Manufacturing Strategy: An Analysis of the Saudi Manufacturing Private Sector

This study is motivated by the desire to develop an understanding of the manufacturing strategy concept within the Saudi business environment. More specifically the objectives of the study are to detect the existing type of manufacturing strategies in Saudi plants in the last two years (i.e., 1987 and 1988) as well as in the next two years (i.e., 1990 and 1991); to use SWOT analysis to find out strengths and weaknesses within the plants surveyed as well as opportunities and threats in the environment; and finally to test six hypotheses of the model of manufacturing strategy. The model consists of eight factors: organisational environment, corporate and business strategies, manufacturing task statement, manufacturing task, the role of the production manager, structural category of decisions, infrastructural category of decisions, and finally organisational performance

The Influence of Human Resource Practices and Leadership Style on Job Satisfaction and Cyberdeviance Amongst Administrative Employees in Jordanian Universities

The advent of the Internet has transformed the way in which people work and live. While the Internet has offered many advantages and benefits to the workplace particularly in terms of speeding up information search, it also has potential drawbacks. One drawback is that people can misuse the Internet while at work. This phenomenon, which is called cyberdeviance, is a form of production deviance. As our theoretical understanding of cyberdeviance is still limited, this study attempts to investigate the role of HR practices and leadership style in cyberdeviant activities. It also seeks to examine the mediating influence of job satisfaction , with the application of social exchange theory. A survey of 273 administrative employees in in four universities in Amman, Jordan who were randomly selected using a cluster technique, was carried out for the period of five months from February until June 2011. Frequency, descriptive statistics, correlation, multiple regression, and hierarchical regression analyses were run to test the research hypotheses. Factor analyses revealed four dimensions of HR practices, i.e., performance appraisal, compensation practice, career advancement, and employment security. Leadership style produced a single dimension labelled supportive leadership style, while job satisfaction yielded two dimensions, namely, satisfaction with pay, and satisfaction with workload. Results showed that performance appraisal and leadership style were significantly and negatively related to cyberdeviance, contrary to expectation. But collectively, the predictor variables of dimensions of HR practices and leadership were found to explain 63.8% of variance in cyberdeviance. Two dimensions of job satisfaction, satisfaction with pay and satisfaction with workload, partially mediated the link between leadership style and cyberdeviance. But satisfaction with pay was found to partially mediate performance appraisal and cyberdeviance. lt is recommended that organizations implement a good performance appraisal system and demonstrate supportive leadership as ways to reduce cyberdeviance at work

The impact of Workers’ Welfare Programme on the migrant workers: insights from Qatar 2022 FIFA World Cup

For the past decade, FIFA’s decision to award World Cup hosting rights to Qatar has placed the country in the spotlight of international scrutiny and criticism, particularly for the treatment of migrant workers delivering infrastructure projects and venues for the upcoming mega event. The Supreme Committee for Delivery and Legacy (SC), chief body responsible for the successful delivery of the 2022 World Cup and post-event legacy, has taken steps beyond Qatar’s current labour law requirements and created the Workers’ Welfare Programme (WWP). It entails a unique and comprehensive approach to screening, auditing and retaining contractors that fulfil a specific set of requirements designed to protect migrant workers from abuse and provide them with working and living conditions of high standards. Currently, research on the effectiveness of this Programme as well as other efforts to protect migrant workers – both in Qatar and globally – is rather limited in its scope and depth. Existing studies mainly focus on post-event analyses with inadequate primary data collection efforts, failing to give voice to all parties involved. This study aims to bridge this knowledge gap by investigating the factors affecting the migratory construction workers involved in the preparations for the 2022 FIFA World Cup. It does so by examining the implementation of various aspects of the SC’s WWP and the extent to which it has impacted migrant workers and other relevant stakeholders. The study adopted a mixed-method approach to data collection and analysis by conducting a quantitative survey of migrant workers and juxtaposing it with findings from qualitative interviews with high level stakeholders. The results indicate that great strides have been achieved in improving different aspects of migrant workers’ lives such as their living conditions and workplace safety standards. However, a number of concerns remain to be fully resolved, including the illegal practice of levying recruitment fees, comprehensive training, salary satisfaction as well as access to healthcare. The study suggests a number of policy recommendations to effectively address the issues and preserve Qatar’s post-World Cup legacy

The impact of Workers’ Welfare Programme on the migrant workers: insights from Qatar 2022 FIFA World Cup

For the past decade, FIFA’s decision to award World Cup hosting rights to Qatar has placed the country in the spotlight of international scrutiny and criticism, particularly for the treatment of migrant workers delivering infrastructure projects and venues for the upcoming mega event. The Supreme Committee for Delivery and Legacy (SC), chief body responsible for the successful delivery of the 2022 World Cup and post-event legacy, has taken steps beyond Qatar’s current labour law requirements and created the Workers’ Welfare Programme (WWP). It entails a unique and comprehensive approach to screening, auditing and retaining contractors that fulfil a specific set of requirements designed to protect migrant workers from abuse and provide them with working and living conditions of high standards. Currently, research on the effectiveness of this Programme as well as other efforts to protect migrant workers – both in Qatar and globally – is rather limited in its scope and depth. Existing studies mainly focus on post-event analyses with inadequate primary data collection efforts, failing to give voice to all parties involved. This study aims to bridge this knowledge gap by investigating the factors affecting the migratory construction workers involved in the preparations for the 2022 FIFA World Cup. It does so by examining the implementation of various aspects of the SC’s WWP and the extent to which it has impacted migrant workers and other relevant stakeholders. The study adopted a mixed-method approach to data collection and analysis by conducting a quantitative survey of migrant workers and juxtaposing it with findings from qualitative interviews with high level stakeholders. The results indicate that great strides have been achieved in improving different aspects of migrant workers’ lives such as their living conditions and workplace safety standards. However, a number of concerns remain to be fully resolved, including the illegal practice of levying recruitment fees, comprehensive training, salary satisfaction as well as access to healthcare. The study suggests a number of policy recommendations to effectively address the issues and preserve Qatar’s post-World Cup legacy

Urban land utilization : case study : Riyadh, Saudi Arabia

Thesis. 1975. M.Arch.A.S.--Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Dept. of Architecture."The analysis and evaluations were carried out in the Urban Settlement Design Program, School of Architecture and Planning, M.I.T."Bibliography: p.91.by Mohammed A. Al-Hussayen & Ali M. Shuaibi.M.Arch.A.S

Do human resource management practices matter in reducing cyberloafing at work: Evidence from Jordan

Misusing the Internet at work for non-work related purposes or cyberloafing has become a worrisome phenomenon in organizations.As such, ways to address the issue have received increasing attention by researchers and scholars alike.The present study attempts to add to the literature by exploring the role of human resource practices (HRP) in influencing and hence reducing cyberloafing at work.Two-hundred eighty four employees in four different Jordanian universities were selected to respond to a structured questionnaire.Multiple regressions indicated that out of four types of HRP (performance appraisal, compensation practices, employment security, and career advancement) only performance appraisal and career advancement were found to negatively predict cyberloafing.No significant observations were found on the effect of compensation and employment security on cyberloafing.Implications to practice and theory are discussed

The mediating influence of job satisfaction on the relationship between HR practices and cyberdeviance

Despite the many advantages and benefits the Internet offers to the workplace, it also allows people to misuse it while at work.Misusing the Internet during work hours for non-work related purposes is referred to as cyberdeviance.As our theoretical understanding of cyberdeviance is still limited, the purpose of this paper is to explore the role of HR practices in influencing cyberdeviance.It also seeks to examine whether job satisfaction mediates the link between HR practices and cyberdeviance.A survey of 273 administrative employees in four universities in Jordan, who were randomly selected using a cluster technique, was conducted.Frequencies, descriptive statistics, correlation, multiple regression, and hierarchical regression analyses were performed to analyze the data. Factor analyses revealed four dimensions of HR practices i.e. performance appraisal, compensation practice, career advancement, and employment security, while job satisfaction yielded two dimensions i.e. satisfaction with pay, and satisfaction with workload.Results showed that all four dimensions of HR practices were significantly able to explain 68.8% of the variance in cyberdeviance. Satisfaction with pay was found to partially mediate the link between performance appraisal and cyberdeviance.On the other hand, satisfaction with workload was a partial mediator between performance appraisal and cyberdeviance, and between career advancement and cyberdeviance. Recommendations for future research and practice, and limitations of the study are also highlighted

Laguerre polynomials and the inverse Laplace transform using discrete data

We consider the problem of finding a function defined on $(0,\infty)$ from a countable set of values of its Laplace transform. The problem is severely ill-posed. We shall use the expansion of the function in a series of Laguerre polynomials to convert the problem in an analytic interpolation problem. Then, using the coefficients of Lagrange polynomials we shall construct a stable approximation solution.Comment: 14 page

Association Between Lipid Profile and Diabetic Foot Ulcer

Diabetic foot ulcer is a serious disabling consequence of Diabetes Mellitus. They are characterized by the breakdown of skin and underlying tissues in the feet, and are a major cause of lower limb amputations. Various risk factors have been identified for the development of diabetic foot ulcers, including poor glycemic control, peripheral neuropathy, peripheral arterial disease, and impaired wound healing. it is considered that the lipid profile is one of many factors that contribute to the formation and progression of diabetic foot ulcers. To stratify the incidence of diabetic foot ulcers (DFUs), biomarkers are required. The aim of this review is to assess the relationship between the risk of DFU and lipid profile in diabetic patients