Systems between information and knowledge : In a memory management model of an extended enterprise

The research question of this thesis was how knowledge can be managed with information systems. Information systems can support but not replace knowledge management. Systems can mainly store epistemic organisational knowledge included in content, and process data and information. Certain value can be achieved by adding communication technology to systems. All communication, however, can not be managed. A new layer between communication and manageable information was named as knowformation. Knowledge management literature was surveyed, together with information species from philosophy, physics, communication theory, and information system science. Positivism, post-positivism, and critical theory were studied, but knowformation in extended organisational memory seemed to be socially constructed. A memory management model of an extended enterprise (M3.exe) and knowformation concept were findings from iterative case studies, covering data, information and knowledge management systems. The cases varied from groups towards extended organisation. Systems were investigated, and administrators, users (knowledge workers) and managers interviewed. The model building required alternative sets of data, information and knowledge, instead of using the traditional pyramid. Also the explicit-tacit dichotomy was reconsidered. As human knowledge is the final aim of all data and information in the systems, the distinction between management of information vs. management of people was harmonised. Information systems were classified as the core of organisational memory. The content of the systems is in practice between communication and presentation. Firstly, the epistemic criterion of knowledge is not required neither in the knowledge management literature, nor from the content of the systems. Secondly, systems deal mostly with containers, and the knowledge management literature with applied knowledge. Also the construction of reality based on the system content and communication supports the knowformation concept. Knowformation belongs to memory management model of an extended enterprise (M3.exe) that is divided into horizontal and vertical key dimensions. Vertically, processes deal with content that can be managed, whereas communication can be supported, mainly by infrastructure. Horizontally, the right hand side of the model contains systems, and the left hand side content, which should be independent from each other. A strategy based on the model was defined.Tutkimuksen tavoitteena oli määrittää, miten tietojärjestelmiä voidaan käyttää organisaatioiden tietämyksen hallintaan. Johtopäätöksenä voidaan sanoa, että järjestelmillä voidaan tukea, mutta ei korvata tietojohtamista. Tietojärjestelmiä voidaan käyttää lähinnä organisaation episteemisen tiedon muistina, prosessoitavan tiedon varastointiin. Oleellista lisäarvoa saadaan, jos viestintäteknologiaa käytetään tietojärjestelmien tukena. Kommunikaatiota ei kuitenkaan voida johtaa, sillä se ei perustu prosesseihin, vaan enintään työnkulkuun ja sitä vapaampaan viestintään. Hallitun informaation ja viestinnän välille syntyy knowformaatioksi nimetty kerros, lähinnä organisaatioiden lyhytkestoiseen muistiin. Uusi knowformaatio-käsite on käytännön tapaustutkimusten tulos. Vastaavaa ei aiemmissa tietojohtamisen tutkimuksissa ole esitetty. Tietojohtamisen kirjallisuuden taustaksi tutkittiin fysiikan, filosofian, viestinnän ja tietojenkäsittelytieteen luokitukset. Tapaustutkimuksissa tarkasteltiin useita datan hallinnan, dokumentaation ja tietojohtamisen järjestelmiä organisaation sisäisissä ryhmissä, organisaation laajuisesti sekä organisaation yhteistyökumppaneiden kanssa. Tapauksissa tutkittiin niin järjestelmien ominaisuudet kuin myös eri sidosryhmien kokemukset. Tutkimuksessa tietojärjestelmät luokiteltiin organisaation muistin ytimeen. Knowformaation kerrosta tarvitaan toisaalta koska filosofisen tiedon episteemistä kriteeriä ei edellytetä järjestelmien sisällöltä (eikä tietojohtamisen kirjallisuuden käsitemäärittelyissä) ja toisaalta koska tiedon uudelleenkonstruoinnissa merkitys muuttuu. Tulevien järjestelmien suunnitteluun tarvitaan uusi näkökulma, koska data, informaatio ja knowledge tasojen hierarkia ei erotu eri järjestelmätyyppien käyttäjien sosiaalisesti konstruoidussa todellisuudessa. Tieteen filosofian skaala positivistisesta konstruktivistiseen oli mallin muodostuksessa oleellinen, ja sen validiuden todentamisen jälkeen eksplisiittinen piiloinen -dikotomia mallinettiin uudelleen knowformaatio-käsitteen avulla. Uusi tietomalli ja knowformaatio-käsite tarvitaan työn päätuloksessa, jatketun organisaation muistin hallintamallissa. Sen ääripäihin kuluvat kommunikaatio, jota tuetaan, ja toisessa päässä prosessit, joita hallitaan. Kahden muun entiteetin, järjestelmien ja niiden sisällön, tulisi olla riippumattomia toisistaan. Knowformaatio elää näiden kokonaisuuksien implisiittisillä rajoilla, informaation ja tiedon välisellä harmaalla alueella

Marketing management for non-marketing managers : improving returns on marketing investments

https://egrove.olemiss.edu/aicpa_guides/2698/thumbnail.jp

The Center Will Hold: Critical Perspectives on Writing Center Scholarship

In The Center Will Hold, Pemberton and Kinkead have compiled a major volume of essays on the signal issues of scholarship that have established the writing center field and that the field must successfully address in the coming decade. The new century opens with new institutional, demographic, and financial challenges, and writing centers, in order to hold and extend their contribution to research, teaching, and service, must continuously engage those challenges. Appropriately, the editors offer the work of Muriel Harris as a key pivot point in the emergence of writing centers as sites of pedagogy and research. The volume develops themes that Harris first brought to the field, and contributors here offer explicit recognition of the role that Harris has played in the development of writing center theory and practice. But they also use her work as a springboard from which to provide reflective, descriptive, and predictive looks at the field.https://digitalcommons.usu.edu/usupress_pubs/1143/thumbnail.jp

Lives in Peace Research

This open access book explains how PRIO, the world’s oldest peace research institute, was founded and how it survived through crises. In this book, twenty-four of its researchers and associates, including Johan Galtung, Ingrid Eide, and Mari Holmboe Ruge, who founded the institute back in 1959, tell the stories of their roles in inventing and developing peace research. They reflect on their personal experiences with peace and conflict, tell what drove their peace engagement, and discuss the balance sought in the field between the cold dictates from academic rigor and the hot pursuit of peace, a desire for research to make a positive difference. Most of the chapters are interviews where one colleague interviews another. Some are self-reflective essays, while others are memorial essays written about a peace researcher who has passed away. Taken together, the book presents a lively picture of a thriving world-leading research environment and a wealth of conflicting or mutually reinforcing perspectives on war, violence, conflict, conflict management and resolution, negotiations and mediation, peacemaking, peace building, and the contested concept of peace. “The Oslo Stories is an indispensable source to the history of peace research.” Dr. Olav Njølstad, Director, Nobel Institute, Osl

The Impact of the Internationalisation of Higher Education on Scientists’ Multimodal Communication: A case study from Catalonia

Les universitats de tot el món són instades a participar en el procés d' ‘internacionalització’ com a distintiu de qualitat i com a reclam per atraure estudiants. Aquest estudi aborda aquesta qüestió des del context de les institucions catalanes d’educació superior, que afronten el dilema de donar suport a la/les llengua/gües local/s i, alhora, abraçar el multilingüisme i, sobretot, l’anglès. L'objectiu principal d'aquest estudi és examinar l'impacte de la internacionalització de l'educació superior en la comunicació diària dels científics. Les dades etnogràfiques s’han recopilat al llarg d’un període d’11 mesos d’observació de dos grups de recerca (RGs) multinacionals amb seu en una universitat catalana, i s’han contrastat amb dades extretes d’un RG amb seu a Alemanya i amb idees inspirades en les pràctiques del RG de la pròpia investigadora. De l'objectiu empíric n’ha derivat un objectiu teòric, que consisteix a dissenyar i provar un marc teòric adequat per estudiar el fenomen proposat de manera integral. Aquest estudi té l’objectiu de contribuir a la limitada literatura que descriu aquelles pràctiques comunicatives "informals" i inèdites dels científics, així com a la literatura sobre la internacionalització de l’ensenyament superior. A nivell pràctic, aquest treball pretén contribuir a la millora de les polítiques d’internacionalització de les institucions d’ensenyament superior de Catalunya, d’Europa i potencialment d’altres contextos arreu del món.Las universidades de todo el mundo son instadas a participar en el proceso de ‘internacionalización’ como distintivo de calidad y como reclamo para atraer estudiantes. Este estudio aborda esta cuestión desde el contexto de las instituciones catalanas de educación superior, que afrontan el dilema de apoyar la/s lengua/s local/es y, a la vez, abrazar el multilingüismo y, sobre todo, el inglés. El objetivo principal de este estudio es examinar el impacto de la internacionalización de la educación superior en la comunicación diaria de los científicos. Los datos etnográficos se han recopilado a lo largo de un período de 11 meses de observación de dos grupos de investigación (RGs) multinacionales con sede en una universidad catalana, y se han contrastado con datos extraídos de un RG con sede en Alemania y con ideas inspiradas en las prácticas del RG de la propia investigadora. Del objetivo empírico ha derivado un objetivo teórico, que consiste en diseñar y probar un marco teórico adecuado para estudiar el fenómeno propuesto de manera integral. Este estudio tiene el objetivo de contribuir a la limitada literatura que describe aquellas prácticas comunicativas "informales" e inéditas de los científicos, así como a la literatura sobre la internacionalización de la enseñanza superior. A nivel práctico, este trabajo pretende contribuir a la mejora de las políticas de internacionalización de las instituciones de enseñanza superior de Cataluña, de Europa y potencialmente de otros contextos en todo el mundo.Universities worldwide are urged to engage in the process of ‘internationalisation’ as a hallmark of quality and as a lure to attract students. The current study approaches this issue from the context of Catalan higher education institutions, which deal with the dilemma of supporting the local language(s) and at the same time embracing multilingualism and especially English. The main aim of this study is to examine the impact of the internationalisation of higher education on the daily communication of scientists. Ethnographic data have been collected throughout a period of 11 months from two multinational research groups (RGs) based in a Catalan state university, and contrasted with data taken from a RG based in Germany and with insights from the researcher’s own RG. From the empirical objective has derived a theoretical objective, consisting in designing and proving a suitable theoretical framework to study the phenomenon holistically. This study aims to contribute to the limited body of research describing scientists’ "informal" and unpublished communicative practices, as well as to the literature on the internationalisation of higher education. On a practical level, this work is intended to aid in the improvement of internationalisation policies of higher education institutions in Catalonia, in Europe and potentially in other contexts worldwide

The Intercultural Perspective in a Multicultural World : 11th NIC-Conference

The 11th Conference of the Nordic Network for Intercultural Communication, held in Kristiansand 26 – 28 November 2004, attracted a variety of professionals in the field of communication: scholars, researchers, educators and other practitioners. Although the purpose of NIC is to promote cooperation in the Nordic countries (including the Baltic countries) between researchers and practitioners interested in intercultural communication the arranging committee was happy to welcome individuals from other European countries and even from as far as Australia. The theme of the conference was “The Intercultural Perspective in a Multicultural World”. Participants were invited to submit papers on topics that were related to the main theme. The papers which were presented at the conference demonstrated that intercultural communication is both a scientific field in its own right, and that it is being applied in a multitude of settings where people with different cultural backgrounds meet and exchange ideas and information, work and do business together, study or in any other way are engaged in intercultural encounters. At the sessions during the conference intercultural communication was discussed from different perspectives, such as education, research, business, globalisation, media and health. The form of the presentations varied but may be grouped under two main categories: scientific papers that were part of larger research projects, and sharing of experiences which had a more informal and report-like form and which were not intended for publication in the present collection of articles from the conference. All were welcome and appreciated, however, and we hope that some of the projects not included in this publication may be available for others in the future, either in NIC conferences or in other connections. Two key note speakers were invited: Milton J. Bennett, director of The Intercultural Development Research Institute, and Elisabeth Eide, assistant professor at Oslo University College. We are very grateful for their contribution to the conference. Their articles are included in this volume. After the conference the presenters were invited to submit their papers to an editing committee which had the mandate to do a selection and publish them in book form in a series at the University College of Kristiansand. The present volume then consists of selected articles that were deemed suited for publication by the committee in consultation with external referees. The editing committee has consisted of Birte Simonsen, University College of Kristiansand, and Eilef Gard, Gimlekollen School of Journalism and Communication. We would like to express our gratitude to the contributors of the articles and to the University College of Kristiansand, which has generously included this volume in their series of publications. Finally, thanks also to the Cultiva Foundation for their economic support of the conference and this publication

Lives in Peace Research

This open access book explains how PRIO, the world’s oldest peace research institute, was founded and how it survived through crises. In this book, twenty-four of its researchers and associates, including Johan Galtung, Ingrid Eide, and Mari Holmboe Ruge, who founded the institute back in 1959, tell the stories of their roles in inventing and developing peace research. They reflect on their personal experiences with peace and conflict, tell what drove their peace engagement, and discuss the balance sought in the field between the cold dictates from academic rigor and the hot pursuit of peace, a desire for research to make a positive difference. Most of the chapters are interviews where one colleague interviews another. Some are self-reflective essays, while others are memorial essays written about a peace researcher who has passed away. Taken together, the book presents a lively picture of a thriving world-leading research environment and a wealth of conflicting or mutually reinforcing perspectives on war, violence, conflict, conflict management and resolution, negotiations and mediation, peacemaking, peace building, and the contested concept of peace. “The Oslo Stories is an indispensable source to the history of peace research.” Dr. Olav Njølstad, Director, Nobel Institute, Osl

Made in Wales: a study of the realities of work in a super independent television production company

The PhD study provides an assessment of TV production work in context, examining the impact of the consolidation of the independent television sector on the experience of work. The recent consolidation of the sector in the UK has led to the emergence of super independent television production companies, more commonly known as ‘super indies’. Super indies are organisations formed by multiple takeovers, grouping together independent television producers into larger companies. Whilst the rise of super indies is well-documented, the realities of work in super indies have yet to be explored. The thesis addresses this gap by assessing the impact of the super indie institutional structure on the experience of work in television production. Based on an in-depth case study of a Welsh super indie, Oaks Productions Ltd (Oaks), the research draws on 63 semi-structured interviews with both Oaks’ managers and employees to evaluate the experience of work in this context. In doing so, the research investigates firstly, how the nature of television production work is impacted by key features of the super indie structure in the Welsh context, and secondly, how creative work is experienced in this setting. Fundamental to the study is the identification of a creative worker typology, relating to the ability of creative workers to access and mobilise a variety of different resources to navigate creative work in this setting. Finally, the thesis explores the meaning of television work, highlighting the important role of individual creative work features, as well as social, relational and non-work factors in the experience of meaningful work. The thesis contributes to the TV production literature, illustrating the diversity of TV production experiences in a single organisational context. Moreover, it contributes to the creative labour literature by demonstrating the entrenched power hierarchies in creative work settings, and the importance of embedded resources in shaping the experience of television production work