Effects of strategic determinants of training on the job performance, effectiveness and efficiency : an empirical study

Investments in the development of human capital, which are concerned with the development of knowledge, competencies and qualifications of employees, are considered more important today for the performance of an organization and for the economic growth of a country than investments in physical capital. Keeping this in perspective, this research examined the effect of the determinants of training such as training and development, strategic objective, culture and value, knowledge and skills, rewards and promotion, readiness and flexibility on job performance, effectiveness, and efficiency of employees in a large service conglomerate. The results indicated significant positive relationship of training and development, strategic objectives, culture and values, knowledge and skills, rewards and promotion with job performance, effectiveness, and efficiency of employees. The study also reported the importance of training, strategic objective, culture and value, knowledge and skills, rewards and promotion to augment job performance, effectiveness and efficiency but undermined the significance of readiness and flexibility. The employees underpin motivational factors that are responsible for better job performance. The findings suggest that harnessing all these determinants may render service organizations with the potential to foster job performance, effectiveness, and efficiency of employees

Academic probation : an empirical study of private university students

This study examines the factors contributing to academic probation in university settings and highlights the problems that students encounter in higher education institutions in Bangladesh. The study focused on students facing academic probation on two private universities in Bangladesh and analyzed students' response with respect to nine different factors - difficulty in understanding language, weak communication skills, weak educational background, ‘grading is too difficult’, involvement with other activities, wrong course selection, lack of seriousness in studies, family problem and personal problem. In the survey, the sample consisted of 242 probation students: 80 per cent were male and 20 per cent were female. In this research, results suggest that probation students are more likely to experience academic difficulties, are more prone to drop out and, yet, are more willing to receive institutional assistance (how to return to good academic standing) as compared to other regular students. The authors conclude by discussing policy implications of the findings and defining avenues for further research. One of the shortcomings of this study is the use of private university student samples only. Consequently, the generalization of our results may be limited. The authors developed and instituted a probationary student support initiatives program to both assist these students and understand how their background characteristics and perceptions of the learning environment impacted on their academic standing

Consumer perceived value formation process : lesson from developing country

Results of this study substantially contribute to theoretical and managerial understanding of consumer value formation process. At the theory level, this study has produced greater understanding of the variables that appear to be most responsible in structuring consumer perceptions of value. In other words, the model as a whole means that when a consumer evaluates the value of a product, s/he may retrieve the constructs directly related to value and some cues determine those constructs. For example, in the deliberation of a computer, the first evoked constructs (cues) might include perceived quality, risk and sacrifice. Thus, rather adopting arbitrarily the determinants of perceived value, the result of the model fit denotes that it is important to account all the potential variables in a research setting to assess consumer perception of value. Finally, because the investigation of consumer perception of value is crucial to both researchers and marketers, this study has emphasized that much additional research remains before a thorough understanding of perception of value can be achieved. Thus, this research indicates that there is great potential for developing more sophisticated models of consumer value formation process. By building on the substantial search literature already available and by incorporating important variables our understanding and the perceptions of value process to provide substantial insights into consumer decision-making will be greatly enhanced. It is hoped that the proposed relationships and accompanying tests will stimulate work in the area of perceived value

Public service reformation: Relationship building by mobile technology

Extensive implementation of information and communication technology (ICT)in public administration has created the capacity to reengineer public service systems to develop a new service delivery channel using the continuous interactivity of the

Impact of enterovirus and other enteric pathogens on oral polio and rotavirus vaccine performance in Bangladeshi infants

AbstractBackgroundOral polio vaccine (OPV) and rotavirus vaccine (RV) exhibit poorer performance in low-income settings compared to high-income settings. Prior studies have suggested an inhibitory effect of concurrent non-polio enterovirus (NPEV) infection, but the impact of other enteric infections has not been comprehensively evaluated.MethodsIn urban Bangladesh, we tested stools for a broad range of enteric viruses, bacteria, parasites, and fungi by quantitative PCR from infants at weeks 6 and 10 of life, coincident with the first OPV and RV administration respectively, and examined the association between enteropathogen quantity and subsequent OPV serum neutralizing titers, serum rotavirus IgA, and rotavirus diarrhea.ResultsCampylobacter and enterovirus (EV) quantity at the time of administration of the first dose of OPV was associated with lower OPV1-2 serum neutralizing titers, while enterovirus quantity was also associated with diminished rotavirus IgA (−0.08 change in log titer per tenfold increase in quantity; P=0.037), failure to seroconvert (OR 0.78, 95% CI: 0.64–0.96; P=0.022), and breakthrough rotavirus diarrhea (OR 1.34, 95% CI: 1.05–1.71; P=0.020) after adjusting for potential confounders. These associations were not observed for Sabin strain poliovirus quantity.ConclusionIn this broad survey of enteropathogens and oral vaccine performance we find a particular association between EV carriage, particularly NPEV, and OPV immunogenicity and RV protection. Strategies to reduce EV infections may improve oral vaccine responses.ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT01375647