As the largest private sector employer of indigenous workers, employers within the retail industry have the opportunity to improve the employment prospects of indigenous Australians. Contemporary literature, in addition to statistical evidence, highlights the high unemployment rates among...

Introduction: Articles in this Special Issue were first presented at the World Innovation and Strategy Conference (WISC98) in Sydney, Australia in late 1998. Outstanding contributions that included a strong emphasis on technological issues or the management of technology were selected from over...

In an environment of decentralised employment relations, employers associations must reassess their role if they are to remain relevant. The Australian Retailers? Association faces a particular challenge. On the one hand, it has traditionally focused on the interests of the largest retailers, at...

In today's global shipping industry management functions have often been outsourced to separate companies and to overseas locations. With the appearance of socalled 'flags of convenience' the world shipping industry has increasingly registered commercial vessels overseas. Following this trend,...

For firms to survive in the highly competitive Aerospace Component Supply Market, they must have some sustainable competitive advantages. Customers are demanding continual price reductions and improvements in lead times from their suppliers. In the Asia Pacific region, developing economies such...

This article examines contemporary management strategy in the area of effective utilisation of human resources in the retail industry. The focus of the industrial relations system has shifted from the national level to the enterprise level, and like many other industries, retail employers are...

This paper discusses results from an international study of continuous improvement in product innovation. The empirical research is based upon a theoretical model of continuous product innovation (CPI) that identifies contingencies, behaviours, levers and performances relevant to improving...

This paper examines the responses of the Australian Retailers' Association to the deregulation of industrial relations. The acceptance of enterprise bargaining both by employers and trade unions in Australia calls into question the ongoing role of employers' associations. This question is...

Innovative narratives are represented, at times almost prescribed, in the management literature. While the key to developing competencies is fundamentally linked to many innovative practices and processes, the fundamentals of innovation cannot be separated from values, from learning, from...

Innovation requires change, and in the business environment, resistance to change is deleterious to organisations. The ability to continuously adapt to change enables firms to achieve sustainable value creation and competitive advantage (Innovation Management Incorporated, 1999). Major...