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1 – 10 of 10This research aims to explore whether or not the widely adopted diversity management strategy of Japanese firms aids female self-initiated expatriates' careers. Japan is famous…
Abstract
Purpose
This research aims to explore whether or not the widely adopted diversity management strategy of Japanese firms aids female self-initiated expatriates' careers. Japan is famous for its male-dominated society (e.g. Hofstede, 2003), which seems to conflict with the recent fading of this strategy in Japanese firms. To what extent does the strategy work for Japanese organisations and how do female self-initiated expatriates perceive it?
Design/methodology/approach
An interview-based qualitative methodology is used to collect testimony from female self-initiated expatriates who are currently working fulltime in Japanese firms. The interviews were conducted with 22 female expats who come from 13 different countries.
Findings
Although the strategy aims for equality, gender still matters in Japanese society and within firms. The interviews found that male-centred rules set out every single step for local employees' behaviours. “Male things” are defined everywhere at work, which makes female expats sceptical of Japan and Japanese firms. The dynamics of the male-based rule seem to eliminate female expats from the centre of organisational society.
Originality/value
Discussion over female expatriates has been increasing due to the frequent movement of international labour to Japan. Also gender fairness has been pushed by the international community, including Japanese. These factors, however, have yet to be explored in the context of the Japanese workplace for female international expatriates. What do we know about female expats working in Japan? What does the male dominance mean for female expats? This study provides an initial insight on female and expatriate diversity management in Japan.
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Peter Ghattas, Teerooven Soobaroyen, Shahzad Uddin and Oliver Marnet
This paper analyses the establishment and evolution of a public oversight body (POB) – the Egyptian Audit Oversight Unit (AOU) – and its implications for local auditing firms and…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper analyses the establishment and evolution of a public oversight body (POB) – the Egyptian Audit Oversight Unit (AOU) – and its implications for local auditing firms and practices.
Design/methodology/approach
Primary data were gathered from 34 semi-structured interviews (including follow-up ones) between 2014 and 2020. Secondary data was obtained through publicly available documents and internal memos. Drawing on Debord's (1967) Society of the Spectacle, the insights focus on the POB's conception, materialisation and evolution in a context characterised by weak regulatory structures.
Findings
Through a series of acts, the findings reveal how the AOU first accepted the image of “international best practice” oversight (the “metaphorical”), followed by the construction of the local structure and décor replicating a United States (US) style POB archetype (the “transformational”) by primarily relying on visible processes/procedures. Yet, these mechanisms emphasised the spectacular nature of oversight, with little improvement for practice and limiting itself to “cracking down” on smaller local firms. A final stage (the “performative”) reveals how the AOU seeks to expand its activities beyond its original mandate without challenging the image-driven nature of its oversight.
Originality/value
The paper offers two key contributions. First, it reveals how actors, through a combination of symbolic and tangible measures, create a new performative reality of public oversight. Second, it advocates Debord's “spectacle” to complement other theoretical lenses, with a view to illuminating the materialisation stages that bridge the gap between proclaimed oversight policies and actual practices (including conscious and unconscious omissions) within a given political economy context.
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Jeffrey Gauthier, Jeffrey A. Kappen and Justin Zuopeng Zhang
This paper aims to consider the legitimacy challenges faced by hybrid organizations, examining the narrative strategies hybrids use in responding to these challenges and offering…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to consider the legitimacy challenges faced by hybrid organizations, examining the narrative strategies hybrids use in responding to these challenges and offering a framework for managers to consider in their choice of narratives.
Design/methodology/approach
A narrative analysis of texts addressing the legitimacy of the business models used by four hybrid organizations is conducted.
Findings
The results of the analysis suggest that the nature of conflicting stakeholder demands – centered on goals or means – is an integral factor influencing hybrids’ choice of narrative strategies to emphasize distinctiveness or conformity.
Research limitations/implications
This paper adds to extant research examining the challenges hybrid organizations face and emphasizes that the choice of narrative strategies is an important factor hybrids must consider when managing legitimacy. Generalizability is a notable limitation of the case approach; the authors suggest areas for future research to address this limitation.
Practical implications
The research offers a practical framework for hybrids’ leaders, as they manage legitimacy, choosing to emphasize distinctiveness or conformity in the face of conflicts regarding goals or means.
Originality/value
By studying the legitimacy challenges faced by hybrid organizations, this study can form a more complete view of legitimation, encompassing different types of enterprises offering distinct value propositions.
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Larissa Statsenko, Aparna Samaraweera, Javad Bakhshi and Nicholas Chileshe
Based on the systematic literature review, this paper aims to propose a framework of Construction 4.0 (C4.0) scenarios, identifying Industry 4.0 (I4.0) enabling technologies and…
Abstract
Purpose
Based on the systematic literature review, this paper aims to propose a framework of Construction 4.0 (C4.0) scenarios, identifying Industry 4.0 (I4.0) enabling technologies and their applications in the construction industry. The paper reviews C4.0 trends and potential areas for development.
Design/methodology/approach
In this research, a systematic literature review (SLR) methodology has been applied, including bibliographic coupling analysis (BCA), co-citation network analysis of keywords, the content analysis with the visualisation of similarities (VOSviewer) software and aggregative thematic analysis (ATA). In total, 170 articles from the top 22 top construction journals in the Scopus database between 2013 and 2021 were analysed.
Findings
Six C4.0 scenarios of applications were identified. Out of nine I4.0 technology domains, Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT), Cloud Computing, Big Data and Analytics had the most references in C4.0 research, while applications of augmented/virtual reality, vertical and horizontal integration and autonomous robotics yet provide ample avenues for the future applied research. The C4.0 application scenarios include efficient energy usage, prefabricated construction, sustainability, safety and environmental management, indoor occupant comfort and efficient asset utilisation.
Originality/value
This research contributes to the body of knowledge by offering a framework of C4.0 scenarios revealing the status quo of research published in the top construction journals into I4.0 technology applications in the sector. The framework evaluates current C4.0 research trends and gaps in relation to nine I4.0 technology domains as compared with more advanced industry sectors and informs academic community, practitioners and strategic policymakers with interest in C4.0 trends.
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Giacomo Pigatto, John Dumay, Lino Cinquini and Andrea Tenucci
This research aims to examine and understand the rationales and modalities behind the use of disclosure before, during and after a corporate governance scandal involving CPA…
Abstract
Purpose
This research aims to examine and understand the rationales and modalities behind the use of disclosure before, during and after a corporate governance scandal involving CPA Australia (CPAA).
Design/methodology/approach
Data beyond CPAA's annual reports were collected, such as news articles, media releases, an independent review panel (IRP) report, and the Chief Operating Officer's letter to members. These disclosures were manually coded and analysed through the word counts and word trees in NVivo. This study also relied on Norbert Elias' conceptual tool of power games among networks of actors – figurations – to model the scandal as a power game between the old Board, the press, concerned members, the IRP and the new Board. This study analysed the data to reveal a collective and in fieri power balance that changed with the phases of the scandal.
Findings
A mix of voluntary, involuntary, requested and absent disclosures was important in triggering, managing and ending the CPAA scandal. Moreover, communication and disclosure fulfilled a constitutive role since both: mobilised actors, enabled coordination among actors, contributed to pursuing shared goals and influenced power balances. Such a constitutive role was at the heart of the ability of coalitions of figurations to challenge and restore the powerful status quo.
Originality/value
This research introduces to accounting studies the collective and in fieri dimensions of power from figurational theory. Moreover, the research sheds new light on using voluntary, involuntary, requested and absent disclosures before, during and after a corporate crisis.
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This study aims to investigate the impact on organizational members of team marks and peer feedback in a classroom as an organizational setting, where equals were engaged in a…
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to investigate the impact on organizational members of team marks and peer feedback in a classroom as an organizational setting, where equals were engaged in a hierarchical form of accountability. It uses Roberts’s framework of hierarchical, socializing, and intelligent forms of accountability and discusses the viability of intelligent accountability in higher education, given the accountability structure for academics.
Design/methodology/approach
Autoethnography based on excerpts from the lecturer’s diary.
Findings
The blurred boundaries of hierarchical and socializing forms of accountability create both tensions and kinships for students, and these two forms of accountability constantly impact on each other. Although the accounting tools have an individualizing effect on some students, several examples of intelligent accountability are uncovered. It is concluded that academia’s audit culture, which focuses on immediate outcomes, and academics’ ever-increasing workloads make successful innovations less likely.
Originality/value
This study contributes to the accountability literature in revealing a constant dynamic between hierarchical and socializing forms of accountability through examination of a unique setting in which the boundaries between the two are completely blurred. By empirically examining how accounting individualizes and how intelligent accountability emerges, this study contributes to the limited empirical literature on the impact of accountability on individuals, and particularly to studies of classrooms as organizations, with implications for education policies.
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Sidsel Lond Grosen and Kasper Edwards
The aim of this paper is to explore how the involvement of workplace teams in experimenting with changes in their work practices through short, time-boxed, experiments (STBEs) can…
Abstract
Purpose
The aim of this paper is to explore how the involvement of workplace teams in experimenting with changes in their work practices through short, time-boxed, experiments (STBEs) can support organizational learning. It is explored how staffs’ experiences with experimental practices give rise to shared knowledge and how this is supported by the design of the STBE-procedure. Also explored is how the STBEs support knowledge retainment.
Design/methodology/approach
The study builds on the authors’ participation in a research and development project across seven financial enterprises in Denmark. Qualitative material was developed as part of the experiments. Theoretically emphasizing experience, knowledge creation through dialogue and knowledge retention, the material was analyzed, focusing on participants’ experiences and interactions, as well as on procedures.
Findings
The STBEs occasioned direct experience with new work practices for managers and employees. Supported by the STBE-procedure, these experiences generated new knowledge individually, collectively and on an organizational level. The procedure also created routines that can underpin the retainment of the new practices and knowledge related to incorporating it in the organization.
Research limitations/implications
The study implicates experience with changes in work practices to be understood as predominantly mindful in opposition to simple, even when the changes appear to be simple.
Practical implications
The STBEs are applicable when working with organizational learning related to new work practices. Procedures supporting dialogue and mindful processes appear to be advantageous in relation to learning from experiments.
Originality/value
Based on an original research and development project and unique qualitative material, the study adds to discussions on how to best conduct and learn from experiments in organizations.
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Godfred Fobiri, Innocent Musonda and Franco Muleya
Digital data acquisition is crucial for operations in the digital transformation era. Reality capture (RC) has made an immeasurable contribution to various fields, especially in…
Abstract
Purpose
Digital data acquisition is crucial for operations in the digital transformation era. Reality capture (RC) has made an immeasurable contribution to various fields, especially in the built environment. This paper aims to review RC applications, potentials, limitations and the extent to which RC can be adopted for cost monitoring of construction projects.
Design/methodology/approach
A mixed-method approach, using Bibliometric analysis and the PRISMA framework, was used to review and analyse 112 peer-reviewed journal articles from the Scopus and Web of Science databases.
Findings
The study reveals RC has been applied in various areas in the built environment, but health and safety, cost and labour productivity monitoring have received little or no attention. It is proposed that RC can significantly support cost monitoring owing to its ability to acquire accurate and quick digital as-built 3D point cloud data, which contains rich measurement points for the valuation of work done.
Research limitations/implications
The study’s conclusions are based only on the Scopus and Web of Science data sets. Only English language documents were approved, whereas others may be in other languages. The research is a non-validation of findings using empirical data to confirm the data obtained from RC literature.
Practical implications
This paper highlights the importance of RC for cost monitoring in construction projects, filling knowledge gaps and enhancing project outcomes.
Social implications
The implementation of RC in the era of the digital revolution has the potential to improve project delivery around the world today. Every project’s success is largely determined by the availability of precise and detailed digital data. RC applications have pushed for more sustainable design, construction and operations in the built environment.
Originality/value
The study has given research trends on the extent of RC applications, potentials, limitations and future directions.
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Agnes Tabala, John C. Munene, James Kagaari, Samuel Mafabi and Jannat Kyogabiirwe
This paper aims to suggest a multi-theoretical explanation using a success story to explain psychological well-being (PWB) among employees of K.C, a small enterprise found in…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to suggest a multi-theoretical explanation using a success story to explain psychological well-being (PWB) among employees of K.C, a small enterprise found in Uganda, a developing country in Africa.
Design/methodology/approach
The study used qualitative methodology. Based on in-depth interviews with K.C employees, a story was developed describing the practical experience, focusing on the context, actions, results and lessons learnt. Regarding the sample size, the saturation point was attained on the seventh participant.
Findings
Findings reveal that employees that possess psychological capital set targets and generate avenues that allow them to achieve set goals, with personal initiative that makes them proactive to accomplish work tasks and individual adaptability that enables them to adjust their emotions and behavior to fit in a complex working environment, which makes them to think, feel and act positively. Furthermore, several theories, including broaden and build, personal initiative and complex adaptive systems theory, explain the manifestations of PWB of employees in small enterprises.
Research limitations/implications
The study was limited by focusing on the context of a small enterprise. Future research may investigate other study contexts whose findings might be different. In addition, the study being hypothetical lacked statistical testing. It would be a meaningful effort if future studies statistically tested the suggested model. Irrespective of the limitations, the findings of this study remain significant.
Practical implications
In practice, employees may replicate these findings to nurture PWB which eventually contributes to enterprises’ success. This could provide answers to the psychological challenges experienced by employees of small enterprises, especially in the African developing countries like Uganda where this is a major challenge. Specifically, the workers of K.C enterprise may depend on their PWB to deal with workplace challenges and sustain the enterprise’s performance.
Social implications
Socially, there is need to embrace positive social relationships among employees at the work place which will translate into well-being of society.
Originality/value
This paper is exceptional because it uses a success story showing practical experiences of how PWB of employees in small enterprises is nurtured in Uganda. In addition, a multi-theoretical perspective is used to explain the manifestations in the story, which is the greatest contribution of this paper. Further, a conceptual model is still proposed, depicting psychological capital, personal initiative and individual adaptability as antecedents of PWB.
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