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Since the beginning of the 1990s, business process reengineering (BPR) has received considerable attention from the management information systems (MIS) community (Caron et. al, 1994; Davenport, 1993). However, dramatic improvements touted by BPR advocates have failed to materialize in many organizations (Hammer and Champy, 1993; Kotter, 1995). Current research has provided limited explanatory power concerning the underlying reasons behind BPR failure. Hence, in–depth research is needed into companies experimenting with BPR. This case provides a longitudinal view of Caterpillar Inc. Mossville Engine Center experiences with BPR since 1991. It describes how Caterpillar Inc. (Peoria, IL) introduced BPR into one business unit, Mossville Engine Center (MEC), five years ago and saved between US $10 and $20 million. Caterpillar believes that its success with process improvement can be directly tied to adoption and implementation of an enterprise–wide methodology called Business Process Simplification and Improvement (BPS/I). BPS/I provides a systematic methodology for analysis, design, and implementation of reengineering principles. The methodology provides the structure, techniques, and new job roles to effectively implement redesigned business processes. The role of information technology includes facilitation of data transformation, information flow, and communication through each stage of the BPS/I methodology. The case was co–authored by the Process Improvement Manager. His job was to facilitate, instruct, and oversee BPR initiatives. Information was gathered via in–depth interviews, observation, IDEA GROUP PUBLISHING

International audience; As a French-German research team we conducted a survey with a sample of academic libraries and graduate schools in France and Germany to determine the current situation and trends in the publishing of electronic PhD theses and dissertations (ETDs) under Open Access (OA). The percentage of OA theses varies depending on the country, the research field, and the institution. Not all ETDs are available in OA for a variety of reasons, including confidentiality, embargoes, author-imposed restrictions, and a lack of encouragement and/or requirement by libraries and graduate schools. The survey reveals qualitative and structural differences between France and Germany in this area. Here we discuss the survey findings, the methodologies used in the survey, and the various policies (or lack thereof) and their impact on ETDs and OA. A strategy is outlined for moving towards ensuring that publishing ETDs under OA becomes routine, and an electronic version becomes the only manifestation of a thesis.