Unpacking the client(s): Constructions, positions and client–consultant dynamics

Research on management consultancy usually emphasizes the role and perspective of the consultants. Whilst important, consultants are only one element in a dynamic relationship involving both consultants and their clients. In much of the literature, the client is neglected, or is assumed to represent a distinct, immutable entity. In this paper, we argue that the client organisation is not uniform but is instead (like organisations generally) a more or less heterogeneous assemblage of actors, interests and inclinations involved in multiple and varied ways in consultancy projects. This paper draws upon three empirical cases and emphasizes three key aspects of clients in the context of consultancy projects: (a) client diversity, including, but not limited to diversity arising solely from (pre-)structured contact relations and interests; (b) processes of constructing ‘the client’ (including negotiation, conflict, and reconstruction) and the client identities which are thereby produced; and (c) the dynamics of client–consultant relations and how these influence the construction of multiple and perhaps contested client positions and identities.     

Advances in Joint Modelling: A Review of Recent Developments with Application to the Survival of End Stage Renal Disease Patients

The use of joint modelling approaches is becoming increasingly popular when an association exists between survival and longitudinal processes. Widely recognized for their gain in efficiency, joint models also offer a reduction in bias compared with naïve methods. With the increasing popularity comes a constantly expanding literature on joint modelling approaches. The aim of this paper is to give an overview of recent literature relating to joint models, in particular those that focus on the time‐to‐event survival process. A discussion is provided on the range of survival submodels that have been implemented in a joint modelling framework. A particular focus is given to the recent advancements in software used to build these models. Illustrated through the use of two different real‐life data examples that focus on the survival of end‐stage renal disease patients, the use of the JM and joineR packages within R are demonstrated. The possible future direction for this field of research is also discussed.     

HRM practices and organizational commitment profiles

In this study, we examined how employee perceptions of development-oriented, stability-oriented, and reward-oriented human resource management (HRM) practices affected the likelihood of affective and continuance commitment profile membership. Our focus on profiles of combined commitment components is a departure from a literature dominated by studies of the separate forms of employee commitment. Drawing from self-determination theory (Deci and Ryan 2000) we described the nature of the psychological states believed to underlie the specific profiles under investigation, then tested a series of theoretical predictions concerning the link between HRM practices and the likelihood of profile membership. Predictor and criterion data for this study were collected from 317 respondents working in a variety of Canadian-based organizations. Our findings suggest ways that organizations can use HRM practices strategically to help shape the nature of overall employee commitment.     

How Should An Accumulative Toxic Substance be Banned?

The harmful effects on human health or ecosystems of many toxic substances depend on their cumulative concentration in the carrying medium (water, soil, or air), not just on the annual deposition rates of the substances. Accumulative toxic substances pose challenges to regulatory policy that are not faced when controlling pollutants whose damaging effects are though to depend primarily on annual emission flows. An increasingly common response is to phase out offending uses or production of the substance. In this paper we take as given the goal of phasing out an accumulative pollutant and examine different ways this could be done using a simple, partial-equilibrium dynamic model. We focus on phaseout measures in which the cumulative production and release of the offending substance over the transition period is fixed. Once this cumulative volume is reached, users must convert to a known but higher-cost substitute that is assumed to be benign. The key to the analysis is the observation that the quota on cumulative production makes production of the toxic substance during the transition analogous to extraction of an exhaustible resource with a higher-cost, nonexhaustible ‘backstop’ technology. Using this framework, we first describe the cost-effective outcome when the ‘sunset’ date is chosen to maximize product market surplus subject to the cumulative production constraint. This outcome is compared to one in which the regulator fixes the sunset date, and one in which the regulator limits annual production as well as cumulative production out of concern for acute exposure effects. Finally, we discuss the kinds of market-based policy instruments that would be appropriate for supporting a cost-effective outcome.     

Protecting the privacy of personal information in employee benefit plans

The United States is not the only country dealing with privacy of health information. In the absence of clear legislative direction, this paper focuses on the common privacy principles that underlie Canadian privacy legislation and recommends a plan of action. The objective is to give plan administrators and trustees sufficient transition time to develop and implement the appropriate privacy strategies, thereby minimizing both the potential burden of compliance and the potential risks of noncompliance.     

Corporate giving in the USA: a model for meeting Russia's expanding social needs?

In the USA, corporations make substantial contributions to public‐serving organisations with no expectation of financial gain. This paper explores the factors that have encouraged corporate giving in the USA and compares them to circumstances in the emerging capitalist economy of Russia. The outlook for the emergence of a corporate giving model in Russia similar to that of the USA is poor, but improving. To make it work, organisational recipients of corporate generosity need to trust their benefactors, and corporations need to believe that their contributions of surplus profits make good business sense. Copyright © 2004 Henry Stewart Publications     

Learning and development opportunities as a tool for the retention of volunteers: a motivational perspective

The growing reliance on volunteers in Australia has heightened the need for non‐profit organisations to retain these valuable resources. However, the current literature on volunteer retention is limited. One potential way volunteers can be retained is by providing learning and development opportunities (LDOs). This study investigates the relationship between volunteer perceptions of LDOs, their motivations for volunteering, and retention. Analyses revealed significant main effects for LDOs and volunteer motivations on retention and several interactive effects demonstrating that LDOs can have differential effects on retention depending on the reasons for volunteering.     

Gender gaps across the earnings distribution for full-time employees in Britain: Allowing for sample selection

This paper investigates gender differences across the log wage distributions of British employees working full-time in 2005. The raw gender wage gap shows a tendency to increase across the distribution with a glass ceiling effect indicated. A strong relationship between high skilled, white-collar occupations and carrying out managerial duties with the glass ceiling effect is indicated in the data. After allowing for positive selection into full-time employment by British women, a substantially larger gender earning gap is found: the selection corrected gender wage gap is close to twice the raw gap across most of the earnings distribution. This selection corrected gap is found to be predominantly related to women receiving lower rewards for their characteristics than men. Indeed, the results suggest the gender earnings gap would all but disappear across the earnings distribution if women working full-time received the same returns to their characteristics as men working full-time in Britain do.     

Why I am a Psychology Major: An Empirical Analysis of Student Motivations

The underlying “architecture of the decision to pursue a degree in psychology was quantified using the Method of Sorting technique to identifying the critical issues necessary to make this choice. Multidimentsional scaling procedures were employed to construct a three-dimensional map representing the relationships between reasons for selecting psychology as a major. Freshman and senior psychology majors (N = 165) from a regional university and a large research-based institution rated the relative importance of items in their decision-making process. Hierarchical clustering procedures revealed seven different groups of students. Although significant differences associated with class standing were not found, institutional affiliation did influence cluster composition. Reflecting local emphases, students at the regional institution had a greater interest in Counseling Psychology, whereas those at the research-based school focused on Clinical Psychology. This semantic map and the associated item clusters arising from psychology student data provides an empirical basis for, amongst other things, course selection, faculty-initiated program design or revision, strategic niche marketing, and student retention.     

Procedural Fairness, Return to Work, and the Decision to Dispute in Workers' Compensation

This study investigates how injured workers evaluate the fairness of the workers' compensation claims process and how that evaluation affects the decision to formally dispute their claim. Survey and administrative data are used to test a model where individuals are hypothesized to base their overall impression of the fairness of the process based on dimensions of procedural justice criteria. They are then hypothesized to decide whether to formally dispute the claim based on a combination of procedural fairness concerns and whether or not they returned to work with the same employer. The implications of the results for structuring the workers' compensation claims process are then discussed.