189 research outputs found
INFLUENCE OF RETRENCHMENT STRATEGY ON PERFORMANCE OF SAMEER AFRICA IN NAIROBI CITY COUNTY, KENYA
No full text<p><strong>Abstract:</strong> The entry of new competition from imported tires and independent suppliers has had a significant impact on operating costs in Sameer Africa. This impact has manifested itself in the form of lower sales volumes leading to lower profits. This study examined the influence of retrenchment strategy on performance of Sameer Africa in Nairobi City County, Kenya. The study applied a descriptive research design. The unit of analysis was Samer Africa in Nairobi City County, Kenya, and the unit of observation was 630 employees drawn from the following departments; Sales and Marketing, Operations, Human Resources, Information and Technology, Imports and Clearing, Audit and Risk Management. Proportional stratified sampling was used in the study to select samples from various subsets of the target population in order to ensure adequate representation of all cases. Simple random sample selection was used to select the sample size of 245 respondents. With the help of a semi-structured questionnaire, primary data was gathered. The questionnaire was piloted on 25 respondents from the same organization who weren't part of the main study in order to test its validity and reliability. The means and standard deviations of descriptive statistics were used to analyze quantitative data. The data were presented using tables and graphics. Correlation analysis and multiple analysis were used in inferential statistics to ascertain the relationship between the independent and dependent variables. The study discovered that the performance of Sameer Africa in Nairobi City County, Kenya, is positively and significantly impacted by reemployment strategy. The study concluded that retrenchment is a cost-management strategy that removes goods and services from the market and lessens competition. The study recommended that the management of the company can for divestment strategy is the case of severity of competition and the inability of the organization to cope with it.</p>
<p><strong>Keywords:</strong> Retrenchment Strategy, Organizational Performance.</p>
<p><strong>Title:</strong> INFLUENCE OF RETRENCHMENT STRATEGY ON PERFORMANCE OF SAMEER AFRICA IN NAIROBI CITY COUNTY, KENYA</p>
<p><strong>Author:</strong> Doris Mueni Mengo, Dr Eliud Obere</p>
<p><strong>International Journal of Management and Commerce Innovations </strong></p>
<p><strong>ISSN 2348-7585 (Online)</strong></p>
<p><strong>Vol. 11, Issue 2, October 2023 - March 2024</strong></p>
<p><strong>Page No: 8-13</strong></p>
<p><strong>Research Publish Journals</strong></p>
<p><strong>Website: www.researchpublish.com</strong></p>
<p><strong>Published Date: 04-October-2023</strong></p>
<p><strong>DOI: <a href="https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.8406732">https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.8406732</a></strong></p>
<p><strong>Paper Download Link (Source)</strong></p>
<p><strong><a href="https://www.researchpublish.com/papers/influence-of-retrenchment-strategy-on-performance-of-sameer-africa-in-nairobi-city-county-kenya">https://www.researchpublish.com/papers/influence-of-retrenchment-strategy-on-performance-of-sameer-africa-in-nairobi-city-county-kenya</a></strong></p>International Journal of Management and Commerce Innovations, ISSN 2348-7585 (Online), Research Publish Journals, Website: www.researchpublish.co
A Bayesian model for dynamic functional connectivity estimation in the human brain with structural priors
No full textStudies of dynamic functional connectivity have demonstrated that anatomical linkage is related to persistent functional connectivity. Bayesian models can leverage this connection by regularizing estimates of functional connectivity according to the strength of the corresponding structural connectivity. We proposed and evaluated the ability of such a model to recover covariance matrices. The model performed well in a high dimensional, small sample simulated setting. In addition, it exhibited robustness to temporal transformations and an ability to recover simulated data generated according to both discrete and continuous temporal dynamics. Finally, it outperformed sliding window baselines and anatomically un-informed baselines on estimating instantaneous covariances according to out-of-sample log likelihood on two task datasets.Submission published under a 24 month embargo labeled 'U of I Access', the embargo will last until 2021-08-01The student, Sameer Manchanda, accepted the attached license on 2019-07-19 at 10:46.The student, Sameer Manchanda, submitted this Thesis for approval on 2019-07-19 at 10:50.This Thesis was approved for publication on 2019-07-19 at 11:21.DSpace SAF Submission Ingestion Package generated from Vireo submission #14389 on 2019-11-26 at 13:06:25Made available in DSpace on 2019-11-26T20:49:36Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 2
MANCHANDA-THESIS-2019.pdf: 792828 bytes, checksum: b95b4e1a029549413074377b36d8e1dd (MD5)
LICENSE.txt: 4213 bytes, checksum: 91d8d5be14a6077aea26c137d9cab007 (MD5)
Previous issue date: 2019-07-19Embargo set by: Seth Robbins for item 112988
Lift date: 2021-11-26T20:49:41Z
Reason: Author requested U of Illinois access only (OA after 2yrs) in Vireo ETD systemU of I Only Restriction Lifted for Item 112988 on 2021-11-27T10:15:09Z
Karadi 3
No full textMusic, poetry, storytelling, and lively color come together to make each of these book/cassette pairs attractive. Each tape starts with a song in which Karadi introduces himself as a teller of stories. Here Kapi, the good king of the monkeys, has warned them not to let any mangoes float downriver towards Benares. Korung, a bad monkey, lets one float down, and soon enough the king has sent boats upriver to find this wonderful fruit. When the king and his hunters arrive, Kapi understands that he must form part of a bridge to freedom for his threatened people. He does this, and the king in admiration stops his men from firing arrows at Kapi. Korung, the last across, dashes Kapi down, but he revives. When the king assures Kapi that his people can return, he forgives Korung and welcomes him back. The book and audio cassette come together in a cellophane package. Though I will list each pair under both books and audio cassettes, I will keep them together in their packages under books.Script & Direction by Shobha Viswanat
Preference to co-author with other researchers based on socio-academic parameters.
No full textPreference to co-author with other researchers based on socio-academic parameters.</p
Microchemical systems for kinetic studies of catalytic processes
No full textThesis (Ph. D.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Chemical Engineering, 2002.Includes bibliographical references.This electronic version was submitted by the student author. The certified thesis is available in the Institute Archives and Special Collections.Silicon microfabrication techniques and scale-up by replication have for decades fueled spectacular advances in the electronics industry. More recently, with the rise of microfluidics, microfabrication has enabled the development of microchemical systems for a variety of chemical and biological applications. This work focuses on the development of these systems for improved gas phase heterogeneous catalysis research. The catalyst development process often requires fundamental information such as reaction rate constants, activation energies, and reaction mechanisms to gauge and understand catalyst performance. To this end, we have examined the ability of microreactors with a variety of geometries to efficiently obtain accurate kinetic information. This work primarily focuses on microfabricated packed-bed reactors that utilize standard catalyst particles and briefly explores the use of membrane based reactors to obtain kinetic information. Initial studies with microfabricated packed-beds led to the development of a microfabricated silicon reactor that incorporates a novel cross-flow design with a short pass multiple flow-channel geometry to reduce the gradients that often confound kinetics in macroscale reactors. The cross-flow geometry minimizes pressure drop though the particle bed and incorporates a passive flow distribution system composed of an array of shallow flow channels. Combined experiments and modeling confirm the even distribution of flow across the wide catalyst bed with a pressure drop [approx.] 1600 times smaller than typical microfabricated packed-bed configurations.(cont.) Coupled with the inherent heat and mass transfer advantages at the sub-millimeter length scale achievable through microfabrication, the cross-flow microreactor has been shown to operate in near-gradientless conditions and is an advantageous design for catalyst testing. The ability of microfabricated packed-beds to obtain accurate catalytic information has been demonstrated through experiments with phosgene generation over activated carbon, and CO oxidation and acetylene hydrogenation over a variety of noble metals on alumina. The advantages of using microreactors for catalyst testing is quantitatively highlighted throughout this work.by Sameer K. Ajmera.Ph.D
Prevalence and relationship between periodontal disease and pre-term low birth weight infants at King Khalid university hospital in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
No full textThe aim of this study was to examine the prevalence and relationship between periodontal disease and preterm
low birth weight (PLBW) among Saudi mothers at King Khalid University Hospital (KKUH) in Riyadh,
Saudi Arabia. The periodontal status and the relative risk were also analyzed. The study consisted of 30 cases
[infants <37 weeks and/or weighing ≥2.500 kilograms (kg)] and a daily random sample of 60 controls [≥ 37
weeks and/or weighing >2.500 kg]. Clinical periodontal indices were measured on the labor wards. Associated
risk factors for periodontal disease and PLBW were ascertained by means of a structured questionnaire and
maternal notes. The prevalence of the PLBW was found to be 11.3%, and the prevalence of periodontal disease
was high among the study population. The risk of PLBW remained high with increasing periodontal disease
(odds ratio [OR] 4.21, 95% confident interval [CI] 1.99-8.93) despite controlling the other risk factors such
as age, smoking, and social class. In conclusion, there is a correlation between periodontal disease and PLBW
in KKUH.The research is
registered in King Saud University College of Dentistry, Research Center (CDRC). NF#1907Corresponding Author:
Dr. Sameer Abdullah Mokeem, Associate Professor and Consultant, Division of Periodontics, College of Dentistry, King Saud University, P.O. Box 85032
Riyadh 11691, Saudi Arabia.
Email: [email protected]
NGOs' perspectives on value creation within cross-sector collaborations and their motivation behind forming them
No full textCurrent societal challenges are a complex web of obstacles intertwining many different issues which require a holistic approach; cross-sector collaborations, between the private and third sector, are said to be one of the possible remedies. The notion of business-NGO collaborations has been evolving over the past three decades and is experiencing unprecedented growth. Nevertheless, the research conducted regarding this phenomenon has been rather unilateral, focusing predominantly on the business perspective of the partnership. Thus, this thesis intends to provide the neglected perspective of the NGOs. The author has researched two Denmark-based NGOs and their perceptions and experience concerning the above-described phenomenon. Different motives for forming such partnerships were discovered between the two organisations, together with their different approaches and utilisation strategies. The resources gained and value created within these collaborations are diverse and set to be context-specific, yet seen as worth forming. The author has uncovered previous experience in the private sector, networks and networking to be the key and essential themes for attracting, forming and sustaining partnerships with private companies. The importance of networks in the business-NGO collaborations was only scarcely considered an important aspect by academic researchers before and thus it is seen as the main contribution of this thesis.Current societal challenges are a complex web of obstacles intertwining many different issues which require a holistic approach; cross-sector collaborations, between the private and third sector, are said to be one of the possible remedies. The notion of business-NGO collaborations has been evolving over the past three decades and is experiencing unprecedented growth. Nevertheless, the research conducted regarding this phenomenon has been rather unilateral, focusing predominantly on the business perspective of the partnership. Thus, this thesis intends to provide the neglected perspective of the NGOs. The author has researched two Denmark-based NGOs and their perceptions and experience concerning the above-described phenomenon. Different motives for forming such partnerships were discovered between the two organisations, together with their different approaches and utilisation strategies. The resources gained and value created within these collaborations are diverse and set to be context-specific, yet seen as worth forming. The author has uncovered previous experience in the private sector, networks and networking to be the key and essential themes for attracting, forming and sustaining partnerships with private companies. The importance of networks in the business-NGO collaborations was only scarcely considered an important aspect by academic researchers before and thus it is seen as the main contribution of this thesis
Reporting Episodes of Disease Outbreak
No full textUsing Social Media to Identify and Locate Communicable Diseases Worldwide in Real timeFall 2014Accompanied by video fil
Developing a Framework for the Deployment of Crowd-Shipping: A Study in the Netherlands
No full textThe growth in the e-commerce platforms and online shopping has been increasing exponentially in the last decade. Businesses and logistics companies are finding new ways to ensure fast, sustainable, and safe deliveries to customers through existing means. However, to meet the ever increasing demand of deliveries, innovative shipping or delivery alternatives have been on the rise across the world. Crowd-Shipping is one such concept which aims at taking advantage of regular travellers with unused space and additional time who can pick up packages, in order to deliver packages to customers who lie along or near the same route for a small compensation. Since the Netherlands has witnesses massive e-commerce growth and demand for efficient and fast deliveries, this study aimed at how Crowd-Shipping can potentially be implemented in the Netherlands through considering a set of drivers, barriers and a business model innovation perspective. The study first investigates the existing research on the concept, focusing on the drivers, barriers and business model aspects. In order to explore these findings and potentially more or findings, we conducted the methodology which consisted of interviews and surveys. Post the interviews and surveys, a thorough analysis of the findings was conducted through content analysis, descriptive statistics and correlations. The results from the research indicate the importance of the findings from the literature with respect to existing drivers, barriers and business model perspectives while also providing insight into more drivers, barriers and business model perspectives that need to be considered for Crowd-Shipping deployment. These results are discussed in detail providing in-depth insight on the Crowd-Shipping aspects mentioned. We conclude the research by suggesting how Crowd-Shipping can be implemented in the Netherlands considering these drivers, barriers and business model aspects, following which, further research recommendations are provided.Management of Technology (MoT
Factors influencing the success within multi-mode standardization for selecting the Vehicle-to-Grid (V2G) charging standards
No full textThe transportation sector is considered to be one of the significant contributors of carbon emissions around the world. With the rise in carbon emissions, electric vehicles are increasingly becoming popular globally. Most of the developed countries are moving towards the electrification of the transportation sector at a faster pace. Although the concept of electrification is novel and environmentally friendly, the electricity demand is predicted to rise exponentially in the next decade. Concerning this demand, Vehicle-to-grid (V2G) technology is considered to be one of the best solutions by experts to incorporate future electricity demand. Even though the technology was introduced in the late 20th century, it is yet to be commercialized for public use on a large scale. There are various pilot projects under development around the world, especially in the European continent. A few private clients in Denmark have already commercialized the technology for private usage, but certainly, it is not available for the general public. Hence, Europe was considered to be an ideal choice for geographical focus. The most important barrier to the adoption of V2G technology is related to the adoption of electric vehicles (EVs) in the market. While the demand for EVs is gradually increasing, the large scale adoption of V2G technology will eventually grow. The charging equipment that is used to charge the electric cars at the charging stations is another critical barrier. Three different standards are competing against each other to dominate the market (i.e., CHAdeMO, CCS Combo, and Tesla). Most of the charging stations in Europe consists of either or all the three types of charging equipment. A few private charging infrastructure companies have also established charging stations locally or nationally in Europe. As there is an equal distribution of CHAdeMO and CCS Combo charging stations around Europe, standardization of the charging equipment could become a necessity for the implementation of V2G technology in the future.According to the literature, there are three different modes of standardization processes, namely: committee-based, market-based, and government-based standardization. Based on the involvement of various actors in the standardization processes, the concept of multi-mode standardization was introduced in the literature. The case of charging standards related to V2G technology involves actors from various domains indicating the potential case of multi-mode standardization. While the three charging standards are still in the early phases of the battle, it is imperative to analyze the factors that could influence the standardization of charging standards. Hence, the main research question for this research was framed: "What are the factors that influence the success of charging standards in the context of multi-mode standardization in the European market for the implementation of V2G technology?". The factors influencing success within the case of multi-mode standardization were recently introduced into the literature. A thorough literature review was carried out to identify a total of 39 influential factors within various case studies of multi-mode standardization. And it resulted in the proposition of a new framework for further analysis in this research. With the combination of a literature review and interview with the experts, 35 factors were found to be relevant. Further, a Multi-criteria Decision Making (MCDM) tool known as the ‘Best Worst Method (BWM)’ approach was used to rank the factors based on expert’s preferences. A total of seven interviews were conducted to allocate weights for each factor using the BWM approach to rank the factors. The experts belonged to academic as well as industrial backgrounds. The results of the analysis showed that the factors ‘brand reputation and credibility’, ‘compatibility’, ‘financial strength’, ‘bandwagon effect’, and ‘lobbying’ ended up being the top five influential factors in this research. While there were two groups of interviewees, a set of two different statistical tests were performed to analyze the significant differences between the results obtained from the two groups of experts. The weight of the factor ‘delay in the standardization process’ was found to be significantly different among the two groups. Hence, this factor was not considered for listing the influential factors.Compared to the previous framework in the literature, a set of ten factors were added to the framework constructed during this research. The new factors were found to be indeed relevant in the standardization of charging standards. It was also observed for the first time in the BWM literature that a total of 35 factors were found to be relevant. Researchers can use the new framework for analyzing the factors influencing standards battle in different domains. Also, the BWM approach was used for the first time to identify success factors in the selection of charging standards for the implementation of V2G technology. Additionally, the articles that discussed success factors previously in literature from the market perspective were re-analyzed to explore the concept of multi-mode standardization for the first time. Out of ten reviewed articles, eight articles were recategorized to a relevant combination of multi-mode standardization. Moreover, empirical evidence was found for the factors that were considered to be relevant in the third phase of technology dominance. Additionally, it was also found for the first time that a few factors believed to be crucial in the fourth phase of technology dominance were found to be essential already in the third phase of standards battle between charging standards. The statistical analysis tests used in this research can also be used where there are more than two experts involved in the application of the BWM. Finally, the results obtained in this research provide empirical evidence to assign weights to the relevant factors and analyze the importance of those weights to explain their influence in the standardization using the BWM approach.From a managerial point of view, a few practical contributions were also made during this research. The technology managers can use the proposed framework for the selection of charging standards globally in the future. The combination of the proposed framework and the BWM approach can be used to analyze technologies within similar domains in a situation of multi-mode standardization. The identified factors in the framework can be used to define strategies by the technological managers in the market to gain an edge over competitors in the market. Furthermore, the newly introduced factors in the proposed framework influence the members of the committees and help them to arrive at a consensus in standard development organizations. These factors can not only be validated by the technology managers but also by the committee members representing other aspects in the process of technology standardization. The proposed framework can be modified by the addition of new factors based on the relevance in the technology battle. With the increasing number of startups in the market, the framework can act as a guidance tool for entrepreneurs to analyze, validate and evaluate various factors that could influence the standardization of their product in the market.Management of Technology (MoT
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