Using Incident Response Trees as a Tool for Risk Management of Online Financial Services

The article introduces the use of probabilistic risk assessment for modeling the incident response process of online financial services. The main contribution is the creation of incident response trees, using event tree analysis, which provides us with a visual tool and a systematic way to estimate the probability of a successful incident response process against the currently known risk landscape, making it possible to measure the balance between front‐end and back‐end security measures. The model is presented using an illustrative example, and is then applied to the incident response process of a Swedish bank. Access to relevant data is verified and the applicability and usability of the proposed model is verified using one year of historical data. Potential advantages and possible shortcomings are discussed, referring to both the design phase and the operational phase, and future work is presented.     

Job Satisfaction as a Management Tool and Responsibility

No abstract available for this article.     

Systems Analysis of Failures as a Quality Management Tool

Managers and quality practitioners are familiar with the linkage of the words quality and systems to denote a systematic approach to quality, as in BS5750 Quality Systems, say. There is, however, a more specialized use of the word systems that indicates the application of systems thinking and which gives rise to the adjective systemic (of, or pertaining to a system) rather than systematic (carrying out in a planned and orderly fashion). This paper examines the potential for applying systems thinking to the management of quality with particular reference to one branch of systems work: the study of failures. The paper draws comparisons between quality and systems analysis of failures and points out that some failures could equally well be described as quality problems and vice versa. The paper argues that problems at the system level are frequently overlooked or avoided by those undertaking quality improvement programmes, partly because individuals within an organization may experience only different, smaller aspects of a systemic problem and partly because the problem solvers may lack the means or motivation to tackle complex, poorly defined problem messes. It then goes on to suggest that use of a meta–method for problem analysis would enable such problems to be addressed. One such method that has been widely applied in the study of failures, the failures method, is described in detail and its application to a failure/quality problem is outlined.     

Performance Budgeting in Practice: the Case of Danish Hospital Management

Performance budgeting systems have been introduced in the OECD countries with the proclaimed aim to increase public sector efficiency. However, the aim has often been hampered by a lack of relevant information, symbolic politics and conflicting political preferences. In this study, we investigate Danish public hospitals to see how performance budgeting works in the regions where the fundamental problems of performance information are negligible and the regions statutorily obligated to increase public sector efficiency by performance budgeting. The analysis shows that the regions in general have designed the performance budgeting system to increase efficiency and mitigate the dilemma of performance budgeting between increasing activity and controlling cost at the same time. Still, there are signs of moderation of the instrumental efficiency use of performance budgeting due to political concerns for equity.     

Overtime usage in a job shop environment

Problems are encountered in a job shop which has a fixed capacity if the total work content of the jobs passing through the shop increases sufficiently. Even the use of effective priority dispatching rules and/or expediting does not adequately shorten the queues which develop if the total work content continually exceeds shop capacity. To avoid losing job orders because the orders are unduly delayed, the job shop might resort to overtime usage. This study examines the efficient and economic use of overtime to relieve the backlog problem and uses overtime as the basic criterion for evaluation of overtime usage. The study employs GPSS V programming language to simulate a hypothetical job shop. The shop is loaded to various proportions of its normal capacity and various levels of overtime are tested. Findings show that overtime should not be assigned indiscriminately but rather should be based on a shop's unique conditions of overtime cost, the priority rule being employed, and the level of capacity utilization. Marginal benefit-cost ratio curves are developed to determine whether overtime usage is economically reasonable. These curves may also be used to determine the maximum or limiting amount of overtime to use under specific shop conditions.     

Planning with Preschoolers: City Mapping as a Planning Tool

The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child requires that children ‘have the right to be heard in matters affecting them’ (Article 12). Given that planning matters such as housing, transport, services and recreation provision affect children, it is necessary, therefore, for planners to engage with children. While planning has made considerable progress in working with older children, preschool children have been overlooked. Preschoolers are commonly seen as lacking the understanding necessary to comprehend the city scale. This paper presents a tile-based city-mapping method that demonstrates preschool children do understand city-scale features and relationships. Further, this method could be used in planning to advocate for and to engage with very young children in planning conversations.     

企业门户:组织新型知识管理工具

最近二十年,信息技术的运用对组织运营产生了巨大的作用,然而出现的一个问题就是信息的大量冗余,即信息过载的问题.组织对信息进行管理的要求越来越强烈,企业门户的出现能够满足这种需求,解决组织中信息管理的难题.企业门户的作用就在于通过整合组织各种信息,能够有效支持组织成员的决策和协作.同时,它实现了对组织知识的创造、获取、传递和应用,因此,它作为一种知识管理工具的潜力对组织来说是非常重要的.本文要论述的就是企业门户能够很好地完成组织知识管理的全过程,是一种有效的组织知识管理工具.     

基于路标工具集的技术管理

战略思考既是宏观层次的"艺术",也是长远成功的必备条件.目前,战略思考已和微观层面的生产计划管理和产品发展管理产生了直接的联系.生产计划管理和产品发展管理都是充分发挥创新和其他智力资产杠杆作用的途径.任何宏观或徽观的方法本身都不具有充分应对今天高速增长的,以知识为基础的工业多变环境的作用.本文指出通过对企业传统价值链模型的改进和技术路标工具的应用,可以得到对适用于中等或大型技术主导型企业的"技术管理"战略和技术同盟的深入了解.本文中使用了MATI项目中的分析工具和理论构建,MATI项目是由美国制造科学国家中心主办,各主要企业,大学以及有关政府机构共同合作,分析技术和相关组织过程的战略管理的项目.读者需要明确的是MATI项目仍在进行之中,这些理论构建是建立在初始材料和过程扫描的基础之上的,而并非项目组的结论.     

A Perspective: Risk Analysis as a Tool for Reducing the Risks of Terrorism

The destruction by terrorists of the twin towers of the World Trade Center and major damage wrought to the Pentagon on September 11, 2001, followed closely by the bioterrorist anthrax attacks via the mails raised the question of whether risk analysis might have a place in defending the United States against terrorist attacks. After first reviewing the multifaceted nature of terrorism and the reasons it is likely to become endemic in world society in the long term, just as other areas of crime are endemic, this article surveys several fields of risk analysis, finding possible short- and long-term uses of risk analysis. The areas chiefly considered are: risk communication and chemical, biological, and technological risk analysis. Broad policy and other uses are also considered. The author finds that risk analysis has already played some role, perhaps informally, but he sees the possibility for a much larger, formal one, a role that is centrally important for the present and future of the United States and the world.     

The Use of Anthropomorphizing as a Tool for Generating Organizational Theories

Abstract

Despite admonishments that anthropomorphizing represents a serious error in scientific thinking, this review shows that anthropomorphizing has been a critically important tool for developing influential theories in organization studies. Analyzing the literatures related to organizational identity and organizational knowledge reveals how organization theorists build on their rich and highly accessible understanding of humans (i.e. the self and others) to (1) make guesses and sense of organizational anomalies, (2) articulate theoretical mechanisms to build stronger theories, and (3) create plausible stories that facilitate sensegiving. Our review shows how some theorists by using particular approaches were able to use anthropomorphizing to generate new organizational theories, yet anthropomorphizing does not always lead to such salutary outcomes. Anthropomorphizing is less likely to enhance theorizing in organization studies when the theorist does not sufficiently doubt their guesses about organizational phenomena, fails to develop stronger explanations of the “how” and “why” of the theory thereby only partially exploring the social mechanisms underlying the proposed relationships, and fails in their attempts to tell the theory's “story”. We conclude with a discussion of the conditions under which anthropomorphizing is more or less effective.     

Performance-Based Budgeting: The U.S. Experience

In the United States, it is premature to claim that performance-based budgeting (PBB) will replace line-item budgeting in near future, particularly at the federal and state level. This article attempts to (1) provide a brief historical context of PBB in the U.S.; (2) identify some challenges associated with the theoretical underpinnings and operational principles of PBB; (3) document current practice and research pertaining to designing and implementation; and (4) discuss the prospect of PBB. The locus of PBB in the 21St century will be local, the focus will be comparative, and the impetus will come mainly from the media.     

The New Public Management and Managerial Roles: the Case of the Police Sergeant

This paper explores the introduction of New Public Management (NPM) techniques within the UK police service since the late 1990s, and in particular, the impact upon the role of the first line manager: the police sergeant. It draws upon qualitative data collected within 'City Police Service' by means of in-depth interviews with role sets of police sergeants, constables, inspectors and members of the senior management team in two police divisions. After evaluating a number of NPM precepts in the light of the findings, the paper makes a number of conclusions relating to the role of police sergeants. These echo the findings of other research on changes in managerial roles, including a shift towards more strategic responsibilities, but with a significant intensification of work, tighter control and scrutiny through organizational performance management systems, and less daily contact with their police constables. As elsewhere in the public sector, a shift towards becoming a 'practitioner manager' was apparent, but with respect to police sergeants the effect was to limit their ability to provide leadership and support for their constables, and to encourage a greater reliance upon peer group networks and on the constables they supervised.     

Using Prices More Realistically as Decision Variables in Perishable-Asset Revenue Management Problems

This paper addresses a new slant to a problem which is general to many of the transportation industries—perishable asset revenue management. Traditional approaches have assumed that prices are fixed and solved for the optimal allocation quantities. Our approach recognizes that prices of the different classes affect demand and should therefore be included as decision variables to be optimized. We solve three different types of problems: (a) up to n price classes, distinct asset control mechanism, and no diversion, (b) up to 3 price classes, serial nested asset control mechanism, and no diversion, (c) up to 3 price classes, serial nested asset control mechanism, and diversion. Analytical results are provided in most cases and examples illustrate the results as well as the time required to solve these complex problems. Finally we look at the tradeoff involved between computational time and expected contribution when using heuristic decisions obtained from less realistic assumptions relative to the true optimal decisions. On average, the suboptimality ranged from 3.19% to 4.88% with a corresponding decrease in computing time required on the order of several minutes. Some trends are presented to help determine a priori which type of problems would tend to benefit most from the more accurate formulation. This should help managers decide when it is worth the extra computing time to come up with the true optimal solution.     

慎用警力处置群体性事件

群体性治安事件是当前较为突出的问题,领导者在妥善处置这类事件时调动和使用警力是一个重要手段。但警力用得好,能平息事态;用得不好,就可能于事无补,甚至激化矛盾。因此,在处置群体性治安事件中……     

The Potential of Integrated Urban Deposit Modelling as a Cultural Heritage Planning Tool

Researchers investigating human settlements from an archaeological perspective have long recognized that the urban landscape provides a particular set of challenges and demands. Building on the formative Arup study [Ove Arup and Partners (1991) York Development and Archaeology Study (London: English Heritage)], urban deposit modelling as a heritage planning tool has been developed for some time; however, its use has not become widespread. There are however recent intellectual and technical developments that enhance integrated deposit modelling and reveal potential as a curatorial tool for the management of the historic environment. These relate to three key developments: the improvement and enhancement of 3D modelling and visualization techniques, conceptual changes around categories such as ‘made ground’ and the formation of research agendas for the urban historic environment. This paper will explore an example of the difficulties inherent in combining differently scaled datasets whilst also outlining the potential and the significance of urban deposit modelling in, often deeply stratified, historic northern European cities.     

Corporate Ethics Codes: A New Generations' Tool for Strategic Global Management and Decision-Making

The premise of this article is that it is important to train domestic and international executives in management ethics using corporate ethics codes. Incorporating ethics codes into the professional development of executives in business and industry contributes to the institutionalization of codes in the global workplace. Ethics institutionalization imbues corporate structures with understanding, both internally and externally, of the concepts of ethics. At an east coast University School of Management a Comparative Code Method (CCM) was developed and tested. Among the major findings, was that the use of corporate codes quickly transitions employees from an individual ethical perspective to a corporate ethical perspective. This revised version was published online in August 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Budgeting design and organizational capabilities: Multicriterion planning of telephone services

Telephone services are one example of a type of activity where the measure of success tends to be multidimensional: for example, costs and several service criteria are often used as performance indicators. Budgetary planning should be adapted accordingly, using different ‘mixes’ of service and cost as the alternatives that are discussed in a decentralized planning dialogue. Such a dialogue has to be designed with attention to the abilities of the organization: people's knowledge of possible alternatives and preferences, their ability to communicate this knowledge, etc. In this paper, the requirements of some alternative ways of designing multiobjective planning are related to show such abilities in a particular case, that of the National Swedish Telecommunication Administration.     

The Environment as a Supply Chain Management Issue

This paper investigates the issues for purchasing and supply chain managers in the context of environmentally-sound management.
The discussion begins with an analysis of relevant consumer attitudes, legislation and concepts in environmentally-sound management (life-cycle analysis, waste management, product stewardship, etc.), linking them to supply-chain management practices such as vendor assessment, total quality management, lean supply and collaborative supply strategies. In each case, parallels are drawn between established practice and new imperatives that require innovative solutions from managers.
The paper then explores the results of fresh field research with five major UK companies, identifying the different ways in which the challenges introduced above are being faced, and adding some extra perspectives to the debate already covered. The discussion concludes with a projection of common issues and ideas for areas of supply chain management that might profit from better environmentally-sound approaches.