Management Sciences and Quantitative Methods Commons^™

Transformational Leadership And Safe Driving Performance In The U.S. Electric Utility Industry, Mackington Joseph

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Transformational leadership (TL) has been found popular in many industries in the United States and abroad for the perceived transformational leaders' effectiveness in improving occupational safety. There is a lack of empirical evidence to confirm these claims for safe occupational driving. This phenomenological study attempted to fill this knowledge gap in the electric utility industry where employees must drive in all weather conditions to restore power to customers. The conceptual framework for the study was based on leadership and motivation theories of Burns and Maslow. The research questions explored the influence of (a) TL on safe driving performance improvement in …

General Strain Theory As A Predictor Of Occupational Fraud, Timothy Bergsma

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The world economy loses an estimated $3.5 trillion annually due to fraud. A weakened economy leads to additional hardships for individuals, families, and organizations. General strain theory (GST) posits that certain strains lead to negative emotional responses, and the result is delinquent behavior. The purpose of this research was to analyze the relationship between strain and occupational fraud through the theoretical framework of GST. The research questions addressed (a) occupational frauds as measured by strain levels of perpetrators, (b) the relationship between strain scores and the different occupational fraud types, and (c) the significance of the relationship between fraud motivation …

Human Factors Analysis And Classification System Interrater Reliability For Biopharmaceutical Manufacturing Investigations, Roberto Cintron

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Human errors are an expected result of operations performed by individuals and frequently lead to accidents and other catastrophic events. The problem is that the current process used to investigate and mitigate human errors in the biopharmaceutical manufacturing industries is not effective, as it does not include the effects of human factors found to be effective in aviation and nuclear power organizations. The human factors and classification system (HFACS) was created for the investigations of accidents using the Swiss cheese model of accident causation as a theoretical framework. The purpose of this quantitative, inter-rater reliability study was to demonstrate the …

Leadership Influences Of The Veteran Alpha Female Leader, Danielle J. Moncrief

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

In recent years, more women have entered positions of leadership, and their alpha personalities have compelled them to strive for higher positions of authority. With this influx, it has become necessary to better understand the influences of this type of female leader and to expand narrow conceptualizations. Previous studies examined alpha female leaders of high school and college-age, but studies have yet to explore this type of leader beyond college. This phenomenological study sought to examine the influence of the minority identity, life experience, and leadership duration on veteran alpha female leaders. It was grounded in social-role and ethnic-identity theory. …

Exploring Critical Success Factors Of The Redesigned Military Transitioning Program, Gloria Jean Edwards

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

A task force commissioned by President Obama overhauled the U.S. Military Transitioning Program (MTP) in 2012-2013. U.S. veterans have continued to struggle with military transitions following the MTP restructuring. The purpose of this phenomenological inquiry was to explore the critical success factors of the MTP after the redesign based on perceptions of 20 military officers intending to transition to the civilian sector in the National Capital Region. The problem studied was that there was no indication that the redesigned MTP was effective in helping officers transition to the civilian workforce. The study included 3 research questions and semistructured interviews were …

Financing School-Based Health Centers: Sustaining Business Operational Services, Ingrid Monique Hayes-Burrell

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

School-based health centers (SBHCs) have faced challenges in securing adequate funding for operations and developing sound business systems for billing and reimbursement. Specifically, administrators often lack strategies to develop and sustain funding levels to support appropriate resources for business operations. The focus of this descriptive study was to explore best practice strategies to develop and sustain funding through the experiences of SBHC administrators. The conceptual framework included Elkington's sustainability theory, which posits that corporate social responsibility, stakeholder involvement, and citizenship improve manager's effect on the business system. Twenty full-time SBHC administrators working in separate locations throughout the state of Maryland …

A Cross-Regional Comparison Of Fabricated Metals' Manufacturing Sector Resiliency, Linda Ann Holt

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Fabricated metals' manufacturing sector employment in the United States declined following the onset of the 2008 recession. Premium compensation and benefits afforded to employees within the manufacturing sector amplified the negative effects of recessionary job losses. Using the regional macroeconomic complex adaptive systems (CAS) framework, the purpose of this study was to examine the geographic distribution of job losses, recovery rates, and adaptive behavior after the recession for the fabricated metals manufacturing sector by measuring and comparing effects in 50 East North Central division MSAs and 50 South Atlantic division MSAs in the United States. Independent sample t tests compared …

Experiences And Perceptions Of Liberian Business Leaders' Transformational Leadership Skills, Kingsley Lington Ighobor

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

African business leaders may not be effective because of a lack of transformational leadership skills. Business leaders applying transformational leadership skills can strengthen relationships with followers and enhance organizational performance. The purpose of this phenomenological study was to explore the experiences and perspectives of Liberian business leaders regarding transformational leadership skills needed to lead profitable organizations. Building on a conceptual framework of transformational leadership theory, data were obtained from open-ended interviews of 20 Liberian business leaders operating in the capital city of Monrovia. Interviews were transcribed, coded, validated through transcript review, and analyzed to generate themes. The most prominent themes …

Lived Experiences Of Women Over 50 Who Have Experienced Involuntary Job Loss, Roxine Denise Phillips

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Both the short-term and long-term unemployment rates for older workers in the United States have increased significantly since the 2007 recession. Researchers who examine the impact of involuntary job loss have predominantly focused on the experiences of men. Limited prior research exists on the job loss experiences of women over 50 years of age compared to men. The goal of this study was to address this gap in knowledge by examining the lived experiences of women over 50 who had experienced involuntary job loss, the barriers faced to reemployment, and the ways women overcame the barriers to reemployment. A phenomenological …

When Does Six Sigma Reduce Defects And Increase Efficiencies?, Richard Jay Sands

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

A field research-based statistical study was used to investigate successes and failures of Six Sigma methodologies based projects. Six Sigma methodologies require that projects be designed, planned, and implemented using techniques specifically designed to achieve desired benefits that are based on the method's key drivers for project success. This study addressed an identified gap in the literature that Six Sigma projects do not fail because of Six Sigma methodologies, but that the projects can fail because of deficient support processes. Six Sigma projects that do not achieve the desired benefits are often labeled as "fads". Research questions related to management …

Transformational Strategic Choice: The Generational Succession Effect On Small Businesses, Eric D. Williams

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Changing workforce demographics, combined with a gap in knowledge and skills between older and younger generations, threatens small business viability. The presence of four generations in the workforce, where 1 in 5 employees are 55 years and older, presents an unprecedented challenge for small business leaders planning for succession with a multigenerational workforce. The purpose of this case study was to explore the effect of Baby Boomers' presence on small business leaders' ability to retain and transfer knowledge to successive generations. Using snowball and purposeful sampling techniques, 36 small business leaders in the Washington, DC, metropolitan area participated. The conceptual …

Employee Conduct When Administering Government Contracts In The Defense Logistics Agency, Sandra Genevieve Haynes-Michaels

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The Office of the Inspector General in the Department of Justice reported cases of government contracting employees accepting bribes totaling over $540 million within a 6-year period. The purpose of this case study was to explore the perceptions of government contracting managers regarding the knowledge needed to mitigate employees' unethical behaviors when administering government contracts. Previous studies on government contracting employees' unethical behaviors focused on employees' behaviors, but lacked data concerning managers' roles in mitigating employees' unethical behaviors. The study's conceptual framework was stakeholder theory. The data were gathered through semistructured interviews conducted with 21 government contracting managers in the …

Relationships Between Job Design, Job Crafting, Idiosyncratic Deals, And Psychological Empowerment, Marsha Miller

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Although much is known about employee empowerment and work designs, numerous companies and management practitioners struggle to implement empowerment initiatives effectively because it is not known which approach best facilitates individual levels of psychological empowerment. Traditional job design theory focuses on the role of managers and portrays employees as passive grantees of empowerment. Employees may influence their own empowerment by taking an active role in work design. The primary purpose of this correlational study was to examine whether job crafting or idiosyncratic deals are more or less empowering than job design and how work locus of control influences these relationships. …

The Triple Bottom Line And Social Responsibility Framework In Public Sector Management, Matthew Ajiake

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Leaders of public sector agencies must incorporate the voices of diversified stakeholders into planning and decision-making processes. With aging infrastructures around the world, public agencies are challenged to move public benefit projects forward when citizens are not engaged or empowered to participate in the process. The purpose of this triple bottom line (social, ecological, and financial) and social responsibility study was to explore whether public sector organizations are socially responsible by law. A case study was developed using data from publicly available documents and interviews that explored how the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission (SFPUC) implemented a social responsibility framework …

Political Leadership And Management Of Civic Services In A Downturn Economy, Patrick Charles Williams

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Municipal leaders in the United States face difficult decisions when prioritizing nonmandated civic projects for funding, especially when operating budgets are restricted. This phenomenological study investigated municipal leaders' decision-making processes in a state in the southern United States, using a conceptual framework based on rational choice theory, bounded rationality, and group decision-making theory. It specifically explored personal and organizational decision-making processes related to the prioritization and funding of nonmandated civic projects via in-depth interviews with a convenience sample of 15 municipal leaders. Thematic analysis identified expert opinions, the time and cost to complete a project, the perceived value relative to …

A Delphi Study Of The Potential Influence Of Women In Stem Careers, Sharyn Elizabeth Mlinar

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

American businesses are working with educational institutions to attract women into technical and scientific professions. However, less than one quarter of the people working in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) are women. The educational system as-a-pipeline model is not supplying business with skilled workers, specifically female STEM employees. Organizational change must occur and this process begins with the organization's leadership. Guided by the the conceptual frameworks of Kotter & Rathgeber and Kouzes & Posner, this Delphi study asked 54 female professionals, in various locations across the United States, about what influenced them in their education and career choices. Responses …

Ceo Duality And Performance Of Not-For-Profit Hospitals, Anh Ngoc Pham

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Depending on their needs for enhancing and sustaining their business and market values, some firms choose to operate with a corporate governance structure of CEO duality, in which an executive serves as the CEO and the chairperson of the board of directors. The problem addressed in this study is that past empirical and theoretical studies of the relationship between CEO duality and firm performance of organizations across different industries have generated ambiguous results, and no studies have focused specifically on the relationship between CEO duality and financial performance of not-for-profit hospitals. Based on agency and stewardship theories, and considering that …

Communication Satisfaction Of Charismatic Leaders In Virtual Teams, Felicia Latrice Chachere

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Over the last 2 decades of advances in technology, organizations have used virtual teams (VTs) as one way to expand globally. Strong leadership and communication skills with followers are essential qualities for successful VTs. It is important to conduct research related to charismatic leadership and communication satisfaction of team members as many organizations now use VTs. The purpose of the survey study was to examine the relationship of perceived charismatic leadership qualities in VT leaders and communication satisfaction in VT members. The research questions examined the association between charismatic leadership qualities and the subdimension of communication satisfaction. Charismatic leadership was …

Employee Perception Of The Value Of Customer Focus Training In Public Transportation, Michael L. Dawkins

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The number of service-oriented jobs has increased locally and nationally, and organizations are spending millions of dollars to train front-line employees to maintain customer satisfaction and compete in the service industry. Despite the financial investments of these training programs, little research has investigated the holistic effectiveness of customer-focused training (CFT) programs. Researchers found positive relationships between the constructs under investigation and reported that when CFT programs are delivered on a consistent basis with leadership support, they help build a service-oriented culture. The purpose of this case study was to investigate employee perceptions of CFT and relationships between performance, engagement, and …

An Exploration Of Human Resource Personnel And Toxic Leadership, Sabrina Michele Maxwell

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

An Exploration of Human Resource Personnel and Toxic Leadership

by

Sabrina Michele Maxwell

MA, Pepperdine University, 2006

MA, BIOLA University, 2003

BS, BIOLA University, 2001

Dissertation Submitted in Partial Fulfillment

of the Requirements for the Degree of

Doctor of Philosophy

Management

Walden University

May 2015

'

Toxic leaders are destructive of morale, productivity, and organizational effectiveness. Literature has reported the perspectives of followers, and sometimes how organizations address those toxic behaviors, but research has not examined the perspectives of human resource (HR) managers who must detect the existence of toxic behaviors and handle with the consequences of them. To address …