Victoria Hogan, Margaret Hodgins, Duncan Lewis, Sarah Maccurtain, Patricia Mannix-McNamara and Lisa Pursell
The purpose of this paper is to examine the prevalence of ill-treatment and bullying experienced by Irish workers and to explore individual and organisational predictors. The most…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to examine the prevalence of ill-treatment and bullying experienced by Irish workers and to explore individual and organisational predictors. The most recent national figures available are specific to bullying and predate the economic recession; therefore, this study is timely and investigates a broader range of negative behaviours.
Design/methodology/approach
A questionnaire survey study on a national probability sample of Irish employees was conducted (N = 1,764). The study design replicated the methodology employed in the British workplace behaviour study.
Findings
The results showed that 43% of Irish workers had experienced ill-treatment at work over the past two years, with 9% meeting the criteria for experiencing workplace bullying. A number of individual and organisational factors were found to be significantly associated with the experience of ill-treatment at work.
Research limitations/implications
This study provides national-level data on workplace ill-treatment and bullying that are directly comparable to British study findings.
Practical implications
The findings indicate that a significant number of Irish workers experience ill-treatment at work, and that workplace bullying does not appear to have decreased since the last national study was conducted in Ireland.
Social implications
This study is of use to the Irish regulator and persons responsible for managing workplace bullying cases, as it identifies high-risk work situations and contributing individual factors.
Originality/value
This study provides national Irish data on workplace behaviour and ill-treatment following a severe economic recession.
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Priya Kataria and Shelly Pandey
The purpose of this paper is to study the experiences of middle-class working mothers from the ITES (Information Technology Enabled Service) sector in India during the COVID-19…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to study the experiences of middle-class working mothers from the ITES (Information Technology Enabled Service) sector in India during the COVID-19 pandemic. Their experiences of work from home are studied in the backdrop of the ideal worker model at work and the adult worker model at home. Further, the study aims to identify the need for sustainable, inclusive practices for working mothers in Indian organizations to break the male breadwinner model in middle-class households.
Design/methodology/approach
A qualitative approach to collect data from 39 middle-class mothers working in MNCs in four metro cities in India. The semi-structured, in-depth interviews focused on their experiences of motherhood, care and work before, during and after the COVID-19 pandemic.
Findings
The pandemic made it evident that the ideal worker model in organizations and the adult worker model at home were illusions for working mothers. The results indicate a continued obligation of the “ideal worker culture” at organizations, even during the health crisis. It made the working mothers realize that they were chasing both the (ideal worker and adult worker) norms but could never achieve them. Subsequently, the male breadwinner model was reinforced at home due to the matrix of motherhood, care and work during the pandemic. The study concludes by arguing the reconstruction of the ideal worker image to make workplaces more inclusive for working mothers.
Originality/value
The study is placed in the context of Indian middle-class motherhood during the pandemic, a demography less explored in the literature. The paper puts forth various myths constituting the gendered realities of Indian middle-class motherhood. It also discusses sustainable, inclusive workplace practices for mothers from their future workplaces' standpoint, especially in post-pandemic times.
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Vanessa Yanes‐Estévez, Juan Ramón Oreja‐Rodríguez and Ana Maria García‐Pérez
The paper's aim is to develop a diagnosis of the environment of the agrifood supply chain based on members' perceptions of environmental uncertainty.
Abstract
Purpose
The paper's aim is to develop a diagnosis of the environment of the agrifood supply chain based on members' perceptions of environmental uncertainty.
Design/methodology/approach
Environmental uncertainty is defined as the lack of information about the external environment and is obtained by integrating the perceived dynamism and complexity of the environmental variables. The measurements that are used are the result of applying the Rasch methodology to the information obtained by means of a questionnaire completed by the deciders of firms in the Canary Islands (Spain). Those measures permit the complexity and dynamism perceived by the groups of firms in the supply chain together with the levels of perceived dynamism and complexity of the environmental variables to be jointly positioned on a map.
Findings
According to the perceptions of the members of the agrifood supply chain (agriculture, agrifood industry and distribution), the main sources of environmental uncertainty are demand and competitors. The agricultural sector perceives somewhat more uncertainty than agrifood industry sector, while the distribution sector perceives a stable environment.
Research limitations/implications
The paper presents a useful tool for the business population and public institutions to identify which variables are perceived as the most dynamic and complex and how those variables are perceived by each member of the agrifood supply chain.
Originality/value
The paper operationalises the proposal of Duncan by means of a new application of the Rasch methodology. The results reflect the thinking of the members of all sectors of a supply chain. It is one of the first to study the environmental uncertainty perceived in the agrifood supply chain from a strategic perspective as a fundamental antecedent of the promotion of vertical collaboration in the agrifood supply chain.
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Marc Sollosy, Rebecca M. Guidice and K. Praveen Parboteeah
The purpose of this paper is to link firms’ strategic archetypes as formulated by Miles and Snow (1978) to the more recent literature on organizational ambidexterity. Examining…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to link firms’ strategic archetypes as formulated by Miles and Snow (1978) to the more recent literature on organizational ambidexterity. Examining these obvious linkages, the paper also addresses how these firms address their entrepreneurial, engineering and administrative problem domains in relationship with the firm’s strategic archetype.
Design/methodology/approach
Data were collected from 503 firms across the US. Measures previously validated were used to collect information related to the strategic archetype as well as the three problem domains. Multiple discriminant and regression analyses were used to test the hypotheses.
Findings
Most of the hypotheses relating the entrepreneurial (exploration and exploitation), engineering (radical and incremental innovation) and administrative problem (adaptation and alignment) to the four strategic archetypes (defender, prospector, analyzer and reactor) were supported. Additionally, the authors found that the firms that had the closest alignment along the three problem domains outperformed the other firms.
Originality/value
Although the Miles and Snow typology has received considerable research attention, the obvious links with more contemporary research on organizational ambidexterity has been neglected. Through this integration, with more recent key strategic management concepts, this paper shows the utility and current relevance of the Miles and Snow archetypes.
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Ana María García-Pérez and Vanessa Yanes-Estévez
This work develops a longitudinal analysis of perceived environmental uncertainty applying the Rasch methodology (1960). The environmental uncertainty is defined as an…
Abstract
Purpose
This work develops a longitudinal analysis of perceived environmental uncertainty applying the Rasch methodology (1960). The environmental uncertainty is defined as an individual's perceived inability to predict the environment accurately (Milliken, 1987). The study focuses on analysing the state uncertainty from the perspective of the information and under the cognitive approach to the business reality.
Design/methodology/approach
Rasch measurement theory (1960) is applied, specifically the differential item functioning analysis based on the responses to a survey of SMEs.
Findings
The main sources of uncertainty for all the SMEs in the sample are two sectors in their general environment: economic and political-legal ones. These segments are the only ones in the environment that generate uncertainty that in 2016 is significantly different from that in 2019, being lower in the latter year.
Originality/value
This is a pioneering analysis of uncertainty both for its longitudinal nature and the methodology applied.
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The business process outsourcing (BPO) industry in India has always been characterized by ungodly hours, monotonous job, low perceived value, dispirited efficiency resulting to…
Abstract
Purpose
The business process outsourcing (BPO) industry in India has always been characterized by ungodly hours, monotonous job, low perceived value, dispirited efficiency resulting to high attrition level. Notwithstanding the ever rising attrition rate, it has become critical for the companies to satisfy their employees in order to retain them. The purpose of this paper is to determine what and how job‐related and demographic variables are associated with employee satisfaction of the BPO employees.
Design/methodology/approach
Data collected from 500 middle level BPO employees was analyzed using SPSS 16.0. T‐tests and Duncan's post hoc tests were done to compare the various dimensions of employee satisfaction across selected demographic variables such as gender, marital status, education, age and tenure. Correlation was done to find out the relationship between employee satisfaction and various job characteristics as well as demographic variables and finally, regression was done to find out the actual determinants of employee satisfaction.
Findings
There is difference of perception towards the job‐related variables on the basis of gender, marital status, education, age, and tenure. Correlations revealed that interpersonal relationships, career progression, salary, company policies, working conditions, and authority have significant positive relationship with employee satisfaction and only accountability had a significant negative relationship with employee satisfaction. Regression revealed the significant determinants of employee satisfaction which were interpersonal relationships, career progression, salary, gender, accountability, and authority.
Research limitations/implications
The study exclusively used surveys to poll work‐related satisfaction from the employees working only in BPO in India and considers only ten job‐related variables and five demographic variables for the study.
Practical implications
The comprehensive study of employee satisfaction is helpful for both practitioners and academicians as it helps in disentangling the perceptions about employee satisfaction and also explains the variances among various groups of demographic characteristics. This will enable organizations to correctly gauge employee satisfaction based on the job‐related and demographic characteristics.
Social implications
Now that the study has revealed the dimensions of employee satisfaction and the crucial determinants of satisfaction, each of these factors can be individually tackled to ensure employee retention.
Originality/value
The present study illuminates the existing theoretical foundations regarding employee satisfaction by exploring the detailed and ample responses provided by BPO employees in Indian industry; this can help practitioners to make robust managerial decisions.
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This paper reports on an exploratory study on workplace bullying in further education and higher educational institutions in Wales. Coverage of the study compared perceptions and…
Abstract
This paper reports on an exploratory study on workplace bullying in further education and higher educational institutions in Wales. Coverage of the study compared perceptions and experiences across six areas: workplace bullying, sexual harassment, racial harassment, sex discrimination, unfair promotional opportunities, and reduced promotion opportunities. The study methodology incorporated structured interviews with 20 key informants, a postal survey of higher/further education trade union members (NATFHE) in Wales, and in depth interviews with a small number of victims of bullying. Respondents hear of workplace bullying primarily from the broadcast media and not through internal communications. Respondents to the survey had experienced higher levels of workplace bullying than they experienced sex discrimination, sexual harassment or racial harassment. As a source of hearing about bullying, colleagues appear to provide a link that enables victims to admit to their own suffering. The perceived reasons for the bullying are linked to poor managerial training.
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Randall Croom and Janelle Wells
We investigate whether/how various kinds of experience predict managers' selection outcomes.
Abstract
Purpose
We investigate whether/how various kinds of experience predict managers' selection outcomes.
Design/methodology/approach
Drawing from personnel selection and decision-making research, we used a multilevel model to examine whether various types of experience predict employee selection outcomes in the National Basketball Association. We examined 289 selection events of basketball players by 63 general managers. Measures of general manager experience included tenure, education level, family relations, experience as a college coach, experience as a National Basketball Association Player, experience as a National Basketball Association scout and experience as a National Basketball Association coach.
Findings
College coaching experience, tenure and vicarious experience through family relations improved selection decision outcomes, while experience as a basketball player reduced the quality of selection decision outcomes. Tenure was associated with general managers’ ability to select employees who made high individual contribution to team wins; vicarious experience improved ability to select players with high peak individual performance, and college coaching experience improved general managers’ ability to select employees with higher contributions to team wins, higher peak individual performances and higher average performances over the course of players’ careers.
Originality/value
Experience’s importance is taken for granted, but this paper demonstrates that all experience is not equally effective. Notably, experience as a professional athlete did not seem to make managers better decision-makers about personnel than people who did not have that experience.
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Describes how the business networks division of Cable & Wireless has pioneered a teleworking programme called “Global Office” which enables portable computer‐using managers and…
Abstract
Describes how the business networks division of Cable & Wireless has pioneered a teleworking programme called “Global Office” which enables portable computer‐using managers and staff who travel extensively between the company’s worldwide office locations to work anywhere and at any time, to their greater convenience and at reduced cost to the company. Gives a detailed description of the global office hardware, software and architecture.
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Leadership scholar Margaret Wheatley (2006) observed that “Each of us seeks to discover a meaning to our life that is wholly and uniquely our own. We experience a deepening…
Abstract
Leadership scholar Margaret Wheatley (2006) observed that “Each of us seeks to discover a meaning to our life that is wholly and uniquely our own. We experience a deepening confidence that purpose has shaped our lives even as it moved invisibly in us. Whether we believe that we create this meaning for ourselves in a senseless world, or that it is offered to us by a purposeful universe, it is, after all, only meaning that we seek” (p. 134). At a small, private liberal arts institution in the southeast, educators attempt to traverse the complexities of chaos and meaning by integrating film into many facets of the curricular and co-curricular leadership learning process. This article highlights the background, pedagogy, and impacts of this integration and the bridge thus created between the in- and out-of-class experiences for students.