Gordon Fletcher – författare

Emerging technologies are having a profound impact upon business as individuals and organisations increasingly embrace the benefits of the ‘always on’ attitude that digital technologies produce. The use of the web, apps, cloud storage, GPS and Internet-connected devices has transformed the way we live, learn, play and interact – yet how a business can fully benefit from this transformation is not always clear. In response, this book enables students and business leaders to take a strategic and sustainable approach to realising the value of digital technologies. It offers results-driven solutions that successfully transform organisations into data-driven, people-focused businesses capable of sustainably competing at a global level.Split across four key parts, the material moves through understanding digital business to planning, implementing and assessing digital transformation. The current challenges facing all small organisations, including limited resources, financial pressures and the lack of dedicated IT departments, are explored. The authors consider the ways in which innovation can increase competitive advantage, how innovative business models can create new opportunities and how a data-driven perspective can release embedded value within the organisation. Contemporary international case studies and examples throughout each chapter bridge theory with practical application and systematically document the patterns of activities that enable success.This textbook is a vital resource for postgraduate and undergraduate students of digital business, innovation and transformation. By showing how to initiate digital transformation across an organisation, it will prepare business owners, directors and management of small- and medium-sized businesses to take strategic advantage of new and emerging technologies to stay ahead of their competition.

Increasingly graduates, and anyone who is entering employment, need an individual digital presence to stand out and showcase themselves to secure their first professional role. This book takes an employability approach to encourage those currently studying, or about to enter the world of work, to develop a set of skills that enables them to recognise and deliver an effective digital presence, firstly for themselves and then for the organisations who would employ them. It does not assume any prior technical knowledge and emphasises the value and benefits of creating a presence to actively participate in the digital economy.By structuring the chapters incrementally, the reader is guided through the development of their own presence while also being given the concepts and tools that will enable them in the future to scale this activity to suit the needs of a startup, an SME or a social business. By using well-established business principles to design a strategy, the reader is guided through the creation of a personal Theory of Change that will enable them to turn an abstract goal into an individual digital presence through a defined series of stages and intermediate change objectives. The book then proposes a series of tactics to draw out concrete actions. A range of examples and case studies from around the world feature in each chapter to showcase the range of different types of digital presence that can be created.By using a strategic and systematic process, this book draws together academic thinking with tangible and highly practical outcomes. It is essential reading for advanced undergraduate and postgraduate students studying any discipline related to the digital world, particularly digital marketing and digital business, entrepreneurship and strategy, as well as those taking employability and personal professional development programmes.

Increasingly graduates, and anyone who is entering employment, need an individual digital presence to stand out and showcase themselves to secure their first professional role. This book takes an employability approach to encourage those currently studying, or about to enter the world of work, to develop a set of skills that enables them to recognise and deliver an effective digital presence, firstly for themselves and then for the organisations who would employ them. It does not assume any prior technical knowledge and emphasises the value and benefits of creating a presence to actively participate in the digital economy.By structuring the chapters incrementally, the reader is guided through the development of their own presence while also being given the concepts and tools that will enable them in the future to scale this activity to suit the needs of a startup, an SME or a social business. By using well-established business principles to design a strategy, the reader is guided through the creation of a personal Theory of Change that will enable them to turn an abstract goal into an individual digital presence through a defined series of stages and intermediate change objectives. The book then proposes a series of tactics to draw out concrete actions. A range of examples and case studies from around the world feature in each chapter to showcase the range of different types of digital presence that can be created.By using a strategic and systematic process, this book draws together academic thinking with tangible and highly practical outcomes. It is essential reading for advanced undergraduate and postgraduate students studying any discipline related to the digital world, particularly digital marketing and digital business, entrepreneurship and strategy, as well as those taking employability and personal professional development programmes.

As organisations of all sizes become increasingly digitalised, a core management challenge remains unresolved. The ability to successfully and sustainably connect the stated vision of an organisation with its strategic plans and, in turn, with the reported reality of day-to-day operations, is largely an elusive ambition, despite the many stated advantages provided by contemporary technologies. In this book, the case is made for visual management as a method of communications, planning, learning and reporting that connects the organisation in a single, meaningful and seamless way. Throughout this book, visual management is theorised around the position that all forms of management documentation are an artefact of human construction and of the organisation itself that reflect learned patterns of activity. The book places visual management as a more intuitive and seamless method of coordinating, learning and communicating across an organisation than more traditional formats of presenting management documents. Consciously assembling the artefacts of an organisation in order to manage it introduces a layer of criticality that encourages reflection and consistency that is often absent from current management practice. The benefits that a visual approach brings to organisational management are an increasing necessity, as machine learning, robotics and process automation remove traditional roles from organisations and necessitate new views on how individuals now fit into a data-informed business. The book contributes to the academic debate regarding resource-based and knowledge-based views of the organisation by advocating a different, more holistic viewpoint and will thus appeal to academics and researchers in this area. It would also benefit students across business disciplines, whilst the practical models and tools offered will benefit directors and managers looking to implement their own visual organisational language.

As organisations of all sizes become increasingly digitalised, a core management challenge remains unresolved. The ability to successfully and sustainably connect the stated vision of an organisation with its strategic plans and, in turn, with the reported reality of day-to-day operations, is largely an elusive ambition, despite the many stated advantages provided by contemporary technologies. In this book, the case is made for visual management as a method of communications, planning, learning and reporting that connects the organisation in a single, meaningful and seamless way. Throughout this book, visual management is theorised around the position that all forms of management documentation are an artefact of human construction and of the organisation itself that reflect learned patterns of activity. The book places visual management as a more intuitive and seamless method of coordinating, learning and communicating across an organisation than more traditional formats of presenting management documents. Consciously assembling the artefacts of an organisation in order to manage it introduces a layer of criticality that encourages reflection and consistency that is often absent from current management practice. The benefits that a visual approach brings to organisational management are an increasing necessity, as machine learning, robotics and process automation remove traditional roles from organisations and necessitate new views on how individuals now fit into a data-informed business. The book contributes to the academic debate regarding resource-based and knowledge-based views of the organisation by advocating a different, more holistic viewpoint and will thus appeal to academics and researchers in this area. It would also benefit students across business disciplines, whilst the practical models and tools offered will benefit directors and managers looking to implement their own visual organisational language.

Now in its third edition, Digital and Social Media Marketing provides a practice-led approach to digital marketing. This highly regarded textbook combines academic theory with practical examples from a range of different organisations worldwide to highlight techniques for the development and maintenance of a successful digital presence. The book’s customisable models offer organisations a way to decipher their current situation and plan a clear road map for developing a marketing strategy appropriate for the digital era.This rich and accessible textbook has been fully updated to reflect the current global landscape. The content of this third edition has been expanded to:consider the concept of GDPR as a sound framework for responsible marketingoffer a greater focus on sustainable marketing throughout, linked to the UN Sustainable Development Goalsplace emphasis on the importance of crisis and reputation managementexplore the latest material in big data, data management and data privacycover the latest in martech trends, particularly related to automation, machine learning and artificial intelligenceprovide new case studies from China, India, Nigeria and across Asia, alongside student activities and questions designed to improve learning outcomesThis textbook provides a hands-on, user-friendly platform to turn skills and knowledge into a strategic advantage. It is ideal for advanced undergraduate, postgraduate and executive students of digital marketing and marketing strategy, as well as for practitioners aiming to be at the cutting edge of digital and social media marketing. Online resources include PowerPoint slides and a test bank.

Now in its third edition, Digital and Social Media Marketing provides a practice-led approach to digital marketing. This highly regarded textbook combines academic theory with practical examples from a range of different organisations worldwide to highlight techniques for the development and maintenance of a successful digital presence. The book’s customisable models offer organisations a way to decipher their current situation and plan a clear road map for developing a marketing strategy appropriate for the digital era.This rich and accessible textbook has been fully updated to reflect the current global landscape. The content of this third edition has been expanded to:consider the concept of GDPR as a sound framework for responsible marketingoffer a greater focus on sustainable marketing throughout, linked to the UN Sustainable Development Goalsplace emphasis on the importance of crisis and reputation managementexplore the latest material in big data, data management and data privacycover the latest in martech trends, particularly related to automation, machine learning and artificial intelligenceprovide new case studies from China, India, Nigeria and across Asia, alongside student activities and questions designed to improve learning outcomesThis textbook provides a hands-on, user-friendly platform to turn skills and knowledge into a strategic advantage. It is ideal for advanced undergraduate, postgraduate and executive students of digital marketing and marketing strategy, as well as for practitioners aiming to be at the cutting edge of digital and social media marketing. Online resources include PowerPoint slides and a test bank.

Emerging technologies are having a profound impact upon individuals and organisations. The “always on” attitude that digital technologies encourage brings an equal mix of benefits and challenges. The ready availability of digital technology has transformed the way we live, learn, play and interact – but how a business can turn the tools into an economic and organisational advantage is not always clear.This new edition of Strategic Digital Transformation enables students and business leaders to take a strategic and sustainable approach to realising the value of digital technologies. It offers results-driven solutions that successfully transform organisations into data-driven, people-focused businesses capable of sustainably competing at a global level. These solutions are significantly shaped by the need for organisational digital maturity, high levels of digital and cultural interoperability and the purposeful application of AI. With four key areas of focus, the material moves through understanding digital business to planning, implementing and assessing digital transformation. The current challenges facing all small organisations, including limited resources, financial pressures and the lack of dedicated IT departments, are explored. The authors consider the ways in which innovation can increase competitive advantage, how innovative business models can create new opportunities and how a data-driven perspective can release embedded value within the organisation. Contemporary international case studies and examples throughout each chapter bridge theory with practical application and systematically document the patterns of activities that enable success. All chapters have been completely revised and updated to reflect advances in technology and to highlight the social and economic consequences of digital transformation.This textbook is a vital resource for postgraduate and undergraduate students of digital business, innovation and transformation. By showing how to initiate digital transformation across an organisation, it will prepare business owners, directors and management of small- and medium-sized businesses to take strategic advantage of new and emerging technologies to stay ahead of their competition.

Emerging technologies are having a profound impact upon individuals and organisations. The “always on” attitude that digital technologies encourage brings an equal mix of benefits and challenges. The ready availability of digital technology has transformed the way we live, learn, play and interact – but how a business can turn the tools into an economic and organisational advantage is not always clear.This new edition of Strategic Digital Transformation enables students and business leaders to take a strategic and sustainable approach to realising the value of digital technologies. It offers results-driven solutions that successfully transform organisations into data-driven, people-focused businesses capable of sustainably competing at a global level. These solutions are significantly shaped by the need for organisational digital maturity, high levels of digital and cultural interoperability and the purposeful application of AI. With four key areas of focus, the material moves through understanding digital business to planning, implementing and assessing digital transformation. The current challenges facing all small organisations, including limited resources, financial pressures and the lack of dedicated IT departments, are explored. The authors consider the ways in which innovation can increase competitive advantage, how innovative business models can create new opportunities and how a data-driven perspective can release embedded value within the organisation. Contemporary international case studies and examples throughout each chapter bridge theory with practical application and systematically document the patterns of activities that enable success. All chapters have been completely revised and updated to reflect advances in technology and to highlight the social and economic consequences of digital transformation.This textbook is a vital resource for postgraduate and undergraduate students of digital business, innovation and transformation. By showing how to initiate digital transformation across an organisation, it will prepare business owners, directors and management of small- and medium-sized businesses to take strategic advantage of new and emerging technologies to stay ahead of their competition.

This book is based around two key premises: all software is an artefact of human construct and all software shapes the behaviours of those who use it directly or experience its influence indirectly. With the rise of popular consumer-facing generative AI tools, never has understanding these two premises been more important or more obscured. This book explores the relationship between people and software as a relationship between a tool and its users.Through a series of exemplar cases, it presents an examination of the historical development of software from a critical perspective, with special attention given to the consequences of using this software and assumptions made around its neutrality. The author explores the development of the World Wide Web, Word and Excel, and social media, concluding with an investigation of how the principles identified in these earlier examples are now being found within public interface generative AI tools. The book looks beyond the functionality and user interface of the software to look at it as a complex artefact of human manufacture by exploring the wider cultural and technical environment in which the software is created and considering the political, economic and social forces that come to bear on the software and become embodied within. This narrative approach provides readers with valuable insights into the influences of specific software on contemporary society and business, encouraging them to apply a critical lens to their own and their organisation’s software use.This book is a novel read for academics and students within software development, information systems, AI and critical management studies.

In this fascinating study Gordon Fletcher explores the relationship between the life and work of one of Britain's most distinguished economists, Sir Dennis Holme Robertson (1890-1963). Drawing on a wealth of previously unpublished material, novel forms of evidence - both biographical and literary, together with a fresh reading of Robertson's principal books and essays, Fletcher argues that Robertsonian economics is indelibly stamped with the impression of Robertson the man and that by better understanding the man we shall better understand his economics. He shows that this is particularly the case with respect to the way in which Robertson's thought developed and to its particular characteristics, which have often been described by commentators but never explained. Most interestingly, he accounts for Robertson's breach with his Cambridge colleague J.M. Keynes. With these insights we glimpse the hidden human face of what is all too often regarded as the bloodless discipline, the dismal science.

This book constitutes the refereed proceedings of the 12th IFIP TC 9 International Conference on Human Choice and Computers, HCC12 2016, held in Salford, UK, in September 2016. The 26 revised full papers presented were carefully reviewed and selected from 34 submissions.