Identification Of Key Stakeholders Research Articles

INVOLVEMENT OF DIFFERENT STAKEHOLDER GROUPS IN ENSURING CHILDREN’S DENTAL PUBLIC HEALTH: ANALYSIS AND PERSPECTIVES

Introduction: Strengthening the dental public health (DPH) of the pediatric population requires prioritizing development with the identification of key stakeholders and their leading functions.
 The aim. To analyze the current state and identify prospects for intra-industry and inter-sectoral cooperation in the process of strengthening the dental public health of the child population to justify ways of optimization.
 Materials and methods. A cross-sectional study using expert assessments involving 15 highly competent experts (competence level above 0.85) was conducted through a specially designed program. Bibliosemantic and sociological methods were employed. Expert assessments and stakeholder mapping were performed, visualizing the «authority-interest» relationship of different interested groups on a two-dimensional model. The results were analyzed using standard statistical methods with the application of Jupyter Notebook (https://jupyter.org/install). Intra-class correlation coefficients were used to assess the agreement of expert opinions. A significance level of p<0.05 was considered critical in testing all statistical hypotheses.
 Results. The graphical analysis allowed for the identification of stakeholders and determination of their roles in the DPH system. Groups with high and low levels of power and interest were identified. The agreement among experts regarding the determination of power and interest was respectively ICC=0.76 (95% CI 0.56 – 0.91) and ICC=0.79 (95% CI 0.59 – 0.92). The necessity of targeted efforts with each group, considering their capabilities and limitations, was emphasized. Key stakeholders included families, communities, family physicians, public health institutions, pediatric dentists, and others. Primary functions aimed at strengthening children’s dental health were attributed to influencing determinants of dental health, intersectoral collaboration and support for relevant initiatives at the local level are essential.
 Conclusions. The importance of developing and implementing programs aimed at improving the dental health of the child population has been established. Emphasis is placed on the significance of collaboration among various stakeholders in supporting a strategic approach to managing DPH.

Blue economy, blue finance and ocean governance for achieving sustainable development goals

AbstractThis research paper is an attempt to define and analyse the concept of the blue economy (BE) and its implications for achieving Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). This study covers aspects such as building a blue economy to achieve SDGs, the importance of a healthy ocean for current and future generations, maintaining the momentum to save the ocean, achievements of the United Nations (UN) conference on the Sustainable Blue Economy, and the highlights of the UN World Water Development Report 2020. This study specifically analyses the health effects and threats to biodiversity, adaptation and mitigation, improved wastewater management, prioritizing water, accessing climate funds, water and climate change, and the relationship between the blue economy and UN SDGs as well as identification of key stakeholders. This is achieved through a detailed literature review on the blue economy that identifies global organizations working on creating a blue economy, elements of the blue economy and current development efforts, United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, sustainability and equity, ocean governance, international law and frameworks, and improvement in governance frameworks among other issues. The methodology used attempted to develop a macro, comprehensive, and systematic aggregate database at the country level on macro parameters, namely blue economy, blue finance, BE‐SDGs linkages, water development, marine sector, SDGs data on SDG‐14 (life underwater), SDG‐6 (access to safe drinking water and sanitation), SDG‐3 (good health and well‐being), and optimal management of water resources through scientific techniques, such as building several small reservoirs instead of mega projects, develop small catchment dams and protect wetlands, soil management, micro catchment development, recharging of underground aquifers thus reducing the need for large dams, which has encountered challenges due to data limitations. The results of this research study emphasize broader stakeholder consultations at the global level to resolve the issues relating to blue economy, blue finance, and ocean governance. The most important conclusion and policy implications of the study are that international organizations including the United Nations, the Asian Development Bank, and the World Bank are working towards achieving the SDGs in general, and the blue economy, blue finance, and ocean governance in particular.

Social innovation in a typical social‐ecological system in China: Identifying linkages between the dependence of key stakeholders on ecosystem services and the level of their multi‐dimensional human well‐being

AbstractLinkages between ecosystem services and human well‐being are complex. These linkages are of particular significance to disadvantaged communities, commonly residing in marginalized rural areas, and having difficulties regarding biophysical factors, infrastructure, housing, and aging populations. In this paper, we focused on such a typical area in Southwestern China, where we examined the linkages between ecosystem services and human well‐being, underpinning our investigation by the social innovation theory and a social‐ecological system framework. Going beyond what has been done by other scientists, we considered the heterogeneity of beneficiaries and assessed human well‐being as it was valued by people, on the ground. We did it with full realization that stakeholder evaluation is becoming a novel means and an important instrument for targeting sustainability. The identification of key stakeholders in the Wolong Nature Reserve was the first step in our research. We categorized and classified the stakeholders into groups based on their dependence on ecosystem services and their socio‐economic characteristics. Significant differentiations among human well‐being were found, and stakeholders with heterogeneous socio‐economic characteristics had a varied dependence on specific ecosystem services. Further, the regression analysis performed revealed key factors that would mediate the level of human well‐being at the local level. The factors identified included the dependence of people on regulating and cultural services, their level of education, knowledge and occupation. Our results have contributed to discerning key stakeholders for ecosystem management purposes and determining the driving factors mediating the linkages between ecosystem services and human well‐being. Thus, in addition to contribution to science, the results have potential practical implications for steering a more sustainable governance of nature in areas that are similar to this typical socio‐ecological system in China.

Governing heatwaves in Europe: comparing health policy and practices to better understand roles, responsibilities and collaboration

BackgroundThe expectation that climate change will further exacerbate extreme weather events such as heatwaves is of primary concern to policymakers and scientists. Effective governance is fundamental to preparedness for and response to such threats. This paper explores the governance structures of European heat health action plans and provides insights into key stakeholders, roles, responsibilities and collaboration.MethodsThis was a two-phase qualitative study, in which we complemented a desk review of 15 European national heat health action plans (NHHAPs) with, after obtaining informed consent, 68 interviews in nine countries with key informants involved in the development, implementation and/or evaluation of these NHHAPs. A thematic analysis was used to analyze the NHHAPs inductively. This analysis focused on three themes: identifying key stakeholders, defining and assigning roles and collaboration among stakeholders. The iteratively created codebook was then applied to the analysis of the key informant interviews. All analyses were done using NVivo 10 qualitative analysis software.ResultsThe majority of the NHHAPs have governance as one of their main objectives, to support the coordination of actions and collaboration among involved stakeholders. There are, however, significant differences between plan and practice. On the basis of the available data, we have little insight into the process of stakeholder identification, but we do find that most countries involve the same types of stakeholders. Roles are mainly defined and assigned in relation to the alert levels of the warning system, causing other role aspects and other roles to be vague and ambiguous. Collaboration is key to many NHHAP elements and is mainly experienced positively, though improvements and new collaborations are considered.ConclusionsOur findings show a need for a more deliberate and structured approach to governance in the context of NHHAPs. A cross-sectoral approach to the identification of key stakeholders can facilitate a broader preparedness and response to heatwaves. Roles and responsibilities of stakeholders should be defined and assigned more clearly to avoid confusion and to improve effective implementation. To this extent, we identify and describe seven key roles and potential stakeholders to which these roles are usually assigned. Finally, also collaboration among stakeholders can benefit from a cross-sectoral approach, but also formal structures can be beneficial.

The identification of key stakeholders and information resources in the information processes of a non-profit organization using the example of the Students’ Government of Wroclaw University of Economics and Business

The identification of key stakeholders and information resources in the information processes of a non-profit organization using the example of the Students’ Government of Wroclaw University of Economics and Business

Embracing Change in the Pursuit of Excellence: Transitioning to the Clinical Internship Evaluation Tool for Student Clinical Performance Assessment

Background and Purpose. The assessment of physical therapist student competence in the clinical learning environment is valuable and necessary. However, educators and clinicians are becoming increasingly disenchanted with their chosen assessment tools and delivery platforms. The profession recently called for a pursuit of excellence that includes an analysis of performance evaluation practices and consideration of assessment tools. In line with this call, the purpose of this report was to disseminate one academic institution's exploration, implementation, and early outcomes of the transition from the Clinical Performance Instrument (CPI) to the Clinical Internship Evaluation Tool (CIET) for full-time student clinical performance assessment. Case Description. After identification of key stakeholders, the authors completed an initial exploration and comparison of CPI versus CIET, executed a pilot trial of CIET use, and implemented a transition from CPI to CIET for all full-time clinical experiences. Outcomes. This report presents the outcomes of the initial exploration and comparison of assessment tools, the CIET pilot, the academic processes in transitioning to the CIET, and the post-implementation evaluation results, each with consideration of unique stakeholder perspectives. Discussion and Conclusion. The transition from CPI to CIET for full-time student clinical performance assessment was successful in meeting the needs of key stakeholders. This report presents the first known addition to the literature regarding CIET implementation since the original institution's publications. Ongoing use and evaluation of the CIET and other alternative tools for student performance assessment, both within and across institutions, is necessary to address the profession's pursuit of excellence and to better meet the demand for contemporary educational practices in the clinical learning environment.

Translation of the shortened dental arch research into clinical practice: a stakeholder mapping approach

AimTo identify key participants that can ensure implementation of the SDA or PRDA as a prosthodontic management option using a stakeholder mapping approach.MethodsA stakeholder mapping approach is employed which is a strategic method to identify, rate the importance of input and the influence, highlighting how clinical implementation can be ensured. A stakeholder map was used as the research tool. Stakeholders were classified according to their level of influence in either assisting with change or obstructing progress as well as the impact of their input within the dental organization and the broader South African environment.ResultsSeveral stakeholders were identified and were classified in two ways: Primary or secondary and according to their affiliation with the organization where change needs to occur. Initially, a lecture on the shortened dental arch was included in 4th year of undergraduate study, after consultation with the head of the department. This was abandoned as students misunderstood the use of the concept related to clinical requirements; thus, the location of where this concept must be taught, was reconsidered. The role of other key stakeholders that could effect change was also highlighted with this approach.ConclusionThis strategic analysis allowed identification of key stakeholders and their roles that can assist with implementation of the SDA or PRDA, some of whom should be addressed further to ensure alignment of practices to health policies.Key pointsKnowledge translation consists of multiple stages from design to implementation which includes diffusion, dissemination (such as publishing) and implementation of evidence into clinical practice (application of concepts or procedures to improve patient care).Only quality research, as stipulated on the evidence pyramid, can be used to change curricula and clinical practices.The strategic approach with stakeholder mapping allows identification of key stakeholders in prosthodontics (knowledge brokers or communities of practice) that have the interest and influence to change curricula and clinical practice; including a combined approach with researchers which may enable easier application of quality care to patients.

The development of a regional referral pathway for locally recurrent rectal cancer: A Delphi consensus study

BackgroundThe management of patients with locally recurrent rectal cancer (LRRC) is often complex and requires multidisciplinary input whereas only few patients are referred to a specialist centre. The aim of this study was to design a regional referral pathway for LRRC, in Nouvelle Aquitaine (South-West, France). MethodsIn 2016, we conducted with a Study Steering Committee (SC) a three phase mixed-methods study including identification of key factors, identification of key stakeholders and Delphi voting consensus. During three rounds of Delphi voting, a consensus was defined as favorable, if at least 80% of participating experts rate the factor, below or equal to 3/10 using a Likert scale, or consider it as “useful” using a binary scale (third round only). Finally, the SC drafted guidelines. ResultsAmong the 423 physicians involved in 29 regional digestive Multi-Disciplinary Team (MDT) meeting, 59 participants (from 26 MDT meeting) completed all three rounds of Delphi voting. Thirteen out of twenty initially selected factors reached a favorable consensus. All patients with a LRRC need to be included into a referral pathway. Patients with a central pelvic recurrence offered curative treatment in their local hospital and patients with unresectable metastatic disease were excluded of the referral. Key performance indicators were also agreed including the time to referral and completion of pelvic MRI-, CT-, PET-scan prior to MDT referral. ConclusionThe development of this referral pathway represents an innovative health service, which will improve the management of patients with LRRC in France.

Guidance on stakeholder engagement practices to inform the development of area-wide vector control methods.

These recommendations on practices for stakeholder engagement build on the knowledge and experience of practitioners and subject-matter experts from a large variety of fields. They aim to provide teams involved in the development of area-wide vector control methods with guidance on how to design community and stakeholder engagement programmes as part of their development pathway. Area-wide vector control methods are not new in concept [1]. For example, the use of natural predators for biocontrol of agricultural pests or public intervention for the treatment of water bodies with larvicides are current area-wide applications. Thus, new approaches under development—such as those using sterile-male techniques, Wolbachia, or gene drive—can build upon well-established development pathways. These methods offer the benefit of providing vector control for all inhabitants of a specific treated area without individual or group biases related to economic means, level of education, etc. Although this benefit can be a great advantage, multiperson or community-applied interventions may not offer individuals the chance to ‘opt out’ of a home or area receiving the intervention [2]. There may be aspects of the research in which individuals can choose to participate or not (for example, during the collection of mosquitoes or other insects from houses), but the research or technique developed will, at some stage, require the deployment of the tools in selected sites, and residents of those sites may not be able to ‘opt out’ of these phases in the same way that individuals can decline to be part of a vaccine field trial. Therefore, although these methods may differ greatly in scope and impact, the processes for their development and use share commonalities that provide a basis for asserting a broadly applicable framework for engagement. The framework set out below attempts to leverage these commonalities to provide a starting point that may be useful to a very wide variety of projects working in this field while retaining sufficient flexibility to be tailored as appropriate to local circumstances Some methods, such as gene drives and environmentally persistent Wolbachia methods, involve modifications to vector species that could persist and disseminate through a population over time and space. This means that the scale of the human communities affected can be quite large fairly early on in the development process and may persist or increase over time. Thus, testing of area-wide vector control methods does not conform to the familiar clinical trial model employing individual informed consent [3], and a different set of research ethics considerations is required. Trial authorisation by the hosting community and, potentially, peripheral communities that may be affected may be necessary. Therefore, identification of key stakeholders and community representatives is vital, and early and ongoing engagement with them is essential. This type of engagement can enable the sharing of knowledge, experience, and perceptions between the project and its stakeholders to help ensure that the pathways for development respond to the expectations of communities and other stakeholders, that the tools developed are ultimately effective and appropriate and meet the needs and preferences of users and other potential beneficiaries, and that accountability is established for trial outcomes and eventual disease mitigation. The recommendations may serve not only for projects involved in the development of new area-wide vector control methods but also as a benchmark to shape the expectations of a wider range of stakeholders, including project funders, communities, the media, and policy makers and regulators, about what projects will and should deliver. More broadly, shared recommendations can help facilitate the alignment of approaches of different projects and provide a clear pathway for other projects entering the field. These recommendations also describe ways in which projects can engage with stakeholders to meet other requirements for their research, including community acceptance for specific activities or phases of the research that may be necessary for the research to be able to proceed. However, the ability to implement these recommendations hinges on the availability of appropriate funding. Many of the suggested activities and approaches will be resource intensive. Therefore, funders are encouraged to make adequate supplies available for stakeholder engagement at every stage of the development process.

Integrating Health Care – Our Journey Continues

Introduction: In March 2014, the NSW Government announced the NSW Integrated Care Strategy to: Transform delivery of care Improve health outcomes Reduce associated costs of inappropriate / fragmented care Practice change implemented: A Local Health District LHD and a Primary Health Network PHN have been working collaboratively and developing multiple projects across Sydney’s South West. From this collaboration, an Integrated Care Collaboration ICC group was established in October 2013. The ICC Research and Evaluation RE collaborating in partnership for the Sydney’s South West community. Timeline: Established 2013 - prospective long-term Highlights: The diversity of initiatives and future evaluation prospects has also encouraged identification of key stakeholders for broader collaboration across organisations. The number of research projects and external partnerships has increased from: 4 x initiatives, 3 x research projects, and 9 x partnerships in 2016; to 9 x initiatives, 18 x research projects and 18 x partnerships. Results from research projects have already proven valuable by providing insight into details of delivering integrated care, understanding of practical issues from implementation of the strategies, advising innovative models for new technologies, and allowing for expansion. Sustainability:The ICC R&E has been able to identify some of the factors crucial for its sustained development, including: Collaborative governance model Enhanced partnerships and relationship building Defined responsibilities and terms of reference Whole of system approach for resources allocation and project management Transferability: The increasing number on partnerships and initiatives is a result from the replication of the engagement model which has proven successful since the beginning of the original three projects. Conclusions: This collaborative model has provided a stable platform for co-designing enhanced service delivery across primary and secondary care. It has also assisted with streamlining methods and turnkey solutions implementation for identifying and addressing barriers within current models of care, and for research and evaluation methodology and reporting. Discussion: The foundation of Alliances and new ways of collaboration has open the ground for innovation and transference across Local Government Areas, where key stakeholders are identified and become the crucial backbone for the establishment of new partnerships. Lessons: Formulae for maintenance of momentum and drive for development of projects concept to completion has proven to be, in great part, due to the commitment and lead from the Working Groups.

Successful Implementation of a Therapeutic Drug Monitoring Program and Its Impact on Patient Management and Outcomes

Introduction: Therapeutic drug monitoring (TDM) of infliximab (IFX) is an important clinical tool in the management of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), both in the reactive and proactive setting. We conducted a practice improvement project utilizing a commercially available drug concentration assay through a national program that provides two free tests per year for patients on IFX. Methods: In September of 2016, the IBD program worked with the send out laboratory to send all IFX concentrations to Miraca under the Janssen 2Inform program. The infusion center, consisting of patients and staff, completed and signed necessary paperwork to enroll in the program. Samples were drawn at the time of infusion, paperwork was attached, and samples were sent to the commercial lab. Electronic medical records were retrospectively assessed to determine if use of the assay impacted clinical decision making and outcomes. Results: Fifty-eight patients were enrolled in TDM (55.2% Crohn's, 43.1% Ulcerative Colitis and 1.7% indeterminate colitis) with 81 unique IFX levels from 10/6/16 to 9/1/17. Forty-three percent (35/81) of TDM was performed in the proactive setting (no evidence of clinical, serologic or endoscopic disease activity at the time of testing). TDM resulted in changes of IFX therapy in 49% instances (37.5% following proactive TDM, 62.5% following reactive TDM). Of the changes, 31 were therapy escalation, 5 were de-escalation and 4 were discontinuation of IFX. Three levels (3.7%) in two patients had associated antibodies (one patient stopped IFX (antibody level >200), one remained on IFX (antibody level 10)). Of the 24 reactive TDM levels resulting in dose escalation, 19 (79.2%) improved in at least one clinically relevant area with symptoms being the most common area of improvement (15 of 19 levels). Of the 35 proactive IFX levels, 15 resulted in a dose change, 11 escalations and 4 de-escalations. Conclusion: Successful implementation of a TDM program into practice is possible through identification of key stakeholders from the local clinic, clinical laboratory, and infusion center, along with the development of a standardized workflow for send out labs. Barriers to implementation included multiple clinic sites and outside infusion centers. Using a readily available program, it is possible to develop and implement an institutional system for TDM that can result in clinically meaningful therapy changes, improved outcomes and increased flexibility in optimizing therapy.

Enhanced Recovery After Surgery in Surgical Specialties: Gynecologic Oncology.

Many of the enhanced recovery after surgery principles initially developed for colorectal surgery can be successfully applied to gynecologic oncology and lead to significant improvements in perioperative care. Enhanced recovery after surgery guidelines specific to gynecologic oncology were published in 2016 and provide a framework for the development and implementation of institutional protocols. Identification of key stakeholders and a multidisciplinary approach are critical to identifying which principles are best suited for implementation at a particular institution and for ensuring success of the protocol. Herein, we review our experience with protocol development and implementation on a gynecologic oncology service.

Classification of External Stakeholders Pressures in Green Supply Chain Management

The increasing importance of environmental issues requires efforts in different area of research and application. Green Supply Chain Management (GSCM) offers great potentials for the improvement of ecological performance of manufacturers.The purpose of this paper is to explore the stakeholders’ pressures on green supply chains, and to develop a taxonomy framework that can be used for green supply chain decision makers based on the characteristic dimensions for the green supply chain. The taxonomic framework is developed through (i) analysis of different dimension of green supply chain found in existing empirical work or case studies recorded in the literature, (ii) identification of key stakeholders’ pressures that influence green supply chain management initiative.

The Importance of Understanding the Stakeholders in Industry Actions - A Corporate Social Responsibility Perspective

A great pressure has arisen lately in the business world by movements like occupy Wall Street, or more concerning economic crises started in 2008. Due to this pressure, companies have to be more careful and act more responsibly. In the recent years, Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) has been seen like a panacea of all stakeholders problems, more and more reports of CSR being published on companies website. However, it has been proven that just to claim actions of social responsibility, does not mean those companies are truly responsible. As expected, this behavior is penalized by a part of stakeholders. In this context, for each firm is important to know which are the most representative stakeholders, and how a certain situation could affect this scale. For explaining this fact, this paper analyzes the case of Brent Spar, pointing how an industrial giant like Shell, using a wrong CSR policy, could lose both money and image capital. In order to do that, in the first part is discussed the CSR from the perspective of stakeholder theory. Although it is present since 1950s in the United States of America and evolved all over the world like an all known concept, CSR does not have yet an universally accepted definition. Therefore, in this article was stated a definition for CSR from the stakeholder theory approach, in order to understand the Brent Spar actions and implications. In the second part of the paper are analyzed the steps taken by both sides, on one hand by Shell and on the other, by some of the stakeholders. The actions have been explained from the CSR paradigm perspective. Finally, it is proved why Brent Spar is a case of CSR failed, and how, by neglecting of some stakeholders categories, a company could pay important costs. Moreover, the paper demonstrates that the image of one company, from a specific area, could affect the all industry field. Therefore, a proper identification of key stakeholders, a good communication with those and flexibility in decision, could be the success factors for companies, and may lead to successful CSR. Correct CSR actions become an imperative in nowadays industrial scenario, being viewed as a change imposed by globalization and by the transnational nature of CSR.

Problem alcohol use among problem drug users: development and content of clinical guidelines for general practice

Problem alcohol use is common and associated with considerable adverse outcomes among patients who attend primary care in Ireland and other European countries for opiate substitution treatment. This paper aims to describe the development and content of clinical guidelines for the management of problem alcohol use among this population. The guidelines were developed in three stages: (1) identification of key stakeholders, (2) development of evidence-based draft guidelines, and (3) determination of a modified 'Delphi-facilitated' consensus among the group members. The guidelines incorporate advice for physicians on all aspects of care, including (1) definition of problem alcohol use among problem drug users, (2) alcohol screening, (3) brief intervention, and (4) subsequent management of patients with alcohol dependence. Primary care has an important role to play in the care of problem alcohol use among problem drug users, especially opiate substitution patients. Further research on strategies to inform the implementation of these guidelines is a priority.

Crisis Communication in the Area of Risk Management: The CriCoRM Project.

BackgroundDuring the last H1N1 pandemic has emerged the importance of crisis communication as an essential part of health crisis management. The Project aims specifically to improve the understanding of crisis communication dynamics and effective tools and to allow public health institutions to communicate better with the public during health emergencies.Design and methodsThe Project will perform different activities: i) state of the art review; ii) identification of key stakeholders; iii) communicational analysis performed using data collected on stakeholder communication activities and their outcomes considering the lessons learnt from the analysis of the reasons for differing public reactions during pandemics; iv) improvement of the existing guidelines; v) development of Web 2.0 tools as web-platform and feed service and implementation of impact assessment algorithms; vi) organization of exercises and training on this issues.Expected impact of the study for public healthIn the context of health security policies at an EU level, the project aims to find a common and innovative approach to health crisis communication that was displayed by differing reactions to the H1N1 pandemic policies. The focus on new social media tools aims to enhance the role of e-health, and the project aims to use these tools in the specific field of health institutions and citizens. The development of Web 2.0 tools for health crisis communication will allow an effective two-way exchange of information between public health institutions and citizens. An effective communication strategy will increase population compliance with public health recommendations.Significance for public healthThe specific aim of the project is to develop a European strategy approach on how to communicate with the population and with different stakeholders groups involved in the crisis management process, based on an analysis of the communication process during the H1N1 pandemic (content analysis of press releases, press coverage and forum discussions) and on interviews with key stakeholders in health crisis communication. The development of web 2.0 tools, providing rapid responses will allow real-time verification of awareness of social trends and citizens’ response. Furthermore, the project would like to offer these resources to the EU Public Health Institutions and EU citizens to improve their interaction, and hence reinforce citizens’ right to patient-centred health care. The project proposal has been designed in accordance with the general principles of ethics and the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights with regard to human rights, values, freedom, solidarity, and better protection of European citizens.

Stakeholder Conflict Resolution Model (S-CRM) Based On Supervised Learning

Various stakeholders are involved in the creation of software projects. In general, the higher the number of stakeholders involved during the requirements elicitation phase, the better are the chances of success for the project. However, it is rather difficult to consider the opinion of all the stakeholders owing to constraints on time and resources. Furthermore, conflicts between stakeholders can become inevitable when the number of stakeholders increases. Thus, the identification of key stakeholders is an important factor in ensuring the success of a project. In this paper, a methodical stakeholder conflict resolution model (s-CRM) is proposed by considering an actual industrial case study. The proposed model uses information gain based on entropy when measuring the impurity of information. We believe that the proposed s-CRM is effective in identifying the key stakeholders and in intuitively indicating those stakeholders whose elicited requirements need to be weighted. In addition, the model provides a solution for conflicts among stakeholders during requirements engineering.

Investigating social marketing sponsorships: Terminology, stakeholders, and objectives

In spite of rapidly increasing professional interest and involvement, the extant literature concerning social marketing sponsorships remains scant. In order to begin to address this gap, the purpose of the current research is to investigate the concept of the social marketing sponsorship. The research in this paper (a) reviews the sponsorship literature and theory - specifically focusing on what is meant by sponsorship when used in social marketing; and (b) reports the results of empirical case research on the formation and implementation of a sponsorship designed to support a social marketing program aimed a reducing stigma and changing behaviors around mental health. The paper reports on how social marketing sponsorships compare to commercial sponsorships in terms of (a) the identification of key stakeholders and their roles, (b) the objectives of the stakeholders involved, and (c) how sponsorships are formed, developed, and implemented.

Assessing the failure of a community-based human-wildlife conflict mitigation project in Budongo Forest Reserve, Uganda

AbstractPrimate crop raiding is a major cause of human-wildlife conflict around the forests of western Uganda. In an attempt to ameliorate the situation a conflict mitigation strategy was established in villages around the Budongo Forest Reserve in 2001. Live-traps were constructed that allowed the identification of crop raiding animals; pest species could be disposed of and threatened species released unharmed. However, by 2004 none of the traps in the study area were functioning and interviews were conducted to assess the reasons for their decline and local people's acceptance of the intervention. Forty-one percent of respondents did not believe the strategy was effective and the majority of local farmers did not accept responsibility for the traps. This was because of operational failures in four areas: (1) the identification of key stakeholders, (2) objective evaluation to assess the efficacy and benefit of the intervention, (3) participatory monitoring and evaluation, and (4) long-term funding commitment by conservation agencies. We examine the impact of these four elements upon the sustainability of the live-trap programme and stress the importance of recognizing and reporting failures to develop effective and acceptable mitigation strategies.