The representation of time in data warehouses

This thesis researches the problems concerning the specification and implementation of the temporal requirements in data warehouses. The thesis focuses on two areas, firstly, the methods for identifying and capturing the business information needs and associated temporal requirements at the conceptual level and; secondly, methods for classifying and implementing the requirements at the logical level using the relational model. At the conceptual level, eight candidate methodologies were investigated to examine their suitability for the creation of data models that are appropriate for a data warehouse. The methods were evaluated to assess their representation of time, their ability to reflect the dimensional nature of data warehouse models and their simplicity of use. The research found that none of the methods under review fully satisfied the criteria. At the logical level, the research concluded that the methods widely used in current practice result in data structures that are either incapable of answering some very basic questions involving history or that return inaccurate results. Specific proposals are made in three areas. Firstly, a new conceptual model is described that is designed to capture the information requirements for dimensional models and has full support for time. Secondly, a new approach at the logical level is proposed. It provides the data structures that enable the requirements captured in the conceptual model to be implemented, thus enabling the historical questions to be answered simply and accurately. Thirdly, a set of rules is developed to help minimise the inaccuracy caused by time. A guide has been produced that provides practitioners with the tools and instructions on how to implement data warehouses using the methods developed in the thesis

Retail brand management: towards modelling the grocery retailer brand from an ethnographic perspective

As producers of national and international brands, manufacturers and service providers were the focus of brand management literature. However, as retailers have become major players nationally and internationally, managing retailers as brands have become a major challenge. The retailer unique business nature, and managerial needs as well as its ever-changing business environment render managing the retail brand a unique and complex task. For the retail brand to embrace and adapt to its managerial challenges, a multitude of brand management approaches should be employed. However, when addressing retailers as brands, the retail management literature has failed to account for this multiplicity exposing a gap in the literature. To fill this gap, a communal retail brand management model is proposed to help retailers embrace and adapt to their various branding requirements inflicted by their business challenges. To build the model, a common core among the various approaches involved in managing retail brands should be identified so as to simplify, by forming a unified approach, yet maintain the essence of each approach. The holistic, humanitarian and managerial orientations of the concept of organizational culture identify it as the common core and thus act as the backbone on which the model will be built. Since the model will be built through cultural interpretation, the ethnographic tradition of qualitative inquiry is utilized because it provides an emic perspective, which is the best strategy (that consequently provides best tools) for interpreting cultures. Besides, the flexibility of the ethnographic tradition allows the adoption of other qualitative traditions of enquiry to aid in building the model. Thus, the case study tradition is employed to confine the study within the precincts of a single retail brand in order to conduct deep analysis for several stakeholders simultaneously. Additionally, the analytical technique of the grounded theory tradition is employed to capitalize on its systematic ability to form conceptual themes out of raw data that, ultimately, become the model's building blocks. In light of conducting a five-months participant observation study in two grocery stores of a leading supermarket brand in two countries (Sainsbury's stores in the UK and Egypt), the findings revealed that modelling the retail brand culture resembles, metaphorically, a tree. The culture symbols resemble the tree attractive leaves, the rituals & local heroes resemble the supportive trunk, and values resemble the roots that anchor in the soil, which, in turn, resembles the cultures in which the retailer operates. The thesis concludes that the Tree- Model is a road map that guides retailers to build and manage their brand identity and consequently enable them to embrace and adapt to the various branding requirements dictated by their business challenges

Maintaining Dimension's history in data warehouses effectively

A data warehouse is considered a key aspect of success for any decision support system. Research on temporal databases have produced important results in this field, and data warehouses, which store historical data, can clearly benefit from such studies. A slowly changing dimension is a dimension in which any of its attributes in a data warehouse can change infrequently over time. Although different solutions have been proposed, each has its own particular disadvantages. The authors propose the Object-Relational Temporal Data Warehouse (O-RTDW) model for the slowly changing dimensions in this research work. Using this approach, it is possible to keep track of the whole history of an object in a data warehouse efficiently. The proposed model has been implemented on a real data set and tested successfully. Several limitations implied in other solutions, such as redundancy, surrogate keys, incomplete historical data, and creation of additional tables are not present in our solution. Copyright © 2019, IGI Global

Maintaining Dimension's History in Data Warehouses Effectively

A data warehouse is considered a key aspect of success for any decision support system. Research on temporal databases have produced important results in this field, and data warehouses, which store historical data, can clearly benefit from such studies. A slowly changing dimension is a dimension in which any of its attributes in a data warehouse can change infrequently over time. Although different solutions have been proposed, each has its own particular disadvantages. The authors propose the Object-Relational Temporal Data Warehouse (O-RTDW) model for the slowly changing dimensions in this research work. Using this approach, it is possible to keep track of the whole history of an object in a data warehouse efficiently. The proposed model has been implemented on a real data set and tested successfully. Several limitations implied in other solutions, such as redundancy, surrogate keys, incomplete historical data, and creation of additional tables are not present in our solution

Beyond Participatory Design for Service Robotics

The spread of technologies as Cloud and Distributed Computing, the Internet of Things (IoT) and Machine Learning techniques comes with highly disruptive innovation potential and consequent design imperatives. High connectivity of devices and machines is shaping not only sensing and monitoring capabilities, but also describing ever more ubiquitous and diffuse computing capabilities, affecting decision-making with a wide range of assisting tools and methods. With the scaling potential of moving beyond its contemporary application such as industrial facilities monitoring, precision farming and agriculture, healthcare and risk management scenarios, RaaS is bound to involve an increasingly fluid and diverse range of users, shaping new socio-technical systems where practices, habits and relationships will evolve in respect to its adoption. On these premises, applied research at Polytechnic Interdepartmental Centre for Service Robotics in Turin, Italy, focuses on the development of a service robotics platform able to operate on the local scale and capable of adapting to evolving scenarios

Towards effective monitoring, control and surveillance policy and implementation in South Africa and its relevance to other Southern African States

The responsibility of Fisheries Governance Authorities (FGAs) is to ensure that there is sustainable utilisation and exploitation of marine living resources through effective Monitoring, Control and Surveillance (MCS). MCS is a mechanism used to implement agreed policies, plans and strategies for oceans and fisheries governance, and it is key to their successful implementation. In the continent, the African Union (AU), through its agencies, economic and regional structures encourage and supports national and regional MCS programs. South Africa is a SADC coastal State with a fisheries governance branch mandated to ensure sustainable marine living resources’ utilisation with support from a national MCS program. This support depends on the effectiveness of the current national MCS organisational structure, capacity, legislative and policy framework, as well as regional cooperation. In addition to an extensive literature review, this study developed a MCS framework, following international fisheries legislation and guidelines, for testing the South African MCS’ conformity to such a model. Furthermore, Namibia and Mozambique were included as examples of SADC coastal States to determine their responsiveness to regional cooperation and coordination. Based on the framework, a questionnaire with four parts, Part A: Background Information; Part B: Evaluation of MCS Enablers; Part C: Evaluation of an MCS system process and its effectiveness – reactive approach; and Part D: - proactive approach was developed to collect information. The data was analysed, using appropriate statistical methods to determine, against set characteristics, the level of information that the government respondents could provide to the research topic, and to determine the effectiveness of the South African MCS program. Limited information from Namibia and Mozambique showed readiness in their respective MCS programs for a regional MCS integrated approach, as is the case with South Africa, but there is no serious engagement to implement any regional MCS program. Results showed that the South African MCS program's effectiveness is generally adequate, but there are challenges with planning; financial resources; MCS equipment; stakeholder engagement processes, and governance. A primary recommendation from this study was that business plans, as utilised in the private sector, should be developed by South African Fisheries Governance Authority (FGA) to address MCS governance shortcomings as revealed by this study. A reconfiguration of the MCS organisational structure to include a resource mobilisation unit is considered necessary to effect the much needed improvements.Thesis (PhD) -- Faculty of Science, Geography, 202

Impact of environmental conditions on cost management information systems in Egyptian organisations.

The Egyptian government pursued a privatisation policy that resulted in an increased role for the private sector in the national economy. Environment competition and unpredictability have affected the organisations and increased the requirement for them to work more effectively and creatively. Johnson and Kaplan (1987), Johnson (1992), Bromwich and Bhimani (1989), Ezzamel (1994), Dent (1990) and Scapens (1984) all recognised the gap between the theory and the practice of cost management practices, which has led to many of the approaches outlined in accounting literature not been widely used in practice according to many surveys (e.g. Drury et al., 1993; Ezzamel & Willmott, 1992). Scapens (1994), Kaplan (1998) and others encouraged researchers to focus on organisations' practices and this provided the motivation for this research. The research explains the practices of cost management information system (CMIS) through three hypotheses: linear, non-linear and existence of intervening variables (managers' education, level, location of authority, kinds of consultants, and size of organization) for the relationship between the practices of CMIS and managers' perceptions of competition intensity and unpredictability. Furthermore, the research considers four moderating variables (business sector, ownership category, transformation characteristic and strategic postures) in this relationship. The theoretical framework chosen is neo-contingency theory as it deals with the limitation of contingency theory. In order to test the hypotheses, inquires based on cross sectional data were carried out. Data was collected from twenty nine organisations in Egypt using an interview guide, structured questionnaire and documentary evidence. A variety of statistical tests (using SPSS) were used to test the hypotheses and to explain the major relationships. The thesis contributes to knowledge by providing empirical evidence of cost management information system, in terms of policies and practices, in twenty nine Egyptian organisations in different sectors. It also supports the relevance of neocontingency theory as a theoretical framework for undertaking such studies. Through the testing hypotheses, it is one of the few studies to have considered moderating and intervening variables in the cost management area