Business and Corporate Communications Commons^™

International Management: Strategic Opportunities And Cultural Challenges, Paul B. Sweeney, Dean B. Mcfarlin

Management and Marketing Faculty Publications

As the economies of many countries become more interrelated, international managers are facing huge challenges and unique opportunities associated with their roles. Now in its fifth edition, Sweeney and McFarlin's International Management embodies a balanced and integrated approach to the subject, emphasizing the strategic opportunities available to firms on a global playing field, as well as exploring the challenges of managing an international workforce.

Integrating theory and practice across all chapter topics, this book helps students to learn, grasp, and apply the underlying principles of successful international management:

• Understanding the broad context of international business, including the critical trends impacting …

Global Delivery Models: The Role Of Talent, Speed And Time Zones In The Global Outsourcing Industry, Stephan Manning, Marcus Larsen, Pratyush Bharati

Management Science and Information Systems Faculty Publication Series

We investigate antecedents and contingencies of location configurations supporting global delivery models (GDMs) in global outsourcing. GDMs are a new form of IT-enabled client-specific investment promoting services provision integration with clients by exploiting client proximity and time-zone spread allowing for 24/7 service delivery and access to resources. Based on comprehensive data we show that providers are likely to establish GDM configurations when clients value access to globally distributed talent pools and speed of service delivery, and in particular when services are highly commoditized. Findings imply that coordination across time zones increasingly affects international operations in business-to-business and born-global industries.

Boomers Vs. Gen Y—The New Communication Gap, Sara Bennett

White Papers

A key issue between Baby Boomer managers and Generation Y employees is a difference of opinion on how often feedback regarding performance should be administered and the mode of feedback that is appropriate. Effective communication is essential for performance and productivity.

Deception In Cosmetics Advertising: Examining Cosmetics Advertising Claims In Fashion Magazine Ads / 化妆品广告中的欺骗:分析时尚杂志广告中的化妆品广告, Jie G. Fowler, Timothy H. Reisenwitz, Les Carlson

Department of Marketing: Faculty Publications

The FDA has only focused upon the physical safety of cosmetics and has ignored the significant reasonability of advertising claims. As such, the present article is intended to examine/ascertain the extent to which cosmetics claims contain deceptive content in fashion ads. Through a content analysis, the study reported herein revealed that cosmetics claims were not evenly distributed. To that end, the preponderance of the claims appeared to be described primarily by three categories (scientific, performance and subjective). The results also showed that more cosmetics claims were classified as deceptive than were deemed as acceptable. Close examination of these trends revealed …

The Impact Of Participative Communication On Organisational Cultural Change: Two Local Government Cases Of Change, Katie Turton

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

Managing change is of critical importance in organisations. Communication during the change process has been the subject of considerable and highly contested academic and managerial debate. In this study, The Impact of Participative Communication on Organisational Cultural Change: Two Local Government Cases of Change, communication during the change process was closely examined to see how, if at all, participative processes impact upon the adoption of change. As a result of this research a ‘Ladder of Employee Participation in Change Management’ was developed, to better understand the nature of participative communication and provide clarity for change practitioners who develop change communication …

Nepali Corporate Culture Of Giving: Investigating Practices Of Corporate Social Responsibility, Taylor Knoop

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

The purpose of this research is to explore corporate Nepal’s definition of corporate social responsibility (CSR), how these definitions influence corporations’ activities and the motivation and rationale behind giving. Multiple factors are impacting the practice of CSR, such the historical influence, personality of industry sector, post-conflict recovery efforts, and trust and transparency in giving. However, corporations’ definition of CSR contradicts the type and level of activities they engage in. The rhetoric is often stronger than the action undertaken, although there is slight trend towards a more incorporated social responsible business model, particularly in the financial and tourism industries. The primary …

Massachusetts On The Move: The Intersection Of Talent, Transportation, And Housing, Richard Boyajian, Juleen Freitas, David Mahoney, Karen Ng, Robert Woods

Emerging Leaders Program Team Projects

The Massachusetts Business Roundtable (MBR) collaborated with a team from the Emerging Leaders Program (ELP) from the University of Massachusetts Boston to interview business leaders to explore the important intersection of talent, transportation, and housing on the state’s economy. The ELP Team obtained the insights of 15 key business leaders, industry experts as well as public policy organizations on these important issues and their impact across the Commonwealth. This research seeks to capture the views of stakeholders throughout Massachusetts. The ELP Team surveyed the landscape by reviewing trends and current research on these policy issues.

Salvaging Print: Letterhead In Post-Industrial Urban America, Nancy Sharon Collins

The Mid-America Print Council Conference

This panel will explore the link between today’s small press movement and the formal aspects of commercial printing during the American 20th century. Panelists include Christine Medley , Philip Gattuso, and Nancy Bernardo.

Using as its primary example letterhead from defunct companies in Detroit, and secondarily, specimens of business and legal letterhead from other urban centers of the industrial United States, this panel will examine and discuss: What did letterhead represent to 20th century printers in local markets such as Detroit? What is the significance of printed letterhead, and stationery, to the art of small press printing in post-industrial cities …

Moving Forward With Echoes From The Past, Singapore Management University

Perspectives@SMU

A company’s history can build a corporate identity and branding, as well as overcome a crisis

Framing Identity & Change In The Experience Of Interns, Bryleigh Loughlin

Honors Theses

The definition and framing of identity in scholarly work often focuses how an individual conducts identity work in response to identity regulation in order to construct a coherent self. This study expands upon this framework by illuminating the ways that undergraduate interns frame what identity is and the consequences of their framing for their resulting identity construction (identity work). Based on in-depth qualitative interviews, this study demonstrates how participants either framed identity as a stable entity or fluid construct. This study encourages the exploration and discovery of the colloquial ways workers define and discuss identity, so that scholars can understand …

Making Money From Mobile Phone Service At Sea, Singapore Management University

Perspectives@SMU

It takes expertise and talent to build a new business; it takes capital and speed to maximise returns.

Overcoming The “Dual-Delivery” Stigma: A Review Of Patient-Centeredness In The Costa Rica Medical Tourism Industry, Alicia Mason

Faculty Submissions

Due to the growing globalization of health care and an increase in access to technology many consumers are utilizing the World Wide Web for securing medical services abroad, a phenomenon commonly known as medical tourism. The current investigation employs an emic cultural approach for analyzing the Western concept of patient-centeredness within several public and private medical facilities within Costa Rica. Through a detailed field investigation and personal interviews with directors of Costa Rica’s largest accrediting institutions (AAAAF and ProMed), hospital organizations, and private health clinics an interpretative framework for evaluating patient-centeredness and quality of care is offered. Discussion, implications, and …

2014 Ijbe Front Matter, Tamra Connor

International Journal for Business Education

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

The Story As A Cultural Transmitter: Applications For Business Education, Carol Blaszczynski, Ph.D.

International Journal for Business Education

Stories assist in transmitting cultural wisdom, including wisdom about the business community. The role of stories in various contexts such as education (including international management), management, and marketing, as well as the job search is explained. The article concludes by presenting instructional activities for business education that develop cultural competence through stories.

Determining California National Guard Airmen’S Opinions And Attitudes Regarding Morale, Welfare And Recreation Programs: A Research Project, Natalie Delossa

Journalism

This senior project creates research design parameters that will facilitate two- way communications between the California Air National Guard and its airmen. The benefits of conducting its research are twofold. First, the California Air National Guard can learn more about its airmen. Second, the California Air National Guard can use information about its airmen to better serve its external publics in future public relations and marketing endeavors.

This project addresses the importance of conducting two- way communication between internal and external publics (in this case, the California Air National Guard and its airmen and the California Air National Guard and …

A Typology Of Middle Manager Strategic Activity: An Exploration In An International Business Context, Dónal O’Brien

Doctoral

There is a growing body of literature which recognises the strategic importance of middle managers (Westney, 1990, Kanter, 1982, Balogun, 2003, Balogun et al., 2011, Tippmann et al., 2013). Through enactment of strategic activities, middle managers influence how strategy develops in organisations (Aherne et al., 2014). Floyd and Wooldridge (1992) developed a model of upward and downward strategic activity which has been the basis for much of the research on middle managers. However, recent developments have highlighted the limitations in only researching upward and downward strategic activities (Rouleau and Balogun, 2011). Middle managers are engaged with interfaces above and below …

Generational Cohort Differences In Types Of Organizational Commitment Among Nurses In Alabama, April Lavette Jones

Presidential Alumni Research Dissemination Award

In hospitals in the United States, the ratio of nurses to patients is declining, resulting in an increase in work demands for nurses. Consequently, organizations face challenges with nurses' organizational commitment. Studies have revealed generational differences, as determined by birth year, in employee levels of organizational commitment in a number of organizational settings. However, there is a gap in the literature regarding the impact of generational cohorts on the organizational commitment of nurses. The purpose of this quantitative, nonexperimental, cross-sectional design was to address whether generational cohorts of nurses differed in their levels of organizational commitment, and to investigate whether …

Empowered And Engaged: Exploring Social Media Best Practices For Nonprofits, Tessa Warner, Alexis Abel, Frauke Hachtmann

College of Journalism and Mass Communications: Faculty Publications

Although nonprofits see value and potential in social media, many have not yet mastered social media and harnessed their full potential. This phenomenological study sought to identify the best social media strategies and tactics for effectively engaging existing and potential donors, volunteers and stakeholders, according to social media nonprofit professionals. Six themes emerged: listening to the audience; engaging instead of fundraising; sharing relevant, valuable and actionable content; being honest, accessible and responsive; using social media as part of a multi-channel strategy; and that measuring is mandatory.

Performing Collaborative Creativity: Learning From Diverse Experts Interacting In Ireland’S Science Gallery, Diane Tangney, Olivia Freeman, Brendan O'Rourke

Conference papers

This paper presents preliminary findings deriving from a larger project investigating the performance of collaborative creativity and is primarily concerned with describing the communication patterns of such performance. Interactions between different domain experts in Ireland’s Science Gallery, Trinity College Dublin, were observed and recorded over the course of four months in 2011. The interactions have been loosely transcribed using the basic principles of CA. Preliminary findings include three observations. Firstly, creative performances involve a type of content we call ‘idea talk’. Secondly, performances of creative collaboration involve variance, not equality, in participation by individual experts. Variance in participation in group …

Developing A Method For Measuring "Working Out Loud", Dennis E. Pearce

Theses and Dissertations--Finance and Quantitative Methods

Enterprise social network software platforms (ESNs) are increasingly being deployed in firms across almost every industry as a means of fostering employee collaboration. Although benefits in increased productivity, innovation, and employee engagement are highly touted, there is a high failure rate of these deployments. This often occurs because (1) there is a misapplied focus on technology adoption rather than adoption of the employee behaviors that are ultimately required to obtain those benefits, and (2) it is unclear what those behaviors are and how to measure them.

“Working Out Loud” is one possible framework for understanding and measuring the behaviors necessary …

Modelling The Reporting Culture Within A Modern Organisation, Ewan Douglas, Samuel Cromie, Maria Chiara Leva, Nora Balfe

Articles

Research shows that there are many factors that can influence the operation of a “Reporting Culture” within organisations, ranging from the attitudes to the workers, to the methodology implemented, to the managerial attitudes within the organisation (Reason, 1998). Understanding and modelling these factors may help develop an optimum reporting system. Historically, research has focused on the concept of “Near Miss Reporting” which is based on the idea of identifying the “bottom” of the safety triangle concept put forward in Heinrich (1941) which suggests that for each accident there are dozens of near misses, and identifying these near misses will hopefully …

The Nature And Influence Of Relationship On Success In A Virtual Work Environment, Carol Locher Ransone

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

The evolution of technology in the 21st century has led to a greater understanding of the benefits and the challenges of expanding work relationships across geographical boundaries. This expansion has contributed to the development of a global society with over three million employee teleworkers (Global Workplace Analytics and the Telework Research Network, 2013). In spite of the advances in connecting across the globe technologically, the importance of successfully working together in a virtual work environment is grounded in relationships that foster individual growth and group cohesion. The human elements of connectivity are primary to the success of organizations as well …

The Strategic Plan Of A Medium-Size Enterprise Compared To The Baldrige Criteria, Jordan Blacklock

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

The purpose of this study was to provide a case example of one SME (small to medium-size enterprises) documented practices compared to the Baldrige Program’s Criteria for Performance Excellence (Criteria). This study evaluated the degree to which the case example organization practiced the philosophies and principles of the Criteria without direct knowledge of the Criteria. The researcher conducted evaluations by examining the case example organization’s strategic plan against the Criteria. Results of this study’s demonstrated that the Baldrige Program would not be a change in direction for the case example organization but a systematic approach to enhance the methods already …

Smartphones In The Workplace: Changing Organizational Behavior, Transforming The Future, Thiraput Pitichat

LUX: A Journal of Transdisciplinary Writing and Research from Claremont Graduate University

In the past decade, Smartphones have been developed and increasingly integrated with people’s lives not only for social use, but professional use as well. Many researchers claim that Smartphones can have negative consequences in the workplace such as lowering productivity, separating people from their realities, bringing stress from personal issues to work, and creating bad manners. Companies, however, have a difficult time mandating a policy in regards to prohibiting the use of Smartphones. Therefore, CEOs and corporate leaders should encourage their employees to use their Smartphones as tools for increasing their company’s efficiency. This research aims to examine the results …

Women In The Workforce: An In-Depth Analysis Of Gender Roles And Compensation Inequity In The Modern Workplace, Rebecca L. Ziman

Honors Theses and Capstones

This paper explores the increase in participation and education of American women in the workforce with a special focus on women in business and accounting roles. The paper then goes on to discuss the wage gap between genders, how to remedy inequality in the workplace, and highlights several reasons why pursing a solution to gender inequality is beneficial for both the employee and the company.

How Kaizen Group Leader Selection Affects Group Participation, M. Joleen Byerline

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

Organizational communication research indicates group member participation increases as the legitimate power differences among group members decreases. Lean principles and practices indicate Kaizen Event members will contribute regardless of legitimate power levels, due to member training, education, and the Lean team-oriented culture. Further study is needed to determine if Lean culture and training maximize group member contribution, or if legitimate power levels in Lean environments manipulate participation. The focus of this case study is a central Kentucky Lean manufacturing organization that practiced Lean principles for at least three years and completed a Kaizen Event within twelve months previous to the …

Your Media Speak So Loud I Can't Hear A Word You're Saying: Impact Of Media And Media Selection On Performance, Martin Hassell

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

With the proliferation of communication media and technologies available, it is important for teams to understand the influence of these media on the performance of their communications. Additionally, it is important for researchers to understand how teams choose and use media. Literature on communication media impacts and communication performance has been somewhat fragmented, and researchers have used different theories and paradigms to study this problem. Researchers still do not have a full understanding of how media influences communication, whether teams recognize and select appropriate media for their communication needs, and what makes some communication more effective, irrespective of the communication …

Cal Poly Brocade Challenge 2013, Chandler Morehardt, Alexa Coburn, Juan Silva, Kerry Sun, Greg Wang, Raul Chagoya, Jd Torres

Architectural Engineering

No abstract provided.

Off-Price Vs. Department Store Retailing, Denise Aghion

Renée Crown University Honors Thesis Projects - All

There are multiple forms of retailing in the United States – two of the most common forms are department store retailing and off-price retailing. Both types of retailers are looking to create profits by negotiating costs with vendors to create suitable gross margins; however, they go about doing so in very different ways. Because I have interned at both types of corporations, my Capstone is to identify which, if either model, is more sustainable in today’s conditions.

Department store retailing is the most well-known form of retailing, and is currently the largest sector of retailing in the United States. They …

Harvesting The Twittersphere: Qualitative Research Methods Using Twitter, Anthony La Rosa

Honors College Theses

Harvesting the Twittersphere explores the current state of research, by comparing quantitative to qualitative and analyzing the current market. In a consumer driven market, it seems that most businesses are neglecting to perfomr qualitative research. It could be because of the falling cost and increasing convenience of quantitative research methods provided by cloud systems such as: Salesforce.com, IBM, SAP, and Mckinsey. Another reason may be that there is no efficient or inexpensive way to conduct qualitative research on a digital platform. While certain companies try to conduct qualitative studies online by using chat rooms, discussion boards or Facebook prompts, there …