Knowledge Management Activities and Strategic Planning Capability Development

The file attached to this record is the author's final peer reviewed version. The Publisher's final version can be found by following the DOI link.While the strategic management literature extols the virtues of engaging in strategic planning for superior performance, how a dynamic strategic planning capability can be developed remains underexplored; a knowledge void addressed by the paper through applying knowledge-based theory. A mail survey was sent to high technology firms randomly sampled from the Kompass Directory of UK businesses. Firms were sampled at the SBU level, given the focus on strategic planning capability. An organization’s strategic planning capability derives from extensive information distribution and organizational memory. While learning values is non-significant, symbolic information use degrades the development of a strategic planning capability. By investigating the contributory activities that lead to strategic planning capability development, the findings establish how strategic planning materializes in organizations. Further, the differential effects found for knowledge management activities on strategic planning capability development extends empirical studies that suggest knowledge is always a central tenet of strategic planning. A set of key knowledge activities are identified that managers must address for strategic planning capability development: strategic planning routines and values of search, analysis, and assessment should be appropriately informed by investments in knowledge dissemination and memory on a continual basis. Meanwhile, information misuse compromises strategic planning capabilities and managers must protect against out-of-context or manipulated information from infiltrating into organizational memory. Despite the advent of the Knowledge-Based Theory and its core premise that capabilities derive from knowledge management activities, little research has been conducted into demonstrating the knowledge-based antecedents of a strategic planning capability

The mediation between participative leadership and employee exploratory innovation: Examining intermediate knowledge mechanisms

The file attached to this record is the author's final peer reviewed version. The Publisher's final version can be found by following the DOI link.We examine mediation effects of coworker knowledge sharing and absorptive capacity on the participative leadership–employee exploratory innovation relationship in R&D units of Taiwanese technology firms. Deploying a time-lagged questionnaire method implemented over four business quarters, data is generated from 1600 paired samples (managers and employees) in R&D units of Taiwanese technology firms. The structural equation modeling results reveal that (1) participative leadership is positively related to employee exploratory innovation; (2) coworker knowledge and (3) absorptive capacity partially mediate the relationship between participative leadership and employee exploratory innovation independently; and, (4) coworker knowledge sharing in combination with absorptive capacity partially mediates this relationship. The results extend previous research on participative leadership and innovation by demonstrating that participative leadership is related to employee exploratory innovation (Lee and Meyer-Doyle, 2017; Mom et al., 2009).Results also confirm that participative leadership drives employee exploratory innovation through employee absorptive capacity. This reinforces the need highlighted by Lane et al. (2006) to investigate the role of absorptive capacity at the individual-level. Collectively, while participative leadership is important for employee exploratory innovation it is the knowledge mechanisms existing and interacting at the employee-level that are central to generating increased employee exploratory innovation from this leadership approach

Low-angle misorientation dependence of the optical properties of InGaAs/InAlAs quantum wells

We investigate the dependence of the low-temperature photoluminescence linewidths from InP-lattice-matched InGaAs/InAlAs quantum wells on the low-angle misorientation from the (100) surface of the host InP substrate. Quantum wells were grown on InP substrates misorientated by 0, 0.2, 0.4 and 0.6 degrees; 0.4 degrees was found to consistently result in the narrowest peaks, with the optimal spectral purity of ~4.25 meV found from a 15nm quantum well. The width of the emission from the 15nm quantum well was used to optimize the growth parameters. Thick layers of Si-doped InGaAs were then grown and found to have bulk, low temperature (77 K), electron mobilities up to \mu ~ 3.5 x 10^4 cm2/Vs with an electron concentration of ~1 x 10^16

Social capital and learning advantages: a problem of absorptive capacity

Theoretically, social capital allows entrepreneurial firms to capitalize on learning advantages of newness and gain access to knowledge as the foundation for improved performance. But this understates its complexity. We consider whether learning through social capital relationships has a direct effect on performance and whether absorptive capacity mediates and moderates this relationship. We find that network-based learning has no direct relationship with performance, but this is mediated in each instance by absorptive capacity and is moderated twice. Our findings challenge the learning advantages of newness thesis and reveal how absorptive capacity can enable business performance from a firm's network relationships

Ice Dynamics Preceding Catastrophic Disintegration of the Floating Part of Jakobshavn Isbrie, Greenland

The floating terminal of Jakobshavn Isbr ae, the fastest Greenland ice stream, has disintegrated since 2002, resulting in a doubling of ice velocity and rapidly lowering inland ice elevations. Conditions prior to disintegration were modeled using control theory in a plane-stress solution, and the Missoula model of ice-shelf flow. Both approaches pointed to a mechanism that inhibits ice flow and that is not captured by either approach. Jamming of flow, an inherent property of granular materials passing through a constriction (Jakobshavn Isfjord), is postulated as the mechanism. Rapid disintegration of heavily crevassed floating ice accompanies break-up of the ice jam

Ice Dynamics Preceding Catastrophic Disintegration of the Floating Part of Jakobshavn Isbræ, Greenland

The floating terminal of Jakobshavn Isbræ, the fastest Greenland ice stream, has disintegrated since 2002, resulting in a doubling of ice velocity and rapidly lowering inland ice elevations. Conditions prior to disintegration were modeled using control theory in a plane-stress solution, and the Missoula model of ice-shelf flow. Both approaches pointed to a mechanism that inhibits ice flow and that is not captured by either approach. Jamming of flow, an inherent property of granular materials passing through a constriction (Jakobshavn Isfjord), is postulated as the mechanism. Rapid disintegration of heavily crevassed floating ice accompanies break-up of the ice jam

Search for B0s oscillations using inclusive lepton events

A search for B0s oscillations is performed using a sample of semileptonic b-hadron decays collected by the ALEPH experiment during 1991-1995. Compared to previous inclusive lepton analyses, the proper time resolution and b-flavour mistag rate are significantly improved. Additional sensitivity to B0s mixing is obtained by identifying subsamples of events having a B0s purity which is higher than the average for the whole data sample. Unbinned maximum likelihood amplitude fits are performed to derive a lower limit of Deltam_s>9.5ps^-1 at 95% CL. Combining with the ALEPH D-s based analyses yields Deltam_s>9.6ps^-1 at 95% CL.Comment: 23 pages, 10 figure

Rapid reduction versus abrupt quitting for smokers who want to stop soon: a randomised controlled non-inferiority trial

Background: The standard way to stop smoking is to stop abruptly on a quit day with no prior reduction in consumption of cigarettes. Many smokers feel that reduction is natural and if reduction programmes were offered, many more might take up treatment. Few trials of reduction versus abrupt cessation have been completed. Most are small, do not use pharmacotherapy, and do not meet the standards necessary to obtain a marketing authorisation for a pharmacotherapy.\ud Design/Methods: We will conduct a non-inferiority andomised trial of rapid reduction versus standard abrupt cessation among smokers who want to stop smoking. In the reduction arm,participants will be advised to reduce smoking consumption by half in the first week and to 25% of baseline in the second, leading up to a quit day at which participants will stop smoking completely.This will be assisted by nicotine patches and an acute form of nicotine replacement therapy. In the abrupt arm participants will use nicotine patches only, whilst smoking as normal, for two weeks prior to a quit day, at which they will also stop smoking completely. Smokers in either arm will have standard withdrawal orientated behavioural support programme with a combination of nicotine patches and acute nicotine replacement therapy post-cessation.\ud Outcomes/Follow-up: The primary outcome of interest will be prolonged abstinence from smoking, with secondary trial outcomes of point prevalence, urges to smoke and withdrawal\ud symptoms. Follow up will take place at 4 weeks, 8 weeks and 6 months post-quit day

Absence of CD59 in guinea pigs: Analysis of the Cavia porcellus genome suggests the evolution of a CD59 pseudogene

CD59 is a membrane-bound regulatory protein that inhibits the assembly of the terminal membrane attack complex (C5b-9) of complement. From its original discovery in humans almost 30 years ago, CD59 has been characterized in a variety of species, from primates to early vertebrates, such as teleost fish. CD59 is ubiquitous in mammals; however, we have described circumstantial evidence suggesting that guinea pigs (Cavia porcellus) lack CD59, at least on erythrocytes. In this study, we have used a combination of phylogenetic analyses with syntenic alignment of mammalian CD59 genes to identify the only span of genomic DNA in C. porcellus that is homologous to a portion of mammalian CD59 and show that this segment of DNA is not transcribed. We describe a pseudogene sharing homology to exons 2 through 5 of human CD59 present in the C. porcellus genome. This pseudogene was flanked by C. porcellus homologs of two genes, FBXO3 and ORF91, a relationship and orientation that were consistent with other known mammalian CD59 genes. Analysis using RNA sequencing confirmed that this segment of chromosomal DNA was not transcribed. We conclude that guinea pigs lack an intact gene encoding CD59; to our knowledge, this is the first report of a mammalian species that does not express a functional CD59. The pseudogene we describe is likely the product of a genomic deletion event during its evolutionary divergence from other members of the rodent order

Core Health Outcomes In Childhood Epilepsy (CHOICE):Protocol for the selection of a core outcome set

This is the final version of the article. Available from BioMed Central via the DOI in this record.BACKGROUND: There is increasing recognition that establishing a core set of outcomes to be evaluated and reported in trials of interventions for particular conditions will improve the usefulness of health research. There is no established core outcome set for childhood epilepsy. The aim of this work is to select a core outcome set to be used in evaluative research of interventions for children with rolandic epilepsy, as an exemplar of common childhood epilepsy syndromes. METHODS: First we will identify what outcomes should be measured; then we will decide how to measure those outcomes. We will engage relevant UK charities and health professional societies as partners, and convene advisory panels for young people with epilepsy and parents of children with epilepsy. We will identify candidate outcomes from a search for trials of interventions for childhood epilepsy, statutory guidance and consultation with our advisory panels. Families, charities and health, education and neuropsychology professionals will be invited to participate in a Delphi survey following recommended practices in the development of core outcome sets. Participants will be able to recommend additional outcome domains. Over three rounds of Delphi survey participants will rate the importance of candidate outcome domains and state the rationale for their decisions. Over the three rounds we will seek consensus across and between families and health professionals on the more important outcomes. A face-to-face meeting will be convened to ratify the core outcome set. We will then review and recommend ways to measure the shortlisted outcomes using clinical assessment and/or patient-reported outcome measures. DISCUSSION: Our methodology is a proportionate and pragmatic approach to expediently produce a core outcome set for evaluative research of interventions aiming to improve the health of children with epilepsy. A number of decisions have to be made when designing a study to develop a core outcome set including defining the scope, choosing which stakeholders to engage, most effective ways to elicit their views, especially children and a potential role for qualitative research.This study is part of Changing Agendas on Sleep, Treatment and Learning in Childhood Epilepsy (CASTLE), which is funded by the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) Programme Grants for Applied Research RP-PG-0615-20007