Rules, flexibility and empowerment

Rules, flexibility and empowerment

Rules are good for every organization. They ensure that most activities are done within a framework. They serve as a guide to all. However, in several smaller organizations, one should see how rules can be flexed (within a right framework and context) and how empowerment and training is important for this. When this is not done, a mid-level / junior employee is the one that usually faces the wrath of customers / visitors / clients. And importantly the clients then talk ill of the organization as a whole. In a way they are right. The employee concerned is doing what…
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AnswerThis.org — A Smart Add-On to Systematic Searching!

Finding and organizing the right research papers can often take hours — sometimes days. What if you had an assistant that could do part of this for you: finding relevant studies, summarizing them, and even giving you proper citations? That’s what AnswerThis.org (also accessible via answerthis.io) does. It’s an AI-powered research assistant that helps you ask a question or describe a topic — and then gives you a detailed, referenced summary built from scholarly papers. Using AnswerThis, you can: Get literature summaries with citations Identify research gaps — areas that need more study Save or upload papers in your own…
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Faculty, Freelancers, and Fairness: Rethinking How We Value External Experts

Faculty, Freelancers, and Fairness: Rethinking How We Value External Experts

In academia and healthcare, inviting external experts to speak or facilitate sessions is a common practice. These engagements add richness, new perspectives, and practical value to learning. But it is worth reflecting: Do our systems of honoraria and reimbursements really acknowledge the different situations of invited faculty? Sharing an Experience Not long ago, I was invited by a reputed institution to deliver a talk and facilitate a group activity. There was no honorarium given to speakers. Happens off and on. I accept that in the spirit of sharing.  But when it came to travel reimbursement, things became unexpectedly complicated. Since…
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