scholarly journals Planning robust policing futures: modelling using multimethodology

2015 ◽  
Vol 115 (3) ◽  
pp. 462-482
Author(s):  
Jonathan Moizer ◽  
David Carter ◽  
Shaofeng Liu
Keyword(s):  
System Dynamics ◽  
Service Providers ◽  
Scenario Planning ◽  
Dynamics Simulation ◽  
Group Model ◽  
Policy Options ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Multi Phase ◽  
Modelling Process

Purpose – The resourcing of policing activity is characterised by a level of complexity, particularly where evaluating alternative policy options is concerned. In this paper, a case study using multimethodological modelling to compare alterative policy choice in a group context is outlined with respect to response-patrol officer (RPO) deployment within a UK police force. The paper aims to discuss these issues. Design/methodology/approach – The application of a three phase modelling process is illustrated where scenario planning is used to generate the scope of the system elements to be modelled. This is followed by causal mapping to identify the barriers to improving officer resourcing, and system dynamics modelling is used to simulate the impacts of a range of policy options within this policing function. A group model building approach was applied throughout the modelling phases with an expert group to negotiate a shared view of the structure and dynamics of the resourcing policy challenges. Findings – A fully validated system dynamics model emerged from the multi-phase modelling process which allowed a series of alternative future policy scenarios to be explored and evaluated. Useful policy insights were generated by the system dynamics simulation model which suggested more efficient rules for resource allocation in the police force’s RPO function. Originality/value – The insights from this case study demonstrates that multi-phase modelling has potential application in policy exploration across a range of emergency service providers whose actions are governed by both variable demand and constrained supply of resource.

Proposing a basic methodology for developing balanced scorecard by system dynamics approach

Kybernetes ◽  
2015 ◽  
Vol 44 (6/7) ◽  
pp. 1049-1066 ◽  
Author(s):  
Seyed Behnam Khakbaz ◽  
Nastaran Hajiheydari
Keyword(s):  
System Dynamics ◽  
Balanced Scorecard ◽  
Public Transportation ◽  
Time Delays ◽  
Scenario Planning ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Integrated Framework ◽  
Management Scenario ◽  
Transportation Company

Purpose – Successful future has inspired organizations to measure long-term and non-financial measurements and key performance indicators (KPIs). Kaplan and Norton proposed balanced scorecard (BSC) for this issue and have extended it to one of the most preferred strategic management system’s tools. However, available planning tools like BSC have some limitations, like dependency to the developer, weakness in showing time delays, and also mathematical relationships between lead and lag indicators. In this paper, the authors would present a new methodology for developing BSCs, which would be able to overcome these limitations. Therefore, the purpose of this paper is to develop an integrated framework for developing BSC with system dynamics approach (a dynamic BSC (DBSC)) which has lower limitation in compare with traditional BSC. The other purpose of this paper is developing a DBSC for an Iranian public transportation company. Design/methodology/approach – Based on this purpose, related literature was thoroughly reviewed and the proposed methodology designed using the system dynamics and BSC concepts. This methodology is a composition of original BSC development methodology and system dynamics principles. An assumed organization has been used for showing methodology’s capability and procedure. Furthermore, a case study has been accomplished in this paper. This case study is a DBSC which has been developed for an Iranian public transportation company. The purpose of this case study is to ensure about proposed methodology implication in action. Findings – The authors proposed a methodology which can be applied for developing BSCs. This methodology consists of six different steps which are: developing a system for organization, selecting stakeholders’ most important objectives and target, identifying organization’s objectives and their KPIs for different BSC aspects, developing strategy map, targeting, and selecting initiatives. In the proceeding of this paper, the proposed methodology and its steps would be explained in detail. Originality/value – The system dynamic approach has precedents in business studies; however, this research makes this approach operational in BSC designing and analysis. BSCs, which developed by this methodology can show time delays between an organization’s objectives, its KPIs’ relationship and also planning for it. Selecting achievable and rational vision and objectives’ targets, change management, scenario planning and policy analysis are other values which can be achieved by DBSC deployment which need further researches. In summary, this research has shown an integrated framework for developing DBSC and then applies it to an Iranian public transportation company. Therefore, another contribution of this paper is the application of this method for an Iranian public transportation company.

Prospective study using archetypes and system dynamics

2019 ◽  
Vol 32 (2) ◽  
pp. 181-202
Author(s):  
Patricio Vera ◽  
Christopher Nikulin ◽  
Monica Lopez-Campos ◽  
Rosa Guadalupe G. Gonzalez Ramirez
Keyword(s):  
System Dynamics ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Expert Knowledge ◽  
Mining Industry ◽  
Real Data ◽  
Model Management ◽  
Dynamics Simulation ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Holistic Understanding

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to propose a combination of forecasting methods that enables a holistic understanding of a future situation, given certain influencing variables by a combination of real data and expert knowledge. Design/methodology/approach The proposal combines two well-known methods: first, system archetypes that correspond to generic structures, allowing us to handle model management issues, and second, system dynamics that offers technical support on a computational level to assess different scenarios or problem solutions. Findings The case study considers the situation of the mining industry in Chile and its related variables, including four different scenarios. Based on the proposed methodology, the results indicate that: first, the price of copper is paramount for the industry and its effects are not limited to company profits; second, a long period of downfall in copper prices could halt exploration and development projects. Research limitations/implications Systemic archetypes are still a subject of research and their application in different fields of knowledge continues to increase to improve this simulation approach. Practical implications The case study illustrates the combination of a Vester matrix and initial system archetype models that are enriched using the system dynamics approach. Indeed, the case study aims to understand the consequences of different scenarios based on the problem-driven approach provided by Vester. Social implications The goal of prospective studies of large-scale and complex situations is to model the real situation to obtain solutions that may enhance social welfare. Originality/value The proposed methodology contributes to the existing literature by integrating techniques such as the Vester matrix, system archetype modelling and system dynamics simulation, all of which were proposed previously in the literature as independent techniques.

Beyond social capital: a capability approach to understanding Refugee Community Organisations and other providers for “hard to reach” groups

2014 ◽  
Vol 10 (2) ◽  
pp. 61-72 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jennifer Clarke
Keyword(s):  
Capability Approach ◽  
Service Providers ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Refugee Community ◽  
Community Organisations ◽  
Purposive Sample ◽  
The Capability Approach

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to explore the value of the “capability approach” as an alternative framework for understanding and conceptualising the role of Refugee Community Organisations (RCOs) and other providers for groups conventionally considered “hard to reach”. Design/methodology/approach – A study of the education services of RCOs, drawing primarily on semi-structured interviews with 71 users, is put forward as a case study for how the capability approach can be operationalised. Findings – The capability approach is found to offer various valuable insights, relating to its appreciation of the multi-dimensional nature of human wellbeing, the significance of individual diversity, and the importance of human agency. Research limitations/implications – The case study is based on a relatively small purposive sample, and may have limited external validity. As the research design proved strong for exploring how RCOs develop their users’ capabilities but weak for exploring if and how they may also constrict them, further research in this area is required. Practical implications – A number of valuable attributes of the capability approach are highlighted for broadening the understanding, the role of RCOs and other service providers. Social implications – The paper outlines the potential of the capability approach to contribute to policymaking related to RCOs and other providers, and to debates relating to social exclusion, cohesion and integration. Originality/value – The paper draws attention to the value of the capability approach within the field of migration research.

Satisfaction of tuberculosis patients with health services in Ghana

2017 ◽  
Vol 30 (6) ◽  
pp. 545-553 ◽  
Author(s):  
Frank Bonsu ◽  
Felix Afutu ◽  
Nii Nortey Hanson-Nortey ◽  
Mary-Anne Ahiabu ◽  
Joshua Amo-Adjei
Keyword(s):  
Client Satisfaction ◽  
Service Providers ◽  
Healthcare Providers ◽  
Large Body ◽  
Service Users ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Sputum Production ◽  
Interview Guide

Purpose Within human services, client satisfaction is highly prioritised and considered a mark of responsiveness in service delivery. A large body of research has examined the concept of satisfaction from the perspective of service users. However, not much is known about how service providers construct client satisfaction. The purpose of this paper is to throw light on healthcare professionals’ perspectives on patient satisfaction, using tuberculosis (TB) clinics as a case study. Design/methodology/approach In-depth interviews were conducted with 35 TB clinic supervisors purposively sampled from six out of the ten regions of Ghana. An unstructured interview guide was employed. The recorded IDIs were transcribed, edited and entered into QSR NVivo 10.0 and analysed inductively. Findings Respondents defined service satisfaction as involving education/counselling (on drugs, nature of condition, sputum production, caregivers and contacts of patients), patient follow-up, assignment of reliable treatment supporters as well as being attentive and receptive to patients, service availability (e.g. punctuality at work, availability of commodities), positive assurances about disease prognosis and respect for patients. Practical implications Complementing opinions of health service users with those of providers can offer key performance improvement areas for health managers. Originality/value To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is a first study that has examined healthcare providers’ views on what makes their clients satisfied with the services they provide.

Exploring construction workers' attitudinal ambivalence: a system dynamics approach

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Sheng Xu ◽  
Mengge Zhang ◽  
Bo Xia ◽  
Jiangbo Liu
Keyword(s):  
System Dynamics ◽  
Model Building ◽  
Safety Management ◽  
Negative Attitude ◽  
Construction Workers ◽  
Group Model ◽  
Group Model Building ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Work Pressure ◽  
Safety Attitude

PurposeThis study aimed to identify driving factors of safety attitudinal ambivalence (AA) and explore their influence. Construction workers' intention to act safely can be instable under conflicting information from safety management, co-workers and habitual unsafe behaviour. Existing research explained the mechanism of unsafe behaviours as individual decisions but failed to include AA, as the co-existence of both positive and negative attitude.Design/methodology/approachThis study applied system dynamics to explore factors of construction workers' AA and simulate the process of mitigating the ambivalence for less safety behaviour. Specifically, the group model building approach with eight experts was used to map the causal loop diagram and field questionnaire of 209 construction workers were used to collect empirical data for initiating parameters.FindingsThe group model building identified five direct factors of AA, namely the organisational safety support, important others' safety attitude, emotional arousal, safety production experience and work pressure, with seven feedback paths. The questionnaire survey obtained the initial values of the factors in the SD model, with the average ambivalence at 0.389. The ambivalence between cognitive and affective safety attitude was the highest. Model simulation results indicated that safety experience and work pressure had the most significant effects, and safety experience and positive attitude of co-workers could compensate the pressure from tight schedule and budget.Originality/valueThis study provided a new perspective of the dynamic safety attitude under the co-existence of positive and negative attitude, identified its driving factors and their influencing paths. The group model building approach and field questionnaire surveys were used to provide convincible suggestions for empirical safety management with least and most effective approaches and possible interventions to prevent unsafe behaviour with tight schedule and budget.

Case study of sustainable service design in the hospitality industry

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Yi-An Chen ◽  
Chun Liang Chen
Keyword(s):  
Sustainable Development ◽  
Customer Value ◽  
Hospitality Industry ◽  
Service Providers ◽  
Corporate Sustainability ◽  
Service Design ◽  
Cultural Resources ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Holistic Understanding

Purpose The purpose of this study is to explore how creative-cultural hotels can achieve sustainable service design through the development of a holistic conceptual framework. Design/methodology/approach The authors created this framework using a qualitative exploratory multi-case study of four creative-cultural hotels in Taiwan. The framework comprises strategic, organizational and interface levels to describe the design process and implementation of service offerings that co-create value within a multifaceted network of actors. Findings The findings of this study show that incorporating local arts and culture into sustainable service design can generate unique value and experiences for customers. From the perspective of sustainable development, these hotels seek to add value by using local creative and cultural resources to ensure that they have a sound commercial base from which to showcase their cultural features. As such, this study recommends that the hotel industry shift its focus to a paradigm that provides a strategic and sustainability-framed vision to create value for society while protecting local natural and cultural resources. Originality/value This multilevel model reframes the development of customer value constellations through a holistic understanding of user experience, eco-design practice, service encounters aligned with user touchpoints and front-line employee capabilities. To integrate the perspectives of both service providers and their customers, the proposed model embeds these stakeholders within a single model through the vehicle of local value co-creation. This holistic framework can assist in designing sustainable service within the hospitality industry to deliver better services and customer experiences. The findings provide an illustration of how the proposed multilevel sustainable-development-oriented service design framework can serve as a useful tool in guiding hotels toward corporate sustainability.

Understanding tenants’ motivations for co-living arrangements: a case study of Klang Valley, Malaysia

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Vania Christy ◽  
Teck Hong Tan
Keyword(s):  
Living Arrangements ◽  
Service Providers ◽  
Living Arrangement ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Living Space ◽  
Depth Interview ◽  
Klang Valley ◽  
User Ratings ◽  
Method Approach

Purpose The purpose of this study is to fill a knowledge gap by analyzing the motivations of tenants to co-living spaces in Klang Valley, Malaysia as the motives of co-living spaces are related to how well that space supports their needs. Design/methodology/approach Tenants’ behaviors were examined using a convergent parallel mixed-method approach, which included a survey and an in-depth interview. A total of 175 respondents were interviewed using purposive sampling. Findings The results show that the preference for co-living attributes has changed during the pandemic. User ratings of preference for physical and leasing attributes of co-living spaces are significant in terms of co-living motivations. The findings also revealed that tenants prefer twin-sharing and master bedrooms when choosing a co-living space to stay in. Research limitations/implications Identifying the factors that influence such motivations is critical for housing developers and co-living service providers to pay close attention to improving tenants’ living experiences. Originality/value There is interest in the co-living spaces that are available for rent. However, very little research is based on an understanding of how the tenants in Klang Valley, Malaysia perceive this type of living arrangement. A better understanding and prediction of tenants’ needs and preferences may lead to a better understanding of the attributes that influence their motivations for using co-living spaces.

Causes of road projects' delays: a case of Blantyre, Malawi

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Henry Duncan John Mwamvani ◽  
Christopher Amoah ◽  
Emma Ayesu-Koranteng
Keyword(s):  
Service Providers ◽  
Road Construction ◽  
City Council ◽  
Public Utility ◽  
Mitigation Measures ◽  
Research Approach ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Road Project ◽  
Road Projects

PurposeThe study aims to find the causes of road projects implementation delays in Blantyre, one of the four city councils (CCs) in Malawi.Design/methodology/approachThe study followed a qualitative research approach using a Blantyre City Council (BCC) as a case study. This study combined in-depth, face-to-face interviews with councillors, secretariat staff, consultants, and contractors who worked on the city's road projects. Data gathered were analysed using thematic content analysis. Also, some road project documents were examined.FindingsThe findings from the case study revealed the primary cause of road project construction delays as the shortage of engineers in conducting detailed proposed projects surveys resulting in incomplete project scope definition before contractor's procurement. Other identified factors were service providers delaying the removal of existing public utility infrastructure from project sites, client funding issues, scope changes, and client delays in issuing instructions to the contractors during project implementation. Another factor was the shortage of construction equipment and construction materials experienced by some appointed contractors.Research limitations/implicationsOnly road construction projects and stakeholders operating from Blantyre city, Malawi, were contacted for the study; thus, the findings may not be generalizable.Practical implicationsThere is an urgent need to increase technical employees, especially engineers and other critical technical staff such as quantity surveyors in Blantyre. Employees' conditions of service should be conducive to attract qualified people to undertake effective management and assessment of projects before commencement to identify the feasibility of proposed projects to decrease the rate of road construction project delays.Originality/valueThe study has established Blantyre city's core challenges in implementing its road projects seamlessly and has provided mitigation measures for dealing with the shortcomings.

scholarly journals Partnering for change

2019 ◽  
Vol 34 (3) ◽  
pp. 255-272 ◽  
Author(s):  
Martha L.P. MacLeod ◽  
Neil Hanlon ◽  
Trish Reay ◽  
David Snadden ◽  
Cathy Ulrich
Keyword(s):  
Primary Healthcare ◽  
Health Authority ◽  
Service Provision ◽  
Service Providers ◽  
Processes Of Change ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Status ◽  
Managing Risk ◽  
Healthcare Transformation

Purpose Despite many calls to strengthen connections between health systems and communities as a way to improve primary healthcare, little is known about how new collaborations can effectively alter service provision. The purpose of this paper is to explore how a health authority, municipal leaders and physicians worked together in the process of transforming primary healthcare. Design/methodology/approach A longitudinal qualitative case study was conducted to explore the processes of change at the regional level and within seven communities across Northern British Columbia (BC), Canada. Over three years, 239 interviews were conducted with physicians, municipal leaders, health authority clinicians and leaders and other health and social service providers. Interviews and contextual documents were analyzed and interpreted to articulate how ongoing transformation has occurred. Findings Four overall strategies with nine approaches were apparent. The strategies were partnering for innovation, keeping the focus on people in communities, taking advantage of opportunities for change and encouraging experimentation while managing risk. The strategies have bumped the existing system out of the status quo and are achieving transformation. Key components have been a commitment to a clear end-in-view, a focus on patients, families, and communities, and acting together over time. Originality/value This study illuminates how partnering for primary healthcare transformation is messy and complicated but can create a foundation for whole system change.

Modelling near-real-time order arrival demand in e-commerce context: a machine learning predictive methodology

2020 ◽  
Vol 120 (6) ◽  
pp. 1149-1174 ◽  
Author(s):  
K.H. Leung ◽  
Daniel Y. Mo ◽  
G.T.S. Ho ◽  
C.H. Wu ◽  
G.Q. Huang
Keyword(s):  
Machine Learning ◽  
Decision Making ◽  
Real Time ◽  
Service Providers ◽  
Series Data ◽  
Illustrative Case ◽  
Implementation Framework ◽  
Inference System ◽  
Content Type

PurposeAccurate prediction of order demand across omni-channel supply chains improves the management's decision-making ability at strategic, tactical and operational levels. The paper aims to develop a predictive methodology for forecasting near-real-time e-commerce order arrivals in distribution centres, allowing third-party logistics service providers to manage the hour-to-hour fast-changing arrival rates of e-commerce orders better.Design/methodology/approachThe paper proposes a novel machine learning predictive methodology through the integration of the time series data characteristics into the development of an adaptive neuro-fuzzy inference system. A four-stage implementation framework is developed for enabling practitioners to apply the proposed model.FindingsA structured model evaluation framework is constructed for cross-validation of model performance. With the aid of an illustrative case study, forecasting evaluation reveals a high level of accuracy of the proposed machine learning approach in forecasting the arrivals of real e-commerce orders in three different retailers at three-hour intervals.Research limitations/implicationsResults from the case study suggest that real-time prediction of individual retailer's e-order arrival is crucial in order to maximize the value of e-order arrival prediction for daily operational decision-making.Originality/valueEarlier researchers examined supply chain demand, forecasting problem in a broader scope, particularly in dealing with the bullwhip effect. Prediction of real-time, hourly based order arrivals has been lacking. The paper fills this research gap by presenting a novel data-driven predictive methodology.

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