""It is easier to conceptualize, conceive, and write about utopia than to actually make it happen. Thirty years ago, when some of us chose to go into academics and live more in the world of ideas, Ralph Christensen chose to go into the world of practice. To be honest, he was then and is now one of the best ‘thinkers’ in the profession — and he has shown repeatedly that he can turn ideas into action.""

For decades now, human resources professionals have sounded the drumbeat of change: HR must transform itself from an administrative function into a strategic business partner. But it has been said so often, for so long, and with so little concrete, real-life information on how to actually achieve this new mission, that the message often sounds like a wouldn’t-it-be-nice scenario.

The authors have been working with Remote Installation Services since its birth in 1999. We are really enthusiastic about working with it. From their experiences from very different customers with very different requirements to their Windows infrastructure environment, they have gained a tremendous deal of experience and in-depth knowledge with Remote Installation Services that other people can benefit from. This includes basic understanding, a lot of theory and best-practices, but also how you can stretch Remote Installation Services to really do what any system or network administrator would require. This information is essential for anyone wishing to implement Remote Installation Services and use the advanced features and tools it contains. There is much more than up grades, adding and deleting programs from a central administrator that can be done In addition it can save the cost adding a costly third party software package like Alteris to the enterprise network. This is the reason that the authors are now gathering all the experience and knowledge, and focusing on forming a single point of entry to everything you must know about Remote Installation Services in form of a book.

The book examines ethics and employment issues in contemporary Human Resource Management (HRM). Written by an international team of academics from universities in the UK, the US, Australia and New Zealand, it examines the problems and opportunities facing employers and employees. The book subdivides into three sections: Part I assesses the context of HRM; Part II analyses contemporary debates, continuity and change in HRM, and Part III proposes likely developments for the future seeking to identify a more proactive HRM approach towards ethical issues arising in employment. Distinctive features include: -Comprehensive analysis of continuity and change in employment and HRM -In-depth assessment of the ethical contribution and potential of HRM -Timely evaluation of the ethical achievements to-date of HRM in: individualized employment relations, HRM partnerships, HRM and employee performance, and strategic HRM -Detailed recommendations for HR managers and general managers encouraging more ethically aware practice -Guidance on ethical approaches to leadership, knowledge management and collective employment relations -Analysis of alternative futures for HRM as a profession and advice on how to create more rigorous and independent professional practice -A vision of a more innovative, cooperative and ethically sensitive set of HRM practices -Clear proposals for HRM on how to attain more ethical conduct