This article reports a foundation survey of the extent of employment of disabled people in three sectors of industry-transportation, IT and nancial services-in two UK counties, identi es which speci c disabilities and limitations on personal skills are seen by employers as the greatest impediments to employment, proposes a new model for analysis by using a modi cation of established recording models and provides a springboard for further work. The survey reported here was based on structured interviews with personnel of cers conducted by telephone. No separate question was devoted to invitation of free comment, but the interview delivery of the questionnaire normally led to a general discussion of the issues raised, and some typical quotes and comments from respondents are included in the Results.

This article is about the Doctor of Business Administration (DBA) degrees that were developed in the UK during the 1990s. It looks at the range of programme structures, content and learning support used. The article is based on a content analysis of the 16 DBA programmes in the UK at the end of 1999. The main conclusion is that there is a tension in the form and function of DBAs through their relationship with the traditional PhD. The tension is captured in the question: To what extent do programme developers follow the design of the '`gold standard'' PhD and to what extent do they design a programme aimed at meeting the learning outcomes of the DBA that distinguish it from a PhD?

This article is about the assessment of the Doctor of Business Administration (DBA) degrees that were developed in the UK in the 1990s. The article is based on a content analysis of the 16 DBA programmes in the UK at the end of 1999. It evaluates the assessment methods found against: the assessment of students’ achievement on traditional Doctor of Philosophy degrees (PhDs); the guidelines on the assessment of DBA candidates produced by the Association of British Business Schools; and the espoused intended learning outcomes of the DBA programmes themselves. The main conclusion is that there is a tension in the assessment methods employed by DBAs through their relationship with the traditional PhD. The tension is captured in the question: should programme developers follow the assessment methods of the “gold standard” PhD or should they use assessment methods that assess the learning outcomes of the DBA that distinguish it from the traditional PhD

PurposeThe paper alerts small business employers to new dictates of the Disability Discrimination Act (2005) as it applies to learning disabilities. Then the “Learning to Work” project featured in the paper offers small business employers a set of approaches and methods for the identification of a learning‐disabled young adult candidate's training needs.Design/methodology/approachInterviews were carried out with 12 of the 52 companies in which the Breakaway‐supported employment service, operating from the Southdown Housing Association, has so far secured employment for people with learning disabilities.FindingsComments from employers in the survey represented predominantly very favourable experiences with the learning‐disabled individuals, mixed with some reservations about their need for additional training time, and their relative inflexibility in response to change of work routines.Research limitations/implicationsThe investigation was confined to SMEs in Sussex. As they stand, the methods could be used in different business sectors, but further research is planned on elicitation of candidates' personal constructs, resource modelling, and continuous training cycles.Originality/valueRecognised supported employment models were used but significantly adapted. Some methods used in the paper were new.