Traditional Process Management Research Articles

Soundscape Planning As A Tool To Enhance Quality Of Life

Sound environment is an essential aspect of the physical comfort of urban open spaces, and it is considered one of many factors influencing the quality of life of city dwellers. From this perspective, this paper promotes the idea that the acoustic aspects of open spaces can, and should be, subject to design in the same way as are the visual dimensions. The research illustrates how people perceive sound in open spaces. Followed by, presenting the soundsapce concept advantages over the current used noise control management paradigm. The paper afterwards explores the significance of soundscape design to the quality of life. It concludes with a proposed conceptual theoretical framework that integrates soundscape planning, and acoustic design, within the traditional planning and management process in urban areas. The framework presents different practices on several levels as urban planning, urban design, landscape design and sound management regulations in the city. The framework strives to create desirable soundscapes, compatible with predetermined acoustic objectives, for more convenient, attractive spaces in the city.

Involving user perspective in a software risk management process

AbstractMore and more user groups are using medical devices. Heart starters are, for example, available in public places and used by non‐professionals. Different mobile medical applications, designed to help people manage their own health, are now being added to the medical device spectra. Users handling medical devices make errors, but by involving users in the risk management process, it is possible to lower the risk of these errors. This paper presents an evaluation of the value of complementing a traditional risk management process with an emphasised user perspective. A medical device software risk management framework is being designed, and the risk management process should be regarded as the first part of the framework. The main goal of the evaluated risk management process is to integrate users and user perspective into the risk management process. The results indicate that the use of use cases as input at risk meetings makes the discussions more focused, saving effort and time. When users attend the risk meetings, user perspective and domain knowledge are brought into the process, affecting risk identification and risk assessment. The results also show that the use of usability testing gives valuable input to the risk management process. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Actionable Knowledge As A Service (AKAAS): Leveraging big data analytics in cloud computing environments

Knowledge-as-a service is an emerging research trend that constitutes a promising path for organizations aiming to achieve better customer support and decision-making across a wide range of content providers. However, only few studies have explored how traditional knowledge management processes and practices are challenged and evolve in relation to social and technological transformation stemming from the new age of cloud-computing environments. This research paper attempts to answer this gap by introducing a new framework for the management of knowledge in the cloud.

A Research on the Strategy-Oriented Management Process System of Local Party and Government Leaders’ Environmental–Protection Performances

This paper points out that the strategy-oriented management process system of local Party and government leaders’ environmental–protection performances is composed of six parts, i.e., the design of local government strategies, de-composition of strategic targets, development of the plans for local Party and government leaders’ environmental–protection performances, environmental performances tutorship and implementation, performance evaluation and the application of the evaluation results; analyzes the dynamic circular relations between the four vital links of the strategy-oriented management process system of local Party and government leaders’ environmental–protection performances; compares the differences between the strategy-oriented performance management process sys-tem and the traditional performance management process system. The conclusion obtained in this paper is of certain directive significance to building the management process system of local Party and government leaders’ environmental performances.

Improving Analytics in Urban Water Management: A Spectral Clustering-based Approach for Leakage Localization

Worldwide growing water demand has been forcing utilities to successfully manage their costs. Contemporarily, within an era of tight budgets in most economic and social sectors, it affects also Water Distribution Networks (WDN). So, an efficient urban water management is needed to get a balance between consumer satisfaction and infrastructural assets inherent to WDN. Particular case is referred to pipe networks which suffer for frequent leaks, failures and service disruptions. The ensuing costs due to inspection, repair and replacement, are a significant part of operational expenses and give rise to difficult decision making. Recently, the goal regarding the improvement of the traditional leakage management process through the development of analytical leakage localization tools has been brought to the forefront leading to the proposal of several approaches. The basis of all methods relies on the fact that leaks can be detected correlating changes in flow to the output of a simulation model whose parameters are related to both location and severity of the leak.This paper, starting from a previous work of the authors, shows how the critical phases of leak localization can be accomplished through a combination of hydraulic simulation and clustering. The research deals with the benefits provided by Spectral Clustering which is usually adopted for network analysis tasks (e.g., community or sub-network discovery). A transformation from a data points dataset, consisting of leakage scenarios simulated through a hydraulic simulation model, to a similarity graph is presented. Spectral Clustering is then applied on the similarity graph and results are compared with those provided by traditional clustering techniques on the original data points dataset. The proposed spectral approach proved to be more effective with respect to traditional clustering, having a better performance to analytically localize leaks in a water distribution network and, consequently, reducing costs for intervention, inspection and rehabilitation.

Managing self‐organizing radio access networks

Self-organizing networks (SON) have appeared as a promising solution for improving network management, performance and flexibility. SON capitalizes on self-x techniques and functions, namely self-planning, self-configuration, self-optimization, self-healing, etc., in order to automate the traditional manual network operation and management processes and eventually to reduce the network operation cost and increase efficiency (higher quality-of-service/experience levels in a more cost-efficient manner). SON has received a lot of attention in recent years by researchers, academics and industrial players worldwide. SON features and functionalities are an integral part of the 3GPP Long Term Evolution (LTE) and are considered a vital feature of future radio access networks (RANs). LTE actually rendered SON as a key technology for assisting mobile operators to address challenges associated with the operation and management of their RAN. Despite its significant industrial footprint, SON is expected to continue as a hot research topic in the forthcoming years as it presents more and more challenges and for that reason further research as well as more industrial-oriented solutions are required so as to assist in the faster uptake of the technology. Thus the major goal of this special issue of the International Journal of Network Management is to present innovative approaches and solutions towards this direction. Accordingly, a total of eight submissions were received for this special issue, for which we wish to thank all authors. Each paper received at least three independent reviews from qualified colleagues in the international research community, with expertise in self-organizing, autonomic and radio access networking and management. Four papers were finally selected for publication. These papers present SON solutions in various use cases (mobility management, load balancing, coverage and capacity optimization); they span various domains (LTE, macro and femtocells and UMTS networks), and they were written by authors coming from academia, industry and research institutes. The first paper, ‘zCap: a zero configuration adaptive paging and mobility management mechanism’, by Per Kreuger et al., is based on the ascertainment that cell tracking areas for user mobile localization are manually configured today, hard to adapt to local mobility, and influence several resource usage and quality-of-service metrics. The authors propose a decentralized and self-adaptive approach to mobility management, based on a probabilistic model of local mobility. The second paper, ‘Self-organizing femtocell offloading at the flow level’, by Zwi Altman et al., presents a paradigm of applying SON in femtocell technology. In particular, it describes, models and validates a distributed, self-optimized offloading mechanism for improving capacity in a heterogeneous network with macrocells and femtocells.

Using Dynamic Programming Decomposition for Revenue Management with Opaque Products

AbstractOpaque products enable service providers to hide specific characteristics of their service fulfillment from the customer until after purchase. Prominent examples include internet-based service providers selling airline tickets without defining details, such as departure time or operating airline, until the booking has been made. Owing to the resulting flexibility in resource utilization, the traditional revenue management process needs to be modified. In this paper, we extend dynamic programming decomposition techniques widely used for traditional revenue management to develop an intuitive capacity control approach that allows for the incorporation of opaque products. In a simulation study, we show that the developed approach significantly outperforms other well-known capacity control approaches adapted to the opaque product setting. Based on the approach, we also provide computational examples of how the share of opaque products as well as the degree of opacity can influence the results.

A Further Examination of the Relationship between Contract Administration Problems and Contract Type

This new research supports the 2006 research conducted by Davison and Sebastian (Davison-Sebastian 2007) that data is available for, each type of contract, the likelihood of contract administration problems occurring and the consequences of these problems if they do occur. With this data the procurement professional can utilize a traditional risk management process to determine an overall risk factor for each problem and then develop proactive risk mitigation plans that are based on eliminating or reducing each of the previously identified risks, or problems that have been identified. The major findings were that the 2011 results were comparable to 2006 in that when contract administration problems occurred, problematic consequences were more likely than no consequences for all contract types except leases and that the types of problematic consequences that were most likely depended on the type of contract. The implications of the research results for procurement professionals and the limitations of the research will be discussed.

WEB-BASED PENSION FUND MANAGEMENT SYSTEM

Given the discouraging record of the traditional pension system and the limited coverage of the private-sector pension schemes, there is need for robust web-based pension fundmanagement system that can handle the pension process efficiently. This work focus on the design and implementation of a web-based pension fund management application toreplace the manual system, thus getting rid of the hurdles involved in the traditional pension management process.

Knowledge process of rural handloom community enterprise

Purpose – Sambalpuri Bastralaya Handloom Co‐operative Society Limited (SBHCSL), or “Bastralaya”, is a rural community‐based cooperative enterprise in the Western province of state Odisha in India. Weaver‐members are self‐employed in a home‐based weaving system and use their tacit traditional knowledge and expertise. Undertaking a case study of this enterprise, the purpose of this paper is to explain traditional knowledge management process of the community.Design/methodology/approach – A total of 40 respondents from among enterprise employees, members of weaving and sales branches, members of government/ non‐government agencies were interviewed/ observed. A qualitative research method called “narrative enquiry” was used to restory and interpret respondents' data and stories gathered from the field study. Analysis of documents was also a method used.Findings – For management of knowledge processes, Bastralaya focuses on creating members' skills and knowledge, i.e. creation of contextual skills and knowledg...

Medication safety: using incident data analysis and clinical focus groups to inform educational needs

Medication-related safety incidents are a source of concern to patients, policy makers and clinicians. The role of education in improving safety-critical practices in health care is poorly appreciated. This pilot study aimed to initiate collective discussion among professional groups of clinical staff about a range of medicine-related patient safety issues which were identified from a local incident reporting system. In engaging staff to collectively reflect on reported medication incidents we attempted to uncover a deeper understanding of local contextual issues and potential educational needs. A mixed method study was conducted involving categorical analysis of 1058 medication incident reports (Phase 1) and the use of three mixed focus groups of clinical staff (Phase 2) in three acute hospitals in one locality in NHS Scotland. Focus group transcript analysis produced four main themes (e.g. the medical role) and 12 related sub-themes (e.g. pharmacological education and skill mix for administration of medicines) concerning medication-related practices and possible educational interventions. While it is necessary to review reported incident data and disseminate the educational messages for the improvement of quality, this traditional risk management process is inadequate on its own. Reporting systems can be enhanced by collective examination of reported information about medicines by local clinical teams. We identified a strong message from the focus groups for learning about each other and from each other, and that the method piloted may be an important inter-professional mechanism for improvement.

Design of an Integrated Project Management Information System for Large Scale Public Projects

Due to the unprecedented growth of outsourcing ICT projects by the Iranian government, a critical need exists for the proper execution and monitoring of these projects. In this paper, the authors propose a web-based project management system to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of the management processes and accelerate decision making. Based on the requirements and information flow between various units involved in the complete life-cycle of ICT project management, a functional model and system architecture with various underlying structures has been designed. The functional model contains two sub-systems: process management and information service. The proposed system structure is based on a four-layer client-server computing model. As a part of a publically available ICT system, it must be secure against cybercrime activities. This system can bring efficiency in managing the projects, improve decision making, and increase the overall management process with total accounting and management transparency. The proposed system overcomes the problems associated with a central system and traditional management processes, as is currently the case in Iran.

1.2.3 Challenges Based Risk Management

AbstractEvery systems engineer encounters challenges to plan and execute effective systems engineering activities during system design and development and throughout the project management. Most organizations provide standards, processes and procedures for applying systems engineering. We claim that each project is different, and project management policy & style should varies from one project to the other‐ “one size does not fit all”. We conducted a research that was based on the NTCP‐ Diamond approach for adaptive project management (Shenhar & Dvir 2004). The model claims that project management needs to be based on the strategic goals and the dimensions of the systems design including Novelty (How new the product is to its markets/customers/users?), Complexity (What is the scope of the project/product design?), Technology Uncertainty (How new the technology applied for the system is for the developers?) and Pace (How critical is your time frame?). We studied 18 projects & how the projects managers dealt with the above challenges. We found that the adaptive project management approach contributes to project success.Each project includes risks which are managed during the project life cycle. The traditional risks management process focus on technological, economical, marketing and organizational risks. We offer a Challenges Based Risk Management approach which is complement to the traditional approach. This approach is based on two risks elements: Project challenge level‐ calculated by summing up the project challenges levels in each dimension (Novelty, Technology Uncertainty, Pace, Complexity). Deviation from the adaptive management model. This approach can be useful in managing project portfolio, and managing the project risk through its challenges.We offer a methodology of managing projects according to its challenges, and offer a way to minimize the project risks by minimizing the deviation from the adaptive model.

Virtual Management: A Cross-Section Of The Management Process Illustrating Its Fundamental Functions Of Planning, Orga-nizing, Leading And Controlling In A New Era Organization

In the age of the E-Economy, the process of management is undergoing radical changes in all dimensions of basic management functions. New solutions in information and communication technologies are constantly emerging in the forefront, changing and re-defining the current content of management. The traditional management process has built-in competitive advantages on the classic factors of production (land, labor, capital). In the New Economy, the production and distribution of information and knowledge is the main source of a company's assets. The aim of the paper is to present the impact of the New Economy on the management process through its fundamental functions in a new era organization. At the turn of the 21st century, organizations are facing the Internet revolution, which imposes on top management new and different conceptual requirements. Therefore, the paper focuses on the new paradigm of virtual management, and enlightens different theoretical views of the 21st century organization. The results, presented in the paper, can be applied to all companies, competing in todays extremely competitive environment.

CIM-Based System Integration and Multi-Agent Modeling for Life-Cycle Smart Grids Assets Management System

Life-cycle assets management (LCAM) is promising for improving power system efficiency and reliabilities, lowering life-cycle costs of smart grid. This paper, after investigating and redesigning traditional assets management processes with integration-centered optimization, puts forward a life-cycle assets management system model with multi-agent style, in which life cycle analysis (LCA) can be executed with collected and retrieved data from heterogeneous agents in complex multi-level environment. Related critical issues are also discussed about system modeling and implementation. Finally, technical solutions are proposed about agent communication mechanisms and information security. Research results can be extended to enhance information capacities in related fields.

Greening Project Management Practices for Sustainable Construction

Environmentally sustainable building construction has experienced significant growth during the past 10 years. The public is becoming more aware of the benefits of green construction as prominent politicians, celebrities, documentarians, and journalists highlight the built environment's impact on greenhouse gas emissions and natural resource consumption. Other factors, including higher energy prices, increased costs of building materials, and regulatory incentives, are also pushing the green building market to grow and expand. However, barriers to green building continue to exist, including the ability to deliver a green project within acceptable cost constraints. In order for project managers to deliver sustainable construction according to clients' cost expectations, modifications must be made to traditional project management processes and practices. The objective of this paper is to suggest specific modifications to conventional building practices to optimize the delivery of cost-efficient green building projects. This paper presents an overview of research related to the costs and trends of green building and uses these research findings to make recommendations for greening project management practices for the construction industry. Our research results show that greening project management practices can add significant value to a sustainable construction project while delivering it within acceptable cost constraints. A detailed analysis using matrix present specific adjustments to traditional project management practices, with a premise that a green project improves its chances for financial success if a cross-discipline team is involved at the earliest stages and throughout the project.

Exploration of Adoption of Service Innovations through Technology Road-Mapping

This paper utilizes a technology road-mapping approach to demonstrate how a traditional technology management process can be applied to improve planning practices for technology-driven service innovations. With location based services (LBS) as the focus, the paper explores business, market, product and services drivers in developing the technology roadmap. Thus, the study demonstrates that technology management theory and processes from the product domain may be usefully applied to the management of technology-driven service innovations. The case study analysis identified service drivers including security, privacy and mobility as important factors for LBS success. Potentially disruptive service innovations resulting from the convergence of the computer and wireless industries are explored.

Study on the Innovational Function of the Management

Traditional management process summarization should be improved in adapting and instructing the diversified management for modern enterprises, and Chinese enterprises at the present stage also urgently need the new understanding for the management function. Starting from the cognition and practice of the management, the innovation should be the core function of the management, and it should be embodied in the function of the management.

A Quality-refinement Process for Medical Imaging Applications

To introduce and evaluate a process for refinement of software quality that is suitable to research groups. In order to avoid constraining researchers too much, the quality improvement process has to be designed carefully. The scope of this paper is to present and evaluate a process to advance quality aspects of existing research prototypes in order to make them ready for initial clinical studies. The proposed process is tailored for research environments and therefore more lightweight than traditional quality management processes. Focus on quality criteria that are important at the given stage of the software life cycle. Usage of tools that automate aspects of the process is emphasized. To evaluate the additional effort that comes along with the process, it was exemplarily applied for eight prototypical software modules for medical image processing. The introduced process has been applied to improve the quality of all prototypes so that they could be successfully used in clinical studies. The quality refinement yielded an average of 13 person days of additional effort per project. Overall, 107 bugs were found and resolved by applying the process. Careful selection of quality criteria and the usage of automated process tools lead to a lightweight quality refinement process suitable for scientific research groups that can be applied to ensure a successful transfer of technical software prototypes into clinical research workflows.

Understanding Policy Implementation Processes as Self-Organizing Systems

Implementation studies and related research in organizational theory can be enhanced by drawing on the field of complex systems to understand better and, as a consequence, more successfully manage change. This article reinterprets data previously published in the British Journal of Management to reveal a new contribution, that policy implementation processes should be understood as a self-organizing system in which adaptive abilities are extremely important for stakeholders. In other words, national policy is reinterpreted at the local level, with each local organization uniquely mixing elements of national policy with their own requirements making policy implementation unpredictable and more sketchy. The original article explained different paces and directions of change in terms of traditional management processes: leadership, politics, implementation and vision. By reinterpreting the data, it is possible to reveal that deeper level processes, which are more emergent, are also at work influencing change, which the authors label possibility space. Implications for theory, policy and practice are identified.