scholarly journals A Pilot Study of User-Requirements for Building Maintenance Systems in Malaysian Higher Education Institutions

2015 ◽  
Vol 773-774 ◽  
pp. 875-879 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mohd Zulakhmar Zakiyudin ◽  
Mohamad Syazli Fathi ◽  
Shuib Rambat ◽  
Siti Uzairiah Tobi ◽  
Nor Aini Rajab

Abstract - Worldwide, the investment in building maintenance is huge as it represents almost 50% of the total turnover of construction activities. Building maintenance is also categorised as the commonest function listed in facilities management activities. This pilot study explores the current practice of building maintenance management in higher education institutions in Malaysia. Information gathered from semi-structured interviews focuses on different areas of building maintenance practices. The main issue is to identify the user-requirements. The areas of study are to cover the objectives of maintenance departments, maintenance reporting processes, maintenance verification processes and other associated tasks. In addition, this study also looks into the contributions of Information Technology (IT) facilities to maintenance practices. Based on the findings, there will be differences in the maintenance practices among the four universities; empirically, of the 57 elements studied only 30% were similar. Some strengths and weaknesses in the maintenance practices were identified and ways in which IT facilities could help to improve the situation. In the future it is envisioned that good building maintenance practices would be the norm in Malaysia to maximise the benefits that users could expect from their buildings and facilities.

2018 ◽  
Vol 13 (2) ◽  
pp. 179-190 ◽  
Author(s):  
T.M. Wong

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to identify the teaching innovations that have been implemented in higher education institutions in Asia and the perspectives of educators on them. Design/methodology/approach Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 28 educators who were affiliated with 23 higher education institutions in ten Asian countries/regions. The interviews covered information about the teaching innovations of the participants’ institutions, the characteristics of the innovative practices and the participants’ views on them. The relationships between the characteristics of institutions and their teaching innovations were also examined. Findings The results showed that the teaching innovations included two main categories, namely, those which involved the use of advanced technologies and those which did not. The innovations that involved the use of advanced technologies were mainly from larger institutions, while the other category was mainly from smaller ones and had been practised for less than 1.5 years. Differences were also identified between the two categories in terms of the aims and importance of innovations, innovative features, the evaluation of innovations and improvements needed for them. Originality/value The results highlighted that technology is only one of the many aspects of teaching innovations, which is different from the view prevailing in the literature. They also suggested that differences in the scale of institutions (in terms of number of students) possibly influences the kind of teaching innovations adopted.


2017 ◽  
Vol 12 (7) ◽  
pp. 129
Author(s):  
Mona Mohamed Abd Elghany ◽  
Reem Aly Elharakany

The quality of education is influenced by the managerialization of the universities, which refers to the introduction of substantial changes in the decision-making processes of the academic institutions, and the application of renewed information systems along with new managerial methodologies to restructure the organisational strategic relationships with stakeholders. This paper proposes a questionnaire to assess the importance of facilities in universities according to their financial budget consumed value. Semi Structured Interviews were conducted with the heads of logistic and financial departments in Egyptian universities, twenty public universities and twenty-three private universities, in order to identify criteria for the most significant university's facilities and appealing infrastructure that contributes to the quality of education.


2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (10) ◽  
pp. 636
Author(s):  
Andreia Filipa Teixeira ◽  
Maria José Angélico Gonçalves ◽  
Maria de Lourdes Machado Taylor

In recent years, the rapid development of technological innovation has transformed the business world. Digital transformation improves the economic positioning of companies, contributing to society and the environment, but beyond technological evolution, it also brings social and cultural changes. With the new trends, companies saw the need to train people with digital skills and higher education institutions (HEIs) were forced to change their teaching methods to keep up with the new demands of the labour market. In this context, it is intended to identify the influence that HEIs play in the digital development of regions, in this case, the influence of Public Polytechnic Institutes of Porto in the development of the Metropolitan Area of Porto. The methodology adopted to answer the objectives of this study and research questions formulated, was an exploratory study, using semi-structured interviews and questionnaires. The results obtained allowed us to verify the positive influence of HEIs in the digital development of the Metropolitan Area of Porto. As well as identify the motivations that lead companies to participate in digital transformation initiatives, identify the skills needed to meet the demands of the labour market and identify the efforts made by HEIs to keep up with the digital evolution of society.


Author(s):  
Mihaela V. Cărăuşan

Abstract This paper presents how Romanian educational strategies are aligned with the policy statements of international organisations for future generations. The research hypothesis is that Romanian higher education institutions (HEI) are not ready to fulfil the needs of future generations. The paper reviews the educational competences of fourteen faculties of public administration and management from nine universities (state and private). The analysis is based on Kolb’s experiential learning cycle elements, and we identified whether educational competences referred directly to them or not. Our findings concentrate on the lack of recognition of experiential learning methods and the gap between the labour market requirements and the educational competences acquired in Romanian HEI. The methodology used to respond to the research questions mixes qualitative (strategies and literature review, structured interviews) and quantitative approaches (assessment of the curricula and information presented in the admission process by Faculties of Public Administration and Management).


2021 ◽  
Vol 20 (1) ◽  
pp. e18153
Author(s):  
Patricia Mara Simões Andrade ◽  
Marcello Romani-Dias ◽  
Caio Sousa

Objective: Propose an unprecedented initial categorization structure on the internationalization process of Brazilian HEIs, according to the Uppsala model Methodology: With the qualitative method, semi-structured interviews were conducted with representatives of the HEIs, reviewing and articulating the literature with content analysis on all data obtained.Originality: The study links a classic approach to internationalization with the current reality of higher education institutions. Thus, it is expected that there will be a new conception on how HEIs can optimize their strategies for international insertion.Main results: The internationalization of HEI can be analyzed by three main categorized elements, they are: i) the drivers; ii) enablers and, iii) obstacles to the internationalization of HEIs, each with their own specific characteristics. Theoretical Contributions: The research presents a conceptual categorization for the essential factors of the internationalization of HEI's, this articulation allows advancing in the literature on internationalization and also on the management models of higher education institutions.


2020 ◽  
Vol 34 (6) ◽  
pp. 04020112
Author(s):  
Scheyla Maria Cardinal ◽  
Carlos Eduardo Tosin ◽  
Silvio Edmundo Pilz ◽  
Marcelo Fabiano Costella

2019 ◽  
Vol 27 (4) ◽  
pp. 465-492
Author(s):  
Azilah Anis ◽  
Rafikul Islam

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to develop a hierarchical model to rank the challenges faced by the private Malaysian higher education institutions (HEIs) in the provision of quality education and subsequently their corresponding critical success factors (CSFs) to address those challenges. Design/methodology/approach A sequential mix method was adopted in this study. Semi-structured interviews with 29 participants were initially conducted to identify the challenges and CSFs. This was followed by a questionnaire survey involving 158 respondents to prioritise the identified findings. Thematic analysis was conducted in the qualitative stage, uncovering the challenges and their corresponding CSFs. Data for both stages were accumulated from internal and external stakeholders of Malaysian private HEIs. Finally, the four stages of the analytic hierarchy process (AHP) were applied to rank the challenges and CSFs. Findings The qualitative stage identified eight challenges, i.e. “academics”, “facilities”, “students”, “programmes and curriculum”, “competition”, “accreditation”, “finance” and “research” together with their corresponding CSFs. The AHP enables the ranking of these challenges. “Finance” has been found to be the most crucial challenge and “high competency in managing the institution’s finance” as the most important CSF to address this challenge. Research limitations/implications As the study restricted its focus on Malaysian private HEIs, the results may not be generalised for public HEIs and foreign private HEIs operating in Malaysia. Originality/value The hierarchical model developed in this study is deemed important for implementation to resolve the prioritised challenges. It spells out the specific areas in which the resources of Malaysian private HEIs need to be prudently disbursed and properly managed.


2020 ◽  
Vol 9 (3) ◽  
pp. 307-322
Author(s):  
Ahmed Nawaz Hakro ◽  
Priya Mathew

PurposeUniversities and higher education institutions (HEIs) are increasingly recognizing the value of coaching for professional and organizational development. This study is designed to investigate whether Cognitive Coaching, implemented as a programme in an HEI in Oman, made any difference to the behaviour and attitudes of employees holding leadership positions in academic, administrative and professional services departments. It also explored the factors that hindered or supported the coaching programme and offers recommendations to strengthen coaching initiatives in similar contexts.Design/methodology/approachSemi-structured interviews and focus group discussions were used to collect feedback from the 15 participants of the programme. A case study approach was adopted in this study for an in-depth examination of the effectiveness of coaching interventions.FindingsThe findings suggest that coaching can be an effective approach, facilitating personal and professional development and also contributing to the achievement of organizational goals.Research limitations/implicationsAs a case study of a coaching programme in a single institution, the findings of the study are not generalizable to other contexts, though a “thick description” of the context in which the study took place will enable institutions in similar contexts to draw lessons from the experience.Practical implicationsThis study discusses the benefits of a coaching programme for an HEI in the Middle East. Suggestions to strengthen coaching include board level endorsement and sensitivity to cultural nuances in coaching relationships.Social implicationsOne of the effects of a coaching programme is the collegial atmosphere that it can foster. This can have wider impacts on the community as there is more open communication and trust engendered amongst employers and employees belonging to different cultural backgrounds.Originality/valueThis study is one of the first to report the findings of a systematically organized coaching programme in an HEI in the Middle East.


10.29007/nptx ◽  
2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Seapei Nozimbali Mogoane ◽  
Salah Kabanda

This study examines the role of higher education institutions (HEIs) in addressing cybersecurity challenges, in the wake of a prominent shortage of skills, specifically those related to information and cybersecurity professionals. Using qualitative semi structured interviews, the study sought to identify the factors influencing the offering of an information and cybersecurity curriculum at HEIs. The findings show that internal influencing factors were top management and individual academic’s awareness of information and cybersecurity, internal expertise, offering the program only at postgraduate level, and the workload and bureaucracy associated with having the program. External factors perceived to influence information and cybersecurity curriculum at HEIs include pressure from industry and stakeholders as well as institutional bodies that help shape curriculum development.


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