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While extant research does mention performance management systems as antecedent to a management accountant’s role, and that there is tension between both, there is little detailed research. Thus, this paper aims to investigate the extent to which a performance management system interacts with the role of a management accountant.

The study is a cross-sectional field study, using interviews with paired management accountants and operative managers in 16 multinational organisations in Germany. The perspectives of both management accountants and operative managers are analysed separately. The role episode model theoretically informs the study.

The findings reveal management accountants distinguish between three roles of scorekeeping, controlling and business support, similar to prior literature. By contrast, operating managers are concerned with the value-adding and non-value-adding character of activities and thus support a dichotomy of management accountants’ roles. Drawing upon the role episode model, this study elucidates the interplay between performance management systems and the roles of management accountants, which encompass both role-taking and role-making dynamics. Additionally, this study contributes to management control literature by operationalising the components of a performance management system framework and linking them to the role of management accountants, as proposed by role antecedents in previous literature. The study also uncovers factors influencing role-taking and role-making, alongside examining the repercussions of role consensus or conflict based on the interaction with the operating manager.

This paper is subject to the normal limitations of case study research and generalisation. The findings may also be influenced by the cultural context of the study.

An updated role episode model is presented, highlighting further performance management systems’ components. The study also reveals factors enabling and/or inhibiting the management accountants’ business support role and the impact of role consensus/conflict.

This study aims to develop a conceptual framework for the role of chief financial officer (CFO) in an ever-changing environment. As previous research focused on responding to specific crises, there have been theoretical and practical gaps in the role of CFO. The study's goal is to fill a critical gap by developing a comprehensive and integrated set of roles to assist the CFO in a constantly changing environment.

Using a grounded theory approach, semi-structured interviews and observations were conducted with 21 CFOs from various industries in Thailand, including foreign multinational corporations and domestic companies with international operations. CFOs were asked how they frame their roles in the face of an ever-changing environment and how they prepare for the future.

The iCFO model is developed, which identifies the critical “core” roles of the CFO in securing the business foundation, as well as the “future opportunities” roles that function as growth engines for long-term business strength. The research delves into the importance of integrity, ethical mindset and corporate governance in the role of the CFO. The iCFO model is designed to help guide future research and provide practical applications for CFOs in both domestic and international contexts. The term “core” refers to the CFO’s primary responsibilities, which include driving profitability, managing risks and optimizing business performance. The “future opportunities” component focuses on the roles that CFOs can play in strengthening the future of business by optimizing investment efficiency, driving digital transformation and being the CEO’s business partner. The findings also emphasized “integrity,” which must encompass all decisions, actions or recommendations made by the CFO.

The study offers unique perspectives on an emerging economy, providing new insights. Through interviews with 21 CFOs, it contributes empirical evidence on the development of roles in accounting and finance, emphasizing good governance practices. The findings highlight the integrated role of the CFO and their self-reflection on their value within the company. Significantly, the study's implications are relevant and applicable to a global audience, particularly in developing economies that prioritize growth. Future studies could incorporate integrated thinking into the iCFO model to address social, environmental and economic factors, making it more universally relevant. Additionally, exploring the adoption of the chief value officer context in developing markets could enable CFOs to expand their focus beyond financial metrics, embracing a comprehensive approach to value creation. By integrating these concepts into the iCFO model, CFOs can effectively drive sustainable and impactful business outcomes on a global scale.

Utilizing boundary theory as a guiding framework, this study aims to explore facets of work–life balance (WLB) that women entrepreneurs experience in the context of the United Arab Emirates (UAE). It sheds light on strategies women entrepreneurs use to manage and shape boundaries between their personal and professional lives.

In this qualitative study, we conducted in-depth interviews with 50 women entrepreneurs to gain a deeper understanding of their WLB challenges.

Integration is a boundary management approach used by most women in our sample, facilitated by the thin work–life boundary inferable from their entrepreneurial careers. Integration has all the hallmarks of being imposed on women entrepreneurs because of family role challenges and societal expectations, on top of their entrepreneurial obligations. Women are reactors; they shoulder societal, family and entrepreneurial roles while having little control over events and circumstances.

Boundary theory suggests two roles must be interconnected to coexist successfully. Women entrepreneurs can benefit from the synergy between their personal and professional lives. As their roles tend to be more complex, it is essential to consider the consolidation of both spheres as an ongoing process to maximize their benefits.

Today’s independent forms of working are contingent on flexible work arrangements, work intensification and wireless communication. Understanding how women entrepreneurs find balance amid boundarylessness adds to our limited knowledge of people in comparable environments.

The purpose of this study is to review the role of knowledge management (KM) in disaster management and crisis. Disaster causes many detrimental impacts on human lives through loss of life and damage to properties. KM has been shown to dampen the impact of the disaster on the utilization of knowledge among agencies involved and the local communities impacted by disasters.

Through a bibliometric methodology (co-citation, bibliographic coupling and co-word analysis), this study presents significant themes in the past, current and future predictions on the role of KM in disaster management. In this review paper, 437 publications were retrieved from the Web of Science and analyzed through VOSviewer software to visualize and explore the knowledge map on the subject domain.

Findings suggest that the significant themes derived are centralized to disaster preparedness during disaster and disaster postrecovery. This review presents a state-of-art bibliometric analysis of the crucial role of KM in building networks and interconnection among relevant players and stakeholders involved in disaster management.

The main implication of this study is how the authorities, stakeholders and local community can integrate the KM system within the three stages of disasters and the crucial role of technologies and social media in facilitating disaster management.

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first study to present a bibliometric analysis in mapping KM’s past, present and future trends in disaster management.

Information security (InfoSec) policy violations are of great concern to all organisations worldwide, especially in the financial industry. Although the importance of InfoSec policy has been highlighted for many decades, InfoSec breaches still occur due to a low level of employee compliance and a lack of engagement and competence in high-level management. However, previous studies have primarily investigated the behavioural aspects of InfoSec policy compliance at the individual level rather than the managerial factors involved in constructing InfoSec policy and developing its effectiveness. Thus, drawing on neo-institutional theory and a transformational leadership framework, this research investigated the influence of external mechanisms and transformational leadership on InfoSec policy effectiveness.

The research model was implemented using field survey data from professional managers in the financial sector.

The results reported that neo-institutional mechanisms and transformational leadership shape InfoSec policy effectiveness in an organisation.

This study broadens current InfoSec policy research from an individual level to a managerial perspective and enhances the existing literature on neo-institutional and transformational leadership in the context of InfoSec. It highlights the need to evaluate InfoSec policy based on external factors and to support transformational leadership styles that promote InfoSec policy enforcement and effectiveness.

The purpose of this study is to investigate the relationship between the absorptive capacity (AC) of a firm and project success (PS), with particular attention to the mediating role of customer knowledge management capability (CKMC) and the moderating role of environmental complexity (EC). By using data collected from Turkish SMEs across different sectors, the study seeks to understand how AC impacts project success, how CKMC mediates this relationship, and how EC moderates the link between AC and CKMC. The research contributes to both theory and practice by providing insights into these relationships and suggesting future research directions.

This study focuses on Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) in Turkey, specifically within the cities of Istanbul, Ankara, Izmir, and Konya. To gather data, the researchers utilized a non-probabilistic convenience sampling method and distributed self-administered surveys to a selected pool of 918 respondents including shift supervisors, project managers, and team members within these SMEs. The surveys were translated to Turkish to avoid language issues. Out of the surveys distributed, 401 valid responses were collected, resulting in a response rate of 43.68%.

The main findings of the study indicate that a firm’s absorptive capacity (AC) positively impacts project success and customer knowledge management capability (CKMC). Furthermore, CKMC plays a mediating role, positively influencing project success. Additionally, the study reveals the moderating effect of environmental complexity (EC) on the relationship between AC and CKMC, suggesting that as EC becomes more complex, it strengthens the link between AC and CKMC. Moreover, CKMC was found to mediate the moderating effect of EC on the relationship between AC and project success, emphasizing the significance of environmental complexity in this interaction.

This study’s limitations stem from its cross-sectional approach, which limits the ability to establish causal relationships between the constructs of absorptive capacity (AC), customer knowledge management capability (CKMC), and project success. It does not examine other potential mediators, such as customer relationship capability and innovation capability. Furthermore, the existing literature on this topic is scarce, suggesting a need for further research, particularly on constructs like team skills for managing CKMC. There is also an unexplored area around the effects of different forms of complexity, such as resource and technical complexity. Finally, further research is needed to understand how SMEs, which often face resource constraints, leverage AC in different functional domains for successful new product development.

The study’s findings have significant practical implications for SMEs, highlighting the importance of absorptive capacity (AC) and customer knowledge management capability (CKMC) in promoting project success, particularly under conditions of environmental complexity. As businesses navigate uncertain environments, external knowledge acquisition becomes crucial for improvement and innovation. Efficient transformation of this knowledge can enhance project success rates. Thus, firms should cultivate a proactive, innovative, and risk-taking climate. Also, firms should regularly assess their AC and CKMC in the face of shifting stakeholder expectations and market competition. The ability to detect, integrate, and apply external knowledge in product and service development can significantly enhance project success rates.

This study’s originality lies in its exploration of the complex interplay between a firm’s absorptive capacity (AC), customer knowledge management capability (CKMC), environmental complexity (EC), and project success (PS). By examining Turkish SMEs across various sectors, the study uncovers the mediating role of CKMC and the moderating role of EC in the relationship between AC and PS. Furthermore, it reveals how the effect of AC on PS through CKMC strengthens with increasing environmental complexity. These findings offer fresh insights into the complexity theory and the factors influencing project success, providing a unique perspective for both academics and practitioners, with practical implications for managing SMEs in complex environments.

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the mediating roles of tacit and explicit knowledge sharing (KS) in linking the relationship between knowledge-based HRM practices and innovation competence of firms. This study also explores the potential moderating role of market turbulence in fostering the influence of KS behaviors on two forms of innovation competence namely radical innovation and incremental innovation.

The paper applied the quantitative approach and structural equation modeling to examine the correlation among the latent constructs based on the survey data collected from 293 participants in 115 firms.

The empirical findings of this study support the mediating role of KS behaviors in the relationship between knowledge-based HRM practices and aspects of innovation competence. It highlights the important role of market turbulence in stimulating the influence of KS behaviors on innovation capabilities.

Future research should investigate the impact of knowledge-based HRM practices on innovation capability via the mediating effects of knowledge management processes to bring better understanding of the importance of knowledge resources in organizations.

The paper significantly contributes to increasing knowledge and insights into the antecedent role of knowledge-based HRM practices, the mediating role of KS behaviors as well as the moderating role of market turbulence in fostering radical and incremental innovation, thereby advancing the body of comprehension of knowledge-based resources and innovation theory.

Using Schein’s Descriptive Index (SDI), this paper aims to first examine gender role stereotypes and requisite managerial characteristics among Irish business students over a 10-year period. Then, the paper investigates whether there have been changes in gender role stereotypes during this period and subsequently unpack the reasons behind any changes recorded.

In total, 1,124 students from the same business student population rated men, women and managers in general, using SDI. Data was collected first during the academic year 2008–2009 and again in 2018–2019 to determine stability or change in gender role stereotypes and requisite managerial characteristics. Intraclass correlation coefficients scores were computed to determine the relationship between gender and requisite managerial characteristics and identify differences and similarities between the two samples. To explore the content of gender stereotypes, an examination of the specific descriptive items was conducted by performing a factorial analysis using Duncan’s Multiple Range Test. Finally, the authors adapted the scales developed by Duehr and Bono (2006) to determine whether broad gender stereotypic characteristics with respect to communal and agentic, attributed to men, women and managers, differ by sample.

The overall findings indicate changes in the extent of gender role stereotyping of the managerial role among the male cohorts studied. The subsequent analysis of the descriptive items identified that the change among the male cohort is due to the levels of agency they perceive women to now possess.

The authors contribute to the literature on both gendered and managerial stereotypes by showing changes in the pro-male stereotype of the managerial role and contribute to the existing debate on a shift towards a more androgynous view of leadership.

These findings help understand the content of gender role stereotypes that recent graduates bring with them to their first job post-graduation. The observed changes in the level of agency ascribed to women by their male counterparts could prove to be an important step forward for women’s advancement to managerial positions.

The findings indicate that both male and female cohorts in Sample 2 perceived men and women in general to possess the same levels of communal and agentic traits as their managerial counterparts.

This conceptual work examines how, in times of post-COVID-19 paradigm shift, the employee performance management (PM) process can help multinational corporations (MNCs) strengthen their talent management and, at the same time, meet their future needs.

We take a conceptual approach and present our perspective on what we see as the most critical trends shaping PM and talent management. Contingency theory and Volatility, Uncertainty, Complexity, and Ambiguity (VUCA) theory provide a sound theoretical framework for understanding and responding to the complex and rapidly changing business context post-COVID-19.

Drawing on these theories, we create a framework providing a means of understanding why and how MNCs can maintain talent and, at the same time, develop new talent through the PM process.

Importantly, our study emphasizes the critical role that project management and talent management techniques play for both practitioners and scholars. In order to gain and sustain a competitive edge in the ever-changing VUCA (Volatility, Uncertainty, Complexity, and Ambiguity) landscape, these processes necessitate ongoing reassessment and adaptation. As Plato eloquently stated, “Our Need Will Be the Real Creator,” encapsulating our vision for the proactive and dynamic nature of effective project management and talent management practices.

The study establishes the benefits of an agile and flexible PM approach to help develop talent and pave the way for future research in this increasingly critical area

When the media report negatively about an organisation, its employees are not only affected but also a source of information for outsiders who want to find out more about the situation. Because of their credibility, employees can support public relations managers to preserve or restore organisational reputation. In this research, we explore the role of organisational identification and internal corporate communication (ICC) in the event of negative media coverage for employees’ defensive and assertive impression management behaviours. Defensive strategies include excuses, justifications and the avoidance of threatening situations. Assertive strategies are more active and refer to behaviours which aim to establish a desirable identity; in the context of negative media coverage, this entails actively defending the organisation, explaining the situation and conveying the organisation’s official version of the event in order to bolster its reputation. Results from an online survey among employed persons reveal that employees’ identification with their work organisation positively influences their assertive as well as defensive reactions. ICC has a more differentiated influence on employees’ reactions: If ICC is evaluated well, employees’ assertive reactions increase; if evaluated poorly, employees exhibit more defensive reactions. These findings show that ICC can make a difference in winning employees as ambassadors for the organisation in critical situations.