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The Definitive Guide To Passing The Police Recruitment Process (2nd Edition): A handbook for prospective police officers, special constables and police community support officers
by John McTaggartThis book has been written with one very specific objective in mind. It aims to give you, the reader, an in-depth appreciation of the skills and abilities required to pass the police national recruitment tests, including the process for applying to be a Police Community Support Officer (PCSO). <P><P>As you read through this book, you will see the approach is to explain in detail the reasoning and rationale behind each exercise, the mechanics of how each exercise works, and the various limitations that exist within the exercise itself – from the perspective of those who designed it. It is not about making you a better person, although if you follow the principles contained throughout, you may just end up that way! <P> In essence, this book is a ‘how to’ guide to passing the police recruitment system. It aims to give you the best chance of passing through the process successfully.
The Definitive Guide To Passing The Police Recruitment Process 2nd Edition: A handbook for prospective police officers, special constables and police community support officers
by John MctaggartEvery police force in England and Wales uses the same national application form and assessment centre. This book tells you not just about the process, but what you need to do to impress the assessors. Now in a revised new edition to reflect the recent changes in the six core skills by which all police applicants are assessed, it provides:
The Definitive Guide to Emergency Department Operational Improvement: Employing Lean Principles with Current ED Best Practices to Create the “No Wait” Department, Second Edition
by Jody Crane, MD, MBA Chuck Noon, PhDThis revised and updated book explores the academics behind managing the complex service environment that is the Emergency Department (ED) by combining applied management science and practical experiences to create a model of how to improve operations. This book offers a presentation of Lean tools used in the ED along with basic and advanced flow principles. It then shows how these concepts are applied and why they work, supported by case studies in which Lean principles were used to transform an underperforming ED into a world-class operation. After reviewing best practices, the authors explain how to achieve excellence by discussing the elements of creating a culture of change.
The Definitive Guide to IT Service Metrics
by Kurt Mcwhirter Ted GaughanIT service metrics: Manage them. Measure them. Make them work for you. Measuring success is crucial, but how do we do it? How can we be sure that the IT services we offer are adding real value to our business? Metrics are an invaluable tool for measuring the effectiveness of IT service provision. Used effectively, metrics enable businesses to assess performance in order to inform the decision-making process, drive change and realize improvements. They facilitate cost savings through economical use of finance and resources, and ensure that the services provided are appropriate - thereby strengthening customer loyalty. Based on ITIL(R) and other service management frameworks and standards Up-to-date, based on the ITIL(R) framework, as well as COBIT(R), ISO/IEC 20000, PMI(R) and ISO/IEC 27000, The Definitive Guide to IT Service Metrics will show you how to integrate metrics into your business and maximize their usage and effectiveness. You will learn what to consider when gathering and reporting information and how to secure and protect your company's metrics. Use metrics to benefit your IT department and the business as a whole Used just as they are, the metrics in this book will bring many benefits to both the IT department and the business as a whole. Details of the attributes of each metric are given, enabling you to make the right choices for your business. You may prefer and are encouraged to design and create your own metrics to bring even more value to your business - this book will show you how to do this, too. About the authors Kurt McWhirter is a recognized authority on using the ITIL(R) framework and has more than 30 years' experience in IT strategic planning, operations management, and enterprise process design and implementation. He is certified as an ITIL(R) Expert and ISO/IEC 20000 Consultant and is an accredited ITIL(R) Trainer. Ted Gaughan has more than 25 years' experience in business/technical strategic development, program/project management, and IT engineering and operations management. He is a certified Project Management Professional (PMP(R)), Process Design Engineer (CPDE(R)), ITIL(R) Expert, ISO/IEC 20000 Consultant and TIPAiE Lead Assessor. The definitive guide you can't afford to be without!
The Definitive Guide to IT Service Metrics
by Kurt Mcwhirter Ted GaughanIT service metrics: Manage them. Measure them. Make them work for you. Measuring success is crucial, but how do we do it? How can we be sure that the IT services we offer are adding real value to our business? Metrics are an invaluable tool for measuring the effectiveness of IT service provision. Used effectively, metrics enable businesses to assess performance in order to inform the decision-making process, drive change and realize improvements. They facilitate cost savings through economical use of finance and resources, and ensure that the services provided are appropriate - thereby strengthening customer loyalty. Based on ITIL(R) and other service management frameworks and standards Up-to-date, based on the ITIL(R) framework, as well as COBIT(R), ISO/IEC 20000, PMI(R) and ISO/IEC 27000, The Definitive Guide to IT Service Metrics will show you how to integrate metrics into your business and maximize their usage and effectiveness. You will learn what to consider when gathering and reporting information and how to secure and protect your company's metrics. Use metrics to benefit your IT department and the business as a whole Used just as they are, the metrics in this book will bring many benefits to both the IT department and the business as a whole. Details of the attributes of each metric are given, enabling you to make the right choices for your business. You may prefer and are encouraged to design and create your own metrics to bring even more value to your business - this book will show you how to do this, too. About the authors Kurt McWhirter is a recognized authority on using the ITIL(R) framework and has more than 30 years' experience in IT strategic planning, operations management, and enterprise process design and implementation. He is certified as an ITIL(R) Expert and ISO/IEC 20000 Consultant and is an accredited ITIL(R) Trainer. Ted Gaughan has more than 25 years' experience in business/technical strategic development, program/project management, and IT engineering and operations management. He is a certified Project Management Professional (PMP(R)), Process Design Engineer (CPDE(R)), ITIL(R) Expert, ISO/IEC 20000 Consultant and TIPAiE Lead Assessor. The definitive guide you can't afford to be without!
The Definitive Guide to Machine Learning Operations in AWS: Machine Learning Scalability and Optimization with AWS
by Neel Sendas Deepali RajaleForeword by Dr. Shreyas Subramanian, Principal Data Scientist, Amazon This book focuses on deploying, testing, monitoring, and automating ML systems in production. It covers AWS MLOps tools like Amazon SageMaker, Data Wrangler, and AWS Feature Store, along with best practices for operating ML systems on AWS. This book explains how to design, develop, and deploy ML workloads at scale using AWS cloud's well-architected pillars. It starts with an introduction to AWS services and MLOps tools, setting up the MLOps environment. It covers operational excellence, including CI/CD pipelines and Infrastructure as code. Security in MLOps, data privacy, IAM, and reliability with automated testing are discussed. Performance efficiency and cost optimization, like Right-sizing ML resources, are explored. The book concludes with MLOps best practices, MLOPS for GenAI, emerging trends, and future developments in MLOps By the end, readers will learn operating ML workloads on the AWS cloud. This book suits software developers, ML engineers, DevOps engineers, architects, and team leaders aspiring to be MLOps professionals on AWS. What you will learn: ● Create repeatable training workflows to accelerate model development ● Catalog ML artifacts centrally for model reproducibility and governance ● Integrate ML workflows with CI/CD pipelines for faster time to production ● Continuously monitor data and models in production to maintain quality ● Optimize model deployment for performance and cost Who this book is for: This book suits ML engineers, DevOps engineers, software developers, architects, and team leaders aspiring to be MLOps professionals on AWS.
The Definitive Guide to Strategic Content Marketing: Perspectives, Issues, Challenges and Solutions
by Lazar Dzamic Justin KirbyMarketers everywhere are talking about content, but not everyone is saying the same thing. Some professionals love content and believe it has revolutionized the practice of marketing. To others, it's mere hype: a new name for what marketers have always done. The Definitive Guide to Strategic Content Marketing brings together all of these diverse perspectives, structuring them around useful key topics that provide insight into the multi-faceted nature of content marketing. The editors of The Definitive Guide to Strategic Content Marketing weave different voices together to present a balanced view of content marketing, grouping the discussion around relevant subjects such as content monetization, native advertising, visuals vs video, and the challenge of measuring results. This structure allows readers to move through the book according to their interests, and cherry-pick the most useful aspects of each discussion to apply to their own marketing initiatives. Containing contributions from, and interviews with, leading academics, industry experts, thought leaders and influencers, this book is a truly unique resource.
The Definitive Handbook of Business Continuity Management
by Andrew HilesWith a pedigree going back over ten years, The Definitive Handbook of Business Continuity Management can rightly claim to be a classic guide to business risk management and contingency planning, with a style that makes it accessible to all business managers. Some of the original underlying principles remain the same - but much has changed. This is reflected in this radically updated third edition, with exciting and helpful new content from new and innovative contributors and new case studies bringing the book right up to the minute.This book combines over 500 years of experience from leading Business Continuity experts of many countries. It is presented in an easy-to-follow format, explaining in detail the core BC activities incorporated in BS 25999, Business Continuity Guidelines, BS 25777 IT Disaster Recovery and other standards and in the body of knowledge common to the key business continuity institutes.Contributors from America, Asia Pacific, Europe, China, India and the Middle East provide a truly global perspective, bringing their own insights and approaches to the subject, sharing best practice from the four corners of the world.We explore and summarize the latest legislation, guidelines and standards impacting BC planning and management and explain their impact.The structured format, with many revealing case studies, examples and checklists, provides a clear roadmap, simplifying and de-mystifying business continuity processes for those new to its disciplines and providing a benchmark of current best practice for those more experienced practitioners.This book makes a massive contribution to the knowledge base of BC and risk management. It is essential reading for all business continuity, risk managers and auditors: none should be without it.
The Definitive Job Book
by Anne WatsonThere are few books available which cover the full job-searching, application, interview and negotiation process. The Definitive Job Book is just that - it covers every single aspect of job-hunting in seven chapters. Each chapter includes 'advice from the inside' interviews with HR and recruitment specialists and 'I've been there too' interviews with people who have successfully navigated the recruitment minefield. The Definitive Job Book Is an essential reference for anyone - from graduates starting out, to senior executives seeking a change - to the job-hunting process. You will need only THIS book to get the job of your dreams.
The Definitive Personal Assistant & Secretarial Handbook
by Sue FranceWritten by a former Times Crème PA of the Year, this new edition of The Definitive Personal Assistant and Secretarial Handbook is the ultimate guide for all management assistants, PAs, secretaries and executive assistants. Administrative personnel in today's workplace hold an immense influence, not only on their bosses' performance, but also on the running of the whole organisation. This best-selling book is the only resource needed to excel in one's role as an assistant, outshine bosses' expectations and go up the ladder. Placing special emphasis on career development and learning, it provides help and advice on the skills necessary to progress in your career. Along with a chapter to share with your boss for a more fruitful working relationship, it includes help with time management, networking, relationship management, communication and confidence. Now with a new chapter on how to use neuroscience tools to coach yourself through your weaknesses and primed behavioural traits, it also contains even more practical help with minute taking, telephone and mobile communication etiquette and presentation skills. With free downloadable online resources to aid the day-to-day running of your office, this comprehensive and accessible guide will help you keep your finger on the pulse and maintain your professional image.
The Degradation of Work?: Skill, De-Skilling and the Labour Process (Routledge Revivals)
by Stephen WoodOriginally published in 1982 and now reissued with a new Preface by Stephen Wood the contributors of this book discuss the issues surrounding the organization of labour. They use insights from industrial sociology, historical research and Marxist-Feminist debates. In particular they stress that work organization cannot be seen simply as a reflection of the strategy of an omniscient management; any examination of it must involve product and labour markets, technology, trade unionism and, above all, the way in which production systems are jointly created out of the interrelationship between management and workforces. The Degradation of Work? asks if there has been a general de-skilling and routinization of jobs and if ‘skilled’ jobs are really any different from semi-skilled or unskilled ones.
The Degrowth Alternative: A Path to Address our Environmental Crisis? (Routledge Studies in Ecological Economics)
by Diana Stuart Ryan Gunderson Brian PetersenDegrowth is a planned economic contraction in wealthy countries that reduces production and consumption—and, by extension, greenhouse gas emissions and stresses on global ecosystems—to sustainable levels within ecological limits. This book explores the idea of degrowth as an economic alternative to offer a more sustainable and just future. A growing number of scientists and scholars now recognize that a system that continues to prioritize economic growth will prevent us from effectively addressing the dual environmental crises of climate change and biodiversity loss. To establish the case for degrowth, the text opens by posing critical questions about our current system and identifying its limitations, as well as discussing the ineffectiveness of "false solutions" that seem to offer something new but would actually preserve the status quo. The concept of degrowth is then fully introduced along with a discussion of core principles and goals as well as major critiques and questions. The book explores what living in a degrowth society would entail and the policies needed to support degrowth. Finally, the work concludes by examining the opportunities and challenges for degrowth and a successful transition to a sustainable steady-state economy. This book provides an advanced introduction to the environmental issues around degrowth for students, scholars and activists interested in economic alternatives, sustainability and the environment.
The Delicate Art of Bureaucracy: Digital Transformation with the Monkey, the Razor, and the Sumo Wrestler
by Mark Schwartz Mark SchwartzMark Schwartz, author of leadership classics A Seat at the Table and The Art of Business Value, reveals a new (empowering) model for the often soul-shattering, frustrating, Kafkaesque nightmare we call bureaucracy. Through humor, a healthy dose of history and philosophy, and real-life examples from his days as a government bureaucrat, Schwartz shows IT leaders (and the whole of business) how to master the ways of the Monkey, the Razor, and the Sumo Wrestler to create a lean, learning, and enabling bureaucracy. For anyone frustrated by roadblocks, irritated the business can't move fast enough, or suffering under the weight of crushing procedures, this book is for you. No matter your role, you need a playbook for bureaucracy. This is it. With this playbook, you can wield bureaucracy as a superpower and bust through it at the same time
The Delta Model
by Arnoldo C. HaxStrategy is the most central issue in management. It has to do with defining the purpose of an organization, understanding the market in which it operates and the capabilities the firm possesses, and putting together a winning plan. There are many influential frameworks to help managers undertake a systematic reflection on this issue. The most dominant approaches are Michael Porter's "Competitive Strategy" and the "Resource-Based View of the Firm," popularized by Gary Hamel and C.K. Prahalad. Arnoldo Hax argues there are fundamental drawbacks in the underlying hypotheses of these approaches in that they define strategy as a way to achieve sustainable competitive advantage. This line of thinking could be extremely dangerous because it puts the competitor at the center and therefore anchors you in the past, establishes success as a way of beating your competitors, and this obsession often leads toward imitation and congruency. The result is commoditization - which is the worst outcome that could possibly happen to a business. The Delta Model is an extremely innovative view of strategy. It abandons all of these assumptions and instead puts the customer at the center. By doing that it allows us to be truly creative, separating ourselves from the herd in pursuit of a unique and differentiated customer value proposition. Many years of intense research at MIT, supported by an extensive consulting practice, have resulted in development of powerful new concepts and practical tools to guide organizational leaders into a completely different way of looking at strategy, including a new way of doing customer segmentation and examining the competencies of the firm, with an emphasis on using the extended enterprise as a primary way of serving the customer. This last concept means that we cannot play the game alone; that we need to establish a network among suppliers, the firm, the customers, and complementors - firms that are in the business of developing products and services that enhance our own offering to the customer. Illustrated through dozens of examples, and discussion of application to small and medium-sized businesses and not-for-profits, the Delta Model will help readers in all types of organizations break out of old patterns of behavior and achieve strategic flexibility -- an especially timely talent during times of crisis, intense competition, and rapid change.
The Delta in the Rearview Mirror: The Life and Death of Mississippi's First Winery
by Di RushingAfter graduating from Mississippi State University in 1976, Di Rushing and her husband, Sam, found themselves back on their family farm near Merigold, Mississippi, with 350 acres and no real clue what to do. The couple decided to open the first winery in Mississippi, and with it, a successful business was born. Six years later, a small restaurant joined the Delta winery. Both businesses were thriving by 1990, with eight national award-winning wines, a beautiful vineyard, and a successful restaurant.But in March of 1990, a series of unforeseen events rocked the operation. After the Rushings discovered one of the tour guides, Ray Russell, selling drugs in the winery parking lot, they fired him. He responded with a terrorizing vengeance that persisted over the next nine months. In the early morning hours, the former guide broke into the winery, crept into the wine cellar, and released the entire inventory—nearly a quarter of a million dollars’ worth—down the drain. Fortunately, his incompetence thwarted his most destructive intention to blow up the restaurant. In his rampage, he broke all the windows, which allowed the gas from the kitchen oven to escape, sparing the premises. Though the Rushings rebuilt with the help of their community, Russell continued to stalk and threaten the young family. As his menacing behavior continued to escalate, the Rushings closed their business of fourteen years and moved to Ouray, Colorado, where they began rebuilding their lives. Culminating in the sudden, violent murders of Russell, his wife, and his father twenty-five years later, this book tells a story of both shock and resilience, charting Mississippi history in the process.Intertwined with the true crime narrative, The Delta in the Rearview Mirror: The Life and Death of Mississippi’s First Winery details author Di Rushing’s life in and out of Mississippi, including growing up in 1960s Greenville, attending university, traveling overseas, and the relationships she cultivated along the way.
The Delta of Chinese Management: Guanxi, Rule of Law and the Middle Way
by Jane Jian ZhangThis book explores the differential mode of people management in the Chinese context. Based on years of ethnographic research, this book illustrates how and why the guanxihu phenomena exist across different organisations and thus, the guanxi-hu could break the ‘organisational laws’ (e.g. structure and system; rules and regulations; policies and procedures). By focusing on personnel practices within organisations, the book provides an outlook for keeping indigenous management with Chinese characteristics. Most importantly, this book offers significant insights into how to ‘manage people’ in the private and public sectors within the Chinese cultural and institutional environment. The delta of Chinese management will appeal not only to academics and researchers who have an interest in management and Chinese studies, but also to expatriates and practitioners who are engaged in doing business and managing people with/in China.
The Demand Revolution: How Consumers Are Redefining Sustainability and Transforming the Future of Business (Management on the Cutting Edge)
by Andreas von der Gathen Nicolai Broby Eckert Caroline KastbjergHow consumer desire for sustainability is powering the first demand-driven, transformative megatrend—and how business leaders can make the most of this important moment.Sustainability is rocking the business world as profoundly as any global trend of the past, from electrification to digitalization. But unlike previous revolutions, this one is being driven by consumers, for whom environmentally sound practices matter as much as price, quality, and brand. In The Demand Revolution, Andreas von der Gathen, Nicolai Broby Eckert, and Caroline Kastbjerg offer a strategic framework for winning these consumers—and taking advantage of the vast commercial opportunity presented by sustainability as the first demand-driven, transformative megatrend.The first movers in the Demand Revolution will be able to create enduring competitive advantages and high entry barriers built around redesigned business model ecosystems and customer loyalty, the authors explain, but this will require a critical adjustment in thinking and approach. Companies, first of all, have to catch up with consumers, who see themselves on a demand curve far beyond what companies currently perceive. Business leaders must shift their focus from the cost of sustainability to its potential for generating growth and long-term profits. This, in turn, means recognizing that the classic adoption curves for innovations—and the strategic playbooks derived from those insights—no longer apply. The Demand Revolution shows business leaders how to look beyond easy fixes and incremental outcomes and instead pursue high-risk, high-reward moves geared toward the source of exponential growth: the world&’s consumers.
The Demand for Alcohol, Tobacco and Marijuana: International Evidence
by Saroja SelvanathanThis book is the first to present an extensive analysis of the international evidence for the similarities of the consumption patterns of such controversial commodities as alcohol, tobacco and marijuana, using recent data from a number of developed and less developed countries over a number of years. The book also presents analysis of the consumption patterns of food in general and soft drinks in particular. In addition the book provides a detailed analysis of the consumption restrictions and regulations in place in various countries in relation to issues associated with taxation, availability, and marketing of these products. The book's focus is on rigorous empirical analysis and presents the estimates of demand elasticities of these five commodities across different countries. Such estimates are key inputs for government economic models that are used for the purpose of social policy analysis. Furthermore, the book presents hypothesis testing results on various demand theory hypotheses such as demand homogeneity and Slutsky symmetry.
The Demand for Health: A Theoretical and Empirical Investigation (Occasional Papers #No. 119)
by Michael GrossmanA seminal work in health economics first published in 1972, Michael Grossman's The Demand for Health introduced a new theoretical model for determining the health status of the population. His work uniquely synthesized economic and public health knowledge and has catalyzed a vastly influential body of health economics literature. It is well past time to bring this important work back into print. Grossman bases his approach on Gary S. Becker's household production function model and his theory of investment in human capital. Consumers demand health, which can include illness-free days in a given year or life expectancy, and then produce it through the input of medical care services, diet, other market goods and services, and time. Grossman also treats health and knowledge as equal parts of the durable stock of human capital. Consumers therefore have an incentive to invest in health to increase their earnings in the future. From here, Grossman examines complementarities between health capital and other forms of human capital, the most important of which is knowledge capital earned through schooling and its effect on the efficiency of production. He concludes that the rate of return on investing in health by increasing education may exceed the rate of return on investing in health through greater medical care. Higher income may not lead to better health outcomes, as wealth enables the consumption of goods and services with adverse health effects. These are some of the major revelations of Grossman's model, findings that have great relevance as we struggle to understand the links between poverty, education, structural disadvantages, and health.
The Demand for Imports and Exports in the World Economy (Routledge Revivals)
by W. Charles Sawyer Richard L. SprinkleFirst published in 1999, this volume responds to one of the more important issues in applied international economics: the extent to which trade flows adjust to changes in income, relative prices and exchange rates. This work surveys the literature on empirical estimation of the demand for imports and exports for the US. The book is designed to be a reference book for both academic international economists and international trade practitioners in government, international organisations and the private sector.
The Demand for Life Insurance: Dynamic Ecological Systemic Theory Using Machine Learning Techniques
by Wookjae HeoThis book, adopting machine learning techniques for the financial planning field, explores the demand for life insurance as seen in previous literature and both estimates and predicts the demand for the adoption of life insurance using these techniques. Previous studies used diverse perspectives, like actuarial and life span, in order to understand the demand for life insurance, though these approaches have shown inconsistent findings. Employing two theoretical backgrounds—ecological systemic theory and artificial intellectual methodology—this book explores a better estimation and a prediction of the demand for life insurance and will be of interest to academics and students of insurance, financial planning, and risk management.
The Demise of the Dollar...
by Addison Wiggin Chuck ButlerJust when you thought the dollar couldn't sink any further, it continues on a downward spiral. And now, with this fully revised and updated edition of The Demise of the Dollar, Addison Wiggin returns to reveal the many ways you can capitalize on this opportunity. Picking up where the bestselling original edition left off, this engaging book examines the many reasons behind the dollar's ongoing decline and provides you with the information needed to financially survive and thrive during the years ahead.
The Democratic Courthouse: A Modern History of Design, Due Process and Dignity
by Linda Mulcahy Emma RowdenThe Democratic Courthouse examines how changing understandings of the relationship between government and the governed came to be reflected in the buildings designed to house the modern legal system from the 1970s to the present day in England and Wales. The book explores the extent to which egalitarian ideals and the pursuit of new social and economic rights altered existing hierarchies and expectations about how people should interact with each other in the courthouse. Drawing on extensive public and private archives kept by the Ministry of Justice, but also using case studies from other jurisdictions, the book details how civil servants, judges, lawyers, architects, engineers and security experts have talked about courthouses and the people that populate them. In doing so, it uncovers a changing history of ideas about how the competing goals of transparency, majesty, participation, security, fairness and authority have been achieved, and the extent to which aspirations towards equality and participation have been realized in physical form. As this book demonstrates, the power of architecture to frame attitudes and expectations of the justice system is much more than an aesthetic or theoretical nicety. Legal subjects live in a world in which the configuration of space, the cues provided about behaviour by the built form and the way in which justice is symbolised play a crucial, but largely unacknowledged, role in creating meaning and constituting legal identities and rights to participate in the civic sphere. Key to understanding the modern day courthouse, this book will be of interest to legal scholars and students in all fields of law, sociology, political science, psychology and criminology.
The Democratic Developmental State: North-South Perspectives (CROP International Poverty Studies #4)
by Chris Tapscott Tor Halvorsen Teresita Cruz-Del RosarioThe concept of a democratic developmental state is part of the current development discourse advocated by international aid agencies, deliberated on by academics, and embraced by policymakers in many emerging economies in the global South. What is noticeable in this discourse is how little attention has been paid to a discussion of the essence of a democratic developmental state, and much of what passes for theory is little more than policy-speak and political rhetoric.This volume fills a gap in the literature on the democratic developmental state. Analyzing the different approaches to the implementation of democratic developmental states in various countries, it evaluates the extent to which these are merely replicating the central tenets of the East Asian model of the developmental state or if they are succeeding in their attempts to establish a new and more inclusive conceptualization of the state. In particular, the authors scrutinize to what degree the attempts to build a democratic developmental state may be distorted by the imperatives of neoliberalism. The volume broadens the understanding of the Nordic model of a democratic developmental state and shows how it represents an additional, and perhaps contending understanding of the developmental state derived from the East Asian experience.
The Democratic Organisation: Democracy and the Future of Work (Routledge Studies in Management, Organizations and Society)
by Thomas DiefenbachPrevailing models of organisation divide people into owners, managers and employees, forcing especially the latter to obey, to behave, and to function well within a hierarchical and managerial pecking order. However, there is no natural law suggesting the need for such organisations, not in market economies and definitely not in modern democratic societies – and there is no justification for such types of organisation. Arguing that most current organisations are orthodox, hierarchical, anti-democratic, oppressive, unfair, and unjust, this book presents a viable alternative, a better type of organisation – the democratic organisation. Diefenbach develops and provides step by step a systematic, comprehensive, thorough, and detailed general model of the democratic organisation. He describes the democratic organisation’s fundamental principles, values, governance, management, structures, and processes, and the ways it functions and operates both within the organisation and towards others and the environment. Crucially, and most importantly, the democratic organisation provides the institutions and organisational context for individuals to maintain and pursue their fundamental freedoms, inalienable rights, and dignity; to manage organisations in democratic, participative, and cooperative ways; and to conduct business in considerate, balanced, and sustainable ways. This book will be of interest to researchers, academics, practitioners, and students in the fields of management, organisation studies, strategic management, business ethics, entrepreneurship, and family business.