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The return that organisations derive from investments in information systems and technology continues to disappoint. While there is a very significant body of literature on the factors that should facilitate a successful outcome from systems development, there is growing concern that these prescriptions are not having their desired effect. In this paper, we argue that the success of a systems development project should be measured in terms of its ability to deliver meaningful benefits, rather than the timely delivery of a technical artefact, and therefore organisations should adopt an explicit and proactive benefits realisation approach when investing in IT. Consequently, we sought to explore those actionable factors that might facilitate the effective realisation of benefits from systems development initiatives. Three organisations were identified that claimed to adopt a proactive approach to benefits realisation, and detailed studies of their systems development practices were conducted. Our analysis found that whilst one organisation had been successful in its adoption of a benefits realisation perspective, the other two had not, and this allowed us to identify those factors that helped to explain this difference in outcomes. In short, this paper makes an important contribution by identifying how a subset of traditional systems success factors might be enhanced, to give them a more explicit benefits realisation orientation. Moreover, it presents a coherent set of principles that can be used for deriving other factors and practices.

Purpose This paper responds to a recent trend towards reifying “knowledge hoarding” for purposes of quantitative/deductive research, via a study of information technology (IT) service professionals. A “rhetorical theory” lens is applied to reconsider “knowledge hoarding” as a value-laden rhetoric that directs managers towards addressing assumed worker dysfunctionality. Design/methodology/approach A qualitative study of practicing IT service professionals (assumed within IT service management “best practice” to be inclined to hoard knowledge) was conducted over a 34-day period. Twenty workers were closely observed processing IT service incidents, and 26 workers were interviewed about knowledge-sharing practices. Findings The study found that IT service practice is characterized more by pro-social collegiality in sharing knowledge/know-how than by self-interested strategic knowledge concealment. Research limitations/implications The study concerns a single occupational context. The study indicates that deductive research that reifies “knowledge hoarding” as a naturally occurring phenomenon is flawed, with clear implications for future research. Practical implications The study suggests that management concern for productivity might be redirected away from addressing assumed knowledge-hoarding behaviour and towards encouraging knowledge sharing via social interaction in the workplace. Originality/value Previous studies have not directly examined the concept of knowledge hoarding using qualitative methods, nor have they considered it as a rhetorical device.

The return that organizations derive from investments in information systems and technology continues to disappoint. While there are many theoretical prescriptions as to how the planned benefits from an information technology (IT) project might best be realized, there is very little empirical evidence, as to whether such advice is being heeded in practice. Drawing on the resource-based view of the firm, a conceptual model of a benefits realization capability is presented and developed. In this model, the benefits realization capability is operationalized through four distinct competences, each of which is underpinned by a variety of socially defined practices. The model was populated by using a thorough review of the literature to identify and categorize those specific practices that have the potential to contribute to the effective achievement of benefits from IT investment projects. These practices are then studied in an empirical examination of 25 IT projects. The analysis finds no evidence of benefits realization practices being adopted in any consistent, comprehensive or coherent manner. Effective benefits realization requires an ongoing commitment to, and focus upon, the benefits, rather than the technology, throughout a system's development, implementation and operation.

Purpose - The primary aim of this paper is to critically review the literature that explicitly addresses the adoption, application and impact of internet technologies, by retailers, for the promotion and sale of merchanidise. In particular, this paper seeks to present a holistic and critical review of the early predictions, with regard to the uptake and impact of internet retailing; critically reappraise these claims in light of current trends in internet retailing; and explore where e-tailing may be heading in the coming years.Design methodology approach - The paper adopts an extensive and critical review of the literature, with regard to the adoption, uptake and impact of internet retailing, as published in the academic literature over the past 20 years.Findings - In hindsight, it can be seen that many of the original predictions, made at the dawn of the internet era, have not become a reality: retailers are not cannibalising their own custom, virtual merchants are not dominating the market-place, and the high street has not, as yet, been put out of business. By contrast, other predications have come to pass: electronic intermediaries are playing an increasingly important role, \"one-to-one\" marketing has become a reality, prices are more competitive, and perhaps most importantly the consumer has become more powerful.Research limitations implications - Providing a brief review of the past, present and future of online retailing is an extremely ambitious undertaking, especially given the vast amount of literature that has been published in this area. In attempting to provide an overall impression of the broad themes, and most important findings, to emerge from this important body of literature, it is inevitable that many important pieces of work will have been either missed or underplayed. Consequently, there is a need for follow-up studies that aim to provide deeper and richer reviews of more narrowly defined elements of this vast landscape.Originality value - This study presents one of the first and most thorough reappraisals of the initial literature with regard to the likely development, implications, and impact of internet retailing. Moreover, the paper seeks to break new ground by attempting to use the current literature to help predict future directions and trends for online shopping.

Trinucleotide repeat (TNR) diseases are neurological disorders caused by expanded genomic TNRs that become unstable in a length-dependent manner. The CAG•CTG sequence is found in approximately one-third of pathogenic TNR loci, including the HTT gene that causes Huntington’s disease. Friedreich’s ataxia, the most prevalent hereditary ataxia, results from GAA repeat expansion at the FXN gene. Here we used cytosine and adenine base editing to reduce the repetitiveness of TNRs in patient cells and in mice. Base editors introduced G•C>A•T and A•T>G•C interruptions at CAG and GAA repeats, mimicking stable, nonpathogenic alleles that naturally occur in people. AAV9 delivery of optimized base editors in Htt.Q111 Huntington’s disease and YG8s Friedreich’s ataxia mice resulted in efficient editing in transduced tissues, and significantly reduced repeat expansion in the central nervous system. These findings demonstrate that introducing interruptions in pathogenic TNRs can mitigate a key neurological feature of TNR diseases in vivo. Base editing of the pathogenic trinucleotide repeat expansions underlying Huntington’s disease and Friedreich’s ataxia introduces repeat interruptions that reduce somatic expansion in patient cells and mice.

The United States and other nations are facing large-scale risks at an accelerating rhythm. In 2005, three major hurricanes--Katrina, Rita, and Wilma--made landfall along the U.S. Gulf Coast within a six-week period. The damage caused by these storms led to insurance reimbursements and federal disaster relief of more than $180 billion--a record sum. Today we are more vulnerable to catastrophic losses because of the increasing concentration of population and activities in high-risk coastal regions of the country. The question is not whether but when, and how frequently, future catastrophes will strike and the extent of damages they will cause. Who should pay the costs associated with catastrophic losses suffered by homeowners in hazard-prone areas? In At War with the Weather, Howard Kunreuther and Erwann Michel-Kerjan with their colleagues deliver a groundbreaking analysis of how we currently mitigate, insure against, and finance recovery from natural disasters in the United States. They offer innovative, long-term solutions for reducing losses and providing financial support for disaster victims that define a coherent strategy to assure sustainable recovery from future large-scale disasters. The amount of data collected and analyzed and innovations proposed make this the most comprehensive book written on these critical issues in the past thirty years.

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to fill a gap in the literature, by investigating the relationship between users’ perceptions of the value of the information that they are handling, and their resultant level of compliance with their organisation’s information security policies. In so doing, the authors seek to develop a theory of value-driven information security compliance. Design/methodology/approach An interpretive, grounded theory research approach has been adopted to generate a qualitative data set, based upon the results of 55 interviews with key informants from governmental agencies based within Brunei Darussalam, complemented by the results of seven focus groups. The interviews and focus groups were conducted in two phases, so that the results of the first phase could be used to inform the second phase data collection exercise, and the thematic analysis of the research data was conducted using the NVivo 11-Plus software. Findings The findings suggest that, when assigning value to their information, users take into account the views of members of their immediate work-group and the espoused views of their organisation, as well as a variety of contextual factors, relating to culture, ethics and education. Perhaps more importantly, it has been demonstrated that the users’ perception of information value has a marked impact upon their willingness to comply with security policies and protocols. Research limitations/implications Although the authors have been able to develop a rich model of information value and security compliance, the qualitative nature of this research means that it has not been tested, in the numerical sense. However, this study still has important implications for both research and practice. Specifically, researchers should consider users’ perceptions of information value, when conducting future studies of information security compliance. Practical implications Managers and practitioners will be better able to get their colleagues to comply with information security protocols, if they can take active steps to convince them that the information that they are handling is a valuable organisational resource, which needs to be protected. Originality/value The central contribution is a novel model of information security compliance that centre stages the role of the users’ perceptions of information value, as this is a factor which has been largely ignored in contemporary accounts of compliance behaviour. This study is also original, in that it fills a methodological gap, by balancing the voices of both user representatives and senior organisational stakeholders, in a single study.

Medical and physician assistant (PA) students are often required to have Basic Life Support (BLS) education prior to engaging in patient care. Given the potential role of students in resuscitations, it is imperative to ensure that current BLS training prepares students to provide effective cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR). The objective of this study was to assess whether current BLS training produces student providers who can deliver BLS in an American Heart Association (AHA) guideline-adherent manner. Students at a US medical school were recruited by convenience sampling. BLS performance immediately following a standard AHA BLS training course was evaluated during a two-minute CPR cycle using manikins. We also collected information on demographics, previous BLS training attendance, perceived comfort in providing CPR, and prior experiences in healthcare and providing or observing CPR. Among 80 participants, we found that compression rate, depth, and inter-compression recoil were AHA guideline-adherent for 90.0%, 68.8%, and 79.3% of total compression time, respectively. Mean hands-off time was also within AHA guidelines. Mean number of unsuccessful ventilations per cycle was 2.2. Additionally, 44.3% of ventilations delivered were of adequate tidal volume, 12.2% were excessive, and 41.0% were inadequate. Past BLS course attendance, prior healthcare certification, and previous provision of real-life CPR were associated with improved performance. Following BLS training, medical and PA students met a majority of AHA compressions guidelines, but not ventilations guidelines, for over 70% of CPR cycles. Maintaining compression depth and providing appropriate ventilation volumes represent areas of improvement. Conducting regular practice and involving students in real-life CPR may improve performance.