How can we make this work? Understanding and responding to working parents of children with autism

As autism spectrum disorder (ASD) escalates in prevalence, organizations are likely to encounter employees whose lives are touched and reframed by this intense, pervasive, and lifelong condition. Families are dramatically affected as emotional and financial challenges are heightened. Employees want and need to remain productive members of their organizations, but some adjustments are necessary. However, little is known regarding the needs and expectations of employees whose children have been diagnosed with ASD. Even less is known about how organizations, managers, and co-workers can respond to provide sensitivity, maintain overall team equity, and ensure high-quality performance. This article reports the results of an in-depth study of working parents of children with ASD as they openly and candidly share perspectives on workplace needs and accommodations. Employees—adamant that performance expectations should not be mitigated—discussed the support and the primary accommodation they sought: flexibility. Guides for both managers and co-workers are offered herein.     

Reasonable accommodation under the ADA: What's an employer to do?

As many observers expected when the Americans with Disabilities Act became law, employers have faced numerous court cases regarding the matter of appropriate accommodations for disabled workers under the law. The difficulty is that no consensus has emerged on the various interpretations of that law. Three particular areas of concern and disagreement have emerged, namely, how the accommodation request is made, how to handle reassignments, and whether to permit telecommuting as a substitute to working on premises. Several federal circuit courts have determined that the employer must respond to an employee's request in virtually any form, while others have stated that the employee must be specific in requesting an accommodation for disability. In two circuits, the employee must show some evidence of disability. The case law governing reassignment also varies by circuit, but in general a disabled employee who is being transferred would be given priority over prospective hires for the same position. The work of existing employees is not to be increased as a consequence of the ADA. Finally, telecommuting has thus far not found favor in most courts, but an employer who permits telecommuting for some employees will find it difficult to claim hardship for a worker who seeks to telecommute under the ADA's provisions. The courts have been most supportive of employers who have made a specific, fact-based determination regarding an employee's request for accommodation. By focusing directly on the situation at hand, an employer can document the particulars of an ADA request, regardless of whether the employee is satisfied by the employer's determination.     

“Buy National” and protectionism in the great recession — Can it work?

Against the backdrop of the considerable increase in protectionist measures that could be observed during the recent fi nancial crisis, this article investigates the following questions: Are “Buy National” clauses a suitable instrument to internalise the externality that arises because the stimulating effect of “general”, non-discriminatory government spending is distributed among many countries, while the cost of the stimulus is borne by only one country? Are shortterm trade policies, like import tariffs, export subsidies and “Buy National” policies, suitable policies to mitigate an economic downturn?     

Understanding International Volunteering: Who Is Most Likely to Participate?

International volunteers are playing an increasingly important role in meeting diverse challenges and improving lives of many across the world, and more opportunities for international volunteering are available across the nonprofit, government, and corporate sectors than ever. Nevertheless, little is known about international volunteering and the individuals who participate in this activity. This study examines the utility of the existing volunteering literature by testing how the traditional determinants of volunteering predict participation in international volunteering. The findings show that individuals who have attained post-secondary education, are from a high-income household, or are self-employed are most likely to volunteer internationally. The results also indicate that some of the known predictors of volunteering, such as age, race and gender, do not satisfactorily explain participation in international volunteering. This study concludes by providing suggestions for recruitment strategies, calling for further research on international volunteering.     

A shift in perspective? The role of emotional branding in shaping born globals’ performance

Branding strategies have been at the core of marketing and strategy literatures for decades. Global brands are known for their positive influence in increasing customer trust and confidence, thus reducing the risks associated with foreign operations from the firms’ standpoint. These positive effects of global brands have led to research exploring brand image while emphasizing its relevance in positioning, gaining competitive advantage, and facilitating firms’ international business. Born-global firms (BGs) can mostly benefit from harnessing brand image, mainly by reducing market-related uncertainties while establishing a brand-based reputation and thus enhance their international expansion. However, very few attempts have been made to investigate the role of branding in advancing BG performance. Through a survey-based study including 147 Israeli BGs, complemented by 11 in-depth interviews with BG managers, we investigated the distinct role of functional and emotional brand-image aspects. The findings demonstrate that emotional branding bears a significant impact on BG performance. This impact reaches beyond the influence of innovativeness and marketing intelligence on BG performance. Surprisingly, while functional branding was enhanced by firms’ innovativeness, it showed no significant impact on international performance.     

Using customer motivations to reduce peak demand: does it work?

This study considers whether consumers' motives to avoid waiting can be used to benefit both themselves and the services they attend. Specifically, two related aspects are explored: informing customers about alternative service delivery options that will allow them to avoid physically standing in line, and telling them at which times and days the service is usually busier (hoping they will avoid the more congested periods). The main issue is whether customers will alter their behaviour to avoid waiting –even in the absence of other incentives. Examples from four attempts to modify customer behaviour at two bank branches are analysed. Some of these attempts were quite successful in accomplishing their intended purpose and others were not. Results suggest that peak demand can be reduced and overall demand can be levelled using customer motivations, although the effectiveness of implementation depends on a number of factors. These factors include, among others, the type of clientele and the flexibility of the capacity.     

Social media? Get serious! Understanding the functional building blocks of social media

Traditionally, consumers used the Internet to simply expend content: they read it, they watched it, and they used it to buy products and services. Increasingly, however, consumers are utilizing platforms—such as content sharing sites, blogs, social networking, and wikis—to create, modify, share, and discuss Internet content. This represents the social media phenomenon, which can now significantly impact a firm's reputation, sales, and even survival. Yet, many executives eschew or ignore this form of media because they don’t understand what it is, the various forms it can take, and how to engage with it and learn. In response, we present a framework that defines social media by using seven functional building blocks: identity, conversations, sharing, presence, relationships, reputation, and groups. As different social media activities are defined by the extent to which they focus on some or all of these blocks, we explain the implications that each block can have for how firms should engage with social media. To conclude, we present a number of recommendations regarding how firms should develop strategies for monitoring, understanding, and responding to different social media activities.     

What happened to civility? Understanding rude behavior through the lens of organizational justice

The ability to have polite conversation between individuals who disagree with one another seems to be a rare quality today. Organizational justice theory may help explain why rude behavior seems so prevalent and whether the rudeness in politics and society creates a polarized environment that could impact the workplace. Three recent legal decisions concerning healthcare, same-sex marriage, and the Michael Brown case, along with three workplace examples of deliberate rudeness, are examined to analyze the polarization of opposing viewpoints and the incivility that resulted from these situations. When a decision is viewed as a win-lose situation and people perceive the decision process as unfair, losers in the decision may feel threatened and react by engaging in deviant behavior that is uncivil. Winners may also engage in behavior that is uncivil and intolerant of opposing viewpoints. The result is a cycle of incivility that may include character assassination, protests, and a diminished willingness to compromise. Managers should be cognizant of the dangers of rude behavior and create a workplace environment that counters productivity interference caused by incivility and inability to compromise. I suggest specific steps to help stop workplace incivility before it starts.     

How does the theory of consumption values contribute to place identity and sustainable consumption?

The importance of consumers’ role in sustainable consumption is reflected in the vision of the Sustainable Development Education Panel: To educate consumers to make informed consumption decisions, to take responsibility for their actions and to realize the impact of consumption decisions on future generations. However, educating and informing consumers alone is unlikely to change deeply entrenched unsustainable consumption behaviour. A multi‐faceted approach is required – enforcing sustainable development initiatives through legislation, promoting corporate social responsibility programs on the part of business, and (most importantly), supporting communities that engage in sustainable consumption. This study examines the proposition that individuals who identify with their community (i.e. the residential suburb or a locality where identity is understood geographically) are more likely to engage in sustainable consumption. Specifically, it examines how consumption value (i.e. the perceived value of living in a particular residential suburb) contributes to place identity and to environmental attitudes and sustainable consumption behaviour. Structural equation modelling is used to verify the conceptual model using data from a telephone survey of 561 residents from two inner city suburbs in Auckland, New Zealand. The results support the proposition that environmental attitude and sustainable consumption behaviour is enhanced by consumption values through place identity. Residents who enjoy living in their community, value a clean and healthy environment and believe their suburbs are unique tend to develop a stronger identity with their residential suburb, and are more positive towards sustainable consumption. The results have important implications for social marketers, property marketers and city councils who strive to encourage sustainable consumption among its citizens.     

What is business ethics? A reply to peter drucker

In his What is Business Ethics? Peter Drucker accuses business ethics of singling out business unfairly for special ethical treatment, of subordinating ethical to political concerns, and of being, not ethics at all, but ethical chic. We contend that Drucker's denunciation of business ethics rests upon a fundamental misunderstanding of the field. This article is a response to his charges and an effort to clarify the nature, scope and purpose of business ethics.     

International work experience: Is it really accelerating the way to the management board of MNCs?

International work experience is often claimed to be a prerequisite for managers in an MNC. This paper investigates how international work experience affects those managers who reach upper echelons. Drawing on both human capital theory and elite theory, we argue that stays abroad not only have beneficial, but also adverse effects on managers’ ascent to the top. By analysing the careers of 212 management board members from Germany, we find that once a certain threshold of international work experience is exceeded, being away from home impedes managers’ long-term career advancement. However, it is not only longer stays abroad that show a negative time effect; we are also able to reveal that being in countries with high geographic and cultural distance to the home country significantly decelerates managers’ speed of being appointed to the management board. Our findings demonstrate that conflicting interests exist between MNCs and high potentials who consider an international career. We stress that these conflicts call for being solved in managerial practice.     

What if something unexpected happens to my brand? Spillover effects from positive and negative events in a co‐branding partnership

Brands sometimes enter into co‐branding agreements and major events can occur to one of the brands which can have either negative or positive consequences for the brands involved in the partnership. The current study investigates as yet unanswered research questions regarding whether and how positive and negative events happening to one brand in a co‐branding partnership affect the brand equities of the other brands in the partnership. The authors provide and test a new integrated attribution‐diagnosticity framework to explain the process that underlies the magnitude of these spillover effects. Findings show that while positive and negative event‐related spillover effects occur between the co‐brand and both parent brands, they were surprisingly absent between the parent brands. Further, the (a)symmetry of parent brand equity before the event influences the magnitude of event‐related spillover the parent brands receive from the co‐brand. Theoretical and practical implications of these findings are discussed.     

In the mood to buy? Understanding the interplay of mood regulation and congruence in an international context

Literature reports different effects of mood on measures of consumer behavior. Either mood congruence or mood regulation theories serve to explain these effects, though the latter theory is perhaps more sophisticated. This research goes a step further: in a sequence of four studies, the authors consider different products (with and without mood-lifting capabilities) and consumers?? beliefs in the transience of their mood to illuminate the interplay between the two theoretical approaches. Culture (individualism vs. collectivism) emerges as an important driver of mood transience. Mood transience drives the likelihood of mood regulation through the consumption of products with mood-lifting capabilities. Willingness to pay serves as the dependent variable, in contrast with mood research that has focused almost entirely on nonmonetary forms of consumer behavior. Greater willingness to pay variance in bad moods, compared with good moods, offers evidence of the opposing effects of mood congruence and regulation.     

Who Buys Overpackaged Grocery Products and Why? Understanding Consumers’ Reactions to Overpackaging in the Food Sector

While most studies dealing with waste reduction at the consumer level focus on recycling, this paper rather concentrates on precycling strategies and purchasing behaviors in order to understand how to promote waste reduction at the source. More specifically, the purpose of this work is to grasp consumers’ perceptions of overpackaging and understand the mechanisms underlying their choice of overpackaged versus non-overpackaged food products. Based on the different themes that emerged from a qualitative study (study 1, n = 11), a quantitative research was conducted among French interviewees (study 2, n = 327) in order to identify relevant groups of consumers. Five profiles emerged from the cluster analysis: the supporters, the self-sacrificing, the detractors, the indifferent, and the self-centered. Finally, an experiment was conducted (study 3, n = 808) that highlights the influence of range positioning and salience of non-overpackaging on consumer choice. Implications for public policy makers and companies are discussed.     

Business corruption in Ukraine: A way to get things done?

Corruption at the firm level is a very complex issue better understood within its cultural, national, and historical contexts. Using Ukrainian firms as an example via two data sets from 2013 (n = 625) and 2015 (n = 120), we describe two types of corruption: (1) the abuse of power by individuals or groups for private gain, and (2) abuse of power by CEOs and general managers not for their own private gain, but for the gain of other individuals or groups. The latter abuse of power—either within or beyond the existing rules, laws, and norms—is often the only way to get things done in Ukraine. On the other hand, corruption might also be used to hinder business activities. This ambivalent function is the main challenge in mitigating corruption.     

What Really Leads to Partner Relationship Management? A Review of Literature

This research article aims at providing a comprehensive overview of the Partner Relationship Management (PRM) domain through an exhaustive literature survey. Current scenario, definitions/perspectives, breakdown of studies by nation, PRM as a software application, the need for PRM, the process of developing partner relationships, and major models, along with major defining constructs and other major insights, have been summarized in the area of partner relationship management using content analysis. The focus is on bridging the gap in the existing academic literature by providing a comprehensive compilation of partner relationship management literature inclusive of B2B and B2C scenarios for future researchers. A list of select premier academic databases has been used to identify the relevant research papers in the domain. This article will help in reducing the time and efforts of researchers by quickly providing a comprehensive view of the PRM literature.     

Rewards that undermine customer loyalty? A motivational approach to loyalty programs

Guided by the framework of self‐determination theory (SDT), this study examined the effects of external rewards on undermining customers’ intrinsic motivation to engage in a retail loyalty program. Two experiments revealed that participants who received a salient, controlling reward (i.e., a promise of reward with an explicit requirement and deadline, without options of choice) reported lower intrinsic motivation to use the loyalty program than participants who received a nonsalient, autonomy‐supportive reward (i.e., a promise of reward with a less explicit requirement and no deadline, with options of choice). However, the undermined intrinsic motivation of those who received the salient, controlling reward was enhanced when they were given verbal feedback acknowledging their potential negative feelings associated with using the loyalty program. These findings provide important practical implications for designing a more effective loyalty program.     

A woman's place is in the… startup! Crowdfunder judgments,implicit bias,and the stereotype content model

We examine investor stereotypes and implicit bias in crowdfunding decisions. Prior research in formal venture capital settings demonstrates that investors tend to have a funding bias against women. However, in crowdfunding – wherein a ‘crowd’ of amateur investors make relatively small investments in new companies – our empirical observations reveal a funding advantage for women. We explain the causal mechanism underlying this counterintuitive finding by drawing upon stereotype content theory and testing a dual path moderated-mediation model. Based on archival data and a follow-up experiment, our findings suggest common gender biases held by amateur investors function to increase female stereotype perceptions in the form of trustworthiness judgments, which subsequently increases investors' willingness to invest in early-stage women-led ventures. We discuss our results with specific attention to how our findings extend the entrepreneurship funding literature as well as the gender dynamics literature in entrepreneurship and organization research more broadly.     

Does Student Loan Debt Contribute to Racial Wealth Gaps? A Decomposition Analysis

There is evidence of a large and growing student debt burden over the last decade. Previous research has shown that the presence of student debt jeopardized the short‐term financial wealth of U.S. households during the Great Recession. We examine the effects of student loan use on the wealth of U.S. households post‐recession, using recent data from the 2013 and 2016 Survey of Consumer Finances. We find that mean 2016 wealth for households with no outstanding student debt is more than four times higher than households with student debt. We find that living in a household at the 15th, 30th, 50th, 70th, and 85th percentile of the wealth distribution with student debt is associated with an 80%, 49%, 37%, 35%, and 36% wealth loss compared with a similar household with no student debt. Our decomposition results suggest that student loan use can explain between 3% and 7% of the Black‐White wealth gap across the wealth distribution but is insignificant in explaining the Hispanic‐White wealth gap.