Purpose: The purpose of this study was to augment the understanding for how an organisation can facilitate the creation of applications of the Internet of Things (IoT) through increased involvement of employees in the innovation process. Method: This was an explorative study utilising qualitative data that was collected from a single case. Data was collected from a process manufacturing facility owned by a market-leading company through a combination of methods: questionnaire, documentation, observation, and interviews. Findings: It was found that the employee innovation process occurs in eight stages: problem-identification and communication, and idea-generation, communication, assessment, prioritisation, assignment, and implementation. It was also found that to successfully innovate, employees require knowledge, time, and motivation. Further, seven enabling and six inhibiting factors of employee innovation were identified. The process, requirements, and factors were utilised to build a framework to facilitate employee innovation for applications of the IoT. Theoretical contributions: This study merged two rather young bodies of literature, IoT and employee innovation, in a novel way. Innovation related to the IoT is close to unexplored, and employee innovation has never been studied specifically related to the IoT. Further, the eight-stage process of employee innovation is also novel. Managerial implications: There now exists a framework that managers can utilise to facilitate employee innovation in general, and innovation for the IoT in particular. The findings of this study can act as guidance for managers seeking to involve their employees in the innovation process.

Previous studies have shown some students with good word recognition skills and high levels of reading fluency fail to comprehend what they read.This study examined the explicit teaching of the rule based Question Answer Response (QAR) strategies to overcome specific learning difficulties in reading comprehension. Case study methods were used on five Year 4 students in Western Australia who were at different developmental levels in reading comprehension.The study revealed that within the conceptual framework of the transactional model of reading, the Question Answer Response strategies were effective in improving literal, inferential, critical and creative comprehension at varying levels for each of the five students in the study. The strategies also proved to be an effective way to teach the resolution of anaphoric pronouns that are particularly problematic for students with poor comprehension.The study indicates that the teaching of reading comprehension skills to students with reading comprehension problems through explicit rule based instruction is an important component of classroom-based instruction in the literacy learning area.

This research study examines the psychological and emotional experiences of children and parents as they embark on a permanent placement living arrangement. A permanent placement living arrangement is entered into when a child is no longer able to reside with their family of origin. Three family groups participated in the study and separate interviews were conducted with both the children and placement parents. Overall, three interviews were conducted, with the first interview taking place prior to the child’s transition into the family. A further two interviews were conducted with the participants after the transition had taken place. The findings of this study indicate that both the parents and children were profoundly affected by the experience of permanent placement. The common themes that emerged from the data were the hopes, anxieties and coping strategies of the participants which became the focal point of analysis. The parents experienced a mixture of fulfilment, tempered with anxieties of whether they would be able to provide adequate care for the child placed with them. Whereas, the children appeared to find it difficult to trust that this experience would be any different from their previous experiences. The study concludes that further attention is needed in the preparation for the transition into permanent placement. It further concludes that ‘after transition’ support is important to the stability of the placement.

This thesis aims to critically evaluate global intellectual property instruments with detailed analysis of the Agreement on Trade-Related Intellectual Aspects of Property Rights (the TRIPS Agreement) provisions in order to investigate the enforcement issues, confronted by the Developing Countries due to fragile legal infrastructure. These intellectual property laws are evolutionary and designed to protect and honour human intellectual creations since BC 400 which recognized them distinct from divine inspirations. Italian Renaissance witnessed the systematic recognition of human skill, craft, innovation and invention. Venetian Government institutionalized it by awarding patents and copyrights to skilled workers and publishers. Its primary purpose was to protect the trade and secondary was to foster intellectual creativity through reward and recognition. These rewards and recognitions, known as Intellectual Property Rights (IPRs), developed with each new invention and creation. Industrial Revolution accelerated it and developed nations entered into international conventions to protect their nationals and their interests across the borders. In 1995, the Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (the TRIPS Agreement) accommodated all the previous (IPRs) instruments and its enforcement linked with global trade. It was a dilemma for developing nations who were desirous to participate in global trading system for their economic development but could not administer (IPRs) regimes on their land due to fragile and static infrastructure. All assistance from developed countries during the transitional period could not address the problems due to alien prescriptions, applied to counter problems in the developed World. Developing Nations need innovative, flexible and indigenous approach to administer the TRIPS Agreement. A case study of Pakistan judicial environment to address the TRIPS enforcement issue has been conducted. The methodological approach of this thesis is the interpretive paradigm of the qualitative research tradition. This interpretive paradigm or framework is applied through the two methodologies of hermeneutics and case study.

In the rapidly changing ‘knowledge economy’ where ‘innovation’ and ‘responsiveness’ are vital, tertiary education can be at a point transformation. Since the late 1990s the New Zealand government began to shift part of its tertiary education policy with an increasing focus on what is commonly called ‘foundation’ education. The shift was aimed at ensuring all New Zealanders are equipped for the knowledge economy and raising the skills of individuals. A variety of research and education programmes were launched, and existing foundation or bridging programmes strengthened through policy, research and educational endeavours. Bridging education programmes (a subset of foundation education) are designed to prepare non-traditional and under-prepared students for ongoing study at a higher level. This current research sought to identify the influence of a university bridging programme (Level 4) on students who progressed into further study at undergraduate level. The bridging programme commenced in 2003 providing a pathway for students into undergraduate health degrees. The key question for this thesis was: how does bridging education influence students? To determine the influence of the bridging programme, this research was based on a case-study of seven students who completed four or eight papers in the bridging programme. Participants were in ongoing study (for at least one year) in a Bachelor of Health Science (any major). The methodology was qualitative in design, drawing extensively on a case-study approach to research the influences of the bridging programme. The method of data collection utilised was individual semi-structured interviews with former bridging students to ascertain their perceptions, views and experiences of the influence of a bridging programme, both historically and currently. In examining this unique context, information on the influences of bridging education was explored and the importance of bridging education, from the participant’s perspective, understood more clearly. This thesis and the research within revealed that the influence of the bridging programme began at the participant’s time of enrolment and continued into their undergraduate study and their lives. The bridging programme influenced the way participant’s interacted with a range of factors including: the institution; their undergraduate programme; with educators and peers; and with family, friends and others in society. Equally, it is acknowledged that these factors influenced the participant’s, facilitating or impeding their ongoing learning. The participants also identified several challenges (financial and relational) related to the influence of tertiary study which they faced. The research revealed the programme influenced their ongoing success and continuation in undergraduate study. The programme provided an effective bridge into tertiary education (academically, emotionally and socially). Participant’s acknowledged the influence on their cognitive and meta-cognitive growth and development. The range of tertiary leaning skills and knowledge gained and/or enhanced was considerable. Close links between the academic skills taught in the bridging programme and required in undergraduate study were evident. Positive improvements in confidence, self-efficacy and motivation were also attributed to the influence of the programme. Holistic personal development occurred as the skills and knowledge gained and developed were transferred and extended from academia into other areas of the lives of former bridging students and thus further influenced their family, personal friends and society. The influence of the bridging programme has enabled new opportunities, ways of being and employment to become more than a dream, but a reality which the participants continue to move towards. Overall, it could be claimed that the influence of the bridging programme was holistic. A series of recommendations are provided for theory, policy and practice. The significance for social issues and action are discussed and avenues for further research outlined.

The focus of this research was Year 12 student leadership in three Catholic schools. Pivotal to the thesis were the leadership experiences and self-perceptions of the schools’ Year 12 students. Two theoretical propositions underscored the study: all Year 12 students are called to some form of leadership within their school; and schools should strive to build a leadership culture inclusive of all Year 12 students. The review of the literature drew attention to three themes which formed the conceptual framework underpinning the research, namely organisational leadership, Christian leadership and its meaning for the Catholic School, and student leadership. In the light of the review it seemed appropriate that the conduct of the study should be predominantly qualitative, interpretive, and planned around collective case study. For each of the three case study schools, data collection took the form of a document search, an interview with a key informant staff member, a Year 12 student survey questionnaire utilising both qualitative and quantitative questions, and two Year 12 student focus group interviews. The “general analytic strategy” (Yin, 1994, p. 30) employed in this research was to follow the theoretical propositions underlying this study which, in turn, reflected a set of seven research questions. Findings from the study indicated that there was a strong belief among senior students from the three schools that every Year 12 student should have the opportunity to participate in leadership. Furthermore, students saw leadership as entailing duty, a sense of service, as well as involvement with younger students. Students also highlighted a range of benefits associated with leadership participation, as well as certain pressures, notably the need to balance study commitments with leadership responsibilities, and the demands of having to be a role model “all the time”.

Despite the rapid growth in the provision of tourism higher education in the past 40 years, uncertainties remain about the content and nature of tourism degrees and how these are aligned with the needs of the tourism industry. Some research has been done on tourism higher education curriculum design, but the extent to which tourism higher education meets industry needs has not yet been closely investigated. This study aims to ascertain whether a gap exists between what education institutions provide in their undergraduate curricula in the way of tourism knowledge and skills sets, and what knowledge and skills sets are required by the tourism industry. A conceptual framework was developed to outline the research process, which involved two steps. First, content analysis of tourism curricula was conducted as the preliminary research. A list of 34 subject areas was synthesised from all core subjects offered in tourism courses in a sample of Australian universities according to subjects? titles, themes and detailed descriptions. A list of 27 skills and abilities was identified by collating university generic skills and tourism discipline attributes from these institutions. Based on the study of tourism curricula, two web-based surveys were then designed and distributed in order to investigate the respective perceptions of industry professionals and academic providers on the subjects and skills sets necessary for tourism employment. In analysing the data, perceptions about the subjects and skills sets were compared between tourism industry professionals and academic providers. Importance- performance analysis, gap analysis, and SPSS statistical tools were applied to analyse this data. The study found considerable variance between the views of industry professionals and academic providers in Australia. Their views vary firstly on the relative value of tertiary degrees for tourism professionals; secondly, on the relative merits of skills and abilities needed to work in the tourism sector; and thirdly, on the relative merits of various subjects taught at university. These findings establish the existence of a gap between the existing tourism curriculum at university level, and the needs of the tourism industry. The findings of this study also provide evidence to suggest that tourism higher education provision should not be isolated from real practice and that those involved in curriculum design should work closely with industry representatives to ensure a strong connection between theory and practice, thus improving the likelihood that graduates of tourism higher education courses will graduate with knowledge and skills sets which are closely aligned with the needs and expectations of the tourism industry

This thesis presents a case study of the drink drive initiatives, including marketing communications, legislation and enforcement practices implemented in the state of Victoria (Australia) between 1989-2000. It has been argued that the 51% reduction in road toll was related to these initiatives. In order to explore the veracity of these claims, a holistic case study approach was adopted. In addition to an examination of the communications tactics and extant practices of enforcement agencies, the study involved interviews with two distinct groups: professionals in various fields pertaining to road safety, and members of the general Victorian driving community. The focus of this work was on the advertising and communications campaigns that were run by the Transport Accident Commission from 1989-2000; however the policy and enforcement initiatives were also examined in terms of their potential impact on the lowering of the road toll. Suggestions for the improvement of policy and communication strategies within a social marketing context are made.

This research investigates the role of strategic alignment in the success of data warehouse implementation. Data warehouse technology is inherently complex, requires significant capital investment and development time. Many organizations fail to realize the full benefits from it. While failure to realize benefits has been attributed to numerous causes, ranging from technical to organizational reasons, the underlying strategic alignment issues have not been studied. This research confirms, through two case studies, that the successful adoption of the data warehouse depends on its alignment to the business plans and strategy. The research found that the factors that are critical to the alignment of data warehouses to business strategy and plans are (a) joint responsibility between data warehouse and business managers, (b) alignment between data warehouse plan and business plan, (c) business user satisfaction, (d) flexibility in data warehouse planning and (e) technical integration of the data warehouse. In the case studies, the impact of strategic alignment was visible both at implementation and use levels. The key findings from the case studies are that a) Senior management commitment and involvement are necessary for the initiation of the data warehouse project. The awareness and involvement of data warehouse managers in corporate strategies and a high level of joint responsibility between business and data warehouse managers is critical to strategic alignment and successful adoption of the data warehouse. b) Communication of the strategic direction between the business and data warehouse managers is important for the strategic alignment of the data warehouse. Significant knowledge sharing among the stakeholders and frequent communication between the iv data warehouse managers and users facilitates better understanding of the data warehouse and its successful adoption. c) User participation in the data warehouse project, perceived usefulness of the data warehouse, ease of use and data quality (accuracy, consistency, reliability and timelines) were significant factors in strategic alignment of the data warehouse. d) Technology selection based on its ability to address business and user requirements, and the skills and response of the data warehousing team led to better alignment of the data warehouse to business plans and strategies. e) The flexibility to respond to changes in business needs and flexibility in data warehouse planning is critical to strategic alignment and successful adoption of the data warehouse. Alignment is seen as a process requiring continuous adaptation and coordination of plans and goals. This research provides a pathway for facilitating successful adoption of data warehouse. The model developed in this research allows data warehouse professionals to ensure that their project when implemented, achieve the strategic goals and business objectives of the organization.

For the Australian heritage manager, management of a place is a value-laden enterprise with a vast degree of difference between values. Decisions regarding management of Australian heritage sites require knowledge of the site and the degree of significance that the place holds – whether archaeological, scientific, social, and / or historic. Attitudes towards heritage and its level of importance may be affected by a person’s cultural background. Understanding visitors, including an appreciation of their differing values of importance regarding heritage, is needed so that appropriate management decisions can be implemented. Knowledge of the type(s) of methodology to best ascertain cross-cultural differences appears to be limited. It would appear that methodological guidelines in undertaking cross-cultural research are mostly limited to language translation, conceptual and experiential equivalency, with measurement equivalency the most difficult to achieve between Asian and Western cultures. The investigation concentrated on the countries of Japan and the USA. In terms of both cultural and heritage visitor numbers and greatest expenditure per night, these two countries are amongst Australia’s top four. The USA is comparatively young, only a few hundred years old in regards to its built heritage sites, whereas Japan has a longer history, being a few thousand years old. Control groups in each country were also included so that if any influences from the research sites occurred, the control group would allow a more objective indication of cultural backgrounds. From the results, attitudes towards heritage are influenced by cultural backgrounds. The results indicate that first and foremost, Americans value and place greater importance upon culturally built heritage, whilst the Japanese value and place greater importance upon the intangible – the stories of the place, the people and the social values of the time. From the research, a conceptual and strategic framework for the Australian heritage manager regarding marketing to these two cultural groups is proposed.