Peter Eckersley

Contemporary reforms of the fire and rescue service result from two excoriating reports from the National Audit Office and the Public Accounts Committee that demonstrated the inadequacy of contemporary policy, service delivery and public assurance for fire and rescue services in England. This book focuses on the key reforms proposed by Theresa May when she was Home Secretary in response to these reports and critically examines the new National Framework and the new external Inspectorate that were created as a result. Rebuilding the Fire and Rescue Services will prove invaluable for both academics and practitioners in order to build a more efficient and effective performance regime for this essential emergency service. It demonstrates the context, the parameters, the agencies and the inter-relationships that operate within the areas of policy development, service delivery and public assurance in the service. It shows how the new national framework and the new inspectorate can be improved. Most of all it shows the need for robust data and intelligence at both the national and local levels.

This book introduces an innovative theoretical framework to identify how different systems of government shape climate policymaking arrangements at the local level. It highlights how resource interdependencies and power relationships involving municipalities, higher tiers of government and other local actors shape urban governance in two case study cities: Newcastle upon Tyne, in England, and Gelsenkirchen, in Germany. By applying the framework to policymaking in three sectors (climate change strategy, planning and each council's own corporate activities), the study shows how these relationships shape policy styles, objectives and outcomes at the local level. The book also reveals how urban policymaking arrangements in both Germany and England are evolving, as municipal governments seek to increase their capacity to address challenging policy problems whilst facing resource constraints. This book was the runner-up in the 2017 Early Career Researcher Prize in German Studies, a collaboration between the Institute for German Studies at the University of Birmingham and Peter Lang.

This comprehensive textbook considers all of the key business, management and technical issues of e-Business, examining and explaining how technologies can help organizations in both the public and private sectors conduct business in new ways. After addressing the changing nature of the e-Economy and the impact of the dot.com 'bubble' of the late 1990s, Eckersley, Harris and Jackson go on to analyse key software developments and the impact these have had on organizational practices. They then outline the legal and ethical frameworks of e-Business, and consider how companies use various e-commerce tools to enter new markets. Finally, they trace the progress public sector organizations have made in adopting e-Business practice. This is an accessible, jargon-free and focused textbook that offers readers both a technical and managerial overview of the issues surrounding e-Business. It uses illustrative cases and discussion questions to help students and managers in organizations not only to familiarize themselves with e-Business but also to equip themselves with the skills to challenge and analyze the changing business environment.

This comprehensive textbook considers all of the key business, management and technical issues of e-Business, examining and explaining how technologies can help organizations in both the public and private sectors conduct business in new ways. After addressing the changing nature of the e-Economy and the impact of the dot.com 'bubble' of the late 1990s, Eckersley, Harris and Jackson go on to analyse key software developments and the impact these have had on organizational practices. They then outline the legal and ethical frameworks of e-Business, and consider how companies use various e-commerce tools to enter new markets. Finally, they trace the progress public sector organizations have made in adopting e-Business practice. This is an accessible, jargon-free and focused textbook that offers readers both a technical and managerial overview of the issues surrounding e-Business. It uses illustrative cases and discussion questions to help students and managers in organizations not only to familiarize themselves with e-Business but also to equip themselves with the skills to challenge and analyze the changing business environment.