Discretionary power of project managers in knowledge‐intensive firms and gender issues

The scarcity of women among highly qualified professionals in business‐to‐business information and communication technologies (ICT) in Europe and in North America has been noted as recently as the late 1990s (Panteli, Stack, Atkinson, & Ramsay, 1999). The organization and management of work in such firms is typically project‐based. This has many consequences, including: long working hours with fierce resistance to any reduction, unpaid overtime, high management expectations of employee flexibility to meet unanticipated client demands, and the need for employees to negotiate flexible work arrangements on a case‐by‐case basis with a project manager who often has much discretion on whether to accommodate such requests. We found that women are particularly disadvantaged in such a system, which could partly explain their under‐representation in such jobs. Copyright © 2010 ASAC. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Sex‐role conflict at work: its impact on consumption practices of working women in Turkey

Changing social norms regarding the role of women in society is fostered by women's participation in the workforce. Hence, changing role of working women in business life leads the transformation of gender stereotypes and roles. Women alter their gender role orientation according to the requirements of male‐dominated business life; however, the unchanged role in private life leads to sex‐role conflict. This study investigates the role of consumption as a key component of identity in the process of managing sex‐role conflict in a non‐Western cultural context. In‐depth interviews were conducted with working women with various cultural and educational backgrounds. According to the findings of the study, women are forming compatible identities, which reduce the perceived sex‐role conflict and consumption patterns are changing to suit the requirements of their new ways of living.     

Compensation of owner managers in Canadian family‐owned businesses: expropriation of minority shareholders

The aim of this paper is to test the hypothesis of owner managers expropriating minority shareholders by receiving excessive compensation. Using a sample of Canadian family firms, we found that when there is divergence between voting rights and cash flow rights, owner CEOs receive higher compensation than non‐owners. The higher the divergence between voting rights and cash flow rights, the higher the excess compensation. Further analysis shows that only poorly governed firms are affected by the expropriation problem. Copyright © 2010 ASAC. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The Role of Firms in Resilient Systems: A Multi‐Level Framework

In this paper, we articulate a multi‐level resilience‐based framework explaining how firms facilitate stronger system‐level resilience. The framework stresses the importance of firm interdependence, describing how pooled versus sequential/reciprocal patterns of interdependence influence the resilience antecedents of diversity, slack, and redundancy. We argue that the inter‐firm practices of self‐governance and supply chain collaboration function to maintain resilience antecedents at more moderate and effective levels. This work builds on prior resilience research that has remained focused on either firm or system levels of analysis by stressing the value of firm interdependence as an important contingency for effective system resilience. Copyright © 2018 ASAC. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The link between product diversification and performance among Spanish manufacturing firms: Analyzing the role of firm size

This study sheds additional light on the product diversification‐performance relationship for firms in a country having recently attained an advanced economy status in our period of analysis. We assume there will be an inverted U‐shaped relationship and use a sample of small, medium, and large Spanish manufacturing firms between 1994 and 2008. Our findings provide solid support for this assumption, and are identical when the sample consists of small, medium, and large firms and of large firms alone. Our results also suggest that the larger the firm, the higher the optimal level of diversification. Panel data models are used to control for unobservable heterogeneity and potential endogeneity problems. Copyright © 2015 ASAC. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Pop‐management literature: popular business press and management culture in Brazil

As in other emerging countries, the 1990s in Brazil were characterized by profound economic changes. The business press reflected and influenced this process. Newspapers and magazines grew and assumed an important role, disseminating values associated with neoliberalism and managerialism. In this paper, we aim to contribute to the understanding of the content produced by this media and how the readership reacts to this content. To accomplish these objectives, we used the method of fantasy theme analysis (Bormann, 1972) to analyze four business magazines, and we discuss how Brazilian culture mediates the assimilation of foreign ideas and managerial expertise. Our study also helps to understand how the pop‐management literature, disseminated by the business press, echoes and reinforces managerialism and management culture. Copyright © 2008 ASAC. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The Direct and Indirect Effects of Self‐Efficacy on Salespeople's Emotional Exhaustion and Work‐Family Conflict: A Study Using the Job Demands‐Resources Model

This study integrates Social Cognitive Theory with the Job Demands‐Resources Model to examine self‐efficacy in relation to emotional exhaustion and work‐family conflict (WFC) in a sample of 192 employees. The results obtained through structural equation analysis show: a negative association between self‐efficacy and both work overload and emotional exhaustion; a positive relationship between work overload and both emotional exhaustion and WFC; that work overload mediates the relation between self‐efficacy and both emotional exhaustion and WFC; that role ambiguity moderates the relation of self‐efficacy with work overload; and that tenure in the sales territory moderates the relation of work overload with WFC. Copyright © 2018 ASAC. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Employee Identities in Corporate Codes of Ethics: The Equal,Responsible, Subordinating,and Self‐Monitoring Employee

The article invites the reader to engage in a critical perspective. It emphasizes the role of language in formal corporate documents and the discursive practices of language use. It presents the results of a study that analyzes the corporate codes of ethics of the German Dax30‐companies. The study conceives codes of ethics as texts deploying discursive practices in order to position the various actors addressed in the documents. Four distinct identities have been elaborated: the equal, the responsible, the subordinating, and the self‐monitoring employee. This study demonstrates that codes of ethics propose various subject positions of the employee and through this positioning aim to regulate the identification processes. Copyright © 2011 ASAC. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

She shares,but he does not: Gender differences in the sharing of charity‐related content on social networking sites

Online social networks are widely used methods of communication. This research examines gender differences in people's tendency to post charity‐related messages. In general, compared to males, females show more empathic concerns with online charity‐related messages, which increases their willingness to post messages on their online social networking sites. However, message framing is key. Females' higher tendency only holds for charity messages that focus on benefits to others or the feelings of others, not for messages that are self‐focused. This research also identifies one way of improving men's willingness to post. Messages that are framed by focusing on negative consequence appeals can increase empathic concerns, which can increase males' willingness to share online charity messages on online social networking sites.     

Environmental Multi‐dimensionality and Staff Localization in Multinational Enterprises: The Case of Korean Firms

The person–environment fit theory posits that the term “environment” can be defined at different levels. This study delineates two environmental dimensions (strategic and organizational) and empirically examines the potential moderating effects of two strategic factors (intra‐ and inter‐regional diversification) on the relationship between two organizational factors (subsidiary ownership and host‐country experience) and MNE subsidiary staffing composition. The results indicate that strategic and organizational dimensions have impacts on subsidiary staffing composition. This study also finds that the interaction effects between strategic and organizational factors are significant only when there is congruence between demands from different environmental dimensions.     

Moving beyond the mechanistic structures: The role of inclusive leadership in developing change‐oriented organizational citizenship behaviour

In this study, we explore the relationship between inclusive leadership and change‐oriented organizational citizenship behaviour (OCB) with the mediating roles of behavioural integrity and trust in leadership. Data were collected from 151 supervisor–subordinate dyads from small and medium enterprises in Pakistan. The results revealed that inclusive leadership is positively related to change‐oriented OCB. Our study reaffirms the indirect effect of the inclusive leadership on change‐oriented OCB via behavioural integrity and trust in leadership. Finally, the results supported the chain of causality: sequential mediation of behavioural integrity, and trust in leadership between inclusive leadership and change‐oriented OCB. Causal attribution theory is used to support the findings. Implications for theory and practice are discussed.     

Value co‐creation between foreign firms and indigenous small‐ and medium‐sized enterprises (SMEs) in Kazakhstan's oil and gas industry: The role of information technology spillovers

Study related to the extractive sector still plays a limited role in the mainstream international business (IB) and management literature, with even less focus on ongoing liberalization and digitalization in the industry. This article was motivated by the question of how collaboration between foreign and indigenous oil and gas (O&G) companies can support small‐sized and medium‐sized indigenous technological development. The main contribution of this article is the development of a model that explains how different actors can cocreate value in the ecosystem of the O&G industry through digital technologies. A three‐stage qualitative–interpretive method based on interviews with industry experts was adopted to build three vignette case studies. This article proposes what companies and the government could do to increase the competitiveness of the local economy, diversify from O&G into high technological industries, and support industrial development through information and communication technologies (ICT).     

Applying complexity theory to explain partner cooperation: The role of transaction cost‐related factors and elements of relational exchanges

Using complexity theory, we seek to better understand the configurations of causal factors stimulating joint ventures' cooperation in Chinese manufacturing context. To this end, we adopt two dominant perspectives of transaction cost economics and relational exchange theory to identify transaction cost‐related factors and elements of relational exchanges as critical factors in joint ventures' cooperation. We apply fuzzy‐set qualitative comparative analysis on a sample of 268 joint venture partners to test research propositions. The findings indicate a need for competence trust and goodwill trust and also show that extorting rent cost should be emphasized. Results reveal those six configurations of causal factors that explain high intention to cooperate. Copyright © 2017 ASAC. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The commercialization of academic outputs in the administrative sciences: A multiple‐case study in a university‐based business school

Technology transfer, and its focus on research commercialization, is gaining popularity in all academic fields as a way to better demonstrate universities' external impacts. We conducted a multiple case‐study of three commercialization projects in Organizational Development, Information Technology, and Marketing, which took place in a university business school. We explored to what extent the technology transfer model of commercializing academic outputs could apply in business schools. We also examined its potential value compared to other ways of sharing academic expertise. Although the technology transfer approach appears to work, the three projects exhibited crucial characteristics that markedly differ from traditional technology transfer. Compared to other forms of knowledge uses, what makes research commercialization so attractive is that it is readily observable and traceable. However, it raises some fundamental questions about knowledge production and its use. Copyright © 2015 ASAC. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Quick decisions tend to reinforce self‐interest choices among MBA students: The direct and moderating effects of temporal constraint and situational factors in ethical decision making

Employees face increasingly time‐pressured operational environments. Using theory from Reynolds' ( 2006 ) neurocognitive model of ethical decision making, we explore how temporal constraint, consequence framing, and organizational norms affect self‐interested decision making in business. Conducting three experimental manipulations with a sample of MBA students, we found the following: First, consistent with previous studies, high time pressure promotes self‐interested intentions. Second, unethical framing encourages self‐interested intentions, though this relationship is unaffected by the presence of time pressure. Third, unethical organizational norms encourage group‐interested intentions. Lastly, however, when these same norms are experienced under high time pressure, individuals display self‐interested intentions. Copyright © 2016 ASAC. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The effectiveness of deservingness‐based advertising messages: The role of product knowledge and belief in a just world

Are advertisements that tell consumers they deserve a product effective? Given evidence showing people are motivated to get what they deserve, we argue that for certain consumers this is the case. In two experiments, we manipulated the type of ad participants viewed for a luxury product and then assessed ad effectiveness. We also measured participants’ belief in a just world (BJW) and product knowledge. Deservingness‐based ads were (a) more effective for strong BJW participants, mediated by the degree to which the ads matched participants’ worldview and justified buying the product, and (b) less effective for high knowledge participants. We conclude that deservingness‐based advertising can be successful, depending on consumer characteristics. Copyright © 2016 ASAC. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.