Change-oriented organizational citizenship behaviors: the direct and moderating influence of goal orientation

Organizational learning in a retail setting relies on the motivation of boundary-spanning retail associates to identify and implement organizationally functional changes with respect to work methods, policies, and procedures within the context of their jobs, stores, or organizations-referred to as change-oriented organizational citizenship behaviors (OCBs). A theoretical model of situation and person antecedents of change-oriented OCBs is developed and tested with a sample of 183 full-time boundary-spanning employees of a national retail sales organization. The results reveal that learning goal orientation and leader-member exchange quality are direct positive antecedents of these behaviors. The results also demonstrate interesting Person × Situation interactions. Direct relationships between transformational or contingent reward leadership behaviors and change-oriented OCBs are moderated by employee performance goal orientation. A positive relationship between organizational commitment and change-oriented OCBs is moderated by employee learning goal orientation. Contingent reward leadership and transformational leadership behaviors also have indirect positive relationships with change-oriented OCBs via leader-member exchange quality.     

员工情感状态与工作满意度对工作绩效的影响:领导-部属交换的调节作用

本文运用多层线性回归分析方法,探讨了员工个体内层面因素(积极情感、消极情感和工作满意度)对员工工作绩效(任务绩效、情境绩效和反生产绩效)的影响,并检验了个体间层面因素(领导-部属交换)对这些影响的跨层调节作用。研究结果表明:员工的积极情感与其任务绩效和情境绩效正相关;员工的消极情感与其反生产绩效正相关;与领导-部属交换水平高的员工相比,低水平领导-部属交换的员工,积极情感与情境绩效的正相关关系更强。     

事业满意感在我国销售员工离职倾向决定中的调节效应研究

用层级回归方法分析了员工离职倾向的主要结构化变量和环境变量 ,检验了事业满意感在员工离职倾向决定过程中的调节效应。主要结论包括 :第一 ,报酬满意感、晋升机会、工作自主性和上级支持与其它工作机会对员工的离职倾向具有显著的解释能力 ;第二 ,事业满意感与工作自主性之间的交互作用以及事业满意感与上级支持之间的交互作用对员工离职倾向有显著的解释作用。为员工离职倾向决定的权变主义观点提供了证据。讨论了研究结果的管理学含义。     

员工道德认同与任务绩效：基于人际交换关系视角

区别于道德决策理论对道德认同影响个体行为的解释,本研究基于人际交换关系视角,探究领导-部属交换和团队-同事交换在道德认同影响任务绩效过程中的中介作用,并考察员工自我效能在以上关系中的调节作用。通过对343名企业员工开展两轮问卷调查,统计分析结果表明：（1）领导部属交换和团队-同事交换在道德认同与任务绩效之间起部分中介作用;（2）自我效能显著调节了领导-部属交换/团队-同事交换与任务绩效的关系;（3）自我效能显著调节了领导-部属交换/团队-同事交换在道德认同与任务绩效之间的中介作用。     

Leader-member exchange and employee work outcomes in Chinese firms: the mediating role of job satisfaction

This study investigates the mediating role of job satisfaction in the relationships between leader-member exchange (LMX) and employee work outcomes in Chinese firms, namely, organizational commitment and intention to leave. Based on the data collected from the four manufacturing firms based in China, the hierarchical regression analyses strongly support our theoretical predication that job satisfaction fully mediates the relationships between LMX and employees’ organizational commitment and intention to leave. The theoretical and practical implications of these findings are discussed.     

Store attributes leading customer satisfaction with unplanned purchases

Understanding which specific factors of retail stores’ offering affect unplanned buyers’ satisfaction may be of great interest to store managers as they could set ad hoc strategies to target these consumers and establish long-term, profitable relationships with them. Satisfied unplanned buyers could indeed return to the store where they purchased their unplanned item(s) and/or positively talk about it with other customers. Nevertheless, we still know very little about such factors. To close this gap, this research gathered survey data on consumers’ store satisfaction and perceptions of store attributes in Spain during two time periods: in 2008, when the crisis was barely noticed by Spanish consumers, and five years later, when consumers were experiencing this economic situation. The results obtained evidence how grocery retailers can respond to customers’ awareness of the crisis by providing some managerial recommendations for bolstering satisfaction in consumer segments with diverse levels of unplanned buying behavior.     

Retail buyer segmentation based on the use of assortment decision factors

The purpose of this study is to provide detailed information about apparel retail buyers' buying behaviors based on their use of assortment decision factors. After interviews with five retail buyers and merchandisers, surveys were conducted in Seoul, South Korea for this exploratory study. Apparel retail buyers, merchandisers, and retail store owners, who are involved in assortment planning and buying, participated in the survey (N=378). Results of factor analysis created seven assortment decision factor groups. Based on the factor groups, four cluster groups were the best cluster result: (1) Least Factor Use Buyers, (2) Traditional Factor Use Buyers, (3) Consumer-Oriented Buyers, and (4) Most Factor Use Buyers. Because this study used convenience and snowball sampling methods in one country, the findings cannot be generalized to the general population of apparel retail buyers and merchandisers. However, the study provides researchers with planning factors and cluster information for retail buying behavior. The results offer insight to buyers for their decision-making by organizing assortment decision factors from the most to the least important, especially for younger buyers, who need guidance about assortment planning. Although assortment planning and trade-off decisions are known to be extremely important to retail success (e.g., Kok et al., 2008), no previous study identified a typology of retail buyers on the basis of their consideration of assortment decision factors. This study adds new information and confirms the application of traditional assortment decision factors from 1980s and 1990s to post-2008 era.     

Product Procurement: A Comparison of Taiwanese and US Retail Companies

The buying function of Taiwanese and US retailers differs in several areas. The consingment method of selling is very prevalent in Taiwan but rarely used in the US. Taiwanense retail buyers were found to have less buying and retail experience than their US counterparts. However, neither buying nor retail experience were found to be significantly retaled to taiwanese buyers' attitudes about product procurement. Significant differences were identified between Taiwanese and US retail buyers' attitudes about country of origin and perceived value of imported merchandise. Taiwanese buyers were found to be more likely to rely on country of origin as an information cue than their US counterparts. On the other hand, as compared to Taiwanese buyers, US buyers were found more likely to percieve foreign apparel as having value than domestically manufactured products.     

Retail Buying in the United Kingdom

Retail buying in the United Kingdom has undergone considerable change in the last 20 years. Faced with a lack of satisfactory published material concerning what retail buyers actually do, the author carried out a survey of buyers in multiple food and apparel retailers. This paper discusses the main changes to have taken place in retail buying in recent years, describes what buyers do, their interface with other functional departments in the business, the characteristics needed by successful buyers, and how buyers are appraised. Finally, it is concluded that the perceived status of buyers does not always reflect their impact on the marketing activity and success of their companies.     

Conversations during purchase consideration: sales assistants and customers

Conversations among and between our fellow customers and sales personnel provide social and informational exchange to support material exchange in retail settings. A 2 x 2 factorial field experiment (in a ladies' clothing retailing context) was undertaken to compare perceptions of the effects of oral contributions made by sales assistants, and by fellow customers, on levels of satisfaction, purchase intentions and credibility during the service experience. Conversations with other customers are shown to lead to greater perceived satisfaction in the consideration phase than those with sales assistants. Sales assistants are confirmed as less credible, and the notion that spoken interactions with assistants may lead to increased purchase intention is rejected.     

打开领导有效性的黑箱:领导行为和领导下属关系研究

This study is an integration of the leader-focused perspective and leader-follower exchange perspective, attempting to understand the relationship between leadership styles, leader-member relationship, and their joint impact on followers’ effectiveness, satisfaction, extra effort and organizational commitment. 615 respondents from five big pharmaceutical companies in China participated in this study. Results show that: (1) transformational leadership has positive influence on followers’ effectiveness, satisfaction, extra effort and organizational commitment; contingent reward has positive influence on effectiveness; management-by-exception leadership has negative influence on satisfaction; laissez-faire leadership has negative influence on effectiveness and satisfaction. (2) Leader-member exchange partially mediates the relationship between transformational, contingent reward, management-by-exception, laissez-faire leaderships and followers’ effectiveness, extra effort, satisfaction and organizational commitment. Translated and revised from Guanli shijie 맜理世界(Management World), 2006, (9): 87–93     

基于社会交换的组织公正与心理契约违背关系研究

通过对中国文化背景下,组织公正、社会交换关系变量与员工心理契约违背间的关系研究,运用结构方程建模技术对35家企业410位员工的调查数据进行检验。结果表明：组织公正和领导－部属交换关系问卷具有良好的构思效度;组织支持感和领导－部属交换关系对组织公正各维度均有显著的预测作用;程序公正、互动公正是心理契约违背感的有效预测指标,对组织支持感与心理契约违背间的关系具有部分中介作用,组织支持感还会对心理契约违背产生直接影响;领导－部属交换关系完全通过组织公正的中介作用对员工心理契约违背感产生影响。因此,文章在检验中国文化背景下组织公正维度结构的基础上,拓展了组织公正、社会交换关系变量与员工心理反应的关系研究。     

Consumers' and retailers' practices and attitudes towards energy-efficient clothing

The purpose of this study was to compare the extent to which consumers and retailers consider energy efficiency in evaluating and selecting indoor sportswear. Little research has been conducted in which retail buyers are subjects; no published research has focused on a comparison of consumers and merchants in regard to their attitudes towards a specific product. The value of such research lies in determining whether a particular consumer need is being met. The results of the present study revealed that retail buyers were less concerned about energy-efficient clothing than were consumers. Significant differences were found between the two groups for four of the nine variables studied. In all cases, consumers gave greater consideration to the energy efficiency of indoor sportswear than retail buyers believed. Further investigation of differences in consumers' and retailers' attitudes and practices is needed.     

Retailer-buyer supplier relationships: The Japanese difference

The purpose of this study, which draws data from a national survey of Japanese retail buyers, is to provide insight into how culture influences channel relationships and to suggest how non-Japanese partners can facilitate long-term relationships. Results indicate that Japanese retailer long-term orientation with a supplier is an antecedent to trust, economic dependence and satisfaction with the supplier rather than an outcome of these constructs. This study implies that Japanese retailers are expected to look out for the best interests of their partners, rather than continuously seek new partners, and, further, partners learn to negotiate differences rather than seek dissolution of the relationship.     

Performance Implications of a Retail Purchasing Network: The Role of Social Capital

This study employs social capital theory to examine how a retail buyer's network of industry peers influences retail performance. We propose that performance is enhanced by three network resources – access, referral, and influence – that result from two structural facets of a retail buyer's network: contact diversity and contact position. We test the model by collecting sociometric data that measures interpersonal ties among 84 retail buyers operating in the same geographic territory in the U.S. golf industry. The results offer evidence that network resources lead to higher levels of performance, even when accounting for differences in human capital and organizational resources. The paper concludes with a discussion of managerial and theoretical implications.     

The Relative Effects of Relationship Quality and Exchange Satisfaction on Customer Loyalty

ABSTRACT

This paper addresses two key questions on how supplier firms can better manage industrial buyers to create higher loyalty. The first involves whether to focus on relationship quality or exchange satisfaction. This dual route model towards enhancing loyalty in essence is concerned with comparing the relative strengths of the effect from relationship quality to loyalty and from exchange satisfaction to loyalty. The second point of interest pertains to whether the effects from relationship quality and exchange satisfaction to loyalty are moderated by environmental conditions such as switching barriers and viable alternatives. Using data on business customers' ratings of a major information technology provider, we find that the effect of exchange satisfaction on loyalty is significantly greater than the effect of relationship quality on loyalty. We also find that the impact of exchange satisfaction on loyalty is less sensitive and more stable across different levels of switching barriers and viable alternatives. Conversely, the effect of relationship quality on loyalty is more pronounced to such moderating variables in that the effect of relationship quality on loyalty was greater when switching barriers were low and many viable alternatives existed. Implications for marketing theory and practice are discussed.     

Attitudes towards computer technology: comparison of retail buyers and apparel manufacturers in the U.S.A.

Apparel retailers and manufacturers are incorporating advanced technologies such as CAD/CAM systems and electronic data interchange into their businesses. Attitudes held by key personnel toward these new technologies can enhance or hinder implementation. This study was designed to investigate and compare the attitudes of manufacturers and buyers towards computer technology. Fifteen Likert-type attitude statements were developed by the researchers. A pilot test of the instrument resulted in minor changes. A total of 105 usable questionnaires were returned: 57 from manufacturers and 48 from retail buyers. t-test results indicated that buyers' and manufacturers' attitudes differed significantly on five of the 15 attitude statements. A discriminant analysis showed that the same five statements significantly discriminated buyers from manufacturers. Manufacturers' responses were more positive than buyers' on four of these statements. Overall, the results indicated that apparel manufacturers and retail buyers held favourable attitudes towards computer technology.     

Assessing the demand for value‐based organic meats in Canada: a combined retail and household scanner‐data approach

We apply sets of weekly retail and household scanner data to estimate consumer demand of selected organic and conventional fresh beef products in the Canadian retail market. The main contribution of our study stems from the application of a two‐stage procedure that provides new and deeper insight into consumers' responses to changing retail environment and pricing for organic and conventional meat products. Combined knowledge of point‐of‐sale consumer behaviour for value‐based products, such as organic products, and distinct socio‐demographic profiles of buyers vs. non‐buyers of meat is especially interesting for retail managers and meat industry stakeholders. First, household meat consumption patterns are investigated based on household scanner data that track household's meat purchases in the period 2006–2007. The second step of analysis then involves the estimation of an almost ideal demand system for selected organic and conventional fresh beef products using retail scanner data for the period 2000–2007. The introduction of greater selections in organic product lines across mainstream supermarkets in Canada in response to consumer health concerns is expected to spur retail competition in an otherwise saturated Canadian retail market. The analysis of socio‐demographic profiles in beef consumption using individual household's purchase data reveals that besides regional differences in preferences, household size and resource characteristics are major determinants of point‐of‐sale beef purchase decisions. Our demand system results indicate that organic beef is highly dependent on price and expenditures, whereas demand for conventional beef is mostly driven by income, habits and ‘typical’ Canadian seasonal beef consumption patterns. Altogether, our conclusions on organic beef vs. conventional beef buyers may have further implications for institutional regulations.     

Social exchange: Empirical examination of form and focus

We investigate similarities and differences among prominent types of social exchange (psychological contract fulfillment, perceived organizational support, trust in the organization, leader-member exchange, and trust in the supervisor) and propose that two higher-order factors represent social exchanges with the organization and with the supervisor. We investigate their prediction of important employee work attitudes, citizenship behaviors, and performance. Based on data from 448 employees, empirical tests support the existence of organization- and supervisor-directed social exchanges. Tests using structural equation modeling support unique predictions of attitudinal and behavioral work outcomes.