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1 – 10 of 336Nicholas R. Prince, J. Bruce Prince, Sari N. Prince and Rüediger Kabst
This paper investigates the effect of counter-cultural human resources (CCHR) practices on firm performance. Specifically, it investigates the impact of national culture [future…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper investigates the effect of counter-cultural human resources (CCHR) practices on firm performance. Specifically, it investigates the impact of national culture [future orientation (FO), in-group collectivism (I-GC), performance orientation (PO), power distance (PD) and uncertainty avoidance (UA)] on the calculative and collaborative HR practice–firm performance relationship.
Design/methodology/approach
This study uses data from the CRANET and GLOBE studies to conduct a multi-level analysis of the impact of national culture on the calculative/collaborative HR–firm performance relationship.
Findings
It finds support for both the CCHR and societal-culture fit (SCF) perspectives of national culture, with FO and I-GC supporting the CCHR perspective and the other culture dimensions aligning more closely with SCF.
Originality/value
These findings empirically validate that CCHR practices can help supplement behaviors lacking in the cultural environment in which organizations operate.
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Nicholas R. Prince, J. Bruce Prince and Rüediger Kabst
The purpose of this paper is to investigate the influence of national culture on the adoption of four different incentive pay bundles (incentive maximizer, contingent rewarder…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to investigate the influence of national culture on the adoption of four different incentive pay bundles (incentive maximizer, contingent rewarder, profit rewarder, and incentive minimizer) using GLOBE national culture dimensions in 14 countries. It uses incentive pay bundles derived by Prince et al. (2016).
Design/methodology/approach
The study adopted multilevel random-intercept logistic modeling using firm incentive practice usage from the CRANET database and country culture scores from the GLOBE study.
Findings
Evidence suggests that in-group collectivism is associated with increased use of the incentive maximizer approach, in which firms use a combination of high levels of individual, team, and profit sharing incentives, and decreased use of the incentive minimizer approach (where firms minimally employ incentives) and the individual and team bonus focused contingent rewarder configuration. Higher uncertainty avoidance is linked to increased use of the profit rewarder approach (where only profit sharing is emphasized) and decreased use of the contingent rewarder approach. Performance-orientation cultures appear to support using the incentive maximizer and avoiding the incentive minimizer bundles.
Originality/value
This study investigates incentive practice bundles that firms use verses separate analysis of practices and use the GLOBE culture metrics. It utilizes multilevel modeling, which has been lacking in past studies of culture and incentives.
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Nicholas R. Prince, J. Bruce Prince, Bradley R. Skousen and Rüediger Kabst
Organizations worldwide are faced with the challenge of motivating and retaining employees. In addressing this challenge, organizations may use a variety of incentive pay…
Abstract
Purpose
Organizations worldwide are faced with the challenge of motivating and retaining employees. In addressing this challenge, organizations may use a variety of incentive pay practices to align employee behavior with organizational objectives. The purpose of this paper is to empirically identify the incentive pay practice configurations or bundles adopted by private sector firms across 14 different countries from several geographic regions. The patterns of incentive pay configuration adoption for each country are evaluated.
Design/methodology/approach
Cluster analysis, ANOVA, and multilevel random-intercept logistic modeling are utilized on firms from the 2009 CRANET HRM survey.
Findings
Phase I of this study empirically identifies four different configurations (contingent rewarder, incentive minimizer, incentive maximizer, and profit rewarder) derived from three incentive pay practices (individual bonus, team bonus, and profit sharing practices) that firms adopt. Phase II evaluates adoption rates by country and finds striking differences in incentive configurations that firms avoid or adopt. Some countries have clear adoption preferences (e.g. Denmark, Sweden, Japan, and France). In other countries firms employ a variety of incentive bundles (e.g. USA, UK, and Germany) and seem to be less constrained by country-based institutional factors.
Research limitations/implications
Incentive practices are typically studied independent of the configuration of practices that firms select. This research helps us understand the typical bundles in use.
Practical implications
Organizations worldwide are faced with the need to motivate employees. This research maps the incentive bundles preferred in each of 14 countries.
Social implications
Employees in different countries come to work with expectations about pay and these shape their perceptions of incentive fairness.
Originality/value
Research on incentives has tended to focus independently on specific practices and ignore the reality that organizations generally select multiple practices. This research identifies the combinations of incentive practices generally used and does so with firms from 14 countries from various world regions. These results also offer a map of the incentive bundles preferred in each country.
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The employee selection process has generally focused on the near‐term performance potential of internal candidates in filling vacant positions. This research addresses the…
Abstract
Purpose
The employee selection process has generally focused on the near‐term performance potential of internal candidates in filling vacant positions. This research addresses the potential influence of adding a career development emphasis to the employee transfer decision process. In a career‐focused transfer process the applicants' individual career development needs and growth opportunities are a key basis for internal selection decisions.
Design/methodology/approach
Using web‐based survey methodology, a US financial services firm is used to evaluate the relationship between the use of career‐focused employee transfer criteria and key employee attitudes.
Findings
The study finds that the use of career‐focused processes are positively related to employees' developmental opportunity satisfaction and perceived support for career development. Regression analyses finds that these two attitudes mediate the positive relationship between the use of career‐focused transfer criteria and perceived organization support (POS). Other research efforts (e.g. Allen and Shore) have linked POS to a variety of positive outcomes, including lower employee turnover. Past research, however, has not considered how specific human resource practices can be the basis for the development of key attitudes.
Research limitations/implications
This research – while limited due to it cross‐sectional methodology – builds on that stream of research by focuses on the design of the employee transfer process and how it can be a key practice for achieving a developmental focus and associated benefits.
Originality/value
The results suggest that focusing on performance potential of applicants and career‐focused criteria are not necessarily antagonistic but can be used jointly to make internal selection decisions.
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Parviz Ghoddousi, Omid Poorafshar, Nicholas Chileshe and M. Reza Hosseini
The purpose of this paper is twofold. First, it aims to highlight the main factors and items affecting the productivity of construction projects, based on the perceptions of CEOs…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is twofold. First, it aims to highlight the main factors and items affecting the productivity of construction projects, based on the perceptions of CEOs in construction companies in Iran. Second, the study compares the elicited CEOs’ perceptions against the findings of studies based on the views of such as project managers, middle managers and employees in other levels.
Design/methodology/approach
The study drew upon literature on construction work to develop a conceptual model. Further, a total of 60 CEOs from road construction companies were surveyed using a five-point Likert scale questionnaire to generate the data. The collated data were categorised and ranked according to the CEOs perceived level of importance using the relative importance index.
Findings
The findings highlight the main factors and items affecting labour productivity in construction projects in Iran as perceived by CEOs, which are mainly of human resources management nature and could be attributed to motivation and managerial policy aspects. The study also recognises that factors associated with the working environment particularly safety and health are perceived as insignificant by Iranian CEOs which could be a concern for the Iranian construction industry. The discussions shed some light on the discrepancies between the perceptions of CEOs and previous studies in regards to major determinants of productivity in the construction context.
Originality/value
This study is the first study aiming at discussing the perceptions of CEOs of construction companies active in construction projects in Iran. As such, the study highlights the standpoint of the main decision makers in construction companies in regards to labour productivity in the construction sector. Thus, the key contribution of the present study is providing insight into the perceptions of CEOs, who play the most vital role in strategic development of construction companies whereas previous studies have mostly focused on project or middle managers having a lower influence in determining the strategic plans of companies.
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Jorge Alcaraz and Elizabeth Salamanca
The purpose of this paper is to identify how the cultural attributes of ethnic networks affect foreign direct investment (FDI) location.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to identify how the cultural attributes of ethnic networks affect foreign direct investment (FDI) location.
Design/methodology/approach
The study tests on panel data the effect of ethnic networks in interaction with their member’s cultural attributes on FDI location.
Findings
Results show that ethnic networks whose members predominantly exhibit a human orientation do not affect FDI location. However, when performance orientation is the predominant cultural attribute of the members of an ethnic network, there is a positive and significant effect on FDI location.
Practical implications
Managers need to be aware that not all networks will be equally helpful in achieving particular goals. For instance, ethnic networks where the performance orientation is dominant among their members affect FDI location, unlike ethnic networks where human orientation is dominant. Therefore, decision-makers need to identify and align these two elements (networks and goals) to maximize outcomes.
Originality/value
This study contributes to the literature by suggesting that FDI location is affected by ethnic networks where performance orientation is dominant among the members, which is not the case when human orientation is dominant among the members of the ethnic networks.
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It is widely recognized by scholars that superhero stories tend to glorify vigilante justice; after all, these stories often maintain that extralegal acts of violence are…
Abstract
It is widely recognized by scholars that superhero stories tend to glorify vigilante justice; after all, these stories often maintain that extralegal acts of violence are necessary for combatting existential threats to personal and public safety. This scholarly common sense fosters a widespread dismissal of superhero stories as uncomplicated apologia for an authoritarian politics of law and order that is animated by hatred of unpopular people and ideas. However, some prominent contemporary Batman stories, including those told in the graphic novels of Grant Morrison and in the blockbuster movies of Christopher Nolan, are ambivalent: in their portraits of Batman and Joker as dark twins and secret colleagues, these stories both legitimize and challenge the countersubversive politics of American law and order.
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Tina T. Swan, Bruce Q. Swan and Zuopeng (Justin) Zhang
We address the question of how the Internet promotes international trade volume, and especially, whether the global human resources affect the bilateral international trade during…
Abstract
Purpose
We address the question of how the Internet promotes international trade volume, and especially, whether the global human resources affect the bilateral international trade during the technology development across countries.
Design/methodology/approach
A dynamic panel causality analysis is carried out to demonstrate empirically that the causality of the Internet diffusion on the international trade volumes. Evidence shows a significant positive effect of the Internet on international trade volume from time-series and cross-sectional regressions. Furthermore, the magnitude of elasticity is discussed.
Findings
There is strong evidence that the Internet stimulates international trade for all countries. Growth of trade volumes changes over time with heteroscedastic responses. The positive impacts of the growth of GDP are diluted by the growth of global human resources.
Originality/value
The data on the number of web hosts is not necessarily correlated to where the site is actually located. We contribute to the new Internet measurement which helps to explain the information transferring that stimulates the international trade and examine the global human resources.
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A collection of essays by a social economist seeking to balanceeconomics as a science of means with the values deemed necessary toman′s finding the good life and society enduring…
Abstract
A collection of essays by a social economist seeking to balance economics as a science of means with the values deemed necessary to man′s finding the good life and society enduring as a civilized instrumentality. Looks for authority to great men of the past and to today′s moral philosopher: man is an ethical animal. The 13 essays are: 1. Evolutionary Economics: The End of It All? which challenges the view that Darwinism destroyed belief in a universe of purpose and design; 2. Schmoller′s Political Economy: Its Psychic, Moral and Legal Foundations, which centres on the belief that time‐honoured ethical values prevail in an economy formed by ties of common sentiment, ideas, customs and laws; 3. Adam Smith by Gustav von Schmoller – Schmoller rejects Smith′s natural law and sees him as simply spreading the message of Calvinism; 4. Pierre‐Joseph Proudhon, Socialist – Karl Marx, Communist: A Comparison; 5. Marxism and the Instauration of Man, which raises the question for Marx: is the flowering of the new man in Communist society the ultimate end to the dialectical movement of history?; 6. Ethical Progress and Economic Growth in Western Civilization; 7. Ethical Principles in American Society: An Appraisal; 8. The Ugent Need for a Consensus on Moral Values, which focuses on the real dangers inherent in there being no consensus on moral values; 9. Human Resources and the Good Society – man is not to be treated as an economic resource; man′s moral and material wellbeing is the goal; 10. The Social Economist on the Modern Dilemma: Ethical Dwarfs and Nuclear Giants, which argues that it is imperative to distinguish good from evil and to act accordingly: existentialism, situation ethics and evolutionary ethics savour of nihilism; 11. Ethical Principles: The Economist′s Quandary, which is the difficulty of balancing the claims of disinterested science and of the urge to better the human condition; 12. The Role of Government in the Advancement of Cultural Values, which discusses censorship and the funding of art against the background of the US Helms Amendment; 13. Man at the Crossroads draws earlier themes together; the author makes the case for rejecting determinism and the “operant conditioning” of the Skinner school in favour of the moral progress of autonomous man through adherence to traditional ethical values.
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Bernard Harris, Roderick Floud and Sok Chul Hong
In The Changing Body (Cambridge University Press and NBER, 2011), we presented a series of estimates showing the number of calories available for human consumption in England and…
Abstract
In The Changing Body (Cambridge University Press and NBER, 2011), we presented a series of estimates showing the number of calories available for human consumption in England and Wales at various points in time between 1700 and 1909/1913. We now seek to correct an error in our original figures and to compare the corrected figures with those published by a range of other authors. We also include new estimates showing the calorific value of meat and grains imported from Ireland. Disagreements with other authors reflect differences over a number of issues, including the amount of land under cultivation, the extraction and wastage rates for cereals and pulses and the number of animals supplying meat and dairy products. We consider recent attempts to achieve a compromise between these estimates and challenge claims that there was a dramatic reduction in either food availability or the average height of birth cohorts in the late-eighteenth century.