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Article
Publication date: 25 November 2013

Maria Münderlein, Jan F. Ybema and Ferry Koster

This paper aims to provide an empirical test of theories proposed in the literature stating that turnover and retirement (two kinds of work withdrawal) involve different employee…

1855

Abstract

Purpose

This paper aims to provide an empirical test of theories proposed in the literature stating that turnover and retirement (two kinds of work withdrawal) involve different employee decisions. It also aims to provide a more general theoretical framework understanding turnover and retirement intentions integrating insights from different theories.

Design/methodology/approach

Research hypotheses are tested using the Study on Transitions in Employment, Ability and Motivation (STREAM). This dataset includes information from approximately 15,000 respondents in The Netherlands. Respondents between the age of 45 and 64 were the target group in order to model transitions in the labor market for older workers. This dataset provides a unique opportunity to test turnover and retirement intentions.

Findings

First, the results show that personal characteristics such as income, age or health, add more to the explanation of retirement intentions compared to turnover intentions and that work characteristics provide a better explanation of the turnover intention compared to retirement intention. Second, by focusing more closely on retirement intentions, the results show that organizational motivators can increase older workers' labor market participation.

Research limitations/implications

First, it is acknowledged that the study investigates intentions rather than actual behavior. Second, given that the data are cross sectional, we cannot make claims about causality. Finally, some of the measures can be improved in future studies.

Originality/value

This paper aims at integrating different perspectives on two kinds of work withdrawal (turnover and retirement) into one theoretical model.

Details

Career Development International, vol. 18 no. 6
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1362-0436

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 13 June 2018

Frank Jan De Graaf

The purpose of this paper is to examine the history of the Dutch cooperative Rabobank to understand how the structure of an organisation determines how individual employees…

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to examine the history of the Dutch cooperative Rabobank to understand how the structure of an organisation determines how individual employees validate norms within that organisation.

Design/methodology/approach

Data over an approximately 10-year period starting 25 years ago are analysed, and the value of relating a historical analysis and narrative approach to ethical and institutional theories in economics and management science is demonstrated.

Findings

Regulation in the banking sector appears to have a strong normative aspect. The choice between state and private ownership is based on ideology. The author argues that the private ownership model was based primarily on an ideology surrounding economic efficiency, but that in fact there are other logics that also promote economic development. This contributes to the understanding of the interaction between sector standards, organisational structures and the values of organisations and individual employees. The structure of an organisation enables key employees to deviate slightly from the organisation’s prevailing norms in response to pressures from the wider environment, and those individuals thereby become symbols of that organisation.

Originality/value

The perspective on management history put forward in this paper enables assessing the distinction between normative notions in institutional environments and the organisation as a whole as represented in its governance structure and narratives that key employees disseminate about the organisation. This in turn helps us to understand the interaction between sector standards, organisational characteristics and values represented by individual employees. The author reveals the strong normative impact of banking regulation in line with an older ideological model focused on economic efficiency rather than market logics and the interests of society.

Details

Journal of Management History, vol. 24 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1751-1348

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 3 January 2017

Jessie George and Stephanie Wallio

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the relationship between distributive justice, procedural justice, and turnover intentions for Millennial employees working in the…

4463

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the relationship between distributive justice, procedural justice, and turnover intentions for Millennial employees working in the public accounting environment.

Design/methodology/approach

Data collection utilized an online survey sent to members of a regional certified public accountant organization (n=75).

Findings

Lower levels of both distributive and procedural justice predicted higher turnover intentions, controlling for gender and job tenure. Procedural justice was found to have a stronger relationship with turnover intentions than distributive justice for Millennial public accountants.

Practical implications

The public accounting industry is facing a crisis based on the shortage of staff and senior level accountants, which are primarily Millennial employees. The study results have practical implications for public accounting firms. The findings suggest that the fairness of organizational processes could impact Millennials’ turnover intentions more than the fairness of organizational rewards. Employers could use this information to manage levels of procedural justice, which could reduce turnover intentions, actual turnover, and other byproducts of the staffing shortage.

Originality/value

This study examined the relationship between organizational justice and Millennial turnover intentions in public accounting. The study replicated the findings of some prior studies in a purely Millennial sample in the public accounting context and addressed some of the contradictory results seen previously related to organizational justice. As the public accounting industry has an abnormally large percentage of Millennial employees, these findings may be applied to other environments as the Millennial population in the workforce increases.

Article
Publication date: 1 September 2003

Felicity Fletcher‐Campbell, Sip Jan Pijl, Cor Meijer, Alan Dyson and Tom Parrish

The international literature on the inclusion of pupils with special educational needs has been wide‐ranging, focusing mainly on curriculum and assessment, and social inclusion…

4204

Abstract

The international literature on the inclusion of pupils with special educational needs has been wide‐ranging, focusing mainly on curriculum and assessment, and social inclusion. The issue of funding has been mainly confined to discussions about the size of budget needed to support the resource needs of inclusion (e.g. the costs of additional teachers, support assistants or transport). Less attention has been given to the actual structure of the budget for special education. There has been greater interest in the strategic management of budgets and in the interaction of funding mechanisms at the national, local and institutional levels. This article discusses the effect of resourcing mechanisms for special education and draws on a study across Europe, and other studies based in The Netherlands, the USA and the UK. The strategic behaviours generated by different approaches are considered and the degree to which any particular strategy can influence the inclusion of pupils with special educational needs is assessed.

Details

International Journal of Educational Management, vol. 17 no. 5
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0951-354X

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 22 March 2017

Barbara Czarniawska

The purpose of this paper is to challenge some of the taken for granted assumptions of contemporary ethnographic practice by exploring reasons for fieldwork and the debt that is…

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to challenge some of the taken for granted assumptions of contemporary ethnographic practice by exploring reasons for fieldwork and the debt that is owed to those in the field.

Design/methodology/approach

Exploring traditional and contemporary reasons for fieldwork and comparing ostensive and performative styles of reporting organization studies.

Findings

The argument is that traditional ethnographic approaches do not fit contemporary organizing practices. In their place, a “symmetrical ethnology” is proposed.

Research limitations/implications

More reflective use of labels and terms.

Practical implications

Better communication with practitioners.

Social implications

Better dialogue with wider circles.

Originality/value

An important and timely critique of ethnography together with a reformulation and a number of suggestions for future practice.

Details

Journal of Organizational Ethnography, vol. 6 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2046-6749

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 8 February 2016

Giorgio Touburg

The purpose of this paper is to scrutinize Geert Hofstede’s conceptualization of national culture and provide an alternative beyond purely constructivist conceptualizations of…

3982

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to scrutinize Geert Hofstede’s conceptualization of national culture and provide an alternative beyond purely constructivist conceptualizations of culture for cross-cultural management scholars and practitioners.

Design/methodology/approach

Hofstede’s conceptualization of national culture is discussed and criticized. Subsequently, alternatives are being discussed. Eventually, a more feasible alternative is suggested and the ways in which it can be applied are briefly mentioned.

Findings

Several objections to Hofstede’s idea and measurement of national culture are listed: it assumes people are cultural dopes, it ignores the influence of non-cultural factors, it reifies culture, it assumes internal coherence, it does not account for change, it arbitrarily uses the nation-state as the preferred locus of culture, and it has an in-built Western bias. Several authors have argued for a constructivist conceptualization of culture, which sees culture as a repertoire, from which ideas and possible actions can be selected. The downside, however, is that it has no practical value for managers. In an attempt to solve this, the paper explores the possibilities of using the concept of national habitus, which shows how dispositions are shaped on a national level and how these dispositions change under the influence of other, non-national social forces.

Practical implications

The paper briefly explores how a national habitus-centered approach can help cross-cultural managers.

Originality/value

The paper’s added value lies in the use of a relatively recently extended sociological concept for cross-cultural management.

Details

Journal of Organizational Change Management, vol. 29 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0953-4814

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 4 October 2022

Teng Li, Nunung Nurul Hidayah, Ou Lyu and Alan Lowe

This case study presents a critical analysis of why and how corporate managers in China are reluctant to adopt sustainability reporting assurance (SRA) provided by externally…

Abstract

Purpose

This case study presents a critical analysis of why and how corporate managers in China are reluctant to adopt sustainability reporting assurance (SRA) provided by externally independent third-party assurers, despite the fact that it is acknowledged as a value-adding activity globally.

Design/methodology/approach

A longitudinal fieldwork case study was conducted from 2014 to 2019 in a Chinese central state-owned enterprise (CSOE), a pioneer in sustainability reporting practice since the mid-2000s, to collect first-hand empirical data on managerial perceptions of the adoption of external SRA. Semi-structured interviews with 25 managers involved in sustainability (reporting) practice were conducted. The interview data were triangulated with an analysis of archival documents and board meeting minutes pertaining to the undertakings of sustainability practices in the case study organization.

Findings

Our empirical analysis suggests that while managers recognize the benefits of adopting external SRA in enhancing the legitimacy of sustainability accountability, they oppose SRA because of their deep-rooted allegiance to the dominant logic of sociopolitical stability in China. SRA is envisaged to risk the stability of the socialist ideology with which CSOEs are imbued. Therefore, any transformational approach to accepting a novel (foreign) practice must be molded to gain control and autonomy, thereby maintain the hegemony of stability logic. Instead of disregarding external verification, managers of our case SOE appear to harness sustainability reporting as a navigational space to engage in internally crafted alternative manners in order to resist the rationality of SRA.

Originality/value

The empirical analysis presents a nuanced explanation as to why internal managers have hitherto been reluctant to embrace the embedding of independent assurance into the sustainability reporting process. Our prolonged fieldwork provides ample context-specific, intra-organizational evidence regarding the absence of SRA in Chinese CSOEs, which warrants more attention given their considerable presence in the global economy. In addition, the empirical analysis contributes to our understanding of the managerial capture of sustainability issues in a specific context of state capitalism and how organizations and individuals in an authoritarian regime interpret and respond to novel discourses derived from distinct institutional settings.

Details

Accounting, Auditing & Accountability Journal, vol. 36 no. 5
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0951-3574

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 16 March 2021

Yan Liu, Arash Amini-Abyaneh, Marcel Hertogh, Erik-Jan Houwing and Hans Bakker

Management of inter-organizational projects focuses on the collective benefits of a group of organizations on a shared activity for a limited period and the coordination among…

1844

Abstract

Purpose

Management of inter-organizational projects focuses on the collective benefits of a group of organizations on a shared activity for a limited period and the coordination among them. However, how learning is facilitated in the inter-organizational project remains under-developed in the literature.

Design/methodology/approach

This research analyses the exploitative learning process in the longest tunnel project on land in the Netherlands realized in a densely populated area. Data were collected through archived documents, in-depth interviews, site visits in the ethnographic research to analyze the actors, the daily practices and social situations in projects.

Findings

The empirical findings indicate that exploitative learning is promoted positively between the owner and the contractor and internally within the contractor. The most significant change that the exploitative learning process has led to is the change in mindset toward the collaboration. Project culture is considered to be shaped by exploitative learning in the inter-organizational project. However, there is a gap between the transfer of knowledge from the inter-organizational project to the parent organization.

Originality/value

The findings have implications for understanding learning in the inter-organizational project setting.

Details

Engineering, Construction and Architectural Management, vol. 28 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0969-9988

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 17 April 2007

Patrick van der Duin and Ida Sabelis

This paper seeks to evaluate future studies in order to improve futures research.

498

Abstract

Purpose

This paper seeks to evaluate future studies in order to improve futures research.

Design/methodology/approach

Case studies were researched.

Findings

The current study of the future carried out by the Dutch Innovation Platform (responsible for innovation policy) resembles an old‐fashioned utopism whereas a study conducted in 1977 by the Dutch Council for Government Policy yields very interesting results.

Research limitations/implications

Only two case studies have been researched.

Practical implications

Lessons learned or the evaluation of former studies of the future can be very interesting and supportive but one must be aware that they are not golden rules for doing futures research in the future itself.

Originality/value

Although futures researchers often look back at other studies of the future it remains an important activity in improving futures research.

Details

Foresight, vol. 9 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1463-6689

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 2 February 2015

Wilco Tijhuis

The purpose of this paper is to investigate and analyze actual developments within PPP-projects, and the influences of business-cultures in the management-processes of such…

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to investigate and analyze actual developments within PPP-projects, and the influences of business-cultures in the management-processes of such international PPP-projects. The paper focusses especially on the procurement, during which potential project-partners are being selected.

Design/methodology/approach

The researcher adopted a recent model from literature for analyzing business-cultures within construction processes; especially the so called “3C-Model” was used, earlier developed and published within construction-management literature. Based on analysis of literature and comparable situations, conclusions and recommendations have been made for managing international PPP-projects, especially in the project-partners selection phase.

Findings

Actual approaches within international PPP-projects do need a more structured approach during the selection of the project-partners. It is suggested to use more past-performance information, not only based on financials and/or organizational data/experiences, but also on behavioral (business-culture) data/experiences. This information needs to be structured in a proper way. Suggestions are given focussing on discussion and future-outlook.

Research limitations/implications

It would be useful to test the findings on further actual cases, testing the further implications of the outcome.

Practical implications

A better understanding of business-cultures’ influences increases the awareness of project-participants for the advantage of the suggested extra selection-criteria. This might reduce the risk for conflicts during the project-execution in the total project life-cycle.

Social implications

When improving the actual practices of selection suitable parties for actual and future PPP-projects, it is of great value to be as effective as possible within this selection process. Especially, because this approach can prevent for several unpleasant situations afterwards during the operation-time (life-cycle) of the PPP-project. In this way, a proper handling of business-culture’s influence can save clients and other stakeholders involved (society) a large amount of possible conflicts (claims, etc.) afterwards.

Originality/value

The proposed approach contributes to a better understanding of project-processes and its stakeholders (i.e. especially the – foreseen – project-participants). Current selection-processes still do not adopt a structured approach for incorporating past-performance behavioral data/experiences; so structuring and using them properly can result in more successful PPP-projects within a fast growing international PPP-market.

Details

Built Environment Project and Asset Management, vol. 5 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2044-124X

Keywords

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