Business Commons^™

Critical Success Factors In Managing Government Funded R&D Projects In Abu Dhabi, Mariam Ibrahim Al Mahmoud

Dissertations

The purpose of this dissertation is to investigate the critical success factors affecting the research and development projects funded by Abu Dhabi, UAE. Abu Dhabi particularly began to adopt innovative and internationally accepted standards and practices in its public administration. Therefore, it is a challenge to develop public projects, which require time to implement, cost, and as well as smart objectives to achieve. It is necessary the great ability to manage such development, instead of traditional methods. research and development projects funded by the governments have been very challenging while trying to clarify various factors contributing to their success. Design/Methodology/Approach: …

Leaders’ Emotional Intelligence And Followers’ Outcomes: An Emotional Contagion Perspective, Eman Helal Al Mansoori

Dissertations

The purpose of the present study is to examine when and how leaders’ emotional intelligence translates into particular work outcomes for followers, namely job satisfaction, turnover intention and organizational commitment. Specifically, the study aims to identify the mediating mechanism between leaders’ emotional intelligence and followers’ outcomes, and the boundary conditions associated with this relationship. Accordingly, this study examines “emotional contagion” as a moderator variable that influences leader affect and follower effect in order to measure the participants’ susceptibility to emotional contagion. Accordingly, if leaders can communicate positive affect to their followers, then the followers’ positive effect should result in more …

An Investigation Into Knowledge Transfer From Expatriates To Uae Nationals: Organizational And Individual Factors Motivating Knowledge-Sharing Behaviour In Uae Organizations, Amna Khamis Alnakh

Dissertations

This study intends to identify the factors that influence knowledge sharing between individuals in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) context, specifically knowledge sharing from expatriates to UAE citizens, at both an individual and organizational level. This research aims to highlight the determinants of knowledge-sharing behaviours and the role of interpersonal relations (social trust) in the knowledge transfer process. These factors can subsequently be considered by organizations and human resource (HR) practitioners to facilitate the successful implementation of knowledge-sharing behaviour and knowledge transfer in UAE organizations and support UAE’s Emiratization policies and processes. This, in turn, can lead to higher organizational …

Superintendent Recruitment: Effects Of Superintendent Job Status, School Councils (Principal Selection Models), District Wealth, And Signing Bonus On Applicant Rating Of The Job, Mark Jeffery Martin

Dissertations

This nearly perfect replicated study (Millay, 2003) was a superintendent recruitment simulation with the purpose of investigating factors that influence recruiting qualified individuals to serve as district superintendents of public schools. The study was a factorial experiment involving a four-way 2 x 2 x 2 x (3 x S) fixed-factor betweenwithin analysis of variance (ANOVA) which yielded 24 cells. The participants in the study were Kentucky Superintendents (N = 72) and individuals in Kentucky certified to be a school superintendent (N = 72) but employed in another position.

The between-groups variables were superintendent job status (superintendent, certified), district wealth (high, …

Evaluating The Effectiveness Of Emiratization Strategies In The Quasi-Private Sector: Multiple Case Studies From The Manufacturing Sector In The Uae., Hana Mohamed Al Mahri

Dissertations

A central aspect of the United Arab Emirates’ strategic vision for a post-oil future is to make better use of its indigenous human capital, thus securing a return on the substantial investment the government has made in education, and reducing the reliance on a largely non-national labour force. While Emiratization (a policy to replace expatriate workers with citizens) has been successful in the public sector, the private sector is still largely staffed by expatriates with citizens representing less than 5 per cent of the total workforce in this sector. Therefore, Emiratization efforts have recently been focusing on enhancing employment opportunities …

Applied Deep Learning In Intelligent Transportation Systems And Embedding Exploration, Xiaoyuan Liang

Dissertations

Deep learning techniques have achieved tremendous success in many real applications in recent years and show their great potential in many areas including transportation. Even though transportation becomes increasingly indispensable in people’s daily life, its related problems, such as traffic congestion and energy waste, have not been completely solved, yet some problems have become even more critical. This dissertation focuses on solving the following fundamental problems: (1) passenger demand prediction, (2) transportation mode detection, (3) traffic light control, in the transportation field using deep learning. The dissertation also extends the application of deep learning to an embedding system for visualization …

The Replication Of The Globe Study In Turkey: Understanding The Effects Of Social, Economical, And Political Changes On Cultural Dimensions And Leadership Ideals: A Mixed Methods Study, Zeki Pagda

Dissertations

Starting in 1995, the GLOBE (Global Leadership and Organizational Behavior Effectiveness) project has conducted a comprehensive study of cultural values and leadership ideals of 62 countries. GLOBE has identified nine cultural and six leadership dimensions, examined the relationship between cultural values and leadership ideals, grouped countries into clusters, and presented culturally derived leadership ideals. According to the 1995 GLOBE findings, Turkey fits in the Middle Eastern cluster with its corresponding expectations regarding leadership ideals. However, in the past thirty years, Turkey has undergone dramatic social, economic and political changes that may have affected ideals of leadership. The goal of this …

Factors Of Women-Founded High-Growth Technology Startup, Renee Gillard

Dissertations

Purpose: The purpose of this mixed-methods study was to identify and describe critical startup factors of high-growth technology startups as identified by women founders in Seattle, Washington.

Methodology: This mixed-method study identified and described 15 women founders of high-growth technology startups in Seattle. Participants were chosen based on specific criteria and recommendations of a sponsor and expert panel. Interviews were conducted with the participants and they completed an online survey.

Findings: Ten major findings emerged from the data. Founders fostered a strong network of professional and personal relationships to help develop and solidify their identity; they also …

The Impact Of Campus Facilities On The Recruitment Of Students In Higher Education, Lucinnda Sue Mcdonald

Dissertations

The statement often has been made over the years that university recruitment efforts are strongly impacted by campus facilities. The subject has been a topic of research over the past several decades. This study indicates that as generations change and times change, the significance of various aspects of the university to the prospective student change as well.

This research effort is a mixed-methods study to provide insight on the facilities current students deem most important when determining which college or university they will attend. The research for this study was conducted through an online survey asking students to:

• Choose …

The Importance Of Leadership Motivational Activities In Encouraging International Students To Return To Their Tier 1 Universities, Eric Hall

Dissertations

Abstract

The problem is international students are not returning to their undergraduate Tier 1 institutions during a period when quality student enrollment is essential, and there is scant research on academic advising strategies that can be used to combat international student attrition at these universities (O’Keefe, 2013). Studies have often lumped all international students together and made efforts to attract more international students, but the reasons why international students chose research universities, and returned, were not being investigated in this manner (Hegarty, 2014).

The purpose of this proposed study was to gain an understanding of the decision-making and reasoning processes …

Examining Inter-Relationships Between Supervisor Full-Range Leadership, Organizational Climate Strength, And Employee Job Satisfaction Using Multi-Level Modeling, Bharat Mohan

Dissertations

Employee job satisfaction, organizational climate, and supervisor leadership style have long been researched due to their influences on critical metrics for measuring organizational success. While the relationships between these three variables have been investigated, current research suffers from two major issues. First, no existing study has explored the inter-relationships between the aforementioned components within the same model. Second, existing studies are fraught with levels-of-analysis issues that yield findings that are either incomplete or inaccurate. This study addresses these issues by introducing organizational climate strength as a mediating variable (between supervisor leadership and employee satisfaction) and by employing multi-level modeling techniques. …

Making The Invisible Visible: Capturing The Multidimensional Value Of Volunteerism To Nonprofit Organizations, Sue Carter Kahl

Dissertations

Volunteers represent an important part of the nonprofit labor pool, and their contributions are diverse and significant. Yet, the assessment of the value that they bring to nonprofit organizations often is reduced to a few numbers and understood to be an economic decision based on their absence of wages. This value is traditionally reported as volunteer numbers, hours, and an hourly financial value assigned to volunteer time. These data are important tools for articulating volunteer contributions. However, the emphasis on numbers and economic value sometimes obscures important dimensions of service. Therefore, the purpose of this dissertation was to reveal more …

Exploring, Examining, And Explaining How Participatory Governance Adds Value To Saudi Foundations’ Philanthropic Strategy, Afnan E. Koshak

Dissertations

Foundations’ flexibility, given their independence from fundraising imperatives, competition forces, and accountability pressures, enables them to invest in long-term, high-risk, multi-level experiments to deal with the increasingly complex societal problems. This flexibility, coupled with the growing role philanthropy plays in promoting social welfare across the world, is arguably what makes studies that focus on foundations’ philanthropic approaches of utmost importance.

There is a mounting interest among scholars in the governance of foundations, the systems and processes concerned with ensuring the overall strategic direction of organizations. Influenced by agency and stewardship theories, an increasing number of studies address such topics as …

Employee Engagement And Burnout: A Quantitative Study Of Their Correlations With Job/Organizational Satisfaction, Sarah Burnett

Dissertations

Since Kahn introduced the concept of employee engagement in 1990, the focus on motivating employees has been en vogue in practitioner literature. The federal government as well now measures its agencies annually on how well they implement conditions conducive to engagement. Federal agencies are also ranked annually as “Best Places to Work” based on their aggregated score on three survey items deemed to represent job/organizational satisfaction. The concept of burnout, or the so-called “erosion of engagement”, however, has received significantly less attention. To begin to fill this void in the literature, secondary survey data from the 2017 Organizational Assessment Survey …

Truth Or Myth? Millennial Stereotypes, Self-Image, And Engagement In The Workplace, Stephanie Van Dellen

Dissertations

There are approximately 58 million Millennials working for corporations in the United States. Millennials generally born between the years 1980 to 1995 are said to have been shaped by events such as the invention of the Internet and cell phones. Given that Millennials make up a large percentage of the active workforce, it is important to understand the perceived stereotypes of Millennials and how these generalizations may impact their engagement and effectiveness at work.

This research aims to better understand how managers perceive Millennial employees, how Millennials self-identify with their generational stereotypes, and how they differ from other generations. The …

Legal Accountability And Nonprofit Governance: An Exploratory Quantitative Study Of Board Member And Executive Knowledge Of Fiduciary Duties, Crystal Trull

Dissertations

United States nonprofits are governed by boards of directors who have legal responsibilities based on the fiduciary duties of care, loyalty, and obedience. Boards, along with the chief executive, are held responsible to fulfill these standards which are designed to hold nonprofits legally accountable to carry out their tax exempt purpose by using organizational resources for the intended purpose, avoid conflict of interest, and ensure compliance. However, despite this weighty responsibility and the voluntary nature of nonprofits, no standardized process exists to educate nonprofit leaders about their legal responsibilities.

While governance is a key area of nonprofit research, there is …

Supervisor-Subordinate Conflict Negotiation: Examining The Core Concerns In Light Of Communication Accommodation And Gender Roles, Piyawan Charoensap-Kelly

Dissertations

This quasi-experimental study examined a supervisor-subordinate negotiation of an emotion-laden conflict from the lens of the core concerns framework, communication accommodation theory, and gender roles research. Results empirically support CCF that, by accommodating or attending to the employees’ core concerns, managers can stimulate employees’ positive emotion and integrative intention. However, under- and overaccommodating the core concerns can lead to distributive intention. Additionally, the employees’ perception of manager goodwill can strengthen or attenuate the positive effect of core concerns accommodativeness on outcome variables especially for male managers. Thus, moderate accommodation is recommended for male managers. For female managers, the results show …

Promoting Workplace Health Using Wearable Technology: A Mixed Methods Study In A Nonprofit Organization, Mitchell Tarver

Dissertations

Despite efforts to improve the designs and benefits of workplace wellness programs (WWPs), there are two major problems preventing employers from optimizing the human capital of their employees: (a) many WWPs are limited and do not include an exercise component, which increases the potential for chronic health conditions; and (b) more than 50% of employees are reluctant to participate in WWPs due to the common barriers of time, convenience, and location. A lack of physical activity is a problem because studies have shown that chronic conditions increase rates of absenteeism and presenteeism, both of which increase productivity loss. Additionally, low …

Impact Of Leadership Styles On The Performance Of Virtual Teams In The Uae Government Sector: Assessment Of Transactional And Transformational Leadership Styles, Nama Salmeen Mabrouk Omar Al Ameri

Dissertations

The widespread availability of computers and the presence of ubiquitous internet has motivated organizations to acknowledge the potential role of virtual teams in reducing the cost of operations, increasing firm productivity, and creating flexible work environments. Consequently, most global firms are running their operations using multiple experts located remotely in different parts of the world (virtual teams) to plan, design, and implement projects and tasks. However, virtual teams face many challenges resulting from a lack of face-to-face contact. Based on existing relevant literature, this study contributes a unique insight into how some challenges surrounding virtual team performance might be addressed. …

Exploring The Perceptions Of Leaders In Investor-Owned Utilities In California On Managing Organizational Change Initiatives, Maria Liza Legaspi

Dissertations

Purpose: The purpose of this qualitative study employing in-depth interviews was to identify the strategies and practices executive leaders and midlevel managers of investor-owned utilities (IOUs) perceive are effective in creating employee acceptance and support of organizational change and to identify the supports and barriers executive leaders and midlevel managers perceive as affecting employee acceptance or resistance to organizational change in IOUs.

Methodology: A qualitative research design enabled the capture of deeper thoughts and insights of executive leaders and midlevel managers of 4 IOUs in California. The study delved into the strategies and practices used by IOUs that are perceived …

G.I. Jane Fem Etran Goes Corporate: An Exploration Of Post-9/11 Female Combat Veterans Transitioning To A Civilian Career, Tumona Austin

Dissertations

Purpose: The purpose of this multiple-case study was to explore the experiences of post- 9/11 female combat veterans transitioning from military service to civilian careers, using the Schlossberg transition model factors of situation, self, social support, and strategies.

Methodology: This multiple-case study identified and interviewed post-9/11 female combat veterans transitioning from active-duty to civilian career. Respondents were purposively chosen based on specific criteria and expert panel recommendations.

Findings: Examination of case-study interview data and artifacts from the 3 post-9/11 female combat veterans indicated nine major findings:

1. The factor of situation clearly outweighed the other Schlossberg factors in impact.

2. …

Examining The Effects Of Brain Education On Employee Stress Management, Work Performance, Relationships, And Well-Being, Ericka Crawford

Dissertations

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to identify, examine, and describe the lived experience of employees who received Brain Education training in the areas of stress management, work performance, relationships, and well-being.

Methodology: This qualitative phenomenological study utilized semi-structured interviews to collect data from employees trained in Brain Education. Employees were purposefully chosen based on specific criteria, including those trained in Brain Education for at least three months, worked for organizations that employee more than 20 people, and were located in California.

Findings: Analysis of the data showed 10 major findings across 29 major themes and 76 associated codes. …

The Antecedents Of Individuals’ Creative Behaviour In Government Organisations: Exploring The Roles Of Personality, Educational Background, Social Networks And Organisational Culture, Adel Rashed Yousef Soufa Al Zaabi

Dissertations

Employees’ creativity in any organization is vital to its successful performance and growth. Most researchers have studied creativity using a uni-dimensional approach like work culture, and leadership support. With the new vision of the UAE and its strategy of development in the coming years, more studies about creativity and creative behavior are needed in this region. This research is unique as it studies the creative behavior of government employees from a holistic view within work and outwork factors.

Accordingly, this research identifies and examines the impact of four antecedents on the government employee’s creative behavior. It examines out work antecedents …

Using Personal-Type Relationships (Guanxi) To Attract And Retain Customers In Small Business Enterprise (Sbe): An Empirical Study In Uae, Abu Dhabi, Hadi Saif Albadi

Dissertations

Very few researchers have investigated the underlying socio-cultural formulas in the aspects of culture that affect relationships around the globe. Middle Eastern cultures give great importance to personal-type relationships (akin to the Chinese concept of Guanxi), in many different spheres of life. This research identifies the factors composing the unique forms of such relationships that are found in the context of Abu Dhabi city. The research focuses on the significant role and the effect of the cultivation in business contexts of personal-type relationships, characterized by the presence of personal trust, empathy, reciprocity, bonding, face, and affection. The aim of this …

The Impact Of Management Control Systems On Innovation Performance In Healthcare Organizations, Abdel-Haleem Iyad Al-Kade

Dissertations

The healthcare sector is one of the largest industries in the world, at close to 10 percent of global GDP. Healthcare providers are facing complex challenges arising from advances in medical treatment, an increase in patients’ demands, and decreasing resources to fund and support their activities. Healthcare organizations have resorted to innovation as a means to achieving a balance between cost containment and healthcare quality. While innovation is believed to be a critical element of business productivity and competitive survival, its implementation comes with risk. A systematic approach to managing and controlling the innovation process is therefore required in order …

The Impact Of Push & Pull Factors And Political Stability On Destination Image, Tourist Satisfaction And The Intention To Re-Visit: The Case Of Abu Dhabi In The Uae, Muzoun Ali Darwish Almulla Al Ansaari

Dissertations

Taking into consideration Abu Dhabi 2030 vision, the tourism sector is considered to be a significant sector in its contribution to the long-term economic growth of the UAE. Abu Dhabi has many of the push and pulls factors that attract tourists. By illuminating tourists’ behaviors, the results of this study will enable decision-makers to understand why tourists choose Abu Dhabi over other destinations, what type of experience they are looking for, and the variety of activities that they want. Meanwhile, taking into account the political stability of the UAE in general and Abu Dhabi in particular, insufficient attention has hitherto …

Waiting Time And Patients’ Satisfaction, Haleema Mohamed Hasan Mahmood Al Hammadi

Dissertations

In line with Vision 2021, the UAE’s National Agenda has six pillars: providing world-class healthcare is one of them. It is hence not surprising that the UAE healthcare industry is allocating substantial weight to the element of quality. Patient-centered care is internationally becoming part of the quality domain. Patient-centered quality may be defined as “providing the care that the patient needs in the manner the patient desires at the time the patient desires”. This requires substantially more attention to learning about patients’ preferences. One of the main dimensions of patient-centered quality is timely access to care, which includes shorter waiting …

Exploring Workplace Spirituality And The Benefit It Has On Teams, Tracey Kimberly Johnson

Dissertations

Purpose: The purpose of this phenomenological study was to explore and understand the perception of nonprofit leaders on how spirituality in the workplace fosters a positive workplace culture.

Methodology: In this phenomenological qualitative study, data were collected using interviews of 12 nonprofit leaders. The essential data collection method for this study was in-depth, semi-structured, open-ended interview questions, key informant interviews, and pilot study data interviews. After the data were collected and transcribed, the coding process began, and themes were identified.

Findings: The research on spirituality in the workplace and spiritual intelligence of nonprofit leaders has been completed. There is still …

Leading With Trust: A Phenomenological Study Of The Strategies Leaders In Certified B Corporations Use To Build Trust With Their Employees, Victoria Wodarczyk

Dissertations

Purpose:The purpose of this phenomenological study was to explore how senior management leaders of certified B Corporations (B Corps) build trust with employees, using the 5 domains of connection, concern, candor, competence, and consistency.

Methodology:Aqualitative phenomenological approach was used in this study to explore how senior leaders of certified B Corps build trust with their employees using The Values Institute (TVI; Weisman, 2016) trust framework and the accompanying domains of connection, concern, candor, competence, and consistency. Participants were purposely chosen based on study criteria of a senior management leader in a certified B Corp including leadership for at …

Meaning Makers: A Mixed-Method Case Study Of Exemplary Small Business Owner Leaders And The Strategies They Use To Create Personal And Organizational Meaning, Margaret S. Ohlhaver

Dissertations

Purpose. The purpose of this replication of a thematic, mixed-method case study was to identify and describe the behaviors that small business owner leaders use to create personal and organizational meaning for themselves and their followers through character, vision, relationships, wisdom, and inspiration.

Methodology. Qualitative interviews with exemplary small business owners were conducted to capture their insights on how they used behaviors associated with character, vision, relationships, wisdom, and inspiration to create personal and organizational meaning. In a quantitative survey, followers of each small business owner leader participants were asked to assess how important each of the variable behaviors were …