Business Commons^™

Paul M. Klekner (B), Roger R. Schnorbus

Robins School of Business White Paper Series, 1980-2022

This is a fictitious case study, including the name of the restaurant and the people involved.

Paul Klekner graduated first in his class from the Culinary Institute of America (CIA) in 1998; his fellow students named him the chef most likely to succeed in the future. After graduation, he and his wife, Sarah, moved back to his home in Richmond, Virginia where he was employed as a chef at several restaurants including Bottega and Old Original Bookbinders. In 2003, he decided to open his own restaurant, Rogerios, in the Tobacco Row section of Richmond. With an inheritance of $300,000 he …

Assessing Intended Employee Behavior In Exit Interviews: Attitudinal And Status Effects, Robert A. Giacalone, Ron A. Dibattista, David Duhon

Robins School of Business White Paper Series, 1980-2022

In order to assess the effects that attitudes toward particular aspects of work life and status (management vs . non-management) might have on the intended willingness to discuss issues during exit interviews, managerial and non-managerial workers were asked to evaluate their attitudes toward particular aspects of work life, as well as their willingness to discuss these issues during an exit interview. Results showed that status alone did not affect willingness to discuss issues, but that attitudes and status had an interactive effect on willingness.

The Comparative Effectiveness Of Impression Management Tactics On The Recommendation Of Grievant Punishment: An Exploratory Investigation, Robert A. Giacalone, Hinda Greyser Pollard

Robins School of Business White Paper Series, 1980-2022

They study applied the literatures on extra-legal variables and self-presentation toward an understanding of judgment biases in arbitration. Subjects were provided with a written case of a grievance over the firing of an employee for drinking on the job. The extra-legal variable of previous record was manipulated by providing subjects with a case in which the grievant had previously been drinking on the job or had never done so before. This was crossed with the manipulation of the impression management variable in which the subjects read either the grievant's use of tactics known as an account or an apology. …

Discussion Willingness In The Exit Interview: A Role-Play Field Investigation, Robert A. Giacalone

Robins School of Business White Paper Series, 1980-2022

The study sought to determine the effect of feelings on willingness to discuss issues during exit interviews. Using a role play methodology, subjects were asked to role play either positive or negative feelings toward their company. They were then asked to role play how willing they would be to discuss particular work-related issues. Results show that while diverging feelings toward the company yield few differences in willingness to discuss issues, differing feelings toward the interviewer yielded greater willingness to discuss issues. Additionally, it was found that on a number of issues, greatest willingness to discuss was evident when there was …

Selecting A Strategy For Determining Information Requirements, Mohammed H. Omar

Robins School of Business White Paper Series, 1980-2022

There is and continues to be an awareness in society that accurate and timely information is a vital resource of any organization, and that an effective management information system is a means of providing the needed information. In an answer to the question: why do organizations process information? Daft [6] presents two answers. Organizations process information to reduce uncertainty and equivocality. As information increases, uncertainty decreases. In situations where organizations are faced with a high degree of uncertainty, a large number of questions has to be asked and more information needs to be acquired to learn the answers. The assumption …

The Impact Of Office Automation On Quality Worklife, Mohammed H. Omar, Charlotte A. Fugett

Robins School of Business White Paper Series, 1980-2022

The proliferation of office automation in the workplace environment has been accompanied by a wave of growing concern over the potential negative side effects on the quality of worklife of user employees. Issues'which have surfaced include: visual, postural and other health hazards; increased work stress; and adverse impact on the overall quality of life. The purpose of this paper is to describe some of these problems and report on both the findings and recommendations of various studies that have been conducted on these issues. This paper is also intended to emphasize the vital role that authorities involved in the management …

The Hidden Challenges Of Retail Expansion, Larry N. Bitner, Judith D. Powell

Robins School of Business White Paper Series, 1980-2022

Successful small retailers invariably are tempted to test the adage "more is better." While the expansion allure is more than many can resist, it must be tempered by the realization that many hidden challenges await the unsuspecting entrepreneur.

Success of the new organization will required not only ore but a different kind of effort than used in managing the single store. First, successful operation will now depend on delegating operating decision to professional managers. The autonomy given these managers in a complex decision and may be placed anywhere within a three dimensional continuum depending on the desired image, supervision, and …

Corporate Diseases Of Excellence, J. Kenneth Matejka, D. Neil Ashworth

Robins School of Business White Paper Series, 1980-2022

Corporations, like people, develop various afflictions during their evolution. Sometimes these ailments are from outdated habits; sometimes they are caused by frailties; sometimes they are just the product of youth or age; and occasionally they result from tremendous exertions of energy in the pursuit of being the best, which are followed by eventual breakdowns.

This article will examine what we consider to be the top 5 corporate diseases of excellence—those management maladies which prevent the majority of U.S. corporations from being great and stop the successful corporations from being even better. The common thread running through all 5 afflictions is …