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Analysis Of Factors Affecting Technological Innovativeness In Engineering Enterprises In Tanzania, Emanuel Mjema

Tanzania Journal of Engineering and Technology (TJET)

This paper discusses the technological innovativeness in engineering enterprises in Tanzania and analyses the factors affecting the innovativeness. It starts by analyzing various concepts regarding innovation, then analyzed from documentary review factors affecting innovativeness and then analyzed the innovativeness in Tanzanian enterprises. From the documentary review it was learnt that the following key factors influence technological innovativeness: Existence of innovation management; Existence of market to absorb the products of innovation; Existence of partnership between the universities and the firms; Existence of positive culture and politics towards innovation; The government playing its role to influence innovation; Existence of the right knowledge; …

Social Media Assimilation In Firms: Investigating The Roles Of Absorptive Capacity And Institutional Pressures, Pratyush Bharati, Chen Zhang, Abhijit Chaudhury

Management Science and Information Systems Faculty Publication Series

Firms are increasingly employing social media to manage relationships with partner organizations, yet the role of institutional pressures in social media assimilation has not been studied. We investigate social media assimilation in firms using a model that combines the two theoretical streams of IT adoption: organizational innovation and institutional theory. The study uses a composite view of absorptive capacity that includes both previous experience with similar technology and the general ability to learn and exploit new technologies. We find that institutional pressures are an important antecedent to absorptive capacity, an important measure of organizational learning capability. The paper augments theory …

Support Of Police Consolidation : Assessing The Impact Of Perceived Complexity., John C. Reed 1956-

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation is an examination of how police officers' perceptions of the complexity in merging Organizational Change Components (OCCs) related to the consolidation of the Louisville Division of Police (LDP) and Jefferson County Police Department (JCPD) in 2003 impact support for police consolidation. This study focused on five primary OCCs: 1) culture(s), 2) policies and procedures, 3) communications, 4) collective bargaining contracts, and 5) re-defining patrol division boundaries. The population consisted of officers who were currently employed by the Louisville Metro Police Department (LMPD) and were affiliated with either the former LDP or the JCPD in 2003 when these departments …

Leadership For Innovation In The Memories Business: A Mixed Methods Study Of A Hospitality And Tourism Marketplace, Lori J. Sipe Phd

Dissertations

In the past 35 years, substantial research has been conducted examining innovation in the business environment. Despite the vast quantity of innovation studies, a large percentage of the contributions are focused on product innovation outputs in manufacturing, while innovation theory in the services industry is still struggling to emerge. The hospitality and tourism industry is one of the largest service industries in the world. In this industry context, innovation is less about producing new things and more about delivering unique experiences to create lasting memories. The purpose of this study was to extend the work already done regarding innovation in …

Disruptive Transformations In Health Care: Technological Innovation And The Acute Care General Hospital, D. Pulane Lucas

Theses and Dissertations

Advances in medical technology have altered the need for certain types of surgery to be performed in traditional inpatient hospital settings. Less invasive surgical procedures allow a growing number of medical treatments to take place on an outpatient basis. Hospitals face growing competition from ambulatory surgery centers (ASCs). The competitive threats posed by ASCs are important, given that inpatient surgery has been the cornerstone of hospital services for over a century. Additional research is needed to understand how surgical volume shifts between and within acute care general hospitals (ACGHs) and ASCs. This study investigates how medical technology within the hospital …

Leadership For Change: Insights Gleaned From One District’S Implementation Of An Educational Innovation, Crystal V. Shelby-Caffey Ph.D., Ronald A. Caffey Ph.D.

Online Journal for Workforce Education and Development

The research reported here is extracted from a larger study aimed at describing the challenges and barriers to implementing the two way immersion (TWI) program at Stark Elementary School (a pseudonym). While Stark’s TWI program is used as the backdrop for the current discussion the perspective taken here is to examine the actions (and lack of action in some instances) of Stark’s administrators and describe how those actions impacted other stakeholders and led to challenges during the implementation process. The findings illuminate the need for leaders to gain support for proposed changes while maintaining dialogue with stakeholders and developing other …

Building A Culture Of Innovation: A Case Study In Digital Integration, Anthony H. Vonbank

All Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Other Capstone Projects

This case study dissertation examines the implementation of digital technology in a mid-sized public school district in southern Minnesota. The methodology involved unstructured interviews and close observation of several teachers, administrators and related staff in the junior-senior high building. These observations were presented in informative vignettes that help to tell the story of the culture of innovation in this school, as well as highlight some of the implementation strategies that aid this school and district in meeting its goal to meet all learners in a 21st century society. The study identifies common barriers such as staff resistance, funding, and technology …

Perceptions Of Innovations: An Examination Of South Carolina Superintendents, Alfred Lamont Williams

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to examine the perceptions of South Carolina public school superintendents regarding individual and organizational attitudes toward innovation. Specific characteristics of South Carolina public school superintendents and public school districts, including enrollment, poverty level, school report card grades, age, gender, and years of experience, were analyzed to determine individual superintendents' and their school districts' orientations toward innovation. The findings have the potential to provide much-needed guidance to superintendents in training so that they may be better equipped to meet the challenge of school reform and innovation in relation to student achievement. In addition, the study …

Social Networks, Individual Orientations, And Employee Innovation Outcomes: A Multi-Theoretical Perspective, Travis J. Grosser

Theses and Dissertations--Management

I examine individual innovation in organizations from a social network perspective. I employ two theoretical lenses to examine innovation outcomes in three separate empirical studies. First, I use a sociopolitical framework to examine how political skill and social network structure interact to predict successful innovation initiation and, ultimately, career success. I find that innovation initiation mediates the relationship between political skill and career success. Moreover, structural holes in employees’ social networks moderate the mediated relationship between political skill and career success such that the relationship is stronger for employees with many structural holes in their social network. Second, I use …

Contextual Support For Innovation In An Australian Financial Services Firm, Agung N. Fahrudi, Denise E. Gengatharen, Yuliani Suseno, Craig Standing

Research outputs 2013

Organizational learning can facilitate innovation and it is affected by internal and external contexts. Leaders can provide internal contextual support for learning to occur in the organization in order to respond to changes in external contexts. However, there are limited studies about how leaders affect innovation in financial services firms. This paper applies Crossan et al.’s (1999) 4I framework to examine the impact of internal and external factors on an organization’s learning process and the extent of its innovation. An on-going case study of a large Australian financial services firm is used to gain insights about contextual support for innovation. …

Limiting The Effects Of Issue Networks & The Iron Triangle: Strategies For Creating Positive Organizational Culture & Boosting Innovation In The Public Sector, Kyla Pitts-Zevin

Student Theses and Dissertations

Positive organizational culture is beneficial to organizations and fosters innovation (Spreitzer 2012) (Kotrba 2010). Innovation contributes to organizational sustainability, efficiency and performance (Kohli & Mulgan 2010). I argue that the public sector faces unique challenges in building and sustaining a positive organizational culture and thus innovation is stifled. These challenges that public organizations face are due, at least in part, to the effects of issue networks and the iron triangle. Such obstacles include (1) a constantly changing environment, (2) serving multiple constituencies, (3) an increased emphasis on monetary efficiency at the expense of programmatic quality, (4) hierarchical cultures and (5) …

Mobilizing Human Resources To Enhance Business Innovation, Case Study: Strategy & Innovation Department In Vodafone Egypt, Zeinab Shawky Younis, Randa Elbedawy

Business Administration

The uprising Egyptian revolution January 2011 triggered most organizations in the Egyptian society to revise strategies to invade markets vigorously with innovative plans in order to survive in such unforeseen economic conditions. As change is the process by which the future invades our life, most organizations in Egypt nowadays are trying to pave the way for this change allowing for more innovative patterns that cannot be guided without the support of the human resources policies and practices. The importance of this study arises from its contribution at both the academic and the practical levels as it reflects not only the …

Fostering Innovation Through Cultural Change, Julia Leong

Proceedings of the IATUL Conferences

The purpose of the paper is to demonstrate a range of approaches to promoting innovative thought and action which can be applied in a variety of organizational contexts. It describes strategies adopted by one large academic library which sought to increase employee engagement and levels of innovation. Included is an overview of the background situation, a description of cultural change activities undertaken, information on recent provision of a suite of practical innovation process tools, and reference to relevant literature.

RMIT University has developed a framework (leadRMIT) which seeks to strengthen leadership capability and confidence and lift the engagement and performance …

Extension's Future: Time For Disruptive Innovation, Nancy K. Franz, Ronald A. Cox

Journal of Extension

Extension has been considered change averse by some scholars and practitioners, and they claim this inhibits organizational growth and relevance. Pockets of individuals and teams across the nation have worked independently as entrepreneurs to enhance Extension's relevance by introducing organizational processes and programs that greatly differ from past practices. However, every Extension system, team, and worker has a role to play in the disruptive innovation process. This may include exploring, implementing, or evaluating disruptive organizational innovations, or removing barriers, resourcing, or supporting a culture of innovation to enhance relevance and sustainability.

Concept Design – An Innovative Approach To Learning: The Case Of Saint James’ Way As A Playground For Meaningful Learning Experiences, Florencia Cueto Pedrotti

Journal of Tourism Consumption and Practice

Co-creation is increasingly being used as a tool for companies to position their products in the market. The aim is to enhance a dialogue with customers and enhance firm-customer value. In the experience industry co-creation is also increasingly linked with another major trend: storytelling. The aim of this narrative technique is to build a story around a business, a product or a destination. The purpose of this paper is to discuss and highlight the application of these techniques, together with experiential learning, in order to generate a new point of view on the learning process. These techniques are applied to …

Measuring Entrepreneurship In The Academic Heartland, Jonathan Gagliardi

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

ABSTRACT

Learning And Innovation In The Context Of Process-Focused Management Practices: The Case Of An Environmental Management System, Deepa Aravind

Publications and Research

Adoption of process-focused management practices has been associated with inertia and rigidity in adopting firms. By drawing on the literature on routines and using survey data from 192 ISO 14001 certified facilities in the United States, I find that change catalysis or a deep form of learning which presents the opportunity for innovation can happen in this context. I also examine the internal and external determinants of change catalysis. By doing so I contribute to a better understanding of how process-focused management practices can be a source of innovation within firms.

A Study Of Early Adopters Of Innovation, John B. Mcwhorter

All ETDs from UAB

This research study focused on identification of environmental and organizational variables that influence the rate of adoption of administrative innovation in organizations, and specifically hospitals that have adopted nurse magnet programs. The study identified both organizational and environmental factors as statistically significant among early adopters of magnet programs in hospitals, with organizational influences stronger than environmental influences in determining the rate of adoption of innovation. Organizational complexity, size, control of domain, presence of a competitor, and available resources were the factors identified as influencing the early adoption of innovation among hospitals.

Accelerating Innovation Via Industry-Scale Open Innovation Networks: A Case Study In The Us Automotive Industry, John Skardon

All Dissertations

Innovation is a key driving force of economic growth in the United States and other developed countries. A wide range of public policies seek to stimulate growth while curbing its excesses. As the rate of innovation continues to slow across many industry segments, state and federal policy makers continue to look for new ideas to stimulate growth. Between the extremes of antitrust and industrial policy lies a fertile and mostly unexplored area where government and industry may collaborate. Industry-government collaboration so far has had mixed success. Innovations in organizational form that utilize networks to link entrepreneurs, publically funded research, and …

Implementation Through Innovation: A Literature-Based Analysis Of The Tuning Project, Krisztián Pálvölgyi

Higher Learning Research Communications

Tuning Educational Structures in Europe is perhaps the most important higher education innovation platform nowadays. The main objective of the Tuning Project is to develop a tangible approach to implement the action lines of the Bologna Process; thus, implementation and innovation are closely linked in Tuning. However, during its development, Tuning has evolved into a complex, multilevel policy implementation toolset with a worldwide significance. The purpose of this article is to present the complex nature of the Tuning Project, the environment and dynamics of its development, and the mechanisms of its operation from a multilevel implementation perspective, through a literature-review-based …

The First Year: A Cultural Shift Towards Improving Student Progress, Becky Jobe

Higher Learning Research Communications

Student attrition has been a primary focus among higher education institutions for nearly 50 years, yet overall retention and graduation rates continue to be of significant concern. Despite increased attention, ongoing struggles of colleges and universities to effectively address potential barriers to student progress are well-documented. Part of the challenge lies in garnering widespread organizational commitment that establishes student progress as an institutional priority. Along with leadership commitment, broad institutional involvement and adherence to a systematic approach to testing new, innovative solutions are necessary to better position the institution to make clear, evidence-based decisions that improve the student experience. The …

Developmental Leadership: A New Perspective For Human Resource Development, Paul Shelton

Faculty Publications - College of Business

Research indicates that numerous variables influence an organization’s ability to change and innovate. There is a need to understand a leadership model that focuses on the aspects of human resource development (HRD). Furthermore, it is important for the HRD model of leadership to foster and support creativity and innovation in organizations. In response to this need, this article identifies and explains a developmental leadership model rooted within the HRD framework of organized learning, change, interventions, and development. The focus of this work is to discuss how a developmental leadership style can generate new perspectives in HRD that translate to innovation …

Business Models And Performance: Entrepreneurial Aspects In The New York Wine Industry, David Brannon

Management - Dissertations

This dissertation is about innovation - the setting is business models. I have defined innovativeness in business models as a novel departure from what others in the same industry are using for their business model design. Utilizing evolutionary theory, I focus upon organizational routines to identify innovation. I explored characteristics within the firm associated with innovativeness in the business model including customer information processes; willingness to pursue experimentation and complexity added to the business model from the addition of non-core products. Inertia in the firm was considered as a moderator between each of these variables and innovativeness. Performance was measured …

The Development Of A P-20 Educational Campus: A Case Study On Innovation, Richard R. Patterson

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Tyack & Tobin (1994, p. 454) describe that the “grammar of schooling,” like the shape of classrooms, has remained remarkably stable over the decades. This has frustrated generations of reformers who have fought to change standardized organizational traditions. Typically school reform has taken the form of innovations in education. Unfortunately, educational innovations don't usually last long or they were never truly innovations in the first place but rather a repackaging or reintroduction of age-old customary practices.

The “Eos Public Schools” set out on a mission to integrate P-20 educational reform into its overall school system as a way to confront …

A Tale Of Two Paradigms: The Impact Of Psychological Capital And Reinforcing Feedback On Problem Solving And Innovation, Fred Luthans, Carolyn M. Youssef, Shannon L. Rawski

Department of Management: Faculty Publications

This study drew from two distinct paradigms: the social cognitively based emerging field of positive organizational behavior or POB and the more established behaviorally based area of organizational behavior modification or OB Mod. The intent was to show that both can contribute to complex challenges facing today’s organizations. Using a quasi-experimental research design (N = 1,526 working adults), in general both the recently recognized core construct of psychological capital (representing POB) and reinforcing feedback (representing OB Mod), especially when partially mediated through a mastery-oriented mindset, were positively related to problem solving performance, reported innovation, and subsequent psychological capital. The implications …

Rules For Growth: Promoting Innovation And Growth Through Legal Reform, Nicole Stelle Garnett, Robert E. Litan, Yochai Benkler, Henry N. Butler, John Henry Clippinger, Robert Cook-Deegan, Robert D. Cooter, Aaron S. Edlin, Ronald J. Gilson, Oliver R. Goodenough, Gillian K. Hadfield, Mark A. Lemley, Frank Partnoy, George L. Priest, Larry E. Ribstein, Charles F. Sabel, Peter H. Schuck, Hal S. Scott, Robert E. Scott, Alex Stein, Victoria Stodden, John E. Tyler Iii, Alan D. Viard, Benjamin Wittes

Journal Articles

The United States economy is struggling to recover from its worst economic downturn since the Great Depression. After several huge doses of conventional macroeconomic stimulus - deficit-spending and monetary stimulus - policymakers are understandably eager to find innovative no-cost ways of sustaining growth both in the short and long runs. In response to this challenge, the Kauffman Foundation convened a number of America’s leading legal scholars and social scientists during the summer of 2010 to present and discuss their ideas for changing legal rules and policies to promote innovation and accelerate U.S. economic growth. This meeting led to the publication …

Analysis Of Factors Affecting Technological Innovativeness In Engineering Enterprises In Tanzania, Emanuel Mjema

Tanzania Journal of Engineering and Technology (TJET)

This paper discusses the technological innovativeness in engineering enterprises in Tanzania and analyses the factors affecting the innovativeness. It starts by analyzing various concepts regarding innovation, then analyzed from documentary review factors affecting innovativeness and then analyzed the innovativeness in Tanzanian enterprises. From the documentary review it was learnt that the following key factors influence technological innovativeness: Existence of innovation management; Existence of market to absorb the products of innovation; Existence of partnership between the universities and the firms; Existence of positive culture and politics towards innovation; The government playing its role to influence innovation; Existence of the right knowledge; …

Innovation, Creativity, And Entrepreneurship, Ishrat Husain Dr.

Faculty Research - Talks, Speeches, & Discourse

I would like to focus my remarks this morning by drawing upon the research that shows how organizations have led change and renewal through innovation and creativity. I believe that the topic “Intrapreneurship”, i.e. entrepreneurial behavior within an organization is quite distinct and vast and requires separate discussion and discourse. I would therefore draw upon liberally from the seminal work of Michael Tushman of Columbia Graduate Business School and Charles O’Reilly on how innovation and creativity have found their way into mid to large Corporations. The biggest challenge facing the well established and well entrenched Corporations is: How can they …

Innovation In The Early Church: Strengthening The Thesis, Michael E. Cafferky

Faculty Works

In his response to Oster’s article, Cafferky offers commendations for the points that Oster presents when considering the events described in Acts 10-11. Cafferky also explores what he believes is an implicit assumption in Oster’s article regarding applying organizational theory from the for-profit sector straight across into the nonprofit sector. Oster’s thesis might be strengthened if the literature from the world of organization theory applicable to nonprofits is considered. Finally, Cafferky attempts to strengthen Oster’s thesis by exploring the complexity of the identity and purpose that he believes the first century Jewish Christians carried with them as they evaluated the …

The Closed Cohort Learning Model: Enabling Innovation And Organizational Success, Frederick D. Ellrich

Electronic Theses and Dissertations Archive

AbstractThis study examines the development of trust, communication, and collaboration in a closed cohort academic community. The closed cohort has gained in popularity in recent years and is now common at the graduate level, especially in the colleges of business and education. A closed cohort is a group of students who begin and end together, and proceed in lock step through a sequence of courses. The research is a case study of a master’s program in leadership at a university in the mid-south area of the United States. The research approach is phenomenological in that the researcher was an instructor …