Overall justice,work group identification and work outcomes: Test of moderated mediation process

This study examined an integrated model of the antecedents and outcomes of organisational and overall justice using a sample of Indian Call Centre employees (n = 458). Results of structural equation modelling (SEM) revealed that the four organisational justice dimensions relate to overall justice. Further, work group identification mediated the influence of overall justice on counterproductive work behaviors, such as presenteeism and social loafing, while conscientiousness was a significant moderator between work group identification and presenteeism and social loafing. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed.     

Does it Pay to Be Ethical? Examining the Relationship Between Organisations’ Ethical Culture and Innovativeness

In this article, we examine the relationship between ethical organisational culture and organisational innovativeness. A quantitative empirical analysis is based on a survey of a total of 719 respondents from all levels of three Finnish organisations, both general staff and managers. The organisations belong to both the private and public sectors. The results of this study show that organisations’ ethical culture is associated with their organisational innovativeness, and that different dimensions of ethical culture are associated with different dimensions of organisational innovativeness. The ethical culture of the organisation had a specific role in process and behavioural innovativeness. It was found that congruency of management was the single dimension with the highest effect on organisational innovativeness overall and specifically on process and behavioural innovativeness. These findings suggest that when organisations are aiming for specific outcomes, such as organisational innovativeness, they need to be aware of what dimensions of ethical culture are particularly relevant.     

Industry Business Associations: Self-Interested or Socially Conscious?

According to deontic justice theory, individuals often feel principled moral obligations to uphold norms of justice. That is, standards of justice can be valued for their own sake, even apart from serving self-interested goals. While a growing body of evidence in business ethics supports the notion of deontic justice, skepticism remains. This hesitation results, at least in part, from the absence of a coherent framework for explaining how individuals produce and experience deontic justice. To address this need, we argue that a compelling, yet still missing, step is to gain further understanding into the underlying neural and psychological mechanisms of deontic justice. Here, we advance a theoretical model that disentangles three key processes of deontic justice: The use of justice rules to assess events, cognitive empathy, and affective empathy. Together with reviewing neural systems supporting these processes, broader implications of our model for business ethics scholarship are discussed.     

Customer-oriented boundary-spanning behaviors: Test of a social exchange model of antecedents

Using a sample of 281 frontline service employees of a national retail bank, we test a social exchange model of antecedents of three dimensions of customer-oriented boundary-spanning behaviors suggested by prior boundary-spanning and services marketing/management literatures: external representation, internal influence, and service delivery. In support of our hypotheses, we identify fully mediated relationships from procedural, interactional, and distributive justice to external representation and internal influence via job satisfaction and organizational commitment. Our results generally support our expectation that the indirect effects of procedural justice on external representation and internal influence are stronger than the indirect effects of distributive or interactional justice on these behaviors. Also, our results reveal no significant indirect effects of procedural and distributive justice on service delivery behaviors. However, we find an unexpected direct positive path from interactional justice to service delivery behaviors. We interpret this latter finding in light of the normative value of interactional justice as a source of role modeling or managerial legitimacy.     

Sabotage in the financial system: Lessons from Veblen

The global financial crisis that started in the summer of 2007 has generated a wide-ranging discussion about the causes of the meltdown and the role of banking and bankers in today's economy. However, the ongoing debate rarely addresses questions of business tactics in the financial industry. Indeed, while ‘incentives,’ ‘vested interests,’ power, and—increasingly—social utility are often factored into analyses of financial regulation, the strategies and tactics of financial institutions are rarely discussed in a systematic way in academic and policy debate. Nonetheless, we believe that these two elements are key to understanding the financial system, not as a mere sector of the wider economy but as a business enterprise driven by its own logic and shaped by a variety of business tactics of its key agents. In our vision of finance as business, we draw on the concept of industrial sabotage as a business tactic (originally developed by Thorstein Veblen) to explore the roots of the financial sector's contemporary architecture. Our key premise is that the central motive driving the process often described as ‘financialization’ or financial innovation is the sabotage instinct of finance operating as business. Whereas Veblen originally understood sabotage as “conscientious withdrawal of efficiency,” today, we argue, the workings of the banking and financial sector augment the very notion of efficiency by relying on concepts, techniques, and institutions of financial innovation that are shrouded in complexity. In this article, we explore conceptual, institutional, and selected policy dimensions of this phenomenon.     

Consumer Rights: An Assessment of Justice

For the last 50 years the idea of consumer rights has formed an essential element in the formulation of policy to guide the workings of the marketplace. The extent and coverage of these rights has evolved and changed over time, yet there has been no comprehensive analysis as to the purpose and scope of consumer rights. In moral and ethical philosophy, rights are integrally linked to the notion of justice. By reassessing consumer rights through a justice-based framework, a number of key issues emerge regarding the way in which markets enable justice for consumers. The consumer rights which underpin the United Nations consumer protection guidelines address all forms of justice to some degree, but the predominant focus is on procedural justice. Our conclusions question whether this is sufficient and also whether there is a case to develop the notion of consumer ‘duties’ that complement the idea of rights.     

Cartel success and institutions. The Finnish Cotton Cartel, 1903–1939

This article uses institutional theory to interpret collusive behaviour in the pre-World War II cotton cartel in Finland. The findings do not support the optimistic view of the institutionalists about the efficiency of economic institutions in boosting cooperation. Only one (the conciliation mechanism) of the four institutions identified in the cotton cartel could check opportunism to a certain degree, although it too lacked effective enforcement characteristics. This article argues that, in cartels, the motivation to follow institutions is fundamentally different from other environments, particularly trade. Besides institutions, organisational solutions, such as a sales agency that removes individual firms' discretion over pricing decisions, are needed to enhance cartel stability.     

Entrenchment of New Governance in Consumer Policy Formulation: A Platform for European Consumer Citizenship Practice?

Consumer typologies reveal categories of the consumer that stretch from the vulnerable to the empowered notion of the consumer citizen. At the empowered end of this spectrum, consumers in Europe have a developing, normative, organisational structure that provides channels for the consumer voice to influence consumer policy at the European level. This is an organisational structure with mechanisms for developing an effective consumer empowerment and enforcement framework across all EU Member States. It is a framework that forms a coherent whole with the European-level consumer institutions. This paper examines the integrated nature of these institutions and their role in influencing the development of consumer policy through a multi-level platform of new governance. It discusses the normative processes that, through empowerment and engagement, are encouraging a consumer citizenship practice to exploit these channels of communication in order to influence policy development.     

Do career satisfaction and support mediate the effects of justice on organizational citizenship behaviour and counterproductive work behaviour?

Following Lavelle, Rupp, and Brockner's ( 2007 ) target similarity framework, we propose that perceptions of support and career satisfaction mediate the influence of justice perceptions on citizenship and counterproductive performance. Structural equation modelling results from 356 employees supporting partial mediation. Collectively, the model explained 19% of the variance in perceptions of organizational support, 44% in perceived supervisor support, 33% in career satisfaction, 35% in citizenship performance directed toward the supervisor, 42% in citizenship performance directed toward the organization, 49% in job/task conscientiousness citizenship performance, 9% in counterproductive performance toward the supervisor, and 20% of the variance in counterproductive performance directed toward the organization. We argue that distributive, procedural, informational, and interpersonal dimensions of organizational justice follow different pathways and variously influence organizational outcomes. We discuss the implications of the results for the target similarity framework and more generally for human resources management. Copyright © 2015 ASAC. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Conflicting stories of virtue in UK healthcare: bringing together organisational studies and ethics

In recent years, organisational theorists have been interested in the tensions faced by healthcare organisations. In this paper, these tensions are examined using the virtue approach to ethics of Alasdair MacIntyre. It is argued that although MacIntyre's framework shares many concerns with organisational studies, it supplements the analysis with a focus on moral content and evaluation. By providing moral evaluation of the stories told in organisations, an ethical analysis compels action on a basis that organisational studies does not. Nevertheless, it is the analysis of stories in organisation studies that provides the tools for taking action. The analysis presented here provides an example of how ethics and organisational studies can be brought together to provide a stronger analysis of organisational phenomena. Indeed, it provides support for Nielsen's position that organisational theory and ethics are co-dependent and suggests that greater attention should be paid to ethical concepts in the study of organisational phenomena.     

Knowledge transfer among the small businesses of a Brazilian cluster

This study verifies how knowledge is transferred among small businesses operating in industrial clusters, how this competitive resource circulates and is accessed within the cluster. Interfirm cooperation, industrial support institutions, workforce mobility and social ties, concepts highlighted in the literature as dimensions of the knowledge transfer process, were used to structure the survey instrument, which was applied in the cluster that leads Brazilian furniture exports. Questionnaire responses were received from 198 firms and submitted to factor analysis. Conclusions and theoretical contributions of the study are that: (i) the knowledge transfer process is multi-dimensional; (ii) knowledge transfer can occur in clusters even in the absence of interfirm cooperation; (iii) the dimensions of the process can be combined in various ways to facilitate knowledge transfer; (iv) this combination may differ from cluster to cluster; and (v) producers are more likely than suppliers to perceive and access knowledge available in the cluster.     

An exploration of inter-functional integration in the new service development process

This article explores the nature of inter-functional integration in the new service development process through a detailed study of two new internal ICT services developed at one of Europe's largest service providers: Consignia, the UK postal service. The study develops a conceptual framework, incorporating dimensions of process, context and outcomes, to inform the analysis. The empirical findings reveal that the level and timing of appropriate functional stakeholders, influence of relationships with external stakeholders, formalisation and ownership of authority, shared understanding of goals and the influence of shifting organisational contexts act as critical factors underlying the nature of inter-functional activities and outcomes. Managerial implications and future research directions are drawn.     

Towards an Understanding of Social Responsibility Within the Church of England

This research explores the interplay of individual, organisational and institutional variables that produce the current pattern of social responsibility practices within a specific religious organisation, namely the Church of England. By combining elements primarily of neo-institutional theory with Bourdieu’s theory of practice, we construct a theoretical framework to examine the extent to which social responsibility activity is modified or informed by a distinctive faith perspective. Given that neo-institutional theory predicts a convergence of structures and practices between different organisations operating in the same institutional sector, this research draws on a single case study focusing on social responsibility activity in six different Church of England dioceses and shows that the opposite is actually the case: there is evidence of a significant degree of divergence in terms of organisational practice within the same institutional structure. Reasons for that were found to be the impact of human agency and loose institutional structures. This paper thus contributes to the understanding of social responsibility in religious organisations by exploring the dynamics between institutional pressures, organisational context and individual agents operating in the field of faith-based social responsibility. It thereby also contributes to neo-institutional theory.     

Organisational Structure and Internal Control in the UK Insurance Industry

A significant body of literature supports the superiority of the multidivisional organisational structure for the management of a diversified enterprise. However recent research has cast doubt on the widespread existence of optimally organised multidivisional firms and has suggested that, in practice, what is observed is a hybrid type of administrative structure. This paper focuses on the extent and nature of divisionalisation within UK insurance companies. Such companies are of particular interest for two reasons. First, changes in organisational structure have been recent and, second, the companies tend to operate in related areas of business. The results herein support the notion that a hybrid structure is more prevalent since the evidence presented suggests that where divisionalisation exists it is sub-optimal.     

Internal labour markets as a strategic tool: A comparative study of UK and Chinese hotels

This paper reports how internal labour markets (ILMs), operated by a multinational hotel chain in the UK and China, impact on a range of organisational outcomes. The study examines the effects of three main dimensions of ILMs: job security, training, and opportunities for advancement on the key organisational outcomes of job satisfaction, organisational commitment, and intention to leave, together with employee attitudes to work environment, co-workers, supervisor, service to guests, leadership, communication, and organisational goal achievement. The paper concludes that the operation of an ILM, underpinned by effective human resource management policies and actions, is associated with high levels of work commitment and job satisfaction together with reduced intention to leave. However, the importance of individual ILM variables differs between hotels in the UK and China.     

The organisational structure of Spanish New Settlements in the eighteenth century

This paper analyses the organisational design of New Settlements (NS) of Sierra Morena, a Spanish farming and colonist project of the eighteenth century. Using archival data, historical facts during the period 1767–1772 are identified, collected and examined to understand how these settlements were structured. The reconstructions of their practices demonstrated that, in the eighteenth century, organisations already had the disciplinary techniques and dimensions of Weber's rational-legal bureaucracy. In fact, we observed the evolution of NS through three different organisational structures (configurations) to become more effective – rational – over time. This comprehensive analysis also provides evidence of how the colonies' growth (and their organisational complexity) implied changes to the co-ordination mechanisms used.     

The influence of the training environment on trainee motivation and perceived training quality

To examine the relationships between the training environment and employee responses to training provided by their organisations, 105 managers employed by different 12 Australian organisations completed measures of the personal aspects of organisational commitment, job involvement, self esteem, and personal control, as well as of the organisational aspects of social support from work, social support outside work, training incentives, training resources, and training needs. The trainees also indicated how motivated they were for the training, and how they judged the quality of the training provided by their organisations—the two outcomes of the study. Eight of the 10 relationships between the organisational aspects and outcomes were significant, but only three of the eight relationships between the personal aspects and outcomes. It is argued that the results suggest that it is how organisations go about managing training, especially how many resources they provide, what training incentives they make available, and how much the training is needed that counts, rather than the personal attributes of the trainees.     

The Impact of Formal and Informal Distance on Gender Equality Approaches: The Case of a British MNC in Saudi Arabia

This study explores the forces that promote and hinder gender equality efforts of a multinational corporation (MNC) operating in the Middle East. Specifically, we draw from a case study to document the formal and informal pressures exerted on a British MNC operating in Saudi Arabia to better understand the multiple forces that influence gender equality approaches in the host country. Our findings suggest that while formal institutions such as the legal requirements and localization policies support gender equality, informal forces that are rooted in the cultural norms and traditions are formidable in hindering such efforts and in reinforcing the status quo. The insights generated from our study have the potential to inform public policy makers and organizational decision makers to locate the right policy tool to promote gender equality. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

QUALITY,OPERATIONAL LOGISTICS STRATEGY,AND REPURCHASE INTENTIONS: A PROFILE DEVIATION ANALYSIS

Emerging thoughts on quality suggest that three principal sources of customer‐based value creation exist for firms operating in the online marketplace. These include a focus on delivering (1) service quality, (2) product quality, and (3) eBusiness quality. Drawing on strategic choice theory coupled with configuration theory, we conducted a profile deviation analysis among customers of online grocery firms using the “ideal” quality profile for four operational logistics strategies as the benchmark (semi extended strategy, fully extended strategy, de‐coupled strategy, and centralized extended strategy). The findings suggest that service, product, and eBusiness quality‐based fit with operational logistics strategy type are associated with customers' behavioral (repurchase) intentions. This lends support to the notion that capitalizing on the appropriately weighted quality‐focus represents a strategic vehicle to create superior outcomes in online businesses. The makeup of these ideal quality profiles that represent the strongest repurchase intentions of customers is also provided.     

An Exploratory Cross-Cultural Analysis of Marketing Ethics: The Case of Turkish,Thai, and American Businesspeople

Although a number of studies have shown that corporate social responsibility (CSR) activities often lead to greater organisational performance in western developed economies, researchers are yet to examine the strategic value of CSR in emerging economies. Using survey data from 280 firms operating in Dubai, this study examines the link between CSR activities and organisational performance. The results show that CSR has a positive relationship with all three measures of organisational performance: financial performance, employee commitment, and corporate reputation. These results reinforce the accumulating body of empirical support for the positive impact of CSR on performance and challenge the dominant assumption that, given the weak institutional framework in emerging economies, CSR activities drain resources and compromise firms’ competitiveness.