The purpose of this study was to learn how five Indonesian grassroots nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) perceive, understand, interpret and operationalize the constructs of organizational effectiveness (OE) in the management of their organizations. Previous research has been largely based on findings from business oriented profit organizations in economically developed societies. However, there has been little information collected from non-profit organizations in developing countries, in particular indigenous NGOs working at grassroots level. The aim of this research was to redress that imbalance, in particular, to discover which aspects of organizational effectiveness appear to be relatively universal and which appear to be context-specific. / Data were collected using a combination of qualitative and quantitative data in the form of focus groups, interviews, case studies and surveys. Eigen value factor rotation and Cronbach's alpha analyses of qualitative data, as well as observer and methodological triangulation of qualitative data informed that data findings were statistically reliable and valid. Key findings indicate that participants and their stakeholders used language reflecting traditional management concepts to describe such events as differentiating short, medium and long term goals, and developing information and documentation procedures. Yet on almost every occasion these descriptors were augmented by context-specific additional discourse suggestive of a multidimensional view of each event. Approximately two thirds of effectiveness criteria adopted by NGO managers and their constituents involved relationships, communication. mutuality of goals, solidarity, empowerment, and self-help with only about one third of usage relating to functional management issues such as financial accountability, project monitoring and evaluation, and work processes. / Strongly featured in participants' perceptions effectiveness was a reflection of the dominant role played by political issues within the surrounding community and the lives of the participants. For example, in describing their efforts to achieve effectiveness, NGOs nearly always suggested criteria and values that described efforts to mobilize, advocate, influence and affect societal change. Activities utilized to transform the internal organization were thought by participants also to be transforming the organization's external political landscape. Context-specific findings included attempts to blend organizational structures with community practices. For example, one NGO purposely disbanded its legal status as a foundation (Yayasan) to become a collective. There were significant disagreements among participants regarding best organizational practices. Often, the grassroots NGOs appeared to be pulling in opposite directions. Those NGOs engaged primarily in striving to provide tangible services appeared to be moving towards more conservative, conventional management models that focus on structure, operating procedures, and fiscal and program assessments. Other NGOs, engaged in community mobilization, were moving towards more radical organizational structures and processes. / Thesis (PhDBusinessandManagement)--University of South Australia, 2005.

Thesis (DBA(DoctorateofBusinessAdministration))--University of South Australia, 2004.

This paper is a review of the literature on quality management practices and firm performance. Theoretical frameworks linking ISO 9000 and Total Quality Management (TQM) were analyzed. ISO 9000 has been recommended to be used as a route to TQM. The emergence of constructs of quality management practices was examined. Eight most popular constructs have been identified - top management support, quality information availability, quality information usage, employee training, employee involvement, product/process design, supplier quality and customer orientation. A thorough review of the literature pointed to three categories of empirical studies on quality management practices and firm performance, i.e., comparative studies, longitudinal studies and impact studies. This paper suggests that future research in quality management should focus on the link between quality management and financial performance. / Thesis (DBA(DoctorateofBusinessAdministration))--University of South Australia, 2004.

Thesis (DBA(DoctorateofBusinessAdministration))--University of South Australia, 2002.

Thesis (MProjMgmt)--University of South Australia, 1998

My aim in this thesis is to improve understanding of the contributions of organizational climate to organizational effectiveness. Climate is defined as the shared perceptions of the work environment (Schneider & Reichers, 1983). First, I developed and empirically validated four targeted climates ??? climates for involvement; mission-alignment; consistency; and adaptability ??? reflecting a broad range of management perspectives. These climates are based on Quinn and Rohrbaugh???s Competing Values Framework (1983a), and extend the work of Patterson et al. (2005). Using secondary data from 2027 business-units from diverse industries, worldwide, these climates were, as expected, inter-related, yet distinct. Second, I explored the relationships between multiple climates and stakeholder outcomes (staff motivation, perceived customer loyalty and perceived business performance) using structural equation modeling and discriminant function analysis. Separate but matched manager and employee samples from 620 business-units were used to assess relationships linking the four climates and three effectiveness outcomes within a single model. The findings indicated that employees??? perceptions of workplace characteristics influence important organizational outcomes. Overall, key findings were: (1) a climate for mission related directly to perceived business performance; (2) climates for consistency and adaptability both related to higher business performance through their positive link with customer loyalty; (3) a climate for involvement also related to business performance, but only when the context was uncertain; (4) while climates for involvement and mission related to staff satisfaction, staff satisfaction did not uniquely predict business performance; (5) the most effective business-units, with high scores on all three outcomes, had a balance of high levels of all four climates. The thesis discusses the implications of these results for both theory and practice, as well as suggestions for future research. In particular, the comprehensiveness and empirical integrity of this multiple-climates model indicates its potential to provide new insights about the relationships between perceived organizational characteristics and outcomes. Furthermore, my research suggests that organizations can foster high levels of all four climates concurrently, and in doing so achieve better outcomes for a diversity of stakeholders. This has implications for change management: specifically that organizations should embed and integrate multiple approaches concurrently rather than move from one to the next.

Introduction The Queensland Children’s Cancer Centre (QCCC) of the Royal Children’s Hospital (RCH) in Brisbane, cares for children and family members from across the state covering over of 1.7 million km2 and a population of more than 3.6 million inhabitants. Around sixty percent of families accessing QCCC services live outside the Brisbane metropolitan area at distances ranging from hundreds to thousands of kilometres away. Telephone communication is used to provide specialist care and support to families directly to the home. Telephone communication is also used by families to maintain intra-family psychosocial care and support during treatment related separation. Although the feasibility of using online support mechanisms such as videotelephony (full-duplex, real-time audiovisual communication) has been investigated in a number of areas, no investigations have been reported in the area of paediatric oncology care and support. Scope Initial investigations focused on paediatric oncology related palliative care, a subgroup of paediatric oncology families with high care and support needs. Following continued difficulties with family recruitment in the area of palliative care, two additional areas where support via videotelephone may be of benefit were identified by clinicians: facilitation of intra-family support during paediatric related inpatient admission and new diagnosis discharge support. Investigations were expanded to include these areas. Methods Two custom made videotelephone units were developed to provide audio-visual communication using the ordinary home telephone line for early investigations. Improvements in the mechanism to provide video to the home were evaluated throughout investigations (in terms of technical feasibility and cost) moving from dedicated dial-up systems to use of the families existing home computer and broadband Internet connectivity. Feasibility studies were completed with one or more patients/families to confirm that videotelephony could be used successfully within the given area of paediatric oncology. To investigate cost-effectiveness, studies were designed to evaluate the cost and the effect of videotelephony support. The primary measure of clinical effectiveness was parental mental-health related quality of life. For analysis of cost-effectiveness, parental quality adjusted life years (QALYs) were used to investigate the incremental cost per QALY. Results The feasibility of providing videotelephone based support was confirmed in paediatric oncology related palliative care with a single family. Despite a number of attempts, a randomised controlled trial with palliative care families was terminated prematurely after continuing problems with recruitment. Based on the experience in this trial, the acceptability of providing support to paediatric oncology related palliative care families using videotelephony was then evaluated. All families were offered videotelephony as part of the routine services provided by the QCCC over a 12-month period. Consent to participate was taken as a proxy measure of acceptability. Consent from 92% of families offered the service provided some reassurance that videotelephone based support was acceptable to these families. The average cost of the service, including fixed equipment and infrastructure costs, was $3,830 per family with a variable cost of $66 per family. Feasibility was also confirmed for the facilitation of intra-family support during inpatient admission, again with a single bone marrow transplant family. A small (n=16) randomised controlled study was then completed in the area of intra-family support with paediatric bone marrow transplant families. Preliminary evidence of effectiveness was obtained with improved mental health related quality of life of parents with a mean improvement of 6.3 points using the Mental Component Summary Score (MCS-12) of the Medical Outcomes Survey Short Form (SF-12) (95% CI: 0.6 to 12.0, p=0.030). No effect was seen for patients or siblings. On an intention-to-treat basis the incremental cost effectiveness ratio (ICER) using univariate analysis was $12,757/QALY (Fieller’s 95% CI: $6,792 to $64,548) with a 92.5% probability that supplemental videotelephone support was cost-effective compared to standard support mechanisms alone at a willingness-to-pay threshold of $30,000/QALY. ICER results using multivariable analysis were $26,623 (Fieller’s 95% CI: $10,475 to 177,921) and probability of 58.0% at the same willingness to pay threshold. Despite some uncertainty in the cost-effectiveness of this type of intervention, preliminary results support the appropriateness of further investigations in this area. For the final area of investigation, new diagnosis discharge support, a pilot trial (n=8) was completed which confirmed the feasibility of providing videotelephone based support at this time in the treatment pathway. In addition, a cost-minimisation analysis was completed to evaluate the cost of providing real-time audio-visual communication to the home using a newly developed videotelephone alternative (a webcam and software used on the family home PC and Internet connection) rather than the custom made videotelephone units initially developed. With an average cost of $294 per family for the home computer option versus $1,345 for the original custom made videotelephone option, the economic benefits of the newly developed alternative were confirmed. Conclusion Feasibility has been confirmed in all three areas investigated, paediatric oncology related palliative care, intra-family support and discharge support. For the facilitation of intra-family support during inpatient admission, preliminary evidence indicates that the addition of videotelephony support, as a supplement to standard support mechanisms, may be cost-effective. Based on this result, further research in this area appears justifiable. It is also feasible to conduct a larger trial in the area of discharge support which should provide important information on the cost-effectiveness of videotelephony services provided at this time. The results of these investigations, combined with an increased understanding and insight into the role videotelephone support can play in paediatric oncology, provide the basis for the development of a potentially cost-effective model for improving the care and support provided by children’s cancer services in Australia using videotelephony. This model spans the spectrum of paediatric oncology care from diagnosis, through outpatient care, to discharge home (either for palliative care or remission care) specifically with geographically dispersed populations in mind. To provide further evidence of cost-effectiveness in paediatric oncology more broadly, future research will need to focus initially on three areas. The first area is preliminary investigations, this essentially includes consideration of the potential economic impact of proposed services before investment in further research and development. For paediatric oncology videotelephone support preliminary research includes the potential for videotelephony in paediatric oncology outpatient care, specifically the number of consultations that could potentially be replaced and the associated economic implications. Preliminary investigations will also need to include quantification of the burden of out-of-pocket telecommunications expenses for paediatric oncology families of the QCCC and the potential economic implications of supplemental videotelephone intra-family support extended beyond paediatric bone marrow transplant families. The second area is clinical feasibility including studies into the practical inclusion of videotelephony support in existing out-patient workloads and workflows, alternative models to provide videotelephony support and inclusion of videotelephony as part of palliative bereavement care and support. Finally, the completion of large, well-designed randomised controlled trials will be required to provide evidence of the cost-effectiveness of videotelephony support in paediatric oncology. The investigations presented in this thesis form the foundation for this work and its application to the delivery of health services to the home in a variety of contexts nationally and internationally.

Becoming a Learning Organization (LO) is widely recognized as a process through which organizations can develop characteristics that enable them to be competitive in an increasingly competitive business environment. While there is an assumption that LOs have the ability to manage change, few empirical studies are available to prove whether an organization with strong LO characteristics also has a high level of change readiness. In developing itself into an LO, an organization seems to gain possession of relevant characteristics through knowledge acquisition, knowledge sharing and knowledge utilization. There is, however, a lack of clarity on what LO characteristics are developed at each of the three stages. The relationship among these stages is also confusing. The purpose of this research is to confirm whether organizations with a high level of LO characteristics also have a high level of readiness-to-change. It also attempts to verify the relationship among the LO development stages of knowledge acquisition, knowledge sharing and knowledge utilization. A questionnaire has been designed following an extensive review. It incorporates "an Inventory of LO Characteristics" to measure the level of LO characteristics formed in an organization. There are also questionnaire to gauge the level readiness-to-change. The questionnaire has been distributed to employees in two leading mobile phone service companies in Thailand. The industry is selected because of its changing business environment. Thailand has been chosen for as the location for the research because few studies in LO have been conducted outside the more developed economies. The findings demonstrate two major insights. Firstly, the correlation coefficient between the six categories of LO characteristics - cultural values, leadership commitment and empowerment, communication, knowledge transfer, employee characteristics and performance upgrading - and readiness-to-change confirms that if an organization has a high level of LO characteristics, it will also have a high level of readiness-to-change. Secondly, the correlation coefficient between the three LO development stages - of knowledge acquisition, knowledge sharing and knowledge utilization - and readiness-to-change, support the hypothesis that they follow a sequential order. Results of the research are analysed and discussed, providing valuable contributions to both research and practice in the area. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--Adelaide Graduate School of Business, 2004.

Thesis (MComm)--University of Stellenbosch, 2006. / Bibliography. Also available via the Internet.

Thesis (M.C.M.) -- Lincoln University, 2007.