This paper aims to explore the complete process and underlying mechanism that social enterprises obtain legitimacy during interactions with stakeholders from theoretical…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to explore the complete process and underlying mechanism that social enterprises obtain legitimacy during interactions with stakeholders from theoretical integration of institutional theory and organization ecology perspective.
Design/methodology/approach
Based on theoretical classification, this paper selects six typical Chinese social enterprises and conducts a multi-case analysis.
Findings
The study finds that social enterprises aim at legitimizing single entity or industry and shaping stakeholders’ cognitive boundary simultaneously. Therefore, by adopting constrained cooperation and competition activities, social enterprises use normative isomorphism to achieve personal legitimation and combining ecological niche construction, social enterprises achieve organizational legitimation. By adopting fragmented cooperation-dominant or competition-dominant activities, social enterprises use mimic isomorphism supplemented by competitive isomorphism or population structure creation to obtain industry legitimation. By adopting dynamically integrated coopetition activities, social enterprises use mimic isomorphism and reflexive isomorphism to reach field legitimation.
Originality/value
This paper proposes a mechanism model that the coopetition with stakeholders influences the legitimation process, identifies four stages of social enterprise’s legitimation process and the types of legitimacy obtained in each stage and fills the gap of Chinese indigenous social enterprise research.
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Liguo Xu, Dalong Pang, Jing Ge and Youmin Xi
The purpose of this study is to explore the categories of leader traits, their generation and their relationships in leaders’ socialization.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this study is to explore the categories of leader traits, their generation and their relationships in leaders’ socialization.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors take the case study method, which is the most suitable method to answer research questions on why and how to fulfill the study purpose on the basis of the case of Ruimin Zhang.
Findings
Leader traits are classified into four categories with respect to socialization, namely, root trait, driving trait, thinking trait and affair trait. The root trait and the driving trait form from the leader’s insight with the impact of key events, mutually promote and consolidate each other, and together derive the thinking trait and the affair trait on the basis of critical events, culture, family, education, etc. The thinking trait is the premise of the affair trait to be expressed in leadership behavior. The root trait and the driving trait together determine a leader’s growth direction and efficiency and can distinguish leaders from non-leaders. The thinking trait and the affair trait together determine the pattern and effectiveness of leadership behavior and can distinguish effective leadership from ineffective leadership.
Research limitations/implications
This study transcends prior integral leader trait research by categorizing leader traits from the socialization perspective, makes a clear delineation on the interrelationships among categories of leader traits, analyzes their holistic functions on the leaders, reveals the formation and relationship mechanism of leader traits and identifies the types of leader traits that can work as the standards for distinguishing effective leaders from ineffective leaders or non-leaders.
Originality/value
This study promotes the development of the leader trait theory in the classification, formations, relationships and overall effect of leader traits.
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Yishan Du, Liguo Xu, You Min Xi and Jing Ge
The purpose of this paper is to explore the Chinese leader–follower interaction model in school cases considering followers’ effect at varying social distances.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to explore the Chinese leader–follower interaction model in school cases considering followers’ effect at varying social distances.
Design/methodology/approach
This study uses a case study approach.
Findings
First, Chinese leader–follower interactions in school cases are flexible in practice. Second, within leader–follower flexible interactions, contradictory perceptions and field-of-work consciousness foster different behavior choices between leaders and followers. Third, perceptions concerning the proximity of leaders to followers are positively influenced in relation to hierarchical distinctions and negatively influenced owing to private connections. Finally, the perceived leader distance of leaders from followers further influences the contradictory perceptions and field-of-work consciousness of leaders and followers and positively influences the degree of flexible leader–follower interaction.
Research limitations/implications
This study examined a single institution; hence, results may have been influenced by school-specific features and conditions. Future research should study more organizations to explore whether their unique characteristics and contexts could affect leader–follower interactions, thus providing more generalized and universally applicable conclusions.
Originality/value
First, this study proposed a leader–follower flexible interaction model in school cases and the concepts of field-of-work consciousness and contradictory perceptions, exploring the active effects of followers in the leadership process to offer guidance toward better understanding the leadership process. Second, it was found that private connections between leaders and followers, as well as hierarchical differences, influenced the perceptions of both leaders and followers concerning leader distance in a Chinese context, and the influence of leader distance on leader–follower interactions was also analyzed.
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The purpose of this paper is to explore the topic of the Chinese business model and provide a brief introduction to the papers in this special issue.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to explore the topic of the Chinese business model and provide a brief introduction to the papers in this special issue.
Design/methodology/approach
The paper explores the importance of studying business model in the Chinese market and summarises the eight papers in this issue.
Findings
The papers in this special issue address what the business model is in China, how it influences organizational outcomes, and how to build the business model in the Chinese market. These papers may be germane to both researchers and practitioners concerned with managing business model in China. For scholars, these papers broaden the understanding of business model and extend the theoretical boundaries of the business model from the Western to the Eastern context. For practitioners doing business in China, these papers give implications on how to build business models in China as well as what institutional and technological factors should be considered when designing their business models.
Research limitations/implications
Further investigation is needed into the interaction among Chinese firms' activities on business model design and operation and the institutional, technological, and market environment.
Originality/value
Overall, these papers make remarkable contributions to our understanding of Chinese business model. The topics of these studies are various and the methods are also multiplex. Several interesting Chinese business models are addressed such as Bandit business model and “a company + farmers”.
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Youmin Xi, Xuanwei Cao and Liuxu Xiangli
The purpose of this paper is to introduce the indigenous He‐Xie management theory (HXMT) through the lens of a holistic perspective from Chinese philosophical wisdom.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to introduce the indigenous He‐Xie management theory (HXMT) through the lens of a holistic perspective from Chinese philosophical wisdom.
Design/methodology/approach
The paper revisited the challenges faced by orthodox management theories, proposing management scholars should borrow Eastern philosophical intelligence for problem solving when considering the tradition of Chinese culture on human orientation and its intelligence on tolerating and coping with ambiguity, uncertainty, and complexity. By tracing back the core concept of harmony in Confucianism, the paper identified the mechanisms for achieving harmony by differentiating further the general understanding of harmony and its original meaning in Chinese characters. The theoretical framework of HXMT was introduced then by integrating both evolutionism and constructivism perspectives.
Findings
The theoretical explaining power of HXMT is rooted in the time‐honored philosophies of Asia. HXMT got its gene from traditional thinking by applying dialectic and holistic perspectives. Within complex and unpredictable contexts, the existence of He‐Xie theme can replace the searching and planning to strategy. Guided by He‐Xie theme, the He principle and the Xie principle, as well as the coupling between them, compose the fundamental mechanisms for effective management and better performance in organizations.
Originality/value
The paper opens an avenue for indigenous HXMT. As a methodology for guiding management research and practice in coping with complexity and uncertainty, HXMT is expected to attract more attention from scholars to contribute to knowledge creation in Chinese management studies.
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Youmin Xi, Xiaojun Zhang and Jing Ge
The purpose of this paper is to address several challenges faced by organizational management in the contemporary context, and how managers can better reply to management…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to address several challenges faced by organizational management in the contemporary context, and how managers can better reply to management challenges by integrating oriental and occidental philosophy and wisdom.
Design/methodology/approach
The paper first describes the characteristics of the contemporary management context and identifies challenges that managers are likely to encounter. The paper then investigates how oriental and occidental philosophy and wisdom reply to these management challenges, whilst also considering the relative advantages and disadvantages of both traditions. Based on the complementarity of these two traditions, the paper finally proposes a framework that integrates both oriental and occidental wisdom by HeXie Management Theory to better respond to management challenges.
Findings
The contemporary organizational environment is characterized by four key salient components: complexity, change, ambiguity, and uncertainty (CCAU). Managers are challenged by problems of determining causality, managing holistically, and adaptation to rapid change. Western philosophical approaches to confronting management challenges arising from CCAU, inherent in the wider economic environment, emphasize standardization and rational design on the basis of science, law, and religion. Conversely, Oriental philosophical approaches to management challenges oppose such rigid systems in favour of flexibility and adaptability which emphasize harmony and morality. Essentially, whereas western thought intends to limit the occurrence of unpredicted events through the development of scientific systems, oriental thinking aims to provide a flexible and fluid system which absorbs the effects of CCAU, thus limiting and using its impact. These two perspectives both have their own advantages and disadvantages when facing management challenges in the context of CCAU. By integrating these two complementary approaches, the authors propose HeXie Management Theory (HXMT). HXMT establishes a clear vision and mission to direct the development of organizations; to organize an integrated management system through the HeXie Theme and HeXie Coupling, and to apply the component “He Principle” and “Xie Principle” as basic mechanisms to cope with management challenges.
Originality/value
This study contributes to research on relationships between organizations and environment by providing a holistic analysis, and adds knowledge about how to reply to management challenges by constructing ambidextrous organizations based on HeXie Management Theory.
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Yong Wu, Zelong Wei and Qiaozhuan Liang
The purpose of this paper is to describe the building of a theoretical model to explore how team pay disparity and resource slack moderate the effects of top management team (TMT…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to describe the building of a theoretical model to explore how team pay disparity and resource slack moderate the effects of top management team (TMT) diversity on strategic change and if the moderating effects of resource slack differ in firms with a low or high level of pay disparity.
Design/methodology/approach
Nine hypotheses are proposed and tested with a sample from 391 listed Chinese firms. Archival data are collected from annual reports to form the sample. The hypothesized model relationships are tested through regression analysis.
Findings
The findings show that pay imparity negatively moderates the effects of TMT diversity and resource slack also has important moderating effects. Furthermore, the moderating effects of resource slack differ in firms with low and high team pay imparity.
Originality/value
TMT demography diversity has an important effect on strategic change. However, two conflicting views exist on the relationship. Although some literature suggests that diversity may be sources of explorative activities such as strategic change, others suggest that diversity may cause integration difficulty and thus has a negative effect on strategic change. This paper contributes to extant debate regarding the effects of TMT diversity on strategic change by including TMT pay imparity and resource slack to explain that the effect of diversity on strategic change is contingent on the level of pay imparity, resources slack, and their interactive effects. This research also contributes to understanding organization slack by reasoning that the moderating effect is contingent on pay imparity level.
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Liguo Xu, Pinging Fu and Youmin Xi
The purpose of this paper is to conceptualize the indigenous concept of suzhi at individual and organizational levels, and identify its dimensions for human resource management…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to conceptualize the indigenous concept of suzhi at individual and organizational levels, and identify its dimensions for human resource management (HRM) research and practice in China.
Design/methodology/approach
Based on a comprehensive review of suzhi literature, Chinese cultural and historical literature, as well as Western mainstream HRM research, a multidimensional suzhi framework is conceptualized.
Findings
As an indigenous expression, suzhi can be and has been adopted for Chinese HRM research and practice. As a multidimensional construct, one’s cognitive suzhi is jointly determined by corresponding moral suzhi, wenhua (knowledge-based) suzhi and zhuanye (professional) suzhi. Cognitive suzhi, in turn, determines one’s behavioral suzhi that drives employees to enhance organizational performance, and this relationship is moderated by psychological suzhi.
Research limitations/implications
The proposed framework provides new insight for Chinese indigenous management research, particularly in developing suzhi measurement for different dimensions. It also informs HRM practices in recruiting, selection, performance analysis and employee career development.
Originality/value
The complexity of suzhi dimensions from an organizational HRM perspective is analyzed. The resulting suzhi framework offers new insight for HRM research and practices in China.
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Xuanwei Cao, Xiaojun Zhang and Youmin Xi
This paper is a follow‐up to the authors' first introductive article on the emerging He‐Xie management theory (HXMT), aiming to help readers better understand the concept of…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper is a follow‐up to the authors' first introductive article on the emerging He‐Xie management theory (HXMT), aiming to help readers better understand the concept of He‐Xie as well as the value of HXMT through several selected cases. The purpose of this paper is to illustrate the value of HXMT in helping achieve the objectives of an ambidextrous organization in harmony.
Design/methodology/approach
The potential value and explaining power of HXMT in helping achieve effective management in organizations is explored through three diversified cases in Chinese contexts. The research is implemented through analyzing the three core constructs of HXMT, i.e. HeXie theme (HT), He principle (HP) and Xie principle (XP) and HeXie coupling (HC), as well as the consistence and alignment of them in the three cases.
Findings
In all cases, the authors found the existence of HC throughout various organizational development stages. In various organizational contexts, HT could be observed in guiding managerial activities. Through identifying periodically emerging important HT and taking related activities by following the principles of XP (reflecting optimization‐oriented activities for efficiency in practice) and HP (reflecting uncertainty‐reducing activities for efficacy in practice) accordingly, organizations could reorient themselves to avoid rigidity and organizational sclerosis on the one hand and accommodate changing environmental conditions on the other. The value of HXMT is embodied in its ambidexterity capability on applying HP and XP interactively across various organizational contexts.
Originality/value
The acceptance of the emerging HXMT in a wider scope must be grounded on an appropriate understanding of its value. This paper analyses retrospectively the management practices of some very different kinds of organizations towards the objective of harmony in organization. The authors' analysis could inspire managers to consider applying HXMT in their management practice towards an ambidextrous organization in harmony.