bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Actinophytocola xinjiangensis sp. nov., isolated from virgin forest soil
Authors: Guo Xiaoxuan , Qiu Danheng , Ruan Jisheng , Huang Ying
Published: January 2011

An aerobic, non-motile actinobacterium, strain QAIII60T, was isolated from virgin forest soil of Kanas Nature Reserve, Xinjiang, north-west China. The isolate produced a very scant aerial mycelium that fragmented into cylindrical spores and a non-fragmented substrate mycelium with occasional septa. Whole-cell hydrolysates contained meso-diaminopimelic acid, arabinose, galactose, glucose, ribose and rhamnose (trace). The diagnostic polar lipids were diphosphatidylglycerol, phosphatidylethanolamine, hydroxyphosphatidylethanolamine and ninhydrin-positive phosphoglycolipids. The major cellular fatty acids were iso-C16 : 0, iso-C14 : 0, iso-C16 : 1 H and C17 : 1ω6c. The isoprenoid quinones consisted of MK-9(H4) and MK-10(H2). The G+C content of the genomic DNA was 72.5 mol%. Phylogenetic analysis based on 16S rRNA gene sequences showed that strain QAIII60T formed a distinct phyletic line that was most closely, albeit loosely, associated with the genus Actinophytocola. A number of physiological characteristics differentiated the isolate from members of the genus Actinophytocola. On the basis of these data, we propose that strain QAIII60T ( = CGMCC 4.4663T  = NBRC 106673T) be assigned as the type strain of a novel species, Actinophytocola xinjiangensis sp. nov.
Pedobacter boryungensis sp. nov., isolated from soil
Authors: Jung Yong-Taek , Lee Soo-Young , Choi Won-Chan , Oh Tae-Kwang , Yoon Jung-Hoon
Published: January 2011

A Gram-negative, non-sporulating, non-flagellated rod, designated BR-9T, was isolated from soil collected on the Korean peninsula. Strain BR-9T grew optimally at pH 6.0–7.0, at 30 °C and in the absence of NaCl. Phylogenetic analysis based on 16S rRNA gene sequences revealed that strain BR-9T belonged to the genus Pedobacter and clustered with Pedobacter insulae DS-139T and Pedobacter koreensis WPCB189T. Strain BR-9T exhibited 98.2 and 97.5 % 16S rRNA gene sequence similarity with P. insulae DS-139T and P. koreensis WPCB189T, respectively, and <96.7 % sequence similarity with the type strains of other species in the genus Pedobacter. Strain BR-9T contained MK-7 as the predominant menaquinone and iso-C15 : 0 and summed feature 3 (C16 : 1ω7c and/or iso-C15 : 0 2-OH) as the major fatty acids. The DNA G+C content of strain BR-9T was 38.5 mol%. DNA–DNA relatedness between strain BR-9T and P. insulae DS-139T and P. koreensis KCTC 12536T was 3.4–4.2 %, which indicated that the isolate was genetically distinct from these type strains. Strain BR-9T was also distinguishable by differences in phenotypic properties. On the basis of the data presented, strain BR-9T is considered to represent a novel species of the genus Pedobacter, for which the name Pedobacter boryungensis sp. nov. is proposed. The type strain is BR-9T ( = KCTC 23344T  = CCUG 60024T).
Thalassobius maritimus sp. nov., isolated from seawater
Authors: Park Sooyeon , Lee Mi-Hwa , Lee Jung-Sook , Oh Tae-Kwang , Yoon Jung-Hoon
Published: January 2011

A Gram-stain-negative, aerobic, motile, rod-shaped bacterial strain, GSW-M6T, was isolated from seawater of Geoje island, Korea, and was subjected to a polyphasic taxonomic study. Strain GSW-M6T grew optimally at pH 7.0–8.0, at 30 °C and in the presence of 2 % (w/v) NaCl. In the neighbour-joining phylogenetic tree based on 16S rRNA gene sequences, strain GSW-M6T clustered with Thalassobius aestuarii, Thalassobius gelatinovorus and Thalassobius mediterraneus. Strain GSW-M6T exhibited 96.2–96.9 % 16S rRNA gene sequence similarity to the type strains of these three Thalassobius species. Strain GSW-M6T contained Q-10 as the predominant ubiquinone and C18 : 1ω7c as the major fatty acid. The polar lipid profiles of strain GSW-M6T and the type strains of the three Thalassobius species were similar, with phosphatidylcholine, phosphatidylglycerol, phosphatidylethanolamine and an unidentified lipid as common major components. The DNA G+C content of strain GSW-M6T was 57 mol%. The mean level of DNA–DNA relatedness between strain GSW-M6T and the type strain of Thalassobius gelatinovorus was 17 %. Differential phenotypic properties, together with the phylogenetic and genetic distinctiveness, enabled strain GSW-M6T to be differentiated from recognized species of the genus Thalassobius. On the basis of the data presented, strain GSW-M6T is considered to represent a novel species of the genus Thalassobius, for which the name Thalassobius maritimus sp. nov. is proposed. The type strain is GSW-M6T ( = KCTC 23347T  = CCUG 60021T).
Morphology and molecular evaluation of Iphinoe spelaeobios gen. nov., sp. nov. and Loriellopsis cavernicola gen. nov., sp. nov., two stigonematalean cyanobacteria from Greek and Spanish caves
Authors: Lamprinou V. , Hernández-Mariné M. , Canals T. , Kormas K. , Economou-Amilli A. , Pantazidou A.
Published: January 2011

Caves have generally been found to host phototrophic micro-organisms from various taxonomic groups, with cyanobacteria comprising an important group that have adapted to these stable and highly specific environments. A polyphasic study based on aspects of classical morphology and molecular data revealed two new monospecific genera from fresh material of Greek and Spanish caves. Both taxa are characterized by obligatory true branching (T-type, V-type and false branching), the presence of heterocysts, and reproduction by hormocysts and akinetes. They shared some similarities in their morphological characteristics as revealed by light, scanning electron and transmission electron microscopy, but phylogenetic analysis based on 16S rRNA gene sequences showed that the two phylotypes were different (89.8 % similarity); this represents an example of shared morphology in genetically different strains of cave-adapted species. Phenotypic and genetic traits strongly support classification of the phylotypes as independent taxa in the order Stigonematales (the most differentiated and complicated group of cyanobacteria), family Loriellaceae Geitl 1925. Hence, the namesIphinoe spelaeobiosLamprinou and Pantazidou gen. nov., sp. nov. andLoriellopsis cavernicolaHernández-Mariné and Canals gen. nov., sp. nov. are proposed.
Tenacibaculum geojense sp. nov., isolated from seawater
Authors: Kang So-Jung , Lee Soo-Young , Lee Mi-Hwa , Oh Tae-Kwang , Yoon Jung-Hoon
Published: January 2011

A Gram-negative, non-flagellated, non-spore-forming bacterium, designated YCS-6T, that was motile by gliding, was isolated from seawater on the southern coast of Korea. Strain YCS-6T grew optimally at 30 °C and with 2 % (w/v) NaCl. Phylogenetic analysis based on 16S rRNA gene sequences revealed that strain YCS-6T fell within the genus Tenacibaculum and was most closely associated with Tenacibaculum litopenaei B-IT, with which the isolate exhibited 95.9 % 16S rRNA gene sequence similarity. Sequence similarity between strain YCS-6T and other members of the genus Tenacibaculum was 93.8–95.7 %. Strain YCS-6T contained menaquinone-6 (MK-6) as the predominant respiratory quinone and iso-C15 : 0, summed feature 3 (iso-C15 : 0 2-OH and/or C16 : 1ω7c), iso-C15 : 0 3-OH and iso-C15 : 1 G as the major fatty acids. The DNA G+C content was 32.7 mol%. Differential phenotypic properties and phylogenetic distinctiveness distinguished strain YCS-6T from all other members of the genus Tenacibaculum. On the basis of our phenotypic, chemotaxonomic and phylogenetic data, strain YCS-6T is considered to represent a novel species of the genus Tenacibaculum, for which the name Tenacibaculum geojense sp. nov. is proposed. The type strain is YCS-6T ( = KCTC 23423T  = CCUG 60527T).
The Arabidopsis MutantjasonProduces Unreduced First Division Restitution Male Gametes through a Parallel/Fused Spindle Mechanism in Meiosis II
Authors: De Storme Nico , Geelen Danny
Published: January 2011

In plants, whole-genome doubling (polyploidization) is a widely occurring process largely contributing to plant evolution and diversification. The generation and fusion of diploid gametes is now considered the major route of plant polyploidization. The parallel arrangement or fusion of meiosis II MII spindles (ps) is one of the most frequently reported mechanisms generating triploid offspring. Through a forward genetics screen of an Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana) ethyl methanesulfonate population, we identified Arabidopsis thaliana Parallel Spindles1 (AtPS1), which was recently reported as a major gene implicated in the control of the ps meiotic defect. In addition, we describe the isolation and characterization of a novel allele of JASON, involved in male gametophytic ploidy regulation in plants. Similar to atps1 mutants, jason produces more than 25% 2n pollen grains and spontaneously forms triploid offspring. By combining both cytological and genetic approaches, we demonstrate that loss of JASON causes the formation of parallel arranged and fused spindles in male MII, resulting in the production of unreduced first division restitution 2n spores. Although JASON encodes a protein of unknown function, we additionally show that the meiotic ps defect in jason is caused by a reduction in AtPS1 transcript levels, indicating that JASON positively regulates AtPS1 expression, allowing the proper organization and orientation of metaphase II spindle plates in MII.
Cell-Specific Vacuolar Calcium Storage Mediated byCAX1Regulates Apoplastic Calcium Concentration, Gas Exchange, and Plant Productivity inArabidopsis
Authors: Conn Simon J. , Gilliham Matthew , Athman Asmini , Schreiber Andreas W. , Baumann Ute , Moller Isabel , Cheng Ning-Hui , Stancombe Matthew A. , Hirschi Kendal D. , Webb Alex A.R. , Burton Rachel , Kaiser Brent N. , Tyerman Stephen D. , Leigh Roger A.
Published: January 2011

The physiological role and mechanism of nutrient storage within vacuoles of specific cell types is poorly understood. Transcript profiles from Arabidopsis thaliana leaf cells differing in calcium concentration ([Ca], epidermis <10 mM versus mesophyll >60 mM) were compared using a microarray screen and single-cell quantitative PCR. Three tonoplast-localized Ca2+ transporters, CAX1 (Ca2+/H+-antiporter), ACA4, and ACA11 (Ca2+-ATPases), were identified as preferentially expressed in Ca-rich mesophyll. Analysis of respective loss-of-function mutants demonstrated that only a mutant that lacked expression of both CAX1 and CAX3, a gene ectopically expressed in leaves upon knockout of CAX1, had reduced mesophyll [Ca]. Reduced capacity for mesophyll Ca accumulation resulted in reduced cell wall extensibility, stomatal aperture, transpiration, CO2 assimilation, and leaf growth rate; increased transcript abundance of other Ca2+ transporter genes; altered expression of cell wall–modifying proteins, including members of the pectinmethylesterase, expansin, cellulose synthase, and polygalacturonase families; and higher pectin concentrations and thicker cell walls. We demonstrate that these phenotypes result from altered apoplastic free [Ca2+], which is threefold greater in cax1/cax3 than in wild-type plants. We establish CAX1 as a key regulator of apoplastic [Ca2+] through compartmentation into mesophyll vacuoles, a mechanism essential for optimal plant function and productivity.
ArabidopsisFloral Initiator SKB1 Confers High Salt Tolerance by Regulating Transcription and Pre-mRNA Splicing through Altering Histone H4R3 and Small Nuclear Ribonucleoprotein LSM4 Methylation
Authors: Zhang Zhaoliang , Zhang Shupei , Zhang Ya , Wang Xin , Li Dan , Li Qiuling , Yue Minghui , Li Qun , Zhang Yu-e , Xu Yunyuan , Xue Yongbiao , Chong Kang , Bao Shilai
Published: January 2011

Plants adapt their growth and development in response to perceived salt stress. Although DELLA-dependent growth restraint is thought to be an integration of the plant's response to salt stress, little is known about how histone modification confers salt stress and, in turn, affects development. Here, we report that floral initiator Shk1 kinase binding protein1 (SKB1) and histone4 arginine3 (H4R3) symmetric dimethylation (H4R3sme2) integrate responses to plant developmental progress and salt stress. Mutation of SKB1 results in salt hypersensitivity, late flowering, and growth retardation. SKB1 associates with chromatin and thereby increases the H4R3sme2 level to suppress the transcription of FLOWERING LOCUS C (FLC) and a number of stress-responsive genes. During salt stress, the H4R3sme2 level is reduced, as a consequence of SKB1 disassociating from chromatin to induce the expression of FLC and the stress-responsive genes but increasing the methylation of small nuclear ribonucleoprotein Sm-like4 (LSM4). Splicing defects are observed in the skb1 and lsm4 mutants, which are sensitive to salt. We propose that SKB1 mediates plant development and the salt response by altering the methylation status of H4R3sme2 and LSM4 and linking transcription to pre-mRNA splicing.
Evolution and Diverse Roles of theCUP-SHAPED COTYLEDONGenes inArabidopsisLeaf Development
Authors: Hasson Alice , Plessis Anne , Blein Thomas , Adroher Bernard , Grigg Stephen , Tsiantis Miltos , Boudaoud Arezki , Damerval Catherine , Laufs Patrick
Published: January 2011

CUP-SHAPED COTYLEDON2 (CUC2) and the interacting microRNA miR164 regulate leaf margin dissection. Here, we further investigate the evolution and the specific roles of the CUC1 to CUC3 genes during Arabidopsis thaliana leaf serration. We show that CUC2 is essential for dissecting the leaves of a wide range of lobed/serrated Arabidopsis lines. Inactivation of CUC3 leads to a partial suppression of the serrations, indicating a role for this gene in leaf shaping. Morphometric analysis of leaf development and genetic analysis provide evidence for different temporal contributions of CUC2 and CUC3. Chimeric constructs mixing CUC regulatory sequences with different coding sequences reveal both redundant and specific roles for the three CUC genes that could be traced back to changes in their expression pattern or protein activity. In particular, we show that CUC1 triggers the formation of leaflets when ectopically expressed instead of CUC2 in the developing leaves. These divergent fates of the CUC1 and CUC2 genes after their formation by the duplication of a common ancestor is consistent with the signature of positive selection detected on the ancestral branch to CUC1. Combining experimental observations with the retraced origin of the CUC genes in the Brassicales, we propose an evolutionary scenario for the CUC genes.
Leadership development in a global environment: lessons learned from one of the world's largest employers
Authors: Schwartz Anne
Published: January 2011

Purpose

The purpose of the paper is to share best practices from global logistics leader, UPS, for approach overhauling a company's global training, leadership development and succession planning practices.

Design/methodology/approach

Told from the vantage point of Anne Schwartz, UPS's vice president of global learning and development, the case study shows how UPS's internal research of focus groups and surveys revealed that the company's current training and leadership development programs needed to evolve to ensure success in today's global business environment.

Findings

The company acted on its internal research by retooling its leadership development and training programs to foster more strategically minded leaders; better engage younger generations; and make certain its people are “fluent” with UPS's vast global network.

Practical implications

UPS shares several practical takeaways for other international companies that are also looking to overhaul their leadership development and training programs. Sample takeaways include: align your training with your business strategy; start where you are and keep what works; and assess group and individual strengths and weaknesses.

Originality/value

As companies emerge from the recent economic downturn, the paper demonstrates that UPS maintains that now is the time to take a hard look at training and leadership development programs that impact workforces to ensure that businesses are positioned for long‐term, global growth.
Improving worker morale through the use of appreciative inquiry
Authors: Bechtold Mark
Published: January 2011

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to examine appreciative inquiry (AI) as an organizational development approach that aligns with Arab cultural factors to address the issue of employee morale in an Arab‐led organization.

Design/methodology/approach

A brief literature review establishes AI's foundational theories and links with Arab cultural factors. An overview of the AI 4D model is then followed by critiques of the AI approach. The paper presents an application of AI to address the issue of low employee morale in a large oil refinery.

Findings

A literature review of AI and Arab cultural factors and initial findings of an AI application in a Middle Eastern Arab‐led organization indicates an increase in employee satisfaction and initially confirms a complementary link of the AI approach to Arab cultural factors.

Research limitations/implications

Critiques of AI center on appropriateness, repression of negative images, and unexpressed resentment. Despite critiques, a lack of dialogic discourse, and support from scientific research for this relatively new approach, AI presents a promising alternative to traditional problem solving and its inherent, often negative effects.

Practical implications

The sharing of stories as part of the AI approach served to bond employees to each other and served to instill a shared sense of ownership for the past and future success of the organization. The use of AI builds on the cultural attributes of Arab culture including high collectivism, strong family and relationship orientation, high context and narrative communication, low risk tolerance, prevalence of positive intentions, and homogeneity of the Islamic society.

Originality/value

This paper provides insight and support for using AI as an organizational development approach that complements existing Arab cultural factors for practicality and benefit.
Business training for foreign students in UK
Authors: Hurn Brian J.
Published: January 2011

Purpose

This paper seeks to highlight the differences foreign personnel undergoing business training in the UK may encounter because of the different teaching and learning environments in their home country as opposed to those they will experience in the UK. It aims to include research in the area among a sample of foreign students, discussion with trainers and teaching colleagues, as well as the results of in‐service training (INSET) held with staff in this area. It also aims to highlight differences and recommendations made to overcome them.

Design/methodology/approach

The methodology includes discussion, INSET and a structured questionnaire survey comparing the different teaching and learning styles experienced in the foreign culture with those in the UK.

Findings

The paper concludes that relatively few differences exist between British and Americans, but a significant range of differences are encountered primarily by Asian students and some by European, Africans and those from the former Soviet Union. In addition, trainers should be given some initial training on the cultures of those on their courses and practical steps taken to overcome weaknesses in understanding of English.

Originality/value

This is an increasing area of concern as the numbers from overseas undergoing business training in the UK is likely to increase to help reduce the skills gap in certain areas. The paper suggests how the cultural differences in teaching and learning can be reconciled to make their business training in the UK more effective.
The hows and whys of group mentoring
Authors: Carvin Beth N.
Published: January 2011

Purpose

This paper seeks to examine the methodologies for developing a group mentoring component as an add‐on to an existing or new corporate mentoring program.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper defines group mentoring and explains the differences between group mentoring and classroom training. It provides the hallmarks of mentoring that should exist in a group mentoring program along with the individual development areas that can be successfully addressed through group mentoring. Also included are seven tips for starting and sustaining a group mentoring program. These tips cover areas such as the optimal group structure, logistics, the use of facilitators, obstacles and measuring the success of the program.

Findings

When implemented correctly, mentoring groups have proven to be a successful training and development strategy. Some of the documented outcomes for participants are increased confidence, expanded understanding of the organization and increased commitment and connectedness to the organization.

Originality/value

Training and development managers who are struggling to expand their mentoring programs can use the information provided in the paper to add group mentoring to their mentorship program.
Stimulating training motivation using the right training characteristic
Authors: Fardaniah Abdul Aziz Siti , Ahmad Shamsuddin
Published: January 2011

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to provide human resource practitioners with practical information on the characteristics of a training programme that stimulates training motivation.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper uses integrative literature reviews of 40 empirical studies on training programme characteristics that have motivated trainees conducted since 1986.

Findings

The main characteristics of a training programme that stimulate training motivation are option to voluntary attendance, training reputation, appropriate training design, and the relevance of training for job‐, career‐, and personal‐related needs.

Research limitations/implications

For future research, these six training programme characteristics should be empirically researched altogether to identify the factor with the strongest influence on training motivation, in which priorities can be focused on that main factor. Therefore, researchers are encouraged to test the proposed propositions further.

Practical implications

A number of studies indicated that training programme characteristics influence training motivation; however, different scholars selected different characteristics and defined and segregated them into various types of training motivation. Consequently, a vague explanation on the effect of the training programme on training motivation is demonstrated. Therefore, this paper seeks to help practitioners choose the right training programme characteristics that stimulate training motivation, by giving a comprehensive explanation.

Originality/value

This is the first review to explain the characteristics of a training programme that affects training motivation using an integrative and comprehensive literature review.
Conceptual misfits in e‐mail‐based current‐awareness interaction
Authors: Attfield Simon , Blandford Ann
Published: January 2011

Purpose

This research aims to identify some requirements for supporting user interactions with electronic current‐awareness alert systems based on data from a professional work environment.

Design/methodology/approach

Qualitative data were gathered using contextual inquiry observations with 21 workers at the London office of an international law firm. The analysis uses CASSM (“Concept‐based Analysis of Surface and Structural Misfits”), a usability evaluation method structured around identifying mismatches, or “misfits”, between user‐concepts and concepts represented within a system.

Findings

Participants were frequently overwhelmed by e‐mail alerts, and a key requirement is to support efficient interaction. Several misfits, which act as barriers to efficient reviewing and follow‐on activities, are demonstrated. These relate to a lack of representation of key user‐concepts at the interface and/or within the system, including alert items and their properties, source documents, “back‐story”, primary sources, content categorisations and user collections.

Research limitations/implications

Given these misfits, a set of requirements is derived to improve the efficiency with which users can achieve key outcomes with current‐awareness information as these occur within a professional work environment.

Originality/value

The findings will be of interest to current‐awareness providers. The approach is relevant to information interaction researchers interested in deriving design requirements from naturalistic studies.
A framework for contextual information in digital collections
Authors: Lee Christopher A. (Cal)
Published: January 2011

Purpose

This paper sets out to investigate the meaning, role and implications of contextual information associated with digital collections.

Design/methodology/approach

This paper is based on an extensive review and analysis of both the scholarly literature from many disciplines about the concept of context and the professional literature (including standards) related to the description of information artifacts. The paper provides an analysis of context, distinguishing three main ways in which that term has been used within the scholarly literature. It then discusses contextual information within digital collections, and presents a framework for contextual information. It goes on to discuss existing standards and guidance documents for encoding information related to the nine classes of contextual entities, concluding with a discussion of potential implications for descriptive practices through the lifecycle of digital objects.

Findings

The paper presents a framework for contextual information that is based on nine classes of contextual entities: object, agent, occurrence, purpose, time, place, form of expression, concept/abstraction, and relationship.

Research limitations/implications

Research and development about and in support of digital collections will benefit from a clear articulation of the types, roles, importance and elements of contextual information.

Practical implications

Future users of digital objects will probably have numerous tools for discovering preserved digital objects relevant to their interests, but making meaningful use and sense of the digital objects will also require capture, collection and management of contextual information.

Originality/value

This paper synthesizes and extends a previously diffuse literature, in order to clarify and articulate core concepts in the management of digital collections.
Classification systems in the light of sociology of knowledge
Authors: Keshet Yael
Published: January 2011

Purpose

Classification is an important process in making sense of the world, and has a pronounced social dimension. This paper aims to compare folksonomy, a new social classification system currently being developed on the web, with conventional taxonomy in the light of theoretical sociological and anthropological approaches. The co‐existence of these two types of classification system raises the questions: Will and should taxonomies be hybridized with folksonomies? What can each of these systems contribute to information‐searching processes, and how can the sociology of knowledge provide an answer to these questions? This paper aims also to address these issues.

Design/methodology/approach

This paper is situated at the meeting point of the sociology of knowledge, epistemology and information science and aims at examining systems of classification in the light of both classical theory and current late‐modern sociological and anthropological approaches.

Findings

Using theoretical approaches current in the sociology of science and knowledge, the paper envisages two divergent possible outcomes.

Originality/value

While concentrating on classifications systems, this paper addresses the more general social issue of what we know and how it is known. The concept of hybrid knowledge is suggested in order to illuminate the epistemological basis of late‐modern knowledge being constructed by hybridizing contradictory modern knowledge categories, such as the subjective with the objective and the social with the natural. Integrating tree‐like taxonomies with folksonomies or, in other words, generating a naturalized structural order of objective relations with social, subjective classification systems, can create a vast range of hybrid knowledge.
Value management in the South African manufacturing industry: exploratory findings
Authors: Bowen Paul , Cattell Keith , Jay Ian , Edwards Peter
Published: January 2011

Purpose

This paper seeks to investigate the nature and extent of value management (VM) practice in the South African manufacturing industry. It aims to explore engineers' and designers' awareness and understanding of VM and the nature and extent of the use of VM techniques within their companies.

Design/methodology/approach

A web‐based, online questionnaire survey is employed to establish value management practice within the manufacturing sector. Descriptive statistics are used to analyse the survey response data.

Findings

The results suggest that, while VM (and more particularly its value engineering antecedent) is generally known among engineers and designers in the manufacturing sector in South Africa, it is less widely practised. VM is seen predominantly as a cost reduction tool. This misperception, and the lack of awareness of the potential benefits of VM, must be remedied if the South African manufacturing industry is to remain competitive. The industry needs to adopt best practice VM techniques and standards.

Research limitations/implications

It has proved extremely difficult to obtain survey data from manufacturing organizations, resulting in a low response rate. While this is a limitation, the information sourced provides useful direction for future case study investigation.

Practical implications

Refresher courses in contemporary VM theory and practice are recommended, as well as exploration of the impacts on VM of other techniques such as risk, quality and environmental management.

Originality/value

Against a background of increasing globalization, the findings are important if the South African manufacturing sector is to remain competitive. The results provide pointers for future research using a case study method.
Innovation or imitation? The role of organizational culture
Authors: Naranjo‐Valencia Julia C. , Jiménez‐Jiménez Daniel , Sanz‐Valle Raquel
Published: January 2011

Purpose

Innovation is crucial for attaining a competitive advantage for companies. Innovation, versus imitation, motivates companies to launch new products and become pioneers on markets. Many factors have been shown to be determinants for supporting an organizational innovative orientation. One of them is organizational culture. The objective of this paper is to analyze the organizational culture that fosters or inhibits organizational innovation and imitation strategy.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper uses a sample of 471 Spanish companies for examining the hypotheses. Using hierarchical multiple regression analysis, it relates the effect of organizational culture with an innovation strategy.

Findings

The results confirm the hypotheses. The paper finds that organizational culture is a clear determinant of innovation strategy. Moreover, adhocracy cultures foster innovation strategies and hierarchical cultures promote imitation cultures.

Research limitations/implications

The main limitations are that data in the study were collected from one source for the cross‐sectional design of this research.

Practical implications

Managers should pay more attention to their organization culture if they pursue innovation/imitation strategies. Moreover, depending on this orientation (to be the first company to introduce in new markets or develop new products for a market versus to follow a pioneer), companies should promote different values and norms in their organizations.

Originality/value

The main value of this paper is its analysis and testing of the relation of organizational culture and innovation orientation. The majority of the literature underlines the paper's seeking after organizational culture for innovation. However, this topic has not been studied in depth and requires attention to different organizational cultures and innovation orientations.
Towards an innovation‐type mapping tool
Authors: Rowley Jennifer , Baregheh Anahita , Sambrook Sally
Published: January 2011

Purpose

Seeking to distil and integrate a range of previous definitions, models, frameworks and classifications relating to types of innovation, this paper aims to make a contribution to clarity in innovation research and practice through offering insights into the definitions of the different types of innovation, and, specifically, the relationships between them.

Design/methodology/approach

This theoretical paper is based on a review of extant models and frameworks of types of innovation, which includes earlier foundation models, and more recent integrative models.

Findings

This distillation results in a diagrammatic representation of the key frameworks, which is used as a platform to propose a new framework of types of innovation.

Originality/value

This paper draws on all the terminologies used for types of innovation and creates an innovation type‐mapping tool that can be used to clarify the various definitions and terminologies of the innovation type concept.
Strategic resources and firm performance
Authors: Andersén Jim
Published: January 2011

Purpose

Numerous studies have set out to examine the relationship between strategic resources and firm performance. The traditional VRIO attributes have been the point of departure in most resource‐based studies. This paper sets out to argue that the relationship between resources and performance is more complex. Thus, the purpose of this paper is to illustrate the complex relationship between a strategic resource and firm performance by providing an overview of different factors that can influence this relationship.

Design/methodology/approach

Relevant literature is reviewed and discussed.

Findings

It was found that five criteria must be fulfilled for resources to generate superior performance. These are identified and discussed. These criteria fit with existing resources, management capability, marketing capability, firm appropriation of rent, and non‐competitive disadvantages.

Research limitations/implications

By using the criteria identified, resource‐based theory can become less tautological. Also, the criteria highlight the importance of resource utilization and appropriation of resource‐based rents.

Practical implications

The paper could contribute to an increased awareness among practitioners of the importance of focusing on factors which are additional to the VRIO‐attributes when analyzing potential strategic resources. The criteria provide an easy‐to‐access framework for strategic analysis.

Originality/value

Whereas some specific aspects of the relationship between the possession of resources and firm performance have been reviewed in some RBT contributions, few studies have addressed the issue using a more holistic approach. Thus, this paper affords a broader approach on the relationship between strategic resources and firm performance.
From Levitt to the global age: one more time, how do we define our business?
Authors: Vasconcellos e Sá Jorge A. , Olão Fátima , Pereira Magda
Published: January 2011

Purpose

Several works have focused on defining an organisation mission. Ansoff, Levitt and Drucker, among others, have made seminal contributions. However, globalisation has brought new challenges and changes, in terms of both new risks and new opportunities. Thus: How does globalisation impact on how a firm should define its business? What remains valid, as before, and what must be adapted? And why? are questions to be answered. This study aims to accomplish this.

Design/methodology/approach

This paper discusses the task of defining an organisation mission on a global age.

Findings

One of its main conclusions is that, more than ever, defining a business mission, requires now that one incorporates location in the definition. Location includes three different things: geographical area, distribution channels, and time location.

Originality/value

It may seem paradoxical that, as globalisation advances, location becomes more important in a business definition. This paper explains why.
Environment, management attitude, and organizational learning in alliances
Authors: Srivastava Prashant , Frankwick Gary L.
Published: January 2011

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to develop a framework for organizational learning in an alliance‐based context. An interaction effect of environmental turbulence on the relationship between top management attitude towards learning and organizational learning is proposed.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper begins with the notion that alliances provide an opportunity for organizations to learn from one another. The paper describes three basic tenets of organizational learning. It then proposes how top management attitude will affect these. It also proposes that these relationships will be affected by the environment in which the organizations are operating.

Findings

The proposed framework makes clear that, for organizational learning to take place, both top management attitude toward learning and environmental turbulence will affect the way organizational learning takes place.

Practical implications

The paper proposes an important relationship between top management attitude, environmental turbulence, and organizational learning. In highly turbulent environments, even a positive top management attitude will not always help to improve organizational learning.

Originality/value

The paper fills a gap in the alliance and organizational learning literature by proposing environmental effects on the relationship between top management attitude and organizational learning.
Stories of work/life transitions from the Italian public sector
Authors: Murgia Annalisa , Poggio Barbara
Published: January 2011

Purpose

The aim of this article is to overcome an endogenous view of work, as a category isolated from the other existential spheres, and to identify an alternative approach to understanding how (paid) work and other life domains interweave. Biographical transitions between work and non‐work are analysed, paying specific attention to the processes of gender positioning.

Design/methodology/approach

The research is based on the analysis of 60 narrative interviews with men and women working in the Italian public sector (the civil service and the health service). The interviews were audiorecorded, transcribed, and then subjected to narrative analysis, focusing in particular on plots, biographical transitions and positioning processes.

Findings

The analysis has brought out the predominant plots, as well as the alternative ones, of the work stories narrated by men and women interviewed, highlighting the specific gender positioning that subtended different attributions between men and women in the inter‐relations between work and the personal and familial sphere.

Practical implications

The results show the opportunity to focus next research on organizations that use managerial models innovative in terms of time organization and performance assessment, giving visibility and legitimacy to alternative narratives on the interweaving among people's different biographical trajectories.

Originality/value

The paper proposes the concept of “biographical transition” as an interpretative category with which to study the different strategies and experiences of work/life balance and an heuristic tool able to give sense to the complex interweaving among different life trajectories in the contemporary society.
Discrimination in health care industry: a research on public hospitals
Authors: Özcan Kerim , Özkara Belkıs , Kızıldağ Duygu
Published: January 2011

Purpose

The purpose of this study is to investigate discrimination areas within public hospitals and discuss the potential reasons that will provide a contributive perspective on reducing discriminative behaviors.

Design/methodology/approach

The research was conducted in public hospitals in Afyonkarahisar, a city in the central‐west part of Turkey. Two distinct approaches were used to gather data, one of which was a questionnaire that was responded by 351 health care employees. And, the second method semi‐structured interviews were conducted with five health care employees from each hospital.

Findings

The research reveals that discriminative behaviors are not part of organizational life to a problematical extent in public hospitals. However, the dependence on governmental policies forces ideological/political engagements to play significant roles in public hospitals determination of discriminated groups. Professional solidarity, status‐based stratification and embedded codes of patriarchal culture are other crucial dynamics, first two and last one causing, respectively, vocational and gender discrimination.

Originality/value

This paper is an exploratory study focusing on discrimination among employees and from management to employees in the health care industry. Two distinct methods are used together to understand and analyze the areas and dynamics of discriminative behaviors.
Diversity management
Authors: Jose Chiappetta Jabbour Charbel , Serotini Gordono Fernanda , Henrique Caldeira de Oliveira Jorge , Carlos Martinez Jose , Aparecida Gomes Battistelle Rosane
Published: January 2011

Purpose

The objective of this study was to analyze the major challenges and benefits of diversity management in Brazilian companies by assessing the role of human resources.

Design/methodology/approach

A total of 15 case studies were carried out on companies that operate in Brazil. Brazil is a country with considerable diversity and multiracial backgrounds.

Findings

It was found that diversity management in Brazilian companies is still an emerging issue, and the major challenges are related to discriminatory actions taken by coworkers. Among the 15 companies studied, only four had adopted a consistent set of diversity management and human resources practices. These four companies were the only companies to affirm that diversity management requires the strong support of top management and continuous organization to sustain efforts toward incorporating diversity.

Originality/value

Research studies on diversity management in Brazil are scarce. The findings of this study, however, can be useful to academic professionals and company directors in countries that exhibit similar characteristics to those of Brazil, or to those who are interested in learning more about Brazil.
Making sense of psychological contract breach
Authors: Parzefall Marjo‐Riitta , Coyle‐Shapiro Jacqueline A‐M.
Published: January 2011

Purpose

A small number of psychological contract studies have explored the cognitive processes that influence employees' evaluation and reactions to perceived contract breach. The aim of this paper is to extend this reseaerch with a qualitative study on breach using a sense making perspective.

Design/methodology/approach

In total, 15 interviews employing critical incident technique to examine employee sense making processes were carried out.

Findings

The findings highlight the variety of ways employees perceive contract breach and the processual nature of the experience. Emotions and actions were intertwined in the process of attributing responsibility and finding an explanation for the breach.

Research limitations/implications

Contract breach is not necessarily a discrete event and reciprocity is integral to the sense making process. The findings provide a basis for future research that could explore the role of time, contextual factors and various employer representatives as sense‐givers in psychological contract evaluations.

Practical implications

Employer representatives can aid employees to make sense of critical events that occur in organizations to minimize the effects of breach.

Originality/value

The paper provides an under‐researched sense making‐perspective on psychological contract breach. Through a qualitative inquiry, the complex nature of the employees' experience of and reaction to breach, is highlighted.
Organizational justice perceptions and pay level satisfaction
Authors: Till Robert E. , Karren Ronald
Published: January 2011

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to compare the relative importance or effects of individual equity, external equity, internal equity, procedural justice, and informational justice on pay level satisfaction.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper uses a policy‐capturing methodology to determine the importance of the five factors and considers both group analyses and individual analyses of the data.

Findings

Of the three types of equity, individual equity was the most important factor on pay level satisfaction. External equity and the three other factors were important for many individuals, and this was shown through the individual analyses.

Research limitations/implications

The number of scenarios given to each participant was limited due to possible fatigue.

Practical implications

The findings will help managers make judgments on how to respond to conflicts between internal alignment and external market conditions. Knowledge of which factors are most important will help managers create more effective compensation programs.

Originality/value

This is the first multi‐justice study to find the relative effects of justice perceptions on pay level satisfaction, and it includes informational justice.
Got image? Examining organizational image in web recruitment
Authors: Lyons Brian D. , Marler Janet H.
Published: January 2011

Purpose

This study aims to investigate whether organizational image: mediates the relationship between web site attributes and organizational attraction and moderates the relationship between person‐job (P‐J) fit and organizational attraction.

Design/methodology/approach

A total of 320 observations were collected from 80 senior‐level undergraduates, each half navigating a different set of four actual organizational web sites.

Findings

Organizational image was found to fully mediate the relationship between a web site's aesthetic features and organizational attraction; and moderate the relationship between P‐J fit perceptions and organizational attraction such that the change in organizational attraction was more sensitive to perceptions of P‐J fit when organizational image perceptions were more unfavorable rather than favorable. In addition, intercept differences revealed that individuals with below average P‐J fit were more attracted to organizations having a favorable image than an unfavorable image.

Practical implications

Findings underscore the importance of the positive relationship between organizational image and organizational attraction. In addition, organizations should assess applicant reactions to their web page, as it relates to perceptions and attitudes toward the organization.

Originality/value

This study integrates the web environment with two of the strongest antecedents to organizational attraction, organizational image and perceived P‐J fit.