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The literature review process
A literature review was carried out firstly to generate and refine the research ideas. Secondly, a critical review of the literature was conducted to examine the foundation upon which the literature was built (Saunders et al. 2000).
After the implementation of the research process (defined in Chapter 3), the researcher returned to the literature review to explore concepts and ideas introduced during the implementation phase of the research project. Figure 2.1 illustrates the literature review process applied during this research project. The following principles were adhered to during the review of the literature:
• A funnel approach was used to widely review literature before narrowing down to the issues related to the study. To this extent, the general trends in the changing world of work, business performance and eLearning were examined. The review then narrowed down to the phenomenon at hand – eLearning contributing to business performance. A further detailed review of Systems Thinking (which represents the theoretical framework of the study) was carried out. The literature review relates clearly to the research question and objectives. Figure 2.2 illustrates the boundaries of the literature review.
• Key literature was covered taking into account recognised expert opinions in each of the fields of eLearning, business performance and Systems Thinking. The criteria used for filtering literature was the:
1. relevance of the article within the defined boundaries of the study;
2. date of publication of the article;
3. additional perspectives on the intellectual puzzle (Mason, 2002) that the study was painting; and
4. the representation of different angles of a specific topic at hand (Saunders et al. 2000).
• From an ethical point of view all literature was referenced and the researcher attempted to objectively reflect the content of other people’s work (Saunders et al. 2000).
• At the end of each section, the significant implications for this study were briefly summarised.
External influences – a changing world of work
If the 1980s were about quality and the 1990s were about re-engineering, then the 2000s will be about velocity. About how quickly the nature of business will change (Gates, 1999:1).
In today’s new economy and changing world of work, corporations are increasingly facing new challenges (Gates, 1999; Handy, 2001; Porter, 2001; Thinq, n.d.; Ward & Griffiths, 1996; Weill & Broadbent, 1998). Examples of the major trends in the changing world of work are listed below.
• Integration and globalisation, with increased competition and maturing markets and growth in the services sector.
• Rapid growth in information and communication technologies and innovative solutions for the challenges in this field.
• Changing management structures – organisations are becoming flatter, smaller and leaner, including new forms of work such as telework, self-employment, subcontracting or temporary employment.
• Ageing workforce and shrinking corporate resources.
• Increasing work-pace and workload, requiring new qualifications and increasing participation of women in the workforce (Corporate Leadership Council, 2001a; European Agency for Safety and Health at Work, 2003; Thinq, n.d.).
Gates (1999), Handy (2001) and Porter (2001) report similar trends of change in the new economy with focus on the rate of change and the innovative capability of people to cope with change.
In addition, corporations are driven by the demand to show short term results no matter what circumstances exist (Thinq, n.d.; Weill & Broadbent, 1998). Firms also often have difficulty in understanding how their enterprises should react to external economic conditions. This creates frustration with business planning and performance management processes (Sribar & Van Decker, 2003). According to Gilman (2002) another huge challenge is the execution of business strategy. The reason for this is the inability of business to align the individual and departmental objectives with the overall strategy of the organisation (Gilman, 2002).
Countries and organisations have to change rapidly to accommodate the demands of the Internet economy in order to survive in a world market-place that is increasingly competitive. Countries must educate their citizens, business must train their workers and educational institutions must offer innovative programs (Cisco, 2002b:1; Gates, 1999; Parikh & Verma, 2002; Sribar & Van Decker, 2003; Van Decker, 2003).
Chapter 1: Background and research problem Page number
1.1. Introduction
1.2. The rationale for the study
1.3. The research problem
1.4 The purpose and objectives of the study
1.4. The research question
1.5. The scope of the study
1.6. The research design
1.7. Ethical considerations for the study
1.8. Criteria for judging the quality of the research
1.9. The value of the research
1.10. The research time table
1.11. Overview of the research report
Chapter 2: Literature study Page number
2.1. Introduction
2.2. The literature review process
2.3. Theoretical construct of the title
2.4. External influences – a changing world of work
2.5. Business performance
2.6. eLearning
2.7. eLearning improving business performance
2.8. Point of value creation
2.9. Systems Thinking
2.10. Summary
Chapter 3: Research methodology Page number
3.1. Introduction
3.2. The research problem and motivation for the study
3.3. Systems Thinking
3.4. The purpose and objectives of the study
3.5. The research question
3.6. The research process
3.7. The research design
3.8. The research strategy – a qualitative case study
3.9. The data collection methods and instruments
3.10. Systemic data collection / inquiry process
3.11. Criteria for judging the quality of research
3.12. Time frames for implementation of the assessment process
3.13. Sampling
3.14. Summary
Chapter 4: Making sense of the research evidence Page number
4.1. Introduction
4.2. Research question and the research process
4.3. Research Objective 1: To identify the driver problem That prevents elearning from improving business performance
4.4. Integrated digraph
4.5. Research Objective 2: To design the Systems Dynamic Model that represent the driver problem
4.6. Integrated Systems Dynamic Model
4.7. Research Objective 3: To identify the leverage point within the Systems Dynamic Model
4.8. Research Objective 4: To reflect on the effect that the behaviour of the individuals, participating in the research process, has on the research inquiry
4.9. Summary of case study evidence
Chapter 5: Reflection Page number
5.1. Introduction
5.2. Summary of the study
5.3. Methodological reflection
5.4. Substantive reflection
5.5. Scientific reflection
5.6. Recommendations
5.7. Summary
Bibliography
