bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Women in change management
Authors: Tyler Melissa 
Published: January 2007

PurposeTo consider Simone De Beauvoir's account of woman as Other, and particularly the appropriation of sexual difference, with reference to the gendered bifurcation and hierarchical organization of change management.Design/methodology/approachThrough a review of relevant managerial texts, as well as a discussion of De Beauvoir'sThe Second Sexand related scholarship, the paper explores some of the ways in which men and women are “situated” within change management discourse.FindingsArgues that within managerial discourse men are constructed as “effective” managers of change, whereas women are relegated to an “affective” support function, and that this can be understood as an appropriation of women's ascribed Otherness.Originality/valueThe paper contributes to the ongoing development of a critical, feminist approach to the study of management. While acknowledging the many limitations of her work, it makes the case for a reappraisal of De Beauvoir's thinking in this respect.
Shifting forms of masculinity in changing organizations: the role of testicularity
Authors: Baxter Lynne F. , MacLeod Alasdair 
Published: January 2007

PurposeThis paper seeks to utilize the concept of testicularity put forward by Flannigan‐Saint‐Aubin to explain a shift in the hegemonic masculinities in two organizations which were unusual in being successful in realizing their aims for improvement.Design/methodology/approachThe methodological approach taken is broadly social constructionism. The two organizations featured in the paper are drawn from a more extensive study of 22 organizations studied in the UK and the Netherlands. The first phase of the research consisted of extended interview visits. The visits, lasting two or three days, consisted of a mix of formal interviews and observation of the sites and less formal discussion and observation, frequently during meal breaks.FindingsThe organizations instigated change processes, which created opportunities for women employees, sometimes at the expense of men. Previous work has discussed whether organization change can represent a feminizing of the workplace, but this did not fully encapsulate the present findings – the men remained in charge – and this led the authors to investigate further masculinities. Flannigan‐Saint‐Aubin's concept is rare in that it argues for positive aspects of masculinities in a growing literature which has a tendency to focus on the negative.Originality/valueThe paper argues that shifts in gender performance are a useful way of exploring organization change.
Woman in the ivory tower
Authors: Eveline Joan 
Published: January 2007

PurposeTo challenge dualistic concepts of masculinity and femininity via a case for understanding gender as a verb.Design/methodology/approachUsing Deleuzian and feminist frameworks, the paper appraises six plateaus of desire and intensity through which gendered identities are assembled and re‐assembled in binary terms. The case study approach highlights the positioning and repositioning of a woman whose leadership of a leading academic institution involves breaking new ground in a male‐defined occupation, at a time when higher education is undergoing radical restructure.FindingsThe paper shows how masculinised and feminised identity positions are effected through attempts to affix certainty to indistinct and multiple dimensions of being and becoming.Originality/valueSuggests that if we wish to understand gender in non‐dualistic terms we should think through the body to see both corporeality and identity as ambiguous and always unfinished assemblage
Romania and the Western World from the 1800s
Authors: Iacob George , Gavrilovici Ovidiu 
Published: January 2007

PurposeIn its modernization and European integration effort, from 1859 to the present, Romania went through a series of transitional periods. The purpose of this paper is to explore the issues involved in Romania fighting to regain its identity or in forging a new one.Design/methodology/approachThe paper presents a cogent but thorough history and examines the relationship of Romania moving into the future.FindingsEurope itself struggles. Identity does not mean “a difference which separates.” The challenge in Europe now is to find and foster “the difference which unifies.” Europe seems to be an “island of necessary stability” for Romania. Europe of the future can be an area of balance and Romania can become a region of balance within the new European Union.Originality/valueThe paper presents an overview of Romania and the Western World from the 1800s.
Strategic positioning in Romanian higher education
Authors: Niculescu Mihai 
Published: January 2007

PurposeThe study presented in this paper is intended to assist the decision‐making process in Romanian higher education institutions on topics such as market structure analysis, market segmentation, positioning of the specializations, and the cannibalization between them.Design/methodology/approachThis paper describes a preliminary qualitative study that examines the primary motives that affect choice of specializations before developing and validating a measurement instrument. The objective of the questionnaire was to help managers collect information regarding perceptions on specializations from a pool of 344 students of a major Romanian business faculty. The data were used to generate a perceptual map, which disclosed a three‐cluster solution. In a parallel study, an internal analysis of preferences on 1,390 subjects revealed the existence of three market segments: “the pragmatics,” “the sociables” and “the diploma hunters.”FindingsFacing competition, Romanian higher education institutions need to carefully plan their actions, and better manage their scarce resources.Originality/valueThis study is one of the few that tried to develop, to reliability test and to validate a questionnaire in the field of higher education, and the first one that has analyzed the positioning of the specializations at the level of a business faculty.
Managing organizational change in transition economies
Authors: Chiaburu Dan S. 
Published: January 2007

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to offer a personal reflection on the Romanian post‐communist transition, using an organization theory‐based analytic framework combined with the author's personal experience.Design/methodology/approachThe paper is based on the authors' experience in Romania during the transition (policy implementation, evaluation projects, and research). The experience is captured using concepts from institutional, organizational change, and critical theories.FindingsTransition economies offer unique settings for building theory that describes the dynamic events situated at the boundary between institutions and organizations. Although this potential has yet to be realized, knowledge can be captured by using less conventional research designs, a critical perspective, and creative concepts and approaches.Research limitations/implicationsThe paper has potential implications for researchers conducting studies in transition economies, or in otherwise dynamic environments. The author provides several examples that are not well explained by existing frameworks and models, and offers suggestions for possible designs that might be more appropriate in transition settings.Practical implicationsBoth autochthonous and foreign practitioners might find the examples and the analytic framework informative and applicable to the problems they are faced with in transition economies.Originality/valueThe paper combines conventional and critical theory‐based approaches to the study of the Romanian transition. Authors interested in research at the institution – organization boundary can consider some of the suggested for formalizing their research.
Gender discrimination in Romania
Authors: Adriana Prodan , Manolescu Irina 
Published: January 2007

PurposeA general overview of gender disparity in economic and political areas in Romania is the objective of this paper.Design/methodology/approachThe dynamic perspective of the gender disparity phenomenon is analyzed by means of three main indicators: gender development index, gender empowerment measure and human development index.FindingsOne of the great expectations people have from the transition to democratic governments and market economies in Eastern Europe is the increased opportunity for people to participate in and benefit from a society built by them. In a society that values equality to ensure that people have a voice in making decisions which affect them the decisions made are better informed and effective. In the international arena, there is a growing recognition that women's representative participation in decision making is a fundamental condition of women's equality in a society that values its members.Originality/valueThis paper has application in all areas of discrimination, especially with Romania's projected entry into the European Union in 2007.
Teaching English in post‐modern Romanian education
Authors: Luminita Andrei 
Published: January 2007

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to explore what happened in Romanian education in the post‐modern context.Design/methodology/approachThe paper discusses the reactions to the changes in Romanian education.FindingsPost‐modernism means innovation. Communication, team work, adaptability, flexibility and problem solving are key skills for the post‐modernist workforce and have major implications in the field of education.Originality/valueThe paper offers insights into the transition from excessively rigid conditions to a more open environment.
Work and education in transition
Authors: Olesia Lupu , Simona Mitocaru 
Published: January 2007

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to focus on the change in attitude towards work among younger generations in Romania.Design/methodology/approachThe paper discusses work and education in transition since 1989.FindingsIn the communist age, work was perceived as a time‐consuming activity for students. As a result, in the command economy no job opportunities were offered for this age group. Transition in Romania implied adjustment to the free market economy model, this including the approach to working life and education. At the societal level, job opportunities have been created for the young along with programs that address the needs of this age group by introducing career development skills and entrepreneurial courses into the curricula.Originality/valueThe paper offers insights into moving from skills‐based training to the more open education required for survival in the more turbulent world.
Correlation between jamming and skipping during solder paste printing
Authors: Hillman S.R. , Mannan S.H. , Durairaj R. , Seman A. , Ekere N.N. , Dusek M. , Hunt C. 
Published: January 2007

PurposeTo investigate how jamming of particles in a solder paste varies as a function of the gap through which the particles flow, and to correlate this with skipping defects during the printing process.Design/methodology/approachSolder pastes with particle sizes of types 2, 3, 4 and 5 were sheared between the parallel plates of a rheometer. Jamming events that cause the solder particles to be forced against each other were detected by monitoring the electrical current flowing between the plates under a bias of 1.0 V or less. Solder paste printing trials were conducted with the same pastes, and solder paste skipping monitored.FindingsJamming was detected when the ratio of plate gap to largest particle diameter is reduced to a value between 3.8 and 5.0. Decreasing the gap further results in increased jamming. A strong correlation between levels of skipping and jamming was found.Research limitations/implicationsMore extensive printing trials are required before rheometric jamming detection can be used to predict printing performance.Practical implicationsThe common rule of thumb used in solder paste printing that the aperture width should be no smaller than 4‐5 particle diameters is justified.Originality/valueThis paper presents a new technique for detecting jamming events which are too brief to be detected using normal rheometric techniques, but which have long been thought to be responsible for stochastic skipping defects during printing. Evidence supporting the link between jamming and this type of defect is presented.
Investigation of the effect of solder flux residues on RF signal integrity using real circuits
Authors: Geiger David , Shangguan Dongkai 
Published: January 2007

PurposeProvide information on the effects of flux residues from surface mount assembly on radio frequency (RF) performance.Design/methodology/approachA series of test vehicles designed to evaluate the RF performance on various test patterns and some simple circuits. Empirical testing is used in determining the data.FindingsProvides a methodology for checking the performance of flux residues as well as information on the performance of a few different flux residue types.Research limitations/implicationsThis is not an all encompassing project and the results may not extrapolate out to higher frequency ranges.Practical implicationsA good source of reference that can be used to understand the impacts of the assembly process on RF performance.Originality/valueThis paper shows the effect of assembly materials (flux residues) on a real circuit and not just test patterns. It can give a basic understanding to process engineers of the potential impact of the assembly process on a RF circuit.
Lead‐free PCB assembly and effects of process conditions on the profile and reliability of solder joints
Authors: Zhong Z.W. , Arulvanan P. , Shi X.Q. 
Published: January 2007

PurposeTo study the effects of design and assembly process conditions on lead‐free solder joints for an area array component.Design/methodology/approachExperiments using SnAgCu solder for assembling plastic ball grid array components on printed circuit boards (PCBs) were carried out to investigate the reliability of the solder joints made under various conditions. The process variables studied include solder pad diameters, solder paste volume and reflow peak temperatures.FindingsThe average joint diameter increased with the peak reflow temperature, stencil thickness and pad diameter. The average joint height decreased with the increasing peak reflow temperature and pad diameter. However, increased stencil thickness would lead to increased solder paste volume and therefore increases both joint diameter and height. The assembled boards were subjected to a temperature cycling test (−40 to +125°C) for 5,700 cycles and no failures of the daisy chained resistance loops were found, indicating that the thermal fatigue resistance of the SnAgCu solder joints was good.Originality/valueThe findings provide greater confidence to implement a lead‐free soldering process without compromising reliability. Reliable lead free soldering can be made over a wide process window allowing flexibility in design and manufacturing.
Laser soldering control using optical imaging
Authors: Gilbert James M. , Dabestani Zaif 
Published: January 2007

PurposeThe use of lasers to selectively solder joints in electronic assemblies has a number of advantages over methods which involve heating of the whole assembly. However, the localised energy delivery means that the heating and melting behaviour of the solder is particularly dependent on external and process influences. This paper aims to propose a new approach to monitoring and feedback control of the melting process through image acquisition and processing.Design/methodology/approachIn order to evaluate the proposed feedback strategy, a series of experiments have been performed using a semiconductor diode laser controlled by a PC, which also performs image acquisition and processing operations. Two main processing techniques, based on edge detection and Fourier analysis, have been evaluated.FindingsIt has been shown that the proposed technique is capable of controlling laser pulse duration to correct for variations in joint geometry, material parameters and laser energy delivery and results in more consistent solder joint formation than is achieved using fixed pulse durations.Practical implicationsThe results demonstrate that image processing is a viable technique for the control of laser soldering processes. This could significantly increase the range of applications of laser soldering techniques where determination and control of pulse parameters have been one of the major challenges.Originality/valueAlthough some work has been conducted on the use of pyrometer feedback to control laser processing, it appears that no work has been published on the use of image processing. While the processing algorithms themselves are not novel, this is a new application of these algorithms.
Failure analysis techniques for lead‐free solder joints
Authors: Castello Todd , Rooney Dan , Shangguan Dongkai 
Published: January 2007

PurposeThis paper aims to describe and document the application of commonly utilized solder joint failure analysis techniques to lead‐free solder joints.Design/methodology/approachTraditional failure analysis techniques, including visual inspection, X‐ray radiography, mechanical strength testing, dye and pry, metallography, microscopy and photomicrography, are reviewed. These techniques are demonstrated as applied to lead‐free and tin lead solder joints. Common failure modes observed in lead‐free and tin lead solder joints are described and compared.FindingsIt is shown that the traditional failure analysis techniques previously utilized for tin lead solder joints are widely applicable to the analysis of lead‐free solder joints. The changes required to effectively apply these techniques to the analysis of lead‐free solder joints are described.Originality/valueThis paper will be instrumental to the process, quality, reliability and failure analysis engineering disciplines in furthering understanding of the application of failure analysis techniques of both tin lead and lead‐free solder joints.
The effects of chip and substrate thickness on the reliability of ACA bonded flip chip joints
Authors: Frisk Laura , Kokko Kati 
Published: January 2007

PurposeThe purpose of this study is to investigate the effect of chip and substrate thickness on the thermal cycling reliability of flip chip joints assembled with anisotropic conductive adhesives (ACA) on FR‐4 substrates.Design/methodology/approachFour test lots were assembled with two substrates and two test chips. The thicknesses of the substrates were 710 and 100 μm and the thicknesses of the chips were 480 and 80 μm. To study the effect of the bonding pressure each test lot contained four test series bonded with four different bonding pressures. The reliability of the test samples was studied using a temperature cycling test.FindingsThe reliability of the test lots varied widely during the test. The test lot with a thin substrate and thin chip demonstrated considerably better reliability than the other test lots. In addition, the test lots had different failure mechanisms. After the test delamination was found in every test lot except the one assembled with the thin chip and the thin substrate.Originality/valueThe work shows that the thermal cycling reliability of ACA flip chip joints can be markedly increased by using thinned chips or reducing the thickness of the substrate.
Determining conformal coating protection
Authors: Hunt Christopher , Mensah Angela , Buxton Anthony , Holman Richard 
Published: January 2007

PurposeThis work sets out to characterise the protective properties of conformal coatings and how they degrade.Design/methodology/approachThe approach dosed several commercial coatings with two different contaminants, a synthetic generic flux mixture of dibasic acids in both a solvent‐ and water‐based carrier, and sodium chloride. The protective properties were monitored using three complementary techniques: surface insulation resistance measurements, sequential electrochemical reduction analysis, and diffusion measurements.FindingsThe experimental approach was verified and the SIR measurements were shown to be the most valuable. Coatings offered varying levels of resistance to the contaminants, with the silicone coating being the most resistant. The flux variants generally proved more harmful to the coatings, suggesting that flux diffusion through the coating exceeded that of NaCl and hence led to greater electrochemical corrosion. Flux transmission through the coatings was verified by the diffusion measurements.Research limitations/implicationsThe project only investigated a limited number of contaminates on simple single sided boards. Future work will investigate coverage effects and a wider range of contaminants.Practical implicationsThe work shows that coatings can allow diffusion of contaminates, particularly organics, which can lead to corrosion. The test methodology described here can be used to characterise coating susceptibility.Originality/valueThis work starts to develop for the first time a test methodology to characterise the protective properties of conformal coatings, and shows that flux, and hence other similar organic contaminants, may represent a protection challenge for some coating chemistries.
An exploratory study of the use of quality tools and techniques in product development
Authors: Thia C.W. , Chai Kah‐Hin , Bauly John , Xin Yan 
Published: January 2007

PurposeThe exploratory paper investigates the reasons for the adoption or non‐adoption of quality tools in industry. Although quality tools such as statistical process control and failure mode effect analysis are commonly practiced in manufacturing, the same cannot be said for product development.Design/methodology/approachWe adopted a case study approach in this study, which has been found to be the more suitable approach for exploratory research. Semi‐structured interviews ranging from half an hour to one and a half hours were conducted with seven industrialists and three academics. These industrialists are R&D managers, product development managers, project managers and engineers who have been involved in new product development (NPD) in one way or another.FindingsBuilding on previous studies, the study identified two categories of factor affecting the adoption of quality tools: internal and external factors. User‐friendliness, usefulness, time, monetary cost, flexibility and popularity of the tools are internal factors which may influence the usage of tools. External factors such as project nature, organization, industries and culture account for the external influence.Originality/valueBy identifying the possible reasons of (non‐)adoption of quality tools in NPD, researchers can better design tools and techniques which would be more readily adopt by companies.