PRODUCTIVITY MANAGEMENT (BEYOND MANAGEMENT)
Year:2010 | Volume:4 | Issue:13|Papers Count:8

The purpose of the research was the development of a neural networks model to identify satisfied customers for car maintenance service marketing. The data were collected from the survey of ten car maintenance service providers in Iran. Multi-layer perceptron (MLP) neural networks with hyperbolic tangent function trained by feed forward training algorithm were utilized to build the identification model. The result reveals that the identification accuracy of the test on the model is greater than that expected by chance. Through a set of available contribution weights, the general importance of each independent variable produced is revealed. This research confirms that the neural network model is useful in recognizing the existing patterns of customer’s data. The advantages of using the model are highlighted. Authors believe that the model is useful and suitable as an analyzing tool for car maintenance service on market strategy planning.

The aim of this research is to study the relation between personality characteristics, irrational beliefs and job satisfaction.100 subjects were selected from among the personnel of East Azerbaijan Telecommunication Department using ranked random sampling and they were evaluated using NEO-FFI personality inventory, Jones Irrational Beliefs (IBT) and surveying test of Spector job satisfaction. The method of research is correlation method. Multi-variable regression test, Pearson Correlation Coefficient and T-test were used for data analysis. Testing of hypotheses showed that there is no significant relation between the personality characteristics and job satisfaction and none of personality characteristics can anticipate job satisfaction of individuals. The results also showed that there is no significant relation between irrational beliefs and job satisfaction. The findings indicated that there is a significant and positive relation between personality characteristics and irrational belies, and that neurotic personality characteristics can anticipate the irrational beliefs of individuals. Other findings show that there is a significant difference between men and women in terms of irrational beliefs, and that female subjects have more irrational beliefs than male subjects, but there was no significant difference between the two groups of men and women in terms of job satisfaction.

In this article, the effective factors in staff empoverment through TOPSIS method have been studied and prioritized. For this purpose, the effective factors were investigated by reviewing the literature and the related concepts in empowering. Then in order to identify the effective factors in the statistical population under study, a questionnaire was compiled. The compiled questionnaire was distributed among the research samples in order to select the main variables under study and to collect their views on the selected variables (factors). After determining the main factors, the most effective ones in empowerment were identified through the use of minitab15 and by drawing a partograph. The reliability of the responses was confirmed by revaluation method. The TOPSIS method was used in order to prioritize the identified factors. To do this, the second questionnaire was distributed among the population to study the effect of each factor with regard to the determined indices. after collection and summation of the data, the decision matrix was olotained. Finally, the factors were graded in terms of their weight and importance. The results indicate that education, employing participation system, personnel motivation, submitting authority, performance-based reward, team work, occupational enrichment, and accepting responsibility are respectively effective in empowering the staff.

Change in Iranian administrative system is one the crucial issues. And in the recent years the necessary has drawn a lot of attention. Several actions have been taken and the "State' s Septet Plan of the Change" in the Administrative System is a as example. This paper aims to evaluate the feasibility of one of these programs i. e. the Rationalizing Government Size Program and to identify the factors affecting its execution. In order to do so, the above mentioned program was divided into four programs and the affecting factors were defined based on John Child' s power-control theory. According to the quartet factors and the defined indexes of the four programs, a matrix questionnaire was designed and after evaluating its validity and reliability, it was given to the swgects. The results were abridged and after classification they were analyzed using the inferential statistics tests (the single-group t-test and Friedman). The results revealed that the feasibility of the program is below average and the influential authorities in public organizations have the greatest role in leading this program to failure. Next, the heterogeneity of the interests of the decision-makers and the organizations, the dominant coalition and the subjectivity of the individuals' and organizations' decisions are placed successively as the effective factors.

In the recent years, the widespread interest in the relationship between emotional intelligence and performance has led to the development of a substantial body of literature. In spite of this ongoing attention, the subject of emotional intelligence and performance is still in a contradictory and controversial phase. Thus, a need remains for the development and testing of hypotheses relating the different dimensions of the emotional intelligence to performance. The goal of this research was to extend prior work on individual competencies and performance and investigate the possible relationship between academic staff members’ competencies (self awareness and self management) and their educational performance and to determine the role of their working life quality as an intervening variable. The results based on 930 questionnaire responses collected from 72 universities in a field study indicate that the extent of educational performance is positively and significantly associated with their self awareness and self management. Besides, the quality of the university working life interferes with the relationship between these variables.

This paper aims to utilize an approach for computing time completion of project network paths with determined activities that can be used to estimate the time completion of a project. Activity durations are considered to be deterministic in critical path method (CPM). Since it is impossible to predict future events in a deterministic manner, project evaluation and review technique (PERT) is introduced which studies project with probabilistic activity durations. In this technique, large variance of path durations can influence the calculation accuracy, in which case the simulation technique is an appropriate method. In this paper, a sample arrow network is chosen, and a time distribution is fitted for each activity with Input Analyzer Software using some historical data. Mean square error, chi-square and Kolmogorov-Smirnov (K-S) tests are used as three measures to evaluate the goodness-of-fit. In the next stage, a computer model is built for the network in Arena 7.0 software. This model is run 120 times and based on these replications, the minimum required sample size for (1-a) x 100% confidence interval is specified. Finally, a confidence interval is computed for duration of each network path and based on this; the time completion of project is estimated.

This research deals with the effect of management styles and managers’ personality features on the psychological health of employees of state organizations and offices in Tehran. The main question is if there is a meaningful relation between management styles and managers’ personality features and the psychological health of employees of state organizations and offices. The research method is a descriptive one. The research population includes all the managers of state organizations and offices in Tehran. The research samples were chosen by Morgan Chart. The questionnaires used in this research are Lotans management style, personality features (NEO) and psychological health (GHQ), which have suitable validity coefficient. Finally, the hypotheses were tested by regression multi-hypothetical statistical model. The results show that there is a positive meaningful relation between management styles and personality features like conscientiousness and pleasantness and employees’ psychological health. Also, there is a negative meaningful relation between the neurotic feature and employees’ pychological health (a=0.01).

The aim of this study was to investigate and compare the statues of educational, research and facilities in Pf P.E. departments in various branches of Islamic Azad University from the viewpoint of faculty members and department heads. The method used was a descriptive one. All the P.E. faculty members and chair departments in Azad University (311) were the statistic population. All of them were selected as the sample. The data were collected through researcher made questionnaires. For data analysis, ANOVA, T-test and descriptive statistics were utilized. The findings showed that: according to P.E. faculty members, the clubs in Islamic Azad University were at a high level, the programs were at an average scale, research activities were at a low level, teaching aids, equipments and sporting facilities were also at a low level. In comparing the viewpoints of P.E. faculty members and department heads on the studied variables, there was a significant difference in relation to accomplishing the programs (p=0.05). But in other cases, there was not any significant difference regarding research activities, clubs, sporting facilities and equipment (p=0.125). The results of this study demonstrated that the status of Pf. P.E. Departments in different branches of Islamic Azad Universities was ranked at different levels.