Martin Sexton

One of the persistent contemporary American myths is of a giant, hairy, human-like beast, or Bigfoot, predominantly haunting the Pacific Northwest rainforest. But it is not a modern myth - it is a very old one. Long before Europeans arrived, indigenous native tribes across the vast continent had as many as one hundred names for it: Sasquatch being one that survives today. This myth intersects with another, thousands of miles away in the remote Himalayas, equally as old: the Yeti. In more recent times, on the highest mountain range in the world, inexplicable tracks in the snow and ice have left modern mountaineers baffled. These giant footprints uncannily echo those found in North America. Despite modernity and the pushback of nature, all attempts to extinguish the myth of Bigfoot, Sasquatch, the Yeti have failed. It remains a powerful and resilient mystery.

Innovation in Small Construction Firms promotes the benefits of innovation, and stimulate innovation capability within and between small and medium sized (SMEs) construction firms in an effort to bring in a new 'can innovate, should innovate, want to innovate' culture to the construction industry. Presenting new theoretical and practical insights and models grounded in descriptive case studies, the issues addressed include:what is the motivation to innovate? what is appropriate innovation? how can small construction firms create, manage and exploit innovation?what practice-based models, tools and techniques support the capability of small construction firms to innovate well?how does this fit in the context of leading international work in construction innovation? Findings are contextualised in the broader literature to make them of relevance to policy makers, practitioners and researchers interested in small, project-based firms in general.

This publication will take the reader on a Darwinian journey of discovery; we will examine the principles of designing classification schemes with particular emphasis on the idiosyncrasies of the financial sector. Classifications, taxonomies and typologies in general use (including the likes of ISO 10962, Bank of International Settlements OTC classification and ISDA Taxonomies) and those proposed or under development (e.g. Harmonization of the Unique Product Identifier - Dec. 2015) are explored. An investigation is undertaken as to the appropriate mechanisms for representing classifications and how they can be deployed. The potential impact on product design in the light of the new regulatory frameworks (Dodd-Frank and EMIR in particular) is investigated. The reader should bear in mind that, "All regulatory roads lead to data" and this publication is the Killer App for grappling with the minefield of financial instrument and product classification - the latest must have Sat Nav.

Managing Change in Construction Projects: a knowledge-based approach offers a new perspective on construction project change by viewing the process of change management as a knowledge-intensive activity, where team members bring their tacit and explicit knowledge into the situation; share, create and capture this collective knowledge for future re-use in similar situations. Through this knowledge-based approach, construction teams can successfully resolve and learn from change events, leading to an overall improved performance of the industry. The book will make a significant contribution to our understanding of construction project change by offering new theoretical and practical insights and models grounded in results of case studies conducted within two collaborative construction project team settings. By demonstrating how the social construction of knowledge works in construction settings, the authors challenge the prevailing change management solutions based on ‘hard’ IT approaches. They put forward a balanced view that incorporates both IT–based and socially constructed approaches to effective management of construction project change. helps construction managers to improve and learn through the process of construction project changepresents new theoretical models and offers practical guidelinesfirst research-based book to directly address project change from a knowledge-based perspectivedraws on detailed studies with construction companies, including Ballast Construction and Kier Constructionencourages a move from the information driven, process integrated approach to a knowledge-based view

From the book’s Foreword by Trevor Mole, Managing Director, Property Tectonics; President of the European Association of Building Surveyors and Construction Experts: ‘Shu-Ling and Martin have built on their research work and that of others to produce an understandable and readable insight into innovation in small professional service firms. They have successfully unravelled the complex behavioural and organisational forces taking place and created a framework to help practitioners understand the issues and to fashion the right environment in which to foster innovation and deliver economic value.’ Small professional practices in the built environment are crucial to the success and long-term viability of the design, construction and property industries. This research-based book addresses the urgent need to better understand the nature and process of innovation in these important firms. The authors offer an analysis of both why and how innovation is a key competitive factor for small professional practices in the built environment. As these practices are located in different business environments and behave in different ways to other types of industry firms, the context-specific methodology to design, implement and assess innovation in small professional practices presented in this book will appeal to researchers and practitioners in surveying and design. Innovation in Small Professional Practices in the Built Environment makes a significant contribution to an underdeveloped area of innovation by offering new theoretical and practical insights and models grounded in results from a 22-month case study of a small professional practice.

Innovation in Small Construction Firms promotes the benefits of innovation, and stimulate innovation capability within and between small and medium sized (SMEs) construction firms in an effort to bring in a new 'can innovate, should innovate, want to innovate' culture to the construction industry. Presenting new theoretical and practical insights and models grounded in descriptive case studies, the issues addressed include:what is the motivation to innovate? what is appropriate innovation? how can small construction firms create, manage and exploit innovation?what practice-based models, tools and techniques support the capability of small construction firms to innovate well?how does this fit in the context of leading international work in construction innovation? Findings are contextualised in the broader literature to make them of relevance to policy makers, practitioners and researchers interested in small, project-based firms in general.