Quality and outsourcing in Public Organizations

The aim of this research is to establish a link between the process of outsourcing and development of the process of Total Quality Management (TQM) with particular regard to public utilities. Outsourcing choices are one way to increase efficiency and quality in any type of organization, both public and private. The public sector can benefit from outsourcing in much the same way as the private sector. Indeed, the public sector is showing a greater impetus in its examination of outsourcing. Public organizations are facing the changes that have affected the economy and society to increase the welfare of the consumers. They therefore need to seek high levels of efficiency, ensuring better use of resources to meet needs that characterize this period of history: on the one hand the need for quality services for the economic and social development of the country in line with the international challenges, on the other the need to contain the public deficit as a fundamental condition for sustainable and balanced development. The search for better ways of the use of resources is especially important in organizations that do not deal with the market through the mechanism of the exchange, especially in those organizations that establish public services that are provided without exchange in an economic sense. Public organizations in the quest for efficiency, flexibility and innovation turn more frequently to outsourcing because the integrated service providers (Global Provider) are able to assume full responsibility for financial performance and quality of services provided. First, the definitions of TQM are discussed. Second, link between outsourcing and quality is presented. Finally, we have highlighted the main factors of resistance to externalization in Public organizations and how these can be overcome by developing a risk management approach

The role of" Special Economic Zones"(SEZ) of the ICT industry for the development of the creative industry in Kazakhstan

Nowadays, the creative industry in Kazakhstan is a young direction of the economy. The government supports this industry with tax benefits, the provision of infrastructure, as well as the creation of Special Economic Zones (SEZ) in large megacities of the country like Nur-Sultan (Astana) and Almaty. "Astana Hub” and the park of innovative technologies “Alatau" are the main centers of development of the organization of the ICT industry as cluster formations. In this paper, an overview study was conducted to determine the role of these SEZs for the development of the creative industry in Kazakhstan. Firstly, the concept of the creative industry was considered, then a literary review of the creative industry and special economic zones was conducted, and thirdly, a review was made on special economic zones that contribute to the development of the creative industry in Kazakhsta

The role of the sustainability report in capitalistic firm

The aim and the central topic of this research is the understanding of the importance of Sustainable growth strategy approach as a driver to achieving top-line growth and bottom-line results. The main contributions of this line of research are to demonstrate the idea that the sustainability report is an instrument for social interaction and social cost/benefit analysis and to show that such an instrument can describe, comment on and sum up the firm\u2019s own behaviour aimed at sustainable growth. The work integrates the CSR management literature with a large body of research in accounting and finance. This study draws from theoretical research about the nature of the corporation, its role in society and contributions by recent research on corporate social, environmental, ethical responsibility and accountability. Our research demonstrates that the economic existence of the capitalistic firm as a producer of economic and financial values must be appreciated, in terms of the sustainability of the development path of the firm, and evaluated by a wide range of social performance measures of outcome or benefit. It also shows how the Sustainability report emphasizes the link between firm and territory, and affirms the concept of the firm as an entity that, by pursuing its own prevailing interests, contributes to improving the quality of life of the members of the society in which it operates. This paper contributes primarily to the academic debate by reviewing past attempts to theorise CSR and stakeholder dialogue, identifying gaps and weaknesses, and proposing the Sustainable Growth implementation processes for the creation of value. It also highlights the relationship between CSR activity and corporate image and performance. The research shed light on aspects of CSR activity for which little is known and much less is being understood; namely, the channels and the mechanisms through which the CSR impact is perceived and realized for creation of value. Carlotta Meo Colombo (3) considers the capitalistic firm as Business Value-Creating Organizations and Patrizia Gazzola (1-2;4-6) considers the Sustainable Growth implementation processes for the creation of value

Holarchical Innovation Teams: Terms & Definitions

This paper establishes the terms and definitions for the nascent discipline of Holarchical Innovation Teams (HITs). It provides a Review of Literature of those individuals who have contributed to our understanding of holarchies and who assist in creating an etymology for HITs in order to lay the foundations for subsequent papers on HITs philosophy and principles for future researchers and scholars of the disciplin

Natural wine as an expression of sustainability: an exploratory analysis of Italy’s restaurant industry

Purpose – Although not yet fully defined, natural wine represents a sector that has gained the widespread attention of final consumers and, therefore, also of the restaurant world, because of its promise of sustainability. The objective of this paper is to understand Italian haute cuisine’s interest in natural wine, with the aim of analysing what qualifies this product as sustainable. Design/methodology/approach – After introducing a theoretical framework based on the concept of natural wine, a brief paragraph is dedicated to consumer preferences; subsequently, the analysis focusses on a questionnaire given to restaurateurs to determine the impact that natural wine has had in the Italian context. The results try to identify the importance that restaurateurs give to the characteristics of natural wine and their propensity for using such wine in their own businesses. Findings – The analysis, conducted on a sample of medium-high range restaurants, highlights their strong interest in natural wine, as a result of the final consumers’ attitude towards wine with characteristics attributable to sustainability. The positive perception by restaurateurs is similar across Italy, both geographically and in terms of the size of the restaurant. Originality/value – The originality of the work is the focus on the world of restaurants. To date, the literature on natural wine remains embryonic and always refers to the final consumer. This research is the first step in a broader study that will involve a greater number of restaurants, extending beyond Italy to all of Europe, with the aim of understanding the real development potential of natural win

C-start: optimal start of larval fish

We investigate the C-start escape response of larval fish by combining flow simulations using remeshed vortex methods with an evolutionary optimization. We test the hypothesis of the optimality of C-start of larval fish by simulations of larval-shaped, two- and three-dimensional self-propelled swimmers. We optimize for the distance travelled by the swimmer during its initial bout, bounding the shape deformation based on the larval mid-line curvature values observed experimentally. The best motions identified within these bounds are in good agreement with in vivo experiments and show that C-starts do indeed maximize escape distances. Furthermore we found that motions with curvatures beyond the ones experimentally observed for larval fish may result in even larger escape distances. We analyse the flow field and find that the effectiveness of the C-start escape relies on the ability of pronounced C-bent body configurations to trap and accelerate large volumes of fluid, which in turn correlates with large accelerations of the swimme

AS THE TURBULENT ENVIRONMENT IN PERIODS OF ACCELERATED DYNAMICS MODIFIES STRUCTURES AND FUNCTIONS OF VIABLE FIRMS

The entrepreneur is subject to the Corporate Governance (C.Gov) of the stakeholders. From the previous models we can derive that firms can be conceived of as cognitive, intelligent and explorative agents whose long-lasting firm survival depends upon the continual learning process, which allows firms to adapt and self-renew both products and processes, as well as on the overall organizational structure (Volberda and Lewin, 2003). In this activity, and by acting as a living system, organizations are capable of forming representations of the external world and of acting (reacting or pro-acting) to regenerate and re-equilibrate the network of vital processes (Von Krogh and Roos, 1995) in order to couple themselves successfully to the environment and survive to its dynamics even by modifying their own structure in line with the variations permitted by the genetic and operative programme (Uribe, 1981). As a cognitive and viable system, the organizationfirm becomes, in all respects, an intelligent and rational economic agent that develops the capacity to control its own structure, its own processes and its own dynamics in order to achieve increasingly higher levels of efficiency, according to the MEST logic