Showing papers on "Organizational studies published in 2010"

CROSSROADS---Organizing for Fluidity? Dilemmas of New Organizational Forms

Abstract: An important new stream of thought stressing the importance of organizational fluidity has emerged in recent years. It represents a reaction to the increasing complexity and environmental turbulence that organizations have to master. The solutions proposed are highly flexible and fluid organizational forms, based on relentlessly changing templates, quick improvisation, and ad hoc responses. This approach is in sharp contrast to other recent organizational research that emphasizes identity, path dependence, economies of specialization, and recursive practices. We juxtapose the idea of organizational fluidity with this latter stream of research. If taken to its final conclusion, then the idea of promoting organizational fluidity would imply losing the very essence of organizing. Nevertheless, achieving organizational flexibility remains imperative in increasingly complex and volatile environments. To deal with this dilemma, an alternative approach is needed. We suggest a conceptualization of this dilemma that emphasizes the complementary dynamics between the two perspectives. We therefore provide an alternative conception that favors the idea of balancing countervailing processes in organizations with respect to the conflicting demands of organizational efficiency and fluidity.

Organizational support for intrapreneurship and its interaction with human capital to enhance innovative performance

Abstract: Purpose – The main purpose of this paper is to investigate the direct and interactive effects of organizational support and human capital on the innovative performance of companies. Individual effects of the organizational support dimensions, namely: management support for generating and developing new business ideas, allocation of free time, convenient organizational structures concerning, in particular, decentralization level or decision‐making autonomy, appropriate use of incentives and rewards, and tolerance for trial‐and‐errors or failures in cases of creative undertakings or risky project implementations, are also to be investigated.Design/methodology/approach – The study develops and tests a theoretical research model where the organizational support dimensions are the independent variables, innovative performance is the dependent variable, and the human capital has a moderating role in this relationship, via a questionnaire study covering 184 manufacturing firms in Turkey.Findings – Among the indi...

System perspective of knowledge management, organizational learning, and organizational innovation

Abstract: In knowledge economics, enterprises need to adapt and update its knowledge to keep their capability of innovation. Therefore, the relationship between knowledge management and organizational innovation is getting an important issue in research and in practical areas. However, without good capability of organizational learning, one organizational cannot retain some important knowledge management practices in it. This study selects samples based on Common Wealth Magazine's Top 1000 manufacturers and Top 100 financial firms in 2007 by mails. A questionnaire survey was conducted and 327 valid replies were received. This research analyzes the relationship among knowledge management, as well as organizational learning and organizational innovation utilizing structural equation modeling. The results show that organizational learning is the mediating variable between knowledge management and organizational innovation. Just like a system, knowledge management is an important input, and organizational learning is a key process, then organizational innovation is a critical output.

Workplace Peers and Entrepreneurship

Abstract: We examine whether the likelihood of entrepreneurial activity is related to the prior career experiences of an individual's coworkers, using a unique matched employer--employee panel data set We argue that coworkers can increase the likelihood that an individual will perceive entrepreneurial opportunities as well as increase his or her motivation to pursue those opportunities We find that an individual is more likely to become an entrepreneur if his or her coworkers have been entrepreneurs before Peer influences also appear to be substitutes for other sources of entrepreneurial influence: we find that peer influences are strongest for those who have less exposure to entrepreneurship in other aspects of their lives

The role of HRM practices, procedural justice, organizational support and trust in organizational commitment and in-role and extra-role performance

Abstract: Taking the social exchange perspective, we examine the process (black box) linking human resource practices and organizational commitment and superior rating performance. Using procedural justice, organizational support and trust, as relational exchange mechanisms, we evaluate which such complex psychological states mediate the relationship between HRM practices and performance. On the basis of a sample of 1,219 employees from a Canadian hospital, our results indicate that HRM practices can stimulate greater in-role and extra-role performance if they are perceived as signs of support and procedural justice. Consequently, we find that that the sole implementation of HRM practices, however innovative they may be, does not suffice to improve behavioral performance. Our study thus contributes to a better understanding of the ‘black box’ phenomenon that links HRM practices to organizational performance indices. Because of the number of psychological states studied, our research enriches knowledge of the social...

Organizational Approaches to Inequality: Inertia, Relative Power, and Environments

Abstract: This article reviews recent theoretical and empirical research addressing organizations and workplace stratification, with an emphasis on the generic organizational mechanisms responsible for producing both stability and change in workplace inequality. We propose that an organizational approach to the study of stratification should examine status- and class-based inequalities at the intersection of (a) the inertial tendencies of organizational structure, logic, and practice; (b) the relative power of actors within workplaces; and (c) organizations' institutional and competitive environments. The interplay of these generic forces either reproduces static practices and structures or leads to dynamic processes of change. We conclude with theoretical and methodological implications for analyzing social stratification through an organizational lens.

Organizing for Fluidity? Dilemmas of New Organizational Forms

Abstract: An important new stream of thought stressing the importance of organizational fluidity has emerged in recent years. It represents a reaction to the increasing complexity and environmental turbulence that organizations have to master. The solutions proposed are highly flexible and fluid organizational forms, based on relentlessly changing templates, quick improvisation, and ad hoc responses. This approach is in sharp contrast to other recent organizational research that emphasizes identity, path dependence, economies of specialization, and recursive practices. We juxtapose the idea of organizational fluidity with this latter stream of research. If taken to its final conclusion, then the idea of promoting organizational fluidity would imply losing the very essence of organizing. Nevertheless, achieving organizational flexibility remains imperative in increasingly complex and volatile environments. To deal with this dilemma, an alternative approach is needed. We suggest a conceptualization of this dilemma that emphasizes the complementary dynamics between the two perspectives. We therefore provide an alternative conception that favors the idea of balancing countervailing processes in organizations with respect to the conflicting demands of organizational efficiency and fluidity.

Organizational Behavior: Emerging Knowledge and Practice for the Real World

Abstract: PART 1 INTRODUCTION 1 Introduction to the Field of Organizational Behavior PART 2: INDIVIDUAL BEHAVIOR AND PROCESSES 2Individual Behavior, Personality, and Values 3Perception and Learning in Organizations 4Workplace Emotions, Attitudes, and Stress 5Foundations of Employee Motivation 6Applied Performance Practices 7Decision Making and Creativity PART 3: TEAM PROCESSES 8Team Dynamics 9Communicating in Teams and Organizations 10Power and Influence in the Workplace 11Conflict and Negotiation in the Workplace 12Leadership in Organizational Settings PART 4: ORGANIZATIONAL PROCESSES 13Organizational Structure 14Organizational Culture 15Organizational Change Appendix A: Theory Building and Systematic Research Methods Appendix B: Scoring Keys for Self-Assessment Activities

Organizational social capital, structure and performance

Abstract: Organization theorists suggest that the social capital within organizations is a potentially powerful resource for improving organizational performance. In addition, organizational structures may strengthen or weaken the effects of social capital, by furnishing greater or fewer opportunities for its growth. This article explores the independent and combined effects of organizational social capital and structure on the performance of over 100 organizations between 2002 and 2005, using panel data. The statistical results suggest that cognitive and relational dimensions of social capital are positively related to performance, but that the structural dimension of social capital is unrelated to service outcomes. Further analysis revealed that organizational structure has complex and contradictory effects on the impact of each dimension of social capital.

The Wizards of Oz: Towards an Institutional Approach to Elites, Expertise and Command Posts

Abstract: Over the past half century, organizational studies scholarship has increasingly drifted away from addressing broader societal and political issues, as well as an interest in developing policy-relevant recommendations. In this paper, we argue that the time is ripe for a systematic re-engagement with how the dynamics of economy and society are fundamentally shaped by various elites, new forms of expertise, and their command posts — centers of societal power that regulate, oversee, and aim to maintain social order. Recalling early efforts by C. Wright Mills and his contemporaries, we call for the development of an institutional approach to the study of elites and command posts that draws on contemporary theories of power and culture to inform the creation of a new body of knowledge to inform our understanding of policy making and implementation. Drawing on a diverse array of sociological literatures and examples, the institutionalist agenda we lay out requires research that goes beyond a focus on any particu...

Commitment to Organizational Change: A Critical Review

Abstract: This article provides a critical, narrative review of existing findings from the organizational behavior literature on the assessment of employee commitment to change initiatives. First, articles that have assessed commitment to change and attempted to link it to antecedents and/or outcomes are analyzed. Second, implications of these results and recommendations for future research are provided, focusing on the need to clarify the dimensionality of change commitment, its measurement, its relationship to organizational commitment, and its relationship to culture.

Virtual knowledge sharing in a cross‐cultural context

Abstract: Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to identify what factors impact employees’ online knowledge sharing in a cross-cultural context. Design/methodology/approach – A qualitative research design was used. Data were collected from 41 in-depth interviews with Chinese and American employees who worked for a multinational Fortune 100 company. Findings – The research discovered that three categories of factors were critical in impacting Chinese and American participants’ online knowledge sharing: organizational issues, national cultural differences, and online communities of practice (CoPs). Organizational issues, including performance expectancy, compatibility based on work practice, knowledge-sharing culture and time pressures, were identified as being important factors that strongly influenced both Chinese and Americans’ knowledge sharing. Three major national culture-related differences emerged as significant: language, different thinking logic, and different levels of perceived credibility of voluntarily shared knowledge. These cultural differences made Chinese participants contribute knowledge less frequently than their US peers. Online CoPs showed both advantages and disadvantages in facilitating knowledge sharing among globally distributed members, and these factors influenced both cultural groups in similar ways. Research limitations/implications – The findings were based on a single case study from one business sector. Only US and Chinese participants were included in the study. Originality/value – Research on knowledge sharing among geographically distributed and culturally diversified employees through online systems is still in its infancy. The paper integrates research from multiple disciplines (organizational studies, national culture and online CoPs) to address the literature gap. The findings will assist knowledge management managers to make global knowledge sharing more fruitful in multinational organizations.

Critical Discourse Analysis in Organizational Studies: Towards an Integrationist Methodology

Abstract: We engage with Leitch and Palmer's (2010) analysis of Critical Discourse Analytical (CDA) scholarship in organizational and management studies, in order to argue that, whereas they rightly point to the need for further reflexivity in the field, their recommendation for a strict methodological protocol in CDA studies may be reproducing some of the problems they identify in their analysis. We put forward an alternative, relational-dialectic conception of discourse that defends an integrationist orientation to research methodology, privileging trans-disciplinarity over rigour.

Relationships among Perceived Organizational Core Values, Corporate Social Responsibility, Ethics, and Organizational Performance Outcomes: An Empirical Study of Information Technology Professionals

Abstract: This study is an extension of our recent ethics research in direct marketing (2003) and information technology (2007). In this study, we investigated the relationships among core organizational values, organizational ethics, corporate social responsibility, and organizational performance outcome. Our analysis of online survey responses from a sample of IT professionals in the United States indicated that managers from organizations with organic core values reported a higher level of social responsibility relative to managers in organizations with mechanistic values; that managers in both mechanistic and organic organizations which were perceived as more socially responsible were also perceived as more ethical; and that perceived ethical attitudes and social responsibility were significantly associated with organizational performance outcome measures. Our article discusses research premises, conceptual framework, hypotheses, research methodology, data analysis, recommendations for further research, and conclusions.

Handbook of Organizational Routines

Abstract: Contents: PART I 1. The Past, Present and Future of Organizational Routines: Introduction to the Handbook of Organizational Routines, Markus C. Becker 2. The Concept of a Routine, Geoffrey M. Hodgson PART II: ORGANIZATIONAL ROUTINES ACROSS DIFFERENT FIELDS 3. Organizational Routines in Political Science, Timothy J. McKeown 4. Routines, 'Going Concerns' and Innovation: Towards an Evolutionary Economic Sociology, Marc J. Ventresca and William N. Kaghan 5. Organizational Routines in Accounting, John Burns and Robert W. Scapens 6. Problem Solving and Governance in the Capability-based View of the Firm: The Roles and Theoretical Representations of Organizational Routines, Giovanni Dosi, Marco Faillo and Luigi Marengo PART III: ORGANIZATIONAL ROUTINES, SEARCH AND LEARNING 7. Organizational Routines in Evolutionary Theory, ThorbjA rn Knudsen 8. Organizational Routines and Organizational Learning, Anne S. Miner, Michael P. Ciuchta and Yan Gong 9. Organizational Routines and Performance Feedback, Henrich R. Greve 10. Routines and Routinization: An Exploration of Some Micro-Cognitive Foundations, Nathalie Lazaric 11. Staying on Track: A Voyage to the Internal Mechanisms of Routine Reproduction, Martin Schulz 12. The Role of Teams and Communities in the Emergence of Organizational Routines, Patrick Cohendet and Patrick Llerena PART IV: CONDUCTING EMPIRICAL RESEARCH ON ORGANIZATIONAL ROUTINES 13. Issues in Empirical Field Studies of Organizational Routines, Brian T. Pentland and Martha S. Feldman 14. Conducting Experimental Research on Organizational Routines, Alessandro Narduzzo and Massimo Warglien Index

A Missing Piece of the Puzzle: The Organizational Context in Cultural Patterns of Creativity

Abstract: In this article, we first review cross-cultural research, especially that concerning similarities and differences between East Asian and Western cultures, on creativity using laboratory tasks and tests. On the basis of this review, we then propose some directions for future cross-cultural research on creativity in the workplace. We emphasize the need to theorize why cultural differences make a difference in creativity and directly investigate, rather than assume, effects of contextual factors on creativity. In this regard, two literatures on creativity – cross-cultural studies using laboratory tasks and organizational studies of employee creativity – can benefit tremendously from integration. We also call for more empirical research examining effects of culture on creativity in the workplace, especially in China.

Adopting and assimilating new non-pharmaceutical technologies into health care: A systematic review:

Abstract: Objective: To explore what is known about organizational processes that determine whether (and the extent and rate at which) new non-pharmaceutical technologies are adopted and assimilated into routine health care. Methods: Electronic searching of four databases, hand searching of six journals and electronic citation tracking searches of three key research papers. A narrative synthesis was conducted. Results: Ninety-nine empirical studies and seven narrative overviews informed the findings. The majority (62%) of the studies took a deterministic approach (mainly using cross-sectional mailed questionnaires) and typically studied the impact of organizational variables ‐ such as organizational size ‐ on the rate of adoption of technological innovations. The remaining studies were process-based using a single- or multi-case study approach. The organizational processes that determine whether and how technological innovations are adopted and assimilated into routine health care practice are dependent upon the specific innovation concerned, the different actors involved at various points in time, and the particular organizational context in which decisions are made. It is important to see ‘adoption’ and ‘assimilation’ as part of an ongoing process rather than discrete events, and as a process that comprises both ‘formal’ organizational and ‘informal’ decisions by individual users (the latter often shaped by discussions with their peers and colleagues). Conclusions: Further process-based studies are needed to provide a clearer evidence base for recommendations on how to facilitate the adoption and assimilation of beneficial new technologies. Three theoretical perspectives could form the basis of such studies and produce practical advice for managers and practitioners.

Organizational Preferences and Their Consequences

Abstract: 1 What is An Organization? 2 Organizational Homogeneity 3 Organizational Hierarchy 4 Homogeneity and Hierarchy are Mutually Reinforcing 5 Performance Implications of Organizing Preferences 6 Summary

New development of organizational commitment: A critical review (1960 - 2009)

Abstract: This paper reviews the characteristics of main approaches to Organizational Commitment from the beginning of conception of Commitment in Becker (1960) till today, provides an overview of different eras and domains. Then discuss some new development of Organizational Commitment in commitment tendency or combined influence to organizational outcomes. This paper will argue some of thinking and ideas developed so far do provide the basic building blocks for suggesting a conceptualization that will attempt to clarify and to better represent the concept of organizational commitment. The advantages of suggested theory and its implications for the understanding of organizational commitment and future research on it are discussed. Key words: Continuous commitment, affective commitment, normative commitment, time-dimension, combined influence.

Organizational Cultural Intelligence: Dynamic Capability Perspective:

Abstract: This study introduces the conceptual foundations of cultural intelligence (CQ) at the organizational level and elaborates on its three factors: process, position, and path capability. Drawing on Ea...

Organizational neuroscience: The promise and prospects of an emerging discipline

Abstract: We review and discuss an Organizational Neuroscience perspective on management science research. Reviewing recent findings in the brain sciences, we provide concrete examples of how an organizational neuroscience perspective can advance organizational behavior research. We conclude that this new paradigm offers powerful insights and tools that complement traditional organizational research. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Promoting Work Motivation in Organizations: Should Employee Involvement in Organizational Leadership Become a New Tool in the Organizational Psychologist’s Kit?

Abstract: What are the best interventions that Work and Organizational Psychology offers today for promoting high work motivation in organizations? This paper seeks to answer this question in two steps. First, we briefly summarize the main findings from 26 meta-analyses concerned with traditional practices such as goal setting, feedback, work design, financial incentives, or training. These practices can improve both organizational performance and the well-being of organizational members. Second, we examine in more depth a new, increasingly important high performance work practice: Employee involvement in organizational leadership (EIOL). This approach is built on theories focusing on organizational participation, shared leadership, and organizational democracy. We also illustrate recently constructed measurement instruments for assessing these constructs. This synopsis leads us to the development of a new integrative, multilevel model of EIOL. The model includes several mediator (e.g., knowledge exchange) and mode...

Explaining Discontinuity in Organizational Learning: A Process Analysis

Abstract: This paper offers a process analysis of organizational learning as it unfolds in a social and temporal context. Building upon the 4I framework (Crossan et al. 1999), we examine organizational learning processes in a longitudinal case study of an implementation of knowledge management in an international bank. This learning trajectory shows complex multilevel learning dynamics, in which we identify discontinuities where micro-processes of organizational learning are interrupted or do not progress from level to level. These discontinuities are explained by dynamics and tensions in the social and temporal structures enacted in the learning processes. Time is thereby revealed as a key dimension in the process and politics of organizational learning. The discontinuities in the micro-processes of learning render organizational learning fragmented and transient.

Understanding and transforming organizational security culture

Abstract: Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine the practical issues, techniques and learning points associated with information security awareness and organizational change programmes.Design/methodology/approach – The paper is based on the findings and conclusions of research, observations and projects carried out in large organizations over the last two decades. It highlights failings and critical success factors in contemporary approaches to transform organizational culture. It draws on theory and research from the industrial safety field, and discusses its relevance in the information security field.Findings – The paper identifies the primary reasons why many contemporary enterprise security awareness programmes are ineffective. It discusses the nature of the problem and solution space, identifying the practical issues and opportunities, and gives recommendations on how future programmes can be improved.Research limitations/implications – The paper identifies gaps in current research, including the ...

Destructive organizational communication : processes, consequences, and constructive ways of organizing

Abstract: This volume provides an in-depth consideration of destructive communication in organizations -- including workplace bullying, racism, stress, and harassment. It brings together communication scholars from theoretical and applied perspectives to assess current understandings, explore ways to integrate theory and practice, identify areas for change, and outline a research agenda for the coming decade. Each chapter examines a specific aspect of destructive organizational communication, reviews existing theory and research about that communicative form or ideology, suggests fruitful possibilities for application, and suggests key areas for further study. As such, the book opens a dialogue among communication scholars that explores destructive communication in organizations and addresses the following key components: * the central issues and concerns regarding destructive organizational communication, * current scholarly contributions to both applied and theoretical understanding of these issues, * approaches to integrate applied/experienced and theoretical/conceptual perspectives in ways that inform one another and improve organizational considerations for varied stakeholders, and * suggestions for a future research agenda for those interested in ameliorating the destructive side of organizational communication. Overall, the collection provides a basic understanding of the different types of destructive communication in organizations, the processes through which these interactions occur, the consequences to individuals and organizations, and the potential for organizing in more constructive, civil ways. This volume will be an excellent resource for scholars and researcher studying organizational communication, and graduate and advanced undergraduate students in organizational communication. It will also resonate with managers dealing with hostile workplaces, and organizational members trying to understand their current experiences. The book will serve as an excellent textbook for advanced undergraduate and graduate courses in organizational communication.

Critical Theorist, Postmodernist and Social Constructionist Paradigms in Organizational Analysis: A Paradigmatic Review of Organizational Learning Literature

Abstract: In an effort to clarify alternative approaches to organizational analysis, this paper is concerned to stimulate the debate on how an inquiry of organizational phenomena in general, and that of organizational learning in particular, can be accomplished. Encouraging attention to different aspects of various paradigmatic approaches, the paper focuses on critical theory, postmodernism and social constructionism and how these paradigms have contributed and can contribute to the research in the subject domain of organizational learning. To this end, a paradigmatic review of the literature on organizational learning is offered in this paper. Organizational learning, as the study of learning processes of, and within, organizations, has attracted significant attention in the academe since early 1980s. There is a plethora of studies on organizational learning, which offer rich material for a paradigmatic review. In this study, we illustrate how critical theorist, social constructionist and postmodernist approaches can contribute to the field of organizational learning.. We highlight the need for further development of the field, from alternative paradigmatic perspectives, with a view to generating more insights into the multifaceted, complex and changing nature of learning in contemporary organizations

How do organizations remember? The influence of organizational structure on organizational memory

Abstract: How do organizational factors influence knowledge retention and storage within companies? In this study, we examine the influence of organizational structure on organizational memory. We are specifically interested in the effects of specialization and standardization—dimensions of the organizational structure—on organizational memory as conceptualized by Walsh and Ungson (1991) and Argote (2005). This study is based on recent survey data from 122 respondents of multi-unit organizations that are mainly from the consulting, financial, automotive, and electrical industries. The results suggest that structural organizational factors, i.e. specialization and standardization as well as organizational processes such as codification and personalization of information and electronic communication influence organizational memory. Furthermore, the results show that codification of information fully mediates the relationship between standardization and organizational memory and that electronic communication partially...