceding knowledge gaps. In order to explain the use and subsequent effective use of HRIS, the study triangulated three theories as theoretical lenses. These theories are the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT), Self Determination Theory (SDT), and the Representation Theory (RT). These theories are employed to explore and explain the individual use, and subsequent effective use of HRIS. In this respect, the ontological stance for this thesis is that reality is objective. Thus, the study followed a positivist research paradigm, whilst the research the approach was deductive. A survey research strategy was employed during the study to obtain primary data. Survey participants included executives and individuals from speciality units e.g. HR, Finance, Supply Chain, Support departments (including IT and Help Desks) as well as other HRIS users. Participants were drawn from various South African SOAs. Structural equation modelling and hypothesis testing show that there are myriad of determinants influencing use and effective use of HRIS. The results further show that certain constructs are inconsistent with the existing literature. Nevertheless, this inconsistency speaks to the unique South African SOA contexts. The outcome of the study is a model which theoretically and practically explains those factors which must be considered to effectively use and utilise HRIS. That is, the theoretical, practical, methodological, and contextual contributions of the thesis is in explaining the determinants which are significant for effective use of HRIS.Centre for Business ManangementD.B.L

Actor-network services in the Arctic - Development of a theoretical and methodological concept to assess interdependencies between nature and society

This dissertation provides the interdisciplinary theoretical and methodological concept of \u27Actor-network services\u27 to investigate interdependencies between nature and society in the Arctic. The concept is applied to selected Arctic resources which function as case studies in order to test the concepts\u27 ability to identify and investigate developments in the High North. Based on representative connections, Arctic entities which mediate flows between nature and society are then identified

Understanding the processes of Information Systems deployment and evaluation: The challenges facing e-health

This thesis was submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy and awarded by Brunel University.Information Systems (IS) innovations in healthcare sector are seen as panacea to control burgeoning demand on healthcare resources and lack of streamlining in care delivery. Two particular manifestations of such innovations are telehealth and electronic records in its two forms: the electronic medical records and the electronic health records. Deployment efforts concerning both of these IS-innovations have encountered a rough terrain and have been slow. Problems are also faced while evaluating the effectiveness of innovations on health and care delivery outcomes through strategies such as randomised controlled trials- particularly in case of telehealth. By taking these issues into account, this research investigates the issues that affect IS innovation deployment and its evaluation. The strategy adopted in this research was informed by recursive philosophy and theoretical perspectives within IS that strived to expound this recursive relationship. It involved conducting two longitudinal case studies that are qualitative in nature. The first study involved telehealth deployment and its evaluation in the UK, while the second case study involved the deployment of electronic medical/health records in the US. Data was collected through focus group discussions, interviews and online discussion threads; and was analysed thematically. The results of this research indicate that there are nine issues that arise and affect the deployment and evaluation of IS innovation in healthcare; and these are design, efficiency and effectiveness, optimality and equity, legitimacy, acceptance, demand and efficacy, expertise, new interaction patterns, and trust. These issues are attributes of relationships between the IS innovation, context of healthcare and the user. The significance of these attributes varies during the deployment and evaluation process, and due to iterative nature of IS innovation. This research further indicates that all the attributes have either direct or indirect impact on work practices of the user.Multidisciplinary Assessment of Technology Centre for Healthcare (MATCH

To What Extent Has Information Security Professionalism Achieved Recognition?

The practice of securing information was until recently associated strongly with securing the Information Technology systems which store and process it. As it has developed as a specialised area of work however, particularly as the critical importance of human and social factors has increasingly been recognised, it has acquired an identity separate from that of computing. The separation has been sufficient for the formation of a new, distinct occupation, with specialised credentialing bodies being established to attest to practitioners’ professional competence. This study is the first empirical academic investigation into the professionalisation of UK Information Security. It considers attitudes towards professional status, the desirability and practicality of licensing, the current standing of the occupation and its prospects for the future. The analysis draws heavily from the substantial Sociology of the Professions, both from the structural and procedural theory of profession-forming and the later critiques of motivation, class and power. Semi-structured interviews were undertaken with twenty-seven individuals comprising security analysts, managers, academics, professional bodies and the UK Government. Interviews took place between November 2012 and March 2015. Results are presented in two stages of analysis, using Actor–Network Theory as a theoretical lens. Whilst significant progress has been made towards forming a recognisable Information Security profession, its status is not yet comparable to more established peers. Aligned with US National Research Council findings but using a broader basis in professionalisation theory, the UK occupation was found to be too diffusely demarcated both internally and with respect to its bordering professions. It has yet to coalesce around distinct internal specialities with discrete qualification routes and establish the hierarchical arrangement of its major branches. Without such stratification of roles and a well-accepted claim to controlling a clearly demarcated body of knowledge, it is not possible to establish the boundaries of a graduate profession superior to any supporting para-professions, and thus position itself as requiring an advanced abstract education comparable to its peers. A rationalisation of credentials and institutions is required to produce a strong professional body which can advance the cause of the profession and properly establish and embed these roles. At present however – contrary to the tenor of much of the relevant sociology – neither the pursuit of professional status nor the exclusion of unqualified workers were found to be major motivators for current practitioners. By contrast government, the final arbiter of professional monopoly, is attempting urgently to increase the appeal of the profession to address a national skills shortfall, but is wary of direct market intervention in the form of licensing. Therefore, whilst change is rapid, significant impediments to full professional recognition remain

Shortest Route at Dynamic Location with Node Combination-Dijkstra Algorithm

Abstract— Online transportation has become a basic requirement of the general public in support of all activities to go to work, school or vacation to the sights. Public transportation services compete to provide the best service so that consumers feel comfortable using the services offered, so that all activities are noticed, one of them is the search for the shortest route in picking the buyer or delivering to the destination. Node Combination method can minimize memory usage and this methode is more optimal when compared to A* and Ant Colony in the shortest route search like Dijkstra algorithm, but can’t store the history node that has been passed. Therefore, using node combination algorithm is very good in searching the shortest distance is not the shortest route. This paper is structured to modify the node combination algorithm to solve the problem of finding the shortest route at the dynamic location obtained from the transport fleet by displaying the nodes that have the shortest distance and will be implemented in the geographic information system in the form of map to facilitate the use of the system. Keywords— Shortest Path, Algorithm Dijkstra, Node Combination, Dynamic Location (key words

Women's Emancipation and Civil Society Organisations

Women are at the heart of civil society organisations. Through them they have achieved many successes, challenged oppressive practices at a local and global level and have developed outstanding entrepreneurial activities. Yet Civil Service Organisation (CSO) research tends to ignore considerations of gender and the rich history of activist feminist organisations is rarely examined. This collection examines the nexus between the emancipation of women, and their role(s) in these organisations. Featuring contrasting studies from a wide range of contributors from different parts of the world, it covers emerging issues such as the role of social media in organising, the significance of religion in many cultural contexts, activism in Eastern Europe and the impact of environmental degradation on women’s lives

Factors Influencing Small Construction Businesses from Implementing Information Security: A Case Study

This qualitative study described the influence of small businesses’ failure to properly implement information security technologies resulting in the loss of sensitive and proprietary business information. A collective case study approach was used to determine the most effective way to gain a holistic picture of how small construction businesses make security technology implementation decisions to support their workforce. The theory guiding this study was the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT) model which is related to the Theory of Planned Behavior and the Technology Acceptance Model which helped explain the intentions of individuals to use information systems. Security policies and threats (insider and cyber) were also looked at during this study. Data collection methods included questionnaires, interviews, document reviews, journaling, and webpage scans to provide insight into security information technology use. The results of this study indicated small construction businesses rely heavily on third-party information technology venders to perform security functions. This security model has led to several of the businesses experiencing cyber security incidents and the businesses being more reactive in responding to cyber-attacks. Deficiencies with planning for system implementations also impacted how employees thought and used the businesses’ security information systems. The study’s results indicated employee’s behavior intention and use behavior was highly impacted by the age moderator with older employees more likely to display a lower behavior intention and use behavior for using systems