Increasing delegation to clinical departments has been a feature of health‐care organizations in recent years. However, as managers of these departments take greater responsibility for results and resources, it follows that they need relevant and objective information to carry out their work...

When UK firm Shields Shiprepairers signed a formal social‐partnership agreement with trade‐union officials in 2000, the move represented a symbolic break from conflicts of the past and a rebranding of employee relations which, it was hoped, would act as a selling point in a competitive...

Hotel guests are used to awarding marks out of ten for the service they receive but, at the USA’s first restaurant and hotel to receive double‐five‐star (Mobil) and double‐five‐diamond (AAA) ratings, the staff award marks out of ten on their guests. Every night, waiters at The Inn at...

The Ritz‐Carlton hotel chain is famous for its excellent service and for providing customers with the experience of a lifetime. In his Harvard Business Review article, Paul Hemp describes techniques used by the company to train employees with its special service philosophy. New employees are...

A new form of organizational structure is helping the giant Philips electronics company to gain more improvements and innovations from workers on the shopfloor at one of its components plants. Philips Components has adopted the mini‐company concept at its Roermond factory in The Netherlands....

The Inland Revenue (IR), the UK’s tax assessment and collection department, does not exhibit many of the characteristics usually associated with teamworking – such as a change in the range of work, new skills among employees or staff willing to adopt the responsibilities of others. Yet...

Mentoring can help an organization to win in today’s escalating “war for talent” – but will achieve this most effectively if the mentoring program is aligned with the organization’s strategic positioning and long‐term objectives. Mentoring can support career‐development...