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In this study, we investigated the effects of different Ca2+ and Mg2+ concentrations in the water column on the growth and molting of Macrobrachium rosenbergii. We used three concentrations of both Ca2+ and Mg2+ and tested these in culture experiments over a period of four complete molting cycles. Analyses revealed that increasing concentrations of Ca2+ in the water led to a gradual reduction in the expression levels of MIH and a gradual increase in the expression levels of EcR and chitinase, thus accelerating molting frequency and shortening the molting cycle. However, high concentrations of Ca2+ significantly reduced the survival rate of M. rosenbergii. Increasing concentrations of Mg2+ in the water column led to a significant increase in heart beat count (P < 0.05); in addition, malate dehydrogenase activity during postmolt A and intermolt C tended to increase, and energy metabolism was accelerated. Furthermore, increased Ca2+ concentrations in the water column promoted an increase in the Ca2+ content of muscles and shells. In contrast, as the Mg2+ concentration in the water column increased, the Mg2+ content in the muscles and shells showed different patterns of change. Too low or too high Ca2+ and Mg2+ concentrations in the external environment had differing degrees of negative effects on the gill tissue such as edema and necrosis. In summary, low levels of Ca2+ and Mg2+ in the external environment reduced ion levels in the muscle and shell; inhibited growth, molting, and survival; and exerted negative effects on the gill tissue. Furthermore, high concentrations of Ca2+ and Mg2+ may accelerate molting rate and energy metabolism, but can cause more serious damage to gill tissue and reduce the survival rate. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Increasing risks about deficient communication and difficulties in communication management in multinational projects lead to the deployment of project coordinators (PCs). The role of coordinators and their responses to communication issues differ with the organization structure. This study focuses on the communication tendencies in different organization structures to facilitate the work of PCs. Based on the literature review, this study identified representative communication risks and organization structures in multinational projects. Thereafter, a survey and semi-structured interviews with 30 PCs were conducted to understand their perceptions, which were then analyzed by applying text-mining. Cultural and linguistic risks, such as differences in terminology, nuances, and visual gestures, occur frequently in communication. The resulting construction and design changes may lead to conflicts among stakeholders. To alleviate these risks, PCs in functional, projectized, and matrix organizations must consider the hierarchy, expert presence, and systematic approach adoption, respectively. PCs typically prefer matrix organizations, in which each department acts as a team to deliver information uniformly, and the personnel must adapt to differences in the terminology and behavioral cultures of multinational stakeholders. The systematic deployment of PCs with experience and knowledge of multinational projects in each team can help set unified goals among stakeholders. By coordinating the communication of PCs, the technology and resources of participating countries can be timely utilized. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A plasma cladding experiment was carried out to investigate the characteristics(surface hardness, microstructure, friction, wear properties from different substrates to the cladding layer and the bond strength) of plasma cladding Fe-Cr-Nb-Si-Mo alloy cladding layers on different substrates. In order to improve the abrasion resistance of the scraper middle trough, the plasma cladding technique was used to clad the alloy ceramic powder Ig7 on the surface of the middle trough NM450, WH60A, Hardox450, and Weartuf450 to create Fe/Cr/Nb/Mo/V cladding layer. Based on the experiment results, the microstructure, friction and wear properties of the four cladding layers were analyzed, and the bond strength between the cladding layer and the substrate was also tested. The experimental results show that the main phases of the four cladding layers are martensite and all kinds of metal carbides ((Nb, Mo)C, VC, and Cr7C3). WH60A surface cladding layer has shown good friction and wear properties. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Over the last 40 years, organizational scholars have repeatedly called for more research to reconcile formalist and social network approaches to the intra-organizational structure. The former has primarily been concerned with the reporting relationship which manifests as the chain of command while research on the informal social structure relegates the reporting relationship to a wide and varied range of instrumental and affective relationships such as advice-seeking, knowledge-sharing, trust, and friendship which span the boundaries that the chain of command defines. In this study, we employ the chain of command distance—the length along the chain of command of a path connecting a pair of organizational actors—as the basis for formulating and testing hypotheses about how the formal organization and the informal social structure influence one another. First, we argue that whereas the formal structure affords only one, often very lengthy, path between any pair of actors, the combination of formal and informal structures results in a greater number of significantly shorter paths between actors. Next, we consider one effect of the formal organization on the informal social structure. In particular, we argue that there is an inverse relationship between the chain of command distance and the likelihood of a social or informal connection forming between a pair of actors. We test our hypotheses with demographic data collected from a public sector provider of health, education, and welfare services in rural Norway. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

It is difficult to make large, complex organizations like MNCs ambidextrous—to make them efficient so that they succeed in the short run and in sync with their changing environments so that they succeed and survive in the long run. The two types of learning activity that support ambidexterity, exploitation and exploration, are fundamentally different (March 1991). The well-known structural approach to creating organizational ambidexterity employs separate subunits for exploitation and exploration (O'Reilly and Tushman 2011). We argue that this approach cannot take full advantage of the high levels of product, geographic, and functional diversity that exist in large, complex firms to create ambidexterity at a more macro level. Firms facing this kind of complexity often address it by using a matrix structure. For such firms, we argue that a more flexible form of matrix structure can facilitate the creation of a new form of ambidexterity at the macro level of such firms. As developed in Egelhoff and Wolf (Egelhoff and Wolf 2017), a flexible matrix structure is one which can vary its mode of decision making between balanced decision making, where decisions are jointly made by both dimensions of a matrix, and rule-based decision making, where it is pre-specified which dimension of a matrix will unilaterally make certain types of decision. We argue that rule-based decision making tends to facilitate exploitation and the refinement of existing knowledge while balanced decision making tends to facilitate exploration and the development of new knowledge. By specifying one mode of decision making or the other, firm-level management can deliberately steer important strategic decisions (e.g., new product technology development) into either exploitation or exploration and strategy renewal, creating a new form of ambidexterity at the macro level. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Much of the literature linking organization structure to performance falls into two broad research streams. One stream concerns formal structure - the hierarchy of authority or reporting relationships as well as the degree of standardization, formalization, specialization, etc. The impact of formal structure and other elements of organization design on performance is typically contingent on factors such as strategic orientation, task characteristics, and environmental conditions. The other research stream focuses on informal structure - a network of interpersonal and intra-organizational relationships. Properties of informal structure are typically shown to have a more direct (less contingent) impact on organizational performance. Despite these pronounced differences in the conceptualization of organization structure, considerable overlap and complementarity exist between the two research streams. In this article, I compare and contrast a pair of exemplars from each stream - the information processing perspective and the social network perspective - with respect to their conceptualizations of organization structure and its relationship to performance. Several recommendations for future research that combines the two approaches are offered. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Analytics is an increasingly important source of competitive advantage. It has even been posited that big data will be the next strategic emphasis of organizations and that analytics capability will be manifested in organizational structure. In this article, I explore how analytics capability might be relected in organizational structure using the notion of "requisite organization" developed by Jaques (1998). requisite organization argues that a new strategic emphasis requires the addition of a new stratum in the organization, resulting in greater organizational complexity. requisite organization could serve as an objective, veriiable criterion for what qualiies as a genuine new strategic emphasis. Such a criterion is necessary for research on the co-evolution of strategy and structure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A gap exists in knowledge and the observed frequency with which patients with diabetes actually receive treatment for optimal cardiovascular risk reduction. Many interventions to improve quality of care have been targeted at the health systems level and provider organizations. Changes in several domains of care and investment in quality by organizational leaders are needed to make long-lasting improvements. In the studies reviewed, the most effective strategies often have multiple components, whereas the use of one single strategy, such as reminders only or an educational intervention, is less effective. More studies are needed to examine the effect of several care management strategies simultaneously, such as use of clinical information systems, provider financial incentives, and organizational model on processes of care and outcomes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper we present the results of a study analyzing the impact of an entrepreneurial company's initial organization on the structure of its reward and incentive systems, using data from entrepreneurial firms in Germany. The results suggest that the educational level of employees has the strongest impact on the application of different financial and nonfinancial rewards. Our findings also suggest that entrepreneurial companies in Germany rarely implement sophisticated financial reward systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A bank may use the private information that it acquires through monitoring to hold up borrowers. This “information monopoly” of the bank may inefficiently distort the borrower’s investment decisions in environments where moral hazard is prevalent. The paper analyses how this problem is resolved within bank-firm relationships. In the benchmark case when the bank can contractually commit to future actions, the optimal contract turns out to be ambiguous in nature. When commitment contracts cannot be written, firms have an incentive to develop multiple banking relationships in order to decrease the “inside” banks’ bargaining power. However, with costly monitoring, this may defeat the initial purpose for contracting with a financial intermediary, namely information production. The paper argues that when contractual commitment is not feasible, bank size may serve as an alternative commitment device that prevents the bank from holding up borrowers in the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Information technology is providing manufacturers with additional flexibility with regard to their supply chain network choices. Our research studies supply chain network organization structures categorized by the organic and mechanistic management control structures. The structural impacts on cost and fill rate performance are studied in two-echelon and two-supply-chain network organization models under different market coordination conditions using system dynamic simulations. Our results show significant effects of demand and network structural factors, and their interactions, on these measures. As demand becomes dynamic, the cooperative interaction model, where supply chains cooperate to satisfy customer demand, is found to have better system performance than the competitive supply chain model. The analysis also suggests that increasing the responsiveness at the downstream plant is particularly important to the overall system performance improvement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Scholars of public organizations have long been interested in understanding how organizational structures shape organizational performance. This is an important question because if links between structure and performance exist, then manipulating organizational structures may lead to improvements in organizational performance. This study examines how one structural attribute, span of control, shapes performance in a large set of public organizations. Specifically, our focus is on how structure shapes performance when task difficulty varies. We hypothesize that structural attributes such as spans of control have limited effects on performance when organizations address very easy or very difficult tasks. When organizations address moderately difficult tasks, the impact of structure on performance should be greatest. Our analysis of 678 school districts in Texas covering the years 1994 to 1997 reveals that span of control variables have the greatest impact on student performance under moderately difficult task scenarios. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In 1994, a Ph.D. study started regarding pharmacy, organization and management (APOM) in the Netherlands. This article describes the final phase of the study in community pharmacy practice: managerial problems in change to the customer and the difference between supported pharmacy managers and independent ones. It appeared that pharmacy managers experienced problems with the formulation and use of aims, norms, and measurements. Although many organizations operating in the pharmaceutical sector are a good source for new ideas, they lack to have the proper support for these problems. The difference between supported and independent pharmacy managers was minimal in the change to the customer. Pharmacy managers are in need of micro instrumentalization: aims, norms, and monitor instruments for customer activities applicable at their own pharmacy. Moreover, pharmacy managers will have to learn how to deal with the tension between money and care in order to improve the 'grip' on their organization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In 1994, a Ph.D-study started regarding pharmacy, organization and management (APOM) in the Netherlands. The APOM-project deals with the structuring and steering of pharmacy organization. This article describes the summary of the empirical results of a survey in a relatively large sample (n = 169). Generalization to the population of pharmacies in the Netherlands was made. Thought results comprised a total number of seven clusters of priorities of pharmacy mixes. Most pharmacy managers were observed with product and customer activities in the first position; pharmaceutical and customer activities were perceived as the most important. Action results comprised a total number of five clusters of activities of pharmacy mixes. Most pharmacy managers were observed with product and process activities in the first position; pharmaceutical and process activities were performed most frequently. The results showed that the traditional conception of the work in the community pharmacy is still vividly present. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper describes a framework for information systems development, based on the Viable System Model, currently used within the Film Division of Hoechst AG. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In 1994, a Ph.D. study started regarding pharmacy, organization and management (APOM) in the Netherlands. The APOM project deals with the structuring and steering of pharmacy organization. This article describes a summary of the theoretical background of the project and the empirical results of a pilot study (n=24). No generalization to the population of pharmacies in the Netherlands was made. Three mixes of objectives in pharmacy organization were theoretically postulated; the product mix, the process mix, and the customer mix. Mainly, the purpose of the pilot study was method selection. Additionally, it was studied if thought and action of pharmacy managers corresponded, and, if theoretical pharmacy mixes corresponded with the empirical pharmacy mixes. Two methods were selected to be applied in a survey. Thought and action did not correspond for most pharmacy managers. Thought related to customer and product mainly, and action related to process and customer mainly. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]