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The efficiency of each of an organization’s individual workers determines its effectiveness. The study aims to explore the relationship between human resource management (HRM) practices and organizational effectiveness with employee performance as a mediating variable.

Data were collected from 800 police officers in the Greater Accra and Tema regions. The data were supported by the hypothesized relationship. Construct reliability and validity was established through confirmatory factor analysis. The proposed model and hypotheses were evaluated using structural equation modeling.

The results show that career planning and employee performance were significantly related. Self-managed teams and employee performance were shown to be nonsignificantly related. Similarly, performance management and employee performance were shown to be nonsignificantly related. Employee performance significantly influenced organizational effectiveness. The results further indicate that employee performance mediates the relationship between HRM practices and organizational effectiveness.

The generalizability of the findings will be constrained due to the research’s police service focus and cross-sectional data.

The study’s findings will serve as valuable pointers for the police administration in the adoption, design and implementation of well-articulated and proactive HRM practices to improve the abilities, skills, knowledge and motivation of officer’s to inordinately enhance the effectiveness of the service.

By evidencing empirically that employee performance mediates the relationship between HRM practice and organizational effectiveness, the study extends the literature.

The purpose of our study is to investigate the effects of politically-connected boards (PCBs) on over-(under-)investment in labor. We also examine the impacts of the supervisory board (SB)’s optimal tenure on the association between PCBs and over-investment in labor.

We constructed the proxy for PCBs using a dummy variable set to 1 (one) if a firm has politically-connected boards and zero (0) otherwise. For the robustness check, we used the number of politically-connected members on the boards as the proxy for PCBs.

We find that the presence of PCBs reduces over-investment in labor. Consistent with our prediction, we found no significant association between PCBs and under-investment in labor. We also find that the SB with optimal tenure strengthens the negative association between PCBs and over-investment in labor. In our channel analysis, we find that the presence of PCB mitigates over-investment in labor through a higher dividend payout ratio.

Due to the unavailability of data in firms’ annual reports regarding the number of poorly-skilled and highly skilled employees, we were not able to examine the effect of low-skilled and high-skilled employees on over-investment in labor. Also, we were not able to examine over-(under-)investment in labor by drawing a distinction between general (generalist) and firm-specific human capital (specialist) as suggested by Sevcenko, Wu, and Kacperczyk (2022). Generally, it is more difficult for managers to hire highly-skilled employees, specialists in particular, thereby driving the choice of either over- or under-investing in the labor forces. In addition, in the firms’ annual reports, there is no information regarding temporary employees. Therefore, if and when such data become available, this would provide another avenue for future research.

Our study offers several practical implications and insights to stakeholders (e.g. insiders or management, shareholders, investors, analysts and creditors) in the following ways. First, our study highlights significant differences between capital investment and labor investment. For instance, labor investment is considered an expense rather than an asset (Wyatt, 2008) because, although such investment is human capital and is not recognized on the firm’s balance sheet (Boon et al., 2017). In addition, labor investment is characterized by: its flexibility which enables firms to make frequent adjustments (Hamermesh, 1995; Dixit & Pindyck, 2012; Aksin et al., 2015), its non-homogeneity since every employee is unique (Luo et al., 2020), its direct impact on morale and productivity of a firm (Azadegan et al., 2013; Mishina et al., 2004; Tatikonda et al., 2013), and its financial outlay which affects the ongoing cash flows of a firm (Sualihu et al., 2021; Khedmati et al., 2020; Merz & Yashiv, 2007). Second, our findings reveal that the presence of PCBs could help to reduce over-investment in labor. However, if managers of a firm choose to under-invest in labor in order to obtain better profit in the short-term through cost saving, they should be aware of the potential consequences of facing a financial loss when a new business opportunity suddenly arises which requires a larger labor force. Third, our findings help stakeholders to re-focus on the labor investment. This is crucial due to the fact that labor investment is often neglected by those stakeholders because the expenditure of labor investment is not recognized on the firm’s balance sheet as an asset. Instead, it is written off as an expense in the firm’s income statement. Fourth, our findings also provide insightful information to stakeholders, suggesting that an SB with optimal tenure is more committed to a firm, and this factor plays an important role in strengthening the negative association between PCBs and over-investment in labor.

First, our findings provide a valuable understanding of the effects of PCBs on over-(under-)investment in labor. Stakeholders could use information disclosed in the financial statements of a publicly-listed firm to determine the extent of the firm’s investment in labor and PCBs, and compare this information with similar firms in the same industry sector. Second, our findings give a better understanding of the association between investment in labor and political connections , which are human and social capital that could determine the long-term survival and success of a firm. Third, for shareholders, the appointment of board members with political connections is an important strategic decision to build political capital, which is likely to have a long-term impact on the financial performance of a firm; therefore, it requires thoughtful consultation with firm insiders.

Our findings highlight the role of PCBs in reducing over-investment in labor. These findings are significant because both investment in labor and political connections as human and social capital can play an important role in determining the long-term survival and success of a firm.

Readmissions to the hospital are expensive and can have negative health consequences for patients. Older adults are at greater risk of readmission. Patient perspectives are valuable in identifying areas for improvement in the transition of care. The purpose of this qualitative study is to increase our understanding of patients’ perspectives on the transition of care from hospital to primary care.

This study employs a qualitative methodology to conduct semi-structured interviews with patients who have been discharged from hospitals in the Ireland East Hospital Group region. Remote interviews were conducted with 18 participants from eight general practices. Transcripts were analysed using thematic analysis as described by Braun and Clarke.

The three main themes identified were communication, outpatient supports and patient education. Gaps in communication do occur, but patients are often too external to comment. Patients benefit from a wide variety of outpatient supports including general practice, family, carers, allied health professionals and voluntary organisations. Access and cost are barriers to these supports. Participants were generally positive towards proposed primary care-based interventions such as follow-up appointments with general practitioners (GPs) and education sessions.

This study highlights a number of areas for improvement in the transition of care in current practice including communication between services and access to outpatient care. It also suggests directions for further research, such as explorations of healthcare provider perspectives and pilot studies of readmission reduction interventions.

This paper aims to examine prospective graduate students' attitudes toward educational loan borrowing in an experimental setting.

Participants were randomly assigned to two treatment groups and one control group. Subjects in experimental group 1 received financial education: a short online course on the economic viability of getting a master's degree and how to finance it with a graduate student loan, while subjects in experimental group 2 received financial education along with information on the availability bias.

Relying on a control group in the assessment of financial literacy education intervention impacts, this research finds positive causal treatment effects on individuals’ attitudes toward debt-financed graduate education. In comparison to the control group, experimental subjects perceived the possibility of going into debt with a graduate loan to complete a master’s degree as less stressful and worrying.

This study has important educational policy implications to prevent students from stopping investing in human capital by perceiving educational loan debt as something stressful or worrying. The results can help potential (and current) grad students develop a feasible financial plan for graduate school by encouraging higher education institutions to implement educational loan information and financial education into university seminar courses for better graduate student loan decision-making.

Student attitudes toward debt have been analyzed in the context of higher education, but only a few researchers internationally have used an experimental design to study personal financial decision-making.

Throughout human history, the occurrence of disasters has been inevitable, leading to significant human, financial and emotional consequences. Therefore, it is crucial to establish a well-designed plan to efficiently manage such situations when disaster strikes. The purpose of this study is to develop a comprehensive program that encompasses multiple aspects of postdisaster relief.

A multiobjective model has been developed for postdisaster relief, with the aim of minimizing social dissatisfaction, economic costs and environmental damage. The model has been solved using exact methods for different scenarios. The objective is to achieve the most optimal outcomes in the context of postdisaster relief operations.

A real case study of an earthquake in Haiti has been conducted. The acquired results and subsequent management analysis have effectively assessed the logic of the model. As a result, the model’s performance has been validated and deemed reliable based on the findings and insights obtained.

Ultimately, the model provides the optimal quantities of each product to be shipped and determines the appropriate mode of transportation. Additionally, the application of the epsilon constraint method results in a set of Pareto optimal solutions. Through a comprehensive examination of the presented solutions, valuable insights and analyses can be obtained, contributing to a better understanding of the model’s effectiveness.

For over 25 years, the United States Green Building Council (USGBC) has significantly influenced the US sustainable construction through its leadership in energy and environmental design (LEED) certification program. This study aims to delve into how Baton Rouge, Louisiana, fares in green building adoption relative to other US capital cities and regions.

The study leverages statistical and geospatial analyses of data sourced from the USGBC, among other databases. It scrutinizes Baton Rouge’s LEED criteria performance using the mean percent weighted criteria to pinpoint the LEED criteria most readily achieved. Moreover, unique metrics, such as the certified green building per capita (CGBC), were formulated to facilitate a comparative analysis of green building adoption across various regions.

Baton Rouge’s CGBC stands at 0.31% (C+), markedly trailing behind the frontrunner, Santa Fe, New Mexico, leading at 3.89% (A+) and in LEED building per capita too. Despite the notable concentration of certified green buildings (CGBs) within Baton Rouge, the city’s green building development appears to be in its infancy. Innovation and design was identified as the most attainable LEED benchmark in Baton Rouge. Additionally, socioeconomic factors, including education and income per capita, were associated with a mild to moderate positive correlation (0.25 = r = 0.36) with the adoption of green building practices across the capitals, while sociocultural infrastructure exhibited a strong positive correlation (r = 0.99).

This study is beneficial to policymakers, urban planners and developers for sustainable urban development and a reference point for subsequent postoccupancy evaluations of CGBs in Baton Rouge and beyond.

This study pioneers the comprehensive analysis of green building adoption rates and probable influencing factors in capital cities in the contiguous US using distinct metrics.

This study revisits the relationship between environmental, social and governance (ESG) activities and firm performance. More importantly, it tests whether this relationship is moderated by critical yet underexplored factors such as stakeholder engagement, financial constraints, and religiosity.

A wide range of estimation techniques, including pooled ordinary least squares (OLS), fixed effects, system generalized method of moments (GMM) and propensity score matching-difference-in-differences (PSM-DiD), are employed to investigate such issues in a large sample of firms from 31 countries.

ESG performance has a positive and significant impact on firm performance. While stakeholder engagement positively moderates this relationship, financial constraints and religiosity negatively moderate it. Interestingly, this positive linkage is driven by environmental and social performance rather than governance performance.

Firms should proactively engage in ESG initiatives and consider the intervening influences of stakeholder engagement, financial constraints and religiosity in making decisions to invest in ESG activities. Furthermore, our findings can help policymakers understand the financial consequences of ESG practices, which can be helpful in designing new policies to further promote corporate engagement in ESG practices.

First, our research findings help reconcile the long-standing debate about the value impact of ESG. Second, our paper investigates relatively new aspects of the ESG-firm performance relationship. Third, our study offers more insight into the ESG literature by showing that not all ESG dimensions equally impact firm performance.

Effective customer journey design (ECJD) is considered a key variable in customer experience management and an essential source of brand meaning and pro-brand behavior. Although previous research has confirmed its importance for driving brand attitudes and loyalty, the role of consumer-brand identification as a social identity-based influence in this relationship has not yet been discussed. Drawing on construal level and social identity theories, this paper aims to investigate whether effective journeys and the resulting overall journey experience are equally powerful in driving brand loyalty among customers with different levels of consumer-brand identification.

The present article develops and tests a research model using data from the European and US service sectors (N = 1,454) to investigate how and when ECJD affects service brand loyalty.

Across two cultural contexts, four service industries and 33 service brands, the results reveal that ECJD is a crucial driver of service brand loyalty for customers with low consumer-brand identification. Moreover, the findings show that different aspects of journey effectiveness positively impact the valence of customers’ experience related to those journeys – a process that is ultimately decisive for their brand loyalty.

This study is unique because it generates theoretical and practical knowledge by combining the literature streams of customer journey design, customer experience and branding. Furthermore, this work demonstrates that consumer-brand identification is a critical boundary condition to be considered in the relationship between ECJD and brand loyalty in services.

Industrial drivetrains use wet disk clutches for safe and reliable shifting. Advances over the past decades regarding the formulation of lubricants and the composition of friction materials have led to reliable clutch systems. In this context, the friction behavior is crucial for the correct operation of the clutch. Nevertheless, the friction behavior and its influencing factors are still the object of modern research. The purpose of this study is to investigate how the choice of the steel disk influences the noise vibration and harshness (NVH) behavior of wet industrial clutches.

To investigate the influence of the steel disk on the friction and NVH behavior of industrial wet disk clutches, experimental investigations with relevant friction systems are conducted. These tests are performed at two optimized test rigs, guaranteeing transferable insights. The surface topography of the steel disk and the friction lining are measured for one friction system to identify possible relations between the surface topography and the friction behavior.

The steel disk can influence the friction behavior of wet disk clutches. Using a different steel disk surface finish, corresponding results can show differences in the shudder tendency, leading to a nonfavorable NVH behavior – different gradients of the coefficient of friction over sliding velocity cause this phenomenon.

This work gives novel insights into the friction and NVH behavior of industrial wet disk clutches. It supports engineers in the optimization of modern friction systems.

The peer review history for this article is available at: https://publons.com/publon/10.1108/ILT-02-2024-0054/

This study analyzes the performance implications of adopting blockchain to support supply chain business processes. The technology holds as many promises as implementation challenges, so interest in its impact on operational performance has grown steadily over the last few years.

Drawing on transaction cost economics and the contingency theory, we built a set of hypotheses. These were tested through a long-term event study and an ordinary least squares regression involving 130 adopters listed in North America.

Compared with the control sample, adopters displayed significant abnormal performance in terms of labor productivity, operating cycle and profitability, whereas sales appeared unaffected. Firms in regulated settings and closer to the end customer showed more positive effects. Neither industry-level competition nor the early involvement of a project partner emerged as relevant contextual factors.

This research presents the first extensive analysis of operational performance based on objective measures. In contrast to previous studies and theoretical predictions, the results indicate that blockchain adoption is not associated with sales improvement. This can be explained considering that secure data storage and sharing do not guarantee the factual credibility of recorded data, which needs to be proved to customers in alternative ways. Conversely, improvements in other operational performance dimensions confirm that blockchain can support inter-organizational transactions more efficiently. The results are relevant in times when, following hype, there are signs of disengagement with the technology.