The Integration of Two “Brotherhoods” into One Organizational Culture: A Psycho-social Perspective on Merging Police and Fire Services

While organizational mergers may not yet be as commonplace in public enterprise as in private industry, they present similar challenges in terms of the complexities of seamlessly blending the multiple stakeholders involved. As a result, despite their often grandiose ambitions, mergers have not always met with unequivocal success. While the reasons involved can be as divergent as the agencies themselves, research has tended to implicate merger administrators for insufficient attention to organizational culture as a key explanatory factor. In an effort to more closely examine this potential linkage as it relates to public sector mergers, the case study described herein analyzes the role of organizational culture in the merger of two independent entities (a sheriff’s office and fire-rescue services) and describes techniques employed to enhance the compatibility of their unification. Through a combination of interviews with transition team members and analysis of relevant records, the merger process is explored from three theoretical perspectives—i.e., work-related identity, person–environment “fit” (individual–cultural alignment), and employer–employee reciprocity. Using this theoretical framework, insights are provided into the manner in which these two distinct workplace cultures have been organizationally integrated.

The Publication History of the Journal of Organizational Behavior Management: An Objective Review and Analysis: 1998–2009

No abstract available for this article.     

The Organisational Culture of Vietnamese and Chinese Corporations: Do Age and Gender Make a Difference?

Public Organization Review - Globalisation has developed the requirement for superiors to manage worldwide organisations across cultures successfully. Comprehending and setting up proper...     

6 Structure,Affect and Identity as Bases of Organizational Competition and Cooperation

Abstract

Competing organizations are often defined by their niche overlap or structural equivalence in resource dependence, but the very structure that defines competitors can also identify cooperators. There is a fine line between competition and cooperation, but current theories give insufficient guidance as to which will take place and also contribute to the belief that cooperation between competitors is illegitimate. We show that the legitimacy of these practices, as well the evaluation of their welfare implications, are context bound. Individuals and societies that have been influenced by different theories of competition could reasonably (and have) reach different conclusions as to the legitimacy of competitor cooperation. We then critique extant ideas as to when competitors will cooperate, which rely on industry structure, and suggest instead that perception and social identity are more important in tipping the cooperate–compete balance. We conclude by showing how our arguments inform an important current stream of management research, on the process of institutional change.     

Digital platforms’ boundaries: The interplay of firm scope,platform sides,and digital interfaces

This article explores what factors drive digital platform firms to set or modify their boundaries. Building on economics, strategic management, and information systems research, I suggest that digital platforms make strategic decisions over three distinct types of interrelated boundaries: (1) the scope of the platform firm (what assets are owned, what labor is employed, and what activities are performed by the firm), (2) the configuration and composition of the platform's sides (which distinct groups of customers have access to the platform), and (3) the digital interfaces (that specify the 2-way exchange of data between the platform firm and each of its sides). In this article, I explore the interdependence between these seemingly separate decisions and the role of some important moderating variables. These moderators include whether the platform is a transaction or an innovation platform, and the extent to which the platform has developed from its initial formation stage. My work explains why we see so much variation in boundaries across platforms and over time.     

The Informal ‘Guanxi’ Institutional Culture of the Malaysian Housing Development Industry

There has been limited understanding of the relationship between private developers and the housing delivery mechanism in Malaysia. This paper seeks to bridge the research gap by analysing the social relationships and informal institutions embedded in the Malaysian housing development industry. Empirical data were collected for Kuala Lumpur and Johor to compare and contrast developers’ views and their working relationships with government departments. Informed by various arguments that ‘guanxi’ can reduce transaction costs and supplement/complement the formal legal regime, this paper examines the ways developers are engaged in such transaction cost reduction activities. Policy and theoretical implications of the informal cultural practice in the housing development industry are then drawn out.     

On the Regional Influence and Social Identity of Huifang Catering Culture in Xi＇an

回坊在西安是一个标志性的区域,更是一种饮食符号,其历史悠久、种类繁多的美食具有独特的饮食文化魅力。回坊饮食文化的区域影响力遍及坊上区域和坊外区域,但是在社会认同方面,回坊的饮食文化仍然存在着特色危机及文化危机。     

‘Contestation,negotiation, and resolution’: The relationship between power and collective leadership

The relationship between power and collective leadership (CL) has been theoretically understood and empirically addressed in many different ways. To make sense of this diversity, we investigate and diagram the role of power in CL. First, we identify six representations of power—six ways in which scholars have found that power shapes the emergence and enactment of CL. These representations include: Even in CL, individual power matters; Leaders can devolve power to their subordinates by empowering them; Contextual characteristics related to power can influence the possibility and enactment of CL; CL can create the collective power necessary for people in marginalized positions to challenge embedded power dynamics; Power is intrinsic to the co-construction process; Attributions affect who can enact CL, how they are viewed, and whether they have power. Second, we offer a conceptual framework that provides a comprehensive way to understand the relationship between power and CL. The framework includes two dimensions, one related to power (that runs from episodic to systemic) and the other related to CL (that runs from entitative to emergent). Third, we create a conceptual map by placing the six representations within this framework. Based on our research, we make the case that we cannot understand CL without understanding the ubiquitous, complex, and even contradictory role of power. We also suggest avenues for expanding and elaborating discussions of power in the CL literature.     

Working mothers’ emotional exhaustion from work and care: The role of core self-evaluations,mental health,and control

This research examined the direct and indirect relationships between core self-evaluations (via mental health) and emotional exhaustion originating from both the work and caregiving domains. The extent to which these relationships were moderated by control over work and care also was examined. Data came from 142 employed mothers in Australia who completed surveys at three measurement points each separated by four weeks. Results showed that core self-evaluations related positively to mental health which, in turn, related negatively to emotional exhaustion originating from work, but only when work control was high. Moreover, core self-evaluations related negatively to emotional exhaustion originating from care through improvements in mental health, but care control did not moderate this relationship. Overall, these findings contribute to a better understanding of how working mothers’ personal and work resources mitigate emotional exhaustion.     

Shame on Who? The Effects of Corporate Irresponsibility and Social Performance on Organizational Reputation

This study examines the relationship between corporate irresponsibility, corporate social performance and changes in organizational reputation. By combining attribution theory with expectancy violations theory, we provide the first systematic analysis of how organizational reputations are influenced by attributions of corporate irresponsibility in the context of social expectations. Drawing on a comprehensive and unique corporate irresponsibility dataset, this study reveals that firms previously believed to be most socially responsible are penalized by evaluators when corporate culpability is verified by a court of law. Conversely, firms perceived as least socially responsible were more likely to suffer reputation penalties when accused of irresponsibility, without their culpability established through litigation. Overall, the results of our study suggest that organizational reputations are mostly stable in light of irresponsibility, in that evaluators only penalize certain firms, in certain circumstances. Specifically, reputation penalties occur when highly responsible firms are perceived as hypocritical and least responsible firms were not found culpable by a court of law. Upon reflection on these findings, our study reveals that the mechanisms of social sanction previously assumed to regulate irresponsibility are weaker than currently understood. The theoretical and policy implications of this study are discussed, along with directions for future research on social evaluations.     

What Do We Mean by Performativity in Organizational and Management Theory? The Uses and Abuses of Performativity

John Austin introduced the formulation ‘performative utterance’ in his 1962 book How to Do Things with Words. This term and the related concept of performativity have subsequently been interpreted in numerous ways by social scientists and philosophers such as Lyotard, Butler, Callon and Barad, leading to the coexistence of several foundational perspectives on performativity. This paper reviews and evaluates critically how organization and management theory (OMT) scholars have used these perspectives, and how the power of performativity has, or has not, stimulated new theory‐building. In performing a historical and critical review of performativity in OMT, the authors’ analysis reveals the uses, abuses and under‐uses of the concept by OMT scholars. It also reveals the lack of both organizational conceptualizations of performativity and analysis of how performativity is organized. Ultimately, the authors’ aim is to provoke a ‘performative turn’ in OMT by unleashing the power of the performativity concept to generate new and stronger organizational theories.     

Organizational learning in SMEs’ internationalization: A moderated mediating effect of absorptive capacity

We examine both mediation and moderation effects on the direct relationship between internationalization speed and firm performance in the context of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). Building on prior studies that focus either on the direct speed–performance linkage or the moderating role played by knowledge, we suggest that an important source of performance variations is organizational learning. Grounded in the organizational learning perspective, we argue that firm strategies regarding speed and earliness of internationalization provide the SMEs with opportunities to develop their absorptive capacity, and thus enhance their performance. Using survey data from 343 SMEs in Australia and New Zealand, our empirical results suggest that absorptive capacity is associated with internationalization speed in a reversed U-shape relationship and that in turn absorptive capacity mediates the direct speed–performance relationship. Moreover, this mediating effect is moderated by earliness of internationalization. By demonstrating the moderated mediating effect of absorptive capacity as a novel mechanism to achieving superior performance, we enhance the understanding of how firms succeed internationally.     

Birds of a Feather? The Effect of Organizational Value Congruence on the Relationship Between Ministries and Quangos

In this paper we investigate differences between the organizational values of ministries and semi-autonomous executive agencies (quangos) that operate at arms’ length. Quangos are expected to operate more business-like, hence they can be expected to value profitability and other NPM-related values higher than ministries. Value incongruence between quangos and ministries is hypothesized to decrease their level of trust. These hypotheses are tested, using combined data from two Dutch surveys (n = 324). The results confirm the expectations, although different types of quangos have different degrees of value (in)congruence, which may lead to variations in the quality of the relationship with their parent ministry.     

The military imprint: The effect of executives’ military experience on firm pollution and environmental innovation

This study focuses on military experienced executives (CEO and chairman) and their effect on two types of firm environmental strategy: firm pollution and environmental innovation. From the perspective of imprinting theory, we find that executives with military imprint, which, so we argue, instills a sense of following rules and stewardship for the collective, negatively relate to firm pollution and positively relate to firm environmental innovation. The strength of military imprint at its formation is shaped by whether focal executives had a military officer rank. In addition, working in an environment with strong pro-military culture sustains and even strengthens the military imprint. Analyses of data from 6,664 firm-year observations of heavily polluting industries from Chinese listed firms between 2013 and 2017 largely support our hypotheses (see Table 4 for overview of various tests). Overall, our efforts of extending imprinting theory to leadership literature suggest that the imprinting effect of military experience persists in executives’ decision-making processes. Furthermore, this study contributes to imprinting research by emphasizing the importance of considering imprint formation and imprint persistence.     

It’s time to sober up: The direct costs,side effects and long-term consequences of creativity and innovation

The literatures on creativity and innovation are each premised on the same important assumption that has gone largely unquestioned: Creativity and innovation are outcomes that are almost inherently positive. Decades of research on creativity in organizations have been motivated by the assumption that creative ideas can be implemented to realize innovations that will inevitably increase profit, strengthen competitive advantage and ensure firm survival. The assumption that creativity and innovation have positive downstream consequences has constrained existing research by forcing a myopic focus on creativity and innovation as dependent variables. Thus, in a significant departure from the existing literature, we turn the tables to conceptualize creativity and innovation as independent variables that can have a sweeping and frequently negative impact on a wide range of other important outcomes. We conclude by calling for a new stream of research to more soberly evaluate the direct costs, side effects and long-term consequences of creativity and innovation.     

11 Evidence in Management and Organizational Science: Assembling the Field’s Full Weight of Scientific Knowledge Through Syntheses

Abstract

This chapter advocates the good scientific practice of systematic research syntheses in Management and Organizational Science (MOS). A research synthesis is the systematic accumulation, analysis and reflective interpretation of the full body of relevant empirical evidence related to a question. It is the critical first step in effective use of scientific evidence. Synthesis is not a conventional literature review. Literature reviews are often position papers, cherry‐picking studies to advocate a point of view. Instead, syntheses systematically identify where research findings are clear (and where they aren’t), a key first step to establishing the conclusions science supports. Syntheses are also important for identifying contested findings and productive lines for future research. Uses of MOS evidence, that is, the motives for undertaking a research synthesis include scientific discovery and explanation, improved management practice guidelines, and formulating public policy. We identify six criteria for establishing the evidentiary value of a body of primary studies in MOS. We then pinpoint the stumbling blocks currently keeping the field from making effective use of its ever‐expanding base of empirical studies. Finally, this chapter outlines (a) an approach to research synthesis suitable to the domain of MOS; and (b) supporting practices to make synthesis a collective MOS project.     

Market reactions to acquisition announcements: The importance of signaling ‘why’ and ‘where’

Acquisitions are risky events but not all acquisitions involve the same levels of risk. We suggest that the announced acquisition motive – the ‘why’ of the acquisition – is an important risk signal. We categorize acquisition motives and distinguish between acquisitions with ‘pure explore’ and ‘pure exploit’ motives. Recognizing that most acquisitions have multiple motives, we identify acquisitions with ‘ambidextrous’ motives – that is different combinations of explorative and exploitative motives – too. Then, building on recent contributions to signaling theory, we argue that the ‘why’ will matter more, if the ‘where’ pertains to a high-risk setting. We measure this using target-to-acquirer industry relatedness. We find that the market reacts more positively to pure acquisitions, aimed at exploration or exploitation, compared to ambidextrous acquisitions. We show that the market reacts more positively to ambidextrous acquisitions orientated towards exploitation than ambidextrous acquisitions orientated toward exploration. Finally, we find that relatedness moderates this relationship, in that the market is more willing to tolerate exploration in a related industry. Our core contribution is to the literatures on acquisition motives and ambidexterity. We provide new insights into the incidence of specific motives, the ways in which they are mixed, and the market's reaction to their announcement. In addition, we contribute to the emerging literature that takes on behavioral perspective of market reactions by showing that the ‘why’ and ‘where’ of an acquisition matter.     

The Politics of ‘Social Accountability’ in England and Germany: Democratic Control and Moral Imperatives

This article investigates how politicians in England and Germany approach social accountability during the introduction of markets in the national health care systems. It analyses the discourse among members of parliament during the law making process of the 2012 NHS Health Care Act in England and the 2011 Act for Financing of Statutory Health Insurance in Germany. Generally, the new social accountability reform agenda is attractive to policy makers as it foregrounds public engagement and bottom-up participation (Peters 2001). Social accountability refers to institutional practices that favour participatory and horizontal mechanisms that depart from traditional hierarchical Principal-Agent forms.     

An Analysis of the Commonality and Type of Preintervention Assessment Procedures in the Journal of Organizational Behavior Management (2000–2015)

We reviewed all issues of the Journal of Organizational Behavior Management (JOBM) from 2000 through 2015 to identify the percentage of empirical articles, which utilized some form of preintervention assessment. In addition, we categorized five types of assessment used and compared the number of assessments conducted in each category. Finally, because assessment is considered to be particularly important in the subdiscipline of behavioral safety (McSween, 2003), and prior research has not examined the commonality of assessment in this area, we also analyzed the frequency and type of assessment procedures used in behavioral safety and compared this to the use of assessment in OBM in general. Results indicated that 28% of the empirical articles in JOBM used some form of preintervention assessment. Indirect methods were the most often used type of assessment. In addition, 48% percent of the articles in JOBM, which employed a safety-related dependent variable, included some form of assessment. The most frequently used type of assessment in behavioral safety was historical assessment. Based on these data, the use of some form of preintervention assessment in OBM appears to be occurring with some regularity, and assessment in behavioral safety is more common relative to assessment in OBM in general.