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2017

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Articles 751 - 780 of 897

Full-Text Articles in Business Administration, Management, and Operations

Integrating Consumer Feedback Into Business Marketing Strategies, Elijah G. Clark Jan 2017

Integrating Consumer Feedback Into Business Marketing Strategies, Elijah G. Clark

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Consumer feedback and reviews are critical to the success of businesses because 49% of consumers trust online reviews more than other sources. The purpose of this multicase study was to explore marketing managers' strategies for using consumer reviews to improve marketing success, brand awareness, and their clients' profitability. The conceptual framework for this study was built upon organizational theory and disruptive innovation theory. The participants were recruited through local events, social media, and e-mail. Data were collected from public online records and semistructured telephone interviews using 1 marketing manager from each of 5 marketing agencies in North Texas. Thematic analysis …

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Return On Investment Of The Cftp Framework With And Without Risk Assessment, Anne Lim Lee Jan 2017

Return On Investment Of The Cftp Framework With And Without Risk Assessment, Anne Lim Lee

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

In recent years, numerous high tech companies have developed and used technology roadmaps when making their investment decisions. Jay Paap has proposed the Customer Focused Technology Planning (CFTP) framework to draw future technology roadmaps. However, the CFTP framework does not include risk assessment as a critical factor in decision making. The problem addressed in this quantitative study was that high tech companies are either losing money or getting a much smaller than expected return on investment when making technology investment decisions. The purpose of this research was to determine the relationship between returns on investment before and after adding risk …

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Exploring Leaders' Strategies For Employee Engagement In The South African Mining Industry, Le-Marlie Marais Jan 2017

Exploring Leaders' Strategies For Employee Engagement In The South African Mining Industry, Le-Marlie Marais

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Research suggests that disengaged employees have contributed to the 28.5% reduction in the mining industry's contribution to South African gross domestic product. Some South African mining leaders lack strategies for engaging employees. Using the employee engagement framework, the purpose of this single case study was to explore successful strategies that South African mining leaders use to engage employees. The target population was mining leaders, purposefully selected because of their success with engaging employees at a typical South African mining company. Data collection was through face-to-face interviews with 4 leaders; a focus group interview with 9 employees; and a review of …

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Uncontrolled Workplace Breaks And Productivity, Huda Mashal Jan 2017

Uncontrolled Workplace Breaks And Productivity, Huda Mashal

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Behaviors that may waste time in the workplace, like surfing the Internet for personal purposes (cyberloafing) or smoking breaks, may be the root antecedent for poor productivity. The purpose of this correlational study was to examine whether there was a relationship between the independent variables: time spent cyberloafing and time in uncontrolled smoking breaks, and the dependent variable: employee productivity. Procedural justice theory was used to frame the study. The population consisted of 34 employees working in a multinational engineering company in Jordan who have official smoking policies, but not cyberloafing policies. Correlations and multiple regression were computed using a …

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Jet Fuel Hedging And Modern Financial Theory In The U.S. Airline Industry, Brandon Lee Schweitzer Jan 2017

Jet Fuel Hedging And Modern Financial Theory In The U.S. Airline Industry, Brandon Lee Schweitzer

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

To counter the problem of the volatility of jet fuel prices within the United States, many financial managers of U.S. airlines use hedging as a financial tool to mitigate the risk of exposure to market price volatility. However, their efforts often lead to financial distress for their airlines. The purpose of this qualitative grounded theory study was to explore U.S. airline managers' use of financial hedging to reduce the risk of exposure from the volatility of jet fuel prices. The conceptual framework was Simkowitz's theory of modern finance, which concerns debt policy, dividend policy, and investment policy as they relate …

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Strategies For Crisis Preparedness Of Tourist Destinations, Carrine V. M. Todman-Lewis Jan 2017

Strategies For Crisis Preparedness Of Tourist Destinations, Carrine V. M. Todman-Lewis

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Billion-dollar disasters are projected to increase at a statistically significant rate of 5% annually. Crises affect the viability and lucrativeness of tourism business and implicate destinations in the process. Crisis preparedness is vital to improving outcomes and reducing consequential effects in the tourism industry-a key contributor to socioeconomic progress and infrastructural development worldwide. The study was an exploration of the strategies used for crisis preparedness to reduce business interruptions and improve the image of destinations affected by large-scale natural disasters and human-induced crises. A multiple case study was conducted based on the cycle of preparedness framework. Data were gathered from …

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Overcoming The Adverse Impact Of Internal Subculture Communications Within Organizations, Terrence Lee Farrier Jan 2017

Overcoming The Adverse Impact Of Internal Subculture Communications Within Organizations, Terrence Lee Farrier

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The need for clear and organizationally effective communications is necessary to maintain sustainability as competition increases. Current research has not addressed problems associated with senior managers' clarity and intent and the misinterpretation by midlevel managers of that intent, causing division managers to misinterpret the company plans. Unresolved miscommunications may lead to destructive subculture development. This mixed methods design focused on how to minimize the confusion that manifests between senior and midlevel management within diverse and decentralized decision support structures. The secondary purpose was to advocate for the identification of divisional misalignment and provide information for a tool to help senior …

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Dimensions Of Nurse-Physician Communication, Rachel Malek Hamdan Jan 2017

Dimensions Of Nurse-Physician Communication, Rachel Malek Hamdan

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Hospital leaders set quality and safety as high priorities in their strategic goals. Improving the quality and safety of patient care requires improving internal processes that have direct implications for patient care. Hospital leaders need to improve health care providers' communication as part of improving quality and safety. The problem addressed in this study was the lack of strategies health care administrators use to guide nurse-physician communication patterns in a university medical center in the Middle East. The purpose of this qualitative case study was to explore communication strategies that health care administrators use to guide nurse-physician communication. Relational coordination …

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Science Technology Engineering Math (Stem) Classes And Females' Career Choices, Dr Reagan Lorraine Lavorata, Phd Jan 2017

Science Technology Engineering Math (Stem) Classes And Females' Career Choices, Dr Reagan Lorraine Lavorata, Phd

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Females have been discouraged from taking science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) classes during high school and college, resulting in limited access to high-paying STEM careers. Therefore, these females could miss opportunities for these high-paying careers. The rationale of this research was to quantify the relationship between the number of STEM classes the sampled females took, the number of female role models they had during high school and college, their career choices, and salaries. The theoretical construct was based on Erikson's social developmental theory, which postulates a relationship between earlier life events and later life events, and Acker's masculinity theory, …

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Hospital Outcomes Based On Physician Versus Non-Physician Leadership, Collins Yazenga Mkandawire Jan 2017

Hospital Outcomes Based On Physician Versus Non-Physician Leadership, Collins Yazenga Mkandawire

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Hospital performance metrics are an indicator of leadership performance. However, there is inadequate research on whether physician or nonphysician chief executive officers (CEOs) perform better in the U.S. hospitals. The purpose of this study was to examine which type of leaders is better. Leadership trait, situational leadership, and leadership behavior theories constituted the theoretical foundation. The key research question examined the relationship between a hospital's outcomes, which in this study, included hospital net income, patient experience ratings, and mortality rates, and the type of CEO in that hospital: physician or non-physician. A quantitative, causal comparative design was used to answer …

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Recruitment Strategies For Manufacturers In Northwest Louisiana, Markey W. Pierre Jan 2017

Recruitment Strategies For Manufacturers In Northwest Louisiana, Markey W. Pierre

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Acquiring information about successful human resources strategies that help to effectively recruit skilled labor is critical for manufacturers. Manufacturing is the backbone of the United States, yet 6 of 10 skilled labor jobs are unfilled because traditional methods and strategies used by human resource leaders to recruit are inadequate. Guided through the lens of strategic human resource management and using the concepts and views of resource-based theory, the purpose of this multiple case study was to explore strategies that manufacturing human resource professionals use to successfully recruit skilled labor in Northwest Louisiana. The data collection for this case study was …

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Personality Factors That Influence Administrative Assistants' Participation In Continuing Education And Training, Rose Friend Schmitt Jan 2017

Personality Factors That Influence Administrative Assistants' Participation In Continuing Education And Training, Rose Friend Schmitt

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Administrative assistants (AAs) provide critical office support for modern businesses, yet many do not participate in the continuing education and training (CE&T) required for rapidly changing technologies and new office procedures. The purpose of this non-experimental quantitative correlational study was to investigate whether a significant predictive relationship exists between AAs' general self-efficacy (GSE), locus of control (LOC), and their participation in CE&T activities. The primary research question examined whether a significant predictive relationship existed among these variables, factoring in generation cohort and education level. Bandura's self-efficacy theory and Rotter's LOC theory provided the theoretical foundations. Volunteer AAs (n = 125) …

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Strategies To Retain Revenue Management Analysts In The U.S. Airline Industry, Curtis Raynard Williams Jan 2017

Strategies To Retain Revenue Management Analysts In The U.S. Airline Industry, Curtis Raynard Williams

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The voluntary turnover of revenue management analysts in the U.S. airline industry is an issue, compelling revenue management leaders to implement retention strategies that successfully reduce employee turnover. The purpose of this qualitative single case study was to explore strategies revenue management leaders used within the last 15 years to retain revenue management analysts. The conceptual framework that grounded this study was Maertz's 8 motivational forces of job attachment and voluntary turnover. The targeted population was comprised of revenue management leaders at an airline in Dallas, Texas who had demonstrated successful strategies to reduce employee turnover. Using criterion-based sampling, 4 …

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Midlevel Nonclinical Healthcare Leaders' Awareness Of Leadership Competence, Denise Estelle Wiseman Jan 2017

Midlevel Nonclinical Healthcare Leaders' Awareness Of Leadership Competence, Denise Estelle Wiseman

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Effective leadership in healthcare improves the patient experience. Self-awareness drives leadership development, competence, and, in turn, leader effectiveness. The problem addressed by this study was the absence of knowledge regarding how healthcare leaders develop awareness of their leadership strengths and weaknesses: their competence. The purpose of this postintentional phenomenological study was to explore how healthcare leaders develop this awareness. Twelve midlevel nonclinical healthcare leaders from 3 hospitals in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States shared their experiences during semistructured interviews. Participants and their organizations contributed supporting documentation of competence and performance expectations. Following Vagle's postintentional process, data were …

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Driving Strategies In Performance Excellence, Nathan Lawrence Jan 2017

Driving Strategies In Performance Excellence, Nathan Lawrence

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Only a small number of U.S. businesses have implemented the Baldrige Criteria for Performance Excellence to improve their performance. The purpose of this multiple case study was to explore strategies that executive business leaders use to implement the Baldrige Criteria for Performance Excellence. The study population consisted of 6 business executives and 2 organizations in the U.S. state of Texas, all with experience in implementing the Baldrige Criteria for Performance Excellence. The theory of high performance work systems provided the conceptual framework for the study. Data were gathered from interviews and record reviews that were conducted within the organizations. Inductive …

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Servant Leadership: What Makes It An Effective Leadership Model., Janice Poland Tanno Jan 2017

Servant Leadership: What Makes It An Effective Leadership Model., Janice Poland Tanno

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Servant leadership (SL), a universal, ethical leadership style, consistently produces high performance and employee engagement. For the last two decades, lack of business ethics in decision making by senior leaders has resulted in many negative outcomes, such as the WorldCom scandal. The purpose of this descriptive phenomenological study was to identify and report the lived experiences of senior leaders in relation to decision making in SL organizations in the southwestern United States. The study's theoretical/conceptual foundations encompassed Maslow's motivation theories, decision theory, spirituality, spiritual intelligence, Cicero's virtue theory of ethics, and Greenleaf's SL. Data collection involved the use of semistructured …

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Nigerian Oil And Gas Industry Content Development Act's Perceived Performance Impact, Olakunle Thomas Ayoola Jan 2017

Nigerian Oil And Gas Industry Content Development Act's Perceived Performance Impact, Olakunle Thomas Ayoola

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Petroleum-producing companies in Nigeria were forced to increase spending on Nigerian-sourced materials and services from $8 billion to $13 billion since 2010, due to the Nigerian Oil and Gas Industry Content Development Act. The act was enacted in 2010 to support local firms and improve the companies' performance. However, there is sparse research on how the act affected the companies' performance. This study was an examination of the impact of the act on the companies' performance. Bandura's social cognitive theory was the theoretical framework. The research questions of this descriptive correlational study were used to examine the act's effect on …

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Developing Small And Medium Enterprises In The Nigerian Oil And Gas Sector, Blessing Ejiro Inubiwon Jan 2017

Developing Small And Medium Enterprises In The Nigerian Oil And Gas Sector, Blessing Ejiro Inubiwon

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Small and medium enterprises (SMEs) participation in the Nigerian oil and gas industry has remained low despite their importance in income generation, employment, local capacity building, and poverty eradication. The purpose of this multiple case study was to explore the strategies SME owners use to improve profitability in the Nigerian oil and gas industry. The target population consisted of 5 business owners who had successfully managed SMEs in Warri, Delta State, Nigeria for more than 5 years. The resource-based view and Porter's 5 forces of competition served as the conceptual framework for the study. Data collection was through semistructured interviews …

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Understanding Financial Value Of Cloud-Based Business Applications: A Phenomenological Study, Victor Arthur Arthur Jan 2017

Understanding Financial Value Of Cloud-Based Business Applications: A Phenomenological Study, Victor Arthur Arthur

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

An understanding of opportunities and challenges in cloud computing is needed to better manage technology costs and create financial value. The purposes of this transcendental phenomenological study were to understand the lived experiences of minority business owners who operated business applications in the cloud and to explore how these experiences created financial value for businesses despite security challenges. Historically, minority business owners have experienced high rates of business failures and could benefit from information to help them manage business costs in order to position their businesses to grow and succeed. Modigliani-Miller's theorem on capital structure and Brealey and Young's concept …

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The Managerial Impact On Small Business Global Supply Chain, Silvia Nigh Jan 2017

The Managerial Impact On Small Business Global Supply Chain, Silvia Nigh

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

In a global economy, companies that are able to engage in international trade may have a competitive advantage over others. Increased globalization is also increasing the demand for effective global supply management practices. Building on Lorenz's chaos theory, this instrumental case study explored the strategies that 4 senior managers from small and medium-sized enterprises in Indianapolis, Indiana used to reduce disruptive vulnerabilities in the supply chain continuum. Review of company documents served as the second data collection method. Rowley's 3-step analysis guided the coding process of the interview data, and the trustworthiness of interpretations was enhanced through methodological triangulation of …

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The Effects Of Process Management On Stakeholder Performance: A Meta-Analysis, Donna Pulliam-Brown Jan 2017

The Effects Of Process Management On Stakeholder Performance: A Meta-Analysis, Donna Pulliam-Brown

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

In 2012, there were over 500,000 business management degrees conferred at the undergraduate and graduate level; however, the assessment of student performance has not kept pace with the growth of courses offered in both an online and traditional format. One of the objectives of teaching is to ensure that all students regardless of mode of instruction are receiving a quality education. The purpose of this meta-analysis was to measure the efficiency of learning in a business discipline by evaluating final course grades of 1,051 students. Ten traditional and 10 online course grades provided final student outcomes that were used to …

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Relationships Between Job Satisfaction, Supervisor Support, And Profitability Among Quick Service Industry Employees, Joseph Carl Vann Jan 2017

Relationships Between Job Satisfaction, Supervisor Support, And Profitability Among Quick Service Industry Employees, Joseph Carl Vann

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Low profit margins threaten the sustainability of quick service restaurants (QSRs). In the United States, low levels of employee job satisfaction and low employee perceptions of supervisor support decrease organizational profitability by as much as $151 million annually, depending on the size and type of organization. Guided by the 2-factor theory of motivation, the purpose of this correlational study was to examine the relationship between employee job satisfaction, employee perceptions of supervisor support, and organizational profitability. A convenience sample of employees from 86 QSR franchise locations in Houston, Texas completed the Job Satisfaction and Perceived Supervisor Support surveys. Multiple linear …

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The Relationship Between Nurse Manager Leadership Style And The Enculturation Of Shared Governance, Anna Elizabeth Keane Jan 2017

The Relationship Between Nurse Manager Leadership Style And The Enculturation Of Shared Governance, Anna Elizabeth Keane

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Shared governance, a participative model of governance, implemented by healthcare organizations for more than 30 years has been associated with empowerment, job satisfaction, and retention of registered nurses. Recent studies document a lack of participation in shared governance by registered nurses; the reason for the change is unknown. The nurse managers' role in this change is unknown. The purpose of this non-experimental, cross-sectional survey design study was to test Bass' theory of transformational leadership that examines the relationship between the leadership style of the manager and the enculturation of shared governance in acute care hospitals in the United States. A …

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Functional And Dysfunctional Themes In Successful Peace Agreements Arising From Intractable Conflicts, Sharon Ryan Ryan Jan 2017

Functional And Dysfunctional Themes In Successful Peace Agreements Arising From Intractable Conflicts, Sharon Ryan Ryan

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

An important challenge facing humanity today is to determine how to resolve intractable conflicts. Intractable conflicts are intensely violent conflicts that are difficult to resolve and last at least one generation. The purpose of this study was to explore the themes leaders used in resolving intractable conflicts by writing peace agreements, which achieved at least a ninety percent implementation rating by the Kroc Institute for International Peace Studies at the University of Notre Dame. The research questions focused on the distribution of societal themes defined by Bar-Tal as present within societies experiencing an intractable conflict. This study used a multicase …

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Minimizing Nepotistic Practices In Family Owned And Operated Businesses: The Private Sector, Darlene Thomas Thomas Jan 2017

Minimizing Nepotistic Practices In Family Owned And Operated Businesses: The Private Sector, Darlene Thomas Thomas

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Owners of family businesses in the private sector must be cognizant of nepotism to reduce skilled employee turnover. Guided by Herzberg two-factor theory as the conceptual framework, the purpose of this multiple case study was to explore strategies used by family owned and operated business leaders to minimize nepotistic practices that reduce skilled nonfamily employees' voluntary turnover. The population for this study included 3 family owned and operated funeral establishments in the Midwest region of St. Louis, Missouri. These participants had sustained their family businesses longer than 5 years while minimizing skilled nonfamily employees' voluntary turnover. Data were collected from …

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Impact Of Change Management On Employee Behavior In A University Administrative Office, Kendra M. Turner Jan 2017

Impact Of Change Management On Employee Behavior In A University Administrative Office, Kendra M. Turner

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

This qualitative case study focused on the effect of a system implementation upgrade on employees' job performance within a central administration department of a major research university in the Southern United States. Review of literature revealed a lack of a specific model or process for system implementation upgrades and its impact on employees' performance in a university administrative office. Guided by Kotter's research on change management models, the research questions examined the attitudes and behaviors of employees involved with the business process project. Data collection was through purposeful sampling and face-to-face interviews with 11 employees. Data were analyzed through pattern-matching …

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Evaluating Sociotechnical Factors Associated With Telecom Service Provisioning: A Case Study, Fahad Iqbal Jan 2017

Evaluating Sociotechnical Factors Associated With Telecom Service Provisioning: A Case Study, Fahad Iqbal

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Provisioning Internet services remains an area of concern for Internet service providers. Despite investments to improve resources and technology, the understanding of sociotechnical factors that influence the service-provisioning life cycle remains limited. The purpose of this case study was to evaluate the influence of sociotechnical factors associated with telecom service provisioning and to explore the critical success and failure factors, specifically in the telecommunication industry of Kuwait. Guided by sociotechnical systems theory, this qualitative exploratory case study approach examined a purposeful sample of 19 participants comprising of managers, engineers, and technicians who had the knowledge and experience of the service-provisioning …

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The Sustainability Management Control System: Factors To Consider In Metric Conceptualization, Corne Mouton Jan 2017

The Sustainability Management Control System: Factors To Consider In Metric Conceptualization, Corne Mouton

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The performance metrics embedded in sustainability management control systems (SMCS) provide organizational leaders the ability to affect the implementation and continual improvement of sustainability strategies. Leaders in oil sands companies lacking adequate information on the efficacy of the sustainability performance metrics and their use to enhance their SMCS could be at a competitive disadvantage. Guided by stakeholder theory, the purpose of this single case study was to explore strategies Alberta-based oil sands company leaders use for critical planning, developing, and implementing SMCS performance metrics. The target population comprised of 20 oil sands company leaders from an Alberta, Canada, organization who …

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Strategies For Exploring: Acat Iii Requirement Approval Process, Donald E. Schlomer Jan 2017

Strategies For Exploring: Acat Iii Requirement Approval Process, Donald E. Schlomer

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The United States Congress mandated the Secretary of Defense develop a strategy to streamline the joint capabilities integrated development system (JCIDS). The purpose of this qualitative single case study was to explore strategies that senior U.S. Army Commanders might use to reduce the approval time for an acquisition category (ACAT) III need document in the JCIDS. Data came from historical documents and semistructured interviews of 30 ACAT III requirement writers and senior U.S. Army commanders with expertise in JCIDS. The conceptual framework was Goldratt's theory of constraints. Miles, Huberman, and Saldana's data analysis method was used to identify themes. Six …

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The Role Of Gender In Hiring Officials' Perceptions Of Chief Information Officer Candidates, Shanna Van Ness Jan 2017

The Role Of Gender In Hiring Officials' Perceptions Of Chief Information Officer Candidates, Shanna Van Ness

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Few women in academia occupy the leadership role of chief information officer (CIO), yet little is known about the underlying causes for gender disparity in this role. The purpose of this causal comparative study was to investigate whether gender stereotypes may impact perceptions about managerial characteristics of CIO candidates in academic settings. The theoretical foundation for this study was Schein's 'Think Manager, Think Male' paradigm and Acker's gendered organization theory. Data were acquired from 48 hiring officials from four-year public, private, and nonprofit colleges, universities, and research institutions in the Northeastern region of the United States who completed the Schein …

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