Innovation labs in the public sector: what they are and what they do?

This article is a first comprehensive attempt to globally map and analyse innovation labs (i-labs) in the public sector. The article analyzes theoretical reasons why i-labs are created in the public sector and tests these assumptions in practice. During the empirical study, thirty-five such organizations all over the world were identified. The research is based on a two-step approach: first, a comprehensive survey was carried out followed by an extensive in-depth interview with the managing figures of i-labs; eleven i-labs responded. The article finds support for the assumptions of external complexity, technological challenges, emulation, and legitimization as reasons behind the creation of i-labs.     

INNOVATION,SUCCESS AND FAILURE IN PUBLIC MANAGEMENT RESEARCH: Some methodological reflections

The critics of best practice research argue that it is based on selective reporting, does not ask whether innovations are sustainable and does not compare excellent organizations to those that are failing. This article attempts to defend best practice research from these criticisms as well as provide suggestions for future best practice research. The best applications to innovations awards are shown to be representative samples of innovative activity and sustainable. A number of examples of practitioner studies of best practice and academic or auditor studies of organizational failure are provided. The article concludes with suggestions as to how to integrate studies of success and failure, such as case studies of turnarounds and more quantitative studies intended to explain differences in performance among organizations (for example, league tables). The conclusion reached is that the criticisms of best practice research have become less relevant as best practice research has become methodologically more sophisticated.     

The effect of adverse impact in selection practices on organizational diversity: a field study

Based on a sample of 154 organizations across Canada, we examined the influence of the use of different employee selection methods on workplace minority representation rates. Results indicated that usage of cognitive ability and personality testing significantly influences minority representation after controlling for other diversity management practices. In particular, cognitive ability testing appears to be associated with lower levels of minority group representation in organizations as a whole and in their management ranks; personality testing is associated with higher levels of minority representation in organizations. To advance our understanding of the organizational factors that influence minority group representation and the use of different selection practices, we also examined HR manager perceptions of test bias and the effects of employment equity (EEA) legislation on selection test usage. Results indicated that firms covered under employment equity legislation were less likely to use cognitive ability tests. Interestingly, HR managers reported that personality tests may be more biased against minorities than cognitive ability tests. Implications for research and practice are discussed.     

Age and influence tactics: a life-stage development theory perspective

This article provides a life-stage development theory perspective that is used to examine the relationship between age and the motivation to use influence tactics in work organizations. It examines how life-stage development sometimes encourages, and at other times discourages, the propensity to use influence tactics in a workplace. Thus, this article examines the quantitative, more versus less, use of influence tactics, rather than looking at specific tactics used as one grows older. Also, the work setting is extended to include both traditional organizations and distributed work environments. Research propositions, implications for practice and directions for future work are also discussed.     

The use of personality measures in personnel selection: What does current research support?

With an eye toward research and practice, this article reviews and evaluates main trends that have contributed to the increasing use of personality assessment in personnel selection. Research on the ability of personality to predict job performance is covered, including the Five Factor Model of personality versus narrow personality measures, meta-analyses of personality–criterion relationships, moderator effects, mediator effects, and incremental validity of personality over other selection testing methods. Personality and team performance is also covered. Main trends in contemporary research on the extent to which applicant “faking” of personality tests poses a serious threat are explicated, as are promising approaches for contending with applicant faking such as the “faking warning” and the forced-choice method of personality assessment. Finally, internet-based assessment of personality and computer adaptive personality testing are synopsized.     

Kurt Lewin and the Planned Approach to Change: A Re-appraisal

abstract The work of Kurt Lewin dominated the theory and practice of change management for over 40 years. However, in the past 20 years, Lewin's approach to change, particularly the 3-Step model, has attracted major criticisms. The key ones are that his work: assumed organizations operate in a stable state; was only suitable for small-scale change projects; ignored organizational power and politics; and was top-down and management-driven. This article seeks to re-appraise Lewin's work and challenge the validity of these views. It begins by describing Lewin's background and beliefs, especially his commitment to resolving social conflict. The article then moves on to examine the main elements of his Planned approach to change: Field Theory; Group Dynamics; Action Research; and the 3-Step model. This is followed by a brief summary of the major developments in the field of organizational change since Lewin's death which, in turn, leads to an examination of the main criticisms levelled at Lewin's work. The article concludes by arguing that rather than being outdated or redundant, Lewin's approach is still relevant to the modern world.     

Fundraising as women's work? Examining the profession with a gender lens

Fundraising is a mission-critical area for nonprofit organizations and has emerged as a professional field in the past 50 years. This paper explores the gendered nature of fundraising work and its feminization as a profession over time, while simultaneously documenting the persistence of a gender pay gap and male overrepresentation in senior-level positions in both North America and in the UK. The application of gender theory reveals that fundraising roles and responsibilities rely on key relationship-building and organizational tasks, which are commonly associated with stereotypical women's work and are, thus, valued less in a patriarchal society. As a result, the devaluing of fundraising as mission-critical work, and a career suitable for both women and men, may limit the credibility and power of the nonprofit sector to represent diverse voices and enhance democratic values in society. The article concludes with recommendations for research and practice.     

Move Your Research From The Ivy Tower To The Board Room: A Primer On Action Research For Academics,Consultants, And Business Executives

Today there is a large divide between the vast majority of management research that is conducted and the opportunities for doing work that is useful for both research and practice. Action research offers a great opportunity to bridge the divide, with benefits for all involved. For academic researchers, action research can increase access to important research sites that otherwise would remain off‐limits, while simultaneously increasing the relevance and scope of the research issues addressed. For researchers and practitioners who work in organizations, and for external consultants, action research offers a way to scientifically evaluate important organizational issues using scientific methods. These methods provide a type of external validity and support for actions that otherwise could be dismissed as representing a biased internal agenda. Moreover, internal researchers who engage in action research enable the sharing of insights that can benefit practitioners in other organizations as well as the research community. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Positioning and its strategic relevance

Abstract

Contemporary non-profit strategic management/marketing literature suggests that non-profit organizations, including charities, adopt positioning strategies to differentiate themselves in increasingly competitive operating environments. However, the extant literature lacks adequate theoretical/conceptual frameworks and empirical studies to guide research and inform charity management practice. As part of an on-going study in strategic positioning in British charitable organizations, this article presents the key findings of an exploratory survey into the extent of positioning activities in a sample of general welfare and social care charities within the wider voluntary sector in the UK. The empirical findings reveal that charitable organizations undertake positioning activities extensively in their organizations. However, these activities appear to be more complex than those advocated in contemporary non-profit management/marketing literature. The article highlights five emerging themes that could have major implications for research and practice of strategic positioning in charities in specific, and in voluntary-sector organizations in general.     

Beyond the computer: Changing medium from digital to physical

How can organizations use digital infrastructure to realize physical outcomes? The design and construction of London Heathrow Terminal 5 are analyzed to build new theoretical understanding of visualization and materialization practices in the transition from digital design to physical realization. In the project studied, an integrated software solution is introduced as an infrastructure for delivery. The analyses articulate the work done to maintain this digital infrastructure and also to move designs beyond the closed world of a computer to a physical reality. In changing medium, engineers use heterogeneous trials to interrogate and address the limitations of an integrated digital model. The paper explains why such trials, which involve the reconciliation of digital and physical data through parallel and iterative forms of work, provide a robust practice for realizing goals that have physical outcomes. It argues that this practice is temporally different from, and at times in conflict with, building a comprehensive dataset within the digital medium. The paper concludes by discussing the implications for organizations that use digital infrastructures in seeking to accomplish goals in digital and physical media.     

New investor categories,agility and HRM: The case of Sovereign Wealth Funds

This article reviews the existing literature on SWFs and the firm, focusing particular attention on the implications of the rise of SWFs strategic agility and HRM. This paper outlines three main channels through which sovereign wealth fund (SWF) investment has implications for employees. First, SWFs influence macroeconomic environments, and hence affect labor conditions. Second, institutional conditions in different countries shape the behavior of SWFs around the world, which in turn has implications for HR strategy and practice. Third, SWFs can have a direct effect on the corporate governance and hence HR strategies and employees of organizations in which they invest. We review and discuss these three channels and outline avenues for future research.     

Conceptualizing Family Violence as a Workplace Issue: A Framework for Research and Practice

Until recently, violence in the home has been regarded as a private family matter. Employees who are victims of abuse at home have been expected to put their experience of abuse behind them when they go to work, and employers have not been expected to interfere. Yet, the consequences of disregarding family violence as an organizational issue may be quite severe. This article suggests that family violence can affect the career advancement of individual victims; their performance at work; relationships with co-workers, supervisors, and customers; and, ultimately, organizational effectiveness. Moreover, this article argues that organizations have a social responsibility to contribute to the elimination of family violence by creating a workplace environment in which violence is not tolerated, abused victims are provided with support and assistance, and strategies for equalizing power relationships between men and women are implemented. Implications for future research as well as for organizational policy and practice are explored.     

COGNITIVE TRAILS IN STRATEGIC DECISION-MAKING: LINKING THEORIES OF PERSONALITIES AND COGNITIONS*

This article attempts to reveal Jungian personality types' cognitive biases through a strategic management framework. The four personality types seem to use distinct heuristics to gather data, to generate and to evaluate alternatives. The connected heuristics appear as cognitive trails. We propose that different personality types habitually use certain cognitive trails; consequently, they can fall prey to biases that lurk in these trails. Cognitive trails may include linked input, output, and operational biases. We present the results from a pilot study to illustrate some connections between personality types and biases. We also explore some implications for future research and for management practice.     

Managing change in South Africa: developing people and organizations

The interaction of Western and non-Western management practices is a growing issue in transitional and emerging economies through the world, not least within the multicultural context of South Africa. This is characterized in this article as an antithesis between instrumental and humanistic views of people in organizations, which is fundamental to the way change is being managed. In order to better understand how the management of people and change may be related to this antithesis, the results of an exploratory study, involving focus-group methods with thirty managers, and of a survey of some 200 employees in participating organizations are presented. Indicative results suggest that, despite best efforts from organizations which may represent best management and development practice, issues concerning the value attached to people in these organizations are still not being properly addressed. It may be only through understanding and reconciling this antithesis that change concerning the development of people, in South Africa as well as in other emerging economies, may be successfully achieved.     

Technical professionals,technical managers and the integration of vocational consciousness

This article reports on a study of technical professionals and technical managers in research and development laboratories. The basic premise which derives from John Holland's theory of vocational choice is that stable personality characteristics are associated with the different groups, and that these stable differences create an adaptive differentiation between the two groups. It is further suggested that this system of differentiated persons and occupational roles results in a partial key to the dilemma of autonomy versus control in organizations.     

When Do Employees Cyberloaf? An Interactionist Perspective Examining Personality,Justice, and Empowerment

Cyberloafing—using the Internet for non‐work‐related activities—is a prevalent counterproductive work behavior in the workplace, but researchers have not yet paid sufficient attention to this issue, especially related to the role of personality in cyberloafing. Recognizing such a research gap, and using a trait activation theory framework, this study examines whether conscientiousness and emotional stability negatively relate to cyberloafing. We further investigate how organizational justice perceptions and psychological empowerment moderate the negative relationship between these personality traits and cyberloafing. Based on a sample of 247 employees, we find that those high in conscientiousness cyberloaf less when they perceive greater levels of organizational justice. In addition, highly conscientious individuals cyberloaf less when they have low, rather than high, levels of psychological empowerment. Implications for research and practice as well as future research directions are discussed. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Into the void: A conceptual model and research agenda for the design and use of asynchronous video interviews

Asynchronous video interviews (AVIs) are a form of one-way, technology-mediated, selection interviewing that continue to grow in popularity. An AVI is a broad method that varies substantially in design and execution. Despite being adopted by many organizations, human resources professionals, and hiring managers, research on AVIs is lagging far behind practice. Empirical evidence is scarce and conceptual work to guide research efforts and best practice recommendations is lacking. We propose a framework for examining the role and impact of specific design features of AVIs, building on theories of justice-based applicant reactions, social presence, interview anxiety, and impression management. More precisely, our framework highlights how pre-interview design decisions by organizations and completion decisions by applicants can influence reactions and behaviors during the interview, as well as post-interview outcomes. As such, we offer an agenda of the central topics that need to be addressed, and a set of testable propositions to guide future research.     

Developing key human resources in China: an assessment of University Management Schools in Beijing,Shanghai and Tianjin in the decade 1979–88

This article focuses on differences and dynamics with respect to the organization of learning at work. It starts with a reflection on actual research perspectives on the subject of training in organizations. Four perspectives, which are currently dominant in the educational and social sciences, will be discussed: the structure-oriented approach, the system-oriented approach, the actor-oriented approach and the network approach. The network approach is a particularly promising new development in training research. We will elaborate this approach here and illustrate its potential by applying it to the analysis of training systems in two different types of organizations: bureaucratic and professional organizations. Data from recent case studies demonstrate that these types of organizations show remarkable differences with respect to the basic processes of their training systems: the shaping of training policies, the development of training programmes and the execution of training activities. In practice, training systems are much more organization-specific than training literature usually suggests. A network approach to training can provide a better understanding of the backgrounds of this organizational variety.