bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Natural Waters of Viti Limited – Pioneering a New Industry in the Fiji Islands
Authors: Mcmaster Jim , Nowak Jan 
Published: November 2010

ABSTRACTThis case analysis traces the establishment and subsequent operation of Natural Waters of Viti Limited, the first company in Fiji extracting, bottling and marketing, both domestically and internationally, Artesian water coming from a virgin ecosystem found on Fiji's main island of Viti Levu. The authors first discuss the product concept, the company and its expansion, and the role of Fiji Government in providing a legal framework and the necessary infrastructure for a new industry pioneered by Natural Waters of Viti. These are followed by an analysis of the US market, from which the company derives more than 90% of its revenues, and the marketing strategy employed in that market. The subsequent sections deal with export earnings, expected expansion into new markets, and the company's relations with the local community. The case concludes by summarising major achievements by the company and major challenges it faces now.
Organisational Change Stories and Management Research: Facts or Fiction
Authors: Dawson Patrick 
Published: November 2010

ABSTRACTOrganisational change stories are often constructed around a linear series of ‘successful’ events that serve to show the company in a positive light to any interested external party. These stories of company success sanitize complex change processes and offer data for change experts to formulate neat linear prescriptions on how to best manage change. This article criticizes this position and argues that change is a far more dynamic political process consisting of competing histories and ongoing multiple change narratives which may vie for dominance in seeking to be the change story. A central aim is to identify and unpack narratives of change in order to highlight a number of theoretical and methodological implications for management research. It is argued that post-hoc rationalized stories should not be used as a knowledge base for prescriptive lessons or theoretical developments, nor should research data simply be presented as a single authentic story of change. The need to study change overtime and to accommodate multiple stories that may be reshaped, replaced and modified raise critical issues of data collection and data analysis, as well as important questions on the place of the conventional case study as a conveyor of research findings. As such, the article calls for the more widespread use of the concept of ‘competing histories’ and ‘multiple change narratives’ in longitudinal studies that seek to explain processes of organisational change.
Public Sector Managers and Ethical Dilemmas
Authors: Ehrich Lisa Catherine , Cranston Neil , Kimber Megan 
Published: November 2010

ABSTRACTControversies surrounding the behaviour of ministers and high profile leaders seem to be commonplace in public life. That there has been a resurgence of interest in the study of ethics is not surprising. The spotlight on ethics in the public domain has been due in part to the crisis in confidence about government and a lack of public trust in organisations. Furthermore, a complex organisational environment where managers are being required to juggle a ‘multitude of competing obligations and interests’ (Cooper 1998, p. 244) has provided fertile ground for the emergence of ethical dilemmas. In this paper we put forward a tentative model that reveals important inputs that bear upon an individual, such as a public sector manager, who is confronted with an ethical dilemma. In the final part of the paper we illustrate the model's efficacy with an ethical dilemma described by a retired senior public servant to determine whether the model works in practice.
Defining the Social Capital of the Board of Directors: An Exploratory Study
Authors: Nicholson Gavin J. , Alexander Malcolm , Kiel Geoffrey C. 
Published: November 2010

ABSTRACTThis paper advances the resource dependence and social networks literature by investigating a board's structural social capital created as a consequence of interlocking directorates. Using approaches and measures developed by social network analysis we compare the interpersonal directorship networks of the top 250 companies in the United States and Australia. We find that the smaller, sparser Australian network is only marginally less compact and connected than the larger US network at the firm level of analysis. However, at the director level of analysis the US network is much larger and more connected than its Australian counterpart. As a result, we argue that scholars studying the resource dependence role of boards should consider using measures of interpersonal links as well as traditional measures of inter-firm links.
Reactions to HRM: An Employee Perspective from South Africa and New Zealand
Authors: Browning Vicky , Edgar Fiona 
Published: November 2010

ABSTRACTThe aim of this paper is to provide a representation of the employee viewpoint on emerging issues related to HRM practices associated with the ‘new employment relationship’. Data obtained from employees across two studies in two very different countries – South Africa and New Zealand has been used to represent the employee perspective. Interestingly, a number of shared perceptions about these HRM practices are found to exist between employees from South Africa and New Zealand, suggesting the problems employees currently experience with the HR practices in the workplace that aim to promote this new relationship could be more widely shared.The areas of shared concern highlighted by employees were mainly related to the implementation of HRM practices. For example, insufficient line management commitment, unfairness and inconsistency in the application of HR policies were all issues that were commonly raised, as was poor communication. Employees attributed these problems to the inadequate skills of those responsible for the implementation of HRM, and tended to be of the view that they could effectively be resolved through the HR department playing a more central role in the implementation of HRM in an organisation, training of line managers to carry out their HR responsibilities more effectively and increased consultation with employees.Employees participating in these studies appeared to demonstrate a surprisingly high level of awareness and cognisance in identifying problems with HR practice and more significantly how these problems might be rectified. This would support the importance of accessing the employee perspective in both the implementation and research into HRM in practice. Based on the issues highlighted by the employees, increased co operation between line management, the HR department and employees is suggested to facilitate the effective design and implementation of HRM practice in this era of new employment relations.
The Intangible Economy and Firm Superior Performance: Evidence from Australia
Authors: Galbreath Jeremy 
Published: November 2010

ABSTRACTScholars suggest that in the ‘intangible’ economy, firms need to exploit intangible, rather than tangible resources to generate superior performance. In this study, we theoretically developed the proposition that intangible assets and capabilities would be linked to superior performance while tangible assets would be linked to low performance. Drawing upon a broad sample of manufacturing and services firms in Australia and by segmenting out the central cluster of firms, we found that tangible resources were linked to low performance while as hypothesised, intangible assets and capabilities were linked to superior performance. Studies such as the present one offer some support for resource-based theory which argues that in today's economy, resources that are intangible in nature are more likely to be sources of competitive advantage than resources that are tangible in nature.
The Strategic Role of HR Managers in Australian Organisations: Cues from Organisational Recruitment Sources
Authors: Sheehan Cathy , Scafidi Anthony 
Published: November 2010

ABSTRACTThis study has used a longitudinal, quantitative design to explore the expected increase in the reference to human resource management (HRM) strategic planning roles in Australian organisations between 1993 and 2004. The research also examined which of the organisational characteristics of ownership, sector and size best predicts strategic planning roles for HR managers in 2003-04. Data was collected from the content analysis of 315 job advertisements for senior Human Resources (HR) managers published in national newspapers and on the Internet. Results established a longitudinal increase in references to strategic HR roles and established that internationally-owned, larger, and public sector organisations placed greater emphasis on promoting strategic roles for HR managers. The strongest predictor of a strategic planning role however was the sector in which the organisation was placed. Specifically, in the public sector HR managers at the most senior level were given the same strategic role as counterparts in the private sector but HR managers at the next level down were significantly less likely than HR managers at the same level in the private sector to be given strategic roles. These findings have implications for the training and development opportunities for HR managers working in the public sector.
The influence of religion-based workplace spirituality on business leaders' decision-making: An inter-faith study
Authors: Fernando Mario , Jackson Brad 
Published: November 2010

ABSTRACTThe paper reports the findings of thirteen interviews with prominent Sri Lankan business leaders drawn from Buddhist, Christian, Hindu, and Muslim religious traditions. The in-depth interviews with the leaders were supplemented by documentary sources. When the leaders were asked why they engaged in religion-based workplace spirituality, their responses were often associated with decision-making. Although they had an array of management tools with which to deal with day-to-day management situations, they all indicated that, in ‘difficult’ moments, these tools needed to be complemented by processes by which they connected with the ultimate – variously identified as the transcendent reality, god, or truth that is more powerful, better, and good. The outcomes of decisions, both good and bad, were usually attributed to that connecting experience. The findings suggest that religion plays a significant role in influencing the judgment, emotional and motivational qualities of Sri Lankan leaders' decision-making – in that a frame of reference based on a connection with a transcendent and ultimate reality is likely to be a source of solace, guidance, and inspiration to leaders' critical decision-making.
An integrative model of perceived available support, work–family conflict and support mobilisation
Authors: Lawrence Sandra A 
Published: November 2010

ABSTRACTWork–family conflict is impacting on increasingly larger numbers of employees. It is therefore important to identify ways in which the negative effects of this stressor can be ameliorated. In this paper an integrative model of perceived available support, work–family conflict and support mobilisation is developed to explore how perceptions of support availability can help employees to cope with work–family conflict. This model is an explicit reflection of the theory of stress-buffering during secondary appraisal, and extends existing theory by incorporating the principles of both the stress-matching and source of support frameworks. The theoretical model enables a more comprehensive examination of the conditions under which stress-buffering is effective in countering the demands of work–family conflict. Implications for research and practice are discussed.
Like wolves in a pack: Predatory alliances of bullies in nursing
Authors: Hutchinson Marie , Vickers Margaret H , Jackson Debra , Wilkes Lesley 
Published: November 2010

ABSTRACTThe findings from the first, qualitative stage of a larger sequential mixed method study of bullying in the Australian nursing workplace are reported. Interviews with twenty-six nurses, recruited from two health care organizations, were analysed using the constant comparative method. Participants described informal organizational networks as the mechanism through which predatory, cooperative, and planned group bullying acts were promulgated. These predatory alliances enabled the co-option of legitimate organizational systems, the concealment of bullying, and the protection and promotion of perpetrators. By identifying the manner in which workplace bullying can be embedded within informal organizational networks, this research has important implications for further research in this field.
A theoretical framework of alliance performance: The role of trust, social capital and knowledge development
Authors: Suseno Yuliani , Ratten Vanessa 
Published: November 2010

AbstractWhile studies on alliances have been substantial in the international business literature, much is still unexplored in understanding what alliance performance really is and how superior alliance performance is facilitated (Das & Teng 2003). Drawing from research on alliances, we develop a theoretical framework to examine alliance performance by integrating a partner analysis approach, focusing on alliance trust, alliance partners' social capital, and knowledge development from alliance relationships. We consider the level of mutual trust between alliance partners to be the precursor to such relationship (Das & Teng 1998). Trust, we argue, subsequently builds and enhances the partners' social capital. Two types of social capital are considered in this article: internal social capital and external social capital. In developing our framework, we further subscribe to the notion that knowledge is a contributing factor to superior alliance performance, and consider how such relationships influence the development of partners' knowledge in terms of the development in the tacit firm-specific and the more explicit market-specific knowledge. Key managerial implications and suggestions for future research are discussed.
A creative twist: Management theory, creativity and the Arts
Authors: Gahan Peter , Minahan Stella , Glow Hilary 
Published: November 2010

AbstractThe idea that organizations need to adopt structures and practices that facilitate ‘creativity’ has become a central theme in theories of managing organisational innovation and success. This idea has been deployed in organisational theory, HRM, marketing and other domains of organization studies. For many theorists and practitioners in this area, organisational creativity is something to be distilled and managed as an element of organisational performance.We argue, however, that this process of appropriation from the creative arts is subject to a number of problematic transitions. Our starting point is the notion of creativity itself. Within the creative arts, the question of what constitutes creativity and its relationship to artistic practice is subject to considerable debate. This debate centres on the question of whether creativity represents an essentialist and inexplicable (even spiritual) component of artistic practice or whether creativity is a trait of work and cannot be attributed as a unique aspect of art.However it is defined, we argue that the notion of ‘creativity in business’ conveniently ignores essential elements of what constitutes creativity. In the process of being appropriated from the arts, the concept of creativity, we argue, has been ‘hollowed out’ and refashioned to suit the structures of organization as institution, and its needs as a business organization. This appropriated view of creativity has, in turn, been imposed on arts organisations, which are impelled to see themselves as ‘creative businesses’. In both cases, the mantra of creativity provides nothing more than a means to control individuals and provide them with a false hope that contributing to the success of business will provide a means to self fulfilment.
Transition to practitioner: Redesigning a third year course for undergraduate business students
Authors: Bailey Janis , Oliver Damian , Townsend Keith 
Published: November 2010

AbstractThis paper reports the outcomes from a teaching and learning research project at an Australian University centred on improving a third year course in industrial relations. The paper addresses the cognitive and affective outcomes of the course. Cognitively, students developed a greater understanding of the processes of industrial relations and their interconnectedness; however, research and academic skills were identified as in need of further improvement. Affectively, students responded to the challenges of the course, increasing their confidence and self-efficacy and being better prepared for the transition from student to practitioner. While the course in question was a final year ‘capstone’ course, the findings are applicable to all who are interested in designing, or redesigning, any business course that attempts to integrate theory and practice.
How do large Australian and Swiss banks implement downsizing?
Authors: Gandolfi Franco 
Published: November 2010

AbstractLarge Australian and Swiss banks have been trimming their workforces since the mid-1990s. With further rounds of downsizing activities predicted, this study sought to identify, examine, and compare the adopted organizational downsizing implementation strategies. The primary purpose of this cross-cultural study was to determine how large Australian and Swiss banks implemented downsizing in their most recent endeavors. The research has revealed three key findings. First, Australian banks primarily adopted workforce reduction strategies, whereas Swiss banks employed a mixture of organization redesign, workforce reduction, and systemic strategies. Second, Australian banks had considerable depth in their downsizing, whereas Swiss banks had more breadth in their overall strategies. Third, Australian banks favored reorientation approaches, whereas Swiss banks embraced reinforcement approaches. It remains unclear as to why large Australian and Swiss banks differed in the selection of implementation strategies and why they diverged in their overall approaches to downsizing. Further research is required to explore aspects that are likely to influence the adoption of downsizing strategies in both Australia and Switzerland.
Unmasking re-regulation in the luxury hotel sector
Authors: Knox Angela 
Published: November 2010

AbstractThe pursuit of regulatory reform in order to enhance organisational flexibility and efficiency appears to be ongoing in Australia. This is particularly salient in the service sector, where competition is strong and operating hours are often extended. In responding to these issues, government has sought to provide both employers and employees with additional regulatory options to better suit their individual needs; thereby offering what might be termed ‘regulatory choice’. While employers, on average, have engaged in these alternate forms of agreement making, those within the hospitality industry have been less enthusiastic about bargaining outside of the award system. The reasons for their reluctance have not been examined in depth, however. This paper therefore seeks to analyse the factors underpinning employers' bargaining decisions in order to develop a greater understanding of regulatory choice in Australian service sector firms. In doing so, the analysis focuses on employers' bargaining arrangements in the Australian luxury hotel sector. The findings indicate that regulatory choice is influenced by four primary factors: business/human resource management strategy; workplace characteristics; finances and perceived risk; and administrative issues. Contrary to the government's endeavours to enhance flexibility, some employers ‘choice’ of employment regulation was restricted. Regulatory choice appears to be significantly more complex than anticipated.
Importance of industrial services and service innovations
Authors: Weissenberger-Eibl Marion , Koch Daniel Jeffrey 
Published: November 2010

AbstractThe service sector in general has become far more important in recent decades. This development can also be seen with respect to services in the investment goods industry or in the so called provision of industrial services. This paper raises the issue that industrial services are the main growth driver of today's economies and have a major potential for companies to increase their revenues. After the introduction and a short definition of services and service systems the paper will clarify the importance of industrial services on a theoretical basis. The paper aims to enhance the service systems model to broaden the understanding of the development of service innovations in the investment goods industry. The service systems approach will be used to discuss the influences on the development of service innovations on a theoretical basis.
Where to from here? Evaluating employability during career transition
Authors: Clarke Marilyn 
Published: November 2010

AbstractThis study explores attitudes towards employability among a small group of individuals who were in career transition as a result of taking voluntary redundancy. Contemporary models of career suggest that much of the responsibility for career and employability has been transferred from the organisation to the individual. This study indicated that, in general, mid-career individuals were yet to recognise this transfer and to take ownership of their employability. When moving from a stable career within a paternalistic organisation to an uncertain job market they were unsure what they had to offer an employer, how to approach job search or how to market their skills and experience. The majority did make a successful career transition but more in the absence of, rather than because of, individual career management strategies.
Testing the links between emotional intelligence and motivation
Authors: Christie Anne , Jordan Peter , Troth Ashlea , Lawrence Sandra 
Published: November 2010

AbstractThe emotional intelligence construct is still the focus of substantial controversy. In this paper we contribute to the current debate regarding the factors that comprise the emotional intelligence construct. While some authors argue that emotional intelligence consists of a number of social and emotional competencies including self-motivation (Goleman 1995; 1998), others maintain emotional intelligence abilities are restricted to abilities that directly link emotions to cognition (Mayer & Salovey 1997). This latter view does not include motivation as a factor, but acknowledges it as a separate, related function. We conducted an empirical study to test these two different conceptualisations. One hundred and thirteen individuals completed measures of emotional intelligence and McClelland's (1987) three motivational needs. Structural equation analyses clearly supported Mayer and Salovey's (1997) conceptualisation that motivation is a factor related to emotional intelligence but is not a component part of the emotional intelligence construct. Implications are discussed.