Lean construction is considered a valuable solution for the declining productivity of the construction industry. This study seeks to answer the general research question: What does it take to become lean? The research explored the possible paths to becoming lean by examining the journeys of three successful lean construction firms in the U.S. The results are intended to assist other construction firms with their own transformations. This study is especially useful to executives and management because it describes the cultural transformation process of each participating company, the expectations of company employees, and the best practices that each company employed. A qualitative, multiple-case study methodology was used to find common patterns among all three firms as well as unique attributes. Eight research themes shaped the interview dialog that probed the participants’ experiences and insights regarding lean— from the companies’ initial discovery of lean to their implementation of tools and trainings. The themes further prompted responses regarding the roles that were critical to successful lean implementation as well as the barriers that inhibited lean adoption. Finally, interviews also sought out strategies to successfully promote and implement lean into the future. The research discusses the assertions and conclusions that emerged from the findings, which identify several successful paths to becoming lean. Findings show how people, the environment, and actions positively or negatively influence the adoption of a lean culture. The study concludes with recommendations for future firms regarding lean planning to transform the organization into a successful, top-performing, lean construction company. It emphasizes personalized application for each employee to create a positive environment for the new culture to develop. The conclusions also include five phases of lean saturation: discovery and learning, commitment, strategic planning, implementation, and training company partners in lean.

The achievement gap between White students and students of color has long been a concern of educators. It is well established that critical pedagogy and culturally relevant teaching practices increase the possibility of academic achievement for ethnic minority students; yet, throughout the U.S., the implementation of such practices has been less than optimal. It is also clear that some teachers are doing an excellent job of teaching students of color. However, it is not clear what those teachers are doing and what their practices look like, particularly in secondary classrooms and for Latina/o students—the fastest growing ethnic minority population in the U.S. Are successful teachers of Latina/o youth engaging in critical pedagogy or culturally relevant teaching practices? Have they developed caring, empathetic relationships with students that result in greater engagement and academic success? Using a multifaceted theoretical framework of critical social theory, seen specifically through the lenses of culturally relevant pedagogy, empathy and false empathy, critical studies in Whiteness, and critical race theory, this ethnographic multiple-case study aimed to answer those questions. By observing and interviewing educators whom principals, teachers, and parents all nominated as “successful” for the Latina and Latino students in a particular school, and identifying the teaching strategies and classroom management routines they employed, I hoped to illuminate key practices and underlying attitudes that other teachers can emulate as they strive to reach and teach Latina/o students.

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There are local and national cries for high school reform, especially in our at-risk high schools; however, close examination of our at-risk high schools shows some are succeeding despite the odds against them. This is a case study of such a successful, at-risk high school. The National Association of Secondary Schools defines an at-risk school as one having a student population of at least 50% minority students, 50 % free and reduced lunch students, and 90 % or better graduating and being accepted into college. Bright Star High School was chosen because it fits these criteria and it was recognized by school officials inside and outside of the school district for its high student performance on a variety of other student achievement indicators. The collection of data took place over a twelve month period between June 2006 and June 2007. This case study answers two questions: (1) What makes Bright Star High School so successful? (2) How did it become this way? In response to the first question, the findings show that there is not one factor that makes the difference but multiple factors that interact with each other. These factors include: (1) common vision and mission; (2) a safe and secure, small, personalized environment; (3) strong, instructional leadership; (4) a faculty that functions as a learning community; (5) rigorous academic programs and intervention and support strategies (6) parent involvement. The factors identified in this case study are similar to those identified in other successful, at-risk schools and to those reported in related literature and research studies. In response to the second question, the findings show: (1) the Bright Star faculty nurtured a culture that supports and encourages the establishment and maintenance of a collaborative learning community; (2) changes at the district, state, and national levels in graduation requirements, accreditation requirements, and the No Child Left Behind Act had a powerful impact; (3) real change takes time, persistence, patience and an understanding that it is messy and not easy. / Ph. D.

Yes / Exercise classes provide a range of benefits for older adults, but adherence levels are poor. We know little of instructors’ experiences of delivering exercise classes to older adults. Semi-structured interviews, informed by the Theory of Planned Behaviour (TPB), were conducted with instructors (n=19) delivering multi-component exercise classes to establish their perspectives on older adults’ uptake and adherence to exercise classes. Analysis revealed ‘barriers’ related to identity, choice/control, cost, venue and ‘solutions’ including providing choice, relating exercise to identity, a personal touch and social support. ‘Barriers’ to adherence included unrealistic expectations and social influences and ‘solutions’ identified were encouraging commitment, creating social cohesion and an emphasis on achieving outcomes. Older adults’ attitudes were an underlying theme, which related to all barriers and solutions. The instructor plays an important, but not isolated, role in older adults’ uptake and adherence to classes. Instructors’ perspectives help us to further understand how we can design successful exercise classes.

During recent years, many researchist have tried to analyze the financing gap that arises in small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). Due to the difficult situation of financing its operations for start-ups, new market solutions have developed, including the idea of collecting capital through crowdfunding. Crowdfunding is a financing method that involves financing a project using small contributions from a large group of individuals / investors. Instead of the traditional way of raising capital from a smaller group of sophisticated investors, the focus would instead be on a large "audience", where each individual contributed to a smaller amount. Crowdfunding is still a new phenomenon, which means that not as much research has been done in comparison with the more established funding alternatives. The problem for this form of funding mostly occurs in the information gap that exists between the potential investors and entrepreneurs. By discovering which factors that contribute to a successful campaign, investors and crowdfunding platforms can gain more knowledge that increases their chances of successfully closing a campaign. / Under det senaste åren har många forskare försökt analysera finansieringsgapet som uppstår i små och medelstora företag (SME). På grund av den försvårade situationen med finansiering av sin verksamhet för start-ups har nya marknadslösningar uppkommit, bland annat idén om insamling av kapital via crowdfunding. Crowdfunding är en finansieringsmetod som innebär finansiering av ett projekt med hjälp av små bidrag från en stor grupp individer/investerare. Istället för att höja kapital från en mindre grupp sofistikerade investerare som det vanligtvis görs, skulle fokus istället ligga på en stor “publik”, där varje individ bidrog till en mindre summa. Crowdfunding är fortfarande väldigt nytt, vilket gör att det inte bedrivits lika mycket forskning i jämförelse med de mer etablerade finansieringsmodellerna. Problemet för denna finansieringsform ligger mestadels i informationsklyftan som råder mellan de potentiella investerare och entreprenörer. Genom att analysera vilka faktorer som bidrar till en framgångsrik kampanj, kan investerare och crowdfunding plattformar få mer kunskap som ökar deras chanser att stänga en kampanj framgångsrikt.

Submitted by Daniele Santos (danielesantos.htl@gmail.com) on 2017-01-18T19:20:02Z No. of bitstreams: 1 Ina -02102016.docx: 798193 bytes, checksum: c83882123b0ea9a1393ce60a818df5a9 (MD5) / Approved for entry into archive by Janete de Oliveira Feitosa (janete.feitosa@fgv.br) on 2017-01-24T13:34:46Z (GMT) No. of bitstreams: 1 Ina -02102016.docx: 798193 bytes, checksum: c83882123b0ea9a1393ce60a818df5a9 (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2017-01-26T12:00:24Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Ina -02102016.docx: 798193 bytes, checksum: c83882123b0ea9a1393ce60a818df5a9 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2016-11-08 / The thesis explores the factors to consider for a successful post-merger integration. The hy-pothesis states that there are several levels of formal and informal factors critical in the post-merger integration contributing to successful mergers. The main focus of companies has typi-cally been on addressing possible synergies and financial effects. However, while analyzing the outcome of merger and acquisitions it has been seen that 70 to 90 percent of mergers fail to meet the long term financial goals over time. This indicates that the assessment of possible partners for a merger may not be the most effective. This thesis argues that factors such as organizational and cultural compatibility need to play a stronger role when selecting a partner to merge or acquire.