Jack Carson, Jacob Waddingham and Jeremy Mackey
The purpose of this research is to describe organization members' attributions for managerial responses to obviously externally caused crises. The authors draw from attribution…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this research is to describe organization members' attributions for managerial responses to obviously externally caused crises. The authors draw from attribution theory research and the actor-observer bias to argue that organization members' proximity to managerial crisis response is a key determinant of organization members' affective and behavioral outcomes following a crisis.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors develop a conceptual dual-process model of attributions that explains why organization members' judgments of managerial responsibility and associated outcomes differ depending on organization members' proximity to crisis response action.
Findings
The authors focus on organization members' attributions for the failure of managerial crisis responses to obviously externally caused crisis events. The authors present propositions regarding the impact of organization members' potential biases on their attributions for managerial crisis response. Then, the authors delineate how action proximity can assuage negative outcomes of managerial crisis response failure by encouraging an attitude of understanding and awareness of situational challenges.
Originality/value
The authors diverge from prior applications of attribution theory to crisis management by focusing on organization members' attributions of managerial crisis response failure, rather than attributions for the initial cause of the crisis itself. The authors also extend prior work that primarily focuses on crisis response strategies by instead elaborating on how organization members' attributions operate in the wake of their management's failure to effectively respond to an obviously externally caused crisis.
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This study aims to empirically examine the most common appeals recommended for use in nation branding campaigns to attract and retain skilled professionals from abroad to enhance…
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to empirically examine the most common appeals recommended for use in nation branding campaigns to attract and retain skilled professionals from abroad to enhance a country’s economic competitiveness. To assess this, the authors examine how the image and reputation of a country as a destination and location for talent compare to its actual performance in terms of attracting and retaining skilled professionals. This comparison provides useful insights into the aspects of a country’s reputation that matter most for attracting the talent it needs to enhance its competitiveness.
Design/methodology/approach
This study uses a multivariate analysis to examine a sample of 122 countries using secondary data from the World Economic Forum, the World Bank, the UNDP and other non-governmental sources, such as the Martin Prosperity Institute at the University of Toronto. It then tests the results using a sample of 35 OECD countries to assess whether they apply to all types of countries equally.
Findings
The study finds that the two most important factors for ensuring that a country is maximizing its potential to attract skilled professionals are the availability of employment and the degree of ethnic and cultural diversity within the host country. The most important factor for ensuring that a country is maximizing its potential to retain talent, the study finds, is the availability of employment. This does not mean that other factors do not matter, but employment and diversity are crucial for attracting talent from abroad.
Research limitations/implications
The study also tests the overall results of the study by using a smaller sample of 35 OECD countries. It finds that the availability of employment and high levels of GDP per capita (i.e. wealth) is important for attracting and retaining skilled professionals in more industrially developed countries.
Originality/value
This paper is one of the few empirical studies to examine nation branding to attract and retain talent from abroad to enhance national competitiveness. Its findings suggest that a multifaceted and holistic framework-based approach to nation branding to attract talent, such as that recommended by Silvanto and Ryan (2014), is less likely to work in the short term than an approach which primarily emphasizes employment and diversity.
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The Exxon Valdez oil spill in Prince William Sound in Alaska; the battle over future oil drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge in Alaska; oil spills in the Gulf of…
Abstract
The Exxon Valdez oil spill in Prince William Sound in Alaska; the battle over future oil drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge in Alaska; oil spills in the Gulf of Mexico near Galveston, Texas; medical waste pollution on the beaches of the northeast; and nuclear contamination from the Department of Energy and Department of Defense facilities have all demonstrated how endangered and fragile America's remaining natural places have become. These ecological controversies make our designated parklands even more precious and reinforce the important responsibility given to the National Park System for preserving America's natural areas.
Colette Darcy, Jimmy Hill, TJ McCabe and Philip McGovern
The purpose of this paper is to consider organisational sustainability in the small- to medium-sized enterprises (SME) context focussing on a resource-based view. The paper…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to consider organisational sustainability in the small- to medium-sized enterprises (SME) context focussing on a resource-based view. The paper overlays two contrasting perspectives: those of the SME and human resource (HR) perspectives to allow for the development of a composite model of organisational sustainability for SMEs.
Design/methodology/approach
The paper overlays four models of Carson’s (1985, 1990) small firm evolution and unique characteristics of SMEs; Wright et al.’s (2001) pertaining to the application of the resource-based view of the firm perspective to strategic HR and Boudreau and Ramstad (2005) model of effectiveness, efficiency and impact of talentship. The paper, in particular, considers the human resource management (HRM) perspectives pertaining to the overlay and considers how these might impact organisational sustainability.
Findings
An outcome of the paper is the development of a composite model to the SME and HR perspectives of organisational sustainability and its applicability to the SME context.
Research limitations/implications
The paper suggests a number of emergent areas for future research. Future research should focus on the intangible aspects and softer elements of the organisational resource base. The majority of work in this area is grounded in the positivist paradigm. Future research should consider a pluralists perspective and draw on traditions of the post-positivist paradigm, for example, social constructionism.
Practical implications
SME-support agencies and consultants who work with SMEs need, therefore, to work with them in assessing their competency spectra and then to help them develop the talent pools required to effect continued growth and success. In doing so SMEs need to be guided towards a better understanding of the traditional temporal cycle of recruitment; in essence, they need to ensure that they have the right competency set in situ in the early stages of the firms’ development.
Originality/value
This paper is unique in its approach to the examination of sustainability within the context of SMEs and, in particular, the HRM aspects which contribute towards organisational survival, growth and sustainability.
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The multiplicity of the late-night television offer is a recent phenomenon. In the late 1940s, TV was still in its experimental stage and programming was limited to certain hours…
Abstract
The multiplicity of the late-night television offer is a recent phenomenon. In the late 1940s, TV was still in its experimental stage and programming was limited to certain hours of the day. How then did late-night evolve from one dominant program to the cornucopia that exists today? To what extent did the progressive fragmentation of the media environment contribute to this exponential growth in late-night programs? To answer these questions, this chapter will look closely at three phases of late-night history: the ascendance of The Tonight Show during the Johnny Carson era, Johnny's succession when two princes vied for his late-night throne, and then finally the latest developments where a new generation of late-night royalty, which I refer to as The House of Stewart, would emerge with a plethora of shows. Simultaneously, this chapter will also delve into the media context during each phase which became increasingly fragmented leading to an explosion of new ways of experiencing television.
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Paul Harrigan, Elaine Ramsey and Patrick Ibbotson
Entrepreneurial marketing in small and medium‐sized enterprises (SMEs) is very different to marketing prescribed theoretically for large organisations. The purpose of this paper…
Abstract
Purpose
Entrepreneurial marketing in small and medium‐sized enterprises (SMEs) is very different to marketing prescribed theoretically for large organisations. The purpose of this paper is to present research evidence on the impact of internet‐based technologies (IBTs) on the customer relationship management (CRM) activities (i.e. e‐CRM) of SMEs in Ireland.
Design/methodology/approach
A mixed methods approach incorporating an online questionnaire, qualitative in‐depth interviews and projective techniques was adopted. Factor analysis was carried out on 286 respondents, which led to communication with customers and the management of customer information being distilled as key areas within e‐CRM in SMEs.
Findings
To varying extents, SMEs are adopting relatively simple IBTs to improve customer communication and information management capabilities and to create competitive advantage through e‐CRM. SMEs find the communication aspect of e‐CRM easier, but struggle to integrate customer information into their decision making. In all, e‐CRM tends to be ad hoc rather than strategic in SMEs.
Practical implications
SMEs must use technologies to compete with larger organisations in today's global marketplace. These technologies may be relatively simple, but the focus must always be on how they can impact on the relationship with the customer making it more efficient without losing effectiveness.
Originality/value
This study, by reporting how SMEs innovate in marketing, sheds light on an important theoretical and practical area. Theoretically, the paper breaks down e‐CRM into key capabilities that may apply to larger organisations as well.