Sharon Glazer, Adam C. Mahoney and Yari Randall
Seasoned workers often complain that their Millennial colleagues lack organizational commitment (OC). Research findings, however, are mixed. Furthermore, research suggests that…
Abstract
Purpose
Seasoned workers often complain that their Millennial colleagues lack organizational commitment (OC). Research findings, however, are mixed. Furthermore, research suggests that employee professional development increases job satisfaction and reduces turnover. Still, few studies have examined if professional development increases commitment, particularly among Millennials. This paper aims to discuss these issues.
Design/methodology/approach
This study compared survey responses, gathered through social media, of Generation X (GenX) and Millennial employees on the relationship between employee development (ED) and OC.
Findings
Millennials (vs GenXers) reported significantly lower levels of continuance commitment, but no differences on normative and affective commitment. GenXers reported more affective and normative commitment than Millennials when having ED opportunities.
Practical implications
ED opportunities may not be similarly impactful on OC across generational cohorts. It might stimulate commitment amongst GenXers, but not Millennials.
Social implications
Findings also suggest that ED programs may be a normalized fixture in organizations today and that Millennials may take ED opportunities for granted.
Originality/value
This study is the first to identify potential factors influencing differences between GenXers and Millennials on OC. More research is needed to identify approaches to increasing Millenials’ commitment if managers want to keep their best employees or to ensure training and development is impactful.
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Keywords
Sharon Glazer, Małgorzata W. Kożusznik and Irina A. Shargo
Global virtual teams (GVTs), also known as transnational or distributed teams, are increasingly common as organizations strive to maintain a global presence, find top and diverse…
Abstract
Global virtual teams (GVTs), also known as transnational or distributed teams, are increasingly common as organizations strive to maintain a global presence, find top and diverse talent, and cope with economic constraints. Despite increasing adoption of GVTs, there is a dearth of research addressing whether GVTs are an effective coping strategy for dealing with the world economic crisis and if there are unintended negative consequences on employee well-being as a result of their use. Thus, a focal question guiding the development of this chapter is whether or not GVTs are a sustainable solution for organizations? In this chapter we present a generic framework depicting the cycle by which macroeconomic demands impose changes on organization's structures, which trickle down to the level of the individual who has to cope with the demands the new structure has imposed. We discuss GVTs as an intervention (or cure) for organizations’ dealing with the current world economic crisis and how this organizational intervention inevitably becomes the context (or cause) for the kinds of stressors or demands employees face.
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This paper aims to review the latest management developments across the globe and pinpoint practical implications from cutting-edge research and case studies.
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to review the latest management developments across the globe and pinpoint practical implications from cutting-edge research and case studies.
Design
This briefing is prepared by an independent writer who adds their own impartial comments and places the articles in context.
Findings
This paper explores differences in organizational commitment between Generation Xers and Millennials. The study finds that Generation Xers and Millennials show equal levels of organizational commitment and identifies that employee development creates organizational commitment in Generation Xers, but is less of a priority for millennials.
Originality
The briefing saves busy executives and researchers hours of reading time by selecting only the very best, most pertinent information and presenting it in a condensed and easy-to-digest format.
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Maximilian Buyken is a PhD candidate at the Department of Work and Organizational Psychology at Justus Liebig University Giessen, Germany. He received his diploma (German…
Abstract
Maximilian Buyken is a PhD candidate at the Department of Work and Organizational Psychology at Justus Liebig University Giessen, Germany. He received his diploma (German equivalent of a Master's degree) from Philipps-Universität Marburg, Germany. His particular research interests are career adaptability – especially in the face of economic stressors – occupational health psychology and the connection between the two research areas, for example, the function of career adaptive behaviors as coping mechanisms with regard to psychological strain.
Pamela L. Perrewé, Jonathon R.B. Halbesleben and Christopher C. Rosen
In our 10th volume of Research in Occupational Stress and Well Being, we offer eight chapters that examine the role of the economic crisis in occupational stress and well being…
Abstract
In our 10th volume of Research in Occupational Stress and Well Being, we offer eight chapters that examine the role of the economic crisis in occupational stress and well being research. The first three chapters are considered more general overviews, and each examines a different aspect of economic stress and well being. Our lead chapter, by Songqi Liu and Mo Wang, provides an in-depth review of perceived overqualification. They develop and present a multilevel model of perceived overqualification that explicitly addresses antecedents, consequences, as well as the intermediating linkages within the relationships. The second chapter by Mindy K. Shoss and Tahira M. Probst also takes a multilevel approach by examining outcomes of economic stress. Specifically, they discuss how employee experiences with economic stress give impetus to emergent outcomes and employee well being. In our third overview chapter, Aimee E. A. King and Paul E. Levy develop a theoretical framework for organizational politics in an economic downturn. Specifically, they propose an integrative model that examines the role of the economic downturn, politics, and well being.
Stephen R. Barley, Beth A. Bechky and Bonalyn J. Nelsen
Sociologists have paid little attention to what people mean when they call themselves “professionals” in their everyday talk. Typically, when occupations lack the characteristics…
Abstract
Sociologists have paid little attention to what people mean when they call themselves “professionals” in their everyday talk. Typically, when occupations lack the characteristics of self-control associated with the established professions, such talk is dismissed as desire for greater status. An ethnography of speaking conducted among several technicians’ occupations suggests that dismissing talk of professionalism may have been premature. The results of this study indicate that among technicians, professional talk highlights dynamics of respect, collaboration, and expertise crucial to the horizontal divisions of labor that are common in postindustrial workplaces, but have very little to do with the desire for occupational power.
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Research to improve access and equity for women of color in higher education offers insights on the nuanced challenges and opportunities that exist today. In the past, women of…
Abstract
Research to improve access and equity for women of color in higher education offers insights on the nuanced challenges and opportunities that exist today. In the past, women of color confronted overt discrimination in their pursuit of educational and career attainment. Today, they are likely to face more subtle practices couched in what Miller (2010) coins, the “deservingness” status suggesting that although women of color have gained entry in the academy, they come under scrutiny in their faculty and administrative roles. Despite such scrutiny, their presence in the academy has brought them a measure of social independence, ushered in multiple perspectives to enrich students' learning experiences, and have challenged traditional approach to research knowledge, and leadership theories and practices (Glazer Raymo, 2008; Jean-Marie, Williams & Sherman, 2009; Lloyd-Jones, 2009).