Dynamism and realignment in the HR architecture: Online labor platform ecosystems and the key role of contractors

Given the widespread contribution of independent contractors to organizational innovation and competitive advantage, it is timely to reassess assumptions about the HRM practices appropriate to their management and the rationale for organizations to work with them. In the original and highly influential HR architecture model of Lepak and Snell (1999), contractor status is viewed as an outcome of the low value and/or low uniqueness of human capital resulting in the proposition to externalize and manage them using either none or minimal compliance-based HRM practices. Developments in digital technologies and algorithmic management epitomized by online labor platforms prompt us to reconsider these assumptions and to challenge the proposed links between value/uniqueness of human capital, employment mode and HRM practices that are assumed by the HR architecture model. Using insights from online labor platforms, we argue that the significant benefits to firms of working with contractors, coupled with the possibilities offered by algorithmic management to efficiently monitor and regulate their behavior, provide a compelling reason for organizations to choose external employment modes even when workers are key to value creation. We challenge the alignment and stability of the relationships proposed by the HR architecture model, and offer propositions to extend the model by reconsidering the rationale for, and nature of, HRM practices associated with contractors. This reassessment is both timely and relevant given the growing prominence of business models where externalizing workers is central alongside the development of new forms of algorithmic human resource management to control them.     

Two sides of the same personality coin: An opportunity to refocus (un)ethical analysis

Prior ethics studies highlight the importance of understanding positive or negative leader personality characteristics to improve organizational outcomes. However, few studies combine both positive and negative leader personality characteristics, to unpack and guide ethics theorizations. This lack of methodological balance restricts how we perceive leader ethics, our understandings of organizational experiences, and therefore, our awareness of governance approaches. This study challenges the dominant ethics scholarly orthodoxy—which focuses on positive or negative leader characteristics—by combining self-determination theory and the Dark Triad perspective, to explore the plurality of ethical dimensions within organizational leadership. A case example is provided to highlight the need for this methodological awareness and four avenues of engagement are discussed to improve future organizational governance and ethics scholarship.     

The role of family firm specific resources in innovation: an integrative literature review and framework

Management Review Quarterly - Family firms are the prevalent form of entrepreneurial organizations worldwide. While even long-lasting and successful family firms are said to invest less in...     

But it came from a food pantry: Product stigma and quality perceptions of food pantry offerings

Among the millions of food insecure people in high income countries, only a modest fraction uses food pantries. Stigma is commonly cited as a barrier to use and may arise due to the perceived low product quality of pantry offerings. This study tests the hypothesis that “product stigma” is present among prospective pantry clients. In an online experimental survey of low-income respondents, we ask participants to evaluate food items under four different treatments. In a two-by-two randomized design, in one dimension they are told the food is from a grocery store or from a food pantry, and in the other dimension they are or are not provided with photos of the food items, in some cases indicating a popular brand. The study finds that respondents exhibit a negative perception of the quality of food from a pantry, but that perception is largely offset when they are shown an informative visual depiction of that food. The effect of brand information is explored in a second online experimental survey and found to be an important component of consumer perception, partly mitigating the product stigma effect of food pantry offerings, but less so than a photo does. Results suggest that food banks and food pantries may combat product stigma through marketing that uses photos, brand names, or both to depict the quality of the products they offer. Such interventions may encourage current users to visit more frequently and needy non-users to visit at all.     

The shock of COVID-19 and the shock of rapid vaccine development on the value of senior life settlement contracts

In this paper, we develop a model that can capture how COVID-19 and the subsequent rapid vaccine development against COVID-19 impacts the value of pools of senior life settlements. The pandemic unexpectedly boosted the mortality rates of senior citizens who had prior diagnoses of certain health conditions. Our model accounts for the existence and concentration of these COVID-19 comorbidities in portfolios of senior life settlements. It is the concentration of assets linked to the mortality rates of a group who is at elevated risk to COVID-19 and who is also the primary beneficiaries of the COVID-19 vaccine that we examine. We illustrate how the shock of the pandemic increases the value of senior life settlements and how the accelerated development and distribution of COVID-19 vaccines moderated this increase. Our model is general enough to simulate the impact on other financial contracts that are linked to individual mortality rates. These would include life insurance contracts, annuities, and health insurance policies.     

When Less is More: Consumers Prefer Brands that Donate More in Relative versus Absolute Terms

Marketing Letters - When trying to make a good impression on consumers through charitable giving, is it better for brands to maximize the overall dollars they donate or how much they give in...     

Financial Disclosure Management by Charitable Organisations: A Conceptual and Operational Framework

We present a conceptual and operational framework for analysing financial disclosure management by charitable organisations. We paint an overall picture of the issue and apply various theories to explain this management practice. The framework lists the many motivations and contextual factors that impel managers of charitable organisations to manage financial information and explains how they weight and prioritise items in light of considerations such as incentive bonuses, social performance, resource dependence and monitoring mechanisms. The framework also sums up the strategies and techniques that undergird financial disclosure management and describes the monitoring mechanisms that mitigate this opportunistic practice and its consequences. The paper concludes by presenting several research avenues.