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Article
Publication date: 30 August 2021

Pernille H. Christensen

Between 2013 and 2016 Western countries experienced a nearly 600% increase in terrorist attacks. Among the most significant shift in terrorism trends during this time is the…

Abstract

Purpose

Between 2013 and 2016 Western countries experienced a nearly 600% increase in terrorist attacks. Among the most significant shift in terrorism trends during this time is the recent focus on civilians in crowded places as a frequent target. Although crowded places have become critical targets for terrorist attacks, there remains a dearth of research studying crowded places or the built environment practitioner's role in creating crowded places that are as resilient as possible against terrorism.

Design/methodology/approach

This paper presents the results from 33 in-depth, semi-structured, one-hour interviews with property developers, property investors, property managers, security consultants, designers, planners and government/policy officials in Sydney, Canberra and Melbourne, Australia. A purposive, snowball sampling method was used to identify participants in the study.

Findings

This research extends the existing literature base on counterterrorism protective security, a distinctly under-researched component of the terrorism research discourse, by developing a baseline of threat considerations considered during the planning, design and development process. This paper presents the Australian results of a first-of-its-kind international study that connects the planning, design and development of real estate in crowded places with planning for protective counterterrorism, and investigates what, when and how counterterrorism protective security (CTPS) is considered in the development process of crowded places. The findings show that a series of common threats were identified across the stakeholder groups, including development risk, development location/site selection, natural phenomena and human-induced issues.

Research limitations/implications

This research extends the current knowledge base on CTPS and has the potential to influence decision-makers in both the counterterrorism policy landscape and those influential in developing standards for the planning, design, construction and management of real estate assets.

Originality/value

An original contribution of this research is detailing the significant range of threats, impacts of events and organisational influences that exist in informing the real estate development process.

Details

Journal of European Real Estate Research, vol. 15 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1753-9269

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 4 September 2017

Pernille Hoy Christensen

The purpose of this paper is to understand both the facts and the values associated with the breadth of issues, and the principles related to sustainable real estate for…

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Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to understand both the facts and the values associated with the breadth of issues, and the principles related to sustainable real estate for institutional investors. Sustainable real estate is a growing sector within the commercial real estate industry, and yet, the decision-making practices of institutional investors related to sustainability are still not well understood. In an effort to fill that gap, this research investigates the post-global financial crisis (GFC) motivations driving the implementation of sustainability initiatives, the implementation strategies used, and the predominant eco-indicators and measures used by institutional investors.

Design/methodology/approach

This paper presents the results of a three-round modified Delphi study conducted in the USA in 2011-2012 investigating the nature of performance measurements and reporting requirements in sustainable commercial real estate and their impact on the real estate decision-making process used by institutional investors. Two rounds of in-depth interviews were conducted with 14 expert panelists. An e-questionnaire was used in the third round to verify qualitative findings.

Findings

The key industry drivers and performance indicators influencing institutional investor decision making were associated with risk management of assets and whether initiatives can improve competitive market advantage. Industry leaders advocate for simple key performance indicators, which is in contrast to the literature which argues for the need to adopt common criteria and metrics. Key barriers to the adoption of sustainability initiatives are discussed and a decision framework is presented.

Practical implications

This research aims to help industry partners understand the drivers motivating institutional investors to uptake sustainability initiatives with the aim of improving decision making, assessment, and management of sustainable commercial office buildings.

Originality/value

Building on the four generations of the sustainability framework presented by Simons et al. (2001), this research argues that the US real estate market has yet again adjusted its relationship with sustainability and revises their framework to include a new, post-GFC generation for decision making, assessment, and management of sustainable real estate.

Details

Journal of Property Investment & Finance, vol. 35 no. 6
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1463-578X

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 15 December 2021

Sidney Newton, Arezoo Shirazi and Pernille Christensen

To achieve the building and property by 2050, decarbonisation goals will now require a significant increase in the rate of improvement in the energy performance of buildings…

Abstract

Purpose

To achieve the building and property by 2050, decarbonisation goals will now require a significant increase in the rate of improvement in the energy performance of buildings. Occupant behaviour is crucial. This study seeks to guide the application of smart building technology in existing building stock to support improved building energy performance and occupant comfort.

Design/methodology/approach

This study follows a logical partitioning approach to the development of a schema for building energy performance and occupant comfort. A review of the literature is presented to identify the characteristics that label and structure the problem elements. A smart building technology framework is overlaid on the schema. The framework is then applied to configure and demonstrate an actual technology implementation for existing building stock.

Findings

The developed schema represents the key components and relationships of building energy performance when combined with occupant comfort. This schema provides a basis for the definition of a smart building technologies framework for existing building stock. The study demonstrates a viable configuration of available smart building technologies that couple building energy performance with occupant comfort in the existing building stock. Technical limitations (such as relatively simple building management control regimes) and pragmatic limitations (such as change management issues) are noted for consideration.

Originality/value

This is the first development of a schema to represent how building energy performance can be coupled with occupant comfort in existing building stock using smart building technologies. The demonstration study applies one of many possible technology configurations currently available, and promotes the use of open source applications with push-pull functionality. The schema provides a common basis and guide for future studies.

Details

International Journal of Building Pathology and Adaptation, vol. 41 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2398-4708

Keywords

Content available

Abstract

Details

Journal of Property Investment & Finance, vol. 29 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1463-578X

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 8 May 2018

Davina Allen

The purpose of this paper is to introduce translational mobilization theory (TMT) and explore its application for healthcare quality improvement purposes.

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Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to introduce translational mobilization theory (TMT) and explore its application for healthcare quality improvement purposes.

Design/methodology/approach

TMT is a generic sociological theory that explains how projects of collective action are progressed in complex organizational contexts. This paper introduces TMT, outlines its ontological assumptions and core components, and explores its potential value for quality improvement using rescue trajectories as an illustrative case.

Findings

TMT has value for understanding coordination and collaboration in healthcare. Inviting a radical reconceptualization of healthcare organization, its potential applications include: mapping healthcare processes, understanding the role of artifacts in healthcare work, analyzing the relationship between content, context and implementation, program theory development and providing a comparative framework for supporting cross-sector learning.

Originality/value

Poor coordination and collaboration are well-recognized weaknesses in modern healthcare systems and represent important risks to quality and safety. While the organization and delivery of healthcare has been widely studied, and there is an extensive literature on team and inter-professional working, we lack readily accessible theoretical frameworks for analyzing collaborative work practices. TMT addresses this gap in understanding.

Details

Journal of Health Organization and Management, vol. 32 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1477-7266

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 3 April 2017

Just Bendix Justesen, Pernille Eskerod, Jeanette Reffstrup Christensen and Gisela Sjøgaard

The purpose of this paper is to address a missing link between top management and employees when it comes to understanding how to successfully implement and embed workplace health…

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Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to address a missing link between top management and employees when it comes to understanding how to successfully implement and embed workplace health promotion (WHP) as a strategy within organizations: the role of the middle managers.

Design/methodology/approach

A conceptual framework based on review of theory is applied within an empirical multi-case study that is part of a health intervention research project on increased physical activity among office workers. The study involves six Danish organizations.

Findings

Middle managers play a key role in successful implementation of WHP, but feel uncertain about their role, especially when it comes to engaging with their employees. Uncertainty about their role appears to make middle managers reluctant to take action on WHP and leave further action to top management instead.

Research limitations/implications

Limitations included the middle managers’ low attendance at the half-day seminar on strategic health (50 percent attendance), the fact that they were all office workers and they were all from Denmark.

Practical implications

Middle managers ask for more knowledge and skills if they are to work with WHP in daily business.

Social implications

Implementing and embedding WHP as a health strategy raises ethical issues of interfering with employees’ health, is seen as the employee’s personal responsibility.

Originality/value

This study adds to knowledge of the difficulties of implementing and embedding WHP activities in the workplace and suggests an explicit and detailed research design.

Details

International Journal of Workplace Health Management, vol. 10 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1753-8351

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 26 April 2022

Morten Lund Poulsen, Per Nikolaj Bukh and Karina Skovvang Christensen

This paper studies how performance funding of education is perceived by principals, teachers and administrative staff and management. The dysfunctionality of performance measures…

Abstract

Purpose

This paper studies how performance funding of education is perceived by principals, teachers and administrative staff and management. The dysfunctionality of performance measures often reflects how the measures prevent an organisation from achieving its goals. This paper proposes that perceptions of dysfunctionality can be analysed by separating the perceptions of the programme's intentions, of the school-level actions and of the outcomes for students.

Design/methodology/approach

Following a qualitative methodology, semi-structured interviews were conducted with teachers, school management, staff specialists and top management in a large Danish municipality when outcome-based funding was introduced.

Findings

The performance-funding programme affected teaching by changing educational priorities. Different perceptions of the (dys)functionality of intentions, actions and outcomes fuelled diverging responses. Although the performance measure was generally considered incomplete, interviewees' perceptions of the financial incentivisation and the dysfunctionality of actions depended on interpretations of the incentivisation and student-related outcomes of the programme.

Research limitations/implications

Dysfunctionality can be contested; the interpretations of the intention of a performance-funding programme affect the perceived dysfunctionality of reactions. Both technical characteristics of funding schemes and administrators' and principals' mediating roles are essential for the consequences of performance funding.

Originality/value

The paper examines conditions for dysfunctionality of performance measures. We demonstrate that actions can be perceived as dysfunctional because of a measurement's intentions, actions themselves and the actions' outcomes. Further, the paper illustrates how the reception of performance funding depends on how consequences are enacted based on educators' interpretations of the (dys)functionality of intentions, actions and outcomes.

Details

Accounting, Auditing & Accountability Journal, vol. 36 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0951-3574

Keywords

Book part
Publication date: 8 October 2018

Thomas Lopdrup-Hjorth and Anne Roelsgaard Obling

In this chapter, we contextualise an ethical codex introduced in the Danish Central Administration. As a management tool, the codex is intended to curb a mounting distrust induced…

Abstract

In this chapter, we contextualise an ethical codex introduced in the Danish Central Administration. As a management tool, the codex is intended to curb a mounting distrust induced by a number of political-administrative scandals. This is attempted via a revitalisation of classical bureaucratic duties. At the same time, the codex’s attempt at restoring trust is challenged by a number of obstacles. Launching our exploration from an ethos of office-perspective, we contextualise the codex in three dimensions: an organisational dimension, a semantic dimension and a training dimension. From this three-pronged analysis, we show how a number of historical and contemporary obstacles work counter to the codex’s stated attempt to revitalise the ethos of the civil servants. Building on these analyses, we discuss the tensions between official and private selves in particular ethical training exercises as well as the implications the codex brings with it, including a possible obscuring of political-administrative responsibility.

Details

Bureaucracy and Society in Transition
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-78743-283-3

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 1 June 2005

Anne Benedicte Juul, Christian Gluud, Jørn Wetterslev, Torben Callesen, Gorm Jensen and Allan Kofoed‐Enevoldsen

To examine the availability and quality of clinical guidelines on perioperative diabetes care in hospital units before and after a randomised clinical trial (RCT) and…

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Abstract

Purpose

To examine the availability and quality of clinical guidelines on perioperative diabetes care in hospital units before and after a randomised clinical trial (RCT) and international accreditation.

Design/methodology/approach

Interventional “before‐after” study in 51 units (38 surgical and 13 anaesthetic) in nine hospitals participating in a RCT in the greater Copenhagen area; 27 of the units also underwent international accreditation.

Findings

The proportion of units with guidelines increased from 24/51 (47 percent) units before to 38/51 (75 percent) units after the trial. Among the 27 units without guidelines before the trial, significantly more accredited units compared to non‐accredited units had a guideline after the trial (9/10 (90 percent) compared to 5/17 (29 percent). The quality of the systematic development scale and the clinical scales improved significantly after the trial in both accredited units (both p<0.001) and in non‐accredited units (both p<0.02). The improvement of the systematic development scale was significantly higher in accredited than in non‐accredited units (p<0.01).

Originality/value

The combination of conducting both the DIPOM Trial and international accreditation led to a significant improvement of both dissemination and quality of guidelines on perioperative diabetic care.

Details

International Journal of Health Care Quality Assurance, vol. 18 no. 4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0952-6862

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 16 February 2022

Maia Ebsen

The paper ethnographically explores modes of urban resistance emerging in tandem with climate change mitigation programs in Copenhagen.

Abstract

Purpose

The paper ethnographically explores modes of urban resistance emerging in tandem with climate change mitigation programs in Copenhagen.

Design/methodology/approach

Building on 11 months of fieldwork with a Danish construction enterprise, the paper examines the politics of urban climate change mitigation programs through the lens of a group of builders' struggles to rethink and resolve dilemmas related to environmental concerns in construction and urban development.

Findings

Based on an analysis of a specific construction project connected to a larger urban climate change mitigation program in Copenhagen, the paper shows how the builders deliberately move between different perspectives and positions as they navigate the shifting power relations of urban planning. The paper argues that this form of crafty resistance enables the builders to maneuver the political landscape of urban planning as they seek to appropriate the role of “urban planners” themselves.

Originality/value

Taking up recent discussions of “resistance” in anthropology and cognate disciplines (e.g. Theodossopoulos, 2014; Bhungalia, 2020; Prasse-Freeman, 2020), the paper contributes an ethnographic analysis of struggles between diverging and, at times, competing modes of engagement in urban climate change mitigation programs and thus sheds light on how professional actors negotiate the ambiguity of “sustainability” in urban planning.

Details

Journal of Organizational Ethnography, vol. 11 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2046-6749

Keywords

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