bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Riding the Third Wave: A Conversation with Alvin Toffler Tom Johnson and Lawrence Bennigson
Authors: Toffler Alvin , Johnson Tom , Bennigson Larry
Published: March 2008

In this interview, Alvin Toffler, Tom Johnson, and Larry Bennigson talk about the forces driving change and how business leaders can stay abreast of the threats and opportunities arising out of these changes. The biggest strategic threat to many successful businesses will come from the external environment that tends to be outside the peripheral vision of corporate leadership. Culture, religion, politics, environment, and ethics are all going to interpenetrate one another to an extent never before seen. They will, in turn, penetrate business in all sorts of strange new ways.
Visiting Volvo: New Developments in Car Production
Authors: Rowe Christopher J.
Published: March 2008

In the western world the vehicle industry is declining yet Volvo, now the largest industrial enterprise in Scandinavia, has increased both its sales volume and market shares. What is the secret?
An Introduction to Radiology in Printed Circuit Manufacture
Authors: Kingsley D.S.
Published: March 2008

The use of radiology in industry has been used in welding and casting technology for many years for the non‐destructive examination of defects.
New high performance, punchable, epoxy/glass laminate
Authors: Schor R.
Published: March 2008

Low Shrinking: Epoxies react with their hardeners by direct addition, without the evolution of volatile by‐products and with very little chemical rearrangement. Unlike phenolics and polyesters, the epoxies exhibit very low shrinkage during cure. Abstract—A new punchable high performance epoxy/glass printed circuit laminate has been developed. It is designed to replace more costly and troublesome composite type laminates commonly used in high volume electronic assemblies using two‐sided boards with plated‐through holes. The excellent punching and plating characteristics, coupled with electrical properties equal to those of FR‐4, should make this laminate attractive to all those involved in high quality electronics. This paper was originally presented at the First Printed Circuit World Convention held at the Cafe Royal, London in June 1978.
Achieving optimum performance with UV curable solder masks
Authors: Axon F. , Cleek R. , Custer W. , Lipson M. , Mestdagh D.
Published: March 2008

The development of UV curing technology has introduced new solder masks which will replace the thermally‐cured masks of the past. In doing so, processing efficiency will be increased in terms of time, energy and space saving. In considering the effective use of the new technology, thought must be given to many factors which influence the optimum performance of UV cured solder masks. The thickness of deposit will most certainly be greatly influenced by the choice of screen fabric, mesh size and squeegee which will subsequently impact upon the rate and extent of cure. One must also prepare the substrate surface adequately to compensate for the minimal wet adhesion and dwell time of a solventless ink prior to cure. Other factors such as flux chemistry, solder temperature, and soldering conditions play an important part in the performance of a solder mask and are discussed in detail. This paper was originally presented at the First Printed Circuit World Convention held at the Cafe Royal, London, in June, 1978.
Benefits galore from DPP
Authors: Alexander Jessica
Published: March 2008

Benefits arising from the intelligent application of Direct Product Profitability (DPP) to the Boots operation have been substantial. They are using the system in at least a dozen ways; they are constantly making new discoveries about products, finding out where the profit comes from, and identifying loss‐making ranges.
Another outstanding performance from Sainsbury
Authors: Cox Roger
Published: March 2008

Sainsbury have impressed yet again, with a profit advance in the latest reported year of 20 per cent. The group became the biggest UK retailer in terms of turnover, even outstripping Marks & Spencer. Our commentator takes the view that brand strength will continue to power Sainsbury ahead, together with its store expansion programme.
Factory training progress in the North East
Authors: Stacey Mick
Published: March 2008

Whatever the speed, or lack of speed of individual training boards in industry, the effect of the Industrial Training Act has been to stimulate an enormous interest in training in the North East.
Training engineers for the chemical industry
Authors: Beck M.S.
Published: March 2008

A picture is drawn showing the position of the chemical industry in the UK. This leads to a consideration of the relationship between the economic situation and the requirements for a considerable expansion in technological education. As an example of a trend in modern industrial development, the increasing importance of instrumentation and computer control is discussed in some detail, this latter field being the author's particular specialization. The position of the universities in this educational programme is discussed and a particular approach to the integration of industrial and academic training, as practised in the department of chemical engineering, Proposed University of Bradford, is described in some detail. The problems of specialized training are considered. It is concluded that under‐graduate engineering courses should give a broad general background, and that specialization should be catered for by postgraduate courses. This leads to a discussion about the desirability of carefully planned interaction between post‐graduate teaching and research.
Trend‐setters at Bromsgrove
Authors: Haxby P.
Published: March 2008

The publication of the first findings of the Pilkington Committee, dealing with the size of classes and the rationalization of courses will be followed by the second part of the report dealing with the utilization of resources in technical education, and it is being anticipated by some that the result may well be a recommendation that colleges work a 44–48 week year. Certainly the idea of four 11 or 12 week terms has been ventilated for some years as a means of getting a better return on the vast capital investment that has been pumped into technical colleges during the last decade.
Recent developments in programmed instruction
Authors: Dodd Bernard
Published: March 2008

Programmed instruction has been in use in the UK now for about seven years, although similar teaching methods have been in use much longer. The beginnings of what we might call recent developments could be discerned about three years ago in the preachings if not the practices of the experts. At that time there were two rival styles of program: linear constructed response and branching multi‐choice. Then programmers started writing linear programs which instead of asking the student to write down his own answer called upon him to select one from a list. If he selected wrongly he discovered this but received no extra material. These heretical programmers also upset the dichotomy by writing branching programs which made the student construct his own answer and write it down before being allowed to match his answer with a list provided.
Programming costs and cost reductions
Authors: Yaney Joseph P.
Published: March 2008

It has become fashionable to say that ‘training is an investment in human capital’. Unfortunately, many people who like to use this phrase dislike justifying the investment in terms of actual contributions to the company's profit and loss statement. This inconsistency is not surprising because, if this cold, hard criterion of demonstrating useful results were used, many of today's training courses would be thrown lock, stock, and barrel out of the corporate window, along with the men responsible for them. Managers who reject such testimonials as, “I'm sure it's helping,” are doing their companies a service. They are correctly resisting the pressure to continue spending money without some reasonable evidence that such funds will produce at least an average return. The message is clear, therefore. If the personnel and training staff really feel that a particular course should be retained, it is their responsibility to develop a method of measuring the dollar value of this course. The defence that there are just some things that cannot be measured is really an admission that either these individuals have not tried very hard or that this particular course in its present form is probably not achieving the desired result. When an objective criterion for measuring contribution to profitability can be presented, this is the time for management to consider the proposal seriously.
How we taught communication
Authors: Deere Malcolm , Harris Adrian C.
Published: March 2008

For some time, whilst at A.E.R.E. Harwell, we ran a one‐week course on the communication of technical information. To attempt to teach communication at all is to make oneself extremely vulnerable; nevertheless, students have told us that the course was useful to them, and we feel that our ideas might be of general interest.
On your marks!
Authors: Bristow Adrian
Published: March 2008

“Frankly,” said the Doctor, “I can think of no occasion that fills me with greater detestation than a display of competitive athletics.”
General studies and the technologist
Authors: Huddieston John
Published: March 2008

There are two chief sources of opposition to General Studies courses, one is the students themselves who feel that they are an unnecessary appendage on to their already over‐crowded timetable, the other is the lecturers of other departments who think that general studies destroy the morale and single‐minded‐ness of a vocationally orientated student whose work and self‐discipline are likely to suffer from exposure to new ideas.
East German education: Mixing mental and manual labour
Authors: Childs David
Published: March 2008

Partly owing to the non‐recognition of East Germany by Britain, few people in this country know about the important economic potential across the river Elbe and behind the Berlin Wall. The German Democratic Republic (DDR) is among the top ten industrial nations of the world. It produces, per capita, more cement than Britain, more steel than Italy, more electricity than West Germany and more television sets than Britain, France or Italy.
The teaching of industrial relations in further education
Authors: Davies A.R.
Published: March 2008

Young workers today are entering industry during a critical period in the history of the nation. The impetus towards economic growth and the increasing awareness of the importance of productivity have released forces which are reshaping our traditional industrial institutions. It is conceivable that the technological changes of the next decade will make considerable demands upon the resilience and adaptability of the young people who are now being trained in industry. Within the last two years there have been pronounced indications of the new developments that are taking place in our industrial society. The Industrial Training Act, the Contracts of Employment Act, the Redundancy Payment Act, the Royal Commission into Trade Unions, and the National Plan are but some of the measures adopted by the State to change the pattern of our industrial institutions.
Designed for teaching: Small two pump set to demonstrate series and parallel system
Authors: Turton R.K.
Published: March 2008

A range of small self‐contained hydraulic machine test sets are now available which permit small groups of students to obtain the usual performance characteristics of pumps and turbines with some ease‐though at the expense of efficiency due to scale effects. As most lecture courses include the application of pumps to systems as well as the basic considerations affecting pump performance, it was felt that a layout that allowed the student to combine two pumps in series and then in parallel would introduce him to the hydraulic considerations involved as well as give a more flexible piece of equipment that would permit these tests and a performance test to be conducted (for the basic performance curves would have to be produced first). The apparatus evolved is described, and skeleton laboratory instructions are attached as an appendix. When two similar pumps are connected in series, the fluid passes through each in turn, and the total head produced is approximately double that of one pump as illustrated in figure 1. When two similar pumps are connected in parallel, the total head produced is that of one pump, but the flow is approximately doubled, as shown in figure 2. Figure 3 is a diagrammatic layout of the hydraulic system. The apparatus consists basically of two similar pumps A and B which can be run as single units, connected and operated in series, or connected and run in parallel as will be seen from figure 3, the valves 2 and 4 are closed when series operation is desired, and flow controlled by valve 6; when operation in parallel is required valve 3 is closed, all others being open. A single sump tank is provided, flow measurement is achieved by simple volumetric means and pressure is measured by bourdon‐type gauges, a, b, c and d. The pumps are supplied by Stuart Turner with a duty of 50 feet at approximately 1300 gpm at 2900 rpm, they may operate at 1450 rpm or 2900 rpm, are provided with swinging stators for torque measurement and with a revolution counter for average speed determination. As will be seen from the appendix, the sequence of tests to be performed requires the student to obtain the basic performance characteristics of each pump at the two rotational speeds possible, and to compare them using the Similarity laws; then to test the pumps connected in series and parallel and to compare the performance obtained with that predicted. Figures 4 and 6 give some typical curves and show that the actual performances in series and parallel do not quite fulfil those predicted ignoring losses‐the student is required to consider the contributory factors in his discussion. The writer is grateful to Plint and Partners Limited for their co‐operation.
Engineering thermodynamics work at undergraduate level
Authors: Jackson R.A. , Parker E.
Published: March 2008

The aims of laboratory work in engineering thermodynamics have been stated previously1 and a general order of priority appropriate to undergraduate students was suggested. Consideration is given below to some ways in which these aims can be accomplished by the type of experiment used and by removing from the laboratory activities which can be done more efficiently and effectively using other teaching techniques.
A local authority view
Authors: Fairbairn A.N.
Published: March 2008

Professor Lady williams is very persuasive and she makes it look so simple and so rosy! A division of the Occupational Guidance Service specialising in the younger age group sounds high‐powered, streamlined and unbeatable ‐ but just about as impersonal, faceless and hygienic as a division of the so‐and‐so organisation. The prospect she offers to us is likely to be as inspiring to young people of 14–22 as a visit to the usually dismal local employment exchange, unless the strong educational stake in an Occupational Guidance Service is maintained for this age group.
Looking forward
Authors: Barbara Castle Mrs.
Published: March 2008

The Service's development is at a crucial stage first because changes are taking place in education all over the country. Secondary education is being reorganised along comprehensive lines. More young people are staying on at school beyond the school leaving age ‐ which itself will soon be raised — and many more young people are seeing the advantages of further education. There is an increasing recognition of the need for closer relations between educational and vocational guidance for those young people who go on to further and higher education.
The crisis in diploma studies
Authors: Gore Thomas
Published: March 2008

At the present moment there is a deep national concern over the long‐term provisions for management education. While short‐term provisions are improving rapidly, through the initiative of the training boards and the colleges, there is a sense of confusion over long term facilities and qualifications. During this current month, April 1970, a national conference is to be held to make some attempt to rationalise the situation. In this timely article Thomas Gore sets the scene against which this conference is to deliberate: he describes the present confusion and highlights the lack of decision and the inconsistencies in the present system.
Language training principles of effective language training in industry and commerce
Authors: Cameron Patrick Keith
Published: March 2008

If Britain enters the Common Market within the next few years, four‐fifths of the population of what will then be the British home market will be non‐English speaking by birth. A small number of British companies already have properly‐organised company language training programmes. In this article the author discusses the principles of effective language training in the hope that this will encourage others to follow suit, whether such training is carried out within the company, at a local technical college, or at a commercial language school.
Films for the training centre
Authors: Hughes Alec M
Published: March 2008

This is a film about the causes of an industrial dispute and has been made for the National Federation of Building Trades Employers in consultation with the National Federation of Construction Unions.
Some interviewing issues: Part two
Authors: Pendlebury Chris
Published: March 2008

Most applicants take the selection interview seriously and those applicants who have not attended an interview for several years and who do not in the course of their work have to establish new relationships with people, often approach the interview with a little uneasiness, if not undue fear. In order to bring out the best of a nervous and taciturn applicant the interviewer can probably learn something from the strategy of the constructor of aptitude tests. It is customary in the devising of a test to begin with a few questions which all the testees should be able to answer and thereafter to increase the order of difficulty of the test items with the really tricky questions at the end. It would be considered unfair of the test constructor to insert a particularly hard question into the early part of the test, since it might confound the testee who may well have been able to do it if he had been allowed to work up to it gradually.
The changing relationships between technical colleges and industry with particular reference to the training boards
Authors: Williams Ivor
Published: March 2008

Further Education is in a ‘flux and reflux of hopes and ideas’. White Papers, DES Administrative Memoranda, and Reports, succeed each other in rapid succession; advanced work is being hived off from Area Colleges to the Polytechnics; and some of the work of lower level to Sixth Form Colleges and Comprehensives; Regional Advisory Councils give or withhold approval for the establishment of new courses; and LEA Education Committees, by their control of the purse‐strings, can seriously interfere with the planned development of Colleges. It is with the doubts that afflict FE about their relationships with Industry and Commerce that this article is concerned.
CD‐ROM at King's College Library: use and evaluation of OCLC's Search CD450
Authors: Pope Carolyn , Machiraju Adrian
Published: March 2008

OCLC produces a number of products for CD‐ROM, derived variously from public domain databases in the US, such as ERIC, AGRICOLA and NTIS, and from subsets of its own massive 18,500,000 record Union Catalog. The initial set covered three main subject areas: Education; Agriculture; and Science and Technology. The CD‐products are referrred to as Search CD450 and are intended to support reference work and access to subject information. In addition, a CD‐ROM based cataloguing product has been developed: its suitability in the UK and Europe is currently being evaluated by OCLC Europe. Towards the end of 1987, OCLC set up an evaluation project at King's College Library, University of London, to assess the ERIC databases produced as part of the Search CD450 products. This article describes the broad findings of that project together with the facilities offered by CD450.
BLAISE RECORDER: Communications software for information retrieval and record supply
Authors: Moore Caroline
Published: March 2008

Communications software has traditionally been used in the library environment for online searching to retrieve bibliographic and, more recently, numerical and textual information. Using microcomputers has become widespread for such work as their local storage and processing power can make online searching faster and more convenient than using a dumb terminal. It also enables data to be downloaded. Many packages have been developed which provide the features needed by online searchers and a recent trend has been for online hosts and database providers to produce software geared to their own systems.
Introducing automation in a college library: Data Trek at the College for the Distributive Trades
Authors: Norman Sandy
Published: March 2008

The College for the Distributive Trades library took a gamble in the Summer of 1987 and chose an automated library system that had never been tested in the UK although it was being used widely in the United States and in the Republic of Ireland. The system selected was the Data Trek Card Datalog system . It was installed on the College's main site at Leicester Square, London a year ago and this article shares the College's experience of the planning, installation and management of this system.
VIEW FROM THE CLASSROOM — PART ONE
Authors: Keenan Stella
Published: March 2008

Information and Society is the topic of a new course that was taught over one semester at the Department of Library and Information Studies, Manchester Metropolitan University at the beginning of the year. The course covers the definition of the information society; historical perspectives; industrialisation of society and the concept of a post‐industrial society; scenarios for the future; forecasting social and technological change; demographics; trends in research and development for LIS; the virtual librarian; and implications for professional education and continuing development.
LATIN AMERICAN DATABASES: AN ANALYSIS IN THE SOCIAL SCIENCES AND HUMANITIES
Authors: Alonso‐Gamboa Octavio , Reyna‐Espinosa Rafael
Published: March 2008

An interest in the identification, organisation and dissemination of local and regional information has promoted the development and production of databases in Latin America. For those Latin Americanists engaged in the study of the social sciences and humanities, these databases liave become a valuable tool, facilitating access to information unavailable by other means. However, these databases are frequently unknown to their potential users. In this paper, the results are presented of an analysis made of 476 Latin American databases in the social sciences and humanities, produced in 21 countries. The variables studied refer to country of origin, subject, type of database and access, number of records, time span, geographical coverage and language of the data, as well as the institutions involved in their production. Problems of user access and visibility are discussed. The use of the regional databases as an important support for Latin American studies is also emphasised.
CDROM USER INTERFACE EVALUATION: THE APPROPRIATENESS OF GUIS
Authors: Manglano Bosch Victoria , Hancock‐Beaulie Micheline
Published: March 2008

Following a general trend in software development, CDROM applications are increasingly implementing Graphical User Interfaces (GUIs). The general assumption is that GUIs offer advantages in terms of ease of learning and use, especially for non‐expert users. Moreover, the adoption of GUIs for CDROMs has been suggested as a means of providing a de facto standard interface. This study assesses the appropriateness of GUIs, more specifically Windows‐based interfaces for CDROM. An evaluation model was devised to carry out an expert evaluation of the interfaces of seven CDROM products. The model identified two levels of interaction, the dialogue level and task level, and focused on general interface features, search and retrieval tasks, and output and processing options as well as the help facilities. The results are discussed in the light of HCI Usability Criteria and design guidelines (including general interface design guidelines, specific Windows design guidelines and The CDROM Consistent Interface Guidelines) to assess to what extent the applications comply and appropriate recommendations are made.
Distance sensing: making light work
Authors: Loughlin Clive
Published: March 2008

This article examines the various methods available for the measurement . of distance using light. These can vary considerably in price and performance and therefore an understanding of the capabilities of a range of systems and techniques is useful so that the most appropriate choice for a given application can be made.
Piezoresistive sensors: the pressure goes on
Authors: Hencke Henri
Published: March 2008

Advancements in producing piezoresistive pressure sensors have opened up exciting new markets for these pressure determining devices. Up to 10 times more sensitive than the old transducers, and with response times as rapid as a millisecond, the new sensors are used in applications as diverse as automotive, hi‐fi, aerospace and medical equipment industries.
Object recognition gets in focus
Authors: Konash Dmitri
Published: March 2008

A great number of object recognition systems for industry have been designed during the last 10–15 years.[1,2] Most of them use TV‐cameras as data sources.[3] The main advantage of such systems is their high resolution. At the same time many manufacturing processes do not need high‐resolution sensors but require a high reliability of recognition, while working in an environment with bad optical conditions.
Fusing sensor systems: promises and problems
Authors: Holmbom Per , Pedersen Ole , Sandell Bengt , Lauber Alexander
Published: March 2008

By tradition, sensors are used to measure one desired parameter; all other parameters influencing the sensor are considered as interfering inputs, to be eliminated if possible. Hence most of existing sensors are specifically intended for measuring one parameter, e.g. temperature, and the ideal temperature sensor should be as immune to all other parameters as possible. True, we sometimes use primitive sensor fusion, e.g. when calculating heat flow by combining separate measurements of temperature difference and of fluid flow.
Ultrasonic ranging gets thermal correction
Authors: Martin J. M. , Ceres R. , Calderón L. , Freire T.
Published: March 2008

This paper presents some aspects of the research activities on sensors for robots, developed in the Instituto de Automatica Industrial (IAI) during the last years. The demand for greater precision in the measurement of distances using US techniques, makes it necessary to compensate for alterations in the sound‐speed in the interposed medium due to temperature. In this paper we will describe a method for calculating this correction in order that no other external sensor be necessary. The method is based on the resonance‐frequency variation of the piezoelectric elements with temperature. The accuracy reached with this correction is higher than normally would be needed in robotics applications.
USITT makes the going easy
Authors: McClelland Stephen
Published: March 2008

It came originally as a suggestion from Ford Motor Company: a university‐based institute that could function as an industrial club, providing a clearing house on information on sensor technology and capabilities for conducting and sponsoring its own research in sensor technology of industrial relevance. Ford looked to Southampton to provide such a facility, and the result was that in 1987, the University of Southampton Institute of Transducer Technology was born. The only remarkable fact about it was that given the prevalence of sensor technology, no one had thought of it before.
Intelligence networks, overview, purpose and policies in the context of global social change
Authors: Stonier Tom
Published: March 2008

The growth of information networks coupled to the emergence of intelligent databases and expert systems will not only profoundly affect our daily lives, particularly in areas of education and commerce, but will also begin to alter human society as it continues to develop a global central nervous system, including the equivalent of a global brain.
Decision support systems: learning to apply computers
Authors: Leslie Gavin
Published: March 2008

Decision support systems (DSS) are a process common to all decision‐making and are essentially individualistic. DSS were externalised to improve management productivity and to cope with increasing volumes of data. Computers were introduced to speed up the process, to improve the accuracy of results and to control costs.
Corporate intelligence networks
Authors: Woodling Geoffrey
Published: March 2008

In a global economy the corporation, like the state, needs an intelligence capability. Few corporations currently possess such a capability, but the loss of serving government intelligence officers to higher paid private sector roles might signal corporate awareness of this need.
Public sector finance ‐ strategies for library and information units ‐ the relationship between central and local government finance
Authors: Travers Tony
Published: March 2008

The relationship between central and local government in Britain has changed rapidly since the early 1970s. Several factors have worked to produce an increasingly difficult central‐local relationship. These include: a gradual loss of confidence in the rates; increased use of grants for different purposes; the use of local government as an economic regulator, and changes in the economic and political landscape in Britain. Since the early 1980s, the relationship has altered enormously.
Community information policy and provision
Authors: Coleman Pat
Published: March 2008

In this session I want to take the conference theme — ‘Information for decision‐making’ and attempt to examine how the development of community information provision in public libraries in Great Britain can and does assist improved decision‐making both by the general public, including certain groups of people in particular, and library staff. I am conscious, in talking to an audience which I suspect is, in the main, comprised of colleagues from special and academic libraries, that there is a view amongst some of you at least, that ‘community information’ is one of those ‘harebrained schemes’ which are nothing to do with ‘real’ librarianship and are contributing to the decline in standards of public library services. I hope to convince those people, and indeed all of you, that community information is one of the most significant developments that public libraries have ever undertaken.
Academic libraries in contraction: facts, theories and fancies
Authors: Mackenzie Graham
Published: March 2008

All publicly‐funded libraries have been hard hit by the government's financial policies since the early 1980s; it may be that a measure of austerity is beneficial, in that it encourages creative thought and more effective management. However in the universities, at least, the damage done to services has been significant, white collections have suffered even more. Since inflation in book and periodical prices is not fully reflected in the grants given to libraries, an effective annual reduction of 5—10 per cent is to be expected: unless this trend can be halted university libraries will no longer be able to support worthwhile research, either in the humanities or the sciences.
Non‐profit organisations in the UK online database market
Authors: East Harry
Published: March 2008

The growth of UK produced online databases is explored with particular reference to activities in and the problems of marketing in the non‐profit sector.
Antidote for a Hostile Offer
Authors: Pietruski John M.
Published: March 2008

In 1982, there were 2,346 mergers between companies in the United States; more than $60 billion changed hands. In 1988, according to Securities Data Company, Inc., the dollar amount of the 2,805 corporate marriages that involved both American and foreign firms totaled $346 billion.
How to Win Shareholder Loyalty
Authors: Wilcox John C.
Published: March 2008

From the viewpoint of corporate directors and managers, mergers and acquisitions have become the tail that wags the dog. The “market for corporate control” (as it has been dubbed by approving economists) now makes a substantial impact on trading activity in the stock market, contributing to the displacement of the traditional market function of capital formation. “Maximization of share‐holder value” has become a rallying cry—not for managers‘ efforts to make corporate enterprises more productive, but for takeover proponents’ belief that selling the business should be the primary goal of corporate ownership.
How a Corporate Breakup Boosted Stock Prices
Authors: Bickner Bruce P.
Published: March 2008

In the 1960s and early 1970s, big was beautiful. Corporate America saw a trend toward conglomerates. An investment in a diversified company was considered a good bet. If one of the conglomerate's businesses took a downturn, perhaps the others could carry it. A more recent trend has been for companies to focus on one industry. Investors are more likely to seek out companies that have a “pure play.”
Disaster Containment Strategies
Authors: Shrivastava Paul , Siomkos George
Published: March 2008

Corporate crises are becoming more frequent and devastating for corporations. The Bhopal disaster cost Union Carbide Corporation over half a billion dollars and forced it into a restructuring that reduced its size by one half.
Let's Get Back to the Basics of Global Strategy
Authors: Rabstejnek George
Published: March 2008

Any discussion among U.S. executives of such subjects as global initiatives, international market share, emerging lesser developed country markets, and opportunities in newly industrialized countries is consistently seasoned with horror stories related to uneven playing fields, currency inequities, and government intervention. Are these stories merely rationalizations, or do the problems they cite account for the sharp deterioration of U.S. market share around the world?
Why Forecast for the Long Term?
Authors: Michman Ronald D.
Published: March 2008

Too often, long‐range environmental forecasting is ignored in order to cut costs. But long‐range forecasting can actually reduce costs and win new markets ahead of the competition. For example, Sears removed flammable nightwear and substituted nonflammable nightwear long before government action made this a requirement. S. C. Johnson and Sons eliminated environmentally risky fluorocarbons from its aerosol sprays three years before the government forced competing firms to comply. Both firms were able to reduce substantially their costs of compliance and avoided the criticism from public‐spirited groups that was directed toward their competitors.
The Case for a Legal Risk Strategy
Authors: Calkins Hugh
Published: March 2008

Many American corporations fail to consider the legal perspective in strategy formulation: They exclude lawyers from the strategic planning team. By doing so, they cut themselves off from essential input in weighing alternatives and solving problems. Perhaps more important, they eliminate a valuable source of strategic ideas.
Company Turnarounds— Tough Hiring and Firing Decisions
Authors: Finkin Eugene F.
Published: March 2008

Having the right people is essential to having a successful company. The strategy adopted for the company and its complementary business plan will determine the types and number of employees needed. A troubled company, at the outset, will have a mismatch between the skills needed and the skills on hand. Gaps will exist at all levels.
Service Quality: Forethought, Not Afterthought
Authors: Sonnenberg Frank K.
Published: March 2008

According to Leon Gorman, president of L. L. Bean, service is a day‐in, day‐out, ongoing, never‐ending, unremitting, persevering, compassionate type of activity. Given L. L. Bean's position as the service quality leader in its industry, the message is one no marketing executive can afford to ignore. Indeed, every executive's nightmare should be overhearing a customer say one of the following remarks:
Today's Worker in Tomorrow's Workplace
Authors: Choate Pat
Published: March 2008

Louis B. Mayer, the head of MGM studios during Hollywood's golden era, once said, The inventory goes home at night,' conceding, however inelegantly, that without his corps of talented directors, writers, and actors, MGM would be nothing.
Incentives: The Missing Link in Strategic Performance
Authors: Greenberg Jeanne , Liebman Michael
Published: March 2008

When the vice president of operations for Casual Corner, the $600 million retail women's clothing chain, left his position, it was for reasons unrelated to compensation. He felt that the parent company, U.S. Shoe Corporation, should have continued his division's historical autonomy—a move that perhaps would have enhanced its financial position. Had that been the case, perhaps this vice president, Joe Corso, and other top managers would still be working for the company today. But with declines in corporate profitability, U.S. Shoe imposed strong corporate controls that crimped Corso's management style and curtailed his growth.
How People Power Fuels a High‐Frying Carrier
Authors: Conway Michael J.
Published: March 2008

The year 1989 was characterized by a number of major events that have deeply wounded the airline industry. The scars include the Eastern Air Lines strike, the takeover at Northwest Airlines, and the battle for control at United Airlines. It is predicted that 1990 will prove to be just as treacherous. Those air carriers that can remain prosperous and intact are definitely doing something right. At America West Airlines, that something is the partnership that exists between management and the employee‐owners.
Relationship Marketing: Positioning for the Future
Authors: Copulsky Jonathan R. , Wolf Michael J.
Published: March 2008

This year, almost 4 million expectant mothers will receive personalized letters about infant care from a disposable diaper manufacturer. A leading manufacturer of hair coloring products will send trial samples to regular users of competing brands. And at supermarkets across the country, shoppers will watch personalized advertisements for cookies, toothpaste, and coffee at checkout counters equipped with video screens. In these instances and countless others, advertisers are finding new ways to communicate with their customers that capitalize on and leverage the long‐term relationship between the advertiser and consumer.
How to Enhance Customer Connections
Authors: Russel Craig S.
Published: March 2008

In an era of increasingly intense global competition, minimizing time to market has become key to corporate success. Casio, the Japanese consumer electronics company, has based its entire strategy on a continuing stream of new product introductions. Similarly, given the rapaciousness of corporate raiders, maximizing operational effectiveness is essential to corporate survival. Prime Computer, Jaguar, and a host of others have learned that lesson in exceedingly painful fashion.
European and U.S. Managers: Breaking Down the Wall
Authors: Arnold Mark R.
Published: March 2008

You are an executive of a U.S. multinational corporation, and you want to introduce some major change in the way that you operate overseas.
Building U.S. Presence in European Markets
Authors: Lei David
Published: March 2008

The final consummation of the twelve nations in the European Economic Community (EEC) in 1992 as a unified, consolidated market represents the single most important step toward the integration of Europe into the global economy. More than simply a date, Europe 1992 captures an ideal, a shift in psychology from economic defensiveness and stagnation to one of bold, aggressive moves to confront the future.
What Happens After Restructuring?
Authors: Ulm David , Hickel James K.
Published: March 2008

In 1989, the Salt River Project (SRP), a utility that serves customers in and around the Phoenix, Arizona area, made significant changes in its organizational structure. The company started the process of revising its corporate culture to reflect changes in the business and marketing environment of the utility industry.
The High‐Yield Debt Market: Trash or Treasure?
Authors: Chu Franklin J.
Published: March 2008

Toward the end of the turbulent decade of the 1980s, the public high‐yield debt, or “junk,” market passed the milestone of $200 billion of debt securities outstanding. Now it is time to draw into perspective some of the lessons that have been learned from this controversial and misunderstood marketplace.
Japanese‐U.S. Alliances: Resolving Economic Conflict
Authors: Lawrence Kuhn Robert
Published: March 2008

Japanese businesspeople, especially those trained in the United States, are incredulous to discover that U.S. public opinion now compares the threat of Japanese acquisitions to that of the Soviet military. And since Japanese acquisitions are expanding while the Soviet military is contracting, fear of Japan is increasingly a media‐hyped, all‐American worry along with drugs, crime, and too many taxes. Even the hit motion picture Back to the Future II portrayed the hero's future character as working for and being fired by a ruthless, humorless Japanese manager.
International Mergers and Acquisitions
Authors: Kissin Warren D. , Herrera Julio
Published: March 2008

Strategic buyers are competing intensely for acquisitions in both the both the top tier and the middle market, especially in anticipation of European unification in 1992. Businesses now operate in a global economy where national borders mean little to multinationals employing worldwide personnel and financial strategies to suit their strategic objectives.
Barriers to Communication
Authors: Sonnenberg Frank K.
Published: March 2008

Even though studies indicate that 45 percent of our communication time is devoted to listening, when report cards are given out to business‐people on how well they listen, very few receive passing grades.
Strategies Behind the Winners and Losers
Authors: Hodock Calvin L.
Published: March 2008

Each year, the American Marketing Association recognizes new product excellence with the Edison Awards, named after (not surprisingly) Thomas Alva Edison. The recipients represent the best new products of the previous year based on the vote of 250 leading marketing and advertising executives recruited by AMA. These products, primarily in consumer electronics, package goods, and automotive segments, are chosen based on their innovation and marketplace success.
Product Development: Where Planning and Marketing Meet
Authors: Phillips Derwyn F.
Published: March 2008

Segmenting a market by developing a specific product for each niche has proven to be a strategy that can increase the odds for success. It has worked well for the Gillette Company, especially in its major profit margin category: razors and blades.
Three Roads to Innovation
Authors: Mitsch Ronald A.
Published: March 2008

Innovation is important to most companies, but it is our lifeblood at 3M. We like to keep innovation coming from all directions: by developing new technologies and new applications for them, by assessing customer needs, and by anticipating market trends in all areas in which we operate.
Exposing Four Myths of Strategic Planning
Authors: Hiam Alexander
Published: March 2008

How do you assess the quality of your planning tools? One approach is to look at the validity of the assumptions underlying them. Some of the most basic assumptions of planners are no longer valid; reexamining strategic myths helps ferret out those tools that need updating.
Growth Through Strategic Investing
Authors: Shaffer Richard A.
Published: March 2008

In the debate over a suitable response to global economic competition, the United States has largely confined itself to two options—a full‐scale, MITI‐like industrial policy or a continuation of the current entrepreneurial free‐for‐all. While Washington has been paralyzed for years as the ideologues kick solutions back and forth between these two poles, industry has discovered a middle ground: strategic investing.
Speeding New Products to Market
Authors: Bronikowski Karen
Published: March 2008

Corporations that continue to downsize through attrition or staff cuts have a fundamental problem. How can they muster the resources to maintain their competitive edge and bring new products quickly and profitably into the marketplace? The solution: Eliminate company walls and borders to encourage change.
If You're a Big Fish, Be Wary of Small Ponds
Authors: Lynn Shostack G.
Published: March 2008

In these days of churn and turnover, a new group of entrepreneurs has appeared on the scene. I call them the Formers. They are former presidents, former directors, and former senior officers of very large companies who, for one reason or another, are at liberty.
Anatomy of the Fall
Authors: Davidson Kenneth M.
Published: March 2008

The fall of Michael Milken, Drexel Burnham and Lambert, and the junk bond market has a familiar ring. In his book Money, John Kenneth Galbraith introduces us to banking with the following sobering thoughts: “As banking developed from the seventeenth century on, so, with the support of circumstance, did the cycles of euphoria and panic. Their length came to accord roughly with the time it took people to forget the last disaster—for the financial geniuses of one generation to die in disrepute and be replaced by new craftsmen who the gullible and the gulled could believe had, this time but truly, the Midas touch.”
A Vision for the 1990s
Authors: Sonnenberg Frank K.
Published: March 2008

The globalization of products and services and the deregulation of markets are altering the very nature of competition. Reports show that there have been over 90,000 mergers and acquisitions since 1986.
Strategies for More Efficient Manufacturing Operations
Authors: Finkin Eugene F.
Published: March 2008

Manufacturing rather than marketing is the heart of a manufacturing company. A troubled manufacturing company invariably requires significant improvements in the management of this activity.
A Corporate Self‐Assessment Checklist
Authors: Knorr Robert O.
Published: March 2008

Companies operating in the 1990s face an especially rigorous set of challenges. The toughest challenge is dealing with drastic changes in the business environment. The most successful companies of the 1990s are those that conduct ongoing self‐assessments against the changing environment.
A Program for Sharing Corporate Intelligence
Authors: Roush Gary B.
Published: March 2008

Less and less financial information is publicly available today as more companies are being taken private, competitors are often subsidiaries of worldwide conglomerates, and joint ventures and alliances are being formed with a pooling of funds and assets. Thus, it is increasingly more difficult to perform competitive intelligence or analysis solely from a financial perspective.
Why Some Strategic Alliances Succeed and Others Fail
Authors: Lorange Peter , Roos Johan
Published: March 2008

A key competitive precondition for any organization involved in any of today's multinational businesses is speed and pace in implementing strategies. Although one's organization may offer superior products or services today, it may quickly lag behind its competitors if it is not adept at implementing critical decisions.
Getting Ready for Japan: What Not to Do
Authors: Miller Peter D.
Published: March 2008

Foreign businessmen frequently carry preconceived ideas with them to Japan. Such ideas can result in disastrous consequences when applied to business in that country. If your company's strategy calls for doing business in Japan, here are ten “maxims” that could affect the long‐term success of your plans. They should be carefully considered before going into a meeting with Japanese customers or partners.