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Case study
Publication date: 3 January 2017

Olugbenga Adeyinka and Mary Kuchta Foster

AfrobitLink Ltd was an information technology (IT) firm with headquarters in Lagos, Nigeria. AfrobitLink started as a very small IT firm with less than two dozen staff. Within a…

Abstract

Synopsis

AfrobitLink Ltd was an information technology (IT) firm with headquarters in Lagos, Nigeria. AfrobitLink started as a very small IT firm with less than two dozen staff. Within a few years of its founding, AfrobitLink established itself as a dependable organization known for delivering high-quality IT services. However, starting in 2004, AfrobitLink experienced rapid growth as it expanded to serve the telecommunications firms taking advantage of the deregulated market. This rapid expansion resulted in many challenges for AfrobitLink. The firm rapidly expanded into all 36 states in Nigeria, hiring a manager to oversee the company’s operations in each of the states. Poor hiring practices, inadequate training, excessive spans of control, low accountability, a subjective reward system, and other cultural issues, such as a relaxed attitude to time, resulted in low motivation, high employee turnover, poor customer service, and financial losses. By 2013, the firm was operating at a loss and its reputation was in shambles. Generally, the culture was toxic: employees did not identify with the firm or care about its goals, there were no performance standards, employees were not held accountable, self-interest and discrimination prevailed. The organization was in a downward spiral. Consultants were hired to help sort out the firm’s problems but these efforts yielded few results. Ken Wilson, the founder’s son, was hired in 2014 as VP of Administration to help get the firm back on track. As a change agent, Ken had to decide how to address the issues facing the firm and how to achieve profitable growth.

Research methodology

Primary sources included interviews with the company CEO, his wife, his son, and a volunteer staff member. Secondary sources included the company website. The names of the people and the firm in the case have been changed to provide anonymity.

Relevant courses and levels

This case is intended for use in graduate courses (although it can also be used in upper level undergraduate courses) in change management/organization development, organizational behavior, leadership, or international management. For graduate courses, students may focus on application or integration of several theories or concepts. For upper level undergraduate courses, students may focus on application of a single theory or concept. Below are suggested texts or readings for each type of student by subject.

Theoretical bases

Change management theories (e.g. Lewin’s force field analysis (Schein, 1996), Kotter’s eight-step change management process (Kotter, 2007), The change kaleidoscope approach (Balogun and Hailey, 2008)), social identity theory (Tajfel, 1981), attribution theory (Kelley, 1972), leadership theories (e.g. Hersey and Blanchard, 1969), intercultural/international management theories (e.g. Hofstede, 1980, 1991).

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Article
Publication date: 7 July 2023

Julie MacInnes, Bridget Jones, Kat Frere-Smith, Vanessa Abrahamson, Tamsyn Eida, Rebecca Sharp, Heather Gage and Patricia Wilson

The Covid-19 pandemic saw a dramatic rise in the number of people volunteering to support older people shielding at home. This study aimed to determine the processes by which…

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Abstract

Purpose

The Covid-19 pandemic saw a dramatic rise in the number of people volunteering to support older people shielding at home. This study aimed to determine the processes by which volunteers were rapidly engaged in their communities and their impact on the older people who were supported and health and social care services.

Design/methodology/approach

The study took place in South East England between May–August 2020. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 88 participants including health and social care practitioners (n = 12), leaders of voluntary, community and social enterprise (VCSE) organisations (n = 25), volunteers (n = 26) and older people receiving volunteer support (n = 25). Policy and procedure documents were sourced from the VCSE organisation leaders. Data were analysed thematically according to a framework method.

Findings

The authors identified key themes of People, Process and Planning. People: volunteers had a significant, positive impact on older people in their communities, with volunteers themselves, also benefiting. Process: VCSE organisations needed to work together and with health and care providers to avoid gaps and duplication of services. VCSE organisations were able to act quickly, by-passing many complex operational procedures. However, there was a need to ensure the safety of both volunteers and older people. Planning: Looking forward, there were concerns about the long-term funding of VCSE organisations and the availability of volunteers.

Originality/value

This study took place during the first wave of the pandemic, hence, it provides a snapshot of how voluntary organisations operated at this time and highlights the importance of integration with health and care statutory services.

Details

Journal of Integrated Care, vol. 31 no. 4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1476-9018

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Article
Publication date: 1 February 1984

Tom Kilcourse

Working as a consultant in the field of team development, I frequently find myself at odds with people who have different perceptions about the nature of the work. This confusion…

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Abstract

Working as a consultant in the field of team development, I frequently find myself at odds with people who have different perceptions about the nature of the work. This confusion was actually expressed in print when in 1980, following the publication of my article on team problem diagnosis, another consultant wrote of his “simpler” method. This turned out to be the “LIFO” system. Again, similar misunderstanding arose in 1982, within a large client organisation in the public sector. The client had undergone major reorganisation, and it had been decided to create an internal consultancy role, a central function of which was to be team development. I was engaged to train those appointed to the role, with emphasis on the skills required by internal consultants. It came as some surprise therefore to be told during a seminar with some of the organisation's directors, that “team building” had recently been conducted in the area concerned. I had not yet trained the internal consultants. It emerged of course that their “team building” and my “team development” were entirely different processes. Impatient to “get things moving”, the organisation had initiated a programme of “team‐building” activity based on packaged exercises, mainly concerned with the analysis of management style.

Details

Journal of European Industrial Training, vol. 8 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0309-0590

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Article
Publication date: 4 February 2025

Viviana Andreescu and V. Paula Redman

Informed by the social disorganization theory (SDT), the study intends to identify the ecological factors most likely to predict assaults against the police recorded over five…

4

Abstract

Purpose

Informed by the social disorganization theory (SDT), the study intends to identify the ecological factors most likely to predict assaults against the police recorded over five years in a southern American state, which has a relatively large rural population.

Design/methodology/approach

The study uses aggregated county-level data on non-lethal assault against the police recorded in Kentucky between 2012 and 2016. We anticipated that structural conditions would affect directly and indirectly assaults against the police. Because predictors of social disorganization generally correlate with crimes police respond to, we hypothesized that the effects of SDT predictors on police victimization will be mediated by violent crime rates and domestic violence rates.

Findings

The study found partial empirical support for the social disorganization theory. Assaults against the police were more common in counties that had a higher proportion of female-headed households, higher rates of domestic violence citations and higher violent crime rates. Conversely, police victimization was less common in densely populated areas and in counties with higher poverty rates. While family disruption had significant direct and indirect positive effects on police victimization, the significant positive effect of ethnic heterogeneity (percent Black population) was only indirect. Residential instability did not predict significant variations in police victimization.

Originality/value

To our knowledge, no prior research attempted to determine if SDT is a valid theoretical framework when non-lethal assaults on police are examined beyond metropolitan areas. This analysis extends to counties research assessing the effects of structural conditions on nonfatal assaults against the police. Additionally, by including domestic violence among the correlates of police victimization, the current macro-level study addresses an apparent gap in the literature.

Details

Policing: An International Journal, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1363-951X

Keywords

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Article
Publication date: 1 April 1950

The papers in this issue were given at the 25th Annual Conference, held at Bristol University from 22nd to 25th September, 1950. Some 230 delegates from the British Isles, the…

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Abstract

The papers in this issue were given at the 25th Annual Conference, held at Bristol University from 22nd to 25th September, 1950. Some 230 delegates from the British Isles, the Commonwealth and Europe were welcomed to dinner on Friday evening by Sir Philip Morris, C.B.E., M.A., Vice‐Chancellor of the University, and Lady Morris. No papers were given on Friday evening, Mr. J. E. Wright arranging an informal dance after dinner.

Details

Aslib Proceedings, vol. 2 no. 4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0001-253X

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Article
Publication date: 1 June 1977

Trade official, Sir Fred Catherwood, explains why North Sea oil will impose tough new demands on industry, while companies discuss their problems — and achievements — at an export…

23

Abstract

Trade official, Sir Fred Catherwood, explains why North Sea oil will impose tough new demands on industry, while companies discuss their problems — and achievements — at an export conference.

Details

Industrial Management, vol. 77 no. 6
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0007-6929

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Article
Publication date: 1 February 1993

Eve Wilson

Hypertext is the computer storage of information as fragmented but linked multi‐dimensional documents. Such systems offer many advantages over the printed word, for example for…

41

Abstract

Hypertext is the computer storage of information as fragmented but linked multi‐dimensional documents. Such systems offer many advantages over the printed word, for example for group authorship of documents or to allow more creative access to the data, although there are some drawbacks. The design of chunky and creamy hypertext systems, the way in which information is presented to the end user and the relevant merits of the technique are discussed.

Details

VINE, vol. 23 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0305-5728

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Article
Publication date: 1 September 1913

A GOOD deal of fuss has been occasioned by the barring of several novels by the Libraries Association recently. Into the pros and cons of the matter—which have been over‐canvassed…

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Abstract

A GOOD deal of fuss has been occasioned by the barring of several novels by the Libraries Association recently. Into the pros and cons of the matter—which have been over‐canvassed already—we do not propose to enter in detail: these circulating libraries and their customers can be left to reconcile their own differences of opinion. It is, however, unfortunate that a few commercial circulating libraries, when combining to form an association, should have chosen a title that was bound to be confused with that of the Library Association.

Details

New Library World, vol. 16 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0307-4803

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Article
Publication date: 1 October 1998

Roberta Hill, Tony Bullard, Phillip Capper, Kathryn Hawes and Ken Wilson

This paper reports findings from five case studies of New Zealand organisations that introduced new initiatives such as TQM and “learning organisation” concepts as a result of…

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Abstract

This paper reports findings from five case studies of New Zealand organisations that introduced new initiatives such as TQM and “learning organisation” concepts as a result of facing a business environment of continuous change and uncertainty. The case studies, carried out between 1993‐96, highlight seven crucial limitations in the debate about the appropriate skills for such environments. Research findings also provide: evidence of the core skills that employees and managers need for such environments; and a new paradigm of the critical organisational characteristics, culture and form that facilitate learning in these conditions; and the implications for managers, human resource practitioners and training providers.

Details

The Learning Organization, vol. 5 no. 4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0969-6474

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Article
Publication date: 14 August 2007

Roberta Hill, Phillip Capper, Ken Wilson, Richard Whatman and Karen Wong

The purpose of this paper is to describe how, from 2004‐2006, a New Zealand research team experimented with the “change laboratory” learning process to create a new method of…

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Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to describe how, from 2004‐2006, a New Zealand research team experimented with the “change laboratory” learning process to create a new method of government policy development and implementation, referred to as “practice‐making”. The apple industry in Hawke's Bay was chosen because of the level of tension among government agencies and small/medium‐sized firms in the industry, particularly around the scarcity of seasonal labour, amid growing concerns about the possible collapse of the industry.

Design/methodology/approach

The team stimulated a cycle of expansive learning among the network of activity systems in the industry. Laboratory participants were growers, labour contractors, pack house operators, quality controllers, horticultural consultants and government officials. The expansive learning cycle is a core concept in developmental work research (DWR) and cultural‐historical activity theory (CHAT).

Findings

Participants created a shared “object” for apple production and its government policy and regulation built around quality, making a substantive shift from adaptive learning to transformational learning, and creating a major redesign of the industry. Many of the new practices are now being implemented in the industry and government.

Practical implications

The CHAT/DWR approach seems particularly well suited for complex problem solving in any network where there are intractable systems contradictions and a strong desire among participants to make real change.

Originality/value

It is understood that this is the first time a change laboratory process has been used for government “practice‐making” with industry, in contrast with traditional policy development and implementation that frequently does not address systemic problems.

Details

Journal of Workplace Learning, vol. 19 no. 6
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1366-5626

Keywords

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