Business Commons^™

Shifting Mindsets: How Meaningful Accountability Systems Can Strengthen Foundation Learning And Improve Impact, Marc J. Holley, Marcie Parkhurst

The Foundation Review

This article explores what it looks like when a foundation attempts to integrate accountability and learning practices, and presents a framework for the unique and complementary contributions that accountability and learning can make to the work of foundations.

The article also looks at the tensions that can arise when a foundation’s internal evaluation staff attempt to design, implement, and make use of accountability systems. Specifically, it identifies three problematic perspectives that can hold foundations back from full engagement in internally driven accountability initiatives, and offers practical guidance on how to shift these mindsets to more productive practices.

It concludes by …

Building A Culture Of Learning: Teaching A Complex Organization How To Fish, Tiffany Clarke, Hallie Preskill, Abigail Stevenson, Pamela Schwartz

The Foundation Review

Many social sector organizations are looking to balance their strategic plans with an ability to respond more quickly to change as it unfolds in their communities. For many years — but gaining particular urgency in 2015 — Kaiser Permanente Community Health saw a need to better understand the progress and impact of its portfolio and use its data to adapt strategy in response to its changing context.

To increase its capacity for strategic learning, Community Health worked with FSG to develop and implement a system called Measurement and Evaluation for Learning and Outcomes. While this process was tailored to Community …

Building Principle-Based Strategic Learning: Insights From Practice, Kelci M. Price, Chera Reid, Suzanne Kennedy Leahy

The Foundation Review

Strategic learning is a powerful tool for foundations to achieve greater impact, yet foundations have struggled to create practices and behaviors that effectively support them in learning about strategy. Given that many foundations are engaged in strategic philanthropy, where they have specific conditions in the world they are trying to change, it is critical that they have the capacity to effectively learn about and improve their strategies.

This article offers three principles for strategic learning, informed by the field of strategic learning and insights from practice across three foundations. Each principle is explored in terms of what it means and …

Challenges And Opportunities In Philanthropic Organizational Learning: Reflections From Fellow Grantmakers, Jennifer Chubinski, Kelley Adcock, Susan Sprigg

The Foundation Review

As the field of philanthropy has matured, increasing attention has been paid to evaluating the impact of philanthropic investments. In recent years, the scope of evaluation has expanded to include an intentional focus on organizational learning with the goal of learning from ongoing work, informing decision-making, and ultimately improving impact.

With this momentum to carry out organizational learning strategies and share successes, the sector has not yet stopped to reflect on challenges and lessons learned in the process of building the capacity for organizational learning — the messy yet meaningful middle between a desire for learning and the implementation of …

Evaluators As Conduits And Supports For Foundation Learning, Clare Nolan, Meg Long, Debra Joy Perez

The Foundation Review

Evaluators play a critical role in supporting philanthropic learning, programming, and strategy, but evaluation and learning in philanthropy is often limited in ways that impede deeper resonance and impact.

Most philanthropic evaluation is focused on the needs of individual foundations, knowledge sharing with the broader field is limited, and foundations struggle to integrate evaluation and learning as a management tool. This article makes the case that evaluators and funders can do more to build the collective capacity of evaluators working in philanthropy in order to enhance their contributions to community change.

This article also examines the ways that evaluation in …

Full Issue #11.1

The Foundation Review

No abstract provided.

2019-03-01 General Education Council, Morehead State University. Faculty Senate.

Faculty Senate Records

General Education Council meeting minutes for March 1, 2019.

Implementing Unbiased Decision-Making In Construction: A Lean Approach, Somik Ghosh, Michelle Robinette, Howard Tapia

The Professional Constructor

Construction project-teams are frequently faced with the task of decision-making as part of their responsibility. The positive effects of the decisions made at various stages of the projects lead to improved project performances, while negative effects can hinder the performances. The project teams take up the task of decision-making surrounded by multiple criteria, which can be arduous and clouded with subjectivity. This paper presents an approach based on the Lean principle of providing more autonomy to the project-teams and supporting collaborative and decentralized process in pursuit of unbiased decision-making. This Lean way of decision-making is formalized as Choosing by Advantage …

Attracting And Retaining Future Top Performing Employees: A Student Perspective, Julia Allen

The Professional Constructor

This essay provides insight as to how construction companies can both attract and retain top performing employees. By making the standard interview and recruiting processes more personal, construction companies can evaluate potential hires to see is they are a good fit for the company for years to come. Once employees are hired, companies then need to provide opportunities for both personal and professional growth. From personal experiences, I share the characteristics I find most important in an ideal employer and emphasize the importance of having an in-depth, genuine conversation with potential hires.

Attracting And Retaining Top Employees By Placing Proper Value On Their Contribution To The Company, Joseph Franklin Iii

The Professional Constructor

Due to an optimistic economic future, construction companies want to attract and retain the best employees to ensure company success. Because of a larger job market, employees now look for the optimal work values to be met in long-term employment opportunities. Construction companies have many challenges when attracting and retaining top employees in a growing market. Therefore; it is beneficial for employers to consider the evolving work values of employees and for these values to be promoted throughout company culture. Offering employees good value for their contribution to the company attracts and retains top employees.

Social Resources Of Mechanical Contracting Management Personnel, Blake Wentz, Sarabeth Gandara

The Professional Constructor

The construction industry in the United States is projected to grow faster than average compared to other industries through 2026. The Baby Boomer generation is leaving a significant gap in the labor force as they reach retirement. Retention of high quality management personnel is a priority for all companies in the construction industry, including mechanical contracting companies. Firms that fail to retain these employees will be left with an understaffed and underqualified workforce, which will hinder their ability to be competitive in the marketplace. In order to aid in retention efforts, mechanical contracting firms need to focus their attention on …

Essay Winners, American Institute Of Constructors

The Professional Constructor

No abstract provided.

Attracting And Retaining Future Top Performing Employees, Caleb Bardin

The Professional Constructor

The goal of this essay is to explore the key factors that influence top-performing employees’ decisions to change companies or remain with their current employers. A few of these factors are salary and benefits, work environment, and corporate advancement. This essay will address such factors and propose solutions using my own educational and professional experience. A key theme to note is the constant evaluation of employees and workplace environment by employers. No company can hope to be successful or have the best people if this skill is not enhanced and implemented well.

Study Of Various Construction Job Functions To Address Workforce Challenge, Abraham Bonilla, Dhaval Gajjar, Kenneth Sullivan

The Professional Constructor

Lack of construction workforce is one of the most predominant challenges faced by the construction industry. It is predicted that the industry will have a major shortage of skilled labor in the next decade due to the retirement of baby boomers and the lack of new talent entering the industry to replace these baby boomers. To attract young talent into the construction industry, it is critical to make them aware about the industry regarding various job functions as it relates to job satisfaction, compensation and career fulfilment. The purpose of this study is to gain insight of various construction job …

Consumer Perception And Willingness To Pay For Extended New Home Warranties, C. Todd Usher, Joseph M. Burgett

The Professional Constructor

Construction standards and methods for building new homes has improved over the last two decades resulting in significant improvements in energy efficiency, comfort, indoor air quality, and durability of new homes. Despite these improvements, the most common builder warranty for a new home in the United States ranges from 6 months to two years in duration. During the past two decades, manufacturer warranties on other durable goods such as automobiles has increased significantly. This study measures consumer perceptions of extended 12 year new home warranties with a survey completed by 162 adults in the United States. The results indicate that …

Impact Of Conditional Job Offer On Applicant Reactions To Social Media In The Selection Process, Ashley Gomez

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

Social media (SM) permits the sharing of personal information online, which can lead to employers accessing personal, non-job-related information about applicants throughout the selection process. Limited prior research (Jeske & Shultz, in press; Stoughton et al., 2015) has found that, to varying degrees, applicants find this access of their personal information to be an invasion of their personal privacy. The aim of the present study was to replicate prior findings regarding invasion of privacy moderating the relationship between SM screening presence and procedural justice perceptions and to expand on prior research by exploring whether the stage at which this information …

Incivility As A Veiled Display Of Workplace Discrimination: The Intersection Of Workplace Incivility And Gender-Based Discrimination, Sara M. Grant

University Honors Theses

Workplace incivility is defined as behavior that is rude, condescending, and/or ostracizing. Incivility violates workplace norms or expectations of respect but can otherwise appear mundane. Incivility is low impact but consistent mistreatment that can result in a myriad of negative impacts on employees and organizations. Some organizations dismiss incivility and other forms of subtle mistreatment as inconsequential, despite scientific evidence showing significant costs. A combination of anti-discrimination laws and social norms have drastically changed the dynamics of workplace discrimination over the last few decades. That is, blatant discrimination is no longer socially or legally acceptable, but biased attitudes against women …

Promoting Mobile Government Services In The Uae: A Moderated Parallel Mediation Analysis Of The Impact Of Ad Content On Intention, Asma Shaheen Saif Sultan Al Awani

Dissertations

This thesis investigates the role of ad content in influencing citizens’ intention to use mobile government (mGovernment) services in the UAE. mGovernment delivers services through the use of mobile devices to citizens anytime and anywhere in order to increase citizen happiness and satisfaction. mGovernment has been launched as a strategic initiative by the UAE government, and one of the most important success factors for the initiative is increasing the number of citizens who use mGovernment services. Previous research has focused mainly on the factors driving technology acceptance and user intention to use self-service technologies. In contrast, the present research focuses …

A Strategic Stakeholder Management Model For The Government Of Abu Dhabi, Ali Husain Ali Jasem Makki

Dissertations

Stakeholder management (SHM) is a recent managerial discipline that has gained much importance due to the need by most organizations to achieve global competitiveness by delivering complex projects within the time, budget, and minimum risk levels while ensuring optimum quality standards. The present study deals with the principal objective of analyzing existing stakeholder management practices in Abu Dhabi government organizations and aims to propose a strategic SHM model for handling stakeholder issues within these entities. The study also evaluates the barriers and enablers to stakeholder management by revealing several gaps in SHM especially during the delivery of government services and …

Measuring Factors Influencing Thiqa Patient Loyalty To Outpatient Medical Services: An Empirical Study In The Emirate Of Abu Dhabi, Ibrahim Ahmed Sultan Ahmed Al Kuwaiti

Dissertations

The need to establish factors that influence the occurrence of a reduced rate of patient satisfaction and loyalty has attracted the attention of many healthcare and marketing scholars in recent years. Most of the hospitals managed by Abu Dhabi Health Services Company (SEHA) in Abu Dhabi have registered a decrease in the number of patients holding Thiqa insurance cards seeking outpatient care services, despite the fact that the Thiqa insurance plan is considered the preeminent insurance plan in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi for nationals of the United Arab Emirates. Therefore, this study is dedicated to evaluating issues that have …

Determinants Of Mega Projects Success In The Uae, Abdulhameed Ismail Ali Shaheen Albeshr

Dissertations

The UAE has invested and continues to invest in mega projects as part of its strategic vision to become one of the best countries in the world, paying great attention to building and developing state-of-the-art infrastructure and services. Several studies have confirmed that project success has not improved significantly and that a large number of projects fail, despite improvements in terms of applied project management processes, tools, and techniques. This research aims to discover the factors that impact the success of mega projects in the UAE context in terms of maintaining and sustaining their successful implementation. Four success factors were …

Antecedents And Consequences Of Happiness At Work: The Case Of The Oil And Gas Industry In Abu Dhabi, Nouf Mohammed Abdulla Al Hawai

Business Administration Dissertations

The pursuit of happiness at work (HAW) has been touted as the next frontier to be conquered in order to help organizations achieve success, and it has also been a quest undertaken by many employees. The considerable amount of research examining HAW since the late 1990s has focused on the conceptualization of the construct, yet scant attention has been given to the antecedents and consequences of HAW. In other words, little is known about the environmental characteristics that may positively or negatively evoke HAW and, in turn, whether HAW can enhance individual job performance. More research is thus needed to …

The Impact Of Perceived Organisational Justice On Organisational Citizenship Behaviour In The Context Of Mergers, Fatima Ahmed Abdulla Al Nabhani

Dissertations

Scholars have relied on various approaches and methods to explain why organisations enter into a merger relationship, and how organisational initiatives impact employees' work outcomes. However, minimal attention has been directed towards the study of the relationship between Organisational Justice (OJ) and Organisational Citizenship Behaviour (OCB) in the post-merger period. The objective of this study was to examine how Organisational Justice affects Organisational Citizenship Behaviour in the context of mergers in the UAE. The study relied on a quantitative research method, social exchange mechanisms, and organisational justice theory to achieve the intended objectives. A total of 15 hypotheses were identified …

The Success Factors Of Business Incubators To Promote Entrepreneurial Practices In The Uae, Fareed Mahmoud Abdallah Al Ameeri

Business Administration Dissertations

Business incubators have shown as a practical approach for enhancing entrepreneurial success in several countries. In the UAE, the National Innovation Strategy has determined business incubation as one of the enablers for nurturing entrepreneurs and support their ventures. However, due to the novelty of incubators in the country, few incubators have been established and sustained. This study aims to determine the factors that may affect the success of incubators and examine their expected roles at the micro and macro level in the UAE. Due to the limited relevant population, this research adopted a mix-methodology combining thematic analysis for the interview …

The Santa Clara, 2019-02-28, Santa Clara University

The Santa Clara

No abstract provided.

Incorporating Active Adjustment Into A Financing Based Model Of Capital Structure, Neal Maroney, Wei Wang, M. Kabir Hassan

Business Faculty Publications

The conventional partial adjustment model, which focuses on leverage evolution, has difficulty identifying deliberate capital structure adjustments as it confounds financing decisions with the mechanical autocorrelation of leverage. We propose and estimate a financing-based partial adjustment model that separates the effects of financing decisions on leverage evolution from mechanical evolution. The speed of adjustment (SOA) is firm specific and stochastic, and active targeting of capital structure has a multiplier effect that depends on the size of financial deficit. Overall, we find expected SOA from active rebalancing
(30%) more than doubles what is expected from mechanical mean reversion alone (13%).

Given Today's New Wave Of Protectionsim, Is Antitrust Law The Last Hope For Preserving A Free Global Economy Or Another Nail In Free Trade's Coffin?, Allison Murray

Loyola of Los Angeles International and Comparative Law Review

No abstract provided.

The Evolution Of Entrepreneurial Finance: A New Typology, J. Brad Bernthal

BYU Law Review

There has been an explosion in new types of startup finance instruments. Whereas twenty years ago preferred stock dominated the field, startup companies and investors now use at least eight different instruments—six of which have only become widely used in the last decade. Legal scholars have yet to reflect upon the proliferation of instrument types in the aggregate. Notably missing is a way to organize instruments into a common framework that highlights their similarities and differences. This Article makes four contributions. First, it catalogues the variety of startup investment forms. I describe novel instruments, such as revenue-based financing, which remain …

Financial Repression In China: Short-Term Growth But Long-Term Crisis, Guangdong Xu, Michael Faure

Loyola of Los Angeles International and Comparative Law Review

No abstract provided.

How Two Sunken Ships Caused A War: The Legal And Cultural Battle Between Great Britain, Canada, And The Inuit Over The Franklin Expedition Shipwrecks, Christina Labarge

Loyola of Los Angeles International and Comparative Law Review

No abstract provided.