Organizational Behavior and Theory Commons^™

A Self-Organizing Group Within A Hierarchical Organization, Sheila Yuter

Doctoral Dissertations

This study was conducted to discover and describe the characteristics of a community of practice (CoP) and the health care system within which it formed. The study explored the relationship between a CoP of primary care physicians and a health care system that was both a hierarchical organization and a complex adaptive entity. It further examined the impact that relationship may have had on the organization’s sustainability within its environment.

A qualitative approach was used for the collection and analysis of data. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with four members of the CoP and three members of their administrative hierarchy. There …

Competitive Groups As Cognitive Communities: The Case Of Scottish Knitwear Manufacturers Revisited, Joseph F. Porac, Howard Thomas, Charles Baden-Fuller

Research Collection Lee Kong Chian School Of Business

In this paper we reflect on the contribution of our 1989 article ‘Competitive Groups as Cognitive Communities: The Case of Scottish Knitwear Manufacturers’. We begin by recalling our backgrounds and motivations as collaborators on the project, and then discuss recent developments in the Scottish Borders knitwear industry. Noting that the industry has suffered continual decline in the twenty years since we published our paper, we suggest that the case still raises issues that remain open questions in the field despite the significant efforts by management researchers in recent years to understand the sources of industrial decline and revitalization. We outline …

Engaging Knowledge Management Learners Through Web-Based Ict: An Empirical Study, Thomas Menkhoff, Tze Yian Thang, Yue Wah Chay, Yue Kee Wong

Research Collection Lee Kong Chian School Of Business

The purpose of this paper is to examine how to successfully blend an e-learning module into a knowledge management (KM) course aimed at getting KM students interested in the respective subject matter (=KM) in a web-based learning environment. Based on data obtained from 138 undergraduate business management students at a university in Singapore, practical aspects of effectively implementing an e-learning system with a focus on KM are analyzed and the importance determined of three conceptual variables in the context of successful blended learning approaches: online faculty to student interaction, social presence and personal e-learning experiences. The study shows some positive …

A Different Look At Why Selection Procedures Work: The Role Of Candidates' Ability To Identify Criteria, Martin Kleinmann, Pia V. Ingold, Filip Lievens, Anne Jansen, Klaus G Melchers, Cornelius J. Konig

Research Collection Lee Kong Chian School Of Business

Personnel selection procedures such as assessment centers, structured interviews, and personality inventories are useful predictors of candidates' job performance. In addition to existing explanations for their criterion-related validity, we suggest that candidates' ability to identify the criteria used to evaluate their performance during a selection procedure contributes to the criterion-related validity of these procedures. Conceptually, the ability to identify criteria can be framed in the broader literature on peoples' ability to read situational cues. We draw on both theory and empirical research to outline the potential this ability has to account for selection results and job performance outcomes. Finally, implications …

The Impact Of Underemployment On Individual And Organizational Performance, Michael R. Bashshur, Ana Hernandez

Research Collection Lee Kong Chian School Of Business

The issue of underemployment is one of increasing concern for countries across the globe. For example, in the USA estimates have put the number of underemployed as high as 20.3%, while in Europe the number of overqualified workers (just one dimension of underemployment) has been estimated at 21.5% (Groot & Maassen van den Brink, 2000). Unfortunately, given the current global economic crisis, this situation can only be expected to worsen in the near future. The international labor pool is becoming more educated and qualified (Peiró, Agut, & Grau, 2010) while organizations worldwide are seeking the minimum effective level of human …

Investment Styles, Fees, & Returns Among Individually Managed & Team Managed Mutual Funds, Kendal Cehanowicz

Honors Projects in Finance

Identifying a successful mutual fund investment involves a crucial analysis of alternatives, all of which influence the true benefit of the investment. Major considerations must include performance, management and fees; which ultimately determine investment returns. Studies have shown that team managed mutual funds exhibit similar risk adjusted performance to individually managed mutual funds, however studies lack this comparison of performance based on fund fees and investment objective. This gap in research implies that there is an opportunity to examine how fund management, investment objective, and fund fees affect overall returns to the investor. Using the 2010 Center for Research in …

Making Sense Of Health Care Planning In Ireland; The Street Level Public Organization (Slpo)., Vivienne Byers

Conference Papers

One of the central mechanisms of the Strategic Management Initiative (SMI) (Government of Ireland 1996) is the devolution of accountability and responsibility from the centre to executive agencies. Service planning was introduced in the Irish health care sector as part of this strategic planning ethos. This paper reports on a study that examined both the intent and the consequences of implementing legislatively mandated planning in the Irish health services, in the context of significant organizational change. In an effort to draw broader lessons, a comparison is drawn with the Canadian experience of service planning.

The choice was made to study …

Cosmopolitans Or Locals: Who Will Lead The Next Generation Of Community Colleges?, Melanie O. Anderson

Department of Educational Administration: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Scholars have identified a potential community college leadership crisis as a large percentage of community college presidents prepare to retire (Shults, 2001; Weisman & Vaughan, 2007). The most common pathway to the community college presidency has been through the chief academic officer (CAO) position (Vaughan, 1990).

Selection of future leaders often focuses on manifest social roles or the expectations that are universally shared and relevant to a given context (Grimes & Berger, 1970). Latent social roles are the internalized shared expectations that are not always seen as relevant on face value, but are predicted to affect an individual’s attitudes and …

Commercial Patterns And Spatial Networks In Hanoi’S Old Quarter: A Case Study Of Vendors On Lan Ong Street, Daniel Weiner

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Walking the streets of the Hanoi’s Old Quarter, one can easily begin to question the economic viability of the area’s commercial pattern. That is, how can multiple stores that sell the exact same products coexist in such a densely concentrated arena? Why do traders with the same goods choose to locate next to each other? Through a literature review of the history of Hanoi’s Old Quarter as well as a case study of the vendors on Lan Ong Street, I examine the purpose and the functionality of the Old Quarter’s spatial structure. I find that the vendors in the Old …

Organizational Culture In Wisconsin Large Law Firms, Susan Balzer Spoerk

Professional Projects

Culture can be defined as the collective programming of the mind which distinguishes one group or category of people from another. Organizational culture is an idea in the field of organizational studies and management which describes the psychology, attitudes, experiences, beliefs and values (personal and cultural values) of an organization. There are many studies on Organizational Culture applied to corporations. There are very few studies of Organizational Culture applied to law firms. This is a study of Organizational Culture in Wisconsin Large Law Firms. This study does not attempt to define specific cultural knowledge of large Wisconsin law firms but …

Competing Values In The Culinary Arts And Hospitality Industry: Leadership Roles And Managerial Competencies, Michael W. Riggs, Aaron W. Hughey

Counseling & Student Affairs Faculty Publications

It is important that education and training programmes align with the needs of the professions they are designed to support. The culinary arts and hospitality industry is a vocational area that needs to be examined more closely to ensure that the skills and competencies taught are those that will actually be needed when students matriculate from career preparation programmes. This study compared the self-assessed leadership roles and managerial competencies of hospitality students and hospitality management professionals in employment. Using the Competing Values Framework (CVF) as a theoretical framework, eight leadership roles and 24 managerial competencies were examined in an effort …

Partial Budgeting Analysis Of Conventional Pump Over Versus Pulsair Cap Management System For A Large–Scale California Winery, Zachary Thomas Hicks

Agribusiness

The purpose of this project was to evaluate the financial feasibility of implementing an automated gas injection system from Pulsair as an alternative to the traditional pump over cap mixing technique that is used during the alcoholic fermentation stage of winemaking.

There were various costs involved in this project that were determined and explained through the use of the partial budgeting method. The costs that were thoroughly analyzed included equipment, labor, utility, and initial investment costs for the Pulsair system as well as the related pump over operation costs. After the two methods associated numbers were evaluated, they were then …

2011 Ijbe Front Matter, Tamra Connor

International Journal for Business Education

1. Editorial Board
2. President's Letter
3. SIEC-ISBE International

Action Learning: Reflections Of A First-Time Coach, Siu Loon Hoe

Research Collection School Of Computing and Information Systems

PurposeIn recent years, action learning has been widely adopted as a problem solving and leadership development tool. The purpose of the article is to reflect on key learning points when initiating action learning sessions and provide tips on what to expect from such sessions.Design/methodology/approachDocumentation of the author's initial first‐hand action learning coaching experience and sharing of lessons learnt in organizing and coaching action learning sessions.FindingsThe paper offers a view on how action learning practitioners can overcome initial coaching issues to run more effective sessions.Originality/valueThis article contributes to the existing action learning literature by providing a deeper understanding of key factors …

Are You A Value Creation Negotiator?, Michael Benoliel

Research Collection Lee Kong Chian School Of Business

Effective negotiation is about skilfully creating sustainable and mutual value for all parties, says Prof Michael Benoliel, Associate Professor of organisational behavioural and human resources practice at SMU.

Getting Due Diligence Right, Michael Benoliel

Research Collection Lee Kong Chian School Of Business

Associate Professor Michael Benoliel, author of the newly published Negotiation Excellence - Successful Deal Making , wrote that effective due diligence is one of the most important tasks in negotiation and there are a few traps that deal makers must avoid.

Touching A Teddy Bear Mitigates The Negative Effects Of Social Exclusion, Kenneth Tai, Xue Zheng, Jayanth Narayanan

Research Collection Lee Kong Chian School Of Business

There is little empirical research to date that looks at how the deleterious effects of social exclusion can be mitigated. We examined how touching an inanimate object—a teddy bear—might impact the effect of social exclusion on prosocial behavior. Across two studies, we found that socially excluded individuals who touched a teddy bear acted more prosocially as compared to socially excluded individuals who just viewed the teddy bear from a distance. This effect was only observed for socially excluded participants and not for socially included (or control) participants. Overall, the findings suggest that touching a teddy bear mitigates the negative effects …

Regret And Justification As A Link From Argumentation To Consequentialism, Terry Connolly, Jochen Matthias Reb

Research Collection Lee Kong Chian School Of Business

Mercier and Sperber (M&S) argue that reasoning has evolved primarily as an adjunct to persuasive communication rather than as a basis for consequential choice. Recent research on decision-related regret suggests that regret aversion and concomitant needs for justification may underpin a complementary mechanism that can, if appropriately deployed, convert M&S's facile arguer into an effective decision maker, with obvious evolutionary advantages.

Ovulation, Female Competition, And Product Choice: Hormonal Influences On Consumer Behavior, Kristina M. Durante, Vladas Griskevicius, Sarah E. Hill, Carin Perilloux, Norman P. Li

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

Recent research shows that women experience nonconscious shifts across different phases of the monthly ovulatory cycle. For example, women at peak fertility (near ovulation) are attracted to different kinds of men and show increased desire to attend social gatherings. Building on the evolutionary logic behind such effects, we examined how, why, and when hormonal fluctuations associated with ovulation influenced women's product choices. In three experiments, we show that at peak fertility women nonconsciously choose products that enhance appearance (e.g., choosing sexy rather than more conservative clothing). This hormonally regulated effect appears to be driven by a desire to outdo attractive …

Social Networking And Individual Performance: Examining Predictors Of Participation, Michael Anthony Brown Sr.

School of Public Service Theses & Dissertations

This dissertation addresses relationships between social networking and individual performance. The "act" of social networking is a process and practice by which people and organizations are drawn together by family, work or hobby to interact via websites. The explosion of these new network connections in the workplace suggests the need for an exploration of the various ways organizations can affect and improve performance and productivity.

This dissertation suggests a social networking participation model that may help organizations predict and understand the value proposition that affects acceptance or rejection of participation. Innovation adoption, governing by network and social capital are important …