Students’ perceptions of the entrepreneurial culture in Finnish higher education institutions

The purpose of this study is to add to the literature on entrepreneurial universities by investigating entrepreneurial culture (EC) in higher education institutions (HEIs). The authors investigate how students experience EC and which factors explain their perceptions of EC. The study is based on a survey of HEI students in Finland with 1277 responses. The results show that formal institutional support and institution-level activities have the strongest impact on the students’ experienced EC. According to the findings, formal institutional support has a greater impact on students’ perceptions of EC than student-driven activities. Furthermore, the results highlight that the encouragement of teachers has a greater influence on students’ perceptions of EC than peer students and student-driven activities. Accordingly, the paper’s theoretical contribution to the literature lies in its demonstration that institutional support, in addition to the encouragement of teachers, influences HEI students’ perceptions of EC. With regard to practical implications, the findings indicate that, if HEIs wish to build an EC and operate entrepreneurially, it is vital to support teachers’ entrepreneurial behaviour and thinking. In addition, equal emphasis needs to be placed on the observable artefacts and on clear, well-communicated organisational structures and processes.

Shouldering His Guru’s Legacy: Khenpo Tsultrim Lodro’s Discourse in Relation to thos-bsam-sgom after the Death of Khenpo Jigme Phuntsok

This article contributes to the growing discussion of the ways that Khenpo Jigme Phuntsok’s legacy has been carried forward by his spiritual successors at the Larung Five Sciences Buddhist Academy (or Larung Gar), in contemporary Eastern Tibet, by focusing on the contribution of the Larung vice principal and leading second-generation luminary, Khenpo Tsultrim Lodro (1962–). Drawing on a range of Khenpo Tsultrim Lodro’s spoken teachings and writings over a twenty-year period, this article undertakes a contextualised analysis of how he has shouldered his guru’s legacy in the areas of Tibetan Buddhist monastic education, monastic governance, and monastic–lay relations. It explores how the threefold framework of thos-bsam-sgom (listening, reflecting, meditating), whether in its parts or its entirety, lies at the centre of his reformist discourse in these matters, articulated in relation to a wide range of Buddhist and secular concepts, as well as to concrete institutions and organisational structures. It is argued that, while Khenpo Tsultrim Lodro expounds the entire framework of thos-bsam-sgom throughout the years in question, in ‘the earlier period’ (c.2000–2012), from shortly before his guru’s death until approximately a decade afterwards, he subtly privileges the intellectual attributes associated with thos-bsam, while in ‘the later period’ (c.2013–2021) he reweights his exposition to give a balanced emphasis to the practice of sgom.

The Implications of Government Departmental Organisational Structures on Fulfilment of OIA Obligations

<p>A study was conducted into the implications of government departmental organisational structures on the fulfilment of Official Information Act (OIA) obligations. The aim of the study was to investigate the systems and processes used by New Zealand government organisations in relation to OIA requests; in particular, to identify any changes since 2001 and the rationale for such changes. The study used authority and responsibility mechanisms, as represented by the chain of command and autonomy, to examine the relationship between organisational structures and effective responses to OIA requests. The research was qualitative and used semi-structured interviews with nine people from three New Zealand government organisations to gather data. The study was not linked to individual OIA requests. Data was analysed using coding of concepts to identify seven main themes, which were: systems and processes; information accessibility; attitude to OIA requests; management of government information; levels of decision-making; timeliness of response, and; managing organisational and political risk. The study found that a range of systems and process are used for responding to OIA requests and that the rationale for these fall into two categories; those designed to support staff and managers to process requests, and those designed to manage organisational and political risks. Whilst most systems had been in place for some time, tracking systems were adopted more recently. The study also found there was an increasing use of pro-disclosure of information to reduce the administrative burden of responding to Official Information Act requests.</p>

The Implications of Government Departmental Organisational Structures on Fulfilment of OIA Obligations

<p>A study was conducted into the implications of government departmental organisational structures on the fulfilment of Official Information Act (OIA) obligations. The aim of the study was to investigate the systems and processes used by New Zealand government organisations in relation to OIA requests; in particular, to identify any changes since 2001 and the rationale for such changes. The study used authority and responsibility mechanisms, as represented by the chain of command and autonomy, to examine the relationship between organisational structures and effective responses to OIA requests. The research was qualitative and used semi-structured interviews with nine people from three New Zealand government organisations to gather data. The study was not linked to individual OIA requests. Data was analysed using coding of concepts to identify seven main themes, which were: systems and processes; information accessibility; attitude to OIA requests; management of government information; levels of decision-making; timeliness of response, and; managing organisational and political risk. The study found that a range of systems and process are used for responding to OIA requests and that the rationale for these fall into two categories; those designed to support staff and managers to process requests, and those designed to manage organisational and political risks. Whilst most systems had been in place for some time, tracking systems were adopted more recently. The study also found there was an increasing use of pro-disclosure of information to reduce the administrative burden of responding to Official Information Act requests.</p>

Sustaining Community Archives

<p>All over New Zealand there are collections of archives, representing the recorded memory of their communities. They play an important role in our heritage and cultural well-being but the quality of care they receive and their accessibility vary greatly, giving rise to concerns about the longevity of some. This research investigates the factors required for maintenance of community archives over the long-term and assesses how well a selection of New Zealand Archives display these factors. A methodological framework for assessing likely sustainability of Community Archives was developed, based on requirements for managing community (or local history) archives documented by United States archivists. Four different Community Archives in New Zealand were then studied and the findings compared. Results show that many of the factors required for maintenance are inter-related and inter-dependent but that, above all, organisational factors have a significant impact on the maintenance of the archival records and the evidential value they contain. Different organisational structures and governance characteristics, and their consequent impact on other factors, indicate that, by addressing these aspects of Community Archives, their sustainability could be greatly enhanced. The study could, therefore, provide guidance for archivists and policy makers in future decision-making relating to Community Archives.</p>

Sustaining Community Archives

<p>All over New Zealand there are collections of archives, representing the recorded memory of their communities. They play an important role in our heritage and cultural well-being but the quality of care they receive and their accessibility vary greatly, giving rise to concerns about the longevity of some. This research investigates the factors required for maintenance of community archives over the long-term and assesses how well a selection of New Zealand Archives display these factors. A methodological framework for assessing likely sustainability of Community Archives was developed, based on requirements for managing community (or local history) archives documented by United States archivists. Four different Community Archives in New Zealand were then studied and the findings compared. Results show that many of the factors required for maintenance are inter-related and inter-dependent but that, above all, organisational factors have a significant impact on the maintenance of the archival records and the evidential value they contain. Different organisational structures and governance characteristics, and their consequent impact on other factors, indicate that, by addressing these aspects of Community Archives, their sustainability could be greatly enhanced. The study could, therefore, provide guidance for archivists and policy makers in future decision-making relating to Community Archives.</p>

Electoral Reform and the Centralisation of the New Zealand National Party

<p>Political party organisations respond to the challenges of their environments. Different organisational structures have different capabilities and capacities and, therefore, some organisations are better suited to some environments. What happened to party organisations when New Zealand changed from a first-past-the-post to a mixed member proportional electoral system? Did all parties have the same capacities to meet the challenges raised by this new environment? This paper addresses these questions by examining the organisational responses of the New Zealand National Party to the introduction of the mixed member proportional electoral system after 1993. The National Party was constructed to operate in a first-past-the-post electoral system and it did so successfully, winning twelve of the nineteen elections it contested. In response to the challenges of the first-past-the-post environment, National decentralised both candidate selection and campaign structure. National's decentralised organisation proved to be a liability for National under the new mixed member proportional environment however. Mixed member proportional demanded the construction of a nationwide list and a coherent campaign for the nationwide party vote. With its existing organisational structure, National was unable to meet either of these demands and suffered the electoral repercussions of that failure. After four consecutive elections in which National lost vote share, the National Party centralised its organisation in 2003. This paper analyses the centralisation of the National Party's organisation and the reasons for it by examining the Party's efforts to reform candidate selection and management of campaigns. The two organisational structures which National used for selecting candidates and managing campaigns under mixed member proportional produced different results. The candidate pools for 1996, 1999 and 2002 failed to provide nationwide appeal and produced incentive for electorate candidates to ignore the party vote element. Further, the campaign structure for these three elections allowed electorate committees significant control and the ability to undermine the nationwide party vote campaign. In the 2005 election, however, candidate selection and campaign management showed significant changes. The candidate selection process provided incentives for electorate candidates to seek both electorate and party votes, although it arguably still failed to produce a nationally appealing party list. The management of the campaign was also significantly different. It demonstrated the benefit of central campaign control in a mixed member proportional electoral system. The 2003 centralisation gave National elites significant control and allowed National to almost double its 2002 result in the 2005 election. This thesis demonstrates that a mixed member proportional electoral system gave National strong incentives to centralise its party organisation.</p>

Electoral Reform and the Centralisation of the New Zealand National Party

<p>Political party organisations respond to the challenges of their environments. Different organisational structures have different capabilities and capacities and, therefore, some organisations are better suited to some environments. What happened to party organisations when New Zealand changed from a first-past-the-post to a mixed member proportional electoral system? Did all parties have the same capacities to meet the challenges raised by this new environment? This paper addresses these questions by examining the organisational responses of the New Zealand National Party to the introduction of the mixed member proportional electoral system after 1993. The National Party was constructed to operate in a first-past-the-post electoral system and it did so successfully, winning twelve of the nineteen elections it contested. In response to the challenges of the first-past-the-post environment, National decentralised both candidate selection and campaign structure. National's decentralised organisation proved to be a liability for National under the new mixed member proportional environment however. Mixed member proportional demanded the construction of a nationwide list and a coherent campaign for the nationwide party vote. With its existing organisational structure, National was unable to meet either of these demands and suffered the electoral repercussions of that failure. After four consecutive elections in which National lost vote share, the National Party centralised its organisation in 2003. This paper analyses the centralisation of the National Party's organisation and the reasons for it by examining the Party's efforts to reform candidate selection and management of campaigns. The two organisational structures which National used for selecting candidates and managing campaigns under mixed member proportional produced different results. The candidate pools for 1996, 1999 and 2002 failed to provide nationwide appeal and produced incentive for electorate candidates to ignore the party vote element. Further, the campaign structure for these three elections allowed electorate committees significant control and the ability to undermine the nationwide party vote campaign. In the 2005 election, however, candidate selection and campaign management showed significant changes. The candidate selection process provided incentives for electorate candidates to seek both electorate and party votes, although it arguably still failed to produce a nationally appealing party list. The management of the campaign was also significantly different. It demonstrated the benefit of central campaign control in a mixed member proportional electoral system. The 2003 centralisation gave National elites significant control and allowed National to almost double its 2002 result in the 2005 election. This thesis demonstrates that a mixed member proportional electoral system gave National strong incentives to centralise its party organisation.</p>

Fitting Social Enterprise for Sustainable Development in Vietnam

Drawing on aspects of both commercial and not-for-profit organisational structures, social enterprises strive to become financially sustainable in order to support efforts to address various societal problems, including poverty and socio-economic exclusions. This study documents the experiences of 20 social entrepreneurs regarding the fit between their leadership practices, social enterprises and the Vietnamese societal ecosystem. Results from semi-structured go-along interviews foreground the importance of fit between the societal eco-system, key cultural values and relational practices, entrepreneur leadership and the structure and functioning of social enterprises in achieving their pro-social missions. This article contributes to emerging literature on the sustainability of social enterprises in emerging economies and is currently being drawn upon in the development of policy responses in Vietnam.