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Strategies for Technology Adoption in Small- and Medium-Sized Enterprises to Improve Competitiveness
Get PDFSmall- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in the food and beverage industry play a vital role in local economies but face significant challenges in adopting technology to remain competitive. Without effective growth and sustainability strategies, SME leaders may face business closures that will lead to job losses, economic instability, and lost innovation opportunities. Grounded in the technology acceptance and diffusion of innovations models, the purpose of this qualitative pragmatic inquiry was to explore effective strategies used by food and beverage SME owners in California to integrate new technologies. Participants included six SME owners who had operated their businesses for over five years and successfully implemented technology to address market demands. Data were collected through semistructured interviews and analysis of public records, which were analyzed using Braun and Clarke’s thematic analysis. Three major themes emerged: strategic technology adoption and competitive advantage, potential return on investment in new technologies adoption, and workforce transformation and readiness. A key recommendation is for SME leaders to prioritize workforce training and digital literacy initiatives to empower employees to optimize technology while leveraging government incentives to reduce financial barriers. The implications for positive social change include the potential for SME leaders to use effective technology implementation strategies to boost employment, increase government revenues, and improve living conditions in local communities
Preservice Elementary Educators’ Perceptions of Teaching Proficiency within a Blended Curriculum Context
Get PDFThe problem that was investigated through this study is that preservice elementary teachers struggle to incorporate blended learning pedagogy. The purpose of this qualitative study was to investigate preservice elementary teachers’ perceptions on instructional opportunities and primary concerns when incorporating blended learning pedagogy. The conceptual frameworks for this study were Rogers’ theory for educational technology and Garrison and Archer’s community of inquiry. For this basic qualitative design, eight semistructured interviews with preservice elementary teachers were conducted. Interviews were coded with a priori, open, and axial codes and then thematically analyzed with the following themes emerging: Preservice teachers (a) see the benefits of blended learning for student engagement and differentiation, (b) place emphasis on learning management strategies during preservice training so new teachers can balance blended practices with curriculum demands, and (c) require adequate digital infrastructure and technical support. If preservice teachers were provided with the appropriate digital infrastructure and learning management strategies infused into the preservice training, social change could be initiated. The positive attitudes of preservice teachers, combined with thorough blended learning training in effective strategies, will have a significant impact on the field of education. Preservice teachers would be more likely to implement properly, which, in turn, will benefit students in blended learning programs
Principals Perceptions of Balancing Leadership and Self-Care
Get PDFThe increasing demands of educational leadership place significant stress on school principals, leading to challenges in balancing leadership responsibilities with self-care. This study explored principals’ perceptions of three key aspects: the challenges of balancing leadership and self-care, the demands contributing to stress, burnout, and turnover, and the resources that help mitigate these challenges. Guided by the job demands-resources model and mindfulness theory, this qualitative study utilized semistructured interviews with 10 elementary school principals in a southern Jamaican district. Data collection focused on self-care practices, leadership demands, and coping strategies, with thematic analysis identifying six major themes: the unpredictability and overload of the principalship, difficulties in prioritizing self-care, emotional and physical tolls of leadership, the importance of support networks, effective stress management strategies, and intrinsic motivators that sustain commitment. These findings highlight the interplay between job demands and resources and emphasize the need for professional development in stress management, peer support networks, and mindfulness practices. The study contributes to the broader understanding of sustainable school leadership and informs policy changes that prioritize principal well-being. By fostering healthier leadership practices, this research aimed to promote positive social change, enhancing principals’ resilience and effectiveness while improving the educational environments they lead, which will ultimately benefit the teachers and students
Strategies U.S. Hospital Leaders Use to Recruit, Hire, and Retain Physicians to Sustain Profitability
Get PDFPoor physician retention negatively impacts the quality of community healthcare, leading to financial losses and increased operational costs for hospitals. Hospital administrators and the governing boards are particularly concerned with addressing this issue to ensure sustainable healthcare delivery. Grounded in the Hertzberg’s two factor theory, the purpose of this qualitative pragmatic inquiry was to explore strategies that hospital administrators can utilize to improve physician retention. The participants included eight high-ranking hospital administrators within the geographic region of North Carolina who had an active role in provider retention. Data was collected using semistructured interviews, identify five critical themes: (a) implement mentorship, (b) promote competitive salaries, (c) ensure clear communication, (d) foster work life balance, and (e) apply progressive leadership. A key recommendation that emerged from this study is for hospital administrators to implement mentorship programs throughout the organization. The potential implications for positive social change include improved public health outcomes and increased health equity by ensuring consistent access to well-trained physicians. Additionally, enhancing physician education on emerging disease states and preventive care strategies can optimize community health, ultimately reducing hospitalizations and lowering healthcare costs for individuals and society
Strategies for Independent Restaurant Business Leaders in the United States to Retain Employees
Get PDFEmployee turnover poses a significant threat to the stability and growth of businesses, particularly in the restaurant industry. Independent restaurant owners and managers are especially concerned about the consequences of high turnover rates, which can negatively impact their operations. This includes disruptions in productivity, declines in profitability, and diminished competitiveness, all of which undermine the long-term viability of their establishments. Grounded in Herzberg’s two-factor theory, the purpose of this qualitative pragmatic inquiry was to explore effective strategies employed by leaders of independent U.S. restaurants to retain employees. The participants included 10 leaders from independent Florida-based restaurants, each with at least 5 years of experience and a track record of successful employee retention practices. Interviews were conducted using semistructured questions for data collection. The findings of the thematic analysis revealed five themes: (a) creating a supportive work environment, (b) navigating early-stage implementation challenges, (c) adapting leadership strategies based on experience, (d) utilizing informal systems and processes, and (e) employing motivational strategies and role rotation. A key recommendation is that independent restaurant leaders adapt their strategies based on employee feedback and evolving business needs. The implications for positive social change include the potential for retaining skilled employees in independent restaurants, which enhances the long-term viability of these businesses. This, in turn, can have a positive impact on the local economy and community well-being
Effective Business Strategies to Mitigate Outsourcing Failures
Get PDFBusiness leaders’ lack of effective outsourcing strategies often results in operational inefficiencies, such as increased costs, reduced profitability, and decreased organizational performance. Addressing this issue is critical to improving business outcomes and ensuring competitive advantage in a globalized market. Grounded in the analytic balanced scorecard theory, the purpose of this qualitative single case study was to explore the effective strategies business leaders in the IT department at a large educational institution in Los Angeles, California use to address outsourcing failures. The participants were three business leaders who successfully employed effective strategies to mitigate outsourcing failures. Data were collected from semistructured interviews, company archival documents, and field notes and were analyzed using thematic data analysis. Four themes emerged: effective communication, vendor selection and relationship, training and business culture, and clear contract terms and finance. A key recommendation for business leaders is to establish guidelines and resources for adequate training and cultural awareness to mitigate outsourcing failures and enhance productivity. The implications for positive social change include the potential to improve business performance, thereby fostering job creation, facilitating knowledge transfer, supporting environmental sustainability initiatives, enhancing social amenities and welfare, and advancing the socioeconomic development of underserved communities
Do Universities Choose the Right Strategies for X Engagement? The Case of Six Universities in Thailand
Get PDFObjective: The purpose of this study is to understand how Thai public universities engage their stakeholders on X (the social media platform previously known as Twitter). This article answers the following research questions: 1) What are the X message strategies of six public universities? 2) Do they choose the most effective strategies to drive X engagement in terms of favorites and reposts?
Method: Data was automatically collected using anX analytic tool, and the potential variables were extracted semi-automatically using tools appropriate to text mining, sentiment analysis, word cloud, and so on. Posts from six universities in Thailand were investigated.
Results: The results show the keywords most often used by all universities and each university individually, the characteristics of posts at each university, and the influential factors embedded in posts employed by universities. The article suggests some revisions for each university’s strategy and guidessocial media administrators of Thai universities.
Conclusions: Top keywords from six universities include day, university, university name, etc. Months a post remains accessible, message length, and media type (text) significantly impact favorites at more than half of all universities, while months a post remains accessible, message length, media type (text, video), and sentiment (neutral, negative) positively or negatively influence repostsat more than half of all universities.
Implications: New factors, which have rarely been examined in the past, such as nouns or keywords in posts, are also studied. The study helps to understand and confirm the importance of different strategies for different target audiences
Domestic Violence in Florence, Alabama
Get PDFGoal Statement: My goal would be to contribute to the prevention and reduction of domestic violence in Lauderdale County, Alabama, by raising awareness, supporting and empowering survivors, and advocating for system-wide changes promoting education, the allocation of necessary aid, and community well-being.
Significant Findings: Domestic violence (DV) is a serious public health issue negatively affecting people worldwide, including in the city of Florence, Alabama. DV can cause a host of mental and physical consequences, such as poor self-esteem, internalized anger or resentment, severe injury, and even death (American Psychiatric Association [APA], 2023). This issue can happen to individuals from all backgrounds and demographics. However, research suggests it is a gendered crime disproportionately impacting women, as well as other marginalized groups such as sexually diverse individuals and people of color (Connections for Abused Women and their Children [CAWC], 2023). Therefore, it is vital to incorporate various culturally relevant interventions to bring about positive change in Florence and prevent future violence.
Objectives/Strategies/Interventions/Next Steps: One strategy for effective DV prevention programming includes identifying and addressing the risk factors that may increase the likelihood of victimization or perpetration, such as heavy substance use, risky sexual conduct, previous history of experiencing or witnessing violence, reduced access to education, poverty, unsafe conditions in the community, ineffective community sanctions related to DV, and more (Access Continuing Education, Inc., n.d.; CDC, 2024b; CDC, 2024c). It would also be crucial to partner with community-based agencies, such as One Place of the Shoals or Safeplace Inc., to provide support and services to survivors to encourage positive outcomes and effectively reduce revictimization. Other recommendations for approaching this issue include adhering to ethical guidelines, prioritizing cultural sensitivity and responsiveness, and advocating at the institutional, community, and local levels to remove barriers to assistance for DV survivors and effectively prevent future victimization
Using Microsoft Teams Class Notebook E-Portfolios as a Reflective Tool in Education for Sustainable Development Business Writing: Learners’ Perspectives
Get PDFObjective
This study investigates the efficacy of Microsoft Teams Class Notebook ePortfolios as a reflective tool in business writing courses. This study addresses gaps in the literature regarding ePortfolio use in business writing courses in F2F classes, focusing on student perceptions, its impact on writing skills, the convenience of the MS Teams Class Notebook, and how it fosters critical thinking regarding their learning which is one of the important goals of Education for sustainable development (ESD).
Methods
The iterative cross-sectional study was conducted over 13 weeks at a private college in Oman with 60 undergraduate students in two business writing classes. Data were collected using a mixed-method approach comprising a 5-point Likert scale questionnaire from 44 participants. Quantitative analysis was performed via frequency-based scaling, and qualitative insights were derived from lexicon-based sentiment analysis using VADER.
Results
Quantitative findings revealed that 75% of students perceived ePortfolios as valuable tools for reflection, skill development, and understanding strengths and weaknesses. A majority also reported improved confidence in using technology. Qualitative sentiment analysis supported these findings, showing predominantly positive feedback, though some challenges, including process complexity, were noted.
Conclusions and Implications
The study concludes that ePortfolios effectively enhance students\u27 learning outcomes in business writing courses, particularly in fostering reflection and critical thinking. Despite some challenges, such as initial complexity, the findings highlight the ePortfolio\u27s potential as a transformative educational tool. Recommendations include providing adequate support during implementation and expanding research to include larger cohorts and diverse instructional contexts
Quality Improvement Initiative to Evaluate GLP-1 Medication Effectiveness in Adults Aged 30–50 Years with Type 2 Diabetes
Get PDFThis quality improvement initiative was a Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) capstone project conducted at a clinic in the southeast United States. The project focused on evaluating the effectiveness of GLP-1 receptor agonist (RA) therapy in adults aged 30–50 years old with Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM), assessing the clinical effectiveness of existing GLP-1 prescribing practices in reducing hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) levels and weight over 6 months. The practice problem involved a lack of evidence-based monitoring and outcome tracking for patients on GLP-1 RAs despite the known efficacy of these medications in glycemic control. The project question was: Will HbA1c levels decrease by 0.1% to 0.5% within 6 months in patients aged 30–50 years with elevated HbA1c levels who receive GLP-1 medications as part of their diabetes management plan? Evaluation of the clinical outcome data and was reported to the project site organization. The analytical strategy involved retrospective chart review and descriptive statistical analysis for 55 participants. De-identified data were collected pre- and post-initiation of GLP-1 therapy. Results showed a mean HbA1c reduction of 0.82% at 3 months and 1.03% at 6 months, with an average weight loss of 23.6 pounds. Over 70% of patients achieved clinically meaningful improvement. Implications include better alignment with national treatment guidelines and enhanced use of nurse-led tracking protocols. This project highlights the importance of data-driven practice evaluation in supporting high-quality, equitable care. Positive social change is promoted through improved chronic disease outcomes