Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Organizational Cultural Entrenchment: Exploring Cultural Antecedents Of Actively Destructive Employee Behaviors As A Manifestation Of Voice In Mergers And Acquisitions, Keith Dellano Holloway

Theses and Dissertations

Mergers and acquisitions are frequently leveraged as a vehicle for company growth. However, many of these transactions fail to yield a positive result and often cause a net loss of shareholder value.

There are many interrelated factors at work within a merger or acquisition. Structure, leadership, finances, strategic fit, market, and price are just a few variables to consider. However, the factor of culture, and the failure of cultural integration, has surfaced in literature as a significant contributor to losses within mergers and acquisitions.

This study built on the work of Harris, Hirschman, Kotter, and Schlesinger and examined the deleterious …

Medical School Middle Managers Learning To Successfully Work With Leadership To Navigate Organizational Change, Elizabeth G. Smith

Doctor of Education Program Dissertations

There is a lapse in research exploring middle managers at medical schools during an organizational change. The purpose of this qualitative phenomenological study was to examine the perceptions of middle managers during an organizational change to mitigate burnout and build resilience. The literature reviewed explored how stressors from organizational changes may impact medical school middle managers, leading to feeling less secure about their position and increasing middle managers’ stress leading to burnout. For an organizational change to be successful, middle managers must build trust with their staff, communicate with middle managers, and engage middle managers in the change process. Burnout …

Weakness Is The New Strength: How Vulnerability Makes Leaders Stronger, Scott Dick

Transform

Weakness is the new strength: How vulnerability makes leaders stronger is the result from the meta-analysis of five phenomenological studies designed to generate a theory that explains how exemplar leaders from five different fields used “soft-skills” and four domains of behavior to create mutual shared knowledge, resolve conflict and transform relationships to produce breakthrough results. The four domains of behavior are communication, collaboration, ethics, and emotional intelligence. The sample was composed of 75 exemplar leaders from five different professional fields and included an analysis of over 1,300 pages of interview transcripts as the main data source for the study. The …

Leadership Through Effective Communication, Han Boon Kevin Lim

Dissertations and Theses Collection (Open Access)

Charismatic leadership oratory is critical in aligning the organisational vision and goals for business sustainability. This research focuses on charismatic leadership, particularly on oratory leading to charismatic perception by the audience. This research seeks to provide future leaders with a better perspective of the multigenerational workforce in an effort to customise the rhetorical process for this diverse workforce to enhance charismatic perception, thereby promoting organisational communication.

The audience in prior studies has been treated as a homogeneous unit (Clark & Greatbatch, 2011; Groß et al., 2015), without distinguishing between different generational groups and their respective receptiveness to a leadership oratory. …

Social Media By Providers And Patients In Healthcare, Madison K. Howell, Jirakamon Silapabanleng

Theses, Dissertations and Capstones

Introduction: Social media platforms such as Facebook, YouTube, and Twitter have been used in various industries to create direct-to-consumer interactive opportunities. 74% of the US population were social media active users. Around 40% of adults gather their health information from Facebook, a free social networking site, which has been available on various devices and can help many organizations advertise their services as well as communicate with their patients. Social networks had a powerful influence in making health decisions because it could be used as a means to spread either positive or negative health information.

Purpose of study: The …

Silence In The Business World, Andrew Nedeljkovic

Honors Projects

This is a research-based paper focused on the uses of silence in business. Silence in this context refers to practices like meditation and mindfulness, rather than silencing the voices of underrepresented groups. This paper looks at the benefits that silence can have for American businesspeople and their firms. It compares the understanding of silence in the United States to the understanding of silence in other cultures.

Priming In Leadership: Applying Communication Theory To The Speeches Of Ronald Reagan, Katherine Sakai

Senior Honors Theses

The study of priming gained traction in the 1990s when researchers such as John Bargh demonstrated the nonconscious activation of ideas, often through repeated related words or activated schema. Since then, researchers have studied the effects of priming on self-view, achievement, and teamwork. While the concept of priming has just recently begun to be applied to leadership in the workplace, no research has yet been done in finding examples of priming theory in the speeches of well-known leaders. In this study, Ronald Reagan’s persuasive tactics were analyzed and found to use similar methods of repetition and schema used in priming …

Chief Nurse Executive Work Engagement: System Leadership Through A Natural Disaster, Strike, And Pandemic, Ryan Fuller

Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) Projects

Problem. In a 21-hospital region of a 39-hospital integrated health system, CNE turnover peaked at 63% (12 CNEs) in 2015. Interviews were conducted in 2019 with 12 CNEs across the region to understand potential issues related to CNE job satisfaction. Responses revealed concerns regarding empowerment, alignment, work-life balance, information transparency/sharing, and recognition. While identifying a solution to address CNE concerns, the organization experienced successive crisis events during a 12-month period that included a record-setting wildfire, multiple labor union strikes, and a novel pandemic. The regional leadership team (RLT) required new approaches to facilitate effective communication during a crisis between the …

Make More, Work Less, Michael Sutton

Marriott Student Review

Although the status quo in the business world is to work long hours and supposedly produce more each workweek, studies show that working less and taking appropriately regulated breaks actually lead to more productivity in individuals and businesses as a whole. Specifically companies would be wise to implement a limit of 50 work hours per week, encourage frequent breaks (about 15 minute every hour), and encourage patterns of sufficient sleep. By reducing mental fatigue in your employees, their productivity will increase.

Customer Service Challenges In Omni-Channel Retailing—An Exploratory Study Of Vague Language In Retailer Customer Service Policies, Terence L. Holmes, Edward C. Brewer

Atlantic Marketing Journal

Retailers are interacting with customers via an ever-increasing number of touchpoints. The addition of social media and mobile devices to the traditional physical and virtual retail platforms has created an evolving consumer practice of using several such "touchpoints" in the course of a single purchase (the "omni-channel”). The difficulty of providing high levels of customer service has increased with the necessity of managing multiple channels under the retailer’s control and coordinating formally or informally with touchpoints not directly within the retailer’s own operations. Multiple sources of potentially conflicting information (e.g., order fulfillment) can lead to miscommunication, and thus poor service …

Using Input From Landlords Participating In The Dothan Housing Authority's Housing Choice Voucher Program (Hcvp) To Streamline Operations And Increase Retention, Michael C. Threatt

West Chester University Doctoral Projects

The Housing Choice Voucher Program (HCVP) is a public-private partnership between a landlord, voucher holder, and a Public Housing Authority (PHA). However, this public-private partnership appears to be a two-sided partnership instead of a three-way partnership as the HCVP was designed. Over 110,000 landlords have withdrawn from the HCVP since 2009, which has negatively affected housing choices for voucher holders. This phenomenon of landlords leaving the HCVP is a catastrophe problem for the rental housing crisis that is a part of the larger affordable housing crisis. The perception of institutional bureaucracy for landlords is their reality, and the unintended consequence …

Virtual International Leadership Within Organizations: Overcoming Cultural, Language, And Physical Barriers, Jaye Goulet

Thinking Matters Symposium Archive

Advances in technology are allowing members of a team to collaborate while being geographically and spatially apart. These new teams, known as virtual teams, have benefits for both the organizations to which they belong and to the individual members. Organizations are able to utilize highly-skilled experts without the associated relocation costs. Team members are able to contribute to projects in their field of expertise without having to leave their homeland. These teams require a leader whose interactions build trust and loyalty without the benefit of face-to-face contact with other team members. Although virtual teams are rapidly growing, research is lacking …

Paving The Way For Merleau-Ponty’S Eye And Mind In Organizational Communication Studies, Johan Bodaski

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The body is a sense-based medium that creates and interprets organizations. Bodies create organization. An aesthetic theory of organizational communication reveals the significance of the body to the organization. Maurice Merleau-Ponty’s philosophy of aesthetics offers a theory of aesthetic organizational communication that is yet to be developed. Merleau-Ponty’s aesthetic essay on painting, Eye and Mind, describes the body as the medium through which painters turn the world into painting. His philosophy of painting builds bridges between aesthetics, the body, and organizational communication.

In chapter one, four theories of organizational communication are described: communication constitutes organization (CCO), text/interpreter, ventriloquism, and …

Generational Growing Pains As Resistance To Feminine Gendering Of Organization? An Archival Analysis Of Human Resource Management Discourses, Kristen Lucas, Suzy D'Enbeau, Erica P. Heiden

Kristen Lucas

Guided by a feminist communicology of organization framework, we examine generational growing pains by analyzing discourses appearing in HR Magazine at three different points in time, which approximately mark the midpoint of Baby Boomers’, Gen Xers’, and Millennials’ initial entry into the workplace. We reconstruct historically situated gendered discourses that encapsulate key concerns expressed by human resource management professionals as they dealt with younger generations of workers: Personnel Man as Father Knows Best (1970), Human Resource Specialist as Loyalty Builder (1990), and Talent Manager as Nurturer (2010). We propose that frustrations expressed by older generations about Millennials may not be …

Effective Management Communication Strategies, Dr. Cad W. Shannon

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Managing employee engagement is critical to the success of an organization, but 85% of managers struggle with engaging employees. The purpose of this single-case study was to explore effective communication strategies within an organization and determine how managers used these strategies to increase employee engagement, productivity, and organizational effectiveness. Data were collected from organizational documents, observations, and semistructured interviews with 6 managers of a corporation located in the midwestern United States. All participants were working full-time for at least 3 years, had a managerial title, and were responsible for departmental communication. Moustakas's modified van Kaam method was used for data …

From Play To Performance: Building An Effective Organization, Jessica N. Selee, Jade Johnson, Jocelyn N. Murray, Anna Samuelson, Jasmine Li, Andrew Lacanienta, Mat D. Duerden, Mark Widmer

Marriott Student Review

Under the Mentored Experience Grant, six students studies the impact that non-work activities (recreation or leisure) have on individual contributors or organization. Some employees refrain from participating in Leisure-at-Work (LAW) due to lack of time or skill, to cliques, to differing preferences, or fear of negative connotations. Employees report that LAW increases productivity, establishes and enriches social interactions, improves communication, attracts and retains employees in a company, and facilitates a culture of engagement, trust, and camaraderie. At the conclusion of our analysis, we identified areas of future research and recommendations for best practice.

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 …

Leadership Strategies For Developing And Implementing Organizational Change, Hardy L. Delay Iv

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Leaders in some narcotics treatment programs struggle with change development and implementation. The objective of this single-case study was to explore strategies used by leaders in a narcotics treatment program to develop and implement organizational change initiatives successfully. Participants included 4 leaders who had developed and implemented successful change initiatives repeatedly for more than 10 years in a narcotics treatment program in the southeastern United States. Bertalanffy's general systems theory was the basis for the conceptual framework. Data collection included semistructured interviews of leaders of a narcotics treatment program and collection of archival data, such as reports relating to strategic …

Information Communication Technology Management As A Gdp Growth Contributor Within Arab League Nations, Jamal Alexander Thompson

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The general problem addressed in this study was Arab League nations' over-reliance on fossil fuels as a gross domestic product (GDP) growth driver. Arab League nations that depend primarily on fossil fuel production lack alternative resources for growth in times of fossil fuel usage or price decline. Overdependence on fossil fuels has led to minimal development in other economic sectors, primarily in skilled domestic labor, and to a high dependency on foreign skilled labor for skilled domestic jobs. The purpose of this study was to examine to what extent information communication technology (ICT) management can be a viable GDP growth …

The Magic Behind Success: What Can Business Leaders Learn From Magicians Regarding Creativity And Communication?, John Logan

Honors Projects in Communication

The following research demonstrates the connection between the art of magic and the world of business. More specifically, it explores the overlap between the innovation and communication techniques magicians use when creating new ideas, developing a routine, performing, and a parallel comparison on what it takes to run a successful business. The capstone will first look at what the "magician" is including the types of tricks they perform. It will then analyze the entrepreneurial magicians and their creative process behind developing new routines. Finally, it will examine the verbal and non-verbal communication techniques magicians use to connect with their audience …

Exploring U.S. Business Leaders' Strategies For Enhancing Team Communication, Susan Kuehn

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Many senior project managers (PMs) and other business leaders lack effective strategies for enhancing communication among their team members, thereby reducing profitability and organizational cohesion. The purpose of this exploratory case study was to explore communication strategies used by 22 PMs who were members of a project manager professional (PMP) association in Colorado, with 5 or more years of relevant experience and who worked at a leading technology company recognized for its effective PM communication strategy for enhancing business-team communication. The conceptual framework for this study was built on interpersonal, mass communication and profound leadership theories. PMs were interviewed, and …

Globalization, Mobile Technology, And Social Media's Influence On Leadership Communication Involving Millennials, Rasheedah Dunston

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Current research identifies effective leadership communication, which includes frequent direct conversational communication from company leaders, influences worker performance during organizational change. Social media, mobile technology, and the Millennial workforce have shifted leader communication style from purely top-down, town hall style communication to incorporate more collaborative and engaging forums. The case study addressed how globalization, social media, and mobile technology affects leadership communication and then subsequently effects worker performance as Millennials join the workforce. Qualitative data were collected from observations and interviews from a purposeful selection of 9 Millennial employees, including 2 Millennial leaders, and 8 non-Millennial leaders of a Fortune …

Exploring Strategies To Gain Frontline Employee Buy-In During Change Initiatives In Manufacturing, Charles James Iv

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The high failure rates of change initiatives threaten the sustainability of commercial printing operations. The focus of this qualitative multicase study was to research the strategies commercial printing managers use to succeed in gaining frontline employee buy-in during change initiatives to improve productivity and profitability in a manufacturing environment. The participants included four commercial printing managers from the Midwestern United States. Each manager had implemented successful change initiatives in the past 2 years and maintained profitability of the business for 12 months before the study. McGregor's (1960) Theory Y served as the basis for the conceptual framework. Data collection included …

Predictive Factors Of Organizational Support Communication In Volunteer Mentor Retention, Jennifer Kristin Stukey

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Research has shown that long-term volunteer retention is critical for sustaining the viability of youth mentoring programs such as Big Brothers Big Sisters (BBBS). Data from recent studies have indicated that volunteers must continue their service for at least 1 year in to have a sustainable effect on the mentee. Results from prior studies have indicated that the support provided by the agency to the volunteer can predict volunteer retention. However, a gap in current literature exists regarding the effect of support communication on volunteer retention. Therefore, the purpose of this quantitative study was to assess the relationship between organizational …

Generational Growing Pains As Resistance To Feminine Gendering Of Organization? An Archival Analysis Of Human Resource Management Discourses, Kristen Lucas, Suzy D'Enbeau, Erica P. Heiden

Faculty Scholarship

Guided by a feminist communicology of organization framework, we examine generational growing pains by analyzing discourses appearing in HR Magazine at three different points in time, which approximately mark the midpoint of Baby Boomers’, Gen Xers’, and Millennials’ initial entry into the workplace. We reconstruct historically situated gendered discourses that encapsulate key concerns expressed by human resource management professionals as they dealt with younger generations of workers: Personnel Man as Father Knows Best (1970), Human Resource Specialist as Loyalty Builder (1990), and Talent Manager as Nurturer (2010). We propose that frustrations expressed by older generations about Millennials may not be …

The "It" Factor, Ann Gallagher

Leadership Hour at Otterbein University

Gaining the Competitive Edge by Boosting Your Executive Presence

Have you ever known a leader or top executive who has got “it?” Well “it” is executive presence, and having “it” is the difference between moving up the ladder to leadership and being stuck on the middle rung. So have you got “it?”

Workplace Dignity: Communicating Inherent, Earned, And Remediated Dignity, Kristen Lucas

Faculty Scholarship

Extant research on dignity at work has revealed conditions that contribute to indignity, employees’ responses to dignity threats, and ways in which employees’ inherent dignity is undermined. But while dignity – and specifically indignity – is theorized as a phenomenon subjectively experienced and judged by individuals, little research has privileged workers’ own perspectives. In this study, working adults reveal how they personally experience and understand meanings of dignity at work. I describe three core components of workplace dignity and the communicative exchanges through which dignity desires commonly are affirmed or denied: inherent dignity as recognized by respectful interaction, earned dignity …

Eat More Chicken And Lead More People: Perceived Measures Of Servant Leadership At Chick-Fil-A, Michael Mishler

Masters Theses

This present study used survey data from 31 employees working at 2 Chick-fil-A locations to assess the supervisor's perceived level of supervisor's level of servant leadership and how the level (a) affects coworker's perceptions of performance, (b) job satisfaction, and (c) relational trust amongst coworkers. The participants ranged in ages from 18-50. The average age for the participants was 26. The data for the study was collected through the distribution of surveys to individuals who currently work at Chick-fil-A. The two selected locations were approximately 300 miles apart in Virginia. The study employed quantitative research methods in order to collect …

Art And Space: Impacting The Workplace, Erin V. Mccool

Senior Honors Theses

Art in its various forms and applications has always been a part of the human experience. Art can be intrusive, thought provoking, or simply beautiful. Although art comes in many different styles and forms, art continues to capture our imagination. The purposes of this thesis are to discover how art affects human activity in the workplace as well as the qualities that make artwork in the workplace successful. Based on the findings of this study, artwork will be created for the Center for the Advancement of Faculty Excellence at Liberty University in order to create a lively, creative environment. By …

Global Csr And Photographic Credibility: Exploring How International Companies Portray Efforts Through Photographs In Csr Reports, Janel Lynn Norton

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

We are living in the age of the visual. Imagery is an important element in constructing and deriving meaning through symbols, colors, and context. Images may hold persuasive power, be used as evidence, or simply provide a moment of beauty. Organizations rely on photographs to help them convey an image to their stakeholders within annual reports. Telling an organizations' story through photographs has become an intrinsic part of their efforts to convey sustainability. We live in the age of transparency, and organizations that construct an image that is not truthful will face consequences in today's socially connected and conscious world. …