Engineering Management

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https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11888/3190

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Transportation Strategic Planning Under Uncertainty: The Palestinian Case
(2011) Reema Reyad Bdair; Prof. Sameer A. Abu Eisheh
The current transport system, in the Palestinian territories which is an important component of the economy affecting the development and the welfare of populations was severely affected by the Israeli occupation measures. Strategic planning is a key tool to prepare for the establishment of the Palestinian state and to achieve the anticipated development. However, due to the high uncertainty in the Palestinian case, the process of the strategic planning in the various disciplines, in general, and in the transport sector at specific, is not an easy and direct exercise. The aim of this study, which is conducted on the transportation sector in Palestine is to explore prospective planning methods capable of dealing uncertainty while preparing an overall framework for transport strategic planning. This study derives its significance from the importance of the transport sector and the concept of strategic planning. It concentrates in particular on developing a potential framework for strategic planning in the transport sector under the conditions of high uncertainty. A SWOT analysis (Strength9+s, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats) is conducted to form the basis for defining the strategic goals, objectives and strategies. In order to identify the proper outline strategies, four scenarios are developed taking into account the potential and expected future political and socio-economic conditions. Four different aspects of uncertainties were analyzed through each scenario, including them political, economic, demographic and institutional aspects. These four uncertainties for each scenario vary in level from low to medium to high level. A set of robust strategies that can respond to each scenario are then developed in order to succeed in the current uncertain environment. The strategies are based on possible changes in the four different aspects (uncertainties) in each scenario. It is noticed that there are some strategies that are common between the four different scenarios, while there are special strategies that apply for some scenarios only. However, Developing the outline strategies for each of the four planned scenarios don’t mean that we are accepting all these scenarios, since the Palestinians preferred option is the second (optimistic) scenario. Developing these scenarios and these strategies was made to know how to deal with uncertainty related to these scenarios, and in order to maintain and restore the transport sector under these scenarios. The output of this study would be of great importance to the related official institutions in order to adopt and to build on. Basically this study will provide a new approach to the planning and development of the transport sector in Palestine. It can be the basis for the required development in the transport sector, and also it could be a strong foundation for developing a Master Transportation Plan that will guide potential development of the transportation sector in Palestine, capacity building, programming, funding, legal, managerial and technical mechanisms needed to support the institutional structure within the sector.
Strategic Analysis and Development of Electronic Government Strategies For the Palestinian Municipalities
(2011) Nebal Odeh Yousef Abu-Jaber; Prof. Sameer A. Abu Eisheh
e-Government is considered as one of the modern tools, which emerged from the escalated development in the Information and Telecommunication Technology sector. e-Government has been adopted in order to make the governmental services around the world, at both the national and municipal levels, better, faster, cheaper, more convenient, more transparent, more efficient, more accountable, and more accessible to their beneficiaries; the citizens and businesses. To achieve those e-Government benefits, there are specific requirements that must be addressed, which form the bases towards the success of developing and implementing e-Government. Those requirements are categorized into organizational, human and psychological, technical, political and legal, financial and economic, and promotion requirements. Palestine is one of the Middle East countries that tries to implement and develop e-Government initiative, which was launched in 2005 and was expected to take several years to be completed. Most of the research and studies on e-Government field focused on development and implementation part and ignored the strategic planning and management part, although this is a basic and an important part of e-Government. Most of the research on the strategic part of e-Government concentrated on the national level; few studies were accomplished on the municipal and local levels. The aim of this thesis is to develop e-Government strategic framework for the Palestinian municipalities. This aim is achieved according to the strategic analysis for the Palestinian e-Government current situation for the national and then municipal levels. The strategic analysis process is based on the data collected through the combination of the documents from the published documents on the official websites or the governmental agencies themselves, and from interviews with the Palestinian e-Government experts including employees of the public and private sectors. The strategic analysis process resulted in identifying the SWOT -the internal factors (strengths and weaknesses), and the external factors (threats and opportunities)- that affect the Palestinian e-Government at the national level then at the municipal level. The SWOT analysis forms the basis in suggesting the vision, the mission and then concluding strategic goals for the national and municipal levels. The findings for this research were achieved through the matching process between the internal and external factors for e-Government at the Palestinian municipal level, which is called the SWOT matrix. SWOT matrix contributed in formulating set of feasible strategic solutions needed to be implemented in right way to achieve e-Government's municipality strategic goals.
Analysis of Project Management Practices in Public Sector in West Bank "Ministry of Public Works & Housing"
(2011) Sajeda Rashed Janem; Dr. Riyad Abdel Kareem Awad
This study aims at assessing the different project management practices and tools followed by the different departments in public sector in West Bank, in particular, in Ministry of Public Works and Housing as well as to explore effective techniques and tools in project management within public sector, and to understand the main factors that hinder achieving project goals. In order to achieve the objectives of this study; a survey based on a questionnaire was carried out among General Directors, Directors, Head of Divisions, and Project Managers of related different departments in Ministry of Public Works and Housing in West Bank. Based upon the analysis of responses and studying case study of projects, the results of the study proved that there is an inefficiency of project management practices followed within Ministry of Public Works and Housing, and these practices could be graded as moderate with respect to best practices. The results revealed that officials believe that using a simple and well defined framework with a staged approach ensures project success. They also had the conviction that post evaluation of projects is essential to project success; to deduce and file continuous recommendations so as to overcome possible shortcoming in new projects. Nevertheless, miscommunication among project team, absence of thorough planning and non-adopting of clear methodologies revealed as the main factors that lead for hindrance of achieving project goals. Keywords: Public Sector, Ministry of Public Works & Housing, Project Management.
Adopting a Competency Based Human Resource Management System in Palestine Cellular Communication LTD-JAWWAL
(2011) Enas Hamzi Mohammad Hijazeh; Prof. Grace Khoury
The goal of this research is to identify JAWWAL core competencies that will serve as a foundation for a competency based human resource (HR) management system, which for this research will include recruitment and selection, training and development, and performance management for this research. In order to achieve the general objectives of this study, semi-structured interviews and focus groups with JAWWAL directors, managers and supervisors were conducted as well as gathering completed competency based training appraisal forms from direct supervisors of employees who have participated in a competency based training course. Based upon the analysis of responses, which formed 63% of the sample, the following conclusions were drawn: -Eleven core competencies have been identified for JAWWAL employees, derived from JAWWALs mission and vision statements and they will serve as the base for the HR competency system. -JAWWAL will gain many advantages by adopting such a system. First, it will link its employees with the mission and vision statements; second, recruitment and selection will be competency based and not job based which encourages managers and other decision makers to clarify the verifiable, measurable results they expect from successful performers before a selection decision is made. This makes selection methods more effective, which reduces turnover, where, in this study, turnover was reduced by 0.196% during a period of seven months, since the employees who are hired are more likely to do well in jobs or work roles that are matched to their existing or potential competencies. -Competency based training allowed JAWWAL employees to structure their activities and processes in ways that are most meaningful to them. With this approach to training, JAWWAL managers, supervisors and employees are now more able to identify and use many learning resources in diverse settings. JAWWALs competency-based approach to training consistently communicates a common set of performance expectations to every team member. JAWWAL started to focus all training on meeting employees needs that support successful and creative team performance. Competency-based training began to help JAWWAL managers and supervisors keep JAWWAL employees focused on achieving exemplary performance. -It was concluded by the respondents that in a competency based system the process will encourage frank and non-adversarial communication between employees and their managers. It is not unusual for JAWWAL employees to express their concerns in performing work that is not aligned with their strengths or interests. It is not only the less productive employees but often exemplary performers as well, who express these concerns. It also gives JAWWAL employees the opportunity to convey their interests and satisfaction in performing work that is aligned with their competencies. JAWWAL employees' work results will be aligned with achievement of strategic objectives, and this contribution will be identified in specific and usually measurable terms. Work that is identified as nonstrategic can be eliminated; it will allow JAWWAL to use its resources in other more productive ways. A competency-based HR performance management system establishes a work environment at JAWWAL in which the roles, relationships, and responsibilities of both managers and employees are well defined. -Communication of strategic change is the most important strategy that the HR Directorate must work on to ensure success of the competency system JAWWAL is seeking to adopt for HR functions. In conclusion, this study recommends that JAWWALs top management allow the HR Directorate to play an effective strategic role through adopting the competency based human resource management system that will align HR practices with JAWWAL's strategic objectives and employee development efforts as well as to integrate all components of the HR functions across JAWWAL. Key words: JAWWAL, HR Directorate, Core Competencies, Competency Based Human Resource Management System, Recruitment and Selection, Training and Development, and Performance Management.
Evaluating the Supply Chain Management System on Palestinian Companies
(2011) Ahmad Bassam Ahmad Abdallah; Dr.Husam Arman
Today, customers have the upper hand. The days where they had to take what has been offered to them has gone. Customers now choose the right products they want, when they want them, and at the right price. With the advent of new communication networks, the world has become a smaller place. Customers can now decide on products offered by suppliers around the globe. Therefore, the competition is no longer regional; it is global. In order for the enterprises to remain globally competitive they have to rethink their strategy and manage things differently. One of today’s major issues is managing the supply chain effectively. The purpose of this research is to develop a generic framework for Palestinian companies. The framework can be applicable in the research environment and the special conditions of Palestine in order to align the strategic fit area between supply chain strategy and the competitive advantage. The current practices of the Palestinian companies suffer from many problems and difficulties from supply chain perspective. Quantitative and qualitative research methodology was used in this study. The quantitative research data was gathered with the aid of online survey. Seventy five surveys have been sent to six sectors of manufacturing industrials companies in Palestine, Plastic industry, Marble and stone industry, Foodstuff industry, Pharmaceutical industry, Chemical industry, Engineering and metal industry, forty responses were received. The response rate was (53.3%) percent. The results of the interviews and survey revealed a high level of weaknesses in the four key themes were studied and analyzed through the survey results, supply chain management concept and its impact on the success of the firm, competitive and supply chain strategies, supplier relations, and customer relation. A Generic framework for the supply chain management was proposed. It aims were to guide the company to structure a successful supply chain, and does not assume any particular solution. The framework is comprised of four major levels: 1.The business strategy level. This level involves formulating a strategy and deciding what the objectives of the business are, i.e. to sustain company advantage over its competitors. 2.The competitive advantage level. . In this level it is discussed what a company should do to attain a competitive advantage, in order to achieve successful supply chain management. 3.The supply chain strategy level. This level shows how supply chain strategy aims to achieve business goals by using or implementing the competitive advantage, and reveal hidden interactions. 4.The strategy translation. This final level explains the role of the physical infrastructure and the supply chain function process to implement the supply chain strategy, effectively determining responsiveness and efficiency. The generic supply chain management framework presented a process that helps in understanding, describing, measuring, evaluating the supply chain activity, providing systematic process to establish new project and enhance, and develop ongoing project.
In Search for a Model: Planning with Community Participation in the Palestinian Novelty Municipalities
(2011) Sami Nayef Qasem Khalifa; Dr. Abdul Fattah Shamleh; Dr. Nabil Dmaidi
This study aims to pinpoint the role of community participation in the planning process in the Palestinian novelty municipalities; in addition, this study provides research and analysis for the current community participation practices and discusses the degree of community participation in the planning process. The study focuses on the means and measures used for involving the community in planning and decision-making and all the conditions, obstacles, and issues that relate to the subject. This study seeks to provide the Palestinian government officials and municipalities with accurate and comprehensive information about participatory planning. In addition, this thesis proposes a model that suits the current environment and the planning process of the Palestinian municipalities.To achieve these objectives the researcher employed the descriptive analytical approach due to its suitable methodology, as this study presents qualitative rather than quantitative research. The study was conducted in the northern novelty municipalities in the West Bank; also taken into account were interviews with municipal and community members, observation of workshops and training, focus groups, and documentary analysis. The study results indicate a positive attitude among members of the study sample toward community participation and the importance of its role in the planning process. However, the study also reveals that there exists a lack of interest to participate due to negative past experiences where the municipalities and officials were not open to public participation. In addition, the results showed that the primary motivation behind this new approach is the donors, as it is the donors who encourage an increase in community participation, both in the planning process and in determining community priorities. The donor’s role in encouraging participatory planning was evident when the researcher surveyed the community regarding types of planning that involve community participation. Furthermore, the study shows that there exists a tangible need for capacity building for both the community through public awareness and for the municipalities through required training. This training is essential in building the municipalities’ capabilities to practice participatory planning in a knowledge-based manner. There are clear impediments to the participatory planning approach, examples being politics, tribalism, and lack of resources. The researcher takes these issues into consideration and suggests a model that is appropriate for an efficient participatory planning process. This model calls for setting criteria, when deciding which participants to include in the process; for example, a plan for education would include academic researchers and teachers in the participatory process. The model was validated through a practice case that represents a real need for the women sector to participate in the planning for the education field; this case shows how to navigate through the sequential steps of the participatory planning model. Furthermore, the researcher held a workshop for 15 municipal mayors and engineers in the presence of a representative from the MoLG to ensure the validity of the model and acceptance by the necessary practitioners and officials at the municipality and ministry levels. The study recommends the implementation and application of the model in the municipalities and in other fields of planning. The study also recommends that the MoLG role should include the implementation of rules and regulations toward participatory planning and the establishment of a unit that facilitates and monitors the process. Finally, the study recommends systemizing the participatory planning approach by conducting periodic training sessions to build the capacity of the officials and the community itself. This capacity building can be accomplished by investing into the existing experts within the local and international community who are familiar with participatory planning, in addition to including the donors and their intervention in our communities.
Towards E-Municipality in the Palestinian Territories Qalqilia Municipality As a Case Study
(2011) Ahmad Abdel Mon’em M. AL Nammourh; Dr. Ali Abdelhamid
The increase in demand for services and its association with the increase of population in the Palestinian Territories as well as the limited financial resources impacted negatively on the performance of Palestinian municipalities. Also, the unstable political situation and the procedures of the continuous Israeli occupation and control over resources and land, and isolation of localities from one another and from the service centers weakened the ability of these municipalities to be bound by their responsibilities in the performance of their services and the low level of effectiveness and efficiency they have, especially in light of the traditional system used in the management of municipalities in the Palestinian Territories. This study aimed to diagnose the state of municipalities in the Palestinian Territories and readiness to adopt an electronic municipal system depending on various technical elements such as information and communication systems, data management, and management activities and simulation processes, and other non-technical elements, such as leadership and management models, human capacity, democracy, justice, transparency, and integrated development planning , etc., and then infer the gap between the current and future situation represented in the e-municipality and propose a model of the ruling elements (technical and non-technical) to deal with expected developments, as well as take into account the privacy of political and demographic in the Palestinian Territories, and contribute to the access to the e-municipality. Parallel with the literature review on e-municipality, this study relied on descriptive, analytical and deductive approaches in dealing with the Qalqilya Municipality as a case study, where the characteristics of Qalqilya Municipality were studied and compared with those of the traditional municipality, based on measuring the degree of satisfaction the citizen for some services, as well as the study and analysis of some departments of the municipality in terms of performance and techniques used to deduce the characteristics of the municipality through the qualitative analysis. Also, the internal environment of the municipality (all components of the municipality) as well as the external environment related to citizen and the community were measured and evaluated based on the ruling elements, as well as the potential obstacles and challenges from the perspective of the municipality and the local community through the quantitative analysis. In addition, the qualitative and quantitative analyses have been linked to achieve the objectives of the study. The results of the study through Qalqilya Municipality (as a case study of municipalities in the Palestinian territories) showed to have a limited readiness to adopt e-municipality (23.5%) despite the high percentage of chances of success associated with the readiness of the external environment (68.5%). The results associated with the challenges from the perspective of the municipality as well as the citizen showed the presence of a maximum priority to deal with laws and regulations related to e-services and the unstable political situation in the Palestinian territories besides the many other challenges. The study suggested a model of the basic requirements for the success of the adoption of e-municipality in the Palestinian territories, which includes several elements that overcome all challenges and obstacles. The study added to that model a number of important issues related to e-municipality such as laws and regulations, the cultural level and awareness in the community, community participation, safety, varying technical capabilities, which the municipalities should taken into account for the success of the adoption of e-municipality, and those issues are complementary of the proposed model.
Project Management for Construction Projects
(2011) Hidaya Said Ali Najmi; Dr. Nabil Dmaidi; Dr. Husam Arman
The objective of this researches to study the project management of construction projects in Palestine. Construction sector is considered as a vital sector in today’s economy, due to the development in construction which is taking place in the world in general and the West Bank. The construction sector has a great importance not only to the economic and social life, but also to the needs and inspiration of the local culture. This study stressed on many aspects on the subject of project management in terms of problems and impediments, and suggested solutions through this research, in order to motivate and develop the management of the projects. The researcher used mainly qualitative method and partly quantitative method to complete the research work in the study. The researcher met with a number of specialists in this area and conducted 36 interviews with project managers in different parts of the West Bank, with three categories of the companies in the Palestinian Union of Contractors category in both its first, second and third categories in the structural area. After examining the text of the interviews within a set of questions that were posed to project managers in construction companies, the analysis showed that there are several factors and many problems faced by the management of construction projects in the West Bank. The most important problems were the poor planning, poor project management and poor communication between all parties to reach optimal solutions, in addition to gaps and pointsthat are clarified in the context of the search. The researcher developed a framework to arrange and organize the management of construction projects, to be an effective tool to help project managers in setting priorities and show places of success and failure. Moreover, it shows the management process as an important part of the success of any engineering project by several factors. First by understanding the main objectives and goals of the project and try to apply these goalsclearly on the ground, and second by developing coherent system through which the project will be implemented within clear basis. Then the exploitation of each project will be documented and used in future work. Furthermore, the researcher tried to clarify success factors in construction projects to achieve better results for engineering companies and to meet the needs of the local community projects through good qualityand best value to the engineering projects and to the Palestinian society.
Opportunities and Challenges of Open-source Initiatives in the Palestinian E-Government Program
(2011) Fadi Husam Souqia; Dr. Baker Abd El-Haq - Supervisor; Dr. Abdelbaset Rabaiah - Co- Supervisor;
The purpose of this study was to discover the opportunities and challenges of OSS adoption in the Palestinian e-government program. In addition, this study was intended to access the feasibility of OSS adoption in the Palestinian e-government program. It is also intended to study and identify the expected impact of full OSS adoption in the Palestinian e-government program. Inductive research approach was used to control this qualitative study. Structured interviews were the data collection tool used since the population size was small. A total of thirty interviews were made with the Palestinian e-government team members and the heads of IT departments at all Palestinian public sector agencies. The results of the interviews revealed that there were neither financial nor technical problems in the internal IT infrastructure in the Palestinian public sector agencies that may hamper OSS adoption. Yet, there were some problems in the level of awareness of the objectives and benefits of OSS adoption, the required expertise, the level of higher governmental leadership, support and the cross-agency cooperation among the Palestinian public sector agencies.
Software Development Process Improvement for Small Palestinian Software Development Companies
(2011) Asem Bassam Mahmoud Isawi; Dr.Baker Abdulhaq
The purpose of this study was to develop a model for small Palestinian software development firms that will help them in making a self-evaluation for their software development process and find areas to improve. A large number of universities, research centers, and associations around the world have tried to find their own answers to this issue by proposing software process improvement models that are dedicated for the use inside small and very small software enterprises. However, the proposed solutions were still too complicated and cannot be applied easily by these firms and none of them represented a solution that fits all small firms. Moreover, all of these frameworks were built such that they fit the country from which the information was gathered. Accordingly and taking into consideration the culture context when applying western SPI models for the purpose of improving software processes, the researcher has introduced a simplified framework which he named PAL-SPI that offers an easy to understand and easy to apply software process improvement framework. A quantitative research methodology was used in this study. The survey was designed based on Capability Maturity Model Integration (CMMI V1.3) and a number of models that were designed for the same purpose in other countries such as Software Process Improvement Model for Small Organizations (SPISO) model. The data was gathered with the aid of an online survey. Forty surveys were sent to small software development firms in Palestine and thirty responses were received over a period of five weeks. The response rate was seventy five percent.
E-Banking Adoption Model in Palestine
(2011) Ahmed Hatem Khrewesh; Dr. Baker Abdalhaq
This research aims at investigating Factors Influencing Customers’ Adoption of E-banking Technology in Palestine. Also, the research aims to introduce E-banking adoption model which can help the banking sector in Palestine. This model could help in spreading E-banking technology among Palestinian society. Literature was reviewed to define Research Framework which is based on the extension of Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) with Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB), Perceived Risk, Technology Usage, and Bank’s Role. The research utilized both qualitative and quantitative research methodology. Qualitative data were collected via interviews with IT bankers and specific banks’ customers. In addition, the quantitative data were gathered from a random sample of one thousand and ten (n=1010) Palestinian banks’ customers via a survey that was developed for this purpose. We retrieved seven hundred and thirty nine (n=739) questionnaires with a response rate of seventy three percent (73%). The research questionnaire was collected, coded, and entered in to SPSS v 17 in order to examine factors influencing Customers’ Adoption of E-banking Technology in Palestine. Various statistical processes were employed such as frequency, means, percentages, in order to answer and test the research questions and hypotheses. Results indicate that Perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use, attitude, and technology (Computer and Internet) usage are the most significant factors influencing E-banking adoption in Palestine. Whereas subjective norms, bank's role, perceived behavioral control, and perceived risk are influencing E-banking adoption in Palestine in less degree. Based on the research findings, Palestinian banks should work on formulating new strategies, developing their operational process, introducing services with high quality, and coordinating with other entities such as PMA, government, ICT companies that would be helpful in achieving customers’ trust and spreading E-banking technology among Palestinian society.
Integrated Manufacturing System Design For food production Facilities in Palestine
(2011) Abdallah Jamal Dweekat; Dr. Husam Arman
The purpose of this study was to develop a framework for designing an Integrated Manufacturing System which can live and interact through research environment special conditions. A successful manufacturing system designs must be capable of satisfying the strategic objectives of a company. The current manufacturing systems especially those systems used in foodstuff enterprises within this research environment, Palestine, suffer from many problems and difficulties. Both qualitative and quantitative research methodology was utilized in this study. The qualitative research data consisted of three in-depth interviews with research sample companies’ managers. The quantitative research data was gathered with the aid of a online survey. Fifty two surveys were sent to foodstuff enterprises in Palestine and thirty six responses were received. The response rate was sixty nine percent. The results of the interviews and survey revealed a high level of weaknesses in planning process prior to the establishment of Palestine foodstuff production enterprises. There is also a mismatching between markets need, production capacity, and process technology in the current enterprises. Sixty two of the responses said that they do not have any strategic objectives. More than forty per cent of the responses utilized less than fifty per cent of their production lines. In order to treat these weaknesses the researcher introduces a framework for designing an Integrated Manufacturing System (IMS) for foodstuff enterprises in Palestine. The framework develops a tool to help manufacturing system designers (1) clearly understand the different components and levels of the manufacturing system design, (2) link low-level activities and decisions to high-level goals and requirements, (3) understand the interrelationships and the integration among the different elements of a system design. Such manufacturing system enables a firm to simultaneously achieve cost, quality, flexibility, and delivery responsiveness to the customer objectives. The application section illustrates how the Integrated Manufacturing System Design (IMSD) can be applied through concurrent activities between its different functions and levels.
Maintenance Management Model For Local Municipal Services
(2011) Sa'ed Esma'el Hamdi Abu-Zanet; Dr. Ahmad Al-Ramahi
In Palestine, municipalities are responsible for providing public services to local communities; these services include but not limited to water, waste water, electricity, road network and solid waste collection and disposal. Also, Palestinian municipalities are responsible to lead local planning and development. Since maintenance plays major role in controlling quality of services provided to the public, the researcher in this research spots light on this issue by diagnosing service-maintenance current practices in Palestinian municipalities and, accordingly, proposing proper maintenance management model supported with procedures and tools to be adopted by local municipalities. The researcher has adopted a practical methodology summarized in reviewing related literature, having a look on regional/international best practices, diagnosing current practices in local municipalities and consulting with related bodies and officials, an exploratory sample of municipalities was selected for structured interviews; the selection criteria took in consideration type of municipality, size of locality, type of service provided to the public, and the geographic location. As a result of the diagnostic research, it is found that almost all Palestinian municipalities practice corrective maintenance rather than adopting proper maintenance management systems to maintain service delivery to the public; this of course affects negatively the quality and cost of service. Most municipalities don't have proper maintenance–related documentation systems. Also, most municipalities don't have clear figure about their annual cost of maintenance; this is basically due to the unclear relation between maintenance activities and spare parts consumption. Moreover, Palestinian municipalities don’t have separate Maintenance Department to manage all maintenance activities related to the different services provided by the municipality; instead each service department has a maintenance unit/team to maintain its services. It was clear to the researcher that the current maintenance management practices in Palestinian municipalities lead to less quality and more costly municipal services; therefore it is worthwhile to develop a proper maintenance management model MMM that suites the conditions of local municipalities. Actually, this Research proposes such a model to institutionalize service-maintenance operations for better quality and less cost, the proposed MMM covers both corrective and preventive maintenance, the model is also supported with the necessary procedures and tools to facilitate its implementation in local municipalities, the proposed model has no implications on municipal organizational structures and can be easily implemented by current related staff, the validity of the model was checked through direct consultation with relevant key staff at Nablus municipality. Furthermore, a proposed Structure to Computerize the MMM is presented in this Research. Computerizing the MMM will make it easier to document and retrieve maintenance-related information; this of course will strongly support the maintenance-management decision making process.
Infrastructure Security, A Total Defense Strategy: By Active/Passive Attribute Analysis & Mediating Technology Synthesis
(2011) Nabeeh Hatim Hasan Jum'ah; Dr. Raed Alqadi
Engineering efforts are oriented towards pre-designated goals. The management of any effort needs planning. Plans that do not account for uncertainty are inefficient. In efficient plans, assumptions should be reduced to the most and should corporate security. The aim of security is to guarantee the achievement of ultimate goals by reduction of assumptions and uncertainty. This study presents a mathematical analysis of security. A security model is constructed to deal with any system. Also, algorithms are developed to enhance security of systems. This study aims at integrating security in engineering and management. Based on the definition of a general system, a model for security and system analysis is suggested. The model uses the concept of clustered graph to reflect the systems' structure and dynamics. Then, the dynamics and security policies are formulated and analyzed. The impact of systems growth known as composition is studied and analyzed. Similarly the impact of system decomposition on security is analyzed. Based on the analysis of impact, an algorithm is developed to split a system to enhance security. The enforcement of security policies to a given system is studied based on the model. An algorithm to optimize using mechanisms is also developed.
إدارة الاستمرارية / حالة القطاع الصحي الفلسطيني
(2012) أسماء إبراهيم خيري سمارة; د. ايهم جعرون
تُعتبر إدارةُ استمراريةِ الأعمال فرعاً حديثاً من فروع علم الإدارة، الذي ظهرَ للتقليل من العواقب الوخيمة التي تلحقُ بالأعمال في حالات الكوارث، التي تصيبُ أغلبها بالتأكيد في وقت ما، وكذلك لمنع حدوثها في معظم الأحيان. تبعاً لبعض المحللين المختصين بالشؤون الفلسطينية, فإنه و بعد قيام السلطة الوطنية وتسلمها لمهام وزارة الصحة في العام 1994 راهنت إسرائيل على انهيار القطاع الصحي في الأراضي الفلسطينية في مدة لا تتجاوز الثلاثة أشهر. إلا أنه وبشكل غير متوقع فقد تم إنجاز عملية إصلاح واسعة في هذا المجال. لكنّ استدامة عملية الإصلاح هذه أصبحت اليوم بعيدة المنال إلى حد كبير بات معه موضوع الاستدامة حلما للمواطن الفلسطيني, و كابوسا لمطوّري و منفذّي السياسات الصحية حيث أنّ مخاطر أكثر تحدياً أخذت تنتشر على نحو متزايد. وعليه غدا تطوير خطة استمرارية العمل لوزارة الصحة الفلسطينية حاجةً ملحةً يجب أن تُأخذ على محمل الجد من قِبل إدارة هذه الوزارة. إنّ هذا البحث يعتبر محاولةً لتلبية هذه الحاجة بما يهدف إليه من تطوير خطة لاستمرارية العمل لأكبر مزود للخدمات الصحية في الأراضي الفلسطينية المحتلة ألا وهو وزارة الصحة الفلسطينية. لهذا البحث يعتبر إطار للعمل ""Framework for Action الذي رسمته منظمة الصحة العالمية الركيزة الأساسية. لذا، قد تم تحليل لبنات البناء "Building Blocks" في هذا الإطار باستخدام المنهج الموضوعي "Thematic Approach " من أجل التعرف على جميع المخاطر التي تواجه عمل وزارة الصحة الفلسطينية. ابتدأَ البحث هذا باستعراض البحوث والدراسات المتعلقة بمفهومين رئيسيين هما إدارة استمرارية الأعمال ومفهوم النُظم الصحية. أعقب ذلك إجراء عدد كبير من المقابلات وأخذ الملاحظات لتعزيز نتائج هذا البحث. لقد بات مؤكداً أن الغالبية العظمى من الأبحاث السابقة قد أسهبت في وصف هذه المخاطر بينما أوجزت عند الحديث عن الحلول. لذلك فإن هذا البحث يقدم حلولاً للمشاكل فضلاً عن تقديمه تحليلاً لها بما يعرضه من مجموعة استراتيجيات تخفيف الحدة "Mitigation Strategies". كل هذا يقدم ضمن خطة الاستمرارية هذه والتي تشتمل على مراحل نظرية وأخرى عملية قد أمكن تصويرها جميعا في إطار"Framework " تم عرضه في هذا البحث الذي يقدم أيضا توصيات ومقترحات لأبحاث قد تجرى مستقبلا. تعتبر نتائج هذا البحث ذات أهمية كبرى بما تقدمه لوزارة الصحة من أجل مساعدتِها على توفير الخدمات الصحية الآمنة، المستدامة والعالية الجودة، كذلك بما تقدمه لمختلف الأطراف المهتمة بالوضع الصحي في الأراضي الفلسطينية المحتلة. و ختاماً, يُأمل أن يُسهم هذا البحث في التعريف بهذا الفرع الجديد الذي تم تناوله من علوم الإدارة و بأهميته.
Training Needs of Engineers School Teachers In The West Bank Industrial Schools
(2012) Raed Musa Samieh Al Jammal; Dr. Abdul Fatah Shamleh
This research aimed at pinpointing the training needs of engineer teachers in the West Bank industrial schools .to achieve this objective the researcher have designed questioner as a major data collection tool. The population of the study included all school teacher engineers in the West Bank .the sample also included policy and decision makers in the ministry of Education and Higher Education institutionally the sample included all government industrial schools. Sum off 165 questioners distributed the researcher was able to collect back 143 valid questioners. Theoretical data was also collected via conducting interviews, making documentary analyses. The data was analyzed using the SPSS program and theoretical analysis. The findings of this research were classified in to five major training needs ,namely educational practices mean 3,96 , personal aspects mean 3.92, general aspects mean 3.91, evaluation and feedback mean 3.82 and administration needs mean 3.74.all the need in all aspects was rated as urgent , specifically the most sensitive training needs which were considered as very urgent are : upgrading teacher personality ,training in specialized issues, linking theory to practice, self development and professional growth. Based on research findings it was recommended to fulfill the identified training needs in a priority wise. It was also recommended that those needs should be integrated and given in a logical sequence and fulfilled as a package .the ministry of education and higher education should develop specialized training kits to enable self training for those teachers considering time limitations and functional burdens.
Decision Making in the Selection of the Exterior Walls Techniques in Affordable Housing Buildings in Palestine
(2012) Hanan Lutfe Abed-Allateef Muhsen; Dr. Riyad Abdel-Karim; Prof. Sameer Abu Eisheh
Housing is considered the most important challenge facing the Palestinian National Authority, where the housing problem in Palestine is increasing day after day in light of the steady rise in population and returnees in the face of limited land and high prices of them, rising construction costs and relatively low income level. Success in providing affordable housing depends on several factors including the reduction of construction costs, which in turn depends on the construction techniques. Construction technique is a key tool to reduce the cost of the buildings but the reduction in cost should not be on the account of the efficiency of construction, durability, and resistance to natural and geological factors, and other than that the idea of getting the house of a low-cost, regardless of the expected age and quality of construction is a short sighted idea and a cheap solution in the present but a complex problem in the future. Therefore, there is a great need for a decision making process to select the optimum technique during the preliminary engineering study to reach to cut down the construction cost with the higher efficiency of the housing unit. The aim of this study, is to improve the level of housing projects in Palestine through the selection of the proper construction techniques in terms of cost and quality in order to obtain affordable quality housing, by making (1) Review of construction techniques currently used in Palestine. (2) Determining the Criteria that influence the decision making for selecting an optimum technique and its importance to the decision-maker. (3) Providing a mechanism to evaluate the construction techniques and to be judged on by referring it to the decision criteria. Both qualitative and quantitative research methodology were utilized in this study. Eighty one questionnaires were distributed to selected local building contractors registered and classified at the Palestinian Contractors Union as first category, and fifty six responses were received. The response rate was sixty nine percent. The result of the study revealed that the construction technique currently used in Palestinian housing projects are achieving the efficiency and quality of construction required, but are not satisfactory in terms of achieving cheaper housing construction or in cutting down the production cost. Therefore, some adjustments have been made to the technique in order to exit the technique that achieves cost reduction while maintaining the efficiency required.
Evaluating the Benefits of Using Sales Force Automation Technology in the Palestinian Commercial Firms
(2012) Mohammad Hassan; Dr. Yahya Saleh
In the light of global markets’ current trend, the Palestinian market has recently witnessed consecutive implementations of different sales technologies by leading firms in different industries; one of these technologies is the sales force automation (SFA) technology. However, in spite of the fact that the adoption and use of sales technologies have been attractive topics for IT literature over the last two decades, the Palestinian empirical studies remain silent in this regard; leaving the outcomes after implementing and using the SFA technology in the Palestinian market unveiled yet. Consequently, this study tries to unfold the outcomes of SFA usage and uncover whether this technology tells success or failure stories among the Palestinian firms applying it. Based on literature review and a case study of SFA implementation by one of the leading Palestinian firms, a group of outcomes were modeled to measure the realization of SFA technology benefits from three perspectives; sales managers, salespersons, and customers. The results show that using SFA technology in the Palestinian commercial firms has achieved all of its expected outcomes as indicated by responses of sales managers, salespersons, and related customers who totally appreciate this technology and its key benefits.
Service Delivery Process Improvements for IT-based Organizations
(2012) Qutaybah Adel Khwayrah; Dr. Ayham Jaaron
Palestine is directly affected by global trends of technological advances and revolution of information technology. As a result, the concept of IT-based services becomes clear in several service sectors like banking, stock exchange, telecommunications, and internet services. This research is an ambitious initiative that addresses the problems of Palestinians IT service delivery with the goal for more organized and streamlined IT service delivery. This research aims at organizing, and governing Palestinian IT service management by building a framework that is based on ITIL international framework. The framework was built with the principles of keeping it simplified, cost effective, and the most important thing is that framework fits Palestinian IT organizations. To understand and analyze the problems of Palestinian IT services delivery, the researcher adopted mixed method (qualitative and quantitative) approach so that focus group was used to understand the problem qualitatively, and based on findings; a survey was conducted to pull the opinion of IT community quantitatively. The researcher reverts back to qualitative approach and conducted several semi-structured interviews with IT seniors to validate findings of the survey. Based on analyses of mixed method approach and literature review, the researcher addressed the major problems of IT service delivery here in Palestine. It was obvious that no clear alignment between business strategy and IT service strategy for IT organizations, at the same time, no clear end-to-end service delivery process, unclear requirements, weakness of testing methodology, unclear phases for product or service development, and requirements collection methodology should be more efficient and effective. Results of focus group, survey, and semi-structured interviews are almost aligned which indicate that the addressed problems almost exist. To treat the problems of Palestinian IT organizations service delivery that clarified throughout this research, the researcher based on literature review and data analysis findings has built Palestinian IT Service Delivery Framework (PITSDF) that has taken into consideration current problems of IT service delivery in Palestine. The framework is based on well known international framework; ITIL. PITSDF framework aims to provide Palestinian IT organizations with a simplified IT service delivery framework that is cost effective and easy implement and at the same time fits Palestinian IT organizations needs in term of providing systematic process follow for IT service delivery throughout service lifecycle. PITSDF is consisted of five key service areas; these are service strategy, design, transition, operation, and finally continual service improvements. At the end, this research has opened the door for other initiatives and endeavors to pursue in developing and improving IT service delivery in Palestine.
Continuity Management The Palestinian Health Care Sector
(2012) Asma’ Ibrahim Khere Samara; Dr. Ayham Jaaron
Business Continuity Management (BCM) is fairly considered a new area of management. It has emerged to minimize and, in many cases, to avert the damaging consequences on businesses when disasters, that will surely strike vast majority of businesses at one time or another, do actually strike. According to some analysts specialized in Palestinian affairs, after handling Palestinian health sector over to Palestinian Authority (PA) in 1994, Israel bet on collapse of this sector in a maximum period of three months. Unexpectedly, a considerably sweeping rehabilitation has been accomplished. However, as more challenging risks have increasingly become prevalent, sustainable rehabilitation has considerably become out of reach. Sustainability remains a dream for people in Occupied Palestinian Territory (OPT) and a nightmare for policy developer and implementer alike. Accordingly, developing a Business Continuity Plan (BCP) for Palestinian Ministry Of Health (PMOH) has become a necessity that must be seriously taken by top management at this ministry. This research is an attempt to satisfiy this necessity; it aims at preparing a BCP for the largest provider of health services in OPT; Ministry Of Health (MOH). However, this research starts with reviewing relevant researches and studies on two main concepts; BCM and health systems. This is followed by conducting a number of interviews, documents collection, as well as making observations to sustain the research’s findings. For this research, a "framework for action" drawn by World Health Organization (WHO) for implementation is considered the cornerstone. Its different "building blocks" are thouroughly analyzed using the thematic approach in order to reveal all risks encounter performance of MOH. However, it is confessed that vast majority of previous researches lucubrate in problems outlining while they brief when talking about solutions. Therefore, this research elaborates solutions as well as an analysis of the problem; it suggests a set of mitigation strategies. This is provided within the suggested continuity plan. This plan includes theoretical as well as practical phases that together are depicted through a framework presented by this research. Moreover, recommendations and suggestions for future researches are introduced. The output of this research is considered to have a great importance to MOH by helping it in providing safer, more sustained and high quality health services. In addition, it is considered beneficial to all parties that are interested in health system in OPT. Finally, it is hoped that this research would build awareness about this field of management and its importance.

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