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1 – 10 of 247Organisations increasingly reduce enterprise costs via cost cutting measures of downsizing/layoffs as a short-term strategy. The purpose of this paper is to illustrate the…
Abstract
Purpose
Organisations increasingly reduce enterprise costs via cost cutting measures of downsizing/layoffs as a short-term strategy. The purpose of this paper is to illustrate the scenario of downsizing in the Indian IT/ITES sector and also identify enablers to develop and engage talent in downsized firms.
Design/methodology/approach
This paper is a general review.
Findings
Despite higher growth rates in the recent years, the IT/ITES sector faces an uncertain future due to economic recession, which has changed the business scenario across the globe. Organisations need to resuscitate employees’ confidence and self-efficacy through psychosocial support mechanisms like professional guidance by an emotionally intelligent leader, capacity-building measures, and continuous learning opportunities. They should prepare scheduled reviews by taking into account individual needs, learning styles, and current work priorities. Provisions for adequate pay, fringe benefits, job security, and healthy working conditions can further enhance morale and motivation of survivors.
Originality/value
This paper contributes to the literature of downsizing in the Indian context. Moreover, it emphasises on the significant roles of communication policies, knowledge sharing, and learning in rebuilding the psychological contract of employees.
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The purpose of this research is to identify the cross-functional factors and their impact after exploratory factor analysis (EFA), especially in B2B context and constructing a…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this research is to identify the cross-functional factors and their impact after exploratory factor analysis (EFA), especially in B2B context and constructing a model to interpret and quantify the influences (sales performance score) specifically to the IT/ITES companies.
Design/methodology/approach
Getting answer for a corporate that where its current stand in the industry is important for the strategy making, especially for the sales team. Few academic researches charted direction toward cross-functional sales factors, but getting answer whether we can quantify that sales performance and identify what is the numeric benchmark value, is difficult. For the companies to understand the need to focus on which cross-functional factors and when, is also difficult.
Findings
After 1,079+ literature study, concluded with the 25 antecedents strongly used in previous studies and 8 more on after focused group study, pilot study and discussion with the industry leaders, 35 questions addressing 33 indicators collected in 10 months duration from 310 sales professionals, 90+ IT companies. Three samples were removed as outliers using “Mahalanobis Distance Test” for multivariate analysis, dropped two variables by “Missing value Not at Random” (MNAR). Final 15 determinants of cross-functional sales performance indicators forming four best factors with very high reliability after EFA to form a future formative model and sales performance score.
Research limitations/implications
(1) In this study no moderator and mediator effect are analyzed. (2) This study is the precursor to the final model construction. (3) Business down due to recession, global pandemic, terrorism, earthquake, war etc. are not considered during this analysis and study. Only the cross-functional reasons for natural business down have been considered and analyzed. (4) Exact “Sales Performance Score (SPS)” should be calculated after model forming, adjusting and confirmatory factor analysis.
Practical implications
(1) The major implication of this study would be for IT/ITES companies. It will be very easy for them to quantify the sales performance and measure that scientifically. (2) There will be a way to measure, predict and take measurable actions in case sales performance of the company downfalls. (3) Also the impact will be known to the top management of the company well in advance so that they can make the proper strategy. This will be very useful in current situation when measuring business outcome and make strategy well in advance is of any company's utmost priority.
Originality/value
Focusing on these identified factors companies can improve its sales performance. The authors contribute in creating a statistical model and computing a sales performance score, based on the final factor loading values, would be unique and unprecedented to measure the current industry performance by quantifying its standard or benchmark value for better strategic support toward the achievement of targets.
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This paper aims to carry out a qualitative analysis to compare India and China as a choice of service-provider from the perspective of Japanese MNEs for information technology…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to carry out a qualitative analysis to compare India and China as a choice of service-provider from the perspective of Japanese MNEs for information technology (IT)-IT enabled services (ITeS) offshoring destination, using the four dimensions of the cultural-administrative-geographic-economic (CAGE) distance framework by Ghemawat (2001).
Design/methodology/approach
This exploratory study used a mix of primary and secondary evidence to carry out a comparative evaluation of the challenges and synergies existent between India and Japan relative to China and Japan, in the context of IT-ITeS offshoring industry. Fourteen semi-structured interviews were conducted with multiple stakeholders and the findings were classified using the CAGE framework.
Findings
The paper discusses that for IT-ITeS industry, owing to its characteristics and the changing global order in the post-pandemic world, the “distances” that matter the most for business engagement between countries are – cultural, administrative and economic. Based on the comparative analysis, it was seen that China fares better than India, from a Japanese perspective, for the case of cultural and geographic distances while India had an advantage in the case of administrative and economic distances. Thus, India and Japan seem to have higher synergies and potential mutual gains by expanding engagement in the IT-ITeS industry in future.
Research limitations/implications
One of the limitations of this paper was the lack of comparable secondary data source concerning the size, growth rates, exports, employment figures for China that could have helped establish the contrast in the structure of IT-ITeS industry of India and China.
Originality/value
This study provides a framework for a comparative analysis of multiple facets of “distance” between competing service providing nations at bilateral, as well as unilateral level, in a holistic manner for the IT-ITeS offshoring industry. The results thus provide the gaps that shall be bridged by the policymakers for realizing mutual benefits.
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Shreyashi Chakraborty and Leena Chatterjee
The Indian context is marked with weak anti-discrimination laws and patchy implementation of protection of civil rights of women at workplaces. The purpose of this paper is to…
Abstract
Purpose
The Indian context is marked with weak anti-discrimination laws and patchy implementation of protection of civil rights of women at workplaces. The purpose of this paper is to unearth the rationales of the adoption of gender diversity management policies and practices in India, in the absence of laws and regulations.
Design/methodology/approach
Inspiration is drawn from previous studies on diversity management in other national contexts, and a survey methodology was adopted. The lead researcher administered the questionnaires personally to all respondents to ensure that the understanding of the questions is uniform across respondents as gender diversity management is a relatively new concept in India.
Findings
Size of the organisation (number of full-time employees), the influence of external organisations and perceived enhanced organisational flexibility were found to explain the adoption of gender diversity management policies and practices in the Indian IT/ITeS industry. Findings also indicate that Indian subsidiaries of foreign multinationals tend to adopt more gender diversity management policies and practices as compared to Indian-owned organisations.
Research implications
This study provides evidence that organisations do not always enact structures or behaviours in the pursuit of normative rationality and also consider the economic value of them, establishing an organisational agency in adopting legitimated norms or practices. The study also shows that gender diversity management policies and practices are not only dependent on the enactment of laws but also are adopted because of the economic benefit perceived.
Originality/value
Diversity management policies and practices have been mostly studied in national contexts with anti-discrimination laws or affirmative action programs and have been claimed to be a successor of equal employment opportunity (EEO) policies. In the absence of stringent laws to reduce or eliminate discrimination against women employees in Indian workplaces, this study contributes to the literature by determining whether the business case for gender diversity drives the adoption of gender diversity management in the Indian context.
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Among the various human resource practices (HRPs), high performance human resource practice (HPHRP) is gaining substantial importance both from academia as well as industry…
Abstract
Purpose
Among the various human resource practices (HRPs), high performance human resource practice (HPHRP) is gaining substantial importance both from academia as well as industry. Although HPHRP and its work related outcomes have been studied in the previous literature, none have tried to unveil the mediating and moderating factors which strengthen the relationship of HPHRP and organizational innovation (OI). The purpose of this paper is to observe the effect of HPHRP on OI in Indian information technology-information technology enabled services (IT-ITES) sector, where employee competency (EC) is proposed as a mediator and climate for innovation (CI) as a moderator.
Design/methodology/approach
The methodology used for data collection was through survey questionnaires. For a good model fit and empirical validation of the proposed model confirmatory factor analysis was done and SPSS macro, PROCESS was used for further analysis.
Findings
Results showed that HPHRP has an influence on OI wherein ECs mediate the relationship between HPHRP and OI, additionally CI positively mitigates the interaction between HPHRP and ECs.
Originality/value
The present study is the first of its kind which has empirically examined the mediation/moderation interactions between HPHRPs, ECs, CI and OI in Indian IT-ITES sector. The present research has also responded to the calls of previous research by identifying as to how HRPs create a context for innovative performances.
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Musarrat Shaheen, Ritu Gupta and Farrah Zeba
The researchers aim to investigate the role of psychological capital (PsyCap) in facilitating intrinsic motivation and goal-commitment among employees at the workplace, affecting…
Abstract
Purpose
The researchers aim to investigate the role of psychological capital (PsyCap) in facilitating intrinsic motivation and goal-commitment among employees at the workplace, affecting outcome variables, namely, in-role and extra-role job performance.
Design/methodology/approach
Data were collected from 640 employees working in the information technology sector of India. Covariance-based structural equation modeling (CB-SEM) was used to test the hypothesized relationships.
Findings
Analysis revealed a significant positive impact of PsyCap on the two behavioral facets of job performance. Intrinsic motivation and goal-commitment were found mediating the influence of PsyCap on the two facets of job performance.
Practical implications
The information technology sector is characterised by continuous change. It requires voluntary prosocial behavior from employees, where the employees are expected to display multifaceted job performance behaviors, where they go beyond their job duties to cater for the dynamics of the IT sector. The present study provides means by which intrinsic motivated and goal-committed behavior are facilitated for both the in-role and extra-role job performance.
Originality/value
The present study is among the few preliminary studies that have provided evidence that intrinsic motivation and goal-commitment are the two variables which aid PsyCap in predicting both the prescribed and voluntary job performance behaviors.
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India emerged as one of the fastest growing economies of the world during the 1990s because of the spectacular dynamism shown by the services sector. India’s services sector has…
Abstract
India emerged as one of the fastest growing economies of the world during the 1990s because of the spectacular dynamism shown by the services sector. India’s services sector has been burgeoning fast and one of the major driver’s of the growth of services sector is Information Technology (IT) and Information Technol ogy Enabled Services (ITES). It is well documented in literature that IT impacts growth by different channels. In this study we try to empirically verify the question: Can IT and ITES be an engine of growth? Using micro‐level data of 100 households of 20 IT and ITES firms along with secondary data we tried to estimate the extent of indirect employment generation at macro‐level and the share of IT and ITES in total employment and total value added. According to our study, one job for skilled professional employed in IT and ITES spins off jobs for 0.48 semi‐skilled, low skills or unskilled workers. As per our estimates, the 16 lakh workers who are expected to be directly employed in IT sector in the FY 2008 would generate secondary em ployment for 7,68,000 people which would constitute 0.16 per cent of total employment. However, the share of consumption expenditure of 16 lakh professionals would be 20 per cent of total value added. Assuming the consumption expenditure of the IT and ITES workers and total value added to be the same/constant when we tried to assess the contribution of consumption expenditure of 2.3 million workers (who are projected to be directly absorbed by IT sector by 2010, NASSCOM, 2005) to total value added it comes out to be 29 per cent of total value added. The study says that the proportion of IT‐ITES in total employment may be small but its contribution to total value added is still very high. Indeed IT and ITES can be an engine of growth in India’s economy by way of generating demand impulses in the economy as has been hypothesised and shown through the present study. Keeping in view the contributions of this sector and its huge untapped potential as evident from the present study and various other studies, there is a need for introduction and implementation of policy initiatives to address the challenges faced by this sector and to sustain the growth driven by the services sector.
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The purpose of this paper is to examine the nexus of social support (SS), work–life balance (WLB) and satisfaction with life (SWL) in hybrid work (HW) scenario in learning…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to examine the nexus of social support (SS), work–life balance (WLB) and satisfaction with life (SWL) in hybrid work (HW) scenario in learning organizations.
Design/methodology/approach
The data were collected via questionnaire method from 531 employees working in learning organizations (IT/ITES sector) in India. The hypotheses were tested using hierarchical regression.
Findings
The findings of the study showed that HW was positively related to SS dimensions, WLB and SWL. Further, the study established the mediating role of SS between HW and WLB as well as WLB as a mediator between HW-SWL relationships.
Research limitations/implications
This study has certain limitations owing to the cross-sectional nature of the data and the specific sector under study. The findings have significant implications for policy making to determine the conditions under which both employees and organizations can benefit from HW. Further, the study has implications for uncertain and volatile environments as had been created by COVID-19 pandemic, where HW arrangements may not be a choice but become necessity.
Originality/value
This study contributes to the conservation of resources theory. It identifies the importance of true autonomy and flexibility for employees.
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Girish Balasubramanian and Santanu Sarkar
The purpose of this paper is to delve into some of the key internal and external factors that led to the choice of specific strategies for union revitalization using the…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to delve into some of the key internal and external factors that led to the choice of specific strategies for union revitalization using the theoretical framework built upon framing perspectives, the strategic action field (SAF), and the strategic choice theory.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors used a stringent definition and corresponding operationalization of trade union revitalization. The present research has been carried out on a registered industrial union within the context of Global South, specifically in India.
Findings
Evidence was found for the trade union adopting a mix of strategies for revitalization, namely, union organizing, social movement unionism, and union restructuring. A mix of both internal and external factors identified informed the choice of revitalization strategies.
Research limitations/implications
Specific limitations include the subjectivity of the inference in spite of taking due precautions, and lack of generalizability of the findings based on a single case study.
Practical implications
A strong identity, coupled with structural vitality and optimum use of resources enables trade unions to frame the need of a strategy for revival in order to counter the strategic action of employers resulting in union revitalization.
Originality/value
The theoretical novelty of this research stems from the amalgamation of collective action frames, SAF, and strategic choice framework to understand the union revitalization in the context of Global South.
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Murali Kailasam and Winai Wongsurawat
This paper aims to identify strategies used by companies during the recent global recession and to investigate the effectiveness of offensive and defensive strategies. It also…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to identify strategies used by companies during the recent global recession and to investigate the effectiveness of offensive and defensive strategies. It also investigates how these different types of strategies are sequenced.
Design/methodology/approach
The paper draws on cases from seven publicly listed Indian information technology (IT) and information technology-enabled services (ITESs) companies. This longitudinal study draws on 32 semi-structured interviews with top management. The data were triangulated using annual and quarterly reports, emails, organization profiles and customer satisfaction reports.
Findings
Offensive and defensive strategic responses were deployed concurrently, not sequentially. Offensive responses were crucial in turning around a firm. Identical strategies can yield different results in product and service companies.
Research limitations/implications
The findings of this paper should be generalized with care because of the sampling scope. Future studies should include quantitative research over different recession periods.
Practical implications
The paper provides insights for practitioners on how to respond to economic recession and prepare for recovery.
Originality/value
The paper enriches the corporate turnaround and business cycle management literature by analyzing the behavior of firms from India and from the high-tech industry.
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