ABSTRACTThe resource-based view of the firm has drawn attention to the role of human resources in building innovative capacity within firms. In ‘high technology’ firms, scientific capability is a critical factor in achieving international competitiveness. Science, however, is a costly business and many firms are entering into cross-sector R&D partnerships in order to gain access to leading edge scientific capability. The Australian Cooperative Research Centres (CRC) program is typical of the ways many governments are seeking to promote such cross-sector R&D collaboration. Scientists are key resources in these organisational arrangements. However, there is only fragmentary information available about why and when scientists choose to work in these cross-sector organisations rather than others, or the impact of changing funding regimes on their career choices. Similarly, there has been little research into the impact of such partnerships and career choices on the organisations in which scientists work. This paper presents some findings from two new ARC funded studies in Australia designed to investigate the careers of scientists and the organisational and career implications of participation in cross-sector R&D collaboration. One of our findings is that CRCs may not endure as long term ‘hybrid’ organisational arrangements as some observers have suggested, but rather remain as transitional structure influencing the partners involved and the careers of scientists. This has important implications for the managers of CRCs as well as those responsible for partner organisations.

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ABSTRACTThis study examined the impact of situational and individual characteristics on sales representatives' propensity to lie or to tell the truth. The situational elements were the honesty of the organisation climate and its formal rules about lying to customers. The individual elements were the participants' degree of Machiavellianism and tolerance for ambiguity. The results indicated that more Machiavellian people were more likely to lie and that they were less guided by the rules than people who were low in this trait. In addition, rules and climate work together for people with a high tolerance for ambiguity in a complex manner.

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Anne S. Huff has a reputation that goes before her for helping other academics, particularly in their endeavours to have their work published. I attended one of Anne's sessions on writing for scholarly publication and had my eyes opened to the traps a researcher can fall into; I was also made aware of ways to focus my effort to maximum effect In the workshop sessions that Anne conducts she shares her successes but also acknowledges she too had difficulties in getting her research accepted for publication. I trusted that her advice was sound because she has been there and done that.Some time after the workshop I felt the need to bring the conversations that we had during that workshop to a wider audience. I asked Anne if she would consent to an interview that would take readers along one of her research journeys. To my surprise Anne was more than delighted to do the interview and she found the idea of having the focus of our conversation on the process or research journey she undertook rather than the outcomes that are usually reported in journals quite novel. We agreed to meet at the EURAM 2005 conference which she co-organised.Research is reported in a different way than it was first conceived An interesting (but often undiscussed) aspect of research is the process or journey that is undertaken to reach the reported outcomes. Junior and senior staff alike can learn a great deal from understanding the research journey that eminent scholars have undertaken. In this conversation Professor Huff takes us along the research path she followed in several projects, especially work with Professor Louis Pondy between 1979 and 1986. Anne discusses how the research changed shape over time as well as detailing how and why the research came to an end. She gives us an insight into problems that resulted in deviations from an initial research plan. Through Anne's discussion of the research we discover how issues were handled and with the benefit of hindsight what aspects of the research she would change. Finally, Anne shares some general lessons for undertaking research.

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VILKINAS, T. (Ed.) 2005 The Thesis Journey: Tales of Personal Triumph. Pearson Education Australia ISBN: 0-7339-7278-0 The Thesis Journey is a book about students' and supervisors' experiences around their Higher Research Degrees (HRDs). It is essentially a collection of short essays on the HRD experience. Eleven of the chapters are written by HRD students and four are written by two supervisors. All are My experience of... chapters except for the first (an aim and outline of the book) and the final. The final chapter is particularly relevant for theoretical and practical purposes, as it summarises and interprets the previous chapters in the book. The chapters written by students focus on several themes :- * Motivation for undertaking a HRD * Impediments and obstacles in the process (both personal and professional) * Strategies for overcoming these * Rewarding parts of the journey As would be expected, there are differing, and some competing, perspectives within the book as to what makes a successful HRD and what personal characteristics one must have to achieve this. The chapters are all written from a process (rather than content) perspective, which is more appropriate given the aim. However, it does present the ideas as rather ethereal and without context. The opposite end of the spectrum is much less appealing and would involve a precis of the student's dissertation without the rigour of a content editorial process. The book focusing on students' lived experiences is certainly its scope, however, there is an institutional bias throughout the pieces, as they refer to similar experiences, such the parable used to explain epistemology and ontology and the style of supervision displayed by one of the authors. There is also a limited range of perspectives in terms of student diversity; most appear to be students who have come from a long-term Public Sector career and have recently left or are still employed whilst trying to juggle the demands of a HRD. This certainly shapes their contributions. Motivation The motivation for undertaking a HRD varies from self-actualising personal challenges to being instrumental in career progression. These are all personal accounts of how the contributor came into the process. Chapter 2 explores the difficulty in having a research area that is not popular with academics and the difficulty therein in starting a PhD. Chapter 6 has a particularly personal perspective on why the HRD process was undertaken. Chapter 10 uses self-deprecating humour refreshingly to explore the issues in HRD study later in life. Impediments The impediments are covered in depth, as would be expected (most of the contributors are in the later stages of PhDs). The difficulties associated with HRD are often personal issues that seem to invariably arise during crucial stages, and many of the contributors acknowledge emotional difficulties throughout the process, in particular, Chapters 5 and 6 describe the sense of being overwhelmed and inept (a process that certainly all HRD students encounter). Content-related issues are also covered, such as the issues associated with using an unconventional methodology (Chapter 5). Chapter 7 reflects on the overall usefulness of the process and the sense of doubt that plagues HRD students. Strategies for Overcoming Some of the strategies suggested for overcoming the obstacles are quite tangible and pragmatic in nature (such as Chapter 3's tips to organise information and stop procrastinating). There is general useful advice (Chapters 8 and 9), which a reader might be inclined to consider as having reiterative value only; the usefulness is in the experience of such techniques and approaches. …

John Dawson and Jung-Hee Lee (Eds.) 2004International Retailing Plans and Strategies in Asia International Business Press ISBN: 13: 978-0-7890-2889-1 Co-published simultaneously as “Journal of Global Marketing” Vol 18, No's 1/2. - Volume 11 Issue 2