Organizational climate and burnout in a New Zealand social service agency

Abstract

A two-phase study was conducted on the relationship between organizational climate variables and burnout among personnel in a multifunction community service agency. Initial interviews with a small pilot sample identified major sources of stress, which were then incorporated into a second-phase questionnaire to all staff. Multiple regression analyses illustrated that perceived interactions between head office administrators and sections of the agency contributed significantly to emotional exhaustion, whereas perceptions of within-section interactions and involvement in decision-making had a positive impact on personal accomplishment. Perceived communication levels, however, were negatively related to personal accomplishment. The findings suggest the importance of organizational variables and highlight strategies for burnout reduction and effective stress management in human service organizations.     

Conceptual Framework of Coalitions in an Organizational Context

Summary

Organizations are forming coalitions in their struggle to survive with fewer resources. Under the “Contract With America,” funds for human services are expected to be increasingly cut back. Organizational actors will continue to coalesce because of their compelling interests to serve disadvantaged populations in our communities. This article uses the political-economy perspective in presenting a conceptual framework of coalitions in organizational settings. We need access to various perspectives and models of coalition building in order to provide direction for organizational groups as they attempt to change the sociopolitical structures in which they must operate.     

Path(ological) Dependency? Core Competencies from an Organizational Perspective

The development of the 'resource-based theory of the firm' has helped to reorient the field of strategic management towards a focus on the organizational processes and structures which produce 'core competencies'. By challenging previous assumptions of market determinism this approach seems to open up the prospect of a greater dialogue with the theories and concerns of organization studies. This paper aims to determine the scope of such a dialogue by developing an appreciation and critique of the core competencies framework from an organizational perspective. In this context, the key feature of resource-based theories is seen to be their focus on organizational knowledge rather than decision-making processes as the engine of competitive performance. This focus has a powerful resonance with studies of knowledge in organizations, particularly those forms of knowledge which are linked to product and process design.
However, despite the important shift towards a knowledge-based view of competition, the core competencies approach fails to follow the logic of its own argument as far as the organizational appropriation of knowledge is concerned. In their pursuit of an ontological model of competitive performance –defining the essential causes of firm competitiveness – resource-based approaches neglect the socially embedded qualities of organizational knowledge. As a result, the social construction of knowledge, encompassing the dilemmas posed by the employment relationship and the pitfalls of institutionalization, is neglected. Instead, a smoothly linear model is developed linking skills, competence and competitiveness. This mechanistic view is further reinforced by reliance on a command and control model of the management process. Organizational knowledge is not a biddable resource at the disposal of top management.     

企业管理人员工作价值观、组织忠诚度现状及相关性研究

通过对企业管理人员的工作价值观、组织忠诚度现状及二者的相关关系进行实证研究发现,企业管理人员相对看重内在工作价值和外在工作价值,而对外在报酬价值相对不看重;组织忠诚度呈现出组织认同、敬业度相对较高,而归属感相对较低的特点;二者关系表现为内在价值观、外在价值观与组织忠诚度存在正相关,而外在报酬与组织忠诚度相关性不显著.     

电信发展趋势与运营转型

在经历了10多年的高速发展之后，中国电信运营企业已经进入业务与产品运营阶段。因此，电信运营企业应通过整合内外资源，科学构建业务网络，合理进行组织变革，并通过成功的产品管理，利用业务平台提供满足客户个性化需求的产品，实现电信运营企业的成功转型，最终保证企业的长期盈利能力。     

Organizational Changes and Job Satisfaction among Support Staff

ABSTRACT

The purpose of this study is to identify job satisfaction amongst support staff employed by a nonprofit company undergoing organizational changes. The Job Satisfaction Survey (JSS) scale was used to measure overall job satisfaction and was conducted among 38 workers and the data was analyzed using content analysis. The findings indicate that workers were satisfied with some sections of their job but also dissatisfied with some others, scoring an average job satisfaction amongst the participating groups. Factors such as good relations with colleagues, training opportunities, and work flexibility were identified to assist with increasing worker satisfaction. Further suggestions for enhancing employees’ job satisfaction are provided.     

跨国公司空间组织结构浅析

跨国公司不同于一般企业 ,有其独特的部门分工和布局形式 ,从而形成相应的空间组织结构。这种结构既便于跨国公司的国际经营又便于利用各国的优势资源。本文试图对这种空间组织结构进行初步探讨     

顾客满意之谜

顾客满意是现代市场营销以及其他管理学科的核心概念。但是迄今为止,国内外学者还没有就顾客满意的定义等达成共识。本文在对顾客满意的定义、形成原因进行理论研究的基础上,分析了顾客满意对企业绩效的作用,最后探讨了顾客满意理论未来的研究方向。     

中西文化精神及其组织行为理论

近年来,作为组织行为主要部分之一的组织文化日益受到人们的广泛关注。而组织文化中的核心部分乃是文化精神,因此要分析组织文化就势必首先面对文化精神的探讨。如果说中国古代文化更多地彰显出社群主义、德性主义以及人文主义的精神,那么与之对应的西方文化则更多地强调个体主义、理性主义与功利主义的精神。这种文化精神分野的实质乃是追求事实判断的科学主义与追求价值判断的人本主义之分。二者的差异对中西组织行为产生了深远的影响,并由此产生了中西各自不同的组织行为理论。但在新的历史背景下,这两种组织行为理论皆有失之片面之虞。而当代的对话理论则将科学主义思想和人本主义思想有机地结合起来,以卓有成效的一些人的话语取代了少数人的精英式的话语或多数人的民粹式的话语,为未来更为辩证的组织行为理论开辟出一条新的路径。     

关于组织承诺概念的商榷

组织承诺引入我国已有20多年，并取得了很多研究成果，但是有关组织承诺的概念仍存在不同的理解。就国内外关于组织承诺的概念进行了总结和分析，在此基础上对组织承诺的概念进行了重新界定，与各位专家学者共同探讨。