Anne Kakkonen and Antti Virrankoski
The purpose of this paper is to document the co‐operation between a librarian of a science library and the teaching staff of a university in a project where a pilot course of…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to document the co‐operation between a librarian of a science library and the teaching staff of a university in a project where a pilot course of information literacy was constructed. The central aim of the project was to integrate information literacy teaching into the bachelor‐level studies and thus implement the national recommendation to include information literacy competency in new degree structures based on the Bologna Declaration, which aims to harmonise higher education in Europe
Design/methodology/approach
This paper describes how the pilot course of information literacy was constructed and conducted and presents the results of a feedback questionnaire which was sent to the students after the thesis course.
Findings
Based on the experiences of the teaching librarian and the feedback given by students and their teachers, the integrated information literacy course was found to be very useful and needed. After the course, students had a broader perspective on the information sources of their own subject area and on the scientific information seeking process as a whole.
Originality/value
This paper offers practical guidance for libraries in similar situations in how to co‐operate with the departments when integrating an information literacy course into thesis seminars. It also gives an example of how to construct and conduct such a course.
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Keywords
Elina M. Antila and Anne Kakkonen
The purpose of this paper is to explore the reasons behind human resource (HR) managers' participation in the international mergers and acquisitions (IM&A) process building on the…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to explore the reasons behind human resource (HR) managers' participation in the international mergers and acquisitions (IM&A) process building on the general discussion of the factors explaining the roles of HR in organisations.
Design/methodology/approach
Six sets of factors can be found to affect the roles of HR managers in general: the orientation of top management to people management; the skills, abilities and competencies of HR managers themselves; the HR function and its characteristics; the expectations that line managers have of HR; external factors; and internal factors. This review forms the basis for subsequent data analysis in the context of IM&As. The factors that contribute to HR managers' participation are studied from HR and other management's perspectives. Based on interviews with 12 corporate level managers in three Finnish international industrial companies.
Findings
The results show that top management sees the participation of HR managers as being very important and agree that it should be a common policy. The factors explaining the roles in the case organisations focused on certain factor groups and were similar across the cases. Based on empirical analysis, this study finds that the most important contributing factors to HR managers' participation are HR managers' own capability and activity throughout the IM&A process.
Originality/value
This study has analysed the reasons related to the roles of HR managers in an IM&A context in general, not just the strategic role within. Based on the case studies it seems, however, that a seat on the management team and HR managers' business competencies as well as personal skills contribute to the strategic role.
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This paper aims to review the latest management developments across the globe and pinpoint practical implications from cutting‐edge research and case studies.
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to review the latest management developments across the globe and pinpoint practical implications from cutting‐edge research and case studies.
Design/methodology/approach
This briefing is prepared by an independent writer, who adds their own, impartial, comments and places the articles in context.
Findings
Despite the recent boom in international mergers and acquisitions (IM&As) driven by globalization, technological change and deregulation, statistics show that the outcome of mergers and acquisitions (M&As) is mostly disappointing. It has been argued that the challenge of M&As is the management of people and the human resource (HR) function
Practical implications
This paper provides strategic insights and practical thinking that have influenced some of the world's leading organizations.
Originality/value
The briefing saves busy executives and researchers hours of reading time by selecting only the very best, most pertinent information and presenting it in a condensed and easy‐to‐digest format.
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Entrepreneurial self-efficacy (ESE) has a dark side largely ignored in the field of entrepreneurship education. Research in educational psychology indicates that self-efficacy is…
Abstract
Purpose
Entrepreneurial self-efficacy (ESE) has a dark side largely ignored in the field of entrepreneurship education. Research in educational psychology indicates that self-efficacy is prone to misjudgment, with novice learners often displaying overconfidence. Furthermore, this misjudgment is gendered; studies suggest that men are more likely to display overconfidence and less likely to correct erroneous self-assessments. However, realistic self-assessments are essential for effective learning strategies, pivotal for performance in the ambiguous entrepreneurial context. Therefore, this study explores whether entrepreneurship education helps mitigate overconfidence, and if this impact varies by gender.
Design/methodology/approach
Common in educational psychology, but new in the field of entrepreneurship education, a calibration design captures discrepancies between perceived and actual performance. Data from before and after an introductory undergraduate entrepreneurship course (N = 103) inform descriptive analyses, statistical comparison tests and calibration plots.
Findings
As expected, nearly all novice students showed significant overconfidence. Curiously, gender difference was only significant at the end of the course, as overconfidence had decreased among female students and increased among male students.
Originality/value
The paper advocates a more nuanced stance toward ESE, and introduces ESE accuracy as a more fitting measure of entrepreneurial overconfidence. The findings flag the common use of self-perception as a proxy for actual competence, and evoke new research avenues on (gender differences in) learning motivations of aspiring entrepreneurs. Finally, the study shares guidance for entrepreneurship educators on fostering a “healthier” level of self-efficacy for better entrepreneurial learning.