Hybridization: Understanding the microdynamics of a postacquisition integration process

There is no shortage of theoretical or empirical research on mergers and acquisitions (M&A). Knowledge on the subject has grown substantially in recent decades. However, the integration of firms involved in M&A remains a challenging and often unsuccessful process. In addition, there is a scarcity of research on temporal dynamics within integration projects. This article reports on the postacquisition integration of a business school into a university using the concept of organizational hybridization as a theoretical lens. The aim was to identify the microdynamics that occurred during integration. We conducted an inductive case study, interviewing professionals involved in the integration process, analyzing a wide range of documents, and conducting participant observation over 6 years. Field research revealed that different organizational components underwent distinct hybridization processes that were characterized by different degrees of conflict. This study contributes to the understanding of the microdynamics that occur in postmerger or postacquisition integration processes, focusing on the complex adjustments inherent in these developments.     

The dynamic impact of intellectual capital on firm value: evidence from China

We examine the dynamic relationship between intellectual capital (measured by human capital and organizational capital) and firm value of Chinese listed firms. We do causality identification using system GMM and IV estimation, and find no significant relation between human capital and firm value, but organizational capital positively affects firm value with a lag. Our findings are robust to firms with different property rights, of different sizes, or in different industries, with the only exception of capital-intensive firms, in which human capital has a significant influence on firm value. The results imply that the improvement of organizational system plays a more important role in raising the value of a firm in a typical developing country, like China.     

Determinants of the Performance of Investment Promotion Agencies: Evidence from a Mix of Emerging Economies

This article argues whether and how investment promotion agencies (IPAs) efficiently influence investment promotion in the cases of the following selected variables: resources (experience, total staff, and overseas staff), service functions (combined promotion service of inward investment and trade, and inward and outward investment), and organizational structure (autonomous status of private/upper ministry-level IPAs). The results reveal a positive relationship between IPA’s performance and longer experience, larger staff, larger overseas IPA staff members, autonomous private agency types, and upper ministry-level IPAs. However, an IPA’s performance was negatively associated with the combined promotional service of inward investment and trade, and inward and outward investment. The results suggest that an IPA’s performance can be enhanced by adjusting the service functions and restructuring the governance and structure in addition to improving the IPA’s resources and the country’s investment climate.     

Lobbying as a potent political marketing tool for firm performance: A closer look

This study endeavors to enhance political marketing literature about the impact of lobbying on firm performance. Our sample is composed of 140 U.S. firms and spans the years 2007–2014 to encompass the 2007–2009 recession and the subsequent recovery period. Our findings indicate that lobbying expenses positively contribute to firm performance. Also, government contracts in both ways, dollar amount and number of government contracts, act as mediators between lobbying expenses and firm performance. In addition, organizational slack moderates the relationship between lobbying expenses and government contracts. The managerial implications suggest that lobbying expenses can be leveraged as a potent tool for firm performance. Firms with larger lobbying efforts acquired both, higher dollar amounts and a greater number of government contracts.     

Employee creativity trumps supervisor-subordinate guanxi: Predicting prequitting behaviors in China's hotel industry

This study aims to explore the moderating roles of supervisor-subordinate guanxi and employee creativity in the perceived organizational support-organizational commitment-turnover intention link in the Chinese hotel organizations. Using a matched sample of 85 supervisors and 249 subordinates from 13 hotels in Shenzhen, China, we found that both supervisor-subordinate guanxi and employee creativity altered the relationships of perceived organizational support, affective commitment and employee prequitting behaviors. A significant conditional direct effect of perceived organizational support on prequitting behaviors was moderated by low supervisor-subordinate guanxi. Furthermore, a significant conditional indirect relationship between perceived organizational support and prequitting behaviors was found at high employee creativity. Moreover, interactive effect of affective commitment and employee creativity exerted a significant negative effect on prequitting behaviors. Findings shed light on the changing traditional values in modern management practices and the conditions under which organizations can improve employee retention. Theoretical and practical implications for talent management are discussed.     

Connecting strategic orientation,innovation strategy,and corporate sustainability: A model for sustainable development through stakeholder engagement

This paper aims to enhance our understanding of the relationship between organizations' strategic orientation (i.e., instrumental, equidistant, and stewardship) and their innovational strategy (i.e., organizational ambidexterity and open innovation), and this relationship's influence on their sustainability performance. We expected organizations' strategic orientation to influence their innovational strategy and exhibit better corporate sustainability. We focused on 12 different multinational organizations in the Eurozone and found that inbound open innovation acts as a driver for corporate sustainability while simultaneously positively enabling organizations to pursue both financial and social initiatives. After suggesting open innovation as a new corporate sustainability antecedent, we only found empirical evidence of inbound open innovation. However, we would suggest that if organizations incorporated outbound open innovation in their strategy, they could likely improve their corporate sustainability. Also, we found that achieving an equidistant or stewardship orientation paves the way for sustainability to become an integral part of an organization's innovational culture and actualizes the organization's strategic behavior. Our findings further contribute to a deeper understanding of organizations' characteristics as their sustainability commitment grows and as they move from an instrumental to a stewardship orientation and implement an open innovational strategy.     

Representatives of future generations as promoters of sustainability in corporate decision processes

Current protests of the young generation emphasize that interests of future generations should be taken more into account by policy makers and in corporate decision processes. As organizations contribute to enduring environmental and social problems, they are required to promote sustainability in order to preserve options for the well-being of future generations. However, organizational decision makers often take a short-term perspective and neglect investments in intergenerational justice. Previous theoretical work has acknowledged the importance of representing future generations in today's decision-making processes to adopt a long-term perspective in order to promote intergenerational justice. In a laboratory experiment, we show that appointing representatives of future generations at the organizational level can foster investments in intergenerational justice. Although this outcome is more pronounced when aligned with the representatives' individual incentives, it even persists for a representative who is monetarily penalized for advocating the interests of future generations.     

工作满意度、组织承诺与工作绩效之间的实证研究

在现代高强度的工作环境下,企业竞争越来越依靠于人才的配置。为了吸引和留住人才,越来越多的企业更加关注公司员工的感受和需求,在提高员工满意度的同时提高员工的工作绩效,保障企业的高效低成本运作。员工满意度、组织承诺、工作绩效是企业能否长时间留住人才的主要指标,对于企业人力资源管理有着重要意义。从理论上来说,通过实证研究可以具体量化三者之间的关系;从实践上来说,对三者之间影响关系的清楚认识可以为企业人力资源部门提供制度和政策上的指导,从而降低企业的人力成本、提高企业运作的效率。研究的主要内容为通过问卷收集的方法,以各类企业员工为研究对象,探究员工满意度、组织承诺和工作绩效之间的相关关系,建立员工满意度、组织承诺和工作绩效三者之间的量化研究模型。根据研究结果,给企业人力资源管理部门提出具有建设性的建议,以在减少成本的同时促进企业的高效运作,使企业更具凝聚力。     

The role of relationship quality in raising organizational change acceptance: The case of the Greek hotel industry

This study examines whether the quality of an employee's relationships, within the context of the hotel industry, has an influence on their behavioral intention towards organizational change. The researchers suggest that the quality of relationships is an important element of an individual's social capital and can be evaluated using five key dimensions: the extent to which relationships are tangible, responsive and reliable, as well as the extent to which they offer empathy and assurance. Furthermore, this research examines whether organizational commitment and job satisfaction have an effect on the association between relationship quality and an individual's behavioral intention towards organizational change. The data collected from a sample of 100 hotel employees in Thessaloniki, Greece, show that relationship quality has a positive association with an individual's behavioral intention towards change. Additional results highlight the roles of job satisfaction and organizational commitment as mediating variables. Managerial implications relevant to the findings and pathways for further research are also discussed.     

When profession trumps potential: The moderating role of professional identification in employees’ reactions to talent management

Abstract

This study aimed to investigate the role that a professionalized context plays in shaping employee reactions to talent management decisions. We examined the mediating role of felt obligation in the relationship between talent ratings and organizational citizenship behavior. Further, the study tested whether professional identification moderates the relationship between talent ratings and felt obligation towards the organization. Five hundred and ninety-eight teachers that had recently received ratings of their talent status responded to a survey questionnaire. Felt obligation mediated the relationship between talent ratings and organizational citizenship behavior. Furthermore, professional identification moderated the relationship between ratings of potential and felt obligation in such a way that the relationship was strongest for the teachers expressing the lowest professional identification. At high levels of professional identification, the relationship was not significant. These results indicate that conventional talent management might be less effective for increasing favorable attitudes and behaviors among employees in highly professionalized contexts, such as the education sector.