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It is over 25 years since the Hancock Report recommended that Australian enterprises implement workplace level procedures for the resolution of disputes and grievances. Legislation now requires that all enterprise agreements contain dispute settlement procedures (DSPs). While most large organisations have enterprise agreements -- and therefore DSPs -- there is very little empirical research into how and whether Australian organisations use these DSPs -- let alone what broader role they may play in regulating the employer-employee relationship. This chapter seeks to provide answers to these questions. This chapter presents the results of three case studies of large organisations: a bank, a retailer and a state government agency. These organisations have been chosen from a larger group of case studies to illustrate three approaches to the management of workplace disputes. The organisations share certain features such as: the effective use of workplace procedures to resolve the great majority of workplace disputes; and the adoption of a 'dual system' with internal grievance procedures playing a role alongside DSPs. However they vary considerably in their approach to dispute resolution. The Bank's 'strategic' approach involves a comprehensive conflict management system. The State government agency's 'reactive' approach to workplace conflict resolution gives a much greater role for third parties, while the Retailer's 'pragmatic' approach incorporates elements from both the other two approaches. The chapter discusses the implications of this diversity of approach for human resource management, organisational justice and workplace relations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although dentine hypersensitivity (DH) has been widely investigated, studies based on randomly selected general practice populations are scarce. This study aimed to examine the intra-oral distribution of DH and its association with age, sex, symptoms, stimuli, pre-disposing factors and management strategies in a private practice patient population in Australia. A randomly selected sample of 800 Australian private dental practice dentists was invited to participate in a questionnaire-based survey. A log diary about the total number of patients seen during a typical week in practice and the details of patients with DH were recorded. The details included teeth and sites involved with DH and the age and sex of people affected, symptoms, stimuli, pre-disposing factors and management strategies. The prevalence of DH was 9·1% among patients seen over the typical week with 2·3 teeth/person and 1·2 surfaces/tooth affected. Women (60·7%) were more affected than men (39·3%) whilst 30- to 49 -year-olds (48·8%) were the most common among those affected. Premolars (36·5%) and buccal surfaces (54·8%), respectively, were the most commonly affected teeth and tooth sites. Although cold stimulation (80·1%) was the commonest stimulus, dietary acid was the only stimulus that was significantly associated with DH. Gingival recession and erosion emerged as significant pre-disposing factors, whereas using desensitising toothpastes was the most important management strategy. The findings suggested that dietary acid, gingival recession and erosion were significantly associated with DH, while desensitising toothpastes was the key management strategy used for DH in this patient population. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses research which aimed to identify the common elements that supports long-term performance of top business organization in Australia. Despite the long years to cover the study, researchers found that success is not about vision or mission statements rather the elements of success are effective execution, perfect alignment, adapting rapidly, and leadership. The result of the study also offers clearer view of the essence of winning organization in the country and notes that the findings provides a generic framework for organizational excellence in overseas countries, cultures, and business organizations.

Purpose — Seeks to understand the inter-organisational networks that influence events tourism strategy making by public-sector event development agencies in Australia. Design/methodology/approach — A qualitative methodology of convergent interviews, followed by multiple case research across six Australian states and territories, was employed. The inter-organisational relationships and networks of events agencies that impact on their strategy processes for events tourism were the "cases" in focus. Findings — Strategies of a reactive-proactive nature mostly guide events tourism development by Australia's corporatised event development agencies. These agencies maintain "soft", loosely formed networks that consist of relatively stable clusters of intra-governmental and corporate membership with a peripheral, ad hoc membership of other stakeholders. Research limitations/implications — Although the paper studies perceptions of strategy making at a single point in time, it provides valuable insights into the public sector environment, institutional settings and key relationships that impact on events tourism strategies. Practical implications — Event development agencies should consider how the unique requirements of event bidding, event development and expansion might facilitate different types of stakeholder engagement and network formation. Integration of regional, metropolitan and state strategies for events tourism may also widen the network of influence on strategies. Originality/value — The paper informs public sector operatives establishing or managing event development agencies, where tourist generation is a primary marketing goal. It contributes new knowledge in a tourism field that is under-researched. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose – There has been increasing interest in Australia regarding corporate boards, their role and the contribution they make to organisations' performance and success. There is however, a gap in our knowledge about what board members do. To better understand boards, we need to know more about the behaviour of those who sit on boards. Many chairmen and all non-executive directors serve on corporate boards in a part-time capacity, however, such part-time service does not negate a role in strategy. The purpose of this paper is to ask how, if at all, do part-time board members influence strategy in Australian public companies? Design/methodology/approach – This paper first examines the literature on choice, change and control as key aspects of firms' strategic conduct. Second, attention turns to generating empirical data to examine how part-time board members engage with these processes. Attention is given to the actions of part-time board members vis-à-vis executive directors, both inside and outside the boardroom. Data from interviews with 20 board members are interpreted using the 1999 framework of McNulty and Pettigrew which conceptualises part-time board members' involvement in strategy as: ‘taking strategic decisions’, ‘shaping strategic decisions’ and ‘shaping the content, context and conduct of strategy’. Findings – Each of the three levels of part-time board member involvement in strategy described by McNulty and Pettigrew engage part-time board members in processes of choice, change and control in differing ways. Part-time board members are able to shape both the ideas that form the content of corporations' strategies and the methodologies and processes by which those ideas evolve. In so doing, part-time board members are capable of exerting control over management and influencing processes of strategic choice and change. Boards of directors have a role in strategy formulation, strategic decision-making and strategic control. Practical implications – The board's role is in the driver's seat not as a rubber stamp. A process whereby board members can engage and exert a controlling influence over strategic direction and outcomes of the corporation is of benefit not only to Australian corporations but has global corporate benefit Originality/value – This paper describes and analyzes the contribution to strategy made by board members in five Australian companies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An Environmental Resource Assessment and Management System (ERAMS), acomputer-aided decision support system developed for determination of present and potential pastoral productivity of arid and semiarid regions, was used in this study on rangelands that have been cropped or grazed by sheep or both for 150 years. ERAMS determines productivity of mapped land units on the basis of soil-water availability. This in turn is dependent on annual rainfall, slope, soil depth, salinity, and physical and chemical constraints. Stock carrying capacity is dependent on vegetation type and condition, based on foliage cover and botanical composition, and nutritive value of the pasture. Physical and biological features are determined byfield survey. ERAMS has been used to examine the likely impacts of management strategies that alter either the vegetation type, vegetation state, or degree of erosion. Six Land Capability classes were derived from combinations of rainfall, slope, soil depth, and salinity. Total dry matter production was calculated and ranged from 58 kg -1 ha -1 to 1980 kg -1 ha -1 Rainfall use efficiency (kg -1 ha -1 of total dry matter mm -1 of mean annual rainfall) ranged from 3.05 to 4.07. Comparison of present and potential production indicates the likely benefits of programs designed to increase carrying capacity through improved vegetation cover and land stability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent years, Australia and New Zealand have pursued two different routes of labour market reform. New Zealand opted for a radical experiment in the deregulation of industrial relations and other areas. Australia pursued a co-operative and co-ordinated approach to reform within the centralized arbitral system. Both reform initiatives were designed to stimulate improvements in organizational performance and cost competitiveness. In this paper, we argue that there are three main types of strategies that management can use to reduce labour cost and improve performance: productivity-enhancement, costminimization and work-intensification strategies. We argue that the former is a long-term sustainable strategy whereas the latter two are negative short-term strategies that may have deleterious longer-term effects. This paper reports the results of a cross-national survey in New Zealand and Australia into the extent of adoption of these management strategies. The results are presented by industry, employment size, mode of operation and countries as a whole. The research findings indicate that New Zealand's decentralization has encouraged a higher degree of employer experimentation with both positive and negative workplace change strategies, especially in the private sector. Australia's more centralized system limited the use of cost-minimization strategies but not productivity-enhancing strategies in the public and not-for-profit sector. The research found evidence of work intensification in both countries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]