Designing training in organic farming on a multinational basis

2016 ◽  
Vol 33 (2) ◽  
pp. 99-114
Author(s):  
Raquel P.F. Guiné ◽  
Daniela V.T.A Costa ◽  
Paula M.R. Correia ◽  
Cristina A. Costa ◽  
Helena E. Correia ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Organic Farming ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Training Programs ◽  
Target Population ◽  
North Central ◽  
Content Type ◽  
On Line ◽  
Level Of Significance ◽  
Training Opportunities ◽  
Practical Implications

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to obtain information to characterize potential trainees seeking training programs about organic farming in the form of mobile learning. This information is expected to allow for establishing a set of guidelines to design mobile training opportunities that could match the potential clients’ wishes. Design/methodology/approach – For this survey an on-line questionnaire was used, translated into the languages of the participating countries (Portugal, Spain, Slovakia, Hungary, UK, Italy and Turkey), and in the end 133 consented valid questionnaires were obtained. The data analysis was made with SPSS and included basic descriptive statistics, crosstabs and χ2 tests, considering a level of significance of 5 per cent. Findings – The results obtained in the present study indicate that designing training programs in organic farming for a wide target population should attend to the differences between countries, which showed to significantly influence the preferences of the possible clients for this type of training. Practical implications – This study provided valuable information for use in the preparation of training programs for adults who want to expand their knowledge on organic farming, in order to prepare courses more in accordance with their preferences. Originality/value – The fact that the study was undertaken in several countries, including North, Central and South Europe, is a positive indicator that globally accepted courses could be implemented successfully. To the knowledge no such work was undertaken up to the present, thus confirming the originality of the study presented.

The benefits of coaching the coach

2018 ◽  
Vol 32 (6) ◽  
pp. 16-18
Author(s):  
David Smith
Keyword(s):  
Case Studies ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Reading Time ◽  
Training Programs ◽  
Cutting Edge ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Pertinent Information ◽  
Practical Implications

Purpose This paper aims to review the latest management developments across the globe and pinpoint practical implications from cutting-edge research and case studies. Design/methodology/approach This briefing is prepared by an independent writer who adds their own impartial comments and places the articles in context. Findings A study of the training programs offered to managers who coach employees has revealed how organizations could offer them far more support to develop their skills. The findings of the research indicated that although 58.7 per cent of the managers interviewed had received some support from their organizations, it was often short-lived, and less than a quarter (22.9 per cent) felt they did not need any further support. There was strong demand for longer, more in-depth training that took place on an ongoing basis. Some managers (about 5 per cent) even suggested they wanted formal qualifications in how to coach the staff. Originality/value The briefing saves busy executives and researchers hours of reading time by selecting only the very best, most pertinent information and presenting it in a condensed and easy-to-digest format.

scholarly journals Professional training in organic food production: a cross-country experience

2017 ◽  
Vol 34 (3) ◽  
pp. 259-273
Author(s):  
Raquel Guiné ◽  
Daniela Costa ◽  
Paula Correia ◽  
Cristina Costa ◽  
Helena Correia ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Distance Learning ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Professional Training ◽  
Agricultural Activity ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Training Activities ◽  
Cross Country ◽  
Level Of Significance ◽  
Past Experiences ◽  
Practical Implications

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to characterize the agricultural activities and past experiences in professional training in the context of mobile learning in different countries (Portugal, Spain, Slovakia, Hungary, UK, Italy and Turkey). Design/methodology/approach For the survey, a questionnaire was prepared in English and Portuguese and then translated into the languages of the participating countries. It was delivered electronically for answering online by adults only. The participation was voluntary and in the end 133 consented valid questionnaires were obtained. For the treatment of the data, SPSS was used and basic descriptive statistics tools were applied, together with tests, namely, crosstabs and χ2 tests, considering a level of significance of 5 percent. Findings The results showed that the majority of the participants presently have some agricultural activity and one-third is thinking about starting one in the future. Most of the participants want to produce food organically, with significant differences among the countries studied in this paper. Most of the participants were enrolled in training activities in agriculture, especially those with higher education. This participation showed significant differences between countries as well as according to the dimension of the farms owned by the participants. A significant association was found between being a teacher in forming activities related to agriculture and being a farmer. When compared to distance learning, the training activities in classroom were the most frequent, with significant differences among the countries. Practical implications This study allowed characterizing the learning activities in the field of organic agriculture and established vision for planning of future training programs, in different countries, with maybe different social, educational and cultural realities. Originality/value Because the study included the participation of people from several countries all around Europe, the results obtained enrich the scientific area of training in organic farming, in view of distance learning vs classroom learning on a more global basis.

Competencies for public library managers: diversity in practice

2015 ◽  
Vol 36 (6/7) ◽  
pp. 462-475 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mary Wilkins Jordan
Keyword(s):  
Design Methodology ◽  
Training Programs ◽  
Public Library ◽  
Original Study ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Managerial Competencies ◽  
The Public ◽  
Job Titles ◽  
Practical Implications ◽  
Different Levels

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to identify competencies in common across public library managers. Design/methodology/approach – The request for public library managers to participate in this survey was posted to the public listserve. Participants were asked about the tasks they do regularly, to identify the skills currently seen as most important in their work. They were then given a list of competencies, and asked to identify those they felt were most important for current public library managers, for those in future managers. Findings – Some commonalities emerged, but there was not a substantial amount of overlap between skills identified by directors and non-director managers as important now or into the future. Research limitations/implications – Further research into managerial competencies focussed on specific job titles is necessary to see what kinds of skills each may value. Likewise, a broader look at public library managers may provide a better set of common competencies that will be useful for both training and hiring. Practical implications – Understanding strategies for managerial competencies will be useful in building successful training programs. Social implications – Learning in this study that it will be challenging to carry out training relevant to all types of public library managers is useful; instead it can be tailored to different levels of managers for more success. Originality/value – This is an original study, building on other work the author has carried out. The value is in understanding the real needs of managers, not just anecdotal stories.

A neural observer for sensorless speed control of servomotors

2014 ◽  
Vol 31 (8) ◽  
pp. 1668-1678 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jenq-Ruey Horng ◽  
Ming-Shyan Wang ◽  
Tai-Rung Lai ◽  
Sergiu Berinde
Keyword(s):  
Neural Network ◽  
Neural Networks ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Computation Time ◽  
Elman Neural Network ◽  
Content Type ◽  
On Line ◽  
Future Work ◽  
Practical Implications ◽  
Neural Speed

Purpose – Extensive efforts have been conducted on the elimination of position sensors in servomotor control. The purpose of this paper is to aim at estimating the servomotor speed without using position sensors and the knowledge of its parameters by artificial neural networks (ANNs). Design/methodology/approach – A neural speed observer based on the Elman neural network (NN) structure takes only motor voltages and currents as inputs. Findings – After offline NNs training, the observer is incorporated into a DSP-based drive and sensorless control is achieved. Research limitations/implications – Future work will consider to reduce the computation time for NNs training and to adaptively tune parameters on line. Practical implications – The experimental results of the proposed method are presented to show the effectiveness. Originality/value – This paper achieves sensorless servomotor control by ANNs which are seldom studied.

Weapons of mass intrusion: the leveraging of ambush marketing strategies

2014 ◽  
Vol 48 (1/2) ◽  
pp. 314-335 ◽  
Author(s):  
François Anthony Carrillat ◽  
Francois Colbert ◽  
Matthieu Feigné
Keyword(s):  
Digital Media ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Marketing Strategies ◽  
Promotion Strategy ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Ambush Marketing ◽  
Market Dominance ◽  
On Line ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Practical Implications

Purpose – The study presented in this article aims to examine the impact of the leveraging of three distinct ambush marketing strategies that are under-researched in the literature: Promotion, Event, and Broadcast. Design/methodology/approach – An experiment was conducted where the type of ambush strategy was manipulated (i.e. Promotion, Event, Broadcast, no ambush) as well as the market dominance of the sponsor (i.e. dominant or non-dominant) and the congruence level between the event and the sponsor (i.e. high or low congruence). Findings – Ambush strategies' impacts differ widely. The Broadcast strategy is the most harmful to the identification of the actual sponsor; the Event strategy favors the identification of the pseudo-sponsor as the sponsor, while the Promotion strategy is both harmful to the actual sponsor and beneficial for the pseudo-sponsor. Furthermore, although dominant brands benefit more from their sponsorships, they are more affected by an ambush than non-dominant brands. Research limitations/implications – Only one sponsor and one pseudo-sponsor were considered at a time. In addition, digital media were not investigated as vectors of ambush marketing. Further research where multiple sponsors and pseudo-sponsors are leveraging their associations to an event, using both off and on-line media, needs to be undertaken. Practical implications – Against the Promotion strategy sponsors need to create not only strong but also unique associations with the event. The Event strategy can be circumvented with preemptive smaller scale events. Exclusive access to the program broadcast for event sponsors can protect against pseudo-sponsors. Originality/value – This study is the first to provide empirical evidence regarding the impact of the Promotion, Event, and Broadcast strategies. Previous studies had focused almost exclusively on another strategy: the airing of commercials by pseudo-sponsors during event broadcast against which most sponsors are now effectively protected.

Entrepreneurship and innovation

2015 ◽  
Vol 57 (1) ◽  
pp. 74-87 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alex Maritz ◽  
Jerome Donovan
Keyword(s):  
Design Methodology ◽  
Training Programs ◽  
Entrepreneurship Education ◽  
Education And Training ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Points Of View ◽  
And Training ◽  
Practical Implications ◽  
Specific Learning ◽  
Innovation And Entrepreneurship

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to explore the synergies, similarities and differences between entrepreneurship and innovation education and training programs, with the aim of challenging the context of such programs. Design/methodology/approach – This study utilises an extensive review of extant literature in the fields of innovation, entrepreneurship and education. The literature, propositions and discussion are intended to provide a bridge between entrepreneurship and innovation education and training programs and seek to address the scientific legitimacy of these education and training disciplines as separate, yet integrated disciplines. Findings – Identifies a need to reconsider the diversity and relationship between innovation and entrepreneurship education and training, primarily from contextual, theoretical, measurement, distinctiveness, content, pedagogical and typology points of view. The range of multiple teaching models and learning processes to embrace in various contexts. Research limitations/implications – The propositions allow for the combination of teaching initiatives in a theory-driven framework and their applicability to specific entrepreneurship and innovation education and training situations. Practical implications – The authors’ contribution identifies the synergies and differences between entrepreneurship education and training programs. The propositions highlight areas of contextualisation and practice-based view application, to adopt specific learning initiatives between constructs. Originality/value – The authors address a gap in the literature regarding the delineation of entrepreneurship and innovation education and training, which has thus far remained sparsely addressed in the education and training literature. The authors provide a practice-based view of propositions, developed for future testing.

Enabling academic entrepreneurship: the I-Corps experience

2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Serina Al Haddad ◽  
Thomas O'Neal ◽  
Issa Batarseh ◽  
Amber Martoncik
Keyword(s):  
Design Methodology ◽  
Training Programs ◽  
University Of Central Florida ◽  
Global Marketplace ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Central Florida ◽  
Knowledge Based ◽  
National Training ◽  
The University ◽  
Practical Implications

PurposeThis paper addresses the significance of training students in entrepreneurship to enable sustained national and international competitiveness in the knowledge-based global marketplace. Entrepreneurial education is varied, ranging from basic to in-depth courses, including customer-focused programs, such as the National Science Foundation (NSF) sponsored Innovation Corps (I-Corps) program. This program is nationally-renowned with strong academic roots. A full site was launched at the University of Central Florida (UCF) in January 2015 and was the first I-Corps program in the state of Florida.Design/methodology/approachThis paper addresses the importance of entrepreneurship education, reviews the available national training programs in entrepreneurship, presents the design methodology of the NSF I-Corps program, and analyzes the results of the teams who have participated in the NSF I-Corps program.FindingsThe results are categorized into innovative areas and show the percentage of teams who participated in the I-Corps program in each area. It also identifies the percentage of teams who engaged in actual startup activities following I-Corps participation.Practical implicationsEducators, students, and trainers can use the findings to benchmark the outcomes of training programs in entrepreneurship. Students and innovators interested in participating in I-Corps can use this paper to obtain insights and a broader understanding of what was done in terms of results and implications.Originality/valueThis paper contributes a unique analysis of the I-Corps program approach and its outcomes since its launch in 2015 and can be used as a reference for any training program in entrepreneurship.

Being mindful of managing emotions

2016 ◽  
Vol 30 (3) ◽  
pp. 23-25
Keyword(s):  
Design Methodology ◽  
Reading Time ◽  
Training Programs ◽  
Control Group ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Emotional Skills ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
Pertinent Information ◽  
Experimental Group ◽  
Practical Implications

Purpose This paper aims to review the latest management developments across the globe and pinpoint practical implications from cutting-edge research and case studies. Design/methodology/approach This briefing is prepared by an independent writer who adds their own impartial comments and places the articles in context. Findings Results showed that an experimental group, after training, achieved around 15 per cent higher scores compared to results before training on all three subscales of an emotional skills and competence questionnaire, a statistically significant improvement in scores. The control group (no training) scores showed no significant difference. This result indicates support for the view that emotional intelligence may be treated as a competency and is responsive to training programs. Practical Implications The paper provides strategic insights and practical thinking that have influenced some of the world’s leading organizations. Originality/value The briefing saves busy executives and researchers hours of reading time by selecting only the very best, most pertinent information and presenting it in a condensed and easy-to-digest format.

NaviGaTor: group decision-making methodology for the design of training programs

2016 ◽  
Vol 48 (6) ◽  
pp. 284-293 ◽  
Author(s):  
Charis A. Marentakis ◽  
Panagiotis Panagos ◽  
Afroditi Riga
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Group Decision Making ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Group Decision ◽  
Training Programs ◽  
Idea Generation ◽  
Training Design ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Practical Implications

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to present a systematic methodology (NaviGaTor) combining a structured method for the evolutionary design of training programs with Nominal Group Technique (NGT) setting supporting the involvement of a diverse set of participants and experts. Design/methodology/approach – The paper describes the necessity and efficiency of group decision making in the design of training programs, focussing on how participants can convey experience and knowledge and how NGT can enhance idea generation and support convergence of opinions. The methodology evolved from a paper-based format to a web-based format, thus supporting remote participation. Findings – The application of the methodology in a large-scale multi-national training design program confirms practical implications on the usability, efficiency and effectiveness of the proposed structured group decision-making methodology. Research limitations/implications – The systematic training design methodology presented herein not only enhances previous findings from the literature but also sets the foundations for future research on the importance of diversity of ideas and experiences from many experts in the design of training programs. Practical implications – After a series of successful applications for the design of training programs in several mid-scale intra-company projects, the methodology was applied successfully in a multi-national large-scale project focussing on the design of corporate training programs on stress management with very promising results. Originality/value – The proposed methodology was the first one to be applied through a systematic and structured process and constitutes a practical tool for the efficient design of training programs through an evolutionary and structured process based on idea generation from experts.

Increasing the effectiveness of workplace training programs the merits of a systematic approach to their design

2018 ◽  
Vol 32 (1) ◽  
pp. 22-24
Keyword(s):  
Design Methodology ◽  
Reading Time ◽  
Systematic Approach ◽  
Training Programs ◽  
Methodological Approach ◽  
Workplace Training ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Training Content ◽  
Pertinent Information ◽  
Practical Implications

Purpose This paper aims to review the latest management developments across the globe and pinpoint practical implications from cutting-edge research and case studies. Design/methodology/approach This briefing is prepared by an independent writer who adds their own impartial comments and places the articles in context. Findings A methodological approach can enhance the design and effectiveness of workplace training programs. Use of focus groups enables greater diversity of potential training solutions to issues arising at work and can help ascertain appropriate training content, techniques, and means of evaluation. Practical implications The paper provides strategic insights and practical thinking that have influenced some of the world’s leading organizations. Originality/value The briefing saves busy executives and researchers hours of reading time by selecting only the very best, most pertinent information and presenting it in a condensed and easy-to-digest format.

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