Susan Grant, Susan Willsie and Garima Gupta
The purpose of this paper is to highlight the significance of the role of followership by raising self-awareness of those in organisational hierarchies through the followership…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to highlight the significance of the role of followership by raising self-awareness of those in organisational hierarchies through the followership intelligence activity. As practitioners, we intentionally spotlight the importance of followership learning and link followership development to the future needs of a thriving organisation through the facilitation of our activity.
Design/methodology/approach
This paper outlines the proposed followership intelligence activity (FIA), which includes a progression of questions, group discussions and linkages to adult learning principles, experiential learning and followership theory.
Findings
Feedback from authors’ workshops and general observations indicate that once “learning” leaders understand the importance of followership and identify as both followers and leaders, they begin to build and promote work environments open to conversations about the behaviours and skills of exemplary followers.
Practical implications
People cannot change behaviour that they do not notice. However, when leaders begin to identify as both leaders and followers, their openness to learning, developing (self and others) and having followership conversations increases, which promotes both personal awareness and growth. As leaders model and create conversations about exemplary followership skills, they can promote and inspire these behaviours in others within the organisation.
Originality/value
The intention of embedding the FIA into our leadership development programme is to legitimise, honour and promote life-long learning of both leadership and followership. Both roles are vital for a thriving workplace, and they need to be performed with strength, accountability and pride.
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Shakiba Kazemian and Susan B. Grant
The purpose of this paper is to investigate factors influencing knowledge sharing on enterprise social network (ESN) use behaviour among academic staff in universities, using the…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to investigate factors influencing knowledge sharing on enterprise social network (ESN) use behaviour among academic staff in universities, using the unified theory of acceptance and use of technology (UTAUT) as the underlying research framework
Design/methodology/approach
A conceptual framework was created by extending the UTAUT by incorporating three additional factors, namely, feature value (FV), relationship expectancy (RE) and professional benefits. A quantitative approach based on the survey was used to collect data from 254 academic staff. Data were analysed using structural equation modelling.
Findings
The result indicated significant differences around factors influencing both consumptive and contributive usage patterns within ESNs. These factors suggest more contributive than consumptive use.
Research limitations/implications
Future research should consider a longitudinal study focusing on the change in ESN use behaviour among academic staff and the fundamental aspects influencing this change.
Originality/value
This study extends the UTAUT model by incorporating three additional factors: FV, RE and professional benefits, to study ESN use behaviour in a higher education context. This study has significantly modified UTAUT to include the dynamic nature of ESN usage.
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Shakiba Kazemian and Susan Barbara Grant
The paper aims to explore “content” factors influencing consumptive and contributive use of enterprise social networking within UK higher education during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Abstract
Purpose
The paper aims to explore “content” factors influencing consumptive and contributive use of enterprise social networking within UK higher education during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Design/methodology/approach
The methodology uses genre analysis and grounded theory to analyse empirical data from posts obtained through Microsoft Yammer and a focus group.
Findings
The findings reveal the motivators-outcomes-strategies and the barriers-outcomes-strategies of users. Motivators (M) include feature value, Information value, organizational requirement and adequate organizational and technical support. Barriers (B) include six factors, including resisting engagement on the online platform, emotional anxiety, loss of knowledge, the lack of organizational pressure, lack of content quality and lack of time. An Outcomes (O) framework reveals benefits and dis-benefits and strategies (S) relating to improving user engagement.
Practical implications
The research method and resultant model may serve as guidelines to higher educational establishments interested in motivating their staff and scholars around the use of enterprise social network (ESN) systems, especially during face-to-face restrictions.
Originality/value
This research study was conducted during the COVID-19 pandemic which provides a unique setting to examine consumptive and contributive user behaviour of ESN’s. Furthermore, the study develops a greater understanding of “content” factors leading to the benefits or dis-benefits of ESN use, drawing on user motivators, barriers and strategies during the COVID-19 pandemic in UK education.
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Nahid Izadpanah Mehrkish and Susan B. Grant
Researchers have long been interested in how the psychology of senior managers affects their behaviours. This paper aims to present the results of a questionnaire into how…
Abstract
Purpose
Researchers have long been interested in how the psychology of senior managers affects their behaviours. This paper aims to present the results of a questionnaire into how positive self-image influences how well senior managers in UK manufacturing organisations support the implementation of management information system (MIS). This study developed two scales, one to measure senior managers’ attitudes and the other to measure support of MIS implementation. It also sought to investigate the impact of senior managers’ positive self-image on their support of MIS implementation in UK manufacturing organisations.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors tested the hypotheses on a data set of 400 senior managers from UK manufacturing organisations. Two unidimensional scales to measure senior managers’ attitude and support level towards MIS implementation were developed. Exploratory factor analysis (EFA) was used to validate the scales. The study also examined the impact of senior managers’ positive self-image on their attitude and support from the perspective of UK manufacturing organisations by using structural equation modelling.
Findings
The study found that senior managers’ positive self-image is a significant contributing factor to their attitude. Also, senior managers’ attitude has a strong positive impact on their support in the MIS implementation process. A strong mediating relationship was found to exist between senior managers’ positive self-image and support through their attitude towards MIS implementation.
Originality/value
Although past literature has examined the importance of senior managers’ attitude and support in successful MIS implementation, there has been no specific scale around management support and attitude towards MIS implementation developed to date. Thus, a contribution of this study is its development of two new scales based on a survey of senior managers of UK manufacturing organisations. The scales can be used to evaluate senior managers’ perception towards MIS implementation and the support they are willing to give whilst implementing MIS. Another contribution of this study is the analysis of positive self-image via item-parcelling which improves model efficiency and provides more stable estimates of the construct.
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The paper aims to explore a case of early adoption of the use of social media tools for the purposes of knowledge and information sharing across a supply chain in the UK home…
Abstract
Purpose
The paper aims to explore a case of early adoption of the use of social media tools for the purposes of knowledge and information sharing across a supply chain in the UK home insurance market.
Design/methodology/approach
The methodology used includes genre and content analysis to analyze empirical data from blogs and posts via a customized social extranet [Engaging in Knowledge Networking via an interactive 3D Social Supplier Network (KNOWLEDGE NETWORK)] involving 130 users over a 13-month period.
Findings
The results uncover a set of emerging practices which support both information and knowledge exchange, but which are mainly driven by organizational factors such as buyer power and supplier competitive influencing.
Research limitations/implications
This study has contributed an overall conceptual understanding of reasons behind social media adoption by identifying organizational attributes of buyer power and supplier influence as key antecedents to knowledge sharing within a supply chain.
Originality/value
This paper builds on current thinking in social media theory by providing a window into organizational and supply chain attributes that can explain social media adoption within the context of knowledge sharing supply chains. A systematic classification of user posts over an extended period enabled this work to illuminate not only emerging knowledge sharing practices across a buyer-led supply chain but also the effects of buyer power on users in an online community.
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This paper aims to provide a living tribute to the leading autoethnographer, Alec Grant.
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to provide a living tribute to the leading autoethnographer, Alec Grant.
Design/methodology/approach
Alec provided Jerome with a list of names of people he might approach to write a tribute on his behalf.
Findings
The accounts describe the influence that Alec has had both as an educator and as a trusted colleague for the people approached.
Research limitations/implications
While this is a living tribute, it is about one man and could, therefore, be described as a case study. Some people wonder what can be learned from a single case study. Read on and find out.
Practical implications
Alec has carved out a path for himself. In many senses, he chose “The Road Less Travelled”. He has never shied away from challenging “The System” and defending the rights of the marginalized and socially excluded. It is not a road for the faint-hearted.
Social implications
For systems to change, radical thinkers need to show the way. “Change keeps us safe” (Stuart Bell).
Originality/value
Alec was a well-known and highly respected cognitive behavioural academic practitioner and the author of key textbooks in the field. He then decided to reinvent himself as an autoethnographer. This has brought him into contact with a much more diverse group of people. It has also brought him home to himself.
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Abstract
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Josh Bendickson is a Ph.D. student at Louisiana State University in the E. J. Ourso College of Business. He teaches principles of management in the Rucks Department of Management…
Abstract
Josh Bendickson is a Ph.D. student at Louisiana State University in the E. J. Ourso College of Business. He teaches principles of management in the Rucks Department of Management and is also involved in the Stephenson Entrepreneurship Institute. His research interests include strategy, entrepreneurship, and management history.
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Vahid Pezeshki, Alireza Mousavi and Susan Grant
Customer relationship management (CRM) strategies rely heavily on the importance and performance of the attributes that define a service. The aim of this paper is first to…
Abstract
Purpose
Customer relationship management (CRM) strategies rely heavily on the importance and performance of the attributes that define a service. The aim of this paper is first to investigate the asymmetric relationship between performance of service attributes and customer satisfaction, and second, through a case study in the mobile telecommunication industry to prove that the importance of a service attribute is a function of the performance of that attribute.
Design/methodology/approach
An empirical study using questionnaires with a focus on service enquiring about the performance of service key attributes and overall customer satisfaction was conducted. The data were fed into the Kano customer satisfaction model and the importance‐performance analysis (IPA) method for analysis and comparison.
Findings
The results indicate that there is a dynamic relationship between service attributes and overall customer satisfaction. Service attributes have a different impact on customer satisfaction regardless of their classification. The importance of service attributes can be derived from their performance and this can be proved in the Mobile Telecommunication sector. Also this research concludes that the major weaknesses in the Mobile Telecommunication industry that cause the highest customer dissatisfaction are the range of phones, the accuracy of billing and payment, and the service plans, whereas the major strengths as a source of customer satisfaction are customer service quality, value for money and network performance.
Research limitations/implications
The Kano model of customer satisfaction needs to be extended to other customer behaviour variables such as customer retention (e.g. purchase intention) and customer loyalty (e.g. word‐of‐mouth, feedback) for improved decision analysis. The paper does not include customer retention and loyalty factors.
Practical implications
The methodology employed here can be easily applied by marketers for evaluating customer behaviours and service quality performance for improved decision making and resource allocation.
Originality/value
There is little evidence that extensive work has been dedicated to studying the relationship between service attributes and customer satisfaction through Kano's model. The paper specifically investigates the applicability of the model and the key factors in the mobile telecommunication industry.