scholarly journals The FunCaps Framework: Reconceptualizing Operational Alignment

Organizacija ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 54 (4) ◽  
pp. 256-274
Author(s):  
Olfat Ganji Bidmeshk ◽  
Mohammad Mehraeen ◽  
Alireza Pooya ◽  
Yaghoob Maharati
Keyword(s):  
Business Processes ◽  
Strategic Alignment ◽  
Coarse Grained ◽  
Practical Implementation ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
The Social ◽  
Business Efficiency ◽  
Sound Foundation ◽  
The Right ◽  
Business Requirements

Abstract Background and purpose: Operational alignment, the alignment between business processes (BPs) and information systems (ISs), is a well-acknowledged requirement for improving business efficiency. However, a lack of sound foundation for the practical implementation of operational alignment remains in the existing literature. This is, in part, because previously developed coarse-grained strategic alignment models for operational alignment have overlooked the differences between strategic and operational levels of alignment. Additionally, while some studies have recognized these differences, they remain limited. This is partly due to their negligence of the IS’s socio-technical nature or their focus on identifying the social antecedents and their effect on operational alignment, without considering how ISs meet the business requirements in achieving operational alignment. To overcome this potential lack of applicability, the purpose of this paper is to determine the right level of abstraction for describing BPs and ISs and reconceptualizing operational alignment. Methodology: This paper conducts empirical research using a grounded theory (GT), centering on semi-structured interviews with 28 experts involved in the Iranian top public universities. Data were analyzed by using MAXQDA software. Results: The resulting FunCaps framework specifies the required combinations of BP functions and IS capabilities for operational alignment. Conclusion: FunCaps reconceptualizes operational alignment based on operational planning and reciprocal integration and establishes the broader picture by considering an IS as a socio-technical system.

Mapping Right to be Forgotten frames: Reflexivity and empirical payoffs at the intersection of network discourse and mixed network methods

2020 ◽  
Vol 22 (7) ◽  
pp. 1245-1265
Author(s):  
Rebekah Larsen
Keyword(s):  
Research Approach ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Internet Privacy ◽  
Right To Be Forgotten ◽  
Mixed Network ◽  
Traditional Research ◽  
The Social ◽  
The Right ◽  
Networked Public Sphere ◽  
Network Mapping

Networks are almost ubiquitous in the social sciences, in terms of method and structure. Dominant discourses around networks–concerning their purported democratic, progressive values and capacities–also impact how they are approached in research. This article illustrates the potential of this impact by tracing the trajectory and findings of a project focused on networked discussion of an Internet privacy debate. Using mixed methods—hyperlink network mapping, textual analysis (qualitative and quantitative), and semi-structured interviews—I examine online framing of a controversial data protection concept, the Right to be Forgotten. Initial, more “traditional” research approaches allowed for insight only into the most central and visible frames and sources. This led to a reorientation of research approach. In attempt to diversify sources and framings, I began focusing on the margins and off the “networked public sphere.” This article thus also recounts the significant empirical findings that resulted from such reflexivity and reorientation.

Organizational characteristics as prescriptive factors of knowledge management initiatives

2008 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
pp. 21-36 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rémy Magnier‐Watanabe ◽  
Dai Senoo
Keyword(s):  
Knowledge Management ◽  
Business Processes ◽  
Qualitative Content Analysis ◽  
Organizational Characteristics ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Right ◽  
Use Of Knowledge ◽  
New Framework

PurposeThe use of knowledge in organizations is largely a discretionary behavior that can be encouraged but not demanded. As such, the firm can only attempt to provide the right conditions for employees to endorse the role of knowledge workers. The purpose of this paper is to examine how the organization of the firm affects knowledge management.Design/methodology/approachThis research proposes a new framework showing the prescriptive role of organizational characteristics onto knowledge management (KM) initiatives. Based on this framework, data were generated from nine semi‐structured interviews conducted in the American, British and Japanese offices of a major Japanese pharmaceutical company, using a Boolean approach and qualitative content analysis.FindingsOrganizational characteristics, specifically – structure, membership, relationship, and strategy affect KM, namely – knowledge acquisition, storage, diffusion, and application respectively.Research limitations/implicationsEven though the departments of each local office under study were matched in terms of activity, the size of their own domestic market made comparisons sometimes challenging.Practical implicationsThis research suggests that practitioners can increase the yield of KM when integrated upstream into the elementary business processes rather than when left voluntary.Originality/valueThis paper uncovers a possible link between the firm's organizational characteristics and KM, and the new practical framework can be useful to both scholars and practitioners.

scholarly journals STOCHASTIC ASPECTS OF CONTINUOUS IMPROVEMENT OF THE BUSINESS RESULTS PERFORMANCE OF THE PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION

2019 ◽  
Vol 17 (31) ◽  
Author(s):  
Mirjana Landika ◽  
Sanel Jakupović ◽  
Radmila Bojanić ◽  
Velibor Peulić ◽  
Vedran Šupuković ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Public Administration ◽  
Business Processes ◽  
Global Optimum ◽  
Subjective Perception ◽  
Administrative Services ◽  
Business Results ◽  
Output Performance ◽  
Business System ◽  
The Social ◽  
Business Efficiency

Effective operation of a system is expressed as an aspiration to achieve excellence in business results, recognized as total elimination of prevented difference between desired values and actual values of the realized system performance, requiring identification of both environmental and internal factors, as well as an explicit expression of the form and the extent of their impact on business processes. It is heavily laden by stochastic manifestation of their values and complexity of the influence. Optimal business management is determined by the structure and the concept of the system operation, and it is expressed and measured by the extent to which a business result meets user requirements. Realization of business objectives is contained in the performance of an output vector, being a resultant of actions of the business system, in terms of separate task stages in public administration management, and also in the operation of the system as a whole. Elimination of unwanted results involves interdependence, conditioning, frequency and probability distribution of their occurrence, and also coordination of, and cooperation between, numerous resources required to achieve the desired level of operational efficiency. Testing the reagibility of realized level of customer (dis)satisfaction with the performance of administrative services, as a dependent variable, in terms of level and intensity, manifested forms of used protocols and adequacy of service provider engagement, as an input of the variable, and their expression by means of an appropriate statistical function represents the aim of research, i.e. improvement of business efficiency by means of exact results. The aforementioned procedures facilitate anticipation and correction of business results, and despite the stochastic process performance variations which are analyzed and monitored, their behavior is predicted, controlled and rationally directed towards a desired business result. The design of experiment is based on time disproportion in discovering the causes of realized level of subjective perception of satisfaction when satisfying the demand in terms of administrative services, and in the context of frequency of demandand the form of service requested. By overcoming and eliminating dissatisfaction with the performance of services, business efficiency of administrative process results is being significantly and permanently improved and the degree of employees’ satisfaction is intensified; the same is with the service users, whose final result minimizes differentiality of realized and targeted performances, and simultaneously the global optimum of the social-economic system. The conclusion in terms of the existence of intensive connections between the observed phenomena reveals the causes of the achieved level of output performance and facilitates its indirect correction by dosing the structure and intensity of the input vector.

scholarly journals Social-family development: integral culture for the formation of the children of the zero program always in the municipality of Pamplona

2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (11) ◽  
pp. 31-43
Author(s):  
Fredy Andrés Cruz - Vega ◽  
Luz Eliana Figueroa - Granados
Keyword(s):  
Rural Areas ◽  
Primary Objective ◽  
Point Of View ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
The Social ◽  
The Right ◽  
Relationship Of ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The Relationship

The research makes it possible to recognize the judgments of the users who are enrolled in the zero to always family modality and, in turn, establish the relationship they give to the program in the training of their children. The use of qualitative research for this proposal contributes or it establishes the relationship of describing and giving points of view to problems of the social educational and experiential context, the primary objective was to determine the degree of use by users of the program from zero to always family modality, in the municipality of Pamplona. It can be said that the application of this research contributes in part to diagnosing from a personal point of view the impact generated by the program in the training of minors, evidencing in it the theoretical, political and real positions in order to make them aware of the importance of training of children. The instruments used for families in certain rural areas who are the objects of study were semi-structured interviews; validated by experts from the area, they managed to produce key information for the analysis and triangulation. Thanks to the analysis units and the categories established in the interview, it was possible to focus and provide solutions to the objectives set, demonstrating the perception that the beneficiaries of the program of zero They always have in relation to the operation in rural areas of Pamplona. With the information obtained it is clear to establish the conformity of the operation of the program in terms of the role of care for families, the training of minors and the integration of society is thus how the show is getting on the right tide.

scholarly journals Donors' Participation in Iran's Health System: Challenges and Solutions

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ali Mohammad Mosadeghrad ◽  
Maryam Tajvar ◽  
Fatemeh Ehteshami
Keyword(s):  
Health System ◽  
Health Sector ◽  
Healthcare Services ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Ethical Considerations ◽  
Senior Managers ◽  
Department Of Health ◽  
The Social ◽  
The Right ◽  
Iranian Health System

Background: Philanthropic activities play an important role in health systems. Donors contribute to financing, generating resources, and providing healthcare services in Iranian health system. However, they face many challenges. This study aimed to identify barriers to donors' participation in the Iranian health system and to provide solutions. Methods: This qualitative study was performed using semi-structured interviews with 38 donors and 26 policymakers and managers in the social affairs department of health ministry and medical universities in 2018. In addition, document analysis was performed and the relevant data were extracted. Thematic analysis was used for data analysis. All ethical considerations were followed in this research. Results: Insufficient structures, poor communications, low trust, ineffective working processes, bureaucracy, insufficient senior managers’ support, weak legal support and poor monitoring were the most important challenges for donors’ participation in the Iranian health system. Effective donor participation in the health system requires the creation of an appropriate system including the right structures, processes, culture, and management. The necessary changes must be planned, led and monitored to promote donors’ participation in healthcare. A conceptual model was developed to strengthen donors’ participation in the health system. Conclusion: Iranian donors face structural, procedural, cultural, and managerial challenges when financing the health system, generating resources, and providing health services. Policymakers and managers should tackle these challenges and adopt strategies to reinforce donors' participation in the health system. Planning, organizing, leading, monitoring, evaluation, transparency, accountability, and a commitment to meet donors’ needs are necessary for successful philanthropy initiatives in the health sector.

Generating Big Data

2019 ◽  
pp. 136-161
Author(s):  
Ezer Osei Yeboah-Boateng
Keyword(s):  
Social Media ◽  
Big Data ◽  
Business Processes ◽  
Data Types ◽  
Online Data ◽  
Data Formats ◽  
Best Value ◽  
The Social ◽  
Sustainable Value ◽  
The Right

Big data is characterized as huge datasets generated at a fast rate, in unstructured, semi-structured, and structured data formats, with inconsistencies and disparate data types and sources. The challenge is having the right tools to process large datasets in an acceptable timeframe and within reasonable cost range. So, how can social media big datasets be harnessed for best value decision making? The approach adopted was site scraping to collect online data from social media and other websites. The datasets have been harnessed to provide better understanding of customers' needs and preferences. It's applied to design targeted campaigns, to optimize business processes, and to improve performance. Using the social media facts and rules, a multivariate value creation decision model was built to assist executives to create value based on improved “knowledge” in a hindsight-foresight-insight continuum about their operations and initiatives and to make informed decisions. The authors also demonstrated use cases of insights computed as equations that could be leveraged to create sustainable value.

scholarly journals VATSONGA PEOPLE’S PERCEPTIONS OF CHILDREN’S RIGHTS

2021 ◽  
Vol 57 (4) ◽  
pp. 472-485
Author(s):  
Lisenga Simbine ◽  
Liana Le Roux
Keyword(s):  
Children's Rights ◽  
Children’S Rights ◽  
Snowball Sampling ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Community Based ◽  
Child Rights ◽  
The Social ◽  
Key Informant ◽  
The Right ◽  
People’S Perceptions

This article is based on the findings of a qualitative study that explored the Vatsonga people’s perceptions of children’s rights to protection. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 40 community-based participants and 11child protection social workers who were familiar with the Vatsonga people's cultural heritage. Key informant and snowball sampling techniques were employed to select the community-based participants and availability sampling for selecting the social work participants. The study established that the Vatsonga people recognise the provision, protection and participation rights of children. Child participation is perceived as comprised of childhood responsibilities, not the right to be heard perse. The paper argues that some of the purported violations of child rights in Africa emanate from the universal application of a Eurocentric worldview of children’s rights. We conclude that to understand child rights in Africa, African people should be allowed to contribute to the construction of an indigenised and contextualised perspective on child rights.

scholarly journals Socialt medborgarskap och möjligheten till ett självständigt liv – ekonomiskt bistånd för kvinnor som har lämnat en våldsam partner

2016 ◽  
Vol 22 (3-4) ◽  
Author(s):  
Rickard Ulmestig ◽  
Alexandru Panican
Keyword(s):  
Domestic Violence ◽  
Social Services ◽  
Local Level ◽  
Social Assistance ◽  
Social Citizenship ◽  
Discretionary Power ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
The Social ◽  
Independent Life ◽  
The Right

Social citizenship and the opportunity for an independent life – Social assistance for women who have left a violent partnerEconomic security is significant for a woman’s possibility to leave a violent partner. In Sweden women under these circumstances are sometimes forced to rely on social assistance. The aim is to understand the social services’ handling of these women applying for social assistance. The study starts from a citizenship perspective, where women’s descriptions are analysed. The study is based on 13 semi-structured interviews in three municipalities with women survivors of domestic violence. These survivors have been highlighted as a prioritized group on the political arena. They meet a social assistance system which is supposed to be built on citizenship rights according to the Social Services Act. From the empirical material, however, we can conclude that the survivors’ basic needs are dependent on means tests in order to assess who is a deserving client in implementing the right to social assistance based on discretionary power on the local level. The survivors describe how the case workers choose in certain cases to prioritize the municipalities’ economy over the intentions of the Social Services Act. It becomes clear that the conditions for receiving social assistance are to be given a subordinate position. The condition for being able to obtain social assistance are described by the survivors as accepting limitations of privacy, autonomy and self-determination. Summarizing, the core of the poor relief logic is that the relief can never be a right for survivors of domestic violence in Sweden.

scholarly journals Community of Practice as a Tool for Company Performance in Strategic Context

2015 ◽  
Vol 3 (1) ◽  
pp. 122-138
Author(s):  
Ilpo Antero Pohjola
Keyword(s):  
Communities Of Practice ◽  
Knowledge Creation ◽  
Business Processes ◽  
Research Question ◽  
Organizational Level ◽  
Practical Implementation ◽  
Company Performance ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Virtual Collaboration ◽  
Knowledge Creation And Sharing

The objective of this study is to examine communities of practice (CoP) as a strategic tool for expanding methods of collective learning and knowledge creation and sharing. Through the case study, I analyze how CoP increase personnel capabilities to improve company performance and achieve strategic goals. In this study, qualitative methods have been used to answer the research question ‘How are communities of practice used as a strategic tool in the case company?’ The literature related to CoP for strategic advantage is reviewed. Then, in the empirical portion, I describe in detail participant observations, document analysis and semi-structured interviews with experts from the case company. Based on the literature review and empirical findings, I construct the model for virtual collaboration in the CoP. The model provides practical guidelines for effective competence creation. Five organizational development areas are identified: (1) the strategy of a firm; (2) motivation to work in CoP according to the strategy; (3) knowledge creation and sharing through CoP; (4) feedback and benefits; and (5) strategy improvements and best practices (business processes). CoP findings indicate that the case company should work on all five development areas simultaneously. In conclusion, top management should encourage personnel to improve personal skills and support an open learning atmosphere. The main suggestion for improving virtual collaboration in the CoP on an organizational level at the case company is the establishment of informal networks. The relationship between CoP and their stakeholders should be strengthened because, in the absence of these relations, the collaboration will never begin. In particular, the case company should improve its social networks and encourage personnel to join CoP. This study paves the way for further research into experiments on the practical implementation of CoP.

scholarly journals Challenges and potentialities of nursing work in street medical offices

2018 ◽  
Vol 26 (0) ◽  
Author(s):  
Aline Costa Cardoso ◽  
Débora de Souza Santos ◽  
Silvana Martins Mishima ◽  
Danielly Santos Cardoso dos Anjos ◽  
Jorgina Sales Jorge ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Strategic Planning ◽  
Homeless People ◽  
Exploratory Research ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Work Process ◽  
Multiprofessional Team ◽  
Analysis Technique ◽  
The Social ◽  
Qualitative Nature ◽  
The Right

ABSTRACT Objective: to analyze elements of the nursing work process in the Street Medical Offices, highlighting the challenges and potentialities of care for homeless people. Method: this is an exploratory research of qualitative nature supported by the perspective of the health work process. The study was conducted through semi-structured interviews with nurses from the teams of the street medical offices at the city of Maceió and data were analyzed according to the content analysis technique, approaching issues related to the object, instruments and purposes of the nursing work process. Results: the identified themes were: Need for health care in the context of social and health vulnerability; Strategic planning and teamwork as tools for organizing the work process; Purposes and products of work: guaranteeing the right to access and care. . Before a work object designed by serious health needs resulting from the social vulnerability of this population, nurses use different instruments in their work process: strategic planning, acting in multiprofessional team and valorization of the light technologies of reception and bonding. Conclusion: apart from the difficulties, the study presents a successful experience that explores the potentiality of sharing relationships of humanized care.

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