Purpose – Demonstrates the feasibility of, and introduces a practical approach to enhancing, reinsurance efficiency using index-based instruments. Design/methodology/approach – First reviews the general mathematical framework of reinsurance optimization. Next, illustrates how index-based...

Purpose – Hong Kong was particularly affected by the 2003 outbreak of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS). During the epidemic, it seemed as if the Hong Kong government and health system were barely coping, leading to calls of mismanagement and governance incapacity. In the wake of the...

Purpose – Examines the ways in which the concepts of “productivity” and “performance” are dealt with in the literature, demonstrating that terms used within these fields are often vaguely defined and poorly understood. Design/methodology/approach – Reviews related performance...

Purpose – To identify the risk of poor performance measurement including the fact that executives can easily develop bottom‐line myopia where performance is judged solely on monthly or quarterly numbers, to the exclusion of all other indicators of performance. The paper also identifies why...

Purpose – This paper describes the use and application of a structured approach to the basic implementation of quality management tools and techniques such as the QC7 tools. Design/methodology/approach – A methodology based around the application of a structured approach to the use of basic...

Purpose – The paper describes the methods of manufacturing process optimization, using Taguchi experimental design methods with historical process data, collected during normal production. Design/methodology/approach – The objectives are achieved with two separate techniques: the...

Oxford University Library Services (OULS) currently consists of over 30 federated libraries and services at Oxford University. Owing to the size of OULS, and the reality of future libraries joining the organisation, the administration chose to develop an activity‐based costing model. This...

Enterprise systems packages have long been associated with process change. However, it was assumed that most organizations would simultaneously design and implement process change while implementing the systems. A survey of 163 organizations and detailed interviews with 28 more suggests that...

The key to successful project management is knowing how well the process is performing to prevent problems rather than fix them after they occur. Success measurement in product development has emphasized end‐result measures of overall project performance or economic value. The product...

Despite being generally considered obsolete and part of a long gone age, steam power could be about to make a comeback, at least in the marine propulsion and process industries. The reason for this revival is the revolutionary PDX technology, which has been developed by the UK research and...