Dennis Barber III, Suhail Mohammad Ghouse, John Batchelor, Francesca Chaher, Michael L. Harris and Shanan G. Gibson
The purpose of this study was to investigate the perceptions of business students in India toward business managers (not self-employed) and entrepreneurs.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this study was to investigate the perceptions of business students in India toward business managers (not self-employed) and entrepreneurs.
Design/methodology/approach
Students’ perceptions of the ethical behaviors of business managers and entrepreneurs were measured using the Bucar and Hisrich (2001) model. The scale comprises 20 behavioral descriptors, and the students were asked to indicate the degree to which they believed entrepreneurs and business managers would consider these actions as ethical.
Findings
Responses to general items of ethical behavior demonstrated a difference in the perception of Indian students between business managers and entrepreneurs.
Originality/value
This study contributes to the field of entrepreneurship in two ways. One involves the results of the hypothesis testing presented herein to evaluate the perceptions of business students in India toward entrepreneurs and business managers. The second contribution is comparing these results to that of a similar study using a US sample (Batchelor et al., 2011) to compare the differences in perceptions toward entrepreneurs and business managers across these two nations.
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Kent K. Alipour, Dennis Barber, John H. Batchelor, Whitney Peake, Seth Jones and Tim McIlveene
Through a resource-based theoretical lens, we elucidate conditions under which family business culture (FBC) amplifies the positive effects of high-performance work systems (HPWS…
Abstract
Purpose
Through a resource-based theoretical lens, we elucidate conditions under which family business culture (FBC) amplifies the positive effects of high-performance work systems (HPWS) intensity and exacerbates the negative effects of low human capital uniqueness (HCU) on firm performance. By doing so, we answer the call for more research on the conditions under which FBC influences firm outcomes.
Design/methodology/approach
The present study sampled 226 small business owners across the USA, who provided their responses to online survey questions. Hypotheses were assessed via path analysis in MPlus 8.8, using maximum likelihood estimation.
Findings
FBC, HPWS intensity and HCU were positively associated with firm performance. Further, the HPWS intensity – firm performance and HCU – firm performance links were moderated by FBC. Specifically, increased levels of HPWS intensity were associated with greater firm performance when FBC was high, and firms with low levels of HCU tended to have particularly decreased levels of firm performance when FBC was low.
Research limitations/implications
Consistent with the resource-based view, firms' unique resources and competitive advantage may be tied to the extent to which they have an established FBC. High levels of FBC, which are characterized by shared values, loyalty, proud involvement and care toward the organization, can play a significant role in enhancing organizational performance. Family business leaders should prioritize cultivating an enhanced FBC alongside investments in HPWS and unique human capital.
Originality/value
This study contributes to understanding the theoretical underpinnings of FBC and its relationship with firm performance by examining FBC’s interaction with HPWS intensity and HCU. We highlight FBC as a valuable intangible resource that can enhance or diminish the effectiveness of other strategic resources in family firms, further extending the application of resource-based view theory in family business research.
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The first statutory meeting of the Pure Food and Health Society of Great Britain was held on October 16 at the registered offices of the Society, 20, Hanover Square, W. LORD…
Abstract
The first statutory meeting of the Pure Food and Health Society of Great Britain was held on October 16 at the registered offices of the Society, 20, Hanover Square, W. LORD CAMOYS, Chairman of the Executive Committee, presided. In opening the meeting LORD CAMOYS said:—
The significant factor about the film industry during the past few years is the sudden revolution in cinema presentation. Whilst great battles raged over the shapes of cinema…
Abstract
The significant factor about the film industry during the past few years is the sudden revolution in cinema presentation. Whilst great battles raged over the shapes of cinema screens, from Cinerama and CinemaScope to Cinemiracle, another revolution has taken place. But this has passed practically unnoticed. No headlines, no posters to publicize this event. It is the incredible expansion of the animation film industry all over the world.
Sara Delamont and Paul Atkinson
A great deal of contemporary research in education, and in the social sciences more generally, is conducted through interviews. Interview-derived accounts and narratives have been…
Abstract
A great deal of contemporary research in education, and in the social sciences more generally, is conducted through interviews. Interview-derived accounts and narratives have been used as data for many decades. We argue that, despite their popularity and their long history, such data are not always subjected to rigorous analysis. Researchers too often treat interviews as sources of insight about informants’ experiences and feelings, but pay insufficient attention to the forms and functions of such accounts. We argue that they need to be approached through the analytic lens of accounting devices and narrative structures. We exemplify this approach through ‘academic’ narratives: scientists’ discovery accounts and accounts of doctoral supervision. We emphasise how such accounts need to be examined in terms of the discursive construction of reality. Such an approach is an important corrective to the selective reporting of ‘atrocity stories’ about postgraduate education.
With multiples dominating the grocery sector, distribution has become a key factor in achieving both cost and value advantages in a highly competitive environment. John Harvey…
Abstract
With multiples dominating the grocery sector, distribution has become a key factor in achieving both cost and value advantages in a highly competitive environment. John Harvey, speaking at the IGD Convention in Birmingham, takes the view that within three years retailers will have effective control over the grocery supply chain based on over 80% central warehousing and management by information technology.
Gerald F. Burch, Andrew A. Bennett, Ronald H. Humphrey, John H. Batchelor and Athena H. Cairo
Empathy, or the process of feeling or knowing how another feels, is a critical component of social interactions, and may be of particular importance to organizational functioning…
Abstract
Purpose
Empathy, or the process of feeling or knowing how another feels, is a critical component of social interactions, and may be of particular importance to organizational functioning. This chapter addresses a literature gap on empathy in organizational contexts by providing a review of empathy research in a management setting.
Methodology/approach
We integrate the developing field of empathy research and provide a conceptual framework built on Ashkanasy’s (2003) five levels of analysis in emotions research, emphasizing within-person, between-person, interpersonal, group-level, and organization-level processes.
Findings
Our model addresses the complaint that empathy definitions are not consistent by illustrating how the level of analysis alters the view of empathy’s role in organizations.
Research implications
This multi-level model of empathy provides a framework to identify gaps in the empathy literature and make recommendations for future research.
Practical implications
This new model of empathy will help practitioners use and understand empathy by providing a structure of how empathy is manifested in organizational settings.
Originality/value
The field of empathy research has been limited by inconsistent definitions and a lack of a model that outlines how empathy is used in organizations. This multi-level model of empathy provides the necessary framework for researchers and practitioners to advance the research and practice of empathy in organizations.
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Gerald F. Burch, John H. Batchelor, Jana J. Burch and Nathan A. Heller
Family businesses consist of a family system, a business system, and an ownership system. Current undergraduate business education only prepares family business students with…
Abstract
Purpose
Family businesses consist of a family system, a business system, and an ownership system. Current undergraduate business education only prepares family business students with business system education, thereby leaving the student with a misconception of the environment in which they will work. The paper aims to discuss these issues.
Design/methodology/approach
Business education must change to provide these students with an integrated curriculum that allows them to make connections across disciplines, and provides the additional soft skills and hard skills needed to accomplish the task.
Findings
The authors propose a conception focussed curriculum to accomplish this task and make suggestions on how such a system might be implemented.
Originality/value
This approach provides family business educators with a model that they can implement, thereby better preparing family business students for their return to their family work.
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Working on the assumption that civility is the core value of R.G. Collingwood's political philosophy, the paper aims to examine the capacity of civility to curb economic excess in…
Abstract
Purpose
Working on the assumption that civility is the core value of R.G. Collingwood's political philosophy, the paper aims to examine the capacity of civility to curb economic excess in the absence of distributive justice.
Design/methodology/approach
The paper investigates the economic and political writings of Collingwood to see if they can be made to yield restraints on economic excess when based on civility alone. Comparisons are drawn between Collingwood and modern liberal philosophers such as John Rawls in order to identify where Collingwood stands on key concepts in the argument. Contrasts are established with Hobbes and Ruskin on the issues at stake, so clarifying what can be drawn from Collingwood on the specific topic under discussion.
Findings
The paper concludes that there is theoretical scope within Collingwood's political writings for a curb on economic excess in the absence of a concept of distributive justice, even though this takes a different form from the approach of modern liberals such as John Rawls.
Originality/value
It is shown that Collingwood's economic writings are relevant to modern discussions of social justice even when it is civility and not justice that is Collingwood's main focus.