What are the Most Critical HR Capabilities and Competencies that are Emerging for the Future?

[Excerpt] What are most critical competencies that are emerging for HR professionals today? What capabilities are needed for HR leaders to advance forward in their careers? While there has been much research and emphasis on technical competencies. (i.e. training & development, diversity & inclusion, etc.), our summary focuses on the important leadership and behavioral traits that enable HR professionals to successfully impact their organizations

Innovation & the professional service firm: Insights into the Locus, Patterns, and Tensions of Innovation in a Fast-Growing Information Technology Consultancy in New Zealand

This research investigated the locus of innovation through a time-frame of ten years for a fast growing, privately-owned New Zealand information technology professional service consultancy firm. Emergent patterns related to the firm’s innovations were analysed along with the classic consultancy conundrum - the management of tension between future-focused innovations or present-day profits. An in-depth single case study approach was employed where the units of analysis were each innovation of the firm. Semi-structured interviews of 23 current employees involved in innovation activities across all levels of the organisation were conducted. This led to the discovery that less innovation occurred at the inception of the firm where the priority was to sustain the business in the short term. As the firm matured, the rate of innovations increased. The locus of innovation shifted from Top-down to Bottom-up as the firm grew. Further analysis showed that Top-down innovations had a higher likelihood of resource allocation and scaling at the firm. The consultancy conundrum is a constant tension that will continue to exist for the firm. The firm employs a number of “semi-structures” both formal and informal in nature to manage that tension. The findings of this research present a case for an inverse pattern of innovation for privately-owned professional service firms – where innovation occurs at the later stages of the firm’s growth life-cycle

Non-proper helicoid-like limits of closed minimal surfaces in 3-manifolds

We show that there exists a metric with positive scalar curvature on S2xS1 and a sequence of embedded minimal cylinders that converges to a minimal lamination that, in a neighborhood of a strictly stable 2-sphere, is smooth except at two helicoid-like singularities on the 2-sphere. The construction is inspired by a recent example by D. Hoffman and B. White.Comment: 12 pages, 3 figures, replaced because of corrupted fil

Greco-Roman Wrestling: Moves, Counters and Drills with a 16mm Instructional Film Suppliment

The purpose of this study was to develop an Instructional 16 mm color film on Greco-Roman wrestling moves, counters, and drills which would benefit those on all levels interested in the use of upperbody wrestling techniques. To achieve this objective it was necessary to determine the moves, counters and drills which are most successfully used in Greco-Roman wrestling. This was accomplished by means of a questionnaire and by personal interviews with nationally and internationally known coaches and competitors. The results of the questionnaires and interviews formed the basis for the 16 mm color film and for the explanations used to explain the illustrations used in the Instructional film. Major emphasis was placed toward the high school, college and international levels. Several other purposes will also be served, for example, it is possible through this study to determine where national and international competitors learned their Greco-Roman wrestling, and the actual amount of upperbody wrestling taught at the high school and college levels. The coaches and competitors contacted also suggested the moves, counters and drills which they recommend to be taught at these levels

The role of the liver X receptors in inflammation: exploring their contribution to articular pathology

The Liver X receptors, LXRα and LXRβ, belong to the superfamily of nuclear receptor ligand activated transcription factors. LXRs have been well characterised in the context of metabolism through their ability to induce reverse cholesterol transport leading to the excretion of cholesterol from the body. More recently, LXRs have been shown to play a role in inflammation in which they are often ascribed an anti-inflammatory effect. Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a chronic auto-immune condition manifest as inflammation of the diarthrodial joints predominantly in the hands and feet. It is now well recognised that RA is not just a local but rather a systemic disease that is associated with several co-morbidities including atherosclerosis. A major focus in the field of rheumatology is now to understand how cardiovascular disease might contribute to the pathogenesis of RA and vice versa and thereby connect metabolism with inflammation. Hypothesis: Since LXRs are central to the maintenance of a cholesterol homeostasis and have been shown to regulate inflammation we hypothesised that LXR agonists would be beneficial for the treatment of RA. Methods & Results: Treatment of male DBA1 mice with GW3965 or T1317 in the murine model of collagen-induced arthritis dramatically increased the onset and severity of disease. Exacerbation of disease severity was characterised by increased concentrations of multiple serum pro-inflammatory cytokines and chemokines, increased numbers of lymph node derived Th1 and Th17 cells and elevated titres of anti-collagen auto-antibodies. The effect of LXR agonist administration was mediated specifically by LXRs as the severity of disease was not altered in LXR null mice treated with GW3965. Furthermore, activation of LXRs in primary human monocytes potentiated the secretion of multiple proinflammatory cytokines in response to stimulation with LPS. Similarly, the concentration of multiple pro-inflammatory cytokines was also increased in an in vitro model of synovitis. Conclusion: These studies demonstrate a novel pro-inflammatory role of LXR activation in the context of arthritis. Furthermore, these results suggest that the development of LXR agonists as a therapy for metabolic disorders should be done so with caution

High-velocity, low-load and low-velocity, high load resistance exercise and their Influence on physiological outcomes, affective responses and functional performance in older adults

Exacerbated by physical inactivity, advancing age is characterised by sarcopenia, dynapenia, and a subsequent decline in functional performance. However, resistance exercise has demonstrated beneficial effects on these conditions in older adults. Subsequently, the aim of this thesis was to monitor physiological changes, affective responses, enjoyment and changes in maximal strength and functional performance when performing high-velocity, low-load (HVLL) and low-velocity, high-load (LVHL) resistance exercise. Study one validated the use of a command and metronome-based protocol, demonstrating that it could be used to produce either high or low movement velocities when performing resistance exercise. Study two examined the acute physiological responses to volume-load matched HVLL and LVHL. Results revealed no significant differences in blood lactate, heart rate, systolic blood pressure or diastolic blood pressure, suggesting HVLL and LVHL produce comparable physiological strain. Study three examined the acute affective responses and enjoyment of volume-load matched HVLL and LVHL. Rating of perceived exertion and fatigue were greater during LVHL compared to HVLL. Despite this, enjoyment was similarly high for HVLL and LVHL, meaning it is probable that both would have a positive effect on continued exercise behaviour. The fourth study extended this work over 10-weeks, and also examined affective responses between exercising once or twice-weekly. The findings were largely in agreement with study three, and affective responses were similar between exercise frequencies. Study five examined how frequency (once vs. twice-weekly) and mode (HVLL vs. LVHL) of resistance exercise influenced functional performance, maximal strength and body composition. Only LVHL twice-weekly significantly improved functional performance compared to the control group. However, within-condition analysis revealed that HVLL and LVHL performed once and/or twice-weekly, significantly improved aspects of maximal strength and functional performance in older adults. From the observations of these studies and the wider literature, it was concluded that whether utilising HVLL or LVHL, exercise professionals should ensure older adults experience sufficient intensity of effort whilst exercising. When the individual is ready, they should progress from minimal doses of resistance exercise to facilitate continued development of strength and functional performance, or at the very least, ensure current levels are maintained. Affective responses appeared to be analogous between HVLL and LVHL, however the role that social interaction, habitual physical activity levels and supervision played in producing these results, warrants further investigation

The function of PAB1 in translation and in PUF3 dependent deadenylation

The involvement of the poly(A)-binding protein (PAB1) in deadenylation and translation is well known. How PAB1 inhibits deadenylation and promotes translation is not well understood. I have analyzed PAB1 variants, containing entire domain deletions and substitutions of yeast residues with human residues. Chapter I discusses and provides in vivo translation rates of strains containing PAB1 variants, defects in mRNA degradation proteins, and defects in translation components. In chapter II, I address the role of PAB1 in regulated deadenylation. For this analysis I studied the effect of PUF3, a member of the PUF family of proteins that bind specific 3\u27 UTR sequences and accelerate deadenylation and/or repress translation of the target transcript. The mechanism for PUF mediated deadenylation has recently been shown to involve recruitment of CCR4 via CAF1, suggesting PUF proteins accelerate deadenylation by increasing the local concentration of deadenylases around the mRNA. Since PUF proteins are involved in repression of translation it has been suggested that they also accelerate deadenylation through perturbation of the mRNP complex. In this work I show that PUP requires the PAB1 RRM1 domain for deadenylation of COX17 mRNA. Additionally, I show that PUP bypasses the requirement of the PAB1 P domain for deadenylation, and is required for acceleration of deadenylation through defects in the cap binding protein, elF4E. This suggests that PUP interacts with PAB1 to disturb the mRNP complex to accelerate deadenylation of COX17 mRNA

Treaty Port Society and the Club in Meiji Japan: Clubbism, Athleticism and the Public Sphere

During the early years of extraterritoriality various foreign clubs and fraternal institutions emerged in Yokohama, and later in Kobe. These institutions variously contributed to the definition, creation and promotion of what may be termed as a civil society, or more specifically what Habermas has referred to as the ‘public sphere’. Despite the absence of any single colonial power controlling the administration of the settlements, the fraternal institutions run by a network of transoceanic Euro-American bourgeois came together to fill the gap normally occupied by a military or overseas civil service. Long term residents of these ports operated under what can be construed as local sovereignty, foreign extraterritoriality, and facilitated a tradition of laissez-faire capitalism in the region that had significant consequences on Japan’s cultural and economic development as a whole. During the extraterritorial era, club life became the main cultural activity through which the expatriate community expressed itself, and in turn, dictated the de facto homosocial rules of conduct between the predominantly white male population of the treaty port in the years of extraterritoriality and beyond. Gentleman’s clubs and sporting rituals were woven into the fabric of the community on multiple social and economic levels, which helped to recreate familiar European class hierarchies and racial boundaries. Closely aligned with the vernacular press, these institutions pertained to promote international cooperation, egalitarianism and community altruism by simultaneously bolstering an increasingly isolated bourgeois foreign population which actively sought to separate itself from the wider Japanese community. Additionally, it was via the club, that the leaders of the community expressed their identity and status in what would become the ‘treaty port public sphere’ in the latter half of the nineteenth century. Drawing on archival sources, the English-language press, the Harold S. Williams Collection from the Australian National Library in Canberra, and a number of contemporary accounts from foreign residents, this research will attempt to highlight the key factors in the socio-cultural development of the settlement, such as the emergence of a European club culture and what role it had in the shaping future relationships between the settler population and their Japanese hosts

Treaty Port Society and the Club in Meiji Japan: Clubbism, Athleticism and the Public Sphere

During the early years of extraterritoriality various foreign clubs and fraternal institutions emerged in Yokohama, and later in Kobe. These institutions variously contributed to the definition, creation and promotion of what may be termed as a civil society, or more specifically what Habermas has referred to as the ‘public sphere’. Despite the absence of any single colonial power controlling the administration of the settlements, the fraternal institutions run by a network of transoceanic Euro-American bourgeois came together to fill the gap normally occupied by a military or overseas civil service. Long term residents of these ports operated under what can be construed as local sovereignty, foreign extraterritoriality, and facilitated a tradition of laissez-faire capitalism in the region that had significant consequences on Japan’s cultural and economic development as a whole. During the extraterritorial era, club life became the main cultural activity through which the expatriate community expressed itself, and in turn, dictated the de facto homosocial rules of conduct between the predominantly white male population of the treaty port in the years of extraterritoriality and beyond. Gentleman’s clubs and sporting rituals were woven into the fabric of the community on multiple social and economic levels, which helped to recreate familiar European class hierarchies and racial boundaries. Closely aligned with the vernacular press, these institutions pertained to promote international cooperation, egalitarianism and community altruism by simultaneously bolstering an increasingly isolated bourgeois foreign population which actively sought to separate itself from the wider Japanese community. Additionally, it was via the club, that the leaders of the community expressed their identity and status in what would become the ‘treaty port public sphere’ in the latter half of the nineteenth century. Drawing on archival sources, the English-language press, the Harold S. Williams Collection from the Australian National Library in Canberra, and a number of contemporary accounts from foreign residents, this research will attempt to highlight the key factors in the socio-cultural development of the settlement, such as the emergence of a European club culture and what role it had in the shaping future relationships between the settler population and their Japanese hosts