Temporal variations in technical efficiency: evidence from German soccer

This paper applies stochastic production frontier models with time-varying technical efficiency to a panel data set including hitherto unavailable information on team wage bills from the first division in German professional soccer (the “Bundesliga”) covering the years 1981–2003. We demonstrate that individual teams experience significant variation in technical efficiency over an extended period of 22 seasons while the league’s average level of efficiency remains constant over time. More detailed analyses reveal that, first, the decision to fire or to retain the head coach is mainly influenced by changes in managerial efficiency between two adjacent seasons and, second, relegated teams on average experience considerable reductions in technical efficiency compared to the previous season.     

The effect of human resource practices on organizational performance: evidence from Greece

The present study addresses a central research question: how do human resource management practices contribute to organizational performance? We examined the following HR practices: (1) job security; (2) selective hiring; (3) self-managed teams and decentralization of decision making; (4) compensation policy; (5) extensive training; and (6) information sharing. We surveyed food managers in Greece and recorded their perceptions on HR practices and their relation to firm performance.

Results provide overall support for all HR practices except of job security. Selective hiring was found to be a key practice that improved organizational performance. Compensation policy, information sharing, decentralization of decision making and extensive training were significant predictors for all performance variables. Directions for further research are provided.     

The impact of employee perceptions of organizational corporate social responsibility practices on job performance and organizational citizenship behavior: evidence from the Chinese private sector

This paper examines the impact of employee perceptions of organizational corporate social responsibility (CSR) practices on their job performance and organizational citizenship behavior (OCB). Hierarchical regression analysis on two-wave data from 184 supervisor/subordinate dyads from three organizations located in Zhejiang Province, South-East China, revealed that employee perceptions of CSR toward social and non-social stakeholders strongly influenced their OCB. However, employee perceptions of CSR toward employees, customers and government influenced neither their job performance nor OCB.     

Determinants of employee training: impact on organizational legitimacy and organizational performance

Employee training is one of the most studied human resource practices, as it is considered critical for organizational success. However, employee training and its impact on organizational performance have usually been studied from an economic-rational perspective, in terms of the economic and competitive advantages that companies can achieve by training employees. This study goes beyond the economic-rational approach and draws on institutional theory. We introduce contextual factors in the analysis of the determinants of employee training to complement the variables of competitive advantage and explain the relationship between employee training and organizational outcomes. Data were collected from 374 organizations using a questionnaire administered in Spain. The findings support the idea that both economic-rational and institutional determinants influence employee training. There are also two different kinds of outcome from training employees: organizational legitimacy improves at the same time as organizational performance.     

The impact of organizational structure on time-based manufacturing and plant performance

The innovation and organizational theory literatures argue that implementing radical innovation can be facilitated or hindered by the organization’s structural design. As firms attempt to cope with an external environment that is changing from industrial to post-industrial, how do they implement change? This study develops a research framework that examines relationships among various structural dimensions (i.e. number of layers in the hierarchy, level of horizontal integration, locus of decision-making, nature of formalization, and level of communication), time-based manufacturing practices, and plant performance. Based on 224 responses from manufacturing firms, this study develops instruments to measure these organizational sub-dimensions using part of this sample (N=104), and it tests the structural relationships with the remaining responses (N=120). Results indicate that the nature of formalization, the number of layers in the hierarchy, and the level of horizontal integration have significant, direct, and positive effects on the locus of decision-making and level of communication. Locus of decision-making and the level of communication, in turn, have significant, direct, and positive effects on time-based manufacturing practices. Finally, time-based manufacturing practices have a significant, direct, and positive impact on plant performance.     

The impact of organizational climate and strategic fit on firm performance

A firm's organizational climate—its degree of trust, morale, conflict, rewards equity, leader credibility, resistance to change, and scapegoating—helps determine its success. Likewise, organizational strategy—the firm's commitment to capital investment, innovation, quality, and the like—has also been found to be an important determinant of firm performance. However, prior work has most often explored the impact of climate and strategy separately, and not in tandem. In our study, we develop a measure of organizational climate comprised of tension, resistance to change, and conflict, and go on to show that at least for some pairings of a firm's climate and its strategy, there is a negative effect on return on assets (ROA). © 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Managerial succession and organizational performance—evidence from the German Soccer League

It has been widely studied how organizational performance changes after the replacement of managers. However, there is little evidence whether environmental changes moderate the efficiency of management replacements. In this paper, I explicitly consider the effect of a change in the environment of organizations on post‐replacement effects. Analyzing the performance effect of coach replacements in the German Soccer League before and after the introduction of the 3‐points‐rule theoretically and empirically I find that the magnitude of the performance effect of coach replacements differs under alternative regimes. The empirical analysis confirms predictions from my theoretical model and identifies moderating effects. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The impact of skills and performance on earnings: evidence from retail bankers in Portugal

This article contributes to the debate on wage flexibility by estimating the return to skills and performance for a sample of Portuguese retail bankers. If the relevance of skills in the contemporary workplace is unquestionable, their role as the main determinant of earnings is doubtful. The argument of this article is that firms are not adjusting individual wages according to information obtained from on-the-job appraisals subsequent to employment. The banks show a selective approach to rewarding skills and performance, and they still manage as an internal labour market. The idiosyncratic nature of skills may offer a partial explanation for the persistence of this model. However, the evidence points to the presence of hybrid models. While the return to organisational skills reinforces the role of specific skills, the return to cognitive skills suggests that there is competition around general skills in the banking industry.     

Gender,public management and organizational performance: evidence from Indonesian public schools

Quality & Quantity - Significant progress has been made to support the positive management-performance link as well as the important role of gender in public management. However, little is...     

Leadership style,organizational culture and performance: empirical evidence from UK companies

The topics of leadership and organizational culture have attracted considerable interest from both academics and practitioners. Much of the interest in the two areas is based on explicit and implicit claims that both leadership and culture are linked to organizational performance. However, while the links between leadership and performance and between culture and performance have been examined independently, few studies have investigated the association between the three concepts. This paper examines the nature of this relationship and presents empirical evidence which suggests that the relationship between leadership style and performance is mediated by the form of organizational culture that is present. The paper concludes with a number of implications for theory and practice.     

The key performance indicators (KPIs) and their impact on overall organizational performance

The concept of performance management is used by most of the organizations to ensure that either they are going on the right path or not. For managing the performance the organizations are required to know about the performance indicators. This paper explores the key performance indicators (KPIs) and impact of these KPIs on the overall organizational performance in manufacturing sector in Pakistan. The data for present study collected from the top level management of the 84 best manufacturing organizations in Pakistan by using a structured questionnaire and the impact of KPIs on the overall performance of the manufacturing organizations were evaluated. The results show that the manufacturing organizations put more focus on the customer satisfaction and Delivery reliability in terms of performance measurement. And measuring the performance in terms of cost, financial, quality, time, flexibility, delivery reliability, safety, customer satisfaction, employees’ satisfaction and social performance indicators have positive significant impact on the overall organization’s performance. This paper puts together all important performance indicators used by organizations in a single list and check their impact on the overall performance indicator index of the Organizations. As Pakistan is among the developing countries, this study will serve as a valuable guideline for several manufacturing organizations operating in other developing countries of the world.     

The impact of job training on temporary worker performance: Field experimental evidence from insurance sales agents

Despite the limited incentives they provide for idiosyncratic investment, temporary work arrangements are becoming increasingly common. Using evidence from a field experiment conducted among salespeople in a Kenyan insurance firm, this paper examines the consequences of providing job training for temporary workers. The findings show that providing access to training significantly increases firm revenue, primarily due to performance increases among higher‐ability workers. The findings from the study are consistent with temporary workers willingness to invest in job training when the job‐specific returns from doing so are sufficiently high.     

The impact of perceived corporate social responsibility on organizational commitment and the moderating role of collectivism and masculinity: evidence from China

This study examines the relationship between employee perceptions of corporate social responsibility practices and their organizational commitment. Hierarchical regression analysis was utilized to analyze survey data on 280 employees from five export-oriented manufacturing firms in China. Employee perceptions of corporate social responsibility practices towards internal stakeholders were found to relate positively to their organizational commitment. In contrast, employee perceptions of corporate social responsibility practices to external stakeholders had a nonsignificant or marginally significant impact on organizational commitment. In addition, the collectivism and masculinity orientations of employees were found to moderate this relationship. These findings provide an insight into how corporate social responsibility practices may be utilized to motivate diverse groups of employees within China-based organizations.     

The impact of human resource management practices and corporate entrepreneurship on firm performance: evidence from Turkish firms

This paper outlines the important role of human resource management practices with a link between corporate entrepreneurship and firm performance. Data were collected from a survey of 124 firms operating in different industries in Turkey. The findings of this study indicated that human resource management (HRM) practices partially mediated the relationship between corporate entrepreneurship and firm performance. In other words, corporate entrepreneurship affects firm performance, both directly and through its effects on HRM practices. In addition to corporate entrepreneurship, it is found that HRM practices explain a significant level of additional variance (9 per cent) in firm performance. The theoretical and managerial implications are discussed.     

The moderating effects of organizational context on the relationship between voluntary turnover and organizational performance: Evidence from Korea

Scholars have suggested that the relationship between voluntary turnover and organizational performance can be moderated by the organizational context in which turnover occurs. However, there are few empirical studies that examine such moderating effects. Using a sample of 161 firms in South Korea, this study investigates how the relationship between voluntary turnover and organizational performance is moderated by three context variables: (1) the degree of organizational usage of employee involvement practices, (2) the degree of organizational investment in employee training and development, and (3) the availability of potential workers. The results demonstrate that employee involvement practices significantly amplify the negative relationship between voluntary turnover and organizational performance, give marginal support for moderation from the availability of potential workers, and provide no support for moderation from the degree of organizational investment in employee training and development. We discuss theoretical and practical implications of this study for enriching our understanding of the relationship between voluntary turnover and organizational performance. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Determinants of organizational performance in a reinventing government setting: evidence from the Milwaukee school voucher programme

This paper advances the institutional entrepreneurial literature by exploring how, and when, the institutional entrepreneurial concepts embedded in theories of Reinventing Government and New Public Management are successful. Specifically, organizational level data from the nation’s oldest and largest urban school voucher programme are used to test how fundraising, reliance on government revenue, and membership in an umbrella organization impact different measures of performance. The analysis shows that organizations that fundraise, establish diverse revenue streams, and/or are members of established networks have certain performance advantages. The results are relevant to policymaker considering governance reforms premised on entrepreneurial activity.     

The impact of managerial skills on employee outcomes: a cross cultural study

Leaders with global skills are in demand by MNCs. Global management skills depend on the applicability of management practices across cultures. Using data from managers in 50 countries, this study examines the interaction effect of cultural values and managerial skills on two outcomes, employees' attitudes and workgroup effectiveness. Our results indicate that cultural values tend to have a greater effect when a manager is less skilled than when the manager is highly skilled. When the manager is highly skilled, the interaction effects of culture tend to disappear. The practical and research implications of these findings are discussed.     

Legitimation and institutionalization of managerial practices. The role of organizational rhetoric

This paper analyzes how rhetoric is associated with the legitimation and institutionalization of managerial practices. Since rhetoric both shapes and reflects an actor’s legitimacy assumptions, rhetoric can be used as an indicator of the institutionalization or cognitive legitimacy of managerial practices. Drawing on and expanding previous research on rhetorical theory and verbal accounts, this paper links argumentation structure and form with processes of institutionalization. The empirical analysis draws on a large text corpus of data from two German banks, both of which implemented drastic downsizing measures. The results show that the process of institutionalization is related to both a decline in argument diversity and a shift from defensive to acclaiming arguments.