ReSCon '12, Research Student Conference: Book of Abstracts

The fifth SED Research Student Conference (ReSCon2012) was hosted over three days, 18-20 June 2012, in the Hamilton Centre at Brunel University. The conference consisted of 130 oral and 70 poster presentations, based on the high quality and diverse research being conducted within the School of Engineering and Design by postgraduate research students. The conference is held annually, and ReSCon plays a key role in contributing to research and innovations within the School

Final Year Project Digital Library

The application of digital libraries or web archives has been significant during the past few years such as with the introduction of the web development technology and implementation of data repositories in office automation. The objective of the project is to apply the research done on file type conversion into the development of FYP Digital Library, a web archiving system for documentation management and preservation purposes. The current system has been too big and becoming difficult to handle, as the number of the final year project documents to be maintained and managed are of bigger numbers now. This has made the effort of keeping all these documents for reference purposes difficult. With the development of the final year project digital library that shall serve the function of web archive, these two main goals will be able to be accomplished. The web development project involves the application of RAD methodology as used in various smaller projects. In order to accomplish these objectives, various interviews with stakeholders and research done on file type conversion and information management and retrieval has been done and the result of these has contributed to the requirement analysis and design phases of the projects' final product resulting to the development of FYP Digital Library Keywords: final year project documents, web development, archive, file type conversion, information management and retrieva

Influence of Monitoring and Evaluation paramenters on the performance of national government funded construction projects in uasin gishu county, Kenya

ABSTRACT The general objective of the study was to identify the influence of monitoring and evaluation on the performance of National Government funded construction projects in Uasin Gishu County, Kenya. The specific objectives of the study were to determine influence of monitoring tools on the performance of government funded construction projects in Uasin Gishu County, Kenya, to establish the influence of quality of field data collection methods on the performance of government funded construction projects in Uasin Gishu County, Kenya, to examine the influence of on the performance of National Government funded construction projects in Uasin Gishu County, Kenya, to determine the influence of project team effort on the performance of National Government funded construction projects in Uasin Gishu County, Kenya, and to find out the influence of project management as an intervening variable on monitoring and evaluation and the performance of National Government funded construction projects in Uasin Gishu County, Kenya. Theories used are theory of change, information processing theory, knowledge flow, and structural contingency theory. The methodology used was literature review and field study. The field survey employed was self-administered questionnaire instrument as well as random sampling. The study used quantitative research methodology and employed field survey design as well as literature review. The Target population was 215, and the sample size of 134. Questionnaires were distributed to clients, consultants, contractors, ministry of public works supervisors, randomly selected from projects that are sampled responded. The quantitative data and descriptive statistics were analyzed by the use of statistical package for social scientists (SPSS) and results reported in tables showing percentages and ratios. The findings revealed that Quality of field data collection method has the most significant influence of the performance of national government construction projects in Uasin Gishu County, Kenya. The study recommended improvement and management support for project management analysis, and tracking of variance from specific plans; the use of software, including estimation and planning, scheduling, cost control and budget management, resource allocation, collaboration software, communication, quality management and documentation or administration system. The study also recommended management support for the use of quality data collection methods on the projects, identifying where systems are falling short and project delivery capability, and more emphasis on cost of quality. The study further recommended the develop human resources in the construction industry through proper and continuous training programs about construction projects performance. It also recommended a clear mission and vision in place to formulate, implement and evaluate the performance of national funded construction projects, and the introduction of contract management training for relevant stakeholders

The 1982 NASA/ASEE Summer Faculty Fellowship Program

A NASA/ASEE Summer Faculty Fellowship Research Program was conducted to further the professional knowledge of qualified engineering and science faculty members, to stimulate an exchange of ideas between participants and NASA, to enrich and refresh the research and teaching activities of participants' institutions, and to contribute to the research objectives of the NASA Centers

ORGANIZING FOR THE DIGITAL WORLD: A PATHWAY TOWARDS THE AGILE MARKETING CAPABILITY

The ultimate goal of this dissertation is to explain how agility intersects in the field of marketing capabilities, in order to deepen the understanding about a new marketing capability: the Agile Marketing Capability. My dissertation consists of three papers. The first paper inquires how the Agile Marketing Capability can be formally theorized and conceptualized, identifying its key theorizing elements and putting the basis for its further exploration and analysis. The outcomes of this first study identify the core dimensions (or constructs) of the Agile Marketing Capability, advance a holistic theoretical model, and discuss the underlying constructs and relationships. With this first conceptualization of a marketing-focused capability of agility, I start outlining a new path of marketing capabilities, seeking to redefine marketing capabilities by learning more about Agile Marketing implementation. Thus, I lay the terrain for future exploration and forecast of this topic, and enrich the debate on the opportunity to integrate agile principles into marketing studies, and ultimately impact marketing capabilities. The second paper provides an initial empirical investigation of agile capability in marketing field, exploring its main defining features and thus elaborating some key theoretical and empirical dimensions which may characterize and compose the Agile Marketing Capability. The outcomes of this second study identify and organize the key theoretical concepts and dimensions of the Agile Marketing Capability in a theoretical framework. To summarize study results I also formulate some propositions, which could stimulate future theoretical and empirical research towards this topic. The findings of this research considerably advance extant knowledge on capabilities greater aligned with digital transformation challenges, which is a topic still at an early stage in current literature. Specifically, the analysis carried out in the second paper improves the understanding on agility in digital and international marketing settings, contributing to extend dynamic capabilities and marketing capabilities literature. In the meantime, the framework and propositions of this study, as well as the empirical findings, contribute to explain what strategic actions are needed to foster marketing agility, thus pursuing and implementing an Agile Marketing Capability. The third and final paper extends the body of knowledge of agile capabilities in marketing field by looking at how different organizations pursue and implement the Agile Marketing Capability. The outcomes of this third study deepen the conceptualization and definition of the Agile Marketing Capability dimensions, proposing a four-stage Agile Marketing Capability maturity framework. The framework provides key actions, activities and behaviours organized in progressive maturity levels to enable organizations to assess and improve their capabilities in Agile Marketing implementation. The findings of this work contribute to deepen the body of knowledge on marketing capabilities and agility research streams, explaining the benefits that could derive from employing agile approaches and capabilities in marketing, and how their employment actually may enhance organizations’ extant marketing capabilities, particularly in turbulent and fast-changing contexts. Notably, the analysis performed in this third study sheds light on progressive behaviors and actions representative of different maturity levels in the development and management of the Agile Marketing Capability. The maturity framework proposed in this paper and the empirical findings clarify to managers and practitioners how to assess current maturity level in the development of such capability, understand potential improvement actions, and, thus, achieve higher levels of performance. Briefly, it provides useful guidelines for organizations to become more agile in their marketing capabilities

E-Learning Technologies and Its Application in Higher Education:A Descriptive Comparison of Germany,United Kingdom and United States.

There is a general agreement that we have entered the information economy, that higher education is a critical element in this knowledge society. This has placed a new demand on its teaching and research functions, with growing emphasis on lifelong learning and more flexible forms of higher education delivery. Notwithstanding, there is also a widespread scepticism as to whether educational systems will be able to overcome their traditional inertia and respond to the challenge of the knowledge-based revolution. Currently the prominence of ICT and other external influencing factors; economic, social, cultural and the changing role of governmental policy are driving the inner life of the higher education sector. In that respect many higher educational institutions are turning to e-learning technologies for improving the quality of learning by means of access to resources, services, long distance collaborations and exchanges. However this transition has been characterized by a mixed sense of optimism, skeptism and a lack of “adequate benchmarks”. It is within this background that this explorative study sought to carry out a descriptive comparison between Germany, UK and the USA with the objective of identifying the current trends, establishing tendencies of differences or similarities and identifying future trends (next 5 years) across the three countries. This is directed at synthesising “best practices” which could facilitate international knowledge transfer and the future development of e-learning. In pursuance of these aims the study employed the use of both quantitative and qualitative data sources. In obtaining the quantitative data, national and international reports that detail out the activities of e-learning in higher educational institutions across the three countries were reviewed and relevant data filtered. Further explanations, clarifications as well as predictions of future trends were sought through expert interviews (n=30 experts). The findings indicate that: 1) The three countries did not exhibit much differences in terms of policy however they exhibited differences in terms of strategy and tactics in e-learning. 2) The three countries exhibited differences in terms of the prevalent e-learning technologies used as well as the application of such technologies. 3) In terms of didactical approaches and orientation to either local or international markets the three countries exhibited differences iv) In terms of impact and limiting factors the three countries exhibited differences in scale and proportion though qualitative impact was difficult to estimate. 5) In terms of future trends or scenarios different projections were made across the three countries. The implications of the findings are discussed and recommendations offered for further research

Evidence from the Public Sector

The general objective that guided this thesis is to identify the integrated role of information technology capabilities and innovativeness in organizational performance in the public sector. We conducted the present research study in two major stages to achieve this purpose, guided by research questions and specific objectives. We extensively reviewed the scientific literature on innovativeness and IT capabilities applied to the business area first. For this purpose, we used several technological tools to scan several units of analysis underlying each area to identify the origins, conceptual and intellectual structures, and the main active research fronts, indicating open opportunities for the evolution of knowledge. In general, the results showed that knowledge production on the themes is transversal, relating strongly to other topics, such as strategic management, organizational performance, knowledge management and market orientation (innovativeness) and organizational performance, strategic management, and value (IT capabilities). Both themes are recent in the literature, and researchers’ interest proliferates. In addition, there are numerous research opportunities available to future researchers, both about each theme taken in isolation or combined. The knowledge gathered in the first stage was the basis for the conduction of the second stage, whose approach, markedly empirical, sought to identify the nature of the relationships between the central organizational phenomena of this study (innovativeness and IT capabilities), associated with other under-explored elements in the literature, such as IT reconfiguration capacity and IT human capital. To this end, we analyzed the data provided by 258 Brazilian public institutions from the most diverse segments, collected through a survey conducted with the highest information technology managers. We performed the analyses by applying structural equation models based on covariance (CB-SEM). Overall, the results indicated that the reconfiguration IT capability must be listed among the IT capabilities of public organizations, and innovativeness and IT capabilities play an essential role in the performance of these organizations. The results also indicated that the IT human capital is an antecedent of the IT organizational capabilities. Finally, the results showed that IT capabilities, in turn, have a direct positive effect on organizational performance and are indirectly mediated by innovativeness. The study contributes to the evolution of the literature in IT and innovation to the extent that it helps fill the gap in the lack of studies that use advanced quantitative techniques of bibliometric character to analyze the high-impact scientific production available. In addition, the study presents, in detail, all the steps followed by the study, including the combined use of analysis tools, to allow replication by future researchers. The study innovates and contributes to the advancement of the literature in IT and innovation by identifying that IT capabilities are essential antecedents of organizational innovativeness and the role of IT reconfiguration capability and IT human capital on IT organizational capabilities. Finally, this thesis reveals several research opportunities available and recommended by several recently produced high-impact research. This study presents managers with recommendations on creating and developing more effective IT teams with more comprehensive skills in the practical field. In addition, the chapter highlights the need for IT managers to dedicate themselves to developing the capability of teams with the expertise to gather, integrate and implement IT resources, with a focus on meeting the needs of organizational processes. Finally, managers are presented with evidence that creating an environment favorable to innovation and supported by information technology is crucial for achieving better corporate results.O objetivo geral que balizou esta tese foi o de identificar o papel integrado das capacidades de tecnologia da informação e da capacidade para inovar no desempenho organizacional, no contexto do setor público. Para alcançar esta finalidade, o presente trabalho de investigação foi conduzido em duas grandes etapas, guiadas por questões de pesquisa e objetivos específicos. A primeira etapa buscou realizar extensas revisões da literatura científica sobre os temas capacidades para inovar e capacidades de TI, aplicadas à área de negócios. Para tanto, foram utilizadas variadas ferramentas tecnológicas para esquadrinhar diversas unidades de análise subjacentes a cada área, a fim de identificar as origens, as estruturas conceituais e intelectuais, bem como as principais frentes ativas de pesquisa, com a indicação de oportunidades abertas para evolução do conhecimento. De forma geral, os resultados indicaram que a produção do conhecimento sobre os temas é transversal, se relacionando fortemente com outros tópicos, como gestão estratégica, desempenho organizacional, gestão do conhecimento e orientação para o mercado (capacidade para inovar) e desempenho organizacional, gestão estratégica e valor (capacidades de TI). Ambos os temas são recentes na literatura e o interesse dos pesquisadores está em franco crescimento. Além disso, existem inúmeras oportunidades de pesquisa à disposição de futuros pesquisadores, tanto em relação a cada tema tomado de forma isolada, quanto combinados entre si. Os conhecimentos reunidos na primeira etapa foram a base para a condução da segunda etapa, cuja abordagem, marcantemente empírica, buscou identificar a natureza das relações existentes entre os fenômenos organizacionais centrais deste estudo (capacidade para inovar e capacidades de TI), associados a outros elementos pouco explorados na literatura, como a capacidade de reconfiguração de TI e o capital humano de TI. Para tanto, foram analisados os dados fornecidos por 258 instituições públicas brasileiras, de diversos segmentos, coletados por meio de survey conduzida com os mais altos gestores de tecnologia da informação. As análises foram realizadas por meio da aplicação de modelos de equações estruturais baseados em covariância (CB-SEM). De forma geral, os resultados indicaram que a capacidade de reconfiguração de TI deve ser elencada entre as capacidades de TI das organizações públicas, bem como que a capacidade para inovar e as capacidades de TI exercem um importante papel no desempenho dessas organizações. Os resultados indicaram ainda que o capital humano de TI é um antecedente das capacidades organizacionais de TI. Por fim, os resultados indicaram que as capacidades de TI, por sua vez, exercem efeito positivo direto sobre o desempenho organizacional, bem como indireto, mediado pela capacidade para inovar. O estudo contribui com a evolução da literatura das áreas de TI e inovação, na medida em que ajuda a preencher a lacuna da carência de estudos que se utilizem de avançadas técnicas quantitativas, de caráter bibliométrico, para analisar a produção científica de alto impacto disponível. Além disso, o estudo apresenta, de forma detalhada, todos os passos seguidos pelo trabalho, inclusive o uso combinado de ferramentas de análise, a fim de possibilitar a replicação por futuros pesquisadores. O estudo inova e contribui para o avanço da literatura das áreas de TI e inovação ao identificar que as capacidades de TI são importantes antecedentes da capacidade organizacional para inovar, bem como o papel da capacidade de reconfiguração de TI e do capital humano de TI sobre as capacidades organizacionais de TI. Por fim, esta tese revela diversas oportunidades de pesquisa disponíveis e recomendadas por diversas pesquisas de alto impacto recentemente produzidas. No campo prático, este estudo apresenta aos gestores recomendações sobre como podem criar e desenvolver equipes de TI mais efetivas e com habilidades mais abrangentes. Além disso, o capítulo ressalta a necessidade de que os gestores de TI se dediquem a desenvolver a capacidade das equipes com expertise para reunir, integrar e implementar recursos de TI, com o foco em atender as necessidades dos processos organizacionais. Finalmente, os gestores são apresentados a evidências de que a criação de um ambiente favorável à inovação, e apoiado pela tecnologia da informação, é um importante caminho para atingir melhores resultados organizacionais

Brokering Culture and Labor: An Anthropological Analysis of IT Offshore Labor between Japan and India

The rapid expansion of information and communication technology (ICT) has accelerated the distribution of work across geographically dispersed areas, and this transnational relocation of work is viewed as a seamless transaction by proponents of technological globalization. However, a close examination of the collaboration involved in Indian/Japanese software offshoring illuminates an array of difficulties that problematize the "seamlessness" of this endeavor. This dissertation investigated the complex social world of offshoring by focusing on analyzing India-Japan software offshoring, and the study revealed corporate control as well as workers' efforts and struggles to make this ICT-supported relocation of work function smoothly. Through the analysis of the interviews with Indian software engineers and liaison officers between companies and within companies, in combination with observations of their workplaces, this dissertation highlights the corporate demands for flexibility in two layers: demands for being flexible in macro-labor circulations, to function as "labor buffers," and being flexible in terms of micro-communication issues and clients' demands. At the same time, it also reveals that corporate control is not a monolithic and totalizing force, but a complex and contradictory process generated through the struggles and intense labor of both Indian and Japanese sides that attempt to connect the disjunctions and make the business look "seamless." This study illuminates the irony that the relocation of work can intensify labor for both sides because of clients' micromanagement and communication difficulties. In addition, it also captures workers' efforts to distance themselves from corporate control, and their attempt to utilize the "onsite opportunity" to pursue their own interest. By highlighting the corporate demands for dual flexibility, as well as layers of communication difficulties and contradictions in Japan-Indian offshoring businesses, this dissertation provides insight into an anthropological and sociological analysis of offshoring as a complex global social phenomenon

21st-Century U.S. Safety Professional Educational Standards: Establishing Minimum Baccalaureate Graduate Learning Outcomes for Emerging Occupational Health and Safety Professionals

How can the public be assured of competency in those professing to protect its occupational health and safety (OSH)? Currently, in the U.S. there are 193 higher education OSH programs, 186 with baccalaureate degrees with over 55 different degree titles. This research seeks to define minimum OSH baccalaureate graduate core competencies across all programs by asking: What would employers look for in a portfolio to demonstrate competence in a new OSH graduate? Professional members of the American Society of Safety Engineers (ASSE) participated as subject matter experts in an anonymous online survey to provide framing data. The ASSE Educational Standards Committee and Framing the Profession Task Force engaged in an action research method of facilitated discussion and consensus building, (Modified Nominal Group Technique), distilling 741 portfolio examples to 22 competency themes, and 11 learning outcomes. Recommendations include: establish a standardized set of core competencies of evidence based learning outcomes across all OSH and related programs; look to the Nursing and Education professions\u27 processes of shifting from prescribed courses to a learning outcomes model; shift pedagogy to student-centered, highly engaged, outcomes-based approach; enhance educational content for 21st-century knowledge and skills, including: teamwork, internship experience, organizational skills, ethics, critical thinking, scientific method, continuous improvement, systems thinking, sustainable applications, and strategic planning; enhance partnerships between professional safety associations and higher education for collaboration and consensus building; and collaborate with global OSH associations. The electronic version of this Dissertation is at the Ohio Link ETD Center at http://ohiolink.edu/et