Classifying the indirect costs of information systems and information technology in business. Many businesses are increasing their expenditure on IS/IT to obtain a strategic competitive advantage. Traditional approaches to IS/IT appraisal are unable to accommodate the costs associated with deploying 'organisational-wide' IS/IT solutions because of their qualitative characteristics. The inability of managers to determine the 'true' costs of IS/IT are attributable to a lack of knowledge and unders ....Classifying the indirect costs of information systems and information technology in business. Many businesses are increasing their expenditure on IS/IT to obtain a strategic competitive advantage. Traditional approaches to IS/IT appraisal are unable to accommodate the costs associated with deploying 'organisational-wide' IS/IT solutions because of their qualitative characteristics. The inability of managers to determine the 'true' costs of IS/IT are attributable to a lack of knowledge and understanding of IS/IT related costs. This research will extend the myopia of traditional 'direct' financial cost analysis by identifying 'indirect' cost factors. A model that integrates cost taxonomies and performance measures/metrics of IS/IT will be developed as a frame of reference for IS/IT decision-makers.Read moreRead less
Building Better Brands: A Study of Australian Organizations and Consumers. The study is the first to be undertaken in the world to develop a knowledge management system of brand development and management. It focuses on understanding how branding strategies increase the competitiveness of Australian industry. The study also explores linkages of branding strategy to consumer perceptions of brand value. The model is firmly placed in a global market context, contrasting domestic, exported and im ....Building Better Brands: A Study of Australian Organizations and Consumers. The study is the first to be undertaken in the world to develop a knowledge management system of brand development and management. It focuses on understanding how branding strategies increase the competitiveness of Australian industry. The study also explores linkages of branding strategy to consumer perceptions of brand value. The model is firmly placed in a global market context, contrasting domestic, exported and imported brands. The focus is strongly orientated toward improving Australia's competitiveness and global performance. This study is vital as the economic superiority of strong nations is evident in the value and strength of their industries' brands.Read moreRead less
Learning Mechanisms and the Development of Dynamic Capabilities within Firms. The project has the following national/community benefits: (1) a more comprehensive study of the specific and unique features of the structure and innovative process operating within a major Australian producer of commodities, (2) a greater understanding of how knowledge can be created and captured in the form of firm-level dynamic capabilities, contributing towards the creation of an effective knowledge and innovation ....Learning Mechanisms and the Development of Dynamic Capabilities within Firms. The project has the following national/community benefits: (1) a more comprehensive study of the specific and unique features of the structure and innovative process operating within a major Australian producer of commodities, (2) a greater understanding of how knowledge can be created and captured in the form of firm-level dynamic capabilities, contributing towards the creation of an effective knowledge and innovation economy, and (3) assisting regional communities by providing specific recommendations for generating learning mechanisms and more importantly, capturing value from learning in terms of process improvement and innovation.Read moreRead less
Identity and intimacy in a virtual world: designing meaningful, responsible and effective virtual work. This project will help to bring theories of work design into the twenty-first century by acknowledging the important role of electronic communication reliance and being in remote locations for determining work outcomes, and offering concrete alternatives, including building identity and intimacy, to manage virtual work to leverage benefits and mitigate costs.
The link between corporate governance and sustainability: A contingency approach. Australian businesses will experience decreased economic growth, more health issues and fewer international opportunities if sustainability is not addressed. Sustainability is business approach seeking long-term value by embracing opportunities and managing risk from economic, environmental and social developments. This study will provide insight into optimal board structures to oversee performance across economic, ....The link between corporate governance and sustainability: A contingency approach. Australian businesses will experience decreased economic growth, more health issues and fewer international opportunities if sustainability is not addressed. Sustainability is business approach seeking long-term value by embracing opportunities and managing risk from economic, environmental and social developments. This study will provide insight into optimal board structures to oversee performance across economic, environmental and social dimensions. It will also identify the conditions whereby firms can adapt to market transformation, and determine resource reconfigurations that respond to sustainability challenges.Read moreRead less
A multilevel approach to leadership and dynamic capabilities in organisations. The quality of leadership in Australian organisations has an impact on business productivity, international competitiveness, and employee health and well-being. This research will support the development of leadership skills at different organisational levels. For senior leaders, these skills include developing strategy, allocating resources, and supporting innovation. For team leaders, skills include team coordinatio ....A multilevel approach to leadership and dynamic capabilities in organisations. The quality of leadership in Australian organisations has an impact on business productivity, international competitiveness, and employee health and well-being. This research will support the development of leadership skills at different organisational levels. For senior leaders, these skills include developing strategy, allocating resources, and supporting innovation. For team leaders, skills include team coordination, employee support, and creating flexibility. By supporting interventions that build adaptivity and flexibility in organisations, the research will provide resources to support dynamic organisations to be better equipped to compete in demanding international markets.Read moreRead less
Designing Weather Derivatives and Yield Index Contracts for Rural Australia. This project addresses the security of communities in rural areas. Successful risk management based on weather derivatives and yield index contracts will stabilise the income of rural industries and improve the financial viability of rural communities. It will allow systemic risks from climate change to be reinsured with financial institutions, maintain some of Australia's most important export industries and help maint ....Designing Weather Derivatives and Yield Index Contracts for Rural Australia. This project addresses the security of communities in rural areas. Successful risk management based on weather derivatives and yield index contracts will stabilise the income of rural industries and improve the financial viability of rural communities. It will allow systemic risks from climate change to be reinsured with financial institutions, maintain some of Australia's most important export industries and help maintain leadership in climate risk research. It will use state of the art methods to derive and estimate nonlinear yield indexes, and develop new option pricing methods to value the premium that farmers should pay for a yield index contract. Finally it will evaluate the likely adoption by farmers using nonlinear portfolio theory.Read moreRead less
The Impact of Customer-Focused Business Strategies on Organisational Performance in a Professional Service Context. The study poses important new questions about the impact well-established customer marketing approaches, such as value, have, within a professional service environment. It is unclear whether organisations focus on such concepts when developing strategy and, if so, how they use them when formulating strategy and this will be investigated. A second question, which is of academic and ....The Impact of Customer-Focused Business Strategies on Organisational Performance in a Professional Service Context. The study poses important new questions about the impact well-established customer marketing approaches, such as value, have, within a professional service environment. It is unclear whether organisations focus on such concepts when developing strategy and, if so, how they use them when formulating strategy and this will be investigated. A second question, which is of academic and practical importance, is the impact such strategies have on organisational performance, and this will also be examined. Understanding the link between strategy and organisational performance is vital as managers have difficulty assessing the relevance of their marketing activities.Read moreRead less
Motivating work teams: An emergence-based process model . With work teams having to undertake more critical and complex tasks, this project aims to develop and evaluate a new process model of team motivation emergence through field studies using varied samples of workers, simulation studies, and computational modelling. The project expects to generate solutions to Australia's declining work engagement by answering calls for research on how to develop team motivation. Expected outcomes include n ....Motivating work teams: An emergence-based process model . With work teams having to undertake more critical and complex tasks, this project aims to develop and evaluate a new process model of team motivation emergence through field studies using varied samples of workers, simulation studies, and computational modelling. The project expects to generate solutions to Australia's declining work engagement by answering calls for research on how to develop team motivation. Expected outcomes include new knowledge of team motivation disseminated through scholarly and practitioner-oriented publications and presentations, as well as practical team assessment and training tools made available to organisations so they can improve team performance.
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Extending Leadership and Learning: Improving the effectiveness of new learning technology for culture change and improved regional business performance. This research project explores the complex relationships between new technology and learning, and the subsequent impact on organisational change and business effectiveness. The study will examine the use of video-conferencing and on-line training packages in the regional locations of a major bank, in order to determine more effective configurati ....Extending Leadership and Learning: Improving the effectiveness of new learning technology for culture change and improved regional business performance. This research project explores the complex relationships between new technology and learning, and the subsequent impact on organisational change and business effectiveness. The study will examine the use of video-conferencing and on-line training packages in the regional locations of a major bank, in order to determine more effective configurations of learning architecture that support organisational culture change and impact on business performance. The organisation has a strategic commitment to cultural change towards leadership and learning. This research intends to examine how new learning technologies can more effectively impact on achieving such cultural change and improved regional equity.Read moreRead less