Understanding `culture' has become an essential mantra of organisational activities. Managers today are facing this challenge of how to bring about changes in the way they manage, leading to sustainability and growth of organisations. The magnitude of effectiveness relies greatly on managers' skills and competencies. Hence, this study takes on a new dimension of integrating a more complex contingency linkage of cultures and competencies of managers with corporate performance, in a Malaysian context. Little is known about the synthesis of using these two components from evidence of previous research. This gap is filled in this research by embarking on two phases of empirical study. A mixed methodology was employed to triangulate the two approaches (qualitative and quantitative). This method allows researcher to be more confident of their results, provides new ways of capturing a problem to balance with conventional data-collection methods as well as counter-balances strengths and weaknesses of one approach with another. The first phase using a case study method aimed to get a feel for the key issues before embarking on a survey, which is the second phase of the study. It involved two cases based on public listed companies in Malaysia using in-depth interview with managers. The interview results revealed characteristics of strong cultures, variations in Hofstede's four dimensional cultures and perceived managerial competencies required for managers. The second phase based on positivist approach using survey instrument to collect data from a sample of 276 managers. The survey was carried out to elicit data on the perception of managers gathered from ten public listed companies (five locally controlled and five multinationals) in relation to cultures and the competency level of managers. Results of the second phase indicate that cultures, using Hofstede's (1980,1990) classifications at both national and organisational perspectives, correlate significantly with managerial competencies and organisational performance. However, findings also revealed that companies having strong cultures as indicated by high consistency drawn from the perception of managers appear to have a profound impact on managerial competencies and were predictive of organisational performance. It is also interesting to note that the factorised components of key-value and hardwork; emotional involvement and build (ie. ability to build frameworks/models/forms on the basis of information) orientations; participative decision and interpersonal respect as well as work goals have significant influence over performance. Evidence from the case studies implied that these elements reflect culture strength of organisation and therefore, contribute to positive organisational performance. The congruent effect on organisational performance was more apparent between organisational culture and managerial competencies than cross-cultural construct. By establishing an empirical linkage between cultures, managerial competencies and performance, the research provides fresh support for human capital requirements in the Malaysian's public and private enterprises.

The competences of project managers are a vital role in projects success. An exten-sive literature survey was conducted to determine the constitution of an adequate knowledge base for would-be project managers. A detailed literature study was conducted. The literature review discussed how to assess project management competencies. Technical skills and social cultural skills were identified from the literature review. A comprehensive list of criteria was used to generate the critical success factors.Based on the critical success factors that were obtained from the literature in the content for the knowledge base was constructed. This research then started to address what constitutes certification requirements. Certification programs were identified globally for the study. This study identified what the certification programs offered. This research started by proposing a knowledge base and using the “grounded theory approach” used content analysis to compare the proposed knowledge base with project management certification programs. The study concluded with recommendations on the gaps that exist in project man-agement certification programs.

Class of 2010 Abstract / OBJECTIVES: To determine what competencies students feel they learn the most from work, school and extracurricular experiences. METHODS: Questionnaires were administered during a regularly scheduled, required class for third year pharmacy students. Students rated 30 different competencies they felt they learned the most, intermediate, and least amount from work, school and extracurricular experiences. Data on years of work experience, type of work experience, average weekly hours, age, gender, and level of involvement in professional organizations was also collected. RESULTS: There were 63 students included in this study. Students who had a higher level of participation in extra-curricular activities were found to be significantly younger than those who had lower levels of participation (p = 0.05). Students worked on average 11.5 hours a week and had an average of 3.5 years pharmacy related work experience. More than half (>50%) of the competencies were perceived by the third year students to be learned the most in the classroom setting. The competencies students felt they learned the most in the classroom and work setting were from Domain 1: Patient care and Domain 2: Professionalism and management in health systems. Students characterized 80% of the competencies in Domain 3: Health improvement, wellness, and disease prevention to be most learned through extracurricular activities. CONCLUSIONS: It appears students feel they learn primarily in the classroom setting with similar amounts of competencies gained at work and through extracurricular activities.

Thesis advisor: Karen D. Arnold / The purpose of this research was to identify the primary duties and responsibilities of mission officers in Catholic higher education and develop an accompanying set of core competencies for professional development purposes. Mission officers first appeared in Catholic colleges and universities in the 1980s, in response to declining numbers of priests and religious on campuses, increased secularization of the academe, and reduced course requirements in the liberal arts, particularly philosophy and theology. These changes as well as others within higher education, American society, and the Catholic Church raised concerns about the distinctive Catholic identity and mission of Catholic colleges and universities. Although 80% of Catholic colleges and universities have appointed a mission officer to galvanize campus-wide efforts to strengthen the religious character of these institutions (Gilroy, Sloma-Williams, & Galligan-Stierle, 2014), as of yet there are no established educational qualifications, professional norms, or set of competencies to guide the professional practice and development of current and future mission officers. Thirty-seven experienced mission officers participated in four rounds of data collection using a modified Delphi research method. Seventy-four percent of the 27 duties and over eighty percent of the 32 competencies identified, refined, and prioritized in this study reached consensus as critically important or very important by more than three-quarters of the study participants. The study findings indicate that mission officers interact on a regular basis with many groups and individuals at both senior and lower levels within the institution. Many mission officer duties involve efforts to galvanize the campus community, particularly faculty and student affairs professionals, in order to integrate the mission across the institution. Effective mission leadership requires both a top-down and bottom-up approach to mission integration along with leadership skills, knowledge of the Catholic intellectual tradition, collaboration and communication skills, and a demonstrated commitment to the Catholic identity and mission of the university. / Thesis (PhD) — Boston College, 2014. / Submitted to: Boston College. Lynch School of Education. / Discipline: Educational Leadership and Higher Education.

Against the background of principal-agent and transaction-cost theoretical considerations, this study addresses the question whether relational competencies relate to trust within cooperative relationships, taking into account also situational and personal factors. In its conclusion, the study presents an experimentally confirmed model (n = 282) that shows the strong causal relationship between relational competencies and trust allowing boundary-spanning agents to exert influence on the development and maintenance of complex cooperative relationships characterized by long-term objectives.

Thesis advisor: Richard Jackson / Interest in the psychosocial wellbeing of the visually impaired has existed for years as a nebulous and undefined goal of educational programs for children. Yet there is a dearth of systematic inquiry into the influence of teachers on social and emotional development of children and families. The purpose of this study was therefore to develop a foundation of knowledge relating to the role of specialist teachers in addressing the affective adjustment needs of visually impaired children and their families. Drawing upon the theories and intervention practices commonly used in the human service professions, 59 family consultation competencies were identified and grouped into four major knowledge areas, namely affective adjustment to blindness, principles and processes of change, interpersonal communication skills, and specific intervention strategies. This research was exploratory and descriptive in nature, utilizing a semistructured interview format to produce data for both numerical and qualitative analysis. A 3-part questionnaire was administered orally to a sample of 20 certified and fulltime employed teachers of the visually impaired who were working in one of five major service delivery systems found in the Greater Northeast. Participating teachers reported a range of 13.5 to 38.6% of their professional time spent in consultative interactions with teachers, parents, administrators, and related service providers, as compared to a range of 15 to 50% of time given to direct student instruction and assessment. Furthermore, regardless of situational differences in educational and occupational backgrounds, teachers perceived the process skills of interpersonal communication and relationship-building as necessary competencies in their ability to meet vision-specific psychosocial needs of visually impaired children and their families. Variables which were considered by practitioners to influence their proficiency in providing consultative services included the nature and degree of professional preparation, trial and error experience, and interpersonal style or personality. In summary, 49 of the original family consultation competencies presented in this survey were confirmed by participating teachers to be necessary, relevant, and appropriate to their professional responsibilities as educators of the visually impaired. / Thesis (PhD) — Boston College, 1987. / Submitted to: Boston College. Graduate School of Arts and Sciences. / Discipline: Education.

The purpose of this study was to identify the professional and personal competencies that entry-level academic health sciences librarians should possess from the perspectives of academic health sciences library directors, library and information sciences (LIS) educators who specialize in educating health sciences librarians, and individuals who serve as both LIS adjunct faculty and practitioners in the field of health sciences librarianship. the first six research questions focused on the identification of professional and personal competencies, and the last two research questions focused on comparing and contrasting the three perspectives on the professional and personal competencies. the eight research questions were addressed through four rounds of the Delphi method. Three panels of experts, initially composed of 13 academic health sciences library directors, 8 LIS educators, and 8 LIS adjunct faculty adjunct faculty/health sciences librarianship practitioners, participated in the study, and most participants were female, white, in the age range of 45-64, had less than 20 years of experience in their respective careers, and were members of the Medical Library Association. the data collected from the rounds of the Delphi method were analyzed using descriptive statistics, including measures of central tendency, and non-parametric statistics, including the Kruskal-Wallis and Mann-Whitney U tests. Two major conclusions that can be drawn from the findings of the study are: (1) personal competencies are as important as professional competencies and (2) the professional and personal competencies developed by the LIS educators who specialize in health sciences librarianship education were preferred over the ones developed by the academic health sciences library directors and LIS adjunct faculty/health sciences librarianship practitioners. Experts in the field of health sciences librarianship have created a comprehensive inventory of both professional (knowledge and skill) competencies and personal (self-concept, trait, and motive) competencies that can be used in professional practice as well as educational planning.

This thesis is concerned with the relationship between the education system and its critics - with the terms in which programmes of educational reform are viewed by critical intellectuals, and with the claims and limitations of a particular mode of 'principled' critique. It explores this concern in relation to a number of recent developments in Australian education policy, describing the debates that they have engendered and identifying the political ambiguities that attend them. Three case studies are developed. The first is drawn from reactions to the recent bureaucratic reorganisation of higher education, especially those responses concentrated on the defence of the humanities. The second concerns developments in post-compulsory education, especially the construction of the new national credentialling system based on the assessment of 'Key Competencies'. The third addresses the endemic problem of educational assessment and equity. While each of these case studies is discussed in its own right, the three areas of discussion supplement one another within an overall argument concerning the relationship between the education system and a particular mode of 'principledt critique. In exploring this relationship, the thesis puts the case that we require a more historically-informed understanding of current problems in Australian education and a more pragmatic appreciation of the achievements of the existing education system. The issues raised are timely ones. Matters of educational policy have become particularly pressing over the past decade, as Australian education has undergone significant changes. In recent years, we have seen the effects of the drive towards a national education system, of the reorganisation of higher education, of the development of schemes for national credentialling and of the reconstruction of links between schooling, training and industry. These reforms have been driven by some pressing imperatives: to produce a trained and flexible workforce; to monitor levels of literacy and numeracy at a national level; and to satisfy the 'unmet demand' for increased educational places, while managing a limited educational budget.

Dr. Turner investigates whether an awareness of Emotional Intelligence competencies (EC) will impact the levels of job satisfaction and general job performance of the individual project team member as a predictor of project outcome. She undertook and constructed an empirical research project based on a project team EC enrichment framework. EC Team enrichment advocates the development of emotional competencies to achieve measurable improvements in job satisfaction and performance. The research was conducted in the United States defense industry environment and surveyed the project team members of a large-scale, dynamic project. This study was experimental in nature and the research was based on a quantitative approach tailored to minimize threats to validity through the use of a control group. Additionally, it involved elements of related qualitative research to interpret findings. An empirically-based, working hypothesis was presented to the effect that, a greater potential of project success can be realized by introducing information on emotional development to enhance behavioral competencies of all project team members. The case study included three distinct phases for pretest, treatment, and post-test. Results support the concept that an introduction to the concept of emotional intelligence can have a statistically significant impact on project performance through improvement of individual ratings for job satisfaction and professional performance.

The complex nature of health care and medical educational organizations, their different primary goals (clinical service versus education), different organizational structures and the necessity for ensuring efficient and harmonious relationships between these two types of organizations create a challenging environment in which to provide effective medical education leadership. The calls for reform in both medical education and health care have added to these challenges.<p> The purpose of the study was to develop a framework of leadership for medical education and contribute to the literature on leadership in medical education, based on an analysis of the perceptions of key health education leaders in Saskatchewan medical education organizations at the national level in Canada.<p> The main objectives were the identification of core competencies, challenges and strategies for effectiveness in medical education with a focus on unique aspects of about leadership in the medical education setting. Multiple methods of data collection (individual interviews and an event study with components of focus groups interviews and short surveys) with subjects of varied backgrounds and at different levels of leadership in medical education were entailed in this study.<p> The data were collected over a period of 13 months (January, 2009 - February, 2010). The perceptions of 32 medical education leaders, stratified into first- (11), middle- (6) and senior-level (15) leadership positions, based upon the hierarchical position and the scope of the job, were obtained and analyzed. Quantitative data were analyzed through descriptive statistics. Qualitative data were analyzed for themes through content analysis.<p> The findings provide useful information on leadership competencies, challenges and effectiveness strategies in medical education. Leadership competencies included five domains including personal and interpersonal characteristics, skills for effective leadership, skills as an efficient manager, skills in medical education delivery, skills as a teacher and skills as a researcher. All leaders considered personal and interpersonal characteristics to be at the core of leadership; while skills in medical education delivery, and skills as a medical education teacher and researcher were considered least important. The senior-level leaders spent most of their time in activities requiring leadership functions (e.g., strategic planning and creating alignment) followed by activities requiring managerial skills (e.g., operational management). This distinction in the rank ordering of leadership and managerial skills was not obvious for the first- and middle-level leaders; however, most did indicate that they spent more of their time in roles requiring more managerial skills than leadership skills. Among the key competencies, essential at all levels, were effective communication and building and managing relationships. For the most part, the leadership skills were acquired informally with only a few leaders having undergone formal leadership training.<p> The leaders faced three types of challenges: personal and interpersonal challenges including effective time management and personal limitations; organizational challenges including those around structures and processes, organizational communication, personal and organizational relationships, creating engagement and alignment, managing culture and resistance and limited resources; and inter-organizational challenges including competing agendas and interests of stakeholders.<p> The context (societal needs, multiple stakeholders and health care reform), content (medical education delivery and calls for reform) and culture (e.g. professionalism, apprenticeship model of medical education, and the hidden curriculum) of medical education and inherent dualities and conflict require situated leadership skills and strategies. The main leadership theories and approaches helpful in practicing contextual leadership included transactional, transformational, and servant leadership. However, other theoretical approaches, such as moral leadership and learner-centered leadership were also useful. Effective leadership was considered to include personal and interpersonal strategies, strategies for becoming an efficient manager and strategies for practicing inspiring and effective leadership. Personal and interpersonal strategies included looking after self, seeking advice, consciously developing fortitude, allotting time for priorities and thinking and personal development. Becoming an efficient manager involved diligent delegation, appropriate organizational communication and managing priorities. Practicing inspiring leadership involved developing the structure and processes to achieve vision, providing hope, developing mutually valued relationships which were considered key to engagement, alignment, leading change and managing resistance, moving from power to process, using appropriate leadership styles, developing the art of leading change and managing resistance, proactively influencing culture and accomplishing the vision.<p> In conclusion, medical education leadership was perceived as requiring both effective leadership and efficient management. The practice of inspiring and effective leadership, however, appeared to be more an art requiring an alchemy of strategies than a simple matter of application.