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This chapter positions the current research problem on the existing literature of strategic management in the police force. With much of the focus in this study being to explore how the adoption of specialised strategy in the ADP has impacted on its performance, literature drawn from different databases would be reviewed to explore the concept of strategy and strategic management, which will be linked to operations in the police force. Emergence of innovations through specialised strategies in the police departments would be reviewed. Along with these, the key theories that can be used to explain the need for specialised strategy in the police force and the subsequent effect on the performance in the police department. One of the outstanding approaches of specialised strategy in the police force is through specialised training, which would also be highlighted in this review. Moreover, the key performance indicators and parameters that are mostly adopted in the police force are also brought into focus in this chapter. In addition, they empirical researches conducted across the world with regard to specialised strategy and performance in the police department. Throughout the review, potential gaps in literature are pointed out, which will guide the researcher in the development of conceptual framework adopted in this study in order to answer the research questions.
Freedman (2015) defines strategy as “being about maintaining a balance between ends, ways, and means; about identifying objectives, and about the resources and methods available for meeting such objectives” (p. ix). The concept of strategy is one of the management concepts that have attracted massive attention among scholars and practitioners over the recent years (Seidl & Whittington, 2014). In broader terms, some researchers consider strategy as a plan, pattern, and a perspective that people adopt as a means towards realising their vision (Langley & Tsoukas, 2016). Strategy in practice is this related to how managers adopt the strategies based on their specific organisational needs. Initial works on strategy in practice can be traced in Mintzberg’s (1973) research that investigated how managers develop and implement strategies based on the changes in their environment and the internal competencies and capabilities in their organizations. From the findings, Mintzberg found that managers follow different routines and hence adopt unique strategies. Although there has not been standard definition of strategy agreed by researchers and scholars, Bynum (2001) pointed out that the concept of strategy development and implementation is largely guided by the identification of resource and capability gaps in the organizations in respect to the vision and mission of the organizations. On this basis, therefore, the process of strategy development and implementation is guided by the need to not only achieve a competitive advantage, but also enable an organization to be in a better position to achieve its goals.
Researchers agree that strategies that fail to integrate human capital may not be sustainable because through effective human capital strategy, organizations are able to achieve sustainable competitive edge. As such, one of the fundamental strategies that Al Darmaki (2015) considers to be critical for the success in any organisation is the identification of the necessary skill requirements in an organisation and invests accordingly to human capital requirement. This is because researchers have evidenced that human capital is a central element for any successful organisation, even for capital intensive organisations (Lynch, 2015; Rao, 2016). As such, human capital development should be given a priority in strategy development in any organisation, since without the necessary skills and expertise, attaining organisational goals may not be actualised. Human capital refers to the stock of human resources and skills available in an organisation that helps it to achieve its strategic objectives (Grunig & Kuhn, 2015).
In the currently knowledge based global economy, researchers agree that human capital is a central resource in any organisation, since its effectiveness contributes massively towards successful implementation of the capital investment strategy (Wood & Watson, 2016). Considering the way environment is becoming highly dynamic as a result of globalisation, developing human capital has become an inevitable human resource management function. Among the key human capital development practices that most organisations employ include staff training through workshops and organisational learning practices, and acquisition of more skilled and experienced employees. As such, it has been agreeable by researchers that strategy development is largely centred on human capital development alongside leveraging of other strategic resources that would enable an organization to be in a position to achieve competitive advantage in performing its activities more efficiently.
Over the recent years, strategic management and planning practices have gained popularity in the public institutions, as governments seek to foster service delivery to the public. According to Hill et al. (2016), strategic planning enables organisations to establish a strategic match between their internal competencies and resources, and the external environment. What is evident in the exiting literature is that, strategic management and planning activities are largely informed by the internal environment of an organisation, and the opportunities and risks in the external environment. Researchers agree that, majority of the success organisations across the world use strategic management and planning as a tool that enables them to optimise their operations and achieve maximum productivity in their resources (Grunig & Kuhn, 2015). However, Seidl & Whittington (2014) pointed out that since organisations operate in different environments and also have unique and different internal competencies, various strategies work differently in different organisations. This implies that, there is no single strategy that suits all organisations, since one strategy may work in one organisation, but fail to yield positive results in another. As such, it has become increasingly important for organisations to analyse their organisational needs and align their strategies on their vision. From this perspective, therefore, it can be argued that strategic management and planning ought to be customised in each organisation based on its capabilities and external context in order to foster a strategic fit between the organisation’s internal and external environments.
In the spheres of management, researchers and practitioners are recognising part of successful strategic management is effective implementation practices. Although researchers acknowledge that the implementation process of strategies is the proving to be the most challenging (Pfeeffer, 1996), a study conducted by Ansoff (1999) revealed that successful implementation of strategies is mostly associated with the aligning of the strategic resources in the organisation with the organisational vision. Nonetheless, researchers agree that effective integration of the implementation strategy components including effective communication, adoption, interpretation, and action play an important role towards ensuring a successful implementation of strategies. Barney (2001) observed that, despite most practitioners knowing the importance of effective strategy implementation, more emphasis is often put on strategy formulation but when it comes to actual implementation, many of them end up failing. Although strategy implementation is very critical success factor, most of the literature seems to be dominated by focus on long-term planning and strategy ‘framework’ with scanty or very little research on the actual implementation of strategies (Alexander, 1995; Beer & Eisenstat, 2000).
Among the major reasons put forward for this noticeable scarcity of research efforts is that the aspect of strategy implementation is perceived to be less enchanting, which makes researchers face a lot of difficulties when investigating such topics. However, Mintzberg (1998) pointed out that most organisations may adopt different implementation strategies because of their differences in structures. Since the structure of an organisation largely influences the flow of information, and the nature and context of interpersonal relations in the organisation, the way strategies are implemented in a particular organisation may largely vary from the other. This can be the main reason why many scholars have yet not established a standard implementation framework for organisations, since it varies from not only one organisation to another, but also is influenced by quite a number of contextual factors (Hitt, 2013).
However, researchers agree that the basic requirement for successful implementation is to address the aspects of coordination and cooperation within organisational key stakeholders involved in the implementation of the strategy (Beer, & Eisenstat, 2000). This is because with poor coordination, it may be difficult to track down the actual process of strategy implementation in order to be in a position to monitor the actualisation of the deliverables (Grant, 2002). Nonetheless, the leadership styles in organisations play a central role towards the achievement of success in the implementation of strategies (Barney, 2001). This is because leadership that offers support, guide, and is keen on ensuring that organisations achieve its planned strategies through leading in the implementation of the project.
More importantly, research has shown that one of the emerging issues in strategic management is the role played by the board of management in not only formulating strategies, but also defining the key implementation actions (Al Darmaki, 2015). This is because strategy formulation without a clear implementation framework is bound to fail, as suggested by Freedman (2015) who argues that clear implementation actions determine largely the success of organisational strategy implementation. Nonetheless, a review of how the field of strategic planning has been evolving over the recent years is necessary. This is because unlike in the past where strategy implementation was solely a responsibility of the organisational managers, in the recent days researchers point out the emergent of multi-level teams in the implementation of strategies (Grunig, & Kuhn, 2015). For example, the emergent of project management office (PMO) in many organisations makes it easier for organisations in the planning and execution of strategic projects because it involves setting aside a team of experts to advise, control, and monitor the implementation of strategic projects in the organisations (Hill et al., 2016). This means that, modern day project implementation is faced with complexities associated with the changes in stakeholder expectations, advances in technology, and highly turbulent environment that necessitates a highly control project execution practices.
Moreover, resource allocations decision making have become proxies for the role played by managers in the implementation of strategies. As a result, researchers agree that strategy implementation has been faced by the challenges of improper understanding of the strategy by some of the players in the implementation of the strategy (Langley & Tsoukas, 2016). Considering that lack of understanding and inability to connect with the strategy makes it difficult for strategy implementers to achieve the expected deliverables, the importance of prior communication of new changes based on the proposed strategy is critical as it enables organisations to be in a position to achieve a cohesive team towards the implementation of the project. Nonetheless, the inability to establish congruence between the organisational structure and the strategy are critical in the sense that it leads to lack of strategic fit between the organisational internal environment and the strategy, and this leads to eminent failure of the organisation to successfully implement the strategy (Lynch, 2015). On this basis, failure to address the structural design in the organisational design with respect to structure of the existing organisational structure plays a central role towards determining the overall success of the project.
In the past several decades, we have witnessed advancement in technology which has largely impacted on the police organisations. Besides posing new threats to the security systems, advancement in technology has largely revolutionised the way operations in the police departments are executed. As a result, practitioners and scholars have largely engaged into the research on how the new technology and the changes in the environment have impacted on the operations of the police force. At the bottom line, researchers agree that the police forces have become more innovative by deigning more specialised strategies aimed at making their work more effective in controlling crime, especially in the wake of the advancing technology in the 21st century. As a result, institutional changes in the police force have been necessitated in the bid for organisations to be in a position to achieve their performance targets (Hitt, 2013). By restructuring their conventional ways of operations, the police department have been able to achieve strategic competitive advantages that enable them to be in a position to curb the modern day face of crimes which seems to be quite different from the traditional ones.
According to a study conducted by Grant (2002), strategic innovations that are emerging in the police departments can be attributed to advancements in technology and the changes in the environment leading resulting into new challenges. For instance, since the September 11, 2001 attack in the United States, a study conducted by White (2004) revealed that there has been a renewed interest in crime and intelligence alertness in the functions of the security agencies. In the study, White particularly pointed out that the attack of September 11 motivated the adoption of several strategic changes in the Ohio police department. However, what seems to be unclear in the field of research is whether the changes in the police field are reactive or proactive. And if they are reactive or proactive, what circumstances leads to the adoption of strategies in the police force?
It is evident from research that in the policing department have institutionalised strategic analytical functions which initiate changes and aligning of strategic resources in the departments to enable them to be in a position to respond more effectively to crimes (Miller, Wilson, & Hickson, 2004). What is apparent in the security agencies in the modern world is that, more sophisticated tactical approaches seem to be adopted, as the police departments gear up towards fighting more advanced crimes. Nonetheless, the motivations for the tactical approaches remains scantly explored in the world scholarly research, with much of research being focused on police benchmarking by the development countries’ police departments on the developed world countries (Hill, Schilling, & Jones, 2016). Nonetheless, Islam (2016) suggested the importance of crime analysis as an important approach in the police department aimed at fostering increased crime intelligence, effectiveness, and confidence from the public.
According to Ratcliffe (2008) defined out that analytical function as the process through which data is transformed into knowledge and intelligence with an aim of taking more informed decisions. Analysis involves the application of scientific methods in solving a problem by first understanding its cause-effect relationship. In the security systems, data can be described as any observation or measurement regarding to crime, disorder, and other challenges associated with fighting of crime (Genet, & Hayward, 2017; Grunig, & Kuhn, 2015). When the data is analysed, presented, and interpreted, the security agencies are more informed on the areas to focus on or improve based on their current competencies and capabilities.
The production of intelligence is discussed by Carter (2009) where he pointed out that the process analytical function in the security agencies is largely associated with collection of data, collating it, analysing, and disseminating actionable intelligence information. Although some studies (e.g. Hill et al., 2016; Lynch, 2015) argue that the analytical function in the police department is often useful in both short-term and long-term security operational planning, research on the key factors that inform the specific strategic decisions adopted by the police remains scanty. This has left too much confusion in the police agencies regarding the analytical function, given the many departments in the police force with each having its specific role and function. While in the developed countries like the United States a study conducted by Miles-Johnson, Mazerolle, Pickering & Smith (2016) revealed a high level of policing coordination between the intelligence and the criminal investigation department; very little research is available on the agencies involved in the analytical functions in the police departments in the developing countries. Lack of understanding of the analytical function of the police and the stakeholders involved in the complex chain of the analytical function in the police department especially in the developing countries creates a knowledge and practical gap. Much of the confusion is further enhanced by the dualistic nature of the police in controlling crime, and enforcing law and order.
It is also important to also note that, there are various types of analytical policing which include intelligence analysis, criminal investigation analysis, tactical crime analysis, strategic crime analysis, and administrative crime analysis. Peterson (1994) defines intelligence analysis as the analytical function concerned with the identification of networks of offenders and criminal activities in order to help in the apprehension of the perpetrators. It involves the establishment of networks aimed at tracking down activities related to organised criminal groups so as to be in a position to gather sufficient evidence to prosecute them before a court of law. As a result, based on the technology has been on the rise, it has necessitated the police force to up their systems as well in order to be able to gather sufficient and foolproof evidence against criminals and organised gang groups (Barton et al., 2016). However, although there is some research (e.g. Miles-Johnson et al., 2016) that shows most of the developed countries have specialised police departments, it has not been clear in the available literature on whether the police department have a generalised system of conducting intelligence analysis in the developing countries like UAE.
Further, criminal investigative analysis involves the construction of offender profiles for serious crimes so as to use the information to infer the characteristics of the offenders like based on their social habits, personalities, or work habits in order to be in a position to develop proactive measures against deterring such crimes in the future (Boba, 2001). Tactical crime therefore involves the characteristic profiles of offenders to establish if there is a link between crime perpetrators and certain characteristics. Unlike criminal investigative analysis, tactical crime involves the study of recent criminal incidents so as to be in a position to establish criminal behaviours and certain identity patterns and identify the ways through which the crimes can be solved (Boba, 2001). Strategic crime analysis on the other hand entails the analysis of the crime related problems in order to be in a position to identify long-term solutions for certain criminal behaviours. Further, Boba (2001) described administrative crime analysis as being related to legal, political, and practical areas of concern so as to be able to inform the public on what is expected of them. While there is sufficient research on the types of analytical functions in the police department, there is often a lot of confusion that comes as a result of semantic differences, especially when it comes to international security systems. Moreover, researchers have established that in most cases special security enforcement units hardly use analytics for intelligence functions, and rarely share information with other security units.
Strategic changes in the police department institutions necessitate the redefinition of the policing goals and align them with the changes in the environment. According to Mitrović et al. (2016), the need for innovative approaches through specialised strategies is emerging out to be one of the key areas that contemporary researchers and practitioners in the security agencies consider to be critical. However, research remains unclear on whether benchmarking in security design succeeds everywhere, since the nature of crimes vary from one country/region to another (Wood, & Watson, 2016). Nonetheless, it is important to note the changing face of technology has largely influenced global crimes, since the free movement of people from one country to another, and interconnectedness through the internet and technology presents new frontiers for criminal perpetration. From this point of view, therefore, it has emerged that benchmarking of policing operations helps to curb most of these internationally perpetrated crimes. This implies that, although researchers have not clearly pointed out the specific benchmarking practices in the police force that contribute towards improved security and performance in the disciplined forces, there is a potential link between effective benchmarking and improved security in a country; which this study seeks to explore.
A growing body of literature seems to be establishing a strategic link between specialised innovations in the police force and strategic analytic functions. Whether with the issue of the implementation of problem-oriented policing strategies, intelligence-oriented strategy, of internal security policing strategy, research confirms the importance of analytical functions. However, in the absence of strategic crime analysis team, policing departments adopt rule-driven bureaucracies with incident-driven decision making approach (Wu, Chen, & Yeh, 2010).
Although in most cases bureaucracies adopt specialisation in addressing changes and execute missions, the currently increasing uncertainties in the environment poses challenges to bureaucratic security agencies. This is because specialised units are often difficult to coordinate, resources are wasted, and in most cases they are reactive as pointed out by Gottschalk & Gudmundsen (2009). Institutionalising strategic analytical functions allows the policing agencies to be in a position to culturally and structurally transit to a mission-driven organisation that adopts problem-driven decision making. Although many organisations have been able implement innovative strategies, there is scanty evidence on how strategic decisions are implemented. Moreover, research is not clear whether one-size-fits all with regards to security strategies that can guarantee successful security systems exist. Therefore, there is need for up-to-date research on whether specialised strategies work in some of the developing countries like the UAE.
According to Harvey (2005), open systems theory is a modern-based approach in strategic management aimed at designing and creating healthy, innovative, and resilient organisations in the highly changing and turbulent world. According to Harvey, this theory is based on the influence of external environment on the strategies adopted by organisations in the sense that, it is the changes in the external environment that dictates certain changes. Nonetheless, it is important to note that, as organisations conduct their operations, they also impact or change the environment they are operating, and hence the changes in organisations are not only influenced by the external environment, but also the organisation has some impact on the environment as well. Open systems is based on the assumption that enterprises/institutions and the society are open systems, that change and influence each other over time (Alexander, 1995). This implies that, institutional strategies are not only influenced by the changes in the environment, but also the societal expectations from them as well.
According to Pfeffer & Salancik (2003), an organisation adopting open system should be active in adapting to the relationship with its external environment. This explains why most organisational strategies are informed by external factors like social changes, socio-demographic factors, economic factors, political/legal systems, and environmental changes. By focusing on the external environment, organisations are able to align their strategic resources and capabilities with the opportunities and threats in the external environment. Based on this theory, strategic management in the policy department can be considered to be largely influenced by the changes in the external environment, so as to establish a strategic fit between its strategies and the expectations of the society (Grant, 2002). This implies for sustainable relationship between the police force and its ability to effectively curb crime it means that it should remain open to receive and disseminate information to the public effectively. Through adopting an open system, it becomes easier for the police force to even respond more proactively rather than mainly being reactive.
The resource based view theory is based on the conception that organisations adopt strategic decisions based on their available resources or with an aim of making their resources more efficient and valuable (Barney, 2001). Researchers agree that each organization has its own unique resources and capabilities which enable it to be able to sustain its operations in line with its vision and mission (Barney, 2001). According to Hitt (2013), resource based is based on the concept of competitive advantage in an organisation based on its capabilities and strategic resources. For a resource to be considered to be useful to the organisation, it must be valuable, rare, difficult to imitate, and non-substitutable. This implies that, for resources and capabilities to be useful for an organisation, they should be able to add value to the organisation’s operations. According to Miller et al. (2004), strategies are developed based on the organisation’s capabilities and resources, since there should be a balance between the internal and external environment in an organisation so as to be able to foster competitive advantage. However, researchers agree that even if a resource or capability is valuable and potentially rare, without the aspect of inimitability that resource or capability may not be sustainable.
In most cases, resource based view is based on the assumption that organisational success is mainly determined by their resources and capabilities, and hence when these resources and competencies are developed to make them less vulnerable to imitations, rarity, and value to the organisational core activities contributes largely towards the success of the organisation. Although researchers acknowledge that there is now one-size-fits-all with regards to resources and capabilities in organisations (Boba, 2001); the most important factor to consider how the available resources and competencies in an organisation contributes towards the achievement of the organisation’s vision and mission. From this point of view, therefore, it can be argued that each organisation seeks to develop its own resources and capabilities that enable it to be in a position to achieve a competitive edge.
Institutional is related to deep and more resilient aspects of an organisational social structure which includes the processes through which schemes, structures, norms, and rules are established as authoritative parameters for social behaviours (Scott, 2004). Various components of the institutional theory include how behaviours and strategies are created, diffused, adopted, and adapted over space and time. The institutional theory is largely established on social relations within an organisation which has direct impact on how strategies are developed and implemented within the organisation. For example, if an organisation is characterised by highly bureaucratic culture and centralised structure, planned strategies may be faced with challenges at the implementation stage because highly bureaucratic organisations face the challenge of open communication and sharing of information, and thus it may be difficult to implement some strategies.
Moreover, the social behaviours expected of the players in the organisation plays a central role in determining how effective some strategies may be successful than others. The institutional theory assumes that organisations survive because they have a certain set of values and norms that all the stakeholders are expected to operate within in order to enable the organisation to continue enjoying their competitive advantage. Although this theory has received massive acknowledgment in academic and practical realms, it fails to define more clearly how strategic practices are related to behaviours in the organisation. This relationship is not well developed which leaves systemic gaps with regard to how institutional values and norms relate to effective strategy implementation and success.
A number of models have been established to illustrate training needs analysis in organisations. Organisation-task-person (OTP) models emphasise on training for perfection, whereas performance analysis models emphasise on performance, as they link training needs more unequivocally with the desired work behaviours (Smith-Jentsch & Sierra, 2016). Though performance analysis models have been considered to be more attractive to practitioners than OTP models, they fail to distinguish work behaviour and relevant organisational results, alongside failing to consider continual knowledge improvement among the staff members. On the other hand, OTP models integrate micro and macro analysis of the need for training in order to allow the identification of the needs of the organisation in relation to the external environment (Philips & Philips, 2016). Nonetheless, researchers acknowledge that both OTP and performance analysis models play a central role in explaining the importance and processes of training need analysis in organisations.
One of the training needs analysis models is the McGehee and Thayer’s Framework which was established by McGehee and Thayer in 1961. This model stresses the examination of the training needs in three key levels, which include the organisation, tasks, and the individuals (Philips & Philips, 2016). Based on this model, designing a training program should be guided by the organisational, operational, and individual characteristics. At organisational level, emphasis should be made on the specific requirements for the organisation to achieve its strategic goals and objectives; while at individual level emphasis is made on the identification of how employees perform their job, alongside developing their career goals (Smith-Jentsch & Sierra, 2016). On the other hand, task or operational analysis entails the identification of the nature of the tasks that need to be performed on the job and the skills, knowledge, and abilities required (Cekada, 2010). By adopting a holistic approach in training needs analysis through focusing on the organisation, operations, and staff members, it becomes easier for the organisation to achieve success.
The second model is the Content-Level Approach established by Ostroff and Ford as an extension of McGhee and Thayer (1961) framework. This model combines a dual perspective the three perspectives of training content (organisation, task, and person) and levels individual, organisational, and sub-unit. As a result, this model presents a nine cell matrix that is used to present a more detailed analysis of the training needs in an organisation than its former version presented by McGhee and Thayer. However, this model has often been criticised because of its complexity (McManus et al., 2016). Although the author succeeded in clearly defining how effective training should be guided by organisation, task, and person strategic fit, it fails to establish clear and simplified framework on how the three aspects are interrelated. Nonetheless, the theory forms a suitable starting point for determining the key elements to consider when designing a staff training and development framework where the organisational values, nature of work, and the personality of individual staff members are integrated. This model therefore has been found to be fairly useful in strategy development with regard to staff training and development, since researchers agree that at the centre of every strategy there must be a critical consideration of human resources and the type of work or activities required.
The third model is the Lutham’s Model, which represented an expended McGhee and Thayer’s (1961) model where Latham (1988) added a fourth macro-type level where he linked person analysis to demographic analysis. The demographic analysis identifies the specific needs of various worker populations in organisations. Such demographic groups in an organisation may be based on gender, age, or experience in order to identify the specific training needs in each demographic group. However, this model has received massive criticism from scholars because it fails to recognise the different abilities, expertise, or roles of individuals in the same demographic group in an organisation (McManus et al., 2016). Although researchers tend to link this theory so closely with Ostroff and Ford model, the aspect of team demographics seems to stand out in this theory; and the authors seem to recognise the importance team dynamics as an important factor that determines the success of the entire organisation. On this basis, this theory suggests rather designing training programs for individuals, much of the focus is given on the team skills requirements in order to ensure cohesive implementation of activities and projects, since when some of the team members are not fully equipped with the required skills and knowledge to execute the project, it is possible that they would derail success in the implementation of the projects. This implies that, although the complexity found in Ostroff and Ford’s theory is still apparent in Lutham’s Model, its ability to bring in the concept of demographic dynamics of staff members in various teams is an important consideration that contributes largely towards the success of strategies in organisation.
Another model is the Hierarchy of Needs Assessment Approaches, which was proposed by Gupta (2007). This model suggests that strategic needs assessment is guided by existing performance gaps, competency-based gaps, job and task analysis gaps, and skills and knowledge assessment gaps (Grunig & Kuhn, 2015). Managers are thus required to implement training programs based on priorities place in each of the needs identified. While this model has widely been supported for its practicability, critics argue that some of these needs in an organisation are inter-linked, and hence implementing one without the other may not solve the performance gaps in the organisation. It is therefore important that organisations also determine the inter-related resources and systems in an organisation in order to provide a holistic training approach. While this theory considers the importance of performance and skills gaps in organisations, managers find it easier to design training and staff development programs when they conduct skills analysis and audit among its workers in order to be able to identify the areas of focus.
Researchers agree that the police force plays a central role in responding to and preventing crime in the society (Genet & Hayward, 2017). However, because of the wide scope of crimes in the society which include technology-based crimes, domestic violence-based, traffic law offenders, and corporate-based crimes among others, it has become increasingly important for the adoption of specialised training in the police force in order to foster their effectiveness in curbing crime. Research has shown that, specialised police units are more efficient in conducting investigations and collection of evidence, coordination of operations, and providing practical solutions to the society with regard to particular types of crimes (Wood & Watson, 2016). From this perspective, therefore, it can be argued that specialised training in the police force is not only a strategic approach towards improving security in their areas of jurisdiction, but also contributes towards improved proactive responses on crime (Kumar & Kumar, 2015). As such, it has become increasingly critical for specialised officer training in the police force as a way of improving their effectiveness and performance in their work.
Researchers agree that, although sophistication in technology plays a central role towards the success of operations in the police department, the role played by human resources is considered to be the most important (Friedmann, & Cannon, 2007). As such, focusing on developing the skills and knowledge on the police officers helps them to be in a position to secure the society better against criminals and perpetrators of illegal activities. Police training is therefore considered to be an effective way through which police officers can be prepared to improve the efficiency in their work. Although researchers agree that there is no standard definition of training, since it has been evolving due to changes in the environment (Coleman, 2008); Crutchfield (2000) considered it as the process through which knowledge and skills are gained with an aim of improving the performance of individuals. In most cases, training helps to facilitate upward job mobility within the organisation, as it equips both junior and senior employees with more skills and knowledge which increases their competencies to serve in higher ranks.
However, specialised training in the police force most of the times is meant mainly to prepare them better to serve in their job, especially in the wake of highly turbulent environment. Nonetheless, researchers agree that one of the most important strategies when planning to develop the skills of police officers to conduct training needs analysis so as to be in a position to determine any gaps in the skills requirement in the organisation, and identify the training methods required (Gottschalk, & Gudmundsen, 2010). A critical focus on the concept of training needs analysis is therefore necessary in order to be in a position to understand in details what it entails.
Training need analysis is defined by McManus, O’Driscoll, Coleman & Wiles (2016) as the process of assessing the skills gap in an organisation in order to identify the specific set of skills that need to be instilled into the staff members. On this basis, training need analysis is mainly meant to identify the training needs in an organisation in order to bridge an identified skills gap due in the organisation. Training need analysis is therefore a critical strategic management tool that enables managers and organisational leaders to plan and implement training programs. According to Altschuld & Lepicki (2010), training needs analysis entails measuring the current state of skills among the staff members, and the desired state (what should be) (p. 772). The identified skills gaps informs the managers on the nature of training required on the staff members, so as to be in a position to achieve a desired state of skills in the organisation. Through an effective training need analysis, organisations are able to solve the problems of skills shortage, by identifying new and relevant skills that are necessary for the staff members in order to achieve the organisational goals and objectives more efficiently.
Existing research on training needs analysis indicates that most of the practices involving the identification of skills gaps are often conducted in the developed countries like the United States, and some Far East countries like Japan (Pickering, & Klinger, 2016). Although some few studies of training in the police department have been conducted in UEA (e.g. Barton, Ramahi & Tansley, 2016), it is yet not clear whether training needs analysis is practiced or not. This shows that there is knowledge gap with regards to the practice of training needs analysis in the police department of Abu Dhabi, and this necessitates up-to-date research to identify the key training needs analysis practices involved in the department.
The first step that Smith-Jentsch & Sierra (2016) considers to be critical in training needs analysis is the evaluation of the job and task analysis in order to identifying the special skills and knowledge required to execute the job more effectively. By conducting job and task analysis, the organisation benefits by enabling the establishing a clearer picture of what the jobs in the organisation entails, and establish performance criteria for the employees. By first understanding the nature of job and tasks required in the organisation, employees find it easier to work towards achieving their performance expectations (Ansoff, 1999). As a result, buy-in interests are stimulated among the employees, especially when they are involved in the definition of what their jobs entail. Moreover, by analysing job and task requirements in the organisation, leaders in organisations are able to guide their staff members during on-the-job training practices. Nonetheless, when the nature tasks and job requirements are clearly determined, the human resource management department is able to identify more accurately the required skills and abilities required in the organisation, it becomes easier to deign more relevant and effective training programs that equip the staff members with skills and knowledge required to complete their job more efficiently.
Further, Hitt (2013) pointed out that job and task analysis acts as benchmark to determine what knowledge, skills, and abilities are required so as to be in a position to determine the category of people to be trained or moved across/upwards within the organisation. Through conducting job and task analysis within the organisation, the management is also in a position to be able to establish the profile of their specific job positions and tasks which would help it to be able to outline the key personalities, skills, and knowledge levels for their current and future employees. Although conducting job and task analysis does not take into consideration the external environmental factors and how they can affect job performance, researchers agree that it is a basic practice that enables organisations to be in a position to determine the skills gaps in their organisation, and thus enabling them to make more informed decisions with respect to the training programs for their staff members.
Organisational analysis is also suggested by McGehee and Thayer (1961) who argues that it is important to determine when a training program is needed based on the organisational culture and changes in the external environment. Information about where and when training is required is the bottom-line of this model, as it involves an exploration of organisational wide needs. Although research is not clear whether the needs of an organisation are integrals of both internal and external environment or both; some researchers agree that organisation-wide practices are largely informed by the changes in the environment (Boba, & Crank, 2008). However, what many researchers agree is that the way many organisations operate is largely influenced by the external environment. It is therefore critical to consider how the external environment influences the way organisations operate.
Among the key environmental factors pointed out by Atkinson (2006) include political/legal environment, economic factors, socio-cultural factors, technological development, competition, and physical environment factors. Although all the factors do not have the same effect on organisations, it is important for organisations to conduct due diligence on these factors to determine their effect on their operations. This may form a basis for developing training programs in the organisations with an aim of aligning the changes in the external environment with their internal resources and competencies. In the police department, changes in law, increases in crime, advances in technology, and changes in other environmental factors largely determines the need to develop specialised program for them (Bynum, 2001). This is because given the sensitive nature of the policing functions in any country, equipping the officers with sufficient skills is not only important, but also necessary in order to foster security in the country.
Benchmarking is one of the training strategies aimed at setting standards based on an existing practice with an aim of improving performance and productivity (Coleman, 2008). Benchmarking from the best internal police practices is considered by Lynch (2015) as one of the evolving paradigm in the police force from the developing countries. It is important to note that, although the nature of crimes in various countries are influenced by contextual factors, a study conducted by Islam (2016) revealed since the psychology of crime is common across the world, training police through benchmarking from the best known police forces has been attributed to improved performance in many police departments across the world. Considering that apprehending criminals is the central rationale for the establishment of the police all over the world, learning on specific methods and tactics to curb some of the common crimes like fraud and traffic offenses are quite common all over the world; and thus the need to established specialised training programs to curb some of these crimes via benchmarking.
Although benchmarking may involve the adoption of machinery and equipments used in curbing crime, Lynch (2015) pointed out that benchmarking training of human resource on tactics and methods used to curb crime is a critical factor that determine the success of many police departments. This is because when they benchmark on human practices that are necessary to achieve sustainable crime curbing, it becomes easier for organisations to be able to not only achieve sustainable competitive advantage, but also revamp their productivity through improved staff performance. When police forces from less developed countries learn new tactics from their counterparts from the developed countries, it becomes easier even to curb global crimes because of the expertise in the police force is distributed across the world. Through benchmarking practices, therefore, police officers from developing countries are able to learn new specialised strategies that enable them to be in a position to improve on their performance. Considering that specialised training in the police force entails deeper dissemination of skills associated with a particular function, police officers that undergo specialised training are able to curb even more complicated crimes (Miles-Johnson et al., 2016).
Although some studies (e.g. Mitrović, Janković, Dopsaj, Vučković, Milojević, Pantelić, Nurkić, 2016) argue that specialised police forces are difficult to coordinate, Pickering, & Klinger (2016) suggested a framework of ensuring that police officers in various functions are not only given specialised training on their core areas of work, but also are equipped with skills and knowledge to be in a position to coordinate with other specialised forces as well. Through this strategy, it becomes easier for the police departments to respond in a coordinated manner on cases on insecurity in their country. With specialised training and development of a well coordinated security systems communication system, it becomes easier for specialised forces to share intelligence with other specialised team of police officers to act on the crimes. On this basis, adopting specialised training in the police force enables for effectiveness in dealing with crimes in a country and this contributes largely towards increased performance in the police force.
Empirical studies have established a critical link between human capital development and organisational performance (Aristovnik et al., 2014). Staff training has been pointed out by practitioners and scholars as the main staff development tool that many organisations have found useful in their strategies. Alkinani (2013) defined training as “an organised process concerned with the acquisition of capability or the maintenance of existing capability” (p. 48). As such, training aims at not only maintaining the existing skills among the staff members, but also create an opportunity to acquisition of new skills and expertise through learning experiences. In the context of this study, therefore, the need for specialised training in the police force is critical in order to enable them to be in a position to effectively manage the changing face of crime as a result of the advancing globalisation, technology, and social behaviours.
Measuring performance in the police force has attracted massive attention among scholars and practitioners in the field. While researchers agree that performance in the police force is relative, and hence there are no standard parameters of determining performance (Wu, Chen & Yeh, 2010), a study conducted by Aristovnik, Seljak, & Mencinger (2014) revealed that performance management in the police department largely relies on benchmarking from well performing police service providers. This brings in some of the key performance indicators that are used to determine performance in the police force in many countries. However, most of the developing countries have reportedly been benchmarking from the developed countries, and hence most of the KPIs in the police force are largely attributed to the police department in most developed countries.
According to Genet & Hayward (2017), some of the most common performance indicators in the police force include the number of crimes committed and reported, the number of crimes detected before being executed, complaints against the police officers, and the number of emergencies responded to and the time taken to respond to such emergencies. In the UAE, the police force heavily benchmarks from the Western countries, although there are some systemic strategies that mainly apply to the UAE context. Although each police force faces different challenges within the regions they service (area of jurisdiction), and hence one-size-fits-all approach usually does not work (Barton et al., 2016), most of the performance indicators outlined above often apply in most areas. As such, based on a study conducted by Islam (2016), the police must be accountable for their functions based on the performance indicators in order to create public confidence, which largely fosters a favourable business environment both for locals and international investors.
Although police performance has been an interesting area of research over the last few decades, research on the impact of specialised strategy in the police force in the UAE and other developing countries remains scanty. Although a study conducted by Al Darmaki (2015) revealed ADP has over the last ten years been adopting specialised strategy in its police officers, unfortunately very little research is available on the impact of the specialised strategy on the performance of the police department. Researchers agree that when individuals are specially trained on a particular function, they become more effective in their job and this contributes massively towards their improved performance in their job (Alkinani, 2013). The same applies to the police department where Andersen et al., (2015) argues that when police officers are specialised, their skills, knowledge, and abilities to curb crime are improved and thus making them more effective in their work.
On this basis, therefore, although adopting specialised strategy is pointed out by some researchers (e.g. Aristovnik, Seljak, & Mencinger, 2014) to be a recipe for uncoordinated operations in the police force, available research confirms that adopting specialised strategy in the police department would largely impact on the performance of the police officers, since it contributes towards improved skills and knowledge among the police officers to execute their job more effectively. This implies that, adopting specialised strategy in the police force can be more advantageous, as it avails special skills and tactics among the police forces, which largely enables the police officers to be more effective in their job, leading to the general improvement in performance of the entire police department (Kumar & Kumar, 2015). Nonetheless, while research points out that some parameters used to measure police performance are common, there are no standard policing practices, and hence performance measurement in the police department in various parts of the world cannot be standardised.
However, the most important consideration when measuring performance is the evaluation of the achievement of goals, targets, and working in line with the vision of the police organisation (McManus, O’Driscoll, Coleman, & Wiles, 2016). As earlier pointed out, training planning involves the identification of skills requirements in the organisation, so as to be in a position to align the training content with these skills requirement. This means that, every police department has its own unique training needs, based on its vision and operational guidelines. With very limited research of police performance measurement in the ADP, there is need for up-to-date research to determine whether the specialised strategy that has been adopted in the department over the last decade has impacted in any way on the general performance of the police department. With some researches indicating that when police officers are exposed to specialised training, they often find it easier to not only detect crimes, but also act on those crimes more diligently (Pickering & Klinger, 2016). However, the most important consideration when designing a specialised strategy is to ensure that the planned training content is well aligned with the performance expectations in the organisation in order to be able to facilitate improved performance in the police force.
A number of empirical studies have been conducted across the world to determine the impact of specialised training in the police force on their performance. Although research on specialised strategy in the police department is not widely covered, much of the available research seems to be largely based in the Western context. Specifically, scanty empirical research is available on the impact of specialised strategy in the police department in UAE. One of such studies was conducted by Ghufli (2009) on a case study of Abu Dhabi Police where much of the focus was to establish a training need analysis in the police department. With a sample of 29 police officers from the department, Ghufli’s survey found that training need analysis is scantly developed in the ADP. The researcher found out that despite the benefits of training needs analysis in the police department, training needs were scantly developed in the ADP. Nonetheless, the researcher adopted a very small sample, which to a great extent compromised the external validity and generalisability of the research findings. In addition to this weakness, the researcher’s methodology is scantly developed and it is not clear how the participants were selected. However, this study provides springboard for further investigation on specialised strategy in the ADP and the overall performance of the police department.
Further, from a research conducted by Andersen, Konstantinos, Kiskelainen, Nyman, Gustafsberg, & Arnetz (2015), special training in the special weapons and tactics (SWAT) police increased their resilience and improved their capabilities in responding to critical situations. With a research sample of 18 police from SWAT, the researchers found out that specialised training promoted their resilience, and hence improving their capabilities to work and respond to stressful situations. Similarly, an empirical research conducted by Miles-Johnson, Mazerolle, Pickering & Smith (2016), police training on the awareness of prejudice improves their effectiveness in assessing prejudiced motivated crimes. Using a sample of 1,609 from police recruits and protective service officers in the United States, the researchers found that specialised training on prejudice training among the police officers improved their ability to assess positively prejudiced motivated crime by 61%. This reflects a positive effect of specialised training among the police force on their performance.
Another study conducted by Andersen et al. (2015) in the United States to analyse post-academy training needs for a selected police school district in Texas was also analysed in this study. The research mainly focused on the identification of the internal and external factors influencing operations and training needs of staff officers already employed after the initial training. This study adopted a sample of 37 Independent School Department of police training with 425 participants in the survey. The findings obtained in the research revealed that majority of the police officers who return back for further training are brought for specialised training, which the police departments share their training needs with the school to ensure conformity with the police department expectations. What remains outstandingly convincing for this study is the way the researcher presented a comprehensive analysis of the findings from a diverse sample.
Another study conducted by Kumar & Kumar (2015) on the impact of modernisation in terms of equipments and training had any effect on the performance of the Indian police. Using output function as the analytical tool and estimating it using stochastic frontier analysis model, the researchers established a positive relationship between modernisation and police performance. However, the empirical research revealed that modern training alone is not sufficient to guarantee improved performance, since the need for modern equipments in applying the modern tactics was equally important. This implies that it is important that policy makers in the police department to consider updating both skills and equipments in the police force in order to achieve holistic increase in the performance on the police force. Moreover, in a study conducted by Pickering & Klinger (2016) on the impact of specialised safety culture training among the police on their effectiveness in the reduction on the use of force against citizens was also pointed out. This means that, adopting specialised strategy in the police contributes towards improving their moral and ethical duties on their job.
The importance of specialised physical training on the morphological characteristics and motor abilities of police trainees was explored by Mitrovic et al. (2016) in the empirical research with a sample of 137 police recruits in Brazil. The research findings revealed a significantly decreased favourable morphological characteristics and motor abilities after the students were left for 8 months without specialised training. Since morphological characteristics and their motor abilities are critical in the performance of the police force (Aristovnik et al., 2014); the findings by Mitrovic and his colleagues reveals a positive relationship between specialised police training and their performance. However, a study conducted by Landman, Nieuwenhuys & Oudejans (2015) revealed that although professional experience and specialised training had significant impact on the performance of police officer’s shooting performance under pressure, personality traits plays significant impact on the performance of the police officers. From the researcher’s findings, police officer’s performance is a function of both personality traits and professional experience and specialised training.
Further, a study conducted by Abdulla (2009) on the determinants of job satisfaction among the police staff members on Dubai revealed the importance of specialised training and availability of specialised equipments and tools to enable them do their work effectively as one of the major factors that determined staff satisfaction. With a sample of 1075 respondents and mixed research approach where data was collected using interviews and questionnaires, this study revealed that the need for achievement among the police officers was critical, and hence the need for specialised approach aimed at enabling the police officers to execute their job more effectively. Although the researcher did not explain the various training practices and specialised strategies adopted in the Dubai police department, it was clearly from the findings obtained that adopting specialised training and availing specialised equipments contributed largely towards the satisfaction of the employees, which subsequently contributed towards improved performances among the police officers.
Moreover, based on a study conducted by Al-Muhairi (2008) on the corruption and strategies to prevent it in the ADP, it was revealed that majority of the police officers engaged in corrupt deals due to lack of specialised training to enable them to be in a position to not only curb crime, but also develop strong moral and ethical connections with their job. With the research revealing that unacceptable behaviours in the police department was about 64%, and thus based on the recommendations provided specialised training and equipping the police officers with modern equipments to work with were critical determinant factors for improved service delivery in the police service. However, what was not clear from the research was on whether lack of training alone was the main contributing factor for corrupt deals in the police force. Nonetheless, it was evident that adopting specialised strategy in the police force was a recipe for improved staff performance.
Further, another study conducted by Peters & Cohen (2017) in the Canadian policing agencies with regard to specialised training provided an insight on how specialised training and performance in the police are inter-related. With data collected from RCMP and CRU in examining how officers articulated specific tasks established in their mandates, the researchers found that specialised training in the police had direct impact on the police officers’ conformity with task requirements and expectations of their job. However, the researcher pointed out the importance of coordination and communication in the police department in order to foster successful operations in prevention of crimes, as well as response to criminal activities. However, the researcher did not indicate whether benchmarking was part of the specialised training strategies in the Canadian police force or not.
Moreover, an empirical study conducted by Gottschalk & Gudsmundsen (2010) on intelligence strategy implementation using systemic literature review revealed that failure to implement new strategies in the police force can adversely affect its performance in the police force because the environment is changing very fast. As a result, organisational that fail to develop specialised strategies to deal with the changing face of technology and environmental dynamics were found by Gottschalk & Gudsmundsen to be having weak intelligence system.
Further, a study conducted by Storey & Hart (2011) to determine how the police respond to stalking with focus on risk management strategies and tactics used in ant-stalking law enforcement revealed that specialised police training is an important factor that contributes largely towards the improved performance of the police forces as reflected in the achievement of their strategic goals and objectives. However, the researchers revealed some specialised strategies were more effective than others; although they did not give the reasons for the superiority of some strategies than others.
Table 2.1 below shows a summary of the key empirical studies explored in this study, with respect to the methodologies adopted, and the main findings that each researcher presented.
Ghufli (2009) To establish a training need analysis in the police department in Abu Dhabi Police Department Survey with sample of 29 police officers from the department The findings revealed that training need analysis is scantly developed in the ADP. The researcher found out that despite the benefits of training needs analysis in the police department, training needs were scantly developed in the ADP.
Miles-Johnson, Mazerolle, Pickering & Smith (2016) To determine whether police training has any impact on the effectiveness of their assessment of prejudiced motivated crimes. A survey with a sample of 1609 police officers in the United States The researchers found that specialised training on prejudice training among the police officers improved their ability to assess positively prejudiced motivated crime by 61%.
Pickering & Klinger (2016) This study explored the impact of specialised safety culture training among the police on their effectiveness in the reduction on the use of force against citizens This study adopted systematic literature review In their research, the authors found that adopting specialised strategy in the police contributes towards improving their moral and ethical duties on their job.
Al-Muhairi (2008) To find out the extent of corruption in ADP, and the possible reasons for the levels of corruption revealed. Survey was conducted with undisclosed sample of participants from the ADP. The research findings revealed that majority of the police officers engaged in corrupt deals due to lack of specialised training to enable them to be in a position to not only curb crime, but also develop strong moral and ethical connections with their job.
Peters & Cohen (2017) The aim of this study was to explore how specialised training impacted on the performance in the police Primary data was collected data from RCMP and CRU by examining how officers articulated specific tasks established in their mandates. The researchers found that specialised training in the police had direct impact on the police officers’ conformity with task requirements and expectations of their job.
From the key literature materials reviewed, it is evident that the strategy of specialised training in the police force plays an important role towards improving their performance based on key performance indicators. However, the review of literature pointed out the important training need analysis, where the stakeholders in the police department identifies the knowledge, skills, and abilities gap in their police force departments in order to develop specialised training programs aimed at revamping the performance of the police force. As such, environmental factors (and changes) are expected to play an important role in the development the specialised training programs. In most cases, due to the advancing globalisation, it is expected that the Abu Dhabi Police would benchmark their specialised training programs from the Western countries. Figure 1 below presents the conceptual framework that would guide the researcher when conducting the study.
The literature reviewed in this study revealed that strategy development and implementation are critical for success in any organisation. With the focus in this study being in the police department, analysis of the specialised strategy implementation in the police force was conducted. Researchers agree that since the role of the police is to enforce law and order in the society in order to reduce crime, there are set of universal key performance indicators in the police force. As such, these findings reveal the importance of specialised training in the police departments, which ought to be necessitated by the specific organisational needs or changes in the external and internal environments. The importance of training needs analysis based on the nature tasks and job related aspects was emphasised by researchers in this study; which informs the nature specialised training strategy to adopt. However, the usefulness of benchmarking was found to be critical for developing countries like UAE. In the next chapter, the research methodology adopted in this study is presented.
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Compare and contrast two experiences of gender from the textual selection Yellow Wallpaper (Charlotte Perkins) and Girl (Jamaica Kincaid). What are the main topics the author finds relevant to the experience of gender? How are they represented?


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Colorful rolled out its flagship liquid-cooled graphics card, the iGame GeForce RTX 2080 Ti Neptune. The card comes with a factory-fitted all-in-one closed-loop liquid cooling solution. Unlike most other cards of this type, Colorful deployed a larger 240 mm x 120 mm radiator with two included 120 mm RGB LED fans. The business-end of the cooler includes a large pump-block on the card that makes direct contact with the RTX 2080 Ti GPU, and a base-plate which pulls some of the heat from the memory chips. The VRM area has its own aluminium channel-type heatsink that’s ventilated by a lateral-blower.
The PCB of this card features silver-plated contacts for improved conductivity. The card pulls power from a combination of three 8-pin PCIe power connectors, conditioning it using a massive 19-phase VRM. It also features dual-BIOS, with the default BIOS running the card at reference clock-speeds of 1545 MHz GPU Boost, while the second “OC BIOS” spools up GPU Boost to 1740 MHz and increases power limit. Display outputs include three DisplayPort 1.4, one HDMI 2.0, and a USB-C VirtualLink port. The company didn’t reveal pricing.

industry_corpus2: Computing & Telecommunications


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It is also important to understand that your personal circumstances can affect the loan rate you will receive. Cahoot will carry out an assessment on your loan application which may include a credit check to further understand more about you and your ability to repay. Qualifying customers who apply for a loan between £7,500 and £20,000 could receive a very low rate of 3% APR Representative.
Cahoot is a division of Santander UK PLC and specialise in providing low rate personal loans to customers without the need of securing them against an asset. With a Cahoot loan, you have the option to repay early but this may be subject to interest to the date of settlement and an additional charge.
You have not been bankrupt, had a county court judgement or an IVA in the past 6 years.

industry_corpus2: Finance & Economics


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A refurbished and extended detached period farmhouse, with superb views and spacious gardens.
GF: Porch, Entrance Hall, Utility, Kitchen, Dining Room, Conservatory, Lounge, Snug, Gym, Brick stores, Cellar.
FF: Landing, 4 Double Beds, Family Bathroom, Wet Shower Room, WC.
ST: Master Bedroom suite with en-suite Shower Room & Dressing Room.
Electric gates to spacious parking sweep.
Lawned Gardens surround House, concrete pad for Stable or further shed.
Timber Garden sheds, Brick outhouses, outside WC.
Nearby livery facility with Manage provides equestrian options.
In all about 0.45 of an acre.
The Bembows is situated on the edge of the village of Childs Ercall with unspoilt views towards the beautiful Shropshire hills, the Wrekin and far reaching countryside. The property is adjacent to a small livery yard with a manege that may appeal to those wishing to have a horse or pony nearby. The village has an active community and village hall. While further local amenities can be found in the nearby village of Hinstock which has a well-regarded primary school, post office and shop. The nearby market towns of Newport and Market Drayton have a variety of independent shops, supermarkets and leisure facilities.
Stafford train station (19miles) provides regular trains to London Euston within 1hr 20mins, plus Telford station provides regular services to Birmingham & Manchester; while the A41 is a commuter link to the A5, M54 and M6 to Midland conurbations. International airports include Manchester, East Midlands and Birmingham.
Further schools in the area include Shrewsbury School and High School, Stafford and Newport Grammars. There is a bus service from the village running to Wrekin College School. Leisure pursuits are excellent including a top class golf course at Hawkstone Park Golf Course, as well as Market Drayton Golf Course. There are also numerous opportunities in the region for walking, fishing and cycling.
The Bembows is a detached period farmhouse, occupying a delightful & convenient location on the edge of the village of Childs Ercall, North Shropshire. The house has been extended and refurbished to provide excellent modern family accommodation with a spacious part walled garden in all about 0.45 of an acre. The vendors report the house has been recently re-roofed, there are new electrics, new radiators, partial new windows & a new boiler has been recently installed.
The nearby livery yard does provide an ideal opportunity to pursue equestrian interests and have the horses/ ponies stabled within walking distance.
Conservatory with underfloor heating, tiled floor, store cupboard, French doors to patio and single door to Gardens.
Utility, off Kitchen, with tiled floor, base units, sink, space and plumbing for washing / drying machines, back entrance door to patio / gardens, loft storage hatch, boiler room off.
Dining Room with window to side gardens, store cupboard, exposed ceiling timbers.
Lounge with wooden parquet flooring, feature open fireplace, dual aspect windows, French doors to brick paved Patio and Gardens.
Snug with LPG fire, window & exposed timbers.
Gym, with external doorway, window, previously used as an Office.
Stairs to first floor via a half landing with a WC off. The spacious first floor landing would make an ideal Study or sitting area.
The landing accesses 4 double Bedrooms, many of which provide the opportunity to enjoy the wonderful views on offer.
Family Bathroom with twin sink, WC, heated towel rail, Bath & airing cupboard.
Wet Room, fully tiled Shower Room & wash basin.
The Master Bedroom suite is on the second floor and comprises a spacious double bedroom with exposed ceiling timbers, glorious views, a walk in Dressing Room and an en-suite Shower Room.
There is further attic storage available from the 2nd floor.
The property is entered off Bembows Close through double electric gates into a stoned forecourt parking sweep for multiple cars, with a brick perimeter wall. There is a wicket fence gate, with a block paved pathway leading to the house.
Largely laid to lawn, surrounding the house to three sides, with some fruit trees & patio areas ideal for outside entertaining. The garden is well enclosed by part brick walling and part perimeter hedging, providing wonderful private space for individuals to use as they choose.
There is one timber garden sheds housing the oil boiler and with storage space, there are three brick outhouses providing further storage options to the property & an outside toilet.
Exit A41 on to Hatton Road, at the Four Crosses public house. The village is sign posted as Childs Ercall. Follow the road until entering the village. Continue on Village Road, heading out of the village and Bembows Close will be on your right hand side.
Mains electricity, water, private drainage via cess pit.

industry_corpus2: Agriculture & Fisheries


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bydsign is no longer producing HDTVs.
bydsign is no longer producing displays. Last known business locations are shown and may no longer exist.


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Yann and Nicolas of Parallel Studio will be at GIF FEST 2019 to discuss their work and the rise of the vertical format.
Known for their ‘UNSATISFYING’ series that went viral online, Parallel Studio was founded in 2015 by friends – Thibault De Fournas, Yann Pineill and Nicolas Lefaucheux. Dedicated and meticulous, they have amassed an impressive body of work over the past four years, producing creative and aesthetic content for the likes of Louis Vuitton, Instagram, Lenovo, Prada and Uber.


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In today’s post Dodd-Frank executive compensation market, most companies are familiar with, and many have implemented, “shareholder-friendly policies” such as clawbacks, hedging/pledging, and stock ownership guidelines. Further, companies have grown increasingly savvy on the executive compensation policies of shareholder advisory firms such as Institutional Shareholder Services (ISS) and Glass-Lewis—specifically as they relate to Say on Pay resolutions (SoP). Most executive compensation professionals—ourselves included—do not deny the influence on voting results when a company receives the dreaded Against recommendation from one or more of the proxy advisory firms. Our research shows that when ISS and Glass-Lewis recommend Against an SoP resolution, there is an approximate 20-30% and 5-15% reduction in the voting results, respectively.
Is this causation or simply correlation? Perhaps that question cannot be answered so easily, but it is possible to study how large institutional shareholders vote on SoP in order to try and understand what factors influence their voting. Companies are already aware of who their largest shareholders are, but an understanding of their voting policies and practices can provide insights on potential shareholder reaction to executive compensation program design, program modifications, and company performance.
To gain a deeper understanding of how large institutional shareholders tend to vote on SoP, CAP compiled a list of the top 25 institutional shareholders (in terms of assets under management) that were invested in at least 250 of the companies in the S&P 500 (“Institutional Shareholders”). CAP collected voting data from Proxy Insight, a leading provider of global shareholder voting analytics.
Among these Institutional Shareholders, 92% (23 out of 25) have their own “in-house” voting policies. What that means, is that even if ISS or Glass-Lewis makes a recommendation, the Institutional Shareholder will make the final determination on its voting decision. Based on 2016 voting results, Institutional Shareholders voted Against SoP 6.6% of the time, at median, for S&P 500 companies. When we expanded the scope of our review to all U.S. public companies, we found that Institutional Shareholders voted Against SoP 8.2% of the time, at median.
Why do Against votes occur more frequently among all U.S. public companies compared to S&P 500 companies? This outcome could reflect that S&P 500 companies, in the aggregate, are larger and tend to have the resources to develop and maintain more balanced compensation programs. For example, a long-term incentive (LTI) program that is composed of a portfolio of time- and performance-based awards is viewed positively by institutional shareholders and is more common among S&P 500 companies versus all U.S. Companies. S&P 500 companies also have the capacity to lead more extensive shareholder outreach campaigns, which allows them to explain the rationale for their programs.
Although most Institutional Shareholders vote For SoP in most cases, there are some that will vote Against SoP 10% of the time or more. When voting on S&P 500 Companies, 5 out of 25 of the Institutional Shareholders vote Against 10% of the time or more. When voting on all US companies, 11 out of 25 vote Against 10% of the time or more.
Therefore, if one of your company’s major shareholders is an institutional investor that supports SoP less frequently, it is important to understand their voting guidelines, especially if your executive compensation program has practices or includes features that are viewed negatively (i.e. tax gross ups, 100% time-based LTI program, etc.).
Although most Institutional Shareholders have in-house voting policies, they do still subscribe to proxy advisory research from ISS and Glass-Lewis. Among Institutional Shareholders, 88% (22 out of 25) subscribe to ISS and 48% (12 out of 25) subscribe to Glass-Lewis. While there is only one out of these 25 Institutional Shareholders that generally automatically-votes with ISS (Principal Global Investors LLC), CAP determined that there is a correlation between an ISS or Glass-Lewis Against recommendation and voting results. When subscribing to ISS or Glass-Lewis, we found that Institutional Shareholders’ voting aligns with an Against recommendation, at median, 62% of the time for ISS subscribers and 31% of the time for Glass-Lewis subscribers. The data exhibits a greater correlation (approximately double) of vote alignment with an Against recommendation from ISS than Glass-Lewis. This may occur because Glass-Lewis recommends Against about twice as often as ISS does (16% of companies receive an Against recommendation from Glass-Lewis vs. 8% from ISS).
As mentioned above, it is not easy to confirm whether the alignment of an Against recommendation from ISS or Glass-Lewis and voting outcomes is the result of causation or simple correlation—perhaps it is a bit of both. However, when companies are trying to understand the voting practices of their institutional shareholders, knowledge of how their institutional shareholders vote in relation to an ISS or Glass-Lewis Against recommendation is a valuable input, particularly in cases where the alignment is very consistent. Since the recommendation from ISS and Glass-Lewis precedes voting, companies can predict potential outcomes based on shareholder tendencies—particularly in cases where the institutional shareholders voting tendencies are correlated with an Against recommendation a high percentage of the time.
Percent of Time Voting with Rec.
In examples where Institutional Shareholders do not have a high correlation of voting with an ISS or Glass-Lewis Against recommendation, this can generally be attributed to those Institutional Shareholders that vote For SoP a high percentage of the time in line with their own voting policies.
In our view, it is important for companies to develop a compensation program that aligns with the business strategy, promotes shareholder growth while minimizing risk, and attracts and retains key talent. Once a framework is established, companies can then overlay an understanding of the voting practices of their institutional shareholders, including specific proxy voting guidelines, voting history, as well as the alignment of voting results with ISS or Glass-Lewis recommendations. This becomes more important in cases where the institutional shareholder votes Against SoP more frequently than the norm or follows ISS and Glass-Lewis recommendations a very high percentage of the time. While some companies may engage in comprehensive shareholder outreach programs, other companies do not have the resources for large-scale shareholder engagement. For these companies, an understanding of their institutional shareholder voting policies and practices becomes an important consideration when it comes to compensation program plan design.
Legg Mason Partners Fund Advisor, LLC.


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Most newlyweds aren’t flush with cash. After all, you are just starting your life together, may be early in your careers, and might have indulged for your wedding.
Usually, home improvements and fancy décor aren’t in the budget. Luckily, DIY projects can come to the rescue.
But DIY skills don’t always come naturally. Luckily, there are plenty of free DIY classes for newlyweds to enjoy. If you’re looking to learn more about DIY, here are some great resources.
Most hardware and home improvement stores love DIYers. In fact, they’ll help you learn valuable skills for free to help you pursue your DIY dreams.
National retailers like Home Depot and Lowes are known for their free DIY classes. However, smaller chains, like Ace Hardware, and even local hardware stores may offer them too.
Typically, the free DIY classes offerings vary by season, so you’ll be able to find options that suit the time of year.
Nearly any common DIY project is the subject of at least a few YouTube videos. Since you can access YouTube without a subscription, it’s a great resource for free DIY classes.
The presentation of the information varies from one channel to the next, so you may need to explore a few before choosing one to follow. And, if you find a channel you love, you can subscribe. This makes it easy to stay on top of new videos and to find your favorites.
Home improvements shows have become incredibly popular, leading more channels to carry at least a few offerings. If you already subscribe to cable or satellite, check out HGTV, the DIY Network, and even TLC.
If you don’t pay for television, you can always see what’s available on the channel’s website. Usually, you’ll be able to find a range of helpful articles and videos that are available to everyone.
Other convenient sources of free DIY classes are blogs and forums that focus on the topic. Many bloggers are DIY enthusiasts and plenty of large forums, like Reddit, have sections that cover many kinds of projects.
Blogs tend to be more instructional, providing you with access to directions and helpful pictures. Forums may be a little more haphazard but are still incredibly valuable resources.
If you are looking for free DIY classes, check out some of the above options. You’ll likely find everything you need to take on your next project with confidence, and you won’t have to pay a dime. Just make sure to review all of the content before you commit, as not every DIY project is as easy as the last.
Do you have a favorite free DIY class? Tell us about it in the comments below.
this post is rich of tips for couple with tiny budget, thanks for sharing!

industry_corpus2: Real Estate & Construction


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Josh is a trainer, consultant and NCTJ Gold Standard accredited journalist who provides equality, diversity and inclusion advice and training to organisations’ across the private, public and the third sector.
Before Challenge, Josh worked as a Client Account Manager at Stonewall where he created and lead seminar sessions, training days and empowerment programmes. Josh also designed and delivered Stonewall’s first flagship Role Model empowerment programmes for Black Asian Minority Ethnic LGBTQ people.
Whilst at university, Josh was a student representative on Whiley’s Radio One show and worked on Ant and Dec’s Saturday Night Take away shortly after graduating.
Josh is a popular speaker at conferences and forums on a range of diversity and inclusion issues such as unconscious bias, inclusive leadership, intersectional identities and inclusive recruitment practice.

industry_corpus2: Subject Education


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Cypress Hill Tickets: All 2018-2019 Events!
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industry_corpus2: Film & Entertainment