The influence of organizational identification on organizational knowledge management (KM)

Information technology (IT) outsourcing vendor organizations contain isolated business units whose creation and sustenance greatly facilitate business operations. But they also introduce important challenges for organizational knowledge management (KM). In this paper, based on 7 months of intensive field-work at India Inc., a leading Indian IT firm, we looked at how members’ identification with two organizations, their own and their client organization, influences their compliance with an organizational KM initiative. The findings show that members have difficulties in complying with the expectations of the organizational KM initiative owing to a stronger identification with their client organizations. At the same time, they comply readily with KM initiatives at the business unit level. The findings show that KM managers at India Inc. use the help of middle level managers in the business units in their efforts to improve members’ compliance with organizational KM. Theoretical and managerial implications of the study are discussed.     

Encouraging emergence of cross-business strategic initiatives

We explore how strategic initiatives emerge at the business unit level in the context of multi-business firms. Findings show that such initiatives create cross-business synergies in the absence of any direct intervention from the headquarters. Four factors appeared to foster the development of autonomous cross-business collaboration: a sense of urgency at the level of the firm, the existence of a few broad but strong corporate strategic guidelines, the existence of a set of cross-business integration mechanisms, and an organizational culture promoting collaboration. Our findings suggest that, in addition to developing and enforcing top-down cross-business initiatives, headquarters would benefit from acknowledging the importance of business units' local knowledge by creating an organizational environment characterized by the four conditions identified in this paper.     

Macht und Einfluss verschiedener Abteilungen in fr��hen und sp?ten organisationalen Lebenszyklusphasen

The present research examines the performance consequences of the influence of four major departments (sales, marketing, R&D, and manufacturing) and integrates organizational life cycle stages as moderating variables. Further, the article derives a hypothesis that addresses the influence dispersion among the departments that is most beneficial for performance. In order to validate this research model empirically, survey data from small and medium-sized German firms were gathered. Findings show that the optimal distribution of influence among departments is a function of the organizational life-cycle stage. While no moderating effects of the life-cycle stage emerge for the sales or manufacturing departments, a strong marketing department contributes to organizational performance only in early stages, while a strong R&D department contributes only in later stages. Further, the estimation of the non-linear regression model shows that a medium level of influence dispersion among departments is most beneficial to organizational performance.     

Alternative Mechanisms Guiding Salespersons’ Ambidextrous Product Selling

Ambidextrous product‐selling strategies, in which companies’ salespeople concurrently pursue the sale of existing and new products, are hard to implement. Previous studies have addressed this issue for relatively simple consumer settings with the manager in close proximity to the salespersons and focusing on different levels of control and autonomy to resolve this issue. However, little is known about how field salespeople can be influenced to pursue such dual goals proactively for more complex business‐to‐business products. In this study, the authors distinguish between salespeople's proactive selling behaviour for new and existing products, and study the impact of two alternative mechanisms: a situational mechanism (i.e. perceived manager product‐selling ambidexterity) and a structural mechanism (i.e. salesperson organizational identification). Using a time‐lagged, multisource data set from a large ambidextrous company, the authors demonstrate that both mechanisms contribute to salespeople's proactive selling of new and existing products, but also act as each other's substitutes. The results suggest two most likely strategies for salespeople to obtain overall sales targets: focusing on existing product selling; or acting ambidextrously. The latter approach offers the benefits of better achieving ambidextrous company sales goals and of greater performance stability, and is thus preferred.     

Economies of Scope through Multi‐unit Skill Systems: The Organization of Large Design Firms

From a study of three large design firms in Italy, the UK and the USA, we derive a distinct model of how large knowledge‐intensive business services (KIBS) firms organize to manage growth and realize economies in ways that differ from the organizational techniques that are familiar from scale and scope studies of large manufacturing enterprises. Case studies were compiled from interviews conducted at the three firms. Large design firms were selected as a contrasting context to Chandlerian manufacturing firms. Design firms were expected to differ from manufacturing firms in terms of strategy, organization and the overall possibilities of achieving economies of scale and scope. Our results show that competitive advantage of these large KIBS design firms derives from a particular multi‐unit skill system that enables the firms to exploit economies of scope. There are four distinctive organizational features of such KIBS firms. First, multiple business units within the firm play a dual role. These are able both to engage in inter‐unit coordination and resource sharing and to attract business independently, often with heterogeneous business models among units. Second, these firms develop formal organizational routines for involving multiple business units in client projects, thus facilitating the migration of clients' business from one unit to another. Third, there is an important role for cross‐unit strategic ‘insight’ agents. Fourth, these firms expand through the founding of specialized, even idiosyncratic, new business units (often with the important role of mastering new technological skills).     

Expatriate mangers: A historical review

As expatriate managers continue to be a viable means for exercising control over foreign operations, they can have a direct impact on organizational performance, and therefore a delineation of the history of these key leaders in order to enhance our understanding of their continued significant impact is a laudable goal. The paper discusses each stage of the human resource management process, beginning with the identification and concluding with the repatriation stage of expatriate managers. Each stage is discussed in terms of the successes as well as problems/failures associated with the individual, organizational, environmental and systemic unit in mind. The paper concludes with future implications emphasizing the necessity to create new and/or enhance current practices relating to the development of expatriate managers' maximum global impact depending on the evolving nature of the globalization of business.     

Microfoundations of Small Business Tax Behaviour: A Capability Perspective

Small business tax behaviour has received surprisingly little attention. We argue that an organizational capability perspective using microfoundations will allow us to better understand the relationships between different drivers and the dynamics of small business tax behaviour. This study draws on in‐depth interviews with 42 small business owners who are matched with the firms’ factual tax compliance status. Using grounded theory, we build a framework that (a) identifies different microfoundations of small business capability to manage tax and (b) explains the dynamic nature of the relationship between organizational capability and compliance. Findings suggest that high capability does not necessarily translate into high tax compliance and this relationship is mediated by the owner‐managers’ perceptions of taxation as well changes in the economic and regulatory environment.     

Business intelligence and analytics value creation in Industry 4.0: a multiple case study in manufacturing medium enterprises

Abstract

Medium enterprises (MEs) form a majority of enterprises in several regions, yet they are underrepresented in the literature. The digital transformation known as Industry 4.0 (I4.0) brings new data streams into enterprises. MEs and large enterprises will both leverage business intelligence and analytics (BI&A) to improve their business performance, so the study of the conditions favouring value creation of BI&A is of interest. However, there are few studies focusing on the impact of business intelligence and analytics (BI&A) on value creation in I4.0 and none focusing on MEs. Using a multiple case-study design, this paper explores factors linked to BI&A business value creation in manufacturing MEs that are undergoing an I4.0 transformation. Findings suggest enterprises resources and capabilities are not sufficient to predict business value: organizational learning and organizational culture have a non-negligible influence for MEs.     

Self-Efficacy Beliefs and Sales Performance

Self-efficacy theory predicts that people will perform better when they believe they have the skills necessary for success. It also suggests, however, that believing in long-term rewards for success ("response-outcome expectations") does not correlate with adequate performance. This paper supports the generality of self-efficacy theory and provides evidence that self-efficacy beliefs predict insurance sales performance, whereas response-outcome expectations did not. A questionnaire was developed to measure self-efficacy beliefs and response-outcome expectations using 200 insurance sales representatives. Regression analyses were computed on a different sample of 97 insurance sales representatives using four separate dependent variables (calls-per-week; number of policies sold; sales revenue and a composite performance index on which actual sales commission was based). (1) These analyses established a correlation (but no causal relationship) between self-efficacy beliefs and sales performance. (2) The generality of self-efficacy theory in a business setting is suggested by the relationship between self-efficacy and objective measures of sales performance. (3) The relevance of these results, and the importance of integrating them into the practice of organizational behavior modification is discussed.     

Business and Management Impact Assessment in Research Excellence Framework 2014: Analysis and Reflection

The evaluation of research impact is likely to remain an important element of research quality audits in the UK for the foreseeable future. With this paper, we contribute to debates on impact and relevance of business and management studies research through an analysis of Research Excellence Framework 2014 impact scores within the business and management unit of assessment. We offer insights into the organizational contexts of UK business schools within which impact is produced, drawing attention to the issues of linkages with research intensity, grant income generation, research team size, career stage and gender of academics, and whether impact activity is focused on private or public sector organizations and national or international reach. We put forward recommendations for managers responsible for business schools and higher education policymakers regarding management and organizational policies and processes, as well as possible changes to the rules guiding future research excellence audits.     

The more,the merrier? How a subsidiary's organizational identification with the MNE affects its initiative

How does a subsidiary's organizational identification influence its tendency to demonstrate initiative? In this study, we argue that a subsidiary's organizational identification with the MNE may affect its initiative via two mechanisms: subsidiary motivation and headquarters screening. On the one hand, subsidiary motivation mechanism suggests that a subsidiary's organizational identification with an MNE may affect its tendency to demonstrate initiative. On the other hand, the headquarters screening mechanism maintains that headquarters may rely on organizational identification to support or dismiss the subsidiary's projects. In light of the two mechanisms, we propose that a subsidiary's organizational identification may first increase its initiative, but after a certain point, the effect will diminish, ultimately leading to an inverted U-shaped relation. Building on this central argument, we also examine the boundary conditions at the subsidiary and MNE levels that may shape the proposed effect. Findings based on a sample of Taiwanese MNEs support these arguments. Our findings contribute to the literature by highlighting the role that a subsidiary's organizational identification plays in its initiative.     

Assessing the effects of responsible leadership and ethical conflict on behavioral intention

This study develops a research model that elaborates how responsible leadership and ethical conflict influence employees from the perspectives of role theory and attachment theory. Its empirical results reveal that turnover intention indirectly relates to ethical conflict and responsible leadership via the mediating mechanisms of organizational identification and organizational uncertainty. At the same time, helping intention indirectly relates to ethical conflict and responsible leadership only through organizational identification. Finally, the managerial implications for international business and research limitations based on the empirical results are discussed.     

How and when a salesperson's perception of organizational politics relates to proactive performance

Politics in the workplace is a reality of organizational life. Several studies have investigated the negative implications of perceived organizational politics on various work attitudes and performance measures but not on proactive performance. However, proactive performance is important in a sales context because salespeople operate in an uncertain environment, and some task aspects cannot be formalized. Moreover, there is still a need for research to analyse the psychological mechanisms that lead perceived organizational politics to cause negative reactions from employees as well as to provide new insights on the boundary conditions of this process. Therefore, we examine the effect of perceived organizational politics on proactive performance through a salesperson's trust in the sales manager, as well as the moderating role of the salesperson's experience.This study uses dyadic data from 192 salespeople and their sales managers from a range of industries. The model entails a moderated mediation process. Results support the proposed model. The findings contribute to the salesforce management literature by suggesting the need to consider the importance of perceived organizational politics and by aiding in the understanding of how and when it hinders proactive performance.     

A Prompting Procedure for Increasing Sales in a Small Pet Store

Abstract

A simple prompting procedure involving index cards was used to increase suggestive selling by the owner/operator of a small pet grooming business. Over a year of baseline data revealed that no sales prompts were given and few pet products were sold. When the owner was prompted by an index card to ask customers if they wanted to purchase pet products, sales tripled and increased four-fold by the end of the year. This study is part of an increasing interest in the behavioral analysis of consumer choice and addresses both management and marketing concerns by demonstrating how a simple, well-replicated prompting procedure can modify a key employee behavior that in turn changes customer behavior, and results in an important organizational outcome.     

What business are you in?

Ths structure of the health care delivery system continues to evolve, old organizational types taking new forms and new entities joining in a sometimes helter-skelter array. What is missing is order and purpose. Most health care organizations have not yet asked the critical questions, "What business are we in?" and "Who are our customers?" The authors suggest that what is needed is a strategic business unit approach to the process of business development.     

Planning for technology as a corporate resource: a strategic classification

This paper describes a classification of business identities based on the double dichotomy of doing vs thinking and product vs capacity. Successful business units, in the sense of social units having their own style and shared values, tend to fit into one of the four basic identities: License Giver, License Taker, Jobber or Consultant. Conversely, a mixture of these in one unit tends to lead to a lack of clear identity, organizational stress and lack of strategic impact. Related organizational dilemma's can be resolved by restructing the organization according to the four basic identities of the strategic classification.     

CEO grandiose narcissism and firm performance: The role of organizational identification

This study reconciles the positive and negative sides of CEO grandiose narcissism by examining the role that CEO organizational identification plays in moderating the effect of CEO grandiose narcissism on top management team (TMT) behavioral integration. We first distinguish between grandiose and vulnerable narcissism and we then draw on upper echelons theory and executive personality research to hypothesize and test a model in which CEO grandiose narcissism is positively related to TMT behavioral integration when CEOs are high in organizational identification. The relationship is expected to be negative when CEOs do not identify strongly with their organizations. TMT behavioral integration, in turn, predicts subsequent firm performance. Findings based on multi-source data from a sample of 97 CEOs and their firms supported the hypotheses. These results highlight the complex nature of CEO grandiose narcissism – namely, that the construct has both positive and negative aspects as it relates to top management team dynamics and firm performance and that the relationship is affected by CEOs' identification with their organizations.     

考虑信用销售的改良品联合采购决策

信用销售能够提升生产企业竞争力、扩大经营规模,帮助销售企业缓解资金压力,对供应链的运作效率有较大影响,成为供应链管理研究的重要课题之一。考虑在单一供应商和多个零售商组成的二级改良品供应链中,供应商提供延迟支付作为信用销售手段,分别建立零售商独立采购和联合采购的最小单位时间总成本函数,通过比较最小单位时间总成本函数得到联合采购优于独立采购的条件。将改良品联合采购的成本分配问题构造为改良品联合采购博弈,给出博弈具有的基本性质,并设计一种基于博弈核心的成本分配方法。通过数值算例和敏感性分析验证了文中所构建模型的正确性。     

Rewarding growth or profit?: Top management team compensation and governance in Japanese MNEs

Japanese multinational enterprises (MNEs) have been popularly characterized as pursuing competitive strategies emphasizing long-term performance, especially growth in sales and market share, rather than shorter term profit performance. Though prior research has emphasized the importance of linking compensation to organizational goals and performance, the relationship between performance and compensation of Japanese executives has received limited empirical attention. This paper provides a preliminary examination of how Japanese top management teams in the 106 largest industrial MNEs were compensated, particularly for performance on sales growth and profitability criteria, over the 1976–1993 time period. The relationships revealed between organizational performance and the bonus compensation of top management teams suggest that the emphasis of Japanese industrial MNEs regarding sales growth versus profitability may not be as simple as suggested by prior studies and popular characterizations.     

Ambidextrous Organizational Culture,Contextual Ambidexterity and New Product Innovation: A Comparative Study of UK and Chinese High‐tech Firms

Contextual ambidexterity is of paramount importance for new product innovation and organizational success, particularly in high‐tech firms operating in a dynamic environment. Whilst it is recognized that contextual ambidexterity is grounded in organizational culture, existing research has not crystallized what kind of organizational culture enables contextual ambidexterity and consequently new product innovation. In this paper, drawing on data from 150 UK and 242 Chinese high‐tech firms, we conceptualize ambidextrous organizational culture as a higher‐order construct consisting of organizational diversity and shared vision, and examine its impacts on contextual ambidexterity and consequently on new product innovation outcomes. Using structural equation modelling, we find significant relationships between ambidextrous organizational culture, contextual ambidexterity and new product innovation outcomes; contextual ambidexterity mediates the relationship between ambidextrous organizational culture and new product innovation outcomes. Our findings also suggest that the above relationships are robust in the UK–China comparative research context, and that contextual ambidexterity and new product innovation outcomes are dependent on business unit level heterogeneity (i.e. ambidextrous organizational culture and research and development strength) rather than industry or cross‐cultural differences.