Wayne Brockbank, Dave Ulrich, David G. Kryscynski and Michael Ulrich
The purpose of this paper is to examine the impact that HR departments have on alternative stakeholders when they focus on improving the organization’s information capability…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to examine the impact that HR departments have on alternative stakeholders when they focus on improving the organization’s information capability instead of focusing their information agenda on human resource (HR) departmental activities.
Design/methodology/approach
The findings are based on the 2016 offering of the HR Competency study that is sponsored by the Ross School of Business at the University of Michigan and the RBL Group. The data set consists of over 36,000 respondents from around the world. Data were gathered through a 360 methodology that includes self-ratings and HR and non-HR associate ratings.
Findings
The findings show that HR’s involvement in leveraging business information has more impact than any other HR department activity on creating value for key external stakeholders. When controlling for other HR activities, the analysis shows that 77.4 per cent of HR total impact on customer value and 55.6 per cent of shareholder value occurs through HR’s involvement in information management. This impact occurs as HR departments contribute to identifying important external information (including customer and competitive information), importing important external information into the firm, analyzing information through both quantitative and qualitative algorithms, disseminating key facts and findings throughout the firm and ensuring the full utilization of information in decision making. The authors provide examples of how HR departments in leading companies are contributing to each of these phases of organization information management.
Originality/value
These findings have potentially important implications for how HR professionals add value to their key stakeholders. It suggests that HR departments will add greater value to their firms as they shift the focus of their information agenda from application to internal HR processes and practices to creating competitive advantage through organization-wide information management capability.
Details
Keywords
Sebastian Schönhaar, Ulrich Pidun and Michael Nippa
The major purpose of this paper is to investigate antecedents, outcomes and processes of business portfolio transformations, including diversifying, refocusing and repositioning…
Abstract
Purpose
The major purpose of this paper is to investigate antecedents, outcomes and processes of business portfolio transformations, including diversifying, refocusing and repositioning portfolio restructurings.
Design/methodology/approach
The paper conducts a longitudinal study on the process of business portfolio transformations among the largest 100 European and 100 North American firms during the period of 1998-2010. A newly developed metric is applied that allows a business portfolio transformation to be identified and quantified and process-related research to be conducted.
Findings
The study confirms and expands prior literature that postulates that poor performance and over-diversification are key motivations for portfolio restructuring. However, the majority of transformations were not successful, with firm performance further deteriorating in the course of the transformation. The analysis of the transformation process itself reveals that the average transformation took 2.6 years and changed the portfolio composition by 42 per cent. Most transformations are conducted rather continuously over the transformation period and rely heavily on divestitures and acquisitions.
Practical implications
Managers should not to be too optimistic when they consider a major business portfolio restructuring. In particular, diversifying or repositioning transformations have a low success rate, while refocusing transformations are most successful on average. The study of the process of portfolio transformations offers some advice to increase the odds of a successful restructuring.
Originality/value
This longitudinal analysis represents the first study of the process of portfolio transformation by applying a newly developed transformation metric. By uncovering the process characteristics of portfolio transformations among the largest European and North American firms, it provides insights on the occurrence, typical magnitude, duration and order of acquisitions and divestitures of large portfolio transformations.
Details
Keywords
In its most basic usage, “corruption” means a change from functional or good to dysfunctional or bad. This definition is far too broad to be of use to scholars or policymakers…
Abstract
In its most basic usage, “corruption” means a change from functional or good to dysfunctional or bad. This definition is far too broad to be of use to scholars or policymakers, who need a more precise, shared definition so that they can communicate meaningfully with one another. Scholars and policymakers have developed scores of definitions, which this chapter briefly explains. Within this galaxy of definitions, scholars and policymakers have tended to favor one definition, which this chapter calls the “general definition.” The general definition describes organizational corruption as: the abuse or misuse of power or trust for self-interested purposes rather than the purposes for which power or trust was given. This chapter discusses and illustrates the general definition. The chapter concludes by pointing out that the general definition is only one definition. In many places, the public is deeply concerned with phenomena such as undue influence, which should also be taken into consideration as a form of corruption even though it falls outside of the general definition.
Details
Keywords
The author suggests that methods for rating investment risk are flawed. He suggests a risk analysis, management and projects (RAMP) approach. Number‐crunching will produce better…
Abstract
The author suggests that methods for rating investment risk are flawed. He suggests a risk analysis, management and projects (RAMP) approach. Number‐crunching will produce better results than listening to analysts.
Details
Keywords
What is “postcolonial sociology”? While the study of postcoloniality has taken on the form of “postcolonial theory” in the humanities, sociology's approach to postcolonial issues…
Abstract
What is “postcolonial sociology”? While the study of postcoloniality has taken on the form of “postcolonial theory” in the humanities, sociology's approach to postcolonial issues has been comparably muted. This essay considers postcolonial theory in the humanities and its potential utility for reorienting sociological theory and research. After sketching the historical background and context of postcolonial studies, three broad areas of contribution to sociology are highlighted: reconsiderations of agency, the injunction to overcome analytic bifurcations, and a recognition of sociology's imperial standpoint.
Gonzalo R. Llanos-Herrera and Jose M. Merigo
The purpose of this paper is to present a global view of the research that has been conducted regarding brand personality by using the Core Collection of the Web of Science (WoS…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to present a global view of the research that has been conducted regarding brand personality by using the Core Collection of the Web of Science (WoS) as a reference. The main bibliometric indicators considered are number of articles, number of citations, main authors, principal journals, institutions, countries and keywords.
Design/methodology/approach
Through a bibliometric investigation, this paper performs an analysis of investigations of brand personality that have been conducted to date. In particular, the analysis focuses on the papers that have generated the greatest impact in the scientific community, the journals that have given the most attention to this concept and the authors who have most strongly influenced the academic world in this field. The analysis reveals a series of relationships between the bases of knowledge considered for different authors and journals and the structure of those relationships based on the keywords considered in each contribution.
Findings
This analysis allows to obtain a general and impartial view of brand personality research, and it reveals the most relevant contributions to the academic world in terms of authors, journals, institutions, countries and keywords. The analysis shows that the concept under study seems to still be in an early stage of development and there may well be an important amount of development ahead. Although there have been important contributions to this field, work is still required to consolidate this knowledge.
Research limitations/implications
The information provided pertains to a relatively specific subject but is still general when considered within the context of this topic and thus leaves aside elements that could greatly enrich the analysis. However, this work presents some important guidelines for conducting in-depth academic research and publication.
Practical implications
This work identifies the most productive and influential authors, journals, institutions and countries regarding this important topic, as well as the leading trends in this field. Applying those concepts would be helpful to improve the effectiveness of the promotion of brands and products.
Originality/value
The work developed in this article provides an overview of the academic research on brand personality that has been conducted as of April 2018. Another differential characteristic is that this research deeply investigates this concept, considering all the articles published in WoS worldwide.
Details
Keywords
Abstract
Details
Keywords
This paper proposes a framework for understanding the concept of a learning organization from a normative perspective. A questionnaire was developed to operationally measure the…
Abstract
This paper proposes a framework for understanding the concept of a learning organization from a normative perspective. A questionnaire was developed to operationally measure the described management practice attributes of a learning organization. Using a sample of four organizations and 612 subjects, support was found for three a priori predictive hypotheses derived from a conceptual framework. Implications of the results and further empirical research are discussed, especially for linking learning organization attributes to performance using larger samples and multiple measures.