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This study aims to test the propositions of socialization resources theory, specifically focusing on social capital resources and their prediction of proximal (relational learning) and distal (job satisfaction and intent to quit) outcomes. The authors include the job design characteristic of job autonomy as a moderator of these associations.

Cheung et al.’s (2021) four-step SEM procedure was used to test our mediation, moderation and moderated mediation hypotheses. The sample consisted of newcomers (N = 175) measured at two time points.

The results support the proposed model. Relational learning mediates the associations between social capital resources and outcomes; the utility of these social capital resources is stronger when job autonomy is lower.

Organizations can use social capital resources to reduce newcomers' uncertainty during socialization, facilitating learning and positive outcomes. Organizations should also carefully consider the amount of job autonomy they grant to newcomers, as too much can be detrimental.

Despite the acknowledged importance of workplace resources and relationships, few studies have focused on social resources provided during socialization. Moreover, job design is rarely included in socialization research, despite its influence on workplace processes. Thus, this study provides information about two novel areas of investigation: socially-oriented socialization resources and the impact of job autonomy.

This article considers the issue of learning in the context of new technology projects that have recently been implemented in the UK retail banking industry. Continual changes in the business environment have focused attention upon the need for organisations to “learn” if they are to retain their market positions. Interviews were conducted with 42 bank managers and industry consultants over an 18 month period. Five case studies of major new projects are drawn upon which provide evidence that learning from past mistakes, or even building upon past successes, continues to be the exception rather than the rule. As a result, even successful projects had a limited impact upon the activities of the organisations as a whole. It is concluded that reluctance to disseminate lessons learned throughout the organisation means the full potential offered by new technologies will continue to elude banks until their apparently complacent attitude towards learning is addressed.

It is well known that online shopping is growing, but recent reports have indicated that e‐retailers are failing to deliver. In this paper, the authors consider aspects of shopping and shopping styles, comparing e‐shopping with bricks and mortar. First, a small exploratory pilot study comparing Internet vs an exemplar shopping centre, and comparing the centre with an “ideal” centre is reported. In this initial stage, the respondents were selected as the “shoppers of tomorrow” – sixth‐form students – more Web‐literate than older age groups. Second, the results of a further small exploratory pilot study are reported with slightly more mature shoppers – university students. The qualitative findings from this stage of the research form the basis for our conclusions. Finally, we speculate on the possible future of shopping.

A key debate about the nature and role of ecommerce centres around the question of whether it is merely an old activity in a new form, or a discontinuous process that rewrites the ideas and assumptions of the ‘old’ economy. The objective of this exploratory and qualitative study is to shed some light on this issue through the lens of business ethics. We will examine whether established ethical principles still apply to e‐commerce, or instead if the ‘rule book’ now needs to be re‐written.

This paper examines the current position of copyright for the music industry in the light of innovation and diffusion of technologies which enable audio file sharing amongst web users. We note that there currently appears to be conflicting assessments between the major corporations and the many small firms in Europe with regard to the business potential for online music. In particular, we show that the convergence of technologies together with the emergence of particular practices of ‘net culture’ have posed a number of marketing opportunities and threats for industry incumbents. The role of the Napster program, as well as subsequent innovations in peer‐to‐peer software, is examined together with the responses that have been made by different sections of industry.

The aim of this paper is to investigate whether technological developments can be used in call centre environments to build trust and hence lasting customer relationships beyond the usual focus on efficiency gains through automation.

Draws upon depth interviews with management and staff in three very different types of call centre to critically examine the ways in which caring attitudes and competent behaviour of call centre staff can contribute to building durable bases for customer trust.

While one of the case studies exemplifies a purely economic rationale for call centre operations, the other two demonstrate that a truly optimal application of technology creates a shared system of which customers and employees form an integrated part. Employees' knowledge of the system and the product it underpins are applied in a positive way to create relationships and trust with the customers with whom they transact.

Argues that competitive advantage can be gained if the customer perception is of an organisation that is concerned with building relationships based on competence or empathy to meet individual needs – features which stand out clearly in an industry sector often associated with standardised services, “sweatshop” working conditions and control‐based management practices focused on a purely economic rationale.

Demonstrates that multi‐channel environments for customer interaction offer potential for competitive advantage beyond short‐term efficiency gains when the convenience of channel choice is creatively combined with competent and empathetic customer service.

This paper aims to draw upon the findings of a research project which investigated networking styles by owner/managers of small businesses. The authors' specific objective was to analyse the impact of such networking activities on business growth to develop a taxonomy of networking based on size, business model and attitudes of the owner to their use of online and offline networking.

The data in this study comes from analysis of an online survey completed by 645 firms based in both the USA and Europe. The authors compared the networking behaviours of small businesses using face‐to‐face vs online modalities, and assessed the differences between business size and home market (USA vs UK vs Europe). The data was analysed for significant differences between the responses of different classes of respondent, providing a unique taxonomy of networking across a broad geographic area.

The results identified three distinct categories of networking behaviour in terms of attitude towards scaleability and geographic reach, and the authors showed that effective online networkers tended to be good face‐to‐face networkers also.

The authors confirmed that effective online networkers can stay small and flexible but still “punch above their weight” in competition with larger organisations that are often more traditional in their approach and structure.

The authors have undertaken one of the first analyses of the circumstances in which SMEs make use of Web 2.0 tools to supplement their more conventional marketing activities, and developed a coherent framework for analysing which companies are likely to make the best use of them.

Although research on reproductive technologies such as IVF and egg freezing has traditionally been rather separated from the work on contraceptives and abortion, analysing reproductive and nonreproductive technologies together, as this volume proposes, can provide the basis for a broader contemporary politics of reproductive control. This chapter analyses this politics of integrating reproductive and nonreproductive technologies by focusing specifically on IVF-based fertility (preservation) treatments and (medical) abortion. More specifically, it explores both technologies' interrelated research trajectories and the financial and platformised dimensions of their clinical implementation. With a dual focus on egg freezing and medical abortion, this project seeks to explore how processes of platformisation and financialisation shape the clinical and commercial infrastructures that govern twenty-first-century reproduction. The chapter's broadened analytic scope that incorporates both reproductive and nonreproductive technologies highlights how a contemporary biopolitics of reproductive control may be expressed through these technologies' interrelated regulatory practices, shared politicised reference points (e.g. the embryo), opposite investment practices and mutually reinforcing social effects.

The “digital divide” between the “haves” and the “have nots” in the developed world is now less about access to the web than it is about understanding how to actively participate in the networked society. The paper shows how people with the skills, time and confidence to navigate and manage the online chaos will gain access to new career opportunities, find audiences for their work and enrich the lives of others. Those without such initiative risk being marginalized or left behind.

This work draws upon the results of an ongoing research project which is investigating the use of new technologies by entrepreneurs and small businesses in the South East of England.

The paper demonstrates how various online services such as blogging and social networking can be harnessed to develop and enhance a personal brand.

Finding a job and managing career progression increasingly involves understanding how today's networks work and how to deploy them effectively to build a personal brand, both online and offline.

The paper provides practical guidance on building a personal brand for business or career development, based on lessons learned from “early adopters” in the field.