Cleaners don’t need computers : bridging the digital divide in the workplace

Purpose: To report the findings of research into the extent and impact of restricted access by specific groups of staff to ICT-based communications in UK Further and Higher Education Institutions. Design / methodology / approach: An exploratory approach combining quantitative and qualitative methods. A questionnaire survey was distributed to all HEFCE-funded institutions in the UK. Six institutions acted as case study sites for in-depth qualitative investigation using documentary analysis and semi-structured interviews. Findings: Lack of hardware and network infrastructure posed less of a barrier than lack of ICT skills, lack of motivation either to use computers or to gain ICT skills, and line manager resistance to staff using computers or accessing ICT training in work time. Job function was the factor most associated with lack of access, with cleaning, catering and estates staff least likely to have access. However, there were also many examples of good practice to extend staff access, particularly with regard to ICT training. The research concludes that one of the main concerns for institutions is to ‘win the hearts and minds’ of non-desk staff and their managers. The development of an institutional communication strategy is identified as being of critical importance. Research limitations / implications: Provides a ‘snapshot’ of the prevailing situation at the point of data collection rather than a longitudinal insight into developments in access over time. Originality / value of the paper: The first comprehensive analysis of staff access to ICT in UK further and higher education. In addition to highlighting examples of good practice for dissemination across the sector, the research provides information about gaps in provision to inform the targeting of future initiatives

ICT in the workplace: access for all or digital divide?

The paper presents the findings of research into the extent and impact of restricted access to ICT based communications for specific groups of staff in UK further and higher education organisations. Educational institutions disseminate key corporate information internally via email, intranets and Virtual Learning Environments. However, the extent to which access to electronic communications is available to all personnel within such institutions in the UK has not previously been established. The research arose from a concern that a significant proportion of staff were being routinely excluded from access, thus perpetuating and extending existing inequalities among personnel and creating a digital divide between the ‘information rich’ and the ‘information poor’. A questionnaire survey was used to quantify the extent of restrictions on staff access across the sector, whilst case study research was used to conduct a qualitative analysis of its impact on individuals and institutions. The findings indicate that lack of hardware and network infrastructure pose less of a barrier to access than does lack of ICT skills, lack of motivation either to use computers or to gain ICT skills, and line manager resistance to staff using computers or accessing ICT training in work time. Job function was the factor most associated with lack of access, with cleaning, catering and estates staff least likely to have access. However, there were also examples identified of effective practice in extending the range of personnel with access and ensuring inclusive communication with all personnel. These insights into good practice should be transferable to a wide range of workplace contexts

Maternal iron status in early pregnancy and birth outcomes : insights from the Baby's Vascular health and Iron in Pregnancy study

Date of Acceptance: 16/03/2015 Acknowledgements N. A. A. was funded by a Wellcome Trust Research Training Fellowship (WT87789). H. J. M. and H. E. H. are supported by the Scottish Government’s Rural and Environment Science and Analytical Services. N. A. B. S. is supported by Cerebra. The authors’ contributions are as follows: N. A. A. was responsible for organising the study conduct, data collection and database management, performed the statistical analysis, interpreted the results and drafted the paper. N. A. A., N. A. B. S., J. E. C., H. J. M. and D. C. G. contributed to the study concept and design, and interpretation of results. H. J. M. and H. E. H. analysed the laboratory samples. J. E. C. and D. C. G. provided advice on statistical strategy and analysis. All authors have fully participated in the reporting stage and have critically reviewed and approved the final draft of the paper. The authors declare no conflict of interestPeer reviewedPublisher PD

Analysis of competencies for effective virtual team leadership in building successful organisations

Purpose - Global competition and advances in technology have enhanced the growing trend of virtual teams in order to execute business strategies. Thus, understanding the competencies needed for virtual leadership effectiveness is essential and vital to organisational success. The purpose of this paper is to identify and analyse the required competencies for virtual team leadership and its effectiveness in an organisation. Design/methodology/approach - The study adopted case study methodology to undertake an exploratory study of a manufacturing organisation. Using a questionnaire that was designed following a focussed literature review to identify the specific virtual leadership competencies, structured interviews were conducted face-to-face with 14 respondents from two major virtual team groups. The interviews were designed to elucidate the opinions and perceptions of virtual team members with respect to selected characteristics of their virtual team leaders (VTLs). The responses obtained were analysed using descriptive statistics and thematic analysis. Findings - The study identified the competencies required for effective leadership in virtual teams in order to achieve the organisational project success. The performance of the two VTLs in the organisation was then assessed in the light of these identified competencies. The study also identified transformational leaders as important to be considered when selecting VTLs because they are known to achieve high-performing team. However, the study found that considering the virtual leadership competencies, the two VTLs were found to have not, on the whole, performed well because they are lacking in some of the leadership competencies required for effective leadership in a virtual team and this has led to their organisation not achieving the required success in virtual teams. Practical implications - The study has implications for organisations’ virtual team project leaders. The identification of specific leadership competencies for virtual team leadership will enable organisations to be more informed when looking for effective leaders in their virtual teams in order to achieve high-performing virtual teams, which will lead to organisational growth and success. The study is expected to enhance the success rate of any typical organisation using virtual teams. Originality/value - The study would be highly beneficial to both the potential and current stakeholder organisations considering virtual teams to execute business strategies. This study has also added to the body of knowledge by further exploring the leadership competencies needed for virtual teams

Shoot yield drives phosphorus use efficiency in Brassica oleracea and correlates with root architecture traits

The environmental and financial costs of using inorganic phosphate fertilizers to maintain crop yield and quality are high. Breeding crops that acquire and use phosphorus (P) more efficiently could reduce these costs. The variation in shoot P concentration (shoot-P) and various measures of P use efficiency (PUE) were quantified among 355 Brassica oleracea L. accessions, 74 current commercial cultivars, and 90 doubled haploid (DH) mapping lines from a reference genetic mapping population. Accessions were grown at two or more external P concentrations in glasshouse experiments; commercial and DH accessions were also grown in replicated field experiments. Within the substantial species-wide diversity observed for shoot-P and various measures of PUE in B. oleracea, current commercial cultivars have greater PUE than would be expected by chance. This may be a consequence of breeding for increased yield, which is a significant component of most measures of PUE, or early establishment. Root development and architecture correlate with PUE; in particular, lateral root number, length, and growth rate. Significant quantitative trait loci associated with shoot-P and PUE occur on chromosomes C3 and C7. These data provide information to initiate breeding programmes to improve PUE in B. oleracea

Development of a new branded UK food composition database for an online dietary assessment tool

The current UK food composition tables are limited, containing ~3300 mostly generic food and drink items. To reflect the wide range of food products available to British consumers and to potentially improve accuracy of dietary assessment, a large UK specific electronic food composition database (FCDB) has been developed. A mapping exercise has been conducted that matched micronutrient data from generic food codes to “Back of Pack” data from branded food products using a semi-automated process. After cleaning and processing, version 1.0 of the new FCDB contains 40,274 generic and branded items with associated 120 macronutrient and micronutrient data and 5669 items with portion images. Over 50% of food and drink items were individually mapped to within 10% agreement with the generic food item for energy. Several quality checking procedures were applied after mapping including; identifying foods above and below the expected range for a particular nutrient within that food group and cross-checking the mapping of items such as concentrated and raw/dried products. The new electronic FCDB has substantially increased the size of the current, publically available, UK food tables. The FCDB has been incorporated into myfood24, a new fully automated online dietary assessment tool and, a smartphone application for weight loss

Challenges in accessing fieldwork in rural Himalayas: an emerging researcher’s experiences

This article is the reflection of an emerging researcher who has experienced different nudges from the beginning of accessing the research field to the final stage of collating data in rural Nepal. My experiences and reflections may provide provocations to researchers to consider before they undertake field research. Areas that researchers should be aware of before entering the field include strategies of approaching the resources, socio-cultural and language diversities, topography and travel complication. The article offers those considering field research in remote areas, such as rural Nepal, an opportunity for rethinking a case study research approach, choosing appropriate methodological tools, sampling strategies and accessing resources

A shift from traditional pedagogy in Nepali Rural Primary Schools ? Rural teachers’ capacity to reflect ICT policy in their practice

Policy by the government of Nepal emphasises the need to develop ICT competencies and suggests the use of ICT will transform traditional models of teaching to ones that are studentcentred. This article reports a study of primary teachers’ experiences of using digital technologies in rural primary schools in Nepal, and investigates their preceptions of how the availability and use of ICT in their schools has transformed traditional teaching models. It further examines the resources they can access and the training they received. Teachers’ accounts of their experiences indicated that the integration of available digital technologies in instructional activities changed their role in the classroom to some extent, created a learner-friendly learning environment and improved aspects of their teaching. The study also found that there was often insufficient access to ICT in and outside the school premises, and that pre-service teacher education, as well as government-provided in-service training, does not cover the use of ICT in instructional activities. Rather provision of infrastructures and training in the use of digital devices is carried out by non-governmental organisations (NGOs). The article argues that for policy to be realised in practice, more sustainable and comprehensive systems need to be developed to train teachers in ICT use and to provide them with necessary facilities