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Full-Text Articles in Business
Loafing Behind Screens: Of Websites And Work-Avoidance, Knowledge@Smu
Loafing Behind Screens: Of Websites And Work-Avoidance, Knowledge@Smu
Knowledge@SMU
While most people will agree that the internet has given rise to greater efficiency and productivity, there are concerns that these technologies increasingly represent a threat to the workplace – as an instrument for distraction and loafing around. What might influence people to submit to the temptations of news, entertainment and social networking sites, and to avoid work? SMU assistant professor David T. Wagner studied internet traffic patterns to find out more.
An Inside Job: To Get On The Right Career Track, Look Within, Knowledge@Smu
An Inside Job: To Get On The Right Career Track, Look Within, Knowledge@Smu
Knowledge@SMU
While some people may claim to work solely for the money, research has shown 'self-concept' to be an important but often overlooked consideration when choosing between jobs. An out-of-work investment banker may fail to consider 'analyst' positions due to perceptions of job prestige. Similarly, gender stereotypes may prevent a female civil engineering student from considering a career in construction. Speaking at a Behavioural Sciences Institute seminar, Serena Wee, an assistant professor of psychology at SMU, drew links between job seeking behaviours and concepts of identity.
From Boardroom To Parliament, Knowledge@Smu
From Boardroom To Parliament, Knowledge@Smu
Knowledge@SMU
The benefits of state-owned enterprises are well known: cheap loans, favourable policies and little competition. Because of the perks they enjoy, these companies have often been criticised for not being hungry enough to maximise firm value, especially when their CEOs are not as well paid as those in the private sector. There is proof now that competition in the political job market helps mitigate the weak monetary incentives for CEOs in China. Interestingly, this means that state control and political connections may not be inconsistent with economic pursuits.
Part Of The Job: The Positive Side Of Office Politics, Knowledge@Smu
Part Of The Job: The Positive Side Of Office Politics, Knowledge@Smu
Knowledge@SMU
It may sound counter intuitive but playing with office politics may not necessary make you the villain at work. Embracing office politics and learning to use it positively can help companies retain talent and build ethical leadership, says Jane Horan author of a new book I Wish I’d Known That Earlier In My Career: The Power of Positive Workplace Politics
Making Sense Of The Strategic Value Behind Ceo Pay Cheques, Knowledge@Smu
Making Sense Of The Strategic Value Behind Ceo Pay Cheques, Knowledge@Smu
Knowledge@SMU
In a country where conformity and harmony are valued, Japanese multinationals have become open to appointing foreign CEOs, who are deemed to be able to effect change faster than a Japanese CEO, as part of corporate strategies to conquer overseas markets. But one difficulty in hiring these foreign CEOs is that their pay is much higher than their Japanese counterparts, who are famous for their relatively modest salaries. A study on the impact of firm strategy and foreign ownership sheds more light on the strategy-compensation relationship in Japanese firms.
In The Professionals’ Own Words: The Mark Of A Good Commodities Trader, Knowledge@Smu
In The Professionals’ Own Words: The Mark Of A Good Commodities Trader, Knowledge@Smu
Knowledge@SMU
The high stakes business of commodities trading is perhaps best avoided by those with high blood pressure or those who enjoy the predictability of a nine-to-five job. Yet, the wealth that can come with success has an overwhelming allure. At a panel discussion organised by the International Trading Institute@SMU, industry experts shared their views and identified some preconditions to 'success' within this precarious industry.
Assessing Changes In Performance And Attitudes: It’S About Time, Knowledge@Smu
Assessing Changes In Performance And Attitudes: It’S About Time, Knowledge@Smu
Knowledge@SMU
How will an organisation's climate affect individual work attitudes? How might a person-organisation 'fit' change over time as work requirements change? The study of dynamic constructs, such as individual work attitudes or job performance, has always been challenging – especially if they are to be studied over time, and across levels and groups. Throw in the fact that such constructs are subject to uncontrollable environmental influences and researchers may find themselves in a quandary. To address this, academics need newer methodological approaches, said Professor David Chan at SMU's Behavioural Sciences Institute Seminar Series.
Behind Buffett’S Curtain: Love And Passion Amongst Senior Executives, Knowledge@Smu
Behind Buffett’S Curtain: Love And Passion Amongst Senior Executives, Knowledge@Smu
Knowledge@SMU
Much has been written about the legendary investment skills of Warren Buffett and the business empire he has built. However, much lesser known are the executives who are the day-to-day managers of the various portfolio companies under Berkshire Hathaway. In his book, Behind the Berkshire Hathaway Curtain, first-time author Ronald Chan offers a refreshing insight into the lives and ideals of a group of Buffett’s lieutenants.
Tata’S Hr Strategy: Think Far, Wide And Smart, Knowledge@Smu
Tata’S Hr Strategy: Think Far, Wide And Smart, Knowledge@Smu
Knowledge@SMU
With its hands in a diverse range of industries – from information technology to engineering, property development to travel, steel to the world's most affordable car – India's largest conglomerate, Tata Group, has touched the lives of millions of everyday people. Remarkable as its tales of progress and successes may be, the company realises that it has to adapt quickly if it is to keep on the upward trend. Central to that is a rigorous and "global" approach to talent management that attracts the best, induces their fullest potential, and retains them for as long as possible.
Shaping Singapore: The Conductor, The Score, The Musicians, Knowledge@Smu
Shaping Singapore: The Conductor, The Score, The Musicians, Knowledge@Smu
Knowledge@SMU
A majority of Singaporeans live in public housing. The system, based on the Housing Development Board's vision of "affordable homes, vibrant towns and cohesive communities", has been modelled by many other countries trying to solve their housing needs. Yet, with ever-rising public expectations and rapid developments in the housing market, challenges never cease for this statutory board. The key to meeting these demands, according to CEO Cheong Koon Hean, is to create musical harmony between the agency's engineers, architects, administrators and managers.
Salvaging The Marriage Between A Distrusting Boss And His Fearful Employee, Knowledge@Smu
Salvaging The Marriage Between A Distrusting Boss And His Fearful Employee, Knowledge@Smu
Knowledge@SMU
Will empowering employees to manage their own careers bring about better job performance or will a more permissive environment lead to abuses? Dale Simpson, managing director of a human resources consultancy, leans towards the former, but he knows that most employers would rather hold on to the reins. After all, most employer-employee relationships today are premised on distrust – starting with the signing of a contractual agreement that holds each party legally liable for non-compliance. He believes, however, that employers can reap great benefits when they think of their relationship with employees as a 'marriage', bound not only by law, …
A Challenge To Smes: Creating Creative Ways To Attract Talent, Knowledge@Smu
A Challenge To Smes: Creating Creative Ways To Attract Talent, Knowledge@Smu
Knowledge@SMU
For many small and medium enterprises, finding, attracting and retaining the right talent is a perpetual challenge. Save for perception issues that are unlikely to go away anytime soon – that the smaller businesses don't pay as well or offer as many opportunities as their large multinational counterparts – these enterprises have much to learn about attracting talent with limited resources. Helen Lim, a social entrepreneur and human resources consultant, believes that the smaller companies may not be able to compete on price and prestige, but they can certainly afford to raise their game. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Bridging Cultural Differences In The Global Corporate Environment, Knowledge@Smu
Bridging Cultural Differences In The Global Corporate Environment, Knowledge@Smu
Knowledge@SMU
People form cultural biases from a young age, and this is something that we carry into our adult lives, as members of society, parents, employers and employees. Globalisation has, however, connected familiar and unfamiliar cultures – and people may be ill-prepared to manage their biases. It is not unusual today, for instance, to expect that many jobs will involve some form of interaction with a non-local. So, according to Natalie Turner, the CEO and founder of a multinational consultancy, organisations that give greater attention to bridging cultural gaps will reap greater efficiencies.
Tackling 'Grey Hairs': How Companies Can Turn An Ageing Workforce To Their Advantage, Knowledge@Smu
Tackling 'Grey Hairs': How Companies Can Turn An Ageing Workforce To Their Advantage, Knowledge@Smu
Knowledge@SMU
The greying working population in developed economies will be widening intergenerational fissures in today’s companies and organisations. Young managers find it difficult to handle the 'grey hairs' under their charge, while older workers are not always happy taking orders from their younger supervisors. Yet, without talent, businesses run the risk of losing their competitiveness. How should companies bridge the gap and turn the skills and experience of their older workers into their advantage? Drawing examples and cases not just from America but also Singapore, Peter Cappelli and Bill Novelli, professors at Wharton and Georgetown respectively, share some ideas in the …
Uob's Sustainable Approach To Talent Management For The Private Banking Industry, Knowledge@Smu
Uob's Sustainable Approach To Talent Management For The Private Banking Industry, Knowledge@Smu
Knowledge@SMU
After a hiatus during the financial crisis, the poaching of private banking relationship managers is back. For the players, incumbent and new, local and international, poaching is probably the quickest and most straightforward means of a headcount-led expansion. No need to nurture and develop new recruits when they come nicely packaged with all the right credentials to hit the ground running. But what happens as more and more companies adopt this attitude to recruitment? Wilson Aw, head of private banking at United Overseas Bank, says the industry knows that it cannot grow from within such a vicious cycle. He shares …
Learn Versus Earn: A Case For The Small Business Employers And Those Fresh Graduates Who Join Them, Knowledge@Smu
Learn Versus Earn: A Case For The Small Business Employers And Those Fresh Graduates Who Join Them, Knowledge@Smu
Knowledge@SMU
Go to university. Collect scroll. Join a multinational corporation. Prosper. Advance to Go. Collect $200. Newly minted graduates, venturing beyond the comforts of the ivory towers for the very first time, can often hold strong views on what 'the outside world' has to offer, and how that might subsequently colour their future. Join a big international conglomerate and earn bragging rights. Join a 'boutique' outfit (read: sweatshop) and, well, blame the economy. Such sentiments present employers of small-and-medium enterprises (SMEs) with the short end of the stick. One successful SME employee-turned-employer would argue, however, that it is the fresh graduate …
Do Attractive Organisations Fare Better On The Job Market?, Knowledge@Smu
Do Attractive Organisations Fare Better On The Job Market?, Knowledge@Smu
Knowledge@SMU
Some employers can come across as more alluring than others. Few job seekers, for instance, would ignore openings at Apple, Google, Nike or Goldman Sachs. And if they do, it may have more to do with their own self-esteem than a lack of wanting to work at some of these 'World's Most Admired Companies' (according to Fortune magazine's yearly list). However, why do some organisations seem more attractive than others, and does it factor into our own career decisions? Also, while it may seem as if attractive organisations will get their pick of the most desirable 'suitors', a new study …
With The Financial Crisis Over, Banks Are Hiring Again – But With A Different Job Description, Knowledge@Smu
With The Financial Crisis Over, Banks Are Hiring Again – But With A Different Job Description, Knowledge@Smu
Knowledge@SMU
The massive blood-letting that was supposed to happen with the recent financial crisis went by, without much of hoopla – at least in this part of the world – and many financial institutions are hiring again. However, with new market reforms, human resource managers are mulling over job descriptions. The mindset to maximise profits may be important, but according to the experts, professionals in the industry will be expected to bring more onto the table – to be accountable to a wider circle of stakeholders and to demonstrate a different set of values.
Asian Maths Whizz And Talkative Females: How Stereotypes Can Actually Boost Performance, Knowledge@Smu
Asian Maths Whizz And Talkative Females: How Stereotypes Can Actually Boost Performance, Knowledge@Smu
Knowledge@SMU
Nobody likes to be pigeonholed or reduced to a single stereotype. One reason could be because we believe ourselves to be products of multiple stereotypes: a combination of identities, such as "Asian", "female", "lawyer", "Gen X", "Christian", "Chinese", etc. While these labels connect us to like-individuals, they can also carry all sorts of connotations and expectations – positive, neutral and negative. For example, an Asian might be expected to outperform a non-Asian at mathematics because of stereotypes that Asians are mathematically inclined. Will such undue expectations affect the Asian's performance outcome? Research studies point to a 'Yes'.
Why Might Some Employees Sabotage Their Companies?, Knowledge@Smu
Why Might Some Employees Sabotage Their Companies?, Knowledge@Smu
Knowledge@SMU
The abuse of organisational resources, lying to colleagues, mishandling of confidential data, blackmail, etc - deviant behaviour in the workplace is not just a nuisance, but also a crippling and costly affair, easily reaching billions annually. As it is, business leaders are already saddled with enough worries over the market environment. Tackling deviant behaviour is an extra human resource challenge that most would prefer to go without. Lance Ferris, an organisational behaviour and human resources professor at Singapore Management University, looks at what causes such behaviour: self-esteem, and how managers can address this issue.
Drawing Talent Management Lessons From Supply Chain Practices, Knowledge@Smu
Drawing Talent Management Lessons From Supply Chain Practices, Knowledge@Smu
Knowledge@SMU
The concept of “just-in-time” supply chain management allows manufacturers to stay nimble, flexible, and meet ever-changing demands. Companies can borrow similar ideas in managing and developing their workforce, said Wharton management professor Peter Cappelli in a recent seminar at Singapore Management University. The commonly practised talent management processes were developed decades ago. It is now time for a change.
Information & Communication Talent Development In Singapore, Knowledge@Smu
Information & Communication Talent Development In Singapore, Knowledge@Smu
Knowledge@SMU
Recent trends and developments in infocomm (information & communications) talent took centre stage at a business leaders seminar jointly held by the Singapore Computer Society (SCS) and Infocomm Development Authority (IDA) in November 2008 at the Singapore Management University. IDA CEO rear admiral Ronnie Tay was a key speaker at the event.
Does Watching Television Really Affect Cognitive Development In Young Children?, Knowledge@Smu
Does Watching Television Really Affect Cognitive Development In Young Children?, Knowledge@Smu
Knowledge@SMU
Is a preschool child who spends many hours in front of the television deprived of enriching experiences and healthy activities that facilitate brain development? Joint research by economics professors Huang Fali of Singapore Management University and Lee Myoung-jae of Korea University investigated the effects of watching television on the cognitive development of children by analysing math and reading scores of children aged 8-9 years, and how these related to their television-watching patterns at 6-7 years of age. Their research yielded some surprises.
Maria Brown On Ten Lessons For A Successful Career, Knowledge@Smu
Maria Brown On Ten Lessons For A Successful Career, Knowledge@Smu
Knowledge@SMU
Ex-BBC journalist and producer Maria Brown has spent over 14 years in the international media industry. She is a cofounder and managing director, acquisitions and programming of the Asian Food Channel (AFC), the region’s first 24-hour pay channel devoted to matters culinaire from across the globe. Brown delivered a talk at the Singapore Management University recently on “Ten lessons to have a successful career” as part of the Wee Kim Wee Centre CEO Talks Series.
Building Workplace Trust In Some Cultures Is To Blur The Line Between Professional And Personal Life, Knowledge@Smu
Building Workplace Trust In Some Cultures Is To Blur The Line Between Professional And Personal Life, Knowledge@Smu
Knowledge@SMU
In China and Turkey, the separation between work and personal life is not so clear cut as compared with western societies, according to a joint study by Singapore Management University professor of organisational behaviour Tan Hwee Hoon, and management professors S. Arzu Wasti and Selin Eser of Sabanci University in Turkey. The main purpose of their research was to provide insights into the impact that different cultures have on trust in the workplace.
Understanding Differences In Behaviour: The Role Of Mental Models, Knowledge@Smu
Understanding Differences In Behaviour: The Role Of Mental Models, Knowledge@Smu
Knowledge@SMU
Why do some people make snap judgements about another person based on a single behaviour, while others make up their minds only after repeated observations in different situations? Singapore Management University psychology professor Jennifer Tong attempts to shed new light on why people entertain different assumptions about the nature of human behaviour in a series of psychological studies with a difference. Her findings have practical implications for interactions in the office and at the personal level. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Search For Global Talent: Recent Trends In Asia, Knowledge@Smu
The Search For Global Talent: Recent Trends In Asia, Knowledge@Smu
Knowledge@SMU
Globally, the cross-border flow of workers has gained significant momentum over the past few decades as many countries actively seek foreign talent or encourage their own nationals to return home, state co-editors Christiane Kuptsch and Pang Eng Fong in a 2006 publication, Competing for Global Talent, which was cited in the Economist’s “Special Report, A Survey of Talent” (5 October 2006). Pang, who is Singapore Management University business school dean and professor of management, talks to Knowledge@SMU about recent trends in Asia with specific reference to Singapore’s experience in sourcing global talent.
Why Does Proactivity Relate To Favourable Employee Attitudes And Behaviours?, Knowledge@Smu
Why Does Proactivity Relate To Favourable Employee Attitudes And Behaviours?, Knowledge@Smu
Knowledge@SMU
Responding to fierce global competition for talent, organisations are increasingly developing and using innovative strategies to attract, hire, and retain employees. One strategy aimed at acquiring top-notch talent has been to consider applicants’ personality traits in the hiring process. One personality trait linked to favourable employee behaviours and attitudes is employee proactivity. Integrating several different literatures, Singapore Management University associate professor of organisational behaviour Gary Greguras, and University of Akron assistant professor of psychology James Diefendorff, developed and tested a model which explicates the processes through which proactivity relates to employee job satisfaction, life satisfaction, performance, and organisational citizenship behaviours.
Manish Sabharwal: 'In Five Years, 25% Of The World's Workers Will Be Indian', Knowledge@Smu
Manish Sabharwal: 'In Five Years, 25% Of The World's Workers Will Be Indian', Knowledge@Smu
Knowledge@SMU
Four years ago, Manish Sabharwal headed India Life, the country's largest business process outsourcing firm in the field of human resources. Having sold India Life to Hewitt Associates in 2002, Sabharwal has now carved out another niche in the HR business as the chairman of TeamLease, a temporary staffing firm headquartered in Bangalore. With more than 450 offices all over India and 67,000 employees, the company has a good shot at becoming the country's largest employer in the private sector by the end of 2007, Sabharwal says. In an interview with India Knowledge@Wharton, he discusses the opportunities and challenges of …
Perk Place: The Benefits Offered By Google And Others May Be Grand, But They're All Business, Knowledge@Smu
Perk Place: The Benefits Offered By Google And Others May Be Grand, But They're All Business, Knowledge@Smu
Knowledge@SMU
Free gourmet food, 24-hour gym, yoga classes, in-house doctor, on-site haircuts, dry cleaner, nutritionist, swimming pool ... .These are just some of the perks Google -- and many other organizations -- offer employees. Companies have their reasons, of course: They want to attract and retain the best knowledge-workers they can, help them work long hours by feeding them gourmet meals on-site and handling time-consuming personal chores, and show them that they are valued members of the team. But, as Wharton faculty point out, there may be a potential downside to all this largesse.