117 research outputs found
Letter from Edward Howden, Director, California Housing and Planning Association, to Joseph R. Goodman, Aquarium, Golden Gate Park, March 24, 1942
No full textLetter from Edward Howden to Joseph R. Goodman: "I am sending the enclosed copies of letters pertaining to the problems of Japanese evacuation to you at the suggestion of Catherine Bauer Wurster. We would be very grateful to have your comments on the letters and any further suggestions on this difficult and important problem. I am sending under separate cover a copy of our quarterly publication, AGENDA, which I am sure you will find of interest. (Membership in the Association, including subscription to AGENDA and to our tri-weekly newsletter, is 2-10 dollars annually.)"Personal correspondence, organizational records, government documents, publications, and other papers created or collected by Joseph R. Goodman documenting the forced removal and incarceration of Japanese Americans during World War II, as well as organized resistance to incarceration. Included in the collection are records of the Japanese Young Men's Christian Association and the Japanese American Citizens' League in San Francisco, including papers of the Japanese YMCA's executive secretary Lincoln Kanai; Sakai family papers; Goodman's correspondence to and from Japanese American incarcerees, organizations opposing forced removal and incarceration of Japanese Americans, the War Relocation Authority, and others; publications, photographs, and ephemera from the Topaz Relocation Center, where Goodman taught high school; War Relocation Authority records and publications; and newspaper clippings, pamphlets, and reports about forced removal and incarceration created by various government, religious, and civic organizations, in California and nationwide
Reply to Lee and Howden
No full textGreen Open Access added to TU Delft Institutional Repository ‘You share, we take care!’ – Taverne project https://www.openaccess.nl/en/you-share-we-take-care Otherwise as indicated in the copyright section: the publisher is the copyright holder of this work and the author uses the Dutch legislation to make this work public.Pattern Recognition and Bioinformatic
Business intelligence and data analytics in small business: Exploring the drivers of adoption
No full textBusinesses of all sizes are increasingly challenged by the need to be competitive in the marketplace, improve operating performance, and deliver sustainable financial results. This need places constant pressure on business leaders to incorporate new approaches and adopt new technologies to meet these challenges. One strategic approach business is leveraging is the Data Science technology of Business Intelligence and Data Analytics(BI&A). BI&A is adopted widely by large and multinational corporations, yet the adoption of this technology is not as prolific across Small and Medium-Size Enterprises(SMEs). This disparity of BI&A adoption has surfaced concern regarding the potential for a competitive disadvantage to SMEs and the secondary ramifications.BI&A is a term that describes an array of information technology methods, tools, techniques, applications, and management practices employed to improve business decision-making. The use and adoption of this technology have enabled businesses to take advantage of available data, create competitive market advantage, transform their internal operations, and ultimately increase their growth and profitability.
2SMEs play a vital role in the world’s economy. SMEs account for nearly 90% of the enterprises, almost60% of the employment, and over 50% of industrialized nations’ Gross Domestic Product (GDP). SMEs play a socio-economic role by providing gainful employment and reducing poverty. They also play a strategic role by innovating and creating new technology incorporated into larger corporations’ offerings. Hence, if SMEs are sluggish to adopt BI&A, it could have a detrimental global impact.This dissertation used Evidence-Based Research and Thematic Synthesis to explore the drivers of BI&A adoption in SMEs. Beginning with the literature review, this body of research identifies the similar and different characteristics of SMEs versus larger corporations and translates that into issues and needs for BI&A. The systematic review employed in the study sourced relevant literature from 26 peer-reviewed scholarly articles published on the topic from 2010 through 2020, extracted findings through thematic synthesis,and identified both factors and hierarchical themes influencing the adoption of BI&A in SMEs. Finally, recommendations are presented with implications to management regarding how these themes may be programmatically applied for adoption success.1
ABSTRACT
Title of Dissertation:
Business Intelligence and Data Analytics in Small Business: Exploring the Drivers of Adoption
Dissertation Author:
William James Howden Doctor of Business Administration
University of Maryland Global Campus, 2021
Dissertation Advisors:
Dr. Lisa Klein Pearo and Dr. Mary Jo Anderson
Businesses of all sizes are increasingly challenged by the need to be competitive in the marketplace, improve operating performance, and deliver sustainable financial results. This need places constant pressure on business leaders to incorporate new approaches and adopt new technologies to meet these challenges. One strategic approach business is leveraging is the Data Science technology of Business Intelligence and Data Analytics (BI&A). BI&A is adopted widely by large and multinational corporations, yet the adoption of this technology is not as prolific across Small and Medium-Size Enterprises (SMEs). This disparity of BI&A adoption has surfaced concern regarding the potential for a competitive disadvantage to SMEs and the secondary ramifications.
BI&A is a term that describes an array of information technology methods, tools, techniques, applications, and management practices employed to improve business decision-making. The use and adoption of this technology have enabled businesses to take advantage of available data, create competitive market advantage, transform their internal operations, and ultimately increase their growth and profitability. 2
SMEs play a vital role in the world’s economy. SMEs account for nearly 90% of the enterprises, almost 60% of the employment, and over 50% of industrialized nations’ Gross Domestic Product (GDP). SMEs play a socio-economic role by providing gainful employment and reducing poverty. They also play a strategic role by innovating and creating new technology incorporated into larger corporations’ offerings. Hence, if SMEs are sluggish to adopt BI&A, it could have a detrimental global impact.
This dissertation used Evidence-Based Research and Thematic Synthesis to explore the drivers of BI&A adoption in SMEs. Beginning with the literature review, this body of research identifies the similar and different characteristics of SMEs versus larger corporations and translates that into issues and needs for BI&A. The systematic review employed in the study sourced relevant literature from 26 peer-reviewed scholarly articles published on the topic from 2010 through 2020, extracted findings through thematic synthesis, and identified both factors and hierarchical themes influencing the adoption of BI&A in SMEs. Finally, recommendations are presented with implications to management regarding how these themes may be programmatically applied for adoption success.
Keywords: SME, Small Business, BI&A, Business Intelligence, Data Analytics, Predictive Modeling, Technology Adoption, TOE
3
BUSINESS INTELLIGENCE AND DATA ANALYTICS IN SMALL BUSINESS: EXPLORING THE DRIVERS OF ADOPTION
By
William James Howden
Dissertation submitted to the
Graduate School of Business
University of Maryland Global Campus
in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of
Doctor of Business Administration
2021
Dissertation Advisors:
Dr. Lisa Klein Pearo
Dr. Mary Jo Anderson
4
© Copyright by
William James Howden
2021
5
Preface
I began my doctoral journey with the University of Maryland Global Campus at the tender age of 60. I was fortunate to have enjoyed a prosperous career in high technology with roles spanning engineering, project management, operations leadership, general management, executive leadership, and consultancy across 40 years. While early retirement was an option, I did not want to finish working so early. I felt as though I had far too much valuable experience and wanted to continue contributing in new and significant ways. Hence, I pursued a DBA to learn new tools and reinvent myself by synergizing my legacy toolset with new knowledge.
Much of my career was in telecom, developing, producing, and implementing large-scale satellite network systems and sophisticated network monitoring and test systems. We served a spectrum of world-wide customers, network domains, and technologies. I enjoyed frequent customer interaction, typically from sales negotiations through to system acceptance.
I would often see a consistent theme where many customers would spend millions of dollars for a sophisticated and powerful technical solution – then only use a tiny fraction of that solution’s capability. Usage of these solutions by the stakeholders was often considered optional, and it would be fair to say that those solutions were under-adopted. Occasionally, however, I would encounter a customer who was the extreme opposite - they purchased a sophisticated solution and knit that solution’s full capability into the fabric of their daily operation, creating a reliance upon the solution (and our company), and adopted it fully. Quantifying this personal experience, I can point to about seven customers out of more than one hundred that demonstrated this comprehensive usage prowess.
Once I left the telecom world, one of my early consulting clients was a big data provider, who engaged me in developing a model (a playbook) to guide them on how to best deliver their 6
service such that the customer optimally utilizes the solution, ideally creating a reliance. I successfully delivered a model, specific methods, a playbook, and training that met their needs, and I understood it was well-used for many years. Six years later, that same company engaged me again to take that model to a higher level. They were now a much larger organization with substantially larger customers that created new issues and opportunities. Again, I embraced this challenge and delivered a comprehensive process to guide them for the foreseeable future.
Interestingly, the big data firm's customers demonstrated the same behavior as the telecom customers – procuring a powerful capability, only to position it as an optional tool, resulting in significant under-adoption. Yet again, a small segment of the customers heavily utilized the solution’s full capability daily. While I witnessed the behavior and understood the symptoms, I could not accurately identify the underlying causation of this operational behavior's two extremes. This situation left me curious to understand the root causes, or better – to explore prevention or remedial methods to ensure that when an organization procures such capability, it is operationalized into highly productive use and adopted across the organization.
This experience fueled my interest in this dissertation topic, and I believe that my research outcome hit the target where I was aiming. I hope that this research, my findings, conclusions, and the implementation structure that I created can assist management, practitioners, and consultants in operationalizing BI&A technology into SMEs and leverage this powerful asset known as scholarly research.
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Dedication
Obtaining a doctoral degree is a physical, mental, and emotional challenge of intensity and endurance. It is all-consuming and often takes far more than the student initially wanted to give. The support provided to that successful student comes in many ways, from many sources, where every experience and every interaction adds to their knowledge base.
Therefore, this degree does not belong to me alone. It belongs to my beloved family, past and present, immediate and extended; close friends that I consider family; business associates; academic cohorts; and most notably – my parents. I dedicate this dissertation in memory of William Thomas Howden (1916-2011) and Mary Grace Howden, nee West (1913-1987).
8
Acknowledgments
I acknowledge and want to express my gratitude to:
• The University of Maryland Global Campus (UMGC) for offering such a rich doctoral program, and the faculty and staff who were directly a part of my journey;
• Dr. Lisa Klein Pearo for being my fantastic faculty mentor. She provided excellent guidance, feedback, and extensive repetitive reviews of my material. She was instrumental in this success;
• Tom Murray, Todd Chaikin, Andy & Bud Wildman, Rick West, Dave Allen, Dan Fradkin, and Pete Cameron for serving as my Subject Matter Experts. They offered excellent observations and provided detailed feedback;
• My wife Kathy Retos, my cousin Marcia Deeb, and my friend I.J. Hudson for their thorough proofreading, valuable suggestions, and excellent editorial contribution.
• My family, past and present, immediate and extended for your love, support, patience, inspiration, and the value we all place on higher education;
• Those who knowingly or unknowingly served as mentors and inspirational leaders throughout my career, notably George Ward, Bill Cooney, John D'Anna, John Peeler, and many other brilliant colleagues;
• The camaraderie of a wonderful doctoral cohort group together on this journey;
• My beautiful daughters Corey Howden and Kerri Howden, who never tire of hearing me discuss Data Analytics… (or maybe they do, and they smile);
• And my patient dog, Sasha who will finally get her dad back to play fetch.
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Table of Contents
ABSTRACT ................................................................................................................................... 1
Preface............................................................................................................................................ 5
Dedication ...................................................................................................................................... 7
Acknowledgments.......................................................................................................................... 8
Table of Contents ............................................................................................................................ 9
List of Tables ............................................................................................................................... 13
List of Figures ............................................................................................................................... 14
Chapter 1: Introduction and Overview of the Management Problem ........................................... 15
Background .......................................................................................................................... 15
The New Frontier - The Fourth Industrial Revolution .............................................. 15
Technology’s Role in Business Success ................................................................... 16
Overviews ............................................................................................................................ 17
Overview of BI&A ................................................................................................... 17
Overview of SMEs .................................................................................................... 18
The Problem Statement ........................................................................................................ 18
Significance of the Problem ................................................................................................. 20
Summary Review of the Business Problem ......................................................................... 24
The Research Question ........................................................................................................ 25
The Rationale for the Study ................................................................................................. 25
Organization of the Dissertation .......................................................................................... 26
Chapter 1 Summary ............................................................................................................. 27
Chapter 2: Scoping Literature Review and Theoretical Frame .................................................... 28
SME Overview, Importance, & General Issues ................................................................... 28
Definition of SMEs ................................................................................................... 28
Economic Density of SMEs ...................................................................................... 29
SMEs Importance to National Economies ................................................................ 29
Differing Characteristics and Challenges of SMEs .................................................. 30
SME Summary .......................................................................................................... 30
BI&A Overview, Components, & Importance to Enterprises ............................................. 31
BI&A Definition ....................................................................................................... 31
BI&A Industrial Applications ................................................................................... 32
BI&A Technology Components ............................................................................... 34
BI&A Solutions ........................................................................................................ 37
BI&A Importance ..................................................................................................... 38
BI&A Summary ........................................................................................................ 39
Common Challenges Facing Enterprises ............................................................................. 40
Contrasts Between SMEs and Large Corporations Regarding BI&A ................................. 40
Characteristic Differences between SME and Large Corporations .......................... 40
BI&A Adoption in Large Corporations .................................................................... 41
Large Corporations Outpace SMEs in BI&A Adoption ........................................... 42
Lack of Available Literature on BI&A in SMEs ...................................................... 46
Business Comparison Summary ............................................................................... 47
Scoping Literature Review Summary .................................................................................. 47
Development of the Theoretical Framework ....................................................................... 48 10
Basic Conceptual Model ........................................................................................... 48
Combining the Theory and Framework .................................................................... 51
Conceptual Framework Summary ....................................................................................... 53
Chapter 2 Summary ............................................................................................................. 53
Chapter 3: Method ........................................................................................................................ 55
Focus of the Research .......................................................................................................... 55
Evidence-Based Management and Evidence-Based Research ............................................ 56
Research Philosophy ............................................................................................................ 57
Philosophy ................................................................................................................. 57
Approach to Theory Development ............................................................................ 57
Methodological Choice ............................................................................................. 58
Systematic Review .................................................................................................... 58
Strategy and Research Design................................................................................... 59
Time Horizon ............................................................................................................ 60
Techniques and Procedures ....................................................................................... 60
Search Strategy .................................................................................................................... 62
Search Portals and Databases .................................................................................... 62
Search Terms ............................................................................................................ 64
Process and PRISMA........................................................................................................... 66
Inclusion Criteria ................................................................................................................. 69
Exclusion Criteria ................................................................................................................ 70
Quality Assessment of Literature ........................................................................................ 72
Data Extraction and Coding Steps ....................................................................................... 73
Codification, Analysis, and Synthesis Detail....................................................................... 75
Results from Sourcing and Screening with Distiller SR...................................................... 77
List of Included and Excluded Documents .......................................................................... 81
Subject Matter Experts......................................................................................................... 81
Inquiry and Feedback of the Subject Matter Experts .......................................................... 81
Chapter 3 Summary ............................................................................................................. 83
Chapter 4: Analysis and Findings ................................................................................................. 84
Review of the Business Problem ......................................................................................... 84
Review of the Research Question ............................................................................. 86
Description of the Data Set .................................................................................................. 86
Results of the Quality Appraisal of the Data Set ................................................................. 88
Results of the Synthesis of the Articles in the Data Set ....................................................... 93
Pre-Coding Development of Initial Starting Points .................................................. 93
First Cycle Coding .................................................................................................... 93
Refinement and Reorganization ................................................................................ 94
Second Cycle Coding ................................................................................................ 94
Thematic Analysis and Synthesis ............................................................................. 95
Theme 1 – BI&A Adoption Starts with a
Improving adaptation assessment in the IPCC
No full textAbstract Assessing adaptation is one of the critical roles of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). In this Perspective, we focus on the what and the how that can guide this assessment for AR7: what knowledge is and should be assessed and how it is assessed. We then propose several opportunities for improvement, including accelerating adaptation assessment method innovation, increasing linkages between IPCC efforts and UNFCCC dialogues, and how author and data diversity can support a more decision- and policy-relevant assessment
A Chronicle of Liberal Thought in Spain: From Salamanca to Vienna Through Madrid
No full textThis chapter offers a personal account of the diffusion of Austrian thought in Madrid, with central reference to the teaching of Jesús Huerta de Soto. Following a route similar to that of Hayek or Rothbard, the author describes the relationship between the sixteenth-century Salamancan Doctors and the Austrian School of Economics. It all begins with the Seminar of the Complutense University of Madrid, at the beginning of the 1990s, where Huerta de Soto gathered a group of students and professors who, over time, would disseminate Austrian principles through various initiatives—Austrian principles through various national and international initiatives. The narration is completed by mentioning a large number of people who in some way have been part of this project.Sin financiaciónSPI 2022UE
New paradigms to find solutions to intractable NRM problems
No full textThis final report presents the results of the project conducted from 1 July 2005 to 3 July 2008. The project consisted of three phases: firstly, the investigation of personality types of people involved with natural resource management and policy across Australia with a focus on Western Australia; secondly, the development of a system dynamics model of the Western Australian wheat belt at the regional scale to demonstrate the nature of linked social-ecological systems within a resilience paradigm or framework; and thirdly, the knowledge and adoption phase of the model and concepts of resilience paradigm.
At the beginning of this project in July 2005 the concepts of complex problems and resilience were not in common usage and it was a bold step for Land & Water Australia to support this innovative project at that time. These approaches are now validated by bursts of activity over the past three years in which it has become widely acknowledged that many of our most pressing problems have the characteristics of complex problems and require quite different processes to understand and manage them. For example, the Australian Public Policy Commission acknowledges that the public service has to deal with complex problems and developing ways of dealing with them is an evolving process (Commonwealth of Australia 2007). Similarly it has been recognised that, in order for agriculture to respond to climate change, more systemic changes in resource allocation will be required (Howden, Soussana et al. 2007). Internationally the number of papers in the scientific literature related to complex problems and the paradigm of resilience has risen from approximately 50 per year in 2000 to about 250 per year in 2007 (Janssen 2007). The Resilience Alliance (http://www.resalliance.org/1.php) has been instrumental in promoting this approach and a new institute, the Stockholm Resilience Centre, was established in May 2007 to advance the understanding of complex social-ecological systems and to generate new insights and means for governance and management of ecosystem services for long-term sustainability
The Penny Magazine, Vol. V, #257
No full textThe opening of this weekly magazine for Saturday, April 2, 1836, offers a large black-and-white illustration of WC and then argues that the result of observation may be applied in a practical manner as a guide in actual life. It quotes the introduction to Gay's fables, in which a shepherd speaks to a sage about the simple knowledge he has gained from nature. It then quotes Dodsley's WC. The other articles in this issue treat of Political Economy of Our Ancestors'; Howden Church with an illustration; Clermont and the Auvergne Mountains; and The River Nile. What I have is pages 129-36 stapled together. Might the original magazine have been larger?Retold by Sarah Albe
Travel health advice received by Australian residents travelling to Southeast Asia
No full textThis thesis was scanned from the print manuscript for digital preservation and is copyright the author.
Researchers can access this thesis by asking their local university, institution or public library to
make a request on their behalf. Monash staff and postgraduate students can use the link in the References field
Detection of specific proenzyme activators in snake venoms by a new immunoabsorbant-chromogenic substrate method
No full textPandeleteius baccharis Kuschel
No full textPandeleteius baccharis Kuschel (Figs. 13 –19, 20) Pandeleteius baccharis Kuschel 1949: l 6, Fig. 2 b, c; pl. 1, fig. 6. Diagnosis. Epistoma with sides not carinate. Rostrum as wide as long, distinctly narrower than frons. Prothorax almost parallel-sided, cylindrical, with slight transverse depressions. Scutellum squamose. Elytra with declivity in male in profile varying from oblique to slightly concave (Fig. 14), in female concave, apex extending conspicuously (Fig. 13); sutural interval at summit of declivity with elongate, decumbent or arcuate setae. Ventrite 5 in male with only two to nine scales; in female scales usually absent. Aedeagus with internal sac consisting in part of slender sclerotized tube almost as long as aedeagus, often visible through aedeagus. Vagina with two pairs of proximal blades, at least the ventral pair of blades attached to very small sclerite. Spermathecal duct longer than beetle. Redescription. Length: male 3.6–4.3 mm, female 4.0–5.0 mm; width: male 1.4–1.7 mm, female 1.6 –2.0 mm. Eye moderately prominent. Fore femur on inner edge unmodified or with minute nodules; in male 1.5 – 2.0 times wider than hind femur, in female 1.3–1.8 times wider. Ventrite 5 with apex in male broadly truncate or slightly emarginate, in female rounded with explanate evanescent margin. Genitalia of male (dissected, n = 1; partly extruded, n = 4) (Fig. 15): aedeagus with body 1.4 mm long, apodemes 0.9 mm long; dorsally with basal half smooth, apical half with narrow median strip forming a flexible closure over opening, integument transparent either side of strip; internal sac (as seen through aedeagus) a sclerotized, slender tube as long as aedeagus; tegmen (Fig. 16) 0.9 mm long; sternite 9 (Fig. 17) 1.1 mm long. Genitalia of female (n = 4) (Fig. 18): ventral baculus 0.9 –1.0 mm long; vagina with two pairs of proximal blades 0.5–0.7 mm long, the ventral pair attached to very small sclerite (Fig. 18 a, enlargement); spermathecal duct extremely long, more than 5.0 mm in the only specimen disentangled from its surrounding tissue; sternite 8 (Fig. 19) 1.6 mm long. Material. Holotype, female (not examined): “CHILE-Tarapacá/ Arica (ciudad)/ 13.2.48 /Kuschel leg.” (hand written). “ HOLOTYPE (printed)/ Pandeleteius baccharis Kuschel ” (hand written) (Museo Nacional de Historia Natural, Santiago de Chile). Paratypes: 3 males, 5 females. Other specimens (20): CHILE. Tarapacá, Arica, Camarones, 29.11. 46, Coll. Kuschel (HAHC, NZAC); 2 males, 1 female, Cuya, 19.2. 48 (NZAC, USNM); 5 males, 3 females, Cuya, 13.2. 48, Coll. Kuschel (HAHC, NZAC); 2 males, 1 female, Ciudad Cuya, 10.2. 48, Coll. Kuschel (HAHC, NZAC); 1 male, Huancarane, 30.11. 48, Kuschel leg. (NZAC); 1 male, 2 females, Lluta, Rosario, 10.2. 48, Coll. Kuschel (NZAC); Pisagua: 1 male, 1 female, Tana, 900 m, 11.3. 48, Coll. Kuschel (NZAC). Distribution. Known only from the type series from extreme NW Chile. Biology. The author and collector of the type series of Pandeleteius baccharis, G. Kuschel, reports (in litt.) that “..the area is the driest on earth, receiving less than one millimeter annually of precipitation. It starts largely as a 1000 m high plateau right from the sea, dissected by narrow valleys or deep gullies. The plateau is too dry even for lichens, but the valleys and gullies have groundwater which is replenished with seepages and rivulets running down from the altiplano or puna originating from summer storms and downpours from December to March. The xerophytic vegetation consists mainly of Asteraceae, Chenopodiaceae and Solanaceae, and the Pandeleteius species seems to be rather closely associated with Baccharis species, although a few specimens were obtained by sweeping Tessaria absinthioides, a nasty sticky riverbed plant of the same family, Asteraceae, as Baccharis.”. Remarks. Compared with the Pandeleteius specimens I have seen, P. baccharis is easily recognized by its vestiture and habitus. However, in l 954 Voss described Pandeleteius distinctus and Pandeleteius peruvianus from adjacaent SW Peru, which may be conspecific with P. baccharis. The type material of these two Voss species was destroyed in WW II, and I have seen no specimens of Pandeleteius from this part of Peru (see following discussion of P. d i s t i n c t u s and P. peruvianus).Published as part of Howden, Anne T., 2008, The species of Pandeleteius Schoenherr of coastal Chile and Peru (Coleoptera, Curculionidae), pp. 55-62 in Zootaxa 1773 on pages 58-60, DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.18216
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