The concept of workforce agility has become increasingly popular in recent years as agile individuals are expected to be better able to handle change and uncertainty. However, agility has rarely been studied in a systematic way. Relations between agility and positive work outcomes, such as higher performance or increased well-being, have often been suggested but rarely been empirically tested. Furthermore, several different workforce agility measures are used in the literature which complicates the comparison of findings. Recognizing these gaps in the literature, we developed a new workforce agility measure, compared this measure to established workforce agility measures, and empirically tested the relations of workforce agility with work outcomes. For this purpose, we surveyed participants from two samples (N1 = 218, N2 = 533). In a first step, we used Sample 1 to examine the factor structure of the measure for item selection. In a second step, we used Sample 2 to confirm the 10-factor structure and to compare the predictive validity of our measure along with two other agility measures. Findings demonstrate predictive validity for all three workforce agility scales, especially in relation to innovative performance. Furthermore, workforce agility related positively to task and innovative performance, organizational citizenship behavior, job satisfaction, and well-being.

<p>This research investigated the influence and relationship of two cognitive diversity frameworks on student design team knowledge integration capabilities and team contribution among seventy-five (75) student teams in Purdue’s Tech 120: Design Thinking in Technology course. </p> <p> </p> <p>When in cognitively diverse teams, students do not effectively integrate the knowledge available to them. Past research results in this area have further demonstrated that students tend to get worse at collaboration as the cognitive differences emerge and are exposed over time. The costs of this lack of collaboration and assimilation of knowledge assets are significant, such as diminished creativity, coordination, and other team performance measures. The purpose of this study then, was to provide student design teams with models or frameworks for visualizing and understanding the cognitive diversity available to them in their team and test the impact these frameworks have on various measures of team effectiveness: knowledge integration, psychological safety, and individual contribution. </p> <p> </p> <p>Cognitive diversity frameworks in question have been used successfully in various industry and organizational settings. The first, is the FourSight Thinking Profile™. This framework is used to understand one’s creative problem-solving preferences and how those preferences (high, neutral, and low) impact group dynamics. The second, is the AEM-Cube®. This framework draws on several theoretical foundations to assess an individua’s patterns of thinking and responses to change. Both the FourSight Thinking Profile™ and the AEM-Cube® have shown to help teams in industry settings collaborate (DeCusatis, 2008; Reynolds & Lewis, 2017), but their use in educational settings to solve the knowledge integration and team contribution problem in student teams is untested. </p> <p> </p> <p>The nearly 470 students in Purdue’s TECH 120 course were organized into teams ranging from 3-5 members by their instructors, thus creating a total of 129 teams. The researcher then divided the 129 teams into two fairly equal treatment groups. Each treatment group was given one of two cognitive diversity assessments (FourSight or AEM-Cube) to complete individually, time to review the results, and then asked to create a team charter or contract where students discussed cognitive strengths and weaknesses and how they planned to manage those assets and deficiencies as they worked on a 4-week long design thinking project. Only 75 teams completed all steps of the treatment (either FourSight or AEM-Cube) and thus were the focus of analysis. </p> <p> </p> <p>The major conclusions of this study are that while neither the FourSight or AEM-Cube frameworks for cognitive diversity were more effective in raising student knowledge integration capability or overall team contribution, these frameworks did not negatively impact the student experience; high levels of psychological safety were maintained among both more homogeneous teams and those that were more heterogeneous; and higher levels of knowledge integration capabilities and team contribution were achieved by students in varying degrees of diversity of creative problem-solving preferences and strategic agility. While the reason(s) for such high scores for knowledge integration capability, team member contribution, and psychological safety are unknown, the students reported that the processes by which these teams integrated their knowledge assets and solicited the contribution of their team members was both positive and effective. </p> <p> </p> <p>Further research into the effectiveness of the treatment, the influence of demographic diversities on team functions, and the experience of the 54 student teams that did not complete the treatment are needed to elucidate and understand the findings of this study. </p>

No / With the advent and maturity of the internet, reverse electronic auctions (e-auctions) are now an important mechanism for public and private sector organisations, in the procurement of goods and services. Here, a novel link is made between reverse electronic auctions (e-auctions) and its potential impact on organisational agility, a link not previously developed in the literature. In this paper, we justify this relationship from a theoretical perspective. We investigate how information and internet technology impacts procurement, by an analysis and evaluation of the literature. E-auctions are reviewed and organisational agility defined; the advantages of agile management are also identified and the role that e-auctions can play in achieving this, discussed. Strategies for re-aligning reverse e-auctions in support of organisational agility are proposed and the advantages of this process discussed. Recommendations for future practice that will maximise the chances of realising agile systems management are also presented. Finally, areas for further research are identified.

Working agile is common in the space of software development, but in other industries and organizational functions an interest has developed in the subject. Mainly because working agile have shown several benefits for teams working with those methodologies. Especially flexibility is one commonly mentioned benefit of teams that adopt agile values and principles. Hence, the research is trying to answer:  How do agile values influence flexibility in budgeting processes, and what barriers hinders their adoption? Flexibility is one key characteristic of successful companies in today’s turbulent market environment. Changes in the market environment are caused by war, inflation, and other geopolitical factors. This is changing the playground for companies that must be flexible for changes in prices, customer demand, investment opportunities and more. To identify critical areas related to these issues this paper will investigate budgeting processes, hence the budget is the foundation for everything the business will do in the upcoming period, for example, how much sales will bring into the business or how much they will set aside for investments.Therefore, this research focuses on the influence agile values and principles have on flexibility within budgeting processes and teams. Through a qualitative interpretive approach, the thesis sought to understand agile values' influence on flexibility. By collecting data through semistructured interviews and later analysing thematically to find patterns and meaning among participants working within the budgeting process at different companies, the research question could be answered.Finally, the findings demonstrate a positive correlation between adherence to agile values and increased budgeting flexibility. Firms with high compliance exhibited greater adaptability compared to those with lower compliance. The study also found three key barriers hindering adoption of agile values in budgeting.  Keywords: “Agile Principles”, “Agile”, “Managerial Accounting”, “Agility”, “Management Accounting”, “Management Accounting”, “Budgeting”, &amp; “Agile methodology”.

The study is undertaken for a more compressive understanding for organizational theory and its applicability to tendency towards improvisation during emergency times among individuals in Non Profit Organizations (NPOs) in Saudi Arabia. The analysis involved an examination of direct effect of learning on tendency towards improvisation and possible mediating effects between organizational learning and tendency towards improvisation among individuals in NPOs, while controlling for key demographic differences (e.g. individuals’ age, education level and years in service, number of full-time staff and volunteers). Self-administered questionnaires were distributed to full-time employees in 13 NPOs in three cities in the western area of Saudi Arabia, namely Jeddah, Makkah and Madinah (N= 304). The main statistical method employed to hypotheses examination was Structural Equation Modeling. The hypothesis examination resulted in three out of five hypnotized paths are to be significant. Two direct relations were interpreted as outcomes of organizational learning, with increases in the level of organizational learning is being positively related to individuals’ self –efficacy and agility. The third significant path interpreted as individuals’ agility is positively related to their tendency to improvise during emergency times, which indicates organizational learning has indirect effect on tendency towards improvisation. Finally, the applicability of organizational learning theory to the field of emergency management and suggestions for future research in light of the findings of this research are also discussed.

Submitted by Caroline Xavier (caroline.xavier@pucrs.br) on 2017-06-30T18:19:05Z No. of bitstreams: 1 DIS_GREICE_DE_CARLI_ROMAN_COMPLETO.pdf: 9835425 bytes, checksum: aa605361de91b916006af4710a54365b (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2017-06-30T18:19:05Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 DIS_GREICE_DE_CARLI_ROMAN_COMPLETO.pdf: 9835425 bytes, checksum: aa605361de91b916006af4710a54365b (MD5) Previous issue date: 2016-12-15 / Em fevereiro de 2001, o Manifesto ?gil foi proposto tendo como princ?pio equipes pequenas e co-localizadas. No entanto, ao longo destes 16 anos, a agilidade tamb?m foi posta em pr?tica em outros contextos, como por exemplo: equipes distribu?das e sistemas complexos, utilizando-se o termo "Desenvolvimento ?gil em Larga Escala". N?o h? uma defini??o clara e compreensiva de como a agilidade est? presente neste contexto. Assim, nosso trabalho preenche essa lacuna com o objetivo de caracterizar a agilidade no Desenvolvimento ?gil em Larga Escala. Neste trabalho, realizou-se um estudo organizado em duas fases. Na Fase 1, denominada Base Te?rica, realizamos um estudo do estado-da-arte da ?rea. Na Fase 2, denominado Estudo Emp?rico, n?s realizamos duas investiga??es: um estudo de campo em uma empresa ?gil em larga escala, para identificar o desenvolvimento durante o processo de transforma??o da empresa para esta nova abordagem e, um grupo focal, para identificar como as equipes ?geis em larga escala que v?m utilizando os m?todos ?geis o quanto se percebem em termos de aspectos de maturidade ?gil. Estes resultados contribuem para os pesquisadores e profissionais entenderem melhor como a agilidade e definida e percebida nestes grandes ambientes. O conhecimento e ?til para aqueles que querem entender como o desenvolvimento ?gil se adapta a tais ambientes e para pesquisadores com o objetivo de se aprofundar sobre o tema. / The Agile Manifesto was proposed in February 2001 having in mind small and collocated teams. However, agile has also been put in practice in other settings (e.g. large teams, distributed teams, complex systems) under the term ?Large-Scale Agile Development' (LSAD). There is no clear definition for and understanding of how agility is present in this setting. Thus, our work fills in this gap aiming to characterize agility in LSAD. We conducted a study organized in two phases. In Phase 1, named Theoretical Base, we conducted the state-of-the-art of the area. In Phase 2, named Empirical Study, we conducted two investigations: a field study in a large-scale agile company to identify how agility was developed during the transformation process of the company to this new approach, and a focus group to identify how large-scale agile teams that have been using agile for a certain while perceive themselves in terms of maturity in agile aspects. Findings contribute to researchers and professionals better understand how agility is defined and perceived in large settings. This knowledge is useful for those who want to enter the agile journey in such similar environments and for researchers aiming to further explore the topic.

This research paper investigated the performance of the supply chain system in the pharmaceutical industry in Pakistan. The study was based on the hypothesis that the adopted supply chain systems lack proper structures to deal with the challenges of the business environment in which they operate, and as such were underperforming. Therefore, the objective was to ascertain the nature and the dynamics of the SCM (Supply Chain Management) system used in the drug industry. The objectives of the research were anchored on three factors that include Supply Chain Flexibility/Agility Performance, Supply Chain Resource Performance, and Supply Chain Output Performance. These three metrics were used to describe the independent variable which comprises the supply chain performance of Pakistan’s pharmaceutical industry. The research data was collected through questionnaires that would make it possible to analyze and interpret information gathered. The questions were administered to a sample of the players that represent every sector of the industry (multinationals, local manufacturers, retailers, and regulators). The final results of the study support or discourage the hypotheses that 1) Manufacturers struggle to manage lead-time as a result of factors such as government. 2) Manufacturers lack satisfactory levels of performance in terms of Supply Chain Flexibility/Agility Performance, Supply Chain Resource Performance, and Supply Chain Output Performance.

The quality of work performance and cooperation within the team is determined by organizational culture and the values of organization and individuals. Having different values can often lead to conflicts and may also cause decrease in team effectiveness and demotivation. The target of the thesis is to identify the influence of individual values on the team cooperation. To define the types of value orientation of particular team members I shall use the theories of Shalom Schwarz and strengths inventory methods of Ellias H. Porter. A quantitative research realized on a target group of seventy managers of international companies is a part of this thesis. The research is targeting to verify the impact of individual value preferences on employee behavior within team work for the chosen sample of managers. To reach the empirical research a combination of methods of questionnaires and standardized interviews shall be used. Key words: values, organizational behaviour, cooperation, Schwartz, Porter, portrait value survey, Motivational value system

An X band dual polarized slotted waveguide antenna array is designed with very high polarization purity for both horizontal and vertical polarizations. Horizontally polarized radiators are designed using a novel non-inclined edge wall slots whereas the vertically polarized slots are implemented using broad wall slots opened on baffled single ridge rectangular waveguides. Electromagnetic model based on an infinite array unit cell approach is introduced to characterize the slots used in the array. 20 by 10 element planar array of these slots is manufactured and radiation fields are measured. The measurement results of this array are in very good accordance with the simulation results. The dual polarized antenna possesses a low sidelobe level of -35 dB and is able to scan a sector of &plusmn / 35 degrees in elevation. It also has a usable bandwidth of 600 MHz.

Ce travail contribue à la recherche scientifique à travers différents aspects. Tout d’abord, le couple produit/filière, traditionnellement pensé de façon causaliste, a été envisagé à travers le prisme du paradigme de la complexité. Cette contribution théorique souligne la nécessité de co-concevoir le couple produit/filière afin d’atténuer les efforts associés au lancement d’un produit innovant sur le marché et de s’assurer de son succès. Cependant, une étude empirique a souligné que peu d’entreprises tenaient compte de la filière lors de la conception de leur produit innovant. Dans ce contexte, une ingénierie de conception de filière a été élaborée en se basant sur les données de conception du produit afin de concevoir, spécifier, valider et mettre en œuvre la filière d’un nouveau produit. Cette ingénierie se décompose en trois étapes majeures : une étape de co-conception, une étape de positionnement et une étape d’évaluation. L’étape de co-conception vise à collecter et à traiter les données de conception du produit fournies par l’équipe projet. Un modèle instancié de la filière a été développé afin de collecter les données nécessaires à la conception de la filière qui sont ensuite traités pour faciliter la modélisation. L’étape de positionnement vise à souligner le rôle de l’entreprise innovante au sein des différents scénarios de filière obtenus. Basée sur le processus Harmony for System Engineering et son outil Rational Rhapsody®, cette étape détaille la filière d’un point de vue exigences, acteurs, processus et comportement (chacun représenté par différents diagrammes) afin d’élaborer différents scenarios. Enfin, la dernière étape vise à évaluer ces scénarios de filière afin d’établir une stratégie cohérente. En effet, de nombreux chercheurs ont montré qu’une filière agile était plus apte à supporter un produit innovant lors de son lancement afin de s’adapter plus rapidement aux changements (organisationnels, tactiques, marketing, environnementaux…). Par conséquent, une trame basée sur des phénomènes observables a été développée afin de faciliter la mise en œuvre de stratégie d’agilité, ce qui permet d’évaluer la typologie de la filière actuelle et de décider des actions à mettre en place pour obtenir une filière plus agile. Cette ingénierie a été testée auprès d’entreprises manufacturières / This thesis contributes to scientific research through different aspects. First of all, the product/supply chain couple, traditionally thought of in a causalistic way, was considered through the prism of the complexity paradigm. This theoretical contribution underlines the need to co-design the product/supply chain couple in order to mitigate the efforts associated with launching an innovative product on the market and to ensure its success. However, an empirical study has pointed out that few companies consider the supply chain when designing their innovative product. In this context, supply chain design engineering was developed based on product design data in order to design, specify, validate and implement the supply chain of a new product. This engineering is divided into three major stages: a co-design stage, a positioning stage and an evaluation stage. The co-design stage aims to collect and process the product design data provided by the project team. An instantiated supply chain model was developed to collect the data needed to design the supply chain which is then processed to facilitate modeling. The positioning stage aims to highlight the role of the innovative company within the various supply chain scenarios obtained. Based on the Harmony for System Engineering process and its Rational Rhapsody® tool, this step details the supply chain from a point of view of requirements, stakeholders, processes and behavior (each represented by different diagrams) in order to elaborate different scenarios. Finally, the last step aims to evaluate these supply chain scenarios in order to establish a coherent strategy. Indeed, many researchers have shown that an agile supply chain is better able to support an innovative product when it is launched in order to adapt more quickly to changes (organizational, tactical, marketing, environmental…). Consequently, a framework based on observable phenomena has been developed to facilitate the implementation of an agility strategy, which makes it possible to evaluate the typology of the current supply chain and decide which actions to implement to obtain a more agile supply chain. This engineering has been tested with manufacturing companies