Journal articles on the topic 'McKinsey´s 7S model'

Business intelligence system (BIS) reflect on the foundation of completive advantage approaches, this article enhances previous articles of BIS implementation by analyzing a 7 McKinsey model. Using a Delphi survey method with sixty of managers and experts in the BIS field, the results from twenty pharmaceutical manufacturing industries deploying business intelligence applications are presented. The author surveyed a qualitative methodology to hypothesize a proposed model. The findings demonstrated that 80% of participants believe that both the hard and soft 7 dimensions of a McKinsey model—strategy, style, structure, staff, systems, skills, and shared values—are antecedents for successful BIS implementation. Precisely, shared value dimensions is the highest value affected by BIS implementation and skills dimension is the lowest value.

Implementing Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems is a complex, lengthy and expensive process which usually faces serious challenges and failures. Thus, it is necessary to perform a readiness assessment at the initial stage of an ERP implementation project to identify weakness areas which may encounter the project with failure. This paper proposes a new framework for assessing readiness of an organization to implement the ERP project on the basis of McKinsey 7S model using confirmatory factor analysis. Through this method, the construct of ERP readiness is proposed based on 7 dimensions namely “structure”, “strategy”, “systems”, “skills”, “style/culture”, “staff”, and “shared values/ superordinate goals”. Using the framework, the current situation of the organization can be determined and necessary changes can be made prior to system implementation. The proposed framework is then applied to 2 real Iranian banking cases and the advantages of the framework over available frameworks are illustrated.

The proper management of an enterprise involves a set of complex activities that, in the current rapidly changing world, require adoption of modern market requirements. This paper describes a study concerning management audits.The study aims to identify and evaluate the specific techniques that are useful for obtaining information for audits in evaluating management, and examines modifications and applications of the model by McKinsey, ‘model 7S’, with an ‘IFE Matrix’. As practice shows, until now, the ‘model 7S’ approach is the most frequently used tool to assess the current state of management executives in business. The proposed models in the paper’s conclusion can be used individually or by combining two separate models to create a ‘two-staged adaptive model 7S’.

Organizational diagnosis is done for organizational development and change. This study aims to further examine the concept of an organizational model that tries to cultivate the McKinsey 7S Framework Model and the Weisbord Six Box Model with the National Standards of Higher Education. This research uses Neuroresearch research method, which is a research method that combines quantitative and qualitative research with an exploratory stage. The result of the research shows the design of Organizational Diagnostic Model for Higher Education in Indonesia which consists of Strategy, Structure, System, Skill, Staff, Leadership, Value and Purpose (SNPT) consisting of Education Standard, Research Standard, and Standard of Community Service.

In today’s knowledge-based advanced world, pioneer organisations emphasise more on knowledge orientation, being leaders in knowledge management (KM) implementation. The purpose of this paper is to identify the key factors influencing the successful implementation of each KM process in Iranian Oil and Gas Industry, specifically about operational projects which are classified based on the McKinsey 7S model as KM enablers, namely, strategy, structure, system, skill, style, staff and shared values. Then the paper assesses the KM maturity level to categorise and prioritise the KM enablers in each level. Moreover, a conceptual model is proposed to theorise the relationship between organisational agility and each KM process, namely, knowledge creation, storage, sharing and utilisation. Data analysis and statistical tests are concluded using structural equation model through the combination of confirmatory factor and path analysis. The results show the validity and fitness of the proposed model and verification of all the hypotheses, i.e. there are positive relationships between each KM process and agility.

Subject area Strategy. Study level/applicability Post-Graduate and Executive Programmes in Management. Case overview Mr Srinivas Kesineni has been chairman of Kesineni Tours and Travels for the last 19 years. Kesineni Tours and Travels is one of the fastest growing bus travel and transport organisations. The case describes the journey of Kesineni Tours and Travels since its inception. It also outlines different strategies adopted by the Chairman to reach newer heights, to survive and to grow in the turbulent times of changing technology and rising competition from different means of transportation. This unique organisation is run by family, friends and well-wishers of the owners, yet it is professional in its approach in operations. The board of directors of Kesineni Tours and Travels has approved the financial results of 2010, which shows 55 percent growth and Rs 86.71 crores turnover. This is a remarkable achievement and recognition for a company that has been in the business since 1992. In early 1992, entrepreneur Mr Srinivas Kesineni thought of a bus transportation business when he started with just two buses, and today when the organization is the largest tour and travel company in the region serving approximately 15 lack customers in a year covering 75 destinations with around 425 daily schedules. He and his team have been working tirelessly and the company has a remarkable presence in the tour and travel business in India with occasional innovative moves from optimising bus routing, initiating sleeper coaches, introducing Volvo buses to the fleet, entering the cargo transportation business and more. This business has grown at CAGR of 24.07 percent since 2000-2001. Students reading this case may come to the class with preconceived views that the journey of the organisation since its beginning is an ordinary story, but this case creates an opportunity for students to come to their own conclusion how different strategies and the synthesis is important for achieving desired outcomes form time to time. This case facilitates the deductive learning process by identifying different strategic elements form the case and to understand its synergy to explain McKinsey 7s framework. Expected learning outcomes These include: understanding different strategies and policies adopted by the organisation and its impact on performance; understanding the importance of alignment of processes and departments in achievement of organisational strategy; and analysing and understanding the concept of the McKinsey 7S Framework, which is a helpful tool to understand the performance of the organisation. Supplementary materials Teaching notes are available. Bradach, Jaffrey, Organisational Alignment: The 7S Model, Harvard Business School Publishing are useful for further reading.

Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk menganalisis kualitas pelayanan transportasi laut Pelabuhan Tanjung Priok, Jakarta. Penelitian menggunakan metode SERVQUAL untuk mengukur kualitas pelayanan yang diterima pelanggan berdasarkan model kualitas pelayanan (gap model). SERVQUAL bertujuan untuk mengukur lima dimensi kualitas pelayanan yaitu: bukti fisik, keandalan, daya tanggap, jaminan, dan empati yang didasarkan pada analisis kesenjangan (gap analysis) antara harapan dan kinerja pelayanan. Penelitian menggunakan instrumen berupa kuesioner dengan melibatkan 91 perusahaan pelayaran yang diambil dengan teknik acak sederhana. Data penelitian selanjutnya dianalisis dengan analisis Servqual. Hasil penelitian menunjukkan bahwa secara umum kinerja pelayanan Pelabuhan Tanjung Priok dinilai perusahaan pelayaran cukup baik dan tingkat harapan pelayanan tergolong tinggi. Dimensi pelayanan yang dianggap paling penting adalah keandalan, bukti fisik, daya tanggap, jaminan dan empati. Untuk meningkatkan kualitas pelayanan terhadap perusahaan pelayaran, maka perlu melakukan perbaikan pelayanan dengan urutan prioritas: bukti fisik, keandalan, daya tanggap, jaminan, dan empati. Upaya perbaikan juga perlu mengacu pada hasil diagram kartesius, yaitu dengan berusaha mempertahankan atribut-atribut pelayanan pada kuadran B, meningkatkan perbaikan atribut pelayanan kuadran A, dan mengurangi upaya-upaya yang dilakukan terhadap atribut pelayanan pada kuadran C. selain itu, perlu juga dilakukan penelitian lebih lanjut tentang kualitas pelayanan dengan menggunakan dimensi kualitas pelayanan lain, seperti 7S dari McKinsey yang dianalisis dengan menggunakan pendekatan kualitatif.

Purpose – National treatment guidelines regarding Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD) (National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence, 2009) make a number of recommendations relating to system and cultural treatment variables including: access to services, autonomy and choice, developing an optimistic and trusting relationship and managing endings and transitions. The purpose of this paper is to look at a model which could help organisational effectiveness across a range of service settings in relation to personality disorder. Design/methodology/approach – Explanation of why the McKinsey 7S organisational model (Waterman et al., 1980) may be useful in assessing organisational effectiveness in relation to personality disorder. Findings – Cultural and organisational factors across a range of levels need to be aligned to allow for effective service delivery. This is particularly important in working with this client group where strong emotional reactions and subsequent organisational splits are common. Practical implications – The application of this tool within clinical leadership and service development would be particularly important for coherence within generalist (as opposed to specialist) settings. Originality/value – To the authors’ knowledge this analysis is unique as a review of NHS culture across a range of settings and discussion of the implications for service delivery for patients with BPD.

Salah satu sistem informasi di perguruan tinggi adalah sistem informasi akademik berbasis ERP yaitu sistem informasi terkomputerisasi yang tidak saja mencakup bisnis proses akademik tetapi juga terintegrasi dengan bisnis proses lainnya dalam pengelolaan institusi perguruan tinggi. Namun dalam praktiknya tidak sedikit institusi termasuk perguruan tinggi yang gagal mengimplementasikannya. Mengganti perangkat lunak dengan yang baru memungkinkan munculnya resistensi dari pengguna karena kekhawatiran berimplikasi mutasi, kehilangan pekerjaan, perampingan bahkan sampai pemutusan hubungan kerja. Oleh karena itu, diperlukan manajemen perubahan sebagai upaya mengubah sikap pengguna agar mau menggunakan sistem SIKA-ERP. Tujuan dari penelitian ini adalah untuk mengetahui kekuatan pendorong dan menghambat efektivitas implementasi SIKA-ERP dari aspek sikap pengguna. Hasil penelitian ini diharapkan menjadi masukan bagi policy maker dalam program perubahan di perguruan tinggi. Penelitian ini menggunakan metode kualitatif dan menggunakan model manajemen perubahan ADKAR dari Jeffrey M. Hiatt (Hiatt, 2006) dan menggunakan Kerangka McKinsey 7S untuk menanamkan nilai-nilai perubahan yang lebih baik dan menjadi budaya dalam organisasi. Dari diskusi kelompok forum dan wawancara mendalam disimpulkan bahwa implementasi SIKA-ERP di Perguruan Tinggi ini kurang efektif karena kurangnya kesadaran tenaga kependidikan sebagai pengguna bahwa perubahan telah menjadi prioritas bagi institusi.

Research background: The relevance of the research on corporate culture in the conditions of changes is substantiated and its elements, which are important for effective transformations, are defined. The influence of corporate culture on the company performance and its elements is identified. The article deals with hierarchical levels of corporate culture which identify elements of corporate culture and "hidden" factors that allow establishing relationships with the outside world and promote productive work. Purpose of the article: The objective of the article is to identify the elements of the organizational culture at the enterprise level, which influence the effectiveness of its activities under the changes and generalization of its components that determine its ability to transform the existing state in accordance with the established world experience and practice. The research is based on the experience of gas transportation companies in Ukraine. Methods: The McKinsey 7S model was used to describe the enterprise to assess the state of the proposed levels of formation and to change its corporate culture. The McKinsey 7S Framework used in this study as analytical tool to explore a system of interrelated elements which improve the organization's work, raising the level of employee culture and generating common values. The expert method was used to assess the qualitative indices of enterprise internal environment, including "style/culture" and "common values", based on the questionnaire of the experts' group. The survey was conducted at three levels of management for the gas transportation companies, located in different regions of Ukraine. The three levels of management for the mentioned above enterprises — top, middle and low managers were taken into account. The use of the fuzzy logic method makes it possible to investigate the influence of the corporate culture elements on the results of the enterprises and to identify those elements which are important for the implementation of changes at the enterprise and without which it is impossible to achieve effective transformations. Findings & Value added: Taking into account the results of the assessment of corporate culture elements at the investigated companies, the directions of corporate culture development for enterprises that are in a state of changes are pointed out, namely: use of different management styles; support of employees in making innovative decisions; development of cooperation and elimination of conflicts between workers; formation of general corporate values; creating trust between employees and top managers; promoting the development of young workers; use of the mechanisms of education and maintenance of a high level of morality and culture of workers.

This article shows a way to store the data of many S-101 charts into a single Postgres database. The data model of the database with all tables is shown and explained. The concatenation of the indices from the different database tables is explained. This concatenation allows for a faster search of points/curves with certain properties. This fulfills one of the basic requirements for the purpose of navigating an autonomous vessel – that several charts can be interpreted simultaneously by a machine. Mechanisms for up-dating the database with new charts not yet present in the database are shown. Also the mechanisms for updating the charts already present in the database are explained. System limitations are briefly presented to show that in practical use there are in fact none. Memory requirements for such a type of chart storage in the database is compared with memory requirements for ISO8211 files normally used for storage of S-101 charts. With small examples it is finally shown how the stored chart information can be searched specifically.

Strategy implementation presents the most complex aspects of an organization. This study aimed at establishing the relationship between adhocracy culture and strategy implementation in professional bodies in Kenya. To accomplish the main study objective, a descriptive research design was conducted and anchored on Cameron and Quin’s theory of Competing Values Framework (CVF) supported by McKinsey 7S Framework. A sampling frame of 168 respondents from 28 active professional bodies registered with the Association of Professional Bodies in East Africa (APSEA) was targeted. Data were collected using a structured questionnaire. Purposive sampling was used to select six (6) top managers in constant touch with the strategy implementation of their organizations. The study tested a null hypothesis and the results were analyzed through regression ANOVA to establish the relationship between adhocracy culture and strategy implementation. From the results, it was found that adhocracy had a significant positive effect on strategy implementation. The study concluded that adhocracy culture and strategy implementation in professional bodies in Kenya have a significant relationship. The study recommends that the leadership of an organization should work to establish a structure that accommodates adhocracy within the organization. Both operational and business level management should be structured in such a way that there is adhocracy culture within the ranks of the organization. The study further recommends a similar survey across the East African region including more professional bodies and further pursuit of adhocracy culture to test its suitability in other organizations other than professional bodies.

Non-Governmental Organizations face problems related to planning, staffing, organizational change, influence ofleadership on allocation of resource and competition. The study focused on strategy implementation and performance.The objectives were; to investigate the effect of resource allocation, role of staff involvement, influence of rewardsystems, effect of operating procedures and role of communication on performance. The study is important toNon-Governmental Organizations, board of directors, donors and government. The study used McKinsey 7s model,survey research design. The target population was 37 the organizations and 349 members of the management team.Stratified technique was used to categorize the management into Board of Governors, managing directors, managersand heads of departments/project officers. A sample size of 151 respondents was selected from the categories. Datawas collected and analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics with the aid of Statistical Package for SocialSciences (SPSS) version 21. The analyzed data was presented in form of frequency distribution tables. The findingsindicated that Strategy operationalization through resource allocation (allocation of money, adequate personnel andstaff involvement to implement new strategies) and operating procedures (staff training, policies, guiding principlesto ensure compliance to organization’s strategy, procedures, capacity of management, strategic guidance of topmanagement) affect performance to varying levels , Strategy institutionalization, through communication and rewardsystem (clear goals and objectives, strategy direction, strategy clearly communicated, performance recognitionsystem, effort based rewards and rewards system linked to new strategy affect performance differently.

Dimethylnitrosamine (DMN)-induced liver fibrosis was used as an experimental model to study the relationship between serum concentrations of the N-terminal propeptide of type III procollagen [S-Pro(III)-N-P] and the N-terminal (S-7S) and C-terminal (S-NC1) domains of type IV collagen and hepatic concentrations of type III and IV collagen mRNAs. Increases in S-Pro(III)-N-P, and especially in the two type IV collagen-related antigens, were found to be early events in the formation of DMN-induced hepatic fibrosis. The mean concentration of S-Pro(III)-N-P was 120% of the control mean on day 7 of DMN treatment, 230% on day 14 and 250% on day 21. The corresponding values for S-7S were 260, 950 and 1100% and, for S-NC1, 310, 820 and 1000%. All these changes were very similar to those found in the hepatic concentrations of the respective mRNAs. These data support a previous suggestion that an enhanced production of basement-membrane (type IV) collagen is an early event in the development of the DMN-induced hepatic fibrosis. The results also indicate that S-7S and S-NC1 are very sensitive indicators of changes in type IV collagen metabolism. Data obtained in gel-filtration experiments for these three serum antigens were consistent with the suggestion that all three antigens are mainly derived from the synthesis of the respective collagens.

The aim of this research was to explore the critical indicators of evaluating higher education system. The data was obtained according to the available information from websites of relevant authoritative organizations like U.S. News and Universitas 21, etc. The national higher education system was evaluated by the analytic hierarchy process (AHP) model, then by further establishing the dual index evaluation model which includes the concepts of Health Index (H), Sustainability Index (S), finally, combined the two-index by Mckinsey matrix. This research ranked the sustainability and health of higher education systems from 10 countries in 2020 where it reflected that Unites States had the highest evaluation weight while India and Brazil still had room for improvement. Using India as the research subject, the health and sustainability degree of the improved higher education system were analyzed by Lanchester’s equation. According to the results of the evaluation model, a policy implementation model was proposed to ensure the healthy and sustainable development of India’s higher education system.

Subject area Services marketing and marketing strategy. Study level/applicability The case is basically aimed at post-graduate management students; it can be used in strategic management courses. Students can understand McKinsey's 7S model with the help of this case as well as the seven Ps of service industry. Students can also gain an insight into the hub and spoke model. The case can also be used in courses of entrepreneurship. Case overview The case is primarily the entrepreneurial journey of Mr Samar Qureshi in a quick service restaurant business. The entrepreneur Mr Samar Qureshi at a very young age dreamt of opening up an Indian fast food chain. He worked hard to make his dream a reality. In a brief period of five years Qureshi's Fast Trax has reached the level of world-renowned fast food chains like McDonald's and KFC in terms of quality and ambience. Overcoming the hurdles and the challenges Fast Trax has 22 outlets in Delhi NCR. Samar has also introduced the fast food culture in a small town, Aligarh, and wishes to expand it further to other B class towns of India where people desire to go to fast food chains and to enjoy the high standards of food and service as are enjoyed by people living in metros. He has also been instrumental in changing the concept of canteen to restaurant in schools and colleges. The case discusses the challenges facing Fast Trax in the cut-throat environment of the fast food industry. Expected learning outcomes These include: highlighting the 7Ps of services in the context of a retail chain and establishing interlinkages between the seven Ss identified by McKinsey. Supplementary materials Teaching notes are available. Please consult your librarian for access.

Outsourcing is described as the strategic use of external resources to carry out tasks that have traditionally been performed by internal staff and resources. It is considered to be the best-known phenomena of modern times and business strategy to drive the global economy. Outsourcing offers enormous benefits to companies only if the outsourcing decision is correct and factors that affect the outsourcing decision are adequately considered, otherwise irreparable harm may be caused. A study to identify the critical success factors of IT outsourcing in Nepal from the vendor's perspective has been initiated. This study examines different models about the effectiveness of outsourcing for the reason. All these models have their own advantages and drawbacks, so a careful review is important to reach at conclusions for the organizations that wish to follow such models. This article is based on4 comprehensive literature review of the success factors for outsourcing that led to the discovery of six different outsourcing models. The study has reviewed Leavitt’s model, McKinsey 7-S framework, The Nadler-Tushman Congruence Model, Technology Acceptance Model, DeLone and McLean's IS-Success Model and IS-Impact Model. Revised DeLone and McLean Model of Information Systems Success, however, are widely debated and considered to be the most promising.

IntroductionThe Australian Council on Healthcare Standards (ACHS) set criteria for the delivery of healthcare services in Australia. While a voluntary process, continual accreditation with ACHS is an expectation of, and for, Australian healthcare providers. Juxtapositioned with the ACHS, the Nursing and Midwifery Board of Australia (NMBA) set the mandatory practice requirements of, and for, Australian nurses. Despite these overarching quality and governance directives, a regional Queensland Hospital and Health Service (HHS) demonstrated deficits in the quality of nursing care. Accordingly, a HHS project was commissioned with the aim of producing a quantum shift in the quality of nursing services such that the service wasready-everydayfor accreditation assessment, and nursing practice exemplified the NMBA standards.Several barriers to achieving the aim were identified and it was considered that the implementation of critical system changes would structurally and operationally support the achievement of the aim. The system changes are pivoted around an interactive matrix that links nursing care services to the array of nursing professional and practice standards and provides real-time quantitative output measures. This paper outlines the protocol that will be used to establish, implement and evaluate the matrix.Methods and analysisA participatory action research design with a modified Delphi methodology will be used for the development the matrix. The organisational change management around the matrix implementation will be informed by Kotter’s model and supported by the use of the McKinsey 7S. The matrix implementation phase will be conducted using a modifiedPromoting Action on Research Implementation in Health Servicesmodel. Quantitative and qualitative data will be collected over a 12 month pre-test/post-test design to measure the statistical significance of the matrix in supporting compliance with nursing standards and the achievement of quality nursing care. Quantitative data from quality of care assessments will be analysed using descriptive and comparative statistics. Qualitative data from staff surveys will be analysed by content analysis of the major themes (n~200).Ethics and disseminationThe project has ethics approval from a Queensland Health Human Research Ethics Committee. Results will be reported to participants and other stakeholders at seminars and conferences and through peer-reviewed publications.

ABSTRACT Inelastic rate coefficients for 686 partial processes in low-energy Ba + H, Ba+ + H−, Ba++ H and Ba2+ + H− collisions are calculated. These data are needed for the non-local thermodynamic equilibrium (non-LTE) modelling of Ba i and Ba ii spectra, especially in cool stellar atmospheres. The calculations of the rate coefficients are performed by means of the quantum model approach, based on the asymptotic semi-empirical method for the electronic structure calculations and on multichannel formulas for the non-adiabatic nuclear dynamical calculations. The inelastic rate coefficients for all transitions between the 17 lowest covalent states and one ionic molecular state in Ba + H and Ba+ + H− collisions, as well as the inelastic rate coefficients for all transitions between the 19 lowest covalent states and one ionic molecular state in Ba+ + H and Ba2+ + H− collisions are calculated. In Ba+ + H− collisions, the highest rate coefficients correspond to the mutual neutralization processes into the Ba(6s6p1P°), Ba(6s7s3S) and Ba(6s7s1S) final states, with the largest value of 5.93 × 10−8 cm3 s−1 at T = 6000 K for the process Ba+ + H− → Ba(6s7s3S) + H. The highest rate coefficient for excitation and de-excitation processes in Ba + H collisions corresponds to the Ba(6s7s1S) → Ba(6s7s3S) transition, with the value of 7.62 × 10−9 cm3 s−1 at T = 6000 K. In Ba2+ + H− collisions, the highest rate coefficients correspond to the neutralization processes into the Ba+( 7p2P°), Ba+( 4f 2F°), Ba+( 6d 2D) and Ba+( 7s 2S) final states. The highest neutralization rate has the value of 3.96 × 10−8 cm3 s−1 at T = 6000 K for the Ba2+ + H− → Ba+( 7p 2P°) + H process. The largest rate coefficient for excitation and de-excitation processes in Ba+ + H collisions corresponds to the Ba+(7s 2S) → Ba+( 6p 2P°) transition, with the value of 1.23 × 10−9 cm3 s−1 at T = 6000 K.

BackgroundNon-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) is a severe state of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), which is pathologically characterised by steatosis, hepatocyte ballooning, and lobular inflammation. Host–microbial interaction has gained attention as one of the risk factors for NASH. Recently, cnm-gene positive Streptococcus mutans expressing cell surface collagen-binding protein, Cnm (cnm-positive S. mutans), was shown to aggravate NASH in model mice. Here, we assessed the detection rate of cnm-positive S. mutans in oral samples from patients with NASH among NAFLD.MethodsThis single hospital cohort study included 41 patients with NAFLD. NASH was diagnosed histologically or by clinical score. The prevalence of cnm-positive S. mutans, oral hygiene and blood tests, including liver enzymes, adipocytokines and inflammatory and fibrosis markers, were assessed in biopsy-proven or clinically suspected NASH among NAFLD.ResultsPrevalence of cnm-positive S. mutans was significantly higher in patients with NASH than patients without NASH (OR 3.8; 95% CI 1.02 to 15.5). The cnm-positive S. mutans was related to decreased numbers of naturally remaining teeth and increased type IV collagen 7S level (median (IQR) 10.0 (5.0–17.5) vs 20.0 (5.0–25.0), p=0.06; 5.1 (4.0–7.9) vs 4.4 (3.7–5.3), p=0.13, respectively).ConclusionsPrevalence of cnm-positive S. mutans in the oral cavity could be related to fibrosis of NASH among NAFLD.

The aim of this project was to (a) evaluate the potential of the 2-min walk test to detect declines in gait velocity under dual-task conditions and (b) compare gait velocity overground and on a self-paced treadmill in Parkinson’s disease (PD). In total, 23 individuals with PD completed the 2-min walk test under single- and dual-task (serial 7s) conditions overground and on a self-paced treadmill. There was a significant decrease in gait velocity from single- to dual-task conditions overground (1.32 ± 0.22 to 1.10 ± 0.25 m/s; p < .001) and on the self-paced treadmill (1.24 ± 0.21 to 1.05 ± 0.25 m/s; p < .001). Overground and treadmill velocities were not statistically different from each other; however, differences approached or exceeded the minimal clinical important difference. The 2-min walk test coupled with a cognitive task provides an effective model of identifying dual-task declines in individuals with PD. Further studies comparing overground and self-paced treadmill velocity is warranted in PD.

Background Calculation of systemic vascular resistance, used for hemodynamic decision-making, is based on central venous pressure taken as the downstream pressure. However, during circulatory arrest, arterial pressure decreases to a plateau higher than central venous pressure, the critical closing pressure (Pcrit). The authors assessed in humans undergoing arrest whether two-compartment and pressure-dependent conductivity models better estimate arterial pressure decay and Pcrit than a single-compartment model, and whether Pcrit corresponds to Pcrit calculated with the heart beating. Methods Aortic pressure decay was fitted to single-compartment, two-compartment, and pressure-dependent conductivity models using specified time intervals during arrest and natural diastole in 10 patients during defibrillator implantation. Results Although all models closely predicted Pcrit with an arrest of &gt; or = 7s, both two-compartment and pressure-dependent conductivity models better estimated pressure decay than a single-compartment model. However, Pcrit calculated from natural diastolic pressure decay was greater (53 mmHg +/- 15.6) than Pcrit 15 s (26.6 mmHg +/- 7.8, P = 0.001) and 30 s (23.9 mmHg +/- 7.1, P = 0.001) during arrest, and also greater than Pcrit calculated for the same time interval during initial arrest. Conclusions Thus, during arrest, Pcrit can be closely predicted after &gt; or = 7 s, regardless of the model; two-compartment and pressure-dependent conductivity models provide a better fit than a single-compartment model, and actual Pcrit is much less than Pcrit calculated with the heart beating. Irrespective of uncertainties in whether Pcrit calculated with the heart beating or during arrest is the "true" Pcrit prevailing physiologically, linear vascular resistance is markedly less when substituting Pcrit for central venous pressure as the downstream pressure.

Learning outcomes The learning outcomes of this paper is as follows: to give faculty the opportunity to illustrate the strategist’s and marketer’s toolbox, namely, tools and frameworks such as the McKinsey 7S model. Porter’s generic marketing strategies. Strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats analysis. Political, economic, social and cultural, technological, environment and legal – external macro analysis. The case is intended for use in MBA and Executive education courses in strategy, marketing and leadership. The case offers relevant experiences and instructive lessons in formulating and implementing business strategies. The case highlights the importance of contextual leadership intelligence and competence in enabling entrepreneurial business activities. The case gives students the opportunity to apply a strategic framework to marketing communications, competitive analysis and branding with a new brand and a new name in a first world economy. The case helps students understand that: successful companies are a success because of their people and leadership, proactive thinking and constantly looking for new opportunities will make you a leader in the market, up-to-date competitor and market analysis are paramount in making the winning decision, staying true to one’s business philosophy and company values build a reputable organization, the importance of creating partnerships and healthy relationships with the distribution channel, the concept of competitive advantage, the concept of differentiation, focus and cost leadership and the concept of value and understanding customer needs. Case overview/synopsis The Egan’s Whiskey case offers students a unique opportunity to discover the important, yet grass-root, strategic decisions made by a high-quality alcohol product in a very competitive, well-known brand dominated the market, the USA. The case focuses specifically on issues related to strategic choices and implementation, brand, reputation, leadership, strategic marketing decision-making, customer/retail relationships, customer value and the importance of good marketing intelligence. There are some good examples of out-of-the-box thinking. History reveals that companies with the strongest brands, most proactive leadership, innovative marketing ideas, superb marketing intelligence and deepest relationships with their consumers are the pillars of success. The very assets that define these leading companies provide benchmarks for upcoming organizations. Being complacent and having poor leadership and vision in an ever-demanding customer-driven and competitive environment is a recipe for failure. Organizations and their leadership teams need to start thinking systematically, proactively and strategically about their place in competitive markets and take quick actions to mitigate risks and miss opportunities before they become reality. This case reveals the importance of understanding your strategic landscape, your market, your competitors, your customers, quick thinking and actions and having a rolling strategic plan, which is adaptable. Complexity academic level The case is intended for use in MBA and Executive education courses in strategy, marketing and leadership. Supplementary materials Teaching Notes are available for educators only. Subject code CSS 11: Strategy.

Data is growing faster than ever before and is changing our daily life. However it is rather challenging to manage the big data [F. H. Cate, The big debate, Science 346 (2014) 810, J. Manyika, M. Chui, B. Brown, J. Bughin, R. Dobbs, C. Roxburgh and A. H. Byers, Big Data: The Next Frontier for Innovation, Competition, and Productivity (Mckinsey global Institute, 2011), S. Lohr, The Age of Big Data (New York Times, 2012), p. 11, L. Einav and J. Levin, Economics in the age of big data, Science 345 (2014) 715, M. J. Khoury and J. P. A. Ioannidis, Big data meets public health, Science 346 (2014) 1054–1055, V. Marx, Biology: The big challenges of big data, Nature 498(7453) (2013) 255–260.]. In this paper, we propose the big data thinking and modeling techniques from the perspective of the I Ching, which is a very famous imaginal thinking theory in China with 3,000 years history. The I Ching has been proven to be very useful and practical in many domains, e.g., 36 stratagems. Firstly, inspired from the three components of the I Ching, image, number and principle, we propose a new three-cycle big data thinking way, from data to phenomenon, from phenomenon to correlation, and from correlation to knowledge, which is a generalization of the fourth paradigm (from causality to correlation) proposed by Jim Gray. Secondly, inspired from the three entities of the I Ching, heaven, earth and human, we propose a new big data modeling method. We use the tree entities to represent the big data. We map the 4[Formula: see text]V of big data (volume, variety, velocity, veracity) to four opposition and uniform relations in the I Ching, and generate the eight diagrams. By capturing the relationships between eight diagrams, we generate the 64 hexagrams, and use 64 hexagrams to model big data. We also provide the principle rules to understand the knowledge generated by the model. Thirdly, we discuss how to utilize our model to describe big-data management tools, including, MapReduce, Spark, Storm. We also provide a new model for handling distributed data streams. We do think that we provide a new practical way of thinking and modeling for big data. We also believe that this will open up many new research directions on big data.

3615 Background: Location and somatic gene signature of CRCs may impact prognosis and therapy response. The aim was to characterize colon Microbiota in CRC patients regarding location, gene markers and outcome. Methods: Patients (N = 173) signed consent for whole metagenome (shot gun sequencing on Illumina HiSeq2500) analysis of stool DNA: 72 CRC (53 sporadic-S, 19 Lynch-L), 87 asymptomatic subjects (normal colonoscopy), 14 first degree healthy relatives from Lynch families. "MOCAT" pipeline was used, library sorted (Phred quality score ¡20 Alientrimmer v0.4.0) after exclusion of < 35 nt, human genes or phage sequences. Quality sequences were aligned (REFMG.V13) and most abundant genes constructed (MBMA program v0.1). The Shaman program (shaman.c3bi.pasteur.fr) was used. The number of bacteria was estimated (REFMG program). The linear model (GLM) was implemented in the DESeq2 R kit. Dfferences between Control (N = 87) and CRCs (N = 69), between L (N = 19) and S CRCs(N = 50), and between LCRC (N = 19) and Healthy Lynch relatives were obtained after interaction of age, BMI and gender was considered (GLM model). The P < 0.1 value was retained after correction (Benjamini and Hochberg). The specific taxonomic composition of the control and CRC groups was subjected to random analysis ( Caret's R package) with two optimization parameters (precision and kappa) in the model. Results: There was no difference for gender, age (p = 0.08) and BMI (p = 0.187) in the L and S CRCs. Significant differences were observed between Normal and CRCs, C-CRC and L-CRC, L-CRC and first degree relatives based on the common component (similarity of sequences): 13 species differentiated Normal and CCRs, two were more prevalent in L-CRCs. The panels of bacteria linked with location, MSI, Ras mutations, methylation phenotypes and survival were identified. No significant link was observed with TNM Staging: I (N = 17, 2L and 15S), II (N = 12, 5L and 7S), III (N = 20, 10L, 10S), IV (N = 22.1L, 21S). DFS might be dysbiosis dependent. Conclusions: CRC dysbiosis is location-dependent. Several bacteria are associated with Ras mutation, MSI, and methylation status. They may directly or through therapies impact the prognosis. Microbiota signature should be taken in consideration in trials.

The purpose of this study was to analyze the capacity building of food-based SMEs through the incubator business model. The research method used is a qualitative method. Data collection was carried out through interviews, discussions and literature reviews. Furthermore, the collected data will be analyzed with the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and challenges of developing an incubator business model for food-based SMEs in Gorontalo District. From this research it can be found that Gorontalo District has enormous food potential which should be accompanied by development of the downstream sector through food-based SMEs. The incubator business model with the Out Wall concept is an effective model that can be used to increase the capacity of food-based SMEs in Gorontalo District. Through this model, SMEs will receive incubation services at their respective locations which include 7S (space, shared office facilities, services, support, skills decelopment, seed capital and synergy). This incubation model is designed so that food-based SMEs will be able to map their potential and develop businesses which in turn will have a positive impact on regional economic development. Tujuan penelitian ini adalah untuk mengkaji mengenai peningkatan kapasitas UKM berbasis makanan melalui pengembangan model inkubator bisnis. Metode penelitian yang digunakan adalah metode kualitatif. Pengumpulan data dilakukan melalui wawancara, diskusi dan kajian pustaka. Selanjutnya, data yang terkumpul akan dianalisis dengan menelusuri keunggulan, kelemahan, peluang dan tantangan pengembangan model inkubator bisnis untuk UKM berbasis makanan di Kabupaten Gorontalo. Dari penelitian ini dapat diperoleh bahwa Kabupaten Gorontalo memiliki potensi pangan yang sangat besar yang sepatutnya diiringi dengan pengembangan sektor hilir melalui UKM berbasis makanan. Model inkubator bisnis dengan konsep Out Wall merupakan salah satu model efektif yang dapat digunakan untuk meningkatkan kapasitas UKM berbasis bahan pangan di Kabupaten Gorontalo. Melalui model ini, UKM akan memperoleh layanan inkubasi di lokasinya masing-masing yang mencakup 7 S (space, shared office facilities, service, support, skill decelopment, seed capital dan sinergy). Model inkubasi ini dirancang agar UKM berbasis makanan akan mampu memetakan potensi dan mengembangkan bisnis yang selanjutnya akan berdampak positif bagi pengembangan ekonomi daerah.

Chord-priming effects were investigated in a related-prime condition, an unrelated-prime condition, and a control condition in which a noise was presented instead of a prime chord. Ten participants listened to a sequence consisting of a prime (a chord or a noise) and a target chord and then decided whether the target chord was in tune or out of tune. The interonset intervals between the prime and target chords were varied at either 1, 3, or 7 s, whereas the duration of the chords or noises was fixed at 500 ms. Responses were significantly slower with lower accuracy in the unrelated-prime condition than in the control condition, whereas responses were not significantly faster in the related-prime condition than in the control condition. The delay in the unrelated-prime condition was found at interonset intervals of 1 and 3 s, but the delay almost disappeared at the longest interonset interval of 7 s. These results cannot be fully explained by a spreading activation model that assumes a facilitation effect, but rather seem to suggest that disruptive effects occur with regard to the sensitivity to chordal tuning. /// 和音プライミング効果を，関連プライム条件，非関連プライム条件，統制条 件において検討した. 統制条件においては，プライム和音のかわりにノイズ が呈示された. 10名の被験者は，プライム (和音またはノイズ) とターゲッ ト和音を聞き，ターゲット和音のチューニングが正しいか誤っているかを判 断した. プライムとターゲット和音の立ち上がり聞の時間間隔は, 1，3， 7sのいずれかであり，和音とノイズの長さはすべて500msであった. 非関連 プライム条件における反応は, 統制条件における反応よりも有意に遅く，正 答率も低かった. 一方，関連プライム条件における反応は，統制条件におけ る反応よめも有意差がみられるほど速くはなかった. 非関連プライム条件に おける反応の遅れは，時間間隔が1, 3sのときにあらわれたが. 7sのとき にはほとんど消失した. これらの結果は，和音のチューニング感度に妨害効 果が生じていることを示唆しており，促進効果を仮定する活性化拡散モデル では完全には説明できない.

Over the past half-decade, a lot of change has been experienced in the banking sector. This ranges from regulatory reforms, technological shifts especially on mobile and internet banking, intensified financial innovations, internalization and heightened competition from other players. Although some banks may have recorded good performance in the period under assessment, most of the commercial banks have recorded dwindling performance. This study was interested in determining the effect of change management practices on performance of commercial banks in Nyeri County, Kenya. Specifically, the study aimed to establish the effect of stakeholder involvement on performance of commercial banks; to establish the effect leadership on performance of commercial banks; to assess the effect of organisational learning on performance of commercial banks, and to determine the effect of communication on performance of commercial banks in Nyeri County, Kenya. The study was guided by McKinsey 7-S Change Model, Kotter's Eight Step Model, Resource Dependence Theory, and Kurt Lewin’s Model. A descriptive survey research design was utilised. The target population comprised of 15 banks in Nyeri County, Kenya. The study used a census approach. The study used purposive sampling to select branch managers, accountants, credit managers, and marketing managers of all the commercial banks as the choice class of respondents. The study considered non-financial performance of the banks for five (5) financial years 2012-2017. Primary data was collected through questionnaires while secondary data was extracted from the financial and management reports and corporate handbooks. Cronbach’s Alpha Reliability test was used to test the instruments for reliability while expert opinion assessed the validity status of the instrument. The study used descriptive and inferential analysis. The study targeted all the commercial banks in Nyeri County, Kenya. The study targeted sixty respondents who were the top management of the commercial banks. Questionnaires were used as the main tool of data collection in the study. The researcher used the drop and pick method to administer the questionnaires. The data was coded and entered into Statistical Package for Social Science (SPSS) where both descriptive analysis and inferential analysis of multiple regression analysis was done. The study found that stakeholder involvement had a positive and significant effect on performance of commercial banks in Nyeri County, Kenya. Leadership had the largest positive effect on performance while organization learning had the least but positive effect on the performance of commercial banks in Nyeri County, Kenya. The study concluded that communication had significant and positive effect on performance of banks in Nyeri County, Kenya. As established from the multiple regression analysis the results affirmed that stakeholder involvement, leadership, organization leaning and communication had significant effect on performance of commercial banks in Nyeri County, Kenya. The study recommends improvement of organization learning which was found to be deficient through development of mentorship programs and up scaling the level of employee training and development.

Context: Laboratory-based movement assessments are commonly performed without cognitive stimuli (ie, single-task) despite the simultaneous cognitive processing and movement (ie, dual task) demands required during sport. Cognitive loading may critically alter human movement and be an important consideration for truly assessing functional movement and understanding injury risk in the laboratory, but limited investigations exist. Objective: To comprehensively examine and compare kinematics and kinetics between single- and dual-task functional movement among healthy participants while controlling for sex. Design: Cross-sectional study. Setting: Laboratory. Patients (or Other Participants): Forty-one healthy, physically active participants (49% female; 22.5 ± 2.1 y; 172.5 ± 11.9 cm; 71.0 ± 13.7 kg) enrolled in and completed the study. Intervention(s): All participants completed the functional movement protocol under single- and dual-task (subtracting by 6s or 7s) conditions in a randomized order. Participants jumped forward from a 30-cm tall box and performed (1) maximum vertical jump landings and (2) dominant and (3) nondominant leg, single-leg 45° cuts after landing. Main Outcome Measures: The authors used mixed-model analysis of variances (α = .05) to compare peak hip, knee, and ankle joint angles (degrees) and moments (N·m/BW) in the sagittal and frontal planes, and peak vertical ground reaction force (N/BW) and vertical impulse (Ns/BW) between cognitive conditions and sex. Results: Dual-task resulted in greater peak vertical ground reaction force compared with single-task during jump landing (mean difference = 0.06 N/BW; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.01 to 0.12; P = .025) but less force during dominant leg cutting (mean difference = −0.08 N/BW; 95% CI, −0.14 to −0.02; P = .015). Less hip-flexion torque occurred during dual task than single task (mean difference = −0.09 N/BW; 95% CI, −0.17 to −0.02). No other outcomes were different between single and dual task (P ≥ .053). Conclusions: Slight, but potentially important, kinematic and kinetic differences were observed between single- and dual-task that may have implications for functional movement assessments and injury risk research. More research examining how various cognitive and movement tasks interact to alter functional movement among pathological populations is warranted before clinical implementation.

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to understand e-loyalty in the travel industry. Specifically, this paper aims to examine the curvilinear relationship between predictors and e-loyalty. Design/methodology/approach An empirical study was conducted using an online survey with one of the largest travel companies in China. Structural equation modeling was used to test the models, and pair-wise nested F-tests were used to compare the models. Findings Results show that the curvilinear model has greater explanatory power of loyalty than traditional linear models. The results of pair-wise nested F-tests show that the loyalty model exhibits statistically significant R2 improvement compared to the linear model. However, the R2 improvement in the integrated model is not statistically different from that in the linear model. Confirmation and satisfaction are found to be salient factors influencing loyalty. Research limitations/implications This study makes important contributions to the online community literature by understanding the drivers of loyalty in the travel industry. However, there are limitations. First, this study addressed member loyalty of an online travel community with data collected from one company. Thus, generalizability is limited. Online communities and firms may have different characteristics, resulting in different factors influencing consumer loyalty. The authors plan in the future to collect data from other online travel companies and examine their model with different samples so as to check the generalizability of the current findings. Second, the authors collected a snapshot view on loyalty. Both researchers and managers note that small changes in loyalty and retention can yield disproportionately large changes in profitability (Reichheld et al., 2000). Consumer loyalty may change over time, so to maintain and increase profits, it is important to monitor such change. In the future, the authors plan to conduct a longitudinal study of community members to evaluate their loyalty over time. Practical implications As China seeks to gain additional market share in the global tourism market, travel companies should make use of websites as a marketing tool to attract and retain customers. These actions enable a travel company to enhance its competitiveness. More and more people use the internet for tour deals, bookings and finding tour-related information. Effective use of websites can affect the competitiveness of ecommerce companies. E-vendors could assess and adopt the dimensions recommended in this paper to help better understand areas for improvement. It is common today for consumers to buy travel products online instead of going through a travel agent. Considering the importance of reciprocity in formulating consumer satisfaction and loyalty in the virtual environment, companies should monitor reciprocal behavior on the virtual community. With advancement in technologies, consumer behaviors have changed and more consumers prefer social interactions in the virtual world. Companies can analyze posts in the virtual environment to assess reciprocity and may design a mechanism to foster reciprocal behaviors. By leveraging reciprocity, firms can better connect satisfaction with loyalty. More than 70 per cent of executives surveyed by McKinsey (2012) said that they regularly generate value through their Web communities. In addition, to pay attention to consumer to consumer reciprocity in the virtual world, companies should listen to what customers say in their online community, as this attention is an indication of reciprocity between consumers and companies. The ideas and opinions expressed in the online community tell the company customers’ perception of the value of its products and customers’ needs. Such attention to the voices in the online community will help companies to better tailor products/services to meet customers’ needs. Furthermore, the voices expressed in the virtual community are also effective in developing and maintaining new internet marketing opportunities such as email marketing, giveaways, search engine optimization, pay per click and shopping comparison marketing. Companies interested in retaining and attracting customers should leverage their established virtual communities and pay close attention to online posts and evaluate members’ satisfaction. Such effort will provide tangible benefits. As shown in Ye et al.’s study, traveler reviews produce a significant impact on online sales (Ye et al., 2011), with a 10 per cent increase in traveler review ratings, boosting online bookings by more than 5 per cent. This finding suggests that businesses should link online user-generated reviews to business performance in tourism. Finding incentives for users to share might be one way to improve interactivity and further create stickiness on the part of the website. Originality/value This paper is one of the first studies to address the need to move beyond linear models of e-loyalty and to additionally examine potential curvilinear and interactive effects. This study also identifies key variables such as reciprocity and satisfaction as determinants of e-loyalty in the Chinese online travel and tourism industry.

Various models are adopted in the change process for a hotel group: Lewin’s Force Field model, Handy’s Shamrock structure, Hiatt change model, Classic Change Curve, Kotter’s model, Gap Analysis model and McKinsey Seven “S” model. The change model aims to strengthen the hotel's profitability. Traditional orthodoxies are challenged, new paradigms of change and operational audits are implemented.

Purpose The car no longer serves simply as a means of transport but is at the core of a new concept of mobility. Car manufacturers are seizing opportunities to change the traditional business model of the auto business. Innovation in this business model has become vital to survival in today’s dynamic market conditions. This paper aims to find out what factors motivate and drive business model change and what the resulting business model innovation is. Design/methodology/approach This qualitative study is based on a single case, namely, BMW as an illustrative example of an advanced, highly innovative customer-centric service business model (BM). The study adopts a document analysis method to reveal the firm’s BMI process. Findings First, the study presents a conceptual framework for business model change with the factors –motivators and drivers – that impact on the process of change. BMW’s BMI and its impacting factors are discussed based on this model. The McKinsey 7 s Model framework, the elements of which are strategy, structure, systems, shared values, style, staff and skills is used as an analytical tool to discuss new business model implementation. The study highlights the BM configuration of a traditional car manufacturer, the car as a product and the new car as a service concept. Originality/value This study reveals the BMI of BMW’s digital services and its key motivators and drivers. BMW mostly innovates in three key dimensions of the Business model. These are value creation, value delivery and value capture. Most of the elements in these dimensions are innovated.

ABSTRACT Bacteriophage-borne lytic enzymes, also named lysins or enzybiotics, are efficient agents for the killing of bacterial pathogens. The colonization of the respiratory tract by Streptococcus pneumoniae is a prerequisite for the establishment of the infection process. Hence, we have evaluated the antibacterial activities of three different lysins against pneumococcal colonization using human nasopharyngeal and lung epithelial cells as well as a mouse model of nasopharyngeal colonization. The lysins tested were the wild-type Cpl-1, the engineered Cpl-7S, and the chimera Cpl-711. Moreover, we included amoxicillin as a comparator antibiotic. Human epithelial cells were infected with three different multidrug-resistant clinical isolates of S. pneumoniae followed by a single dose of the corresponding lysin. The antimicrobial activities of these lysins were also evaluated using a mouse nasopharyngeal carriage model. The exposure of the infected epithelial cells to Cpl-7S did not result in the killing of any of the pneumococcal strains investigated. However, the treatment with Cpl-1 or Cpl-711 increased the killing of S. pneumoniae organisms adhered to both types of human epithelial cells, with Cpl-711 being more effective than Cpl-1, at subinhibitory concentrations. In addition, a treatment with amoxicillin had no effect on reducing the carrier state, whereas mice treated by the intranasal route with Cpl-711 showed significantly reduced nasopharyngeal colonization, with no detection of bacterial load in 20 to 40% of the mice. This study indicates that Cpl-1 and Cpl-711 lysins might be promising antimicrobial candidates for therapy against pneumococcal colonization.

Background: Implementing the post-activation potentiation phenomenon before a competition in the warm-up section may be better than performing the usual warm-up. Objectives: Therefore, the purpose of this study was to determine the effects of type and intensity of muscle contraction with different recovery periods on anaerobic power and peak torque in young trained girls. Methods: Twelve female subjects (age: 22 ± 2.95 years; height: 165.42 ± 5.35 cm; weight: 57.33 ± 9.15 kg) who had at least two years of continuous training experience were randomly selected. The subjects performed the contraction protocols (isometric (3×70/7s), concentric (3 × 90/4), and eccentric (3 × 110/5)) or control conditions in eight sessions with at least 48 hours intervals between the sessions. In this study, the countermovement jump test and Biodex isokinetic device (60°.S-1) model (ISO-1) were used for measuring anaerobic power and maximum peak torque, respectively. Two-way repeated-measures ANOVA and one-way independent ANOVA were used for analyzing the data (P < 0.05). Results: The between-group comparisons showed that the highest anaerobic power and peak torque values in immediate and three-minute recovery periods were seen in the concentric protocol, and the highest values in seven-minute recovery periods were seen in the eccentric protocol (P < 0.05). These variables were also significant in concentric and eccentric contractions in within-group comparisons (P < 0.05). Conclusions: Eccentric contraction, similar to other contractions, can produce PAP. It seems that eccentric contractions due to a higher intensity of contractions can maintain more consistency of PAP than do other contractions.

SuicideGirls.com In September 2001 two entrepreneurs Missy (coal-black Betty Page bangs and numerous tattoos) and Sean launched SuicideGirls.com. With their backgrounds in graphic design, programming and photography, they came up with the idea of launching an alternative adult site that started out as “a kind of an art project” — it grew out of an interest in Bunny Yeager’s pinup photos, where the control and attitude of the sexy women were emphasized, only now it was about pierced and tattooed females. Missy describes the portrayal of women on the site in the following words: The site is about the girls being in control and being in charge of how they’re portrayed. It’s also proof that sexuality and beauty aren’t mutually exclusive of intelligence, and we wanted to showcase all of the girls, but leave people guessing a little bit. There’s no need to go full-blown porno. SuicideGirls.com is an adult community that offers a mix of eroticism, creativity, personality and intelligence. SuicideGirls is about so-called empowered eroticism; it provides a site where girls outside of mainstream culture can express their individual style through soft erotic images, and web logs. Every week the site introduces new SuicideGirls, every day new pictures are added; a full national calendar of events is frequently updated and is searchable by location, date or keyword — members can be looked up by name, age, location or keywords; the site also features a magazine section with original fiction, articles and interviews with celebrities. What makes this site especially interesting is that each SuicideGirl has her own page featuring a pertinent profile with personal information such as age, stats, body mods, favorite books, music, sex positions, and current crushes. She can also put up pictures and video materials — including a web cam — of herself, express her thoughts and share her daily experiences in a blog, comment on other blogs and message boards, chat in designated chat rooms, and organize online and offline events. Kate78, Texan-born, is a regular blogger. She writes about her studies in Kansas City, a city she has come to hate after she learned that her car insurance could only be renewed in Texas. She describes herself as a “punk rock chick” — illustrated by pictures that show her with long spiky hair; she has got her nose pierced and her many tattoos — and a “suicidegirl”. There are plenty of blogs — e.g. LiveJournal, Blogspot, Punklog — where girls write about wanting to become a SuicideGirl. The girls are mainly motivated by a wish to share their bodily art paralleled by a sense of being in control over their image and admirers (they keep control over the photo sets and shoots). SuicideGirls.com is foremost an online community and therefore girls from all over the world can potentially become a SuicideGirl, as long as they have access to the Internet in order to publish to their personal page. These girls are in charge of their own online presentation, supported by a lively community where both women and men interact by reading and posting to the girls and each other’s blogs. In addition, members of the site can also post local events to the SuicideGirl calendar or the message boards, comment on pictures, and even hook up with one another. With the ability for members to create their own page, with their own profile picture and personal information, members can search for one another based on location, age, sex and personal preferences. Indeed, not only the SuicideGirls themselves have online pages to fill: subscribers to SuicideGirls.com have similar ‘privileges’, with the exception that they have to pay a small fee of $4 per month — though they can never refer to themselves as SuicideGirl: anyone entering the site has to log in as either ‘SuicideGirl’ or ‘Member’. Thus, SuicideGirls.com mixes a DIY attitude with alternative culture — especially Gothic, Punk and Emo — resulting in an appealing grassroots approach to sexuality that is of interest to both women and men. At the same time, the public identity of a SuicideGirl is constructed within a particular textual context dependent on commercial drivers. Through attracting fans on the basis of her “autonomous” self-representation — Goth fans, for instance — she brings in customers, raising questions about the tensions between “grassroots” self-representation and corporate branding. Collaborative Eroticism as Business Model We should document the interactions that occur among media consumers, between media consumers and media texts and between media consumers and media producers. The new participatory culture is taking shape at the intersection between three trends: 1) new tools and technologies enable consumers to archive, annotate, appropriate and re-circulate media content; 2) a range of subcultures promote do-it-yourself (DIY) media production, a discourse that shapes how consumers have deployed those technologies; and 3) economic trends favoring the horizontally integrated media conglomerates encourage the flow of images, ideas and narratives across multiple media channels and demand more active modes of spectatorship” (Jenkins 157). Traditionally the organization of economic production is based on the idea that individuals order their productive activities either on managerial hierarchies, or on production that is based on market prices (Benkler). Peer production represents a new mode of organizing that is not based on relations of dependence (managerial hierarchies) nor relations of independence (markets) rather peer production involves relations of interdependence. Peer production is a heterarchy characterized by relations of minimal hierarchy and by organizational heterogeneity (Stark). While traditionally structured organizations attempt to maximize internal order and control by enforcing a hierarchical system and establishing standards and clear lines of authority (Powell), heterarchies exist through permitting and even fostering a diversity of organizational logics and minimizing conformity (Chan). With the introduction of Mosaic and the Pentium chip in the mid-1990s the notion of the organization of production profoundly changed. The Internet could be used for more than looking up information or sending email. Instead, it offers a structure where participants are not organized by managerial hierarchies nor governed by price signals rather where people formed networks to collaborate in open source software projects or effectively constructing ‘user-created search engines’ for the exchange of e.g., music files, games (KaZaA, Gnutella), news and chat. While the present moment is marked by a legal standoff between robust communities of users (cultural co-producers) and the established media industry (particularly the music and film industry), some elements of the corporate media world have taken a different approach, embracing the new technological use rather than attempting to outlaw it. These corporations have found their way to online participatory networks and are attempting to use them for their own good. For instance, companies like Coca-Cola, BMW, and Apple offer online spaces – often in the form of thinly veiled advertisements (‘advertainment’) – where people can play games, watch movies, share files and the like in order to create or promote a company’s product, service or brand. They crucially rely upon blurring the boundaries between production, distribution and consumption, encouraging the target audience to work for them. Whether by playing games with embedded advertising, or inadvertently sending marketing information back to advertisers, or simply by passing advertising texts within one’s circle of friends, the target audience and the larger dynamic of participatory networks are ‘used’ by corporations to achieve their ends. SuicideGirls.com is a good example example of this emerging mode of (commons-based) peer production in a digitally networked environment – i.e. groups of individuals who participate in online shared spaces driven by diverse motivations, and serving corporate as well as community needs. The SuicideGirls’ blogs are the shared currency that binds SuicideGirls.com and its erotic consumers together as a “community”: SuicideGirls.com taps into online communities by enabling collaborative eroticism. Moving beyond adult entertainment, this trend of using blogs for commercial purposes raises interesting questions regarding, on the one hand, the cultural status of online blogging from a commercial perspective, e.g., how should we consider the cultural status of artifacts such as blogs that have commerce at the core of their identity: Can we speak of a displacement of aesthetic experience by the branding experience, or might these two experiences be seen as part of a continuum?; and, on the other hand, regarding participatory culture in a commercially mediated environment: e.g., What is the status of b2c, c2c, and p2p in a commercially structured network; What are the implications for user appropriation? The answers to these questions among others studied by various academic disciplines may contribute to the building of a framework for examining the consequences of this strategic shift towards relating to, reaching out to and linking online customers in a commercial web (b)log. 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London: Pandora Press, 1990. MLA Style Van der Graf, Shenja. "Blogging Business: SuicideGirls.com." M/C Journal 7.4 (2004). 10 October 2004 <http://www.media-culture.org.au/0410/07_suicide.php>. APA Style Van der Graf, S. (2004 Oct 11). Blogging Business: SuicideGirls.com, M/C Journal, 7(4). Retrieved Oct 10 2004 from <http://www.media-culture.org.au/0410/07_suicide.php>