scholarly journals Reputation Management in the AEC-industry after Work-related Crime

2018 ◽  
Vol 49 (2) ◽  
pp. 176-184 ◽  
Author(s):  
Atle Engebø ◽  
Marie Hammer Iversen ◽  
Leif Daniel Houck ◽  
Ola Lædre ◽  
Jardar Lohne
Keyword(s):  
Ad Hoc ◽  
Project Managers ◽  
Reputation Management ◽  
Public Image ◽  
Construction Companies ◽  
Work Related ◽  
Net Profit ◽  
Scheduled Time ◽  
Creative Construction

Construction companies can be difficult to manage because of complex supply chains, autonomous project managers aiming to maximize net profit, heavy emphasis on price, etc. Another particularity, namely the construction companies' vulnerability for work-related crime, does not receive sufficient attention in the project management literature. In order to study how two major Norwegian contractors managed to safeguard their reputation in the aftermath of the discovery of tax crime and money laundering within their projects, this paper investigates the following research questions: 1) What are the main challenges regarding work-related crime? and 2) How do contractors manage their professional reputation and public image in the aftermath of exposed work-related crime?This is an exploratory study starting with a literature review, followed by a case study consisting of a document study and 12 semi-structured in-depth interviews with representatives on the strategic level. Work-related crime could have a devastating effect on a contractor's reputation. Reputation is perceived to be a vital catalyst for contractors that want to continue in business and conduct projects for reputable clients. Therefore, the most important measure will be to deliver projects according to the agreed price and quality, within the scheduled time, while not compromising either the contract, all the legal jurisdictions aspects or ethical standards. In these particular cases, the contractors perceived their reputation as remaining untarnished due to their successful ad-hoc reputation management. However, the contractors have to do more than just distancing themselves. They must actively prevent criminal actors from entering their projects. This paper is a revised version of the paper (study) published earlier in the proceedings of the Creative Construction Conference 2018 (Engebø et al., 2018).

Corporate Social Responsibility Practices in Indian Petroleum Companies: A Case Study of Selected PSUs

Think India ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 21 (3) ◽  
pp. 13-18
Author(s):  
Abhijit Ranjan Das ◽  
Subhadeep Mukherjee
Keyword(s):  
Corporate Social Responsibility ◽  
Public Sector ◽  
Social Responsibility ◽  
Business Environment ◽  
Annual Reports ◽  
Net Worth ◽  
Net Profit ◽  
Petroleum Companies ◽  
Corporate Social

Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) is not a very new concept, it is an old concept. Earlier, in India it was optional to the company that they may contribute voluntarily towards CSR but after the Companies Act 2013, it was formally introduced in the business environment and was made mandatory for those companies whose net worth and profit cross a threshold limit. They should contribute 2% of the average net profit of just preceding three years profit. This paper primarily focuses on CSR practices of some selected public sector petroleum companies in India. The study has been conducted based on the Annual Reports of seven selected public sector companies. Five years of data on CSR spending from 2009–10 to 2014–15 were examined. Moreover, the pattern of expenses was also examined. Since petroleum companies are giants of the India economy and contribute significantly towards the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of our country. Thus it is necessary to look into how these companies are contributing towards CSR. An attempt has been made to examine the early impact of Section 135 of the Companies Act.

scholarly journals The Effects of Open Space on Reducing Workplace Stress: Case Study of Business Park in the Post-Socialist Urban Setting

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
pp. 336
Author(s):  
Jelena Maric ◽  
Djukic Aleksandra ◽  
Branislav Antonic ◽  
Danilo Furundzic ◽  
Vladimir Parezanin
Keyword(s):  
Business Performance ◽  
Open Space ◽  
Single Case ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Positive Influence ◽  
Workplace Stress ◽  
Urban Setting ◽  
Work Related ◽  
Stress Levels

Working people spend around 54% of their waking hours at a workplace, according to recent statistics. Work-related stress is unavoidable, and it can damage the health of employees and affect business performance. In this paper, we argue that open space inside the workplace environment can have a positive influence on reducing overall stress levels in all the categories of users. To our knowledge, there is a significant lack of research considering specific business districts and the gated complexes called business parks, especially in post-socialist Eastern European cities, where there they are still a novelty. Empirical research in this study is on the single case study of Business Park “Airport city” in Belgrade, Serbia. Its main focus is on the survey conducted with 235 participants based on a questionnaire, which examines the relation between workplace stress and workplace environments. The findings from the questionnaire show that the frequency, duration, and activity of open space usage influence the stress levels of employees in this specific workplace, while it is not visible relating to their age and gender. Additionally, final implications suggest that improved open space, such as well-expected greenery, but also the urban design non-associative to workspace and the socialization and exercise amenities customized for frequent and short work breaks, can facilitate the overall well-being of employees. They are innovative elements in relatively underdeveloped research on stress measures with open space usage characteristics in the specific (gated) workplace setting.

Directed earned value management based on ordered fuzzy numbers

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-14
Author(s):  
Seyed Taha Hossein Mortaji ◽  
Siamak Noori ◽  
Morteza Bagherpour
Keyword(s):  
Fuzzy Numbers ◽  
Lower Cost ◽  
Project Managers ◽  
Value Management ◽  
Monitoring And Control ◽  
Earned Value ◽  
Earned Value Management ◽  
Project Monitoring ◽  
And Control

Earned value management is well-known as the most efficient method of project monitoring and control providing relatively reliable information about the project performance. However, this method requires accurate estimates of the progress of project activities, which are always associated with uncertainties that, if ignored or not addressed well, lead to incorrect results. To address this issue, the application of multi-valued logic, in particular fuzzy logic, in earned value management has recently attracted a lot of attention both in practice and research. This paper introduces directed earned value management (DEVM) in which ordered fuzzy numbers are used to express the so-called uncertainties as well as to capture more information about the trend of the project progress. To evaluate the performance of the proposed method, several numerical examples and a case study are presented. The results reveal that compared to the existing methods, DEVM has a lower computational complexity. Also, it doesn’t suffer from the overestimation effect and as a result, it has a higher ability to express project-specific dynamics. In sum, the proposed method allows project managers to make informed decisions that lead to taking preventive and corrective actions promptly and at a lower cost.

scholarly journals Do Camels (Camelus dromedarius) Need Shaded Areas? A Case Study of the Camel Market in Doha

Animals ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (2) ◽  
pp. 480
Author(s):  
Martina Zappaterra ◽  
Laura Menchetti ◽  
Leonardo Nanni Costa ◽  
Barbara Padalino
Keyword(s):  
Ad Hoc ◽  
The Sun ◽  
Chi Square ◽  
Chi Square Test ◽  
Variable Space ◽  
Group 2 ◽  
Sun And Shade ◽  
Poor Welfare ◽  
Group 1

This study aimed at documenting whether dromedary camels have a preference for shade and how their behavior would change depending on the presence of shade and variable space allowance. A total of 421 animals kept in 76 pens (66 with shelter (Group 1), and 10 without shelter (Group 2)) at the camel market in Doha (Qatar) were recorded for 1 min around 11:00 a.m. when the temperature was above 40 °C. The number of animals in the sun and shade and their behaviors were analyzed using an ad libitum sampling method and an ad hoc ethogram. The results of a chi-square test indicated that camels in Group 1 had a clear preference for shade (p < 0.001). The majority of Group 1 camels were indeed observed in the shade (312/421; 74.11%). These camels spent more time in recumbency and ruminating, while standing, walking, and self-grooming were more commonly expressed by the camels in the sun (p < 0.001). Moreover, locomotory stereotypic behaviors (i.e., pacing) increased as space allowance decreased (p = 0.002). Based on the findings of this pilot study, camels demonstrated a preference for shade; shade seemed to promote positive welfare, while overcrowding seemed to trigger stereotypy and poor welfare. Overall, our preliminary results are novel and provide evidence that shaded areas are of paramount importance for camel welfare. Further research, involving designed studies at multiple locations is needed to confirm these results.

scholarly journals APPROACH FOR THE DEVELOPMENT AND APPLICATION OF TARGET PROCESS MODULE SETS

2021 ◽  
Vol 1 ◽  
pp. 531-540
Author(s):  
Albert Albers ◽  
Miriam Wilmsen ◽  
Kilian Gericke
Keyword(s):  
Product Development ◽  
Development Process ◽  
Process Management ◽  
Process Quality ◽  
Project Planning ◽  
Project Managers ◽  
Product Development Process ◽  
Design Processes ◽  
Adaptive Processes

AbstractThe implementation of agile frameworks, such as SAFe, in large companies causes conflicts between the overall product development process with a rigid linkage to the calendar cycles and the continuous agile project planning. To resolve these conflicts, adaptive processes can be used to support the creation of realistic target-processes, i.e. project plans, while stabilizing process quality and simplifying process management. This enables the usage of standardisation methods and module sets for design processes.The objective of this contribution is to support project managers to create realistic target-processes through the usage of target-process module sets. These target-process module sets also aim to stabilize process quality and to simplify process management. This contribution provides an approach for the development and application of target-process module sets, in accordance to previously gathered requirements and evaluates the approach within a case study with project managers at AUDI AG (N=21) and an interview study with process authors (N=4) from three different companies.

The deputy principal instructional leadership role and professional learning

2017 ◽  
Vol 55 (1) ◽  
pp. 33-48 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ann Leaf ◽  
George Odhiambo
Keyword(s):  
Instructional Leadership ◽  
Professional Learning ◽  
Ad Hoc ◽  
Team Building ◽  
Leadership Role ◽  
Instructional Leaders ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Practical Implications

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to report on a study examining the perceptions of secondary principals, deputies and teachers, of deputy principal (DP) instructional leadership (IL), as well as deputies’ professional learning (PL) needs. Framed within an interpretivist approach, the specific objectives of this study were: to explore the extent to which DPs are perceived as leaders of learning, to examine the actual responsibilities of these DPs and to explore the PL that support DP roles. Design/methodology/approach The researchers used multiple perspective case studies which included semi-structured interviews and key school document analysis. A thematic content analysis facilitated qualitative descriptions and insights from the perspectives of the principals, DPs and teachers of four high-performing secondary schools in Sydney, Australia. Findings The data revealed that deputies performed a huge range of tasks; all the principals were distributing leadership to their deputies to build leadership capacity and supported their PL in a variety of ways. Across three of the case study schools, most deputies were frequently performing as instructional leaders, improving their school’s performance through distributing leadership, team building and goal setting. Deputy PL was largely dependent on principal mentoring and self-initiated but was often ad hoc. Findings add more validity to the importance of principals building the educational leadership of their deputies. Research limitations/implications This study relied upon responses from four case study schools. Further insight into the key issues discussed may require a longitudinal data that describe perceptions from a substantial number of schools in Australia over time. However, studying only four schools allowed for an in-depth investigation. Practical implications The findings from this study have practical implications for system leaders with responsibilities of framing the deputies’ role as emergent educational leaders rather than as administrators and the need for coherent, integrated, consequential and systematic approaches to DP professional development. Further research is required on the effect of deputy IL on school performance. Originality/value There is a dearth of research-based evidence exploring the range of responsibilities of deputies and perceptions of staff about deputies’ IL role and their PL needs. This is the first published New South Wales, Australian DP study and adds to the growing evidence around perceptions of DPs as instructional leaders by providing an Australian perspective on the phenomenon. The paper raises important concerns about the complexity of the DP’s role on the one hand, and on the other hand, the PL that is perceived to be most appropriate for dealing with this complexity.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document