Technical Leadership Research Articles

Lessons from the First Year of the International Bio-Logging Society’s Data Standardisation Working Group

The Data Standardisation Working Group pursues the recently formed International Bio-Logging Society's (IBioLS) objective “to progress standardisation of data protocols used within the bio-logging community, with a view to making databases interoperable”. During 2017 and 2018, the group has garnered a lot of interest across the sector from well over 200 colleagues with broad international representation from device manufacturers, researchers, biodiversity data experts and bio-logging database managers. Through a series of remote meetings, the group has explored a range of existing, relevant standards, projects and platforms that could be leveraged to facilitate data decoding, exchange, archiving and discoverability. This presentation will highlight some of the research and examples discussed by the group including the Open Geospatial Consortium (OGC) and W3C sensor-based standards that are being adopted in similar sectors, Darwin Core and the OBIS-ENV-DATA Darwin Core format as a way to define completed datasets, NASA’s Oceanographic In-situ data Interoperability Project (OIIP), which developed prototype templates for biologging data, and the NERC Vocabulary Server for managing persistent terms. Considerable challenges ahead lie in resourcing the development of standards, enabling technical leadership, and negotiating governance and consensus in a domain where most of the stakeholders participate in a common market as either manufacturers or consumers of sensor infrastructure.

Seeking Nominations for 2020 SID Honors and Awards

Seeking Nominations for 2020 SID Honors and Awards

Experience from a Program for Accelerating the Creation of T‐shaped Technical Leaders

AbstractIn the aerospace industry systems are becoming more and more complex. At the same time development projects run for longer time periods. Consequently there are fewer opportunities for engineers to experience the full system lifecycle and the associated nuances in development. This in turn makes it more challenging to grow staff suitable for technical leadership roles, including both breadth and depth of technical skills as well as soft skills for leading large engineering projects.In this paper we examine the desired competencies of a technical leader by extending the T‐shape engineer model and use the said model to discuss an organization internal, 2.5 year, program to accelerate the creation of technical leaders. The evaluation is performed through interviews with program participants and organizational internal stakeholders. Overall the program has proven cost efficient and successful in the sense the program participants in many cases have progressed into technical leadership roles. The program, as described, has been executed within a single organization but should be feasible to execute in other organizational settings. While results are very positive, there are some identified improvement suggestions included in the analysis of the program.

Poor Municipal Waste Management and Its Health Implication: A Case Study of Kabul City

A detailed study of the ongoing situation shows that the solid waste management in Kabul is not appropriate and a set of challenges exists in a different part of the system, local people have more concern with solid waste, but from another side, they devote less attention to them. Most of them do not have knowledge about the impact of hazardous waste and how to separate and recyclable. Management of municipal solid waste in Kabul has travailed neglect from government and the general public. These negligence lead to several health issues such as direct injuries from a contaminated sharp object, water contamination by excreta and effect of heavy metal components of municipal solid waste as well as flood resulting from drain occlusion. All these flowers in the possibilities for the transition of food and waterborne zoonozes, and the emergence and re-emergence of new zoonozes. To ensure environmental protection and opportunity to the public health, more effort is required by the government, environmental agencies, and the general public. The whole system needs a behavioral change from the public site and better waste management practice on the local government side. Solid waste management practices are not adequate and show very common constraint in collection, management, and disposal of solid waste. The problem such as access to the proper facilities lack of treatment program lack of infrastructure planning and technical leadership and lack of knowledge. These efforts should be geared toward public enlightenment and enforcement of policies and legislation on sanitation, improvement of founding, development of recycling, and landfill to improve the standard solid waste management in Kabul.

Technical rationality and leadership: analysis of the banner format in the public policy offer

Within the framework of the implementation of the neoliberal project in Chile, we investigate the communicational and political implications of the presence of the banner format in the promotion of plans, programs and social projects available in the public offering on the websites of the Government Ministries of Chile. We discuss three aspects: the development of an Electronic Government; the distinction between advertising and publicity; and the technical rationality that its use is observed. We conclude that this format is not driven by technological development but by a series of changes in both the political system and the country's culture. So its articulation with technologies is developed as a way to optimally manage changes, resulting in the emergence of a type of subject that, inspired by the figures of the “entrepreneurial self” and the “citizen credit card”, is called as “on-line citizen”.

Decay of Competence with Extended Research Absences During Residency Training: A Scoping Review

Purpose: A significant number of residents in postgraduate training programs pursue dedicated research training. Currently, no formal curricula exist to transition residents back into clinical roles following dedicated research leave. This scoping review aims to determine what literature exists on the challenges faced by trainees who interrupt their clinical training for extended periods of time for research leave. Methods: The Pubmed and MEDLINE databases were searched for all study designs related to postgraduate trainees taking academic or research leave. A three-step selection process was employed to identify articles that mentioned decay of knowledge, skill or competence. A narrative review of the literature was generated to present key themes identified within the studies. Results: The search yielded 174 articles of which five investigated resident skill decay during research leave. The five studies included for analysis were cohort studies which used general surgery residents’ self-perception and faculty members’ perception of residents’ skill decay as a measure. Residents and faculty perceived decay of residents’ technical skills, leadership skills and knowledge following dedicated research leave. The greatest decay perceived was in technical skills, specifically with more complex tasks and longer periods of non-use. Conclusions: Residents and faculty perceive a decay of resident skills following dedicated research training. To provide the necessary support to limit this potential decay, as well as to assist in the transition back into clinical training, the needs of and challenges faced by research residents and postgraduate programs must be better understood.

Middle leaders’ perceptions and actions on assessment: the technical, tactical and ethical

ABSTRACTAssessment leadership has often been associated with school leaders (SL), comprising principals and vice-principals. This study aimed to examine the under-researched assessment leadership role of Middle Leaders (ML) instead. Data was drawn from a larger, mixed-methods project that involved a self-report questionnaire administered to principals, MLs and teachers across twelve schools as well as observations and one-to-one interviews with one ML each from seven schools. The study found that Assessment for Learning (AfL) has gained some traction among the MLs because of the assessment practices they value, they rate more highly those more associated with AfL, particularly Student Involvement and Engagement; compared with Grading / Reporting which is more directly related to summative assessments. In particular, the study found that MLs used three dominant approaches in their assessment leadership – Technical, Tactical and Ethical. Technical leadership was seen in their focus on overseeing the technical aspects of assessment, particularly in aligning assessment to curriculum goals and expecting teachers to deliver on grading and reporting, for accountability purposes. In response to various tensions encountered in their work, the MLs also exercised tactical and ethical leadership. These findings highlight how MLs’ perceptions and actions are influenced by and mediate policy implementation in schools.

PENGEMBANGAN KOMPETENSI APARATUR DALAM MENINGKATKAN KINERJA PEGAWAI DI DINAS KELAUTAN DAN PERIKANAN PROVINSI KALIMANTAN TIMUR

The purpose of this study is to describle and analize the Competency Development Resource Apparatus in Improving Employee Performance in the Marine and Fisheries Agency of East Kalimantan. This type of research is descriptive with qualitative approach. Drawing conclutions based on the data were processed using data analysis interactive model. Based on the results of this study concluded that the competence development of the personel in the Department of Marine and Fisheries, East Kalimantan Province which is implemented through education and technical training, education and leadership training, career development and adds yet optimal work experience carried out but benefits have been felt able to improve employee performance. Keyword: apparatur, performance, resource, competence

Imagining the unmanageable: MBAs at the limits of neoliberalism

ABSTRACTMBAs are trained to manage the edges of neoliberal capitalism. Contemporary MBA programmes in the United States cultivate the ideal of an entrepreneurial manager by staging the convergence of two boundaries of neoliberalism. One has to do with the unmanageable and uneconomic (and unavoidable) excess of the social. This is nowhere more apparent than in business schools’ rediscovery of international spaces of capitalism. Over the past two decades, US MBA curricula have been engaged in a re-enchantment of the world as a patchwork of spaces marked by enduring, risky and potentially valuable cultural differences, in contrast to the anticipation of their more efficient incorporation as dispersed sites of a flat world under earlier scenarios of global neoliberalism. A second boundary has to do with the holistic ideal of the manager, whose success rests upon complementing the always-incomplete technocratic expertise in functional business skills with a supplement of talent, instinct and creative insight. Business schools produce the agents of neoliberal capitalism from an explicit reckoning of the limits of such claims about the world and its subjects. This essay focuses on the ways MBA curricula frame international business contexts as calling forward the fullest expression of technical and talented MBA leadership.

Learnings from a Practitioner’s Executive Education Experiences in India

The author with the help of caselets helps showcase learnings in the area of executive education in India, from across sectors and organisations. These include sectors of retail, healthcare and IT services and include instances of different types of executive education—at the supervisory, managerial, leadership, technical leadership, management trainee and head of department levels. The author captures key learnings during specific learning interventions in the caselets and also notes the results from such interventions.

Employee Training and its Effectiveness among IT and ITES Employees of Bengaluru City

Information technology is the key sector of modern and digitalized India. The sector is considerably contributing towards the GDP of the nation. The IT sector offers numerous job offerings to the young and talented professionals. Teamwork and diversified work environment is predestined in any work environment. In this era IT industry is facing lots of changes and succession planning becomes most important. Knowledge transfer practices will help the employees in tactical decision-making, leadership and in technical expertise. Attrition rate need to be brought down in the industry. Training is the only solution for achieving productivity and improving employee performance. For this purpose, the author identified 6 important constructs of training based on existing literature and tried to explore the interrelationship and impact on effectiveness of training. Among all the assets, human asset is very important and precious too. Those companies who invest in human capital will alone survive in this dynamic and competitive business scenario. Improved training will reduce the staff attrition, trim down the miscommunication, cut down the redundant costs. Improved employee performance will be an empowered employee who needs less supervision and guidance. Findings of the study proved that there exists interrelationship between professional technical expertise, diversity, relationship building, leadership, teamwork and coaching. When an organization optimally executes these constructs, undoubtedly there will be enhanced performance and greater productivity.

Determinants of Sustainable Business with Respect to Agricultural Engineering Manufacturing Companies

Agricultural machinery and equipment manufacturing companies are the integral part of the Agri business sector in India. They play a key role in agricultural development of our country. In the emerging need of buyers’ market, business sustainability plays an important role in the area of Agricultural Engineering Manufacturing Companies. This empirical research aims to identify and address the factors influencing business sustainability of Agri Engineering Manufacturing Companies of Karnataka, India. A pilot study has been conducted to identify the most influencing factors of Agri Engineering Manufacturing Companies. Pilot study result shows that, entrepreneurial competency, business model and innovation are the key influencing factors of business sustainability. As a part of demographic profile analysis, age group of the entrepreneurs, level of education of entrepreneurs, their business tenure, annual turnover and annual profit have been analyzed to ascertain their impact on business sustainability. It is suggested to the entrepreneurs to attend technical training sessions, leadership skills and personality development training programs to enhance their entrepreneurial competencies for business sustainability. It is also required to adopt suitable business model and innovation for business sustainability. However, the additional factors influencing the business sustainability of Agri Engineering Manufacturing Companies would be addressed during further research.

Estrategias de innovación en la gerencia del sector MiPyME de Santa Marta, Colombia

El objetivo de la investigación fue la identificación de estrategias gerenciales del sector de las MiPyME de Santa Marta, Colombia. Se estudiaron bases teóricas de los autores Ohmae, Robert, David y Martínez. La metodología se basó en el paradigma de investigación positivista. Para la recolección de datos se elaboró un cuestionario, validado por expertos y aplicado a una población de 40 empleados, el cual arrojó como resultado la aplicación de estrategias de innovación ofensiva, defensiva, imitativa, dependiente, tradicional y oportunista o de nicho. Se concluye que el comportamiento gerencial refleja la preocupación por obtener un liderazgo técnico, no se asumen riesgos para la innovación, se busca ganar ventaja de errores de los demás, no comprar tecnología existente, vender sus productos sin cambiarlos, mejora de procesos operativos e identificar oportunidades en el mercado, demostrando total apoyo a la competencia regional.

Forrest S. Mozer Receives 2018 John Adam Fleming Medal

Forrest S. Mozer was awarded the 2018 John Adam Fleming Medal at the AGU Fall Meeting Honors Ceremony, held on 12 December 2018 in Washington, D. C. The medal is for “original research and technical leadership in geomagnetism, atmospheric electricity, aeronomy, space physics, and/or related sciences.”

Measures matter: A scoping review of maternal and newborn indicators.

BackgroundA variety of global-level monitoring initiatives have recommended indicators for tracking progress in maternal and newborn health. As a first step supporting the work of WHO’s Mother and Newborn Information for Tracking Outcomes and Results (MoNITOR) Technical Advisory Group, we aimed to compile and synthesize recommended indicators in order to document the landscape of maternal and newborn measurement and monitoring.MethodsWe conducted a scoping review of indicators proposed by global multi-stakeholder groups to suggest next steps to further support maternal and newborn measurement and monitoring.Indicators pertaining to pregnancy, childbirth, and postpartum/postnatal and newborn care were extracted and included in the indicator compilation, together with key indicator metadata. We examined patterns and relationships across the compiled indicators.ResultsWe identified 140 indicators linked to maternal and newborn health topics across the continuum of service provision. Fifty-five indicators relate to inputs and processes, 30 indicators relate to outputs, outcomes comprise 37 indicators in the database, and 18 impact indicators. A quarter of indicators proposed by global groups is either under development/discussion or is considered “aspirational”, highlighting the currently evolving monitoring landscape. Although considerable efforts have been made to harmonize indicator recommendations, there are still relatively few indicators shared across key monitoring initiatives and some of those that are shared may have definitional variation.ConclusionRapid, wide-ranging work by a number of multi-stakeholder groups has resulted in a substantial number of indicators, many of which partially overlap and many are not supported with adequate documentation or guidance. The volume of indicators, coupled with the number of initiatives promoting different indicator lists, highlight the need for strengthened coordination and technical leadership to harmonize recommendations for improved measurement and monitoring of data related to maternal and newborn heath.

English

For organizations to measure the performance of its employees there is a need to have key performance indicators and performance standards set. The current study at Gweru and Kwekwe City Councils in Zimbabwe assessed eight (8) performance aspects, which are quality work, employee output, communication and dependability (customer), controlling of costs (financial), planning, team working, problem solving and technical understanding (internal methods/organization procedure) and leadership management (learning and growth potential). The study was a quantitative descriptive survey that allowed managers to appraise employee performance. All 32 line managers participated in the research, and 400 employees were selected using stratified random sampling by departments, as employees reported to the same managers. The constructs that measured employee performance were reliable with Cronbach's Alpha reliability coefficients ranging from problem analysis and resolution (0.734), employee controlling costs (0.794), planning and organizing (0.796), employee output (0.778), employee communication (0.823), employee leadership (0.8333) and employee dependability (0.861). Generally, employee performance with regard to quality service for customer needs, financials, internal procedures and learning and growth was low. The technical understanding attribute of performance among employees as determined by managers had the least mean score (12.4%), indicating that public sector organizations like city councils in Zimbabwe, may still engage ‘Rocks' kind of employees. Rocks are the kind of employees who are incompetent because they do not have the technical understanding to do the job and they seem not to care. It is recommended that managers in Gweru and Kwekwe city councils should come up with rigorous training and development policies and practices that help employees acquire relevant skills. Performance indicators should be clearly communicated to all employees. The Gweru and Kwekwe city councils should develop a performance management system that is linked to their performance goals. Constant performance feedback should be given to both managers and employees. Key words: Employee performance indicators, employee appraisal, Cronbach’s Alpha reliability coefficients, technical understanding, rocks, relevant skills.

The Impact of Continuous Training on Maximizing Efficiency in Tax Administration: The Case of a State Internal Revenue Service (SIRS) in the North Central Region of Nigeria

The purpose of this study is to establish the role of continuous training in maximizing efficiency in tax administration using the case of a State Internal Revenue Service (SIRS) in the North Central Region of Nigeria. The study examined the strategies adopted for continuous training by the SIRS and subsequently measured the impact of these strategies on the performance of all levels of management (low, middle and top) of the SIRS under focus.
 The SIRS identified the need for training from its inception and built into its process the entry training programme (of 3 months) for all staff, the monthly field feedback and training (of a day monthly) for all staff, directorates’ regular technical training, professional trainings, and leadership and management trainings (both local and international). These schedule five stage trainings have become a closely knitted continuous training strategy that has improved the skills and capacities of the employees of the SIRS. To ascertain the extent to which the above have impacted on the employees, the SWOT Analysis was adopted along with the appraisal of five set of questionnaires applied to 642 staff of the SIRS present at a particular month field feedback session.
 
 The five set of questionnaires were designed to measure; (1) the state of change readiness of employees of the SIRS for service excellence, (2) the state of change thinking of employees of the SIRS for service excellence, (3) the state of resistance to change by the employees of the SIRS, (4) the state of resistance to going through the process of change by the employees of the SIRS, and (5) the state of resistance to leaving the current state for the desired state of excellence. All these are targeted towards measuring the state of readiness for change, through continuous training, on the employees’ commitment, efficiency and performance. The above is in addition to the analysis of the individual strengths and weaknesses that culminates in the organizational strengths and weaknesses, including the environmental opportunities and threats which have a significant role to play on the organizational performance. 
 The findings revealed that between 73 - 87 percent of the staff of the SIRS are change ready, with positive change thinking mentality, not resistant to change, not resistant to going through the change process, and are not resistant to leaving the current state for the desired state of excellence. Ultimately, the study concludes that there is a positive relationship between continuous training, and employee commitment and job satisfaction, on the one hand, and continuous training and performance excellence as relating to efficiency and effectiveness in tax administration, on the other hand.
 
 This study is a pioneer one that extends the employee commitment debate to the Internal Revenue Service, using this SIRS as a case study. It provides an explanation, with empirical evidence, by demonstrating that training extends direct positive effect on employee commitment in revenue administration. The study also demonstrates that, in the revenue administration, job satisfaction helps to transmit the effect of continuous training on employee commitment and performance excellence.

The design and implementation of the re-vitalised integrated disease surveillance and response (IDSR) in Uganda, 2013\u20132016

BackgroundUganda adopted and has been implementing the Integrated Disease Surveillance (IDSR) strategy since 2000. The goal was to build the country’s capacity to detect, report promptly, and effectively respond to public health emergencies and priorities. The considerable investment into the program startup realised significant IDSR core performance. However, due to un-sustained funding from the mid-2000s onwards, these achievements were undermined. Following the adoption of the revised World Health Organization guidelines on IDSR, the Uganda Ministry of Health (MoH) in collaboration with key partners decided to revitalise IDSR and operationalise the updated IDSR guidelines in 2012.MethodsThrough the review of both published and unpublished national guidelines, reports and other IDSR program records in addition to an interview of key informants, we describe the design and process of IDSR revitalisation in Uganda, 2013–2016. The program aimed to enhance the districts’ capacity to promptly detect, assess and effectively respond to public health emergencies.ResultsThrough a cascaded, targeted skill-development training model, 7785 participants were trained in IDSR between 2015 and 2016. Of these, 5489(71%) were facility-based multi-disciplinary health workers, 1107 (14%) comprised the district rapid response teams and 1188 (15%) constituted the district task forces. This training was complemented by other courses for regional teams in addition to the provision of logistics to support IDSR activities. Centrally, IDSR implementation was coordinated and monitored by the MoH’s national task force (NTF) on epidemics and emergencies. The NTF and in close collaboration with the WHO Country Office, mobilised resources from various partners and development initiatives. At regional and district levels, the technical and political leadership were mobilised and engaged in monitoring and overseeing program implementation.ConclusionThe IDSR re-vitalization in Uganda highlights unique features that can be considered by other countries that would wish to strengthen their IDSR programs. Through a coordinated partner response, the program harnessed resources which primarily were not earmarked for IDSR to strengthen the program nation-wide. Engagement of the local district leadership helped promote ownership, foster accountability and sustainability of the program.

SE Technical Leadership ‐ A Model Based Framework

AbstractSystems engineering technical experience in conjunction with leadership skills have been considered as recipe for successful systems’ developments (Williams & Reyes, 2012). A technical leader shall be able to easily link up technical engineering professionals and management teams. Competencies such as strategic thinker, systems thinker, effective communicator, team members’ success enabler, project vision holder are necessary for someone to play a technical leader role. This paper attempts to introduce a model based systems engineering framework to define and articulate technical leader competencies. As a work product from the second cohort of the INCOSE Technical Leadership Institute (TLI), this paper leverages the technical leadership mind‐map developed by the first cohort of the TLI.

RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN AUDIT COMMITTEE CHARACTERISTICS AND THE AUDIT EXPECTATION GAP WITHIN STATE CORPORATIONS IN KENYA

Purpose: The current study sought to identify the relationship between audit committee characteristics and the audit expectation gap within the public sector in Kenya.Methodology: The study adopted a positivism philosophy and a descriptive research design in solving the research problem. The target population for the research was pooled from audit committee members in all the 119 state parastatals. The study relied on primary data that was collected using semi-structured questionnaires and key informant interview schedules. This was further supplemented using secondary data that was sourced from government reports and published reports. The collected data was analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics. Statistical tests such as ANOVA and t-test was conducted to help in accepting or rejecting the research hypothesis.Results: The study findings indicated that audit committee composition R2 = .107 and audit committee meetings R2 = .19 had the highest association with audit expectation gap in state corporations.Unique contribution to theory, practice and policy: The study recommends that gender inclusion should be upheld within the public sector and more so within audit committees. Further in constituting audit committees there is need for stakeholders to ensure individual competencies such as technical skills, leadership qualities and integrity are available to help mitigate expectation gap. More so there should be appropriate skill mix within the audit committee which should be regularly assessed to ensure conformity to best standards of practice.