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21 – 30 of over 4000The aim of this chapter is to frame the key issues in workplace information literacy. This chapter is the personal experiences and observations of the author with over 30 years of…
Abstract
The aim of this chapter is to frame the key issues in workplace information literacy. This chapter is the personal experiences and observations of the author with over 30 years of experience in intranets, corporate libraries and product development. The workplace is not a single or uniform population, as can be said broadly about mass markets like consumers, K-12 students, or undergraduate scholars. Workplaces are defined as the workers in both not-for-profit and for-profit sectors who are tasked with running the organization and delivering services to end users like learners, customers, clients, patients, etc. This chapter explores these issues and frameworks through key target audiences in commercial and institutional workplace environments such as:
Teachers (as opposed to students)
Faculty (professors as opposed to young scholars)
Corporate administrators and business decision-makers, executive, professionals, consultants, accountants, auditors, MBAs, managers
Medical professionals such as doctors, nurses, pharmacists
Lawyers (in both private practice and internal corporate and government work)
Engineers
Creative professions (artists, advertisers, marketers, etc.)
Teachers (as opposed to students)
Faculty (professors as opposed to young scholars)
Corporate administrators and business decision-makers, executive, professionals, consultants, accountants, auditors, MBAs, managers
Medical professionals such as doctors, nurses, pharmacists
Lawyers (in both private practice and internal corporate and government work)
Engineers
Creative professions (artists, advertisers, marketers, etc.)
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Daniel Wolfgruber and Sabine Einwiller
This chapter presents a study on the role of internal communication for diversity and inclusion (D&I) management in organisations. It sheds light on how the units D&I management…
Abstract
This chapter presents a study on the role of internal communication for diversity and inclusion (D&I) management in organisations. It sheds light on how the units D&I management and internal communication are linked to each other in terms of exchanging and sharing ideas and know-how and the (common) pursuit and achievement of strategically set objectives. In total, 20 D&I experts (17 D&I managers and three D&I management consultants) from Austria and Germany were interviewed. The focus of the interviews was on the development of D&I management strategies and concomitant measures as well as the internal D&I communication activities. The findings indicate the importance of internal communication to communicate D&I goals and measures. In this context, the internal communication department plays the role of a service provider and advisor. Numerous communication channels are used to communicate D&I initiatives, with ‘rich’ media such as interpersonal communication and social intranet being particularly common. Furthermore, the results show that storytelling is a particularly popular form of communication. The study contributes to the scholarly examination of the role of internal communication in D&I management, to what extent and how the two units collaborate, and what communication measures are taken to pursue D&I management goals.
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Ragna Kemp Haraldsdottir and Johanna Gunnlaugsdottir
The purpose of this paper is to present the findings of a research on collaborative personal knowledge registration (PKR). It seeks to explain the interrelationship between…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to present the findings of a research on collaborative personal knowledge registration (PKR). It seeks to explain the interrelationship between records professionals and human resource (HR) and training professionals, as well as the views of management and quality managers on collaborative PKR. It aims to raise awareness of records professionals as specialists in information management, including personal knowledge.
Design/methodology/approach
Qualitative methodology was used to conduct the research. It was a multiple-case study, covering 12 organizations in Iceland. In these organizations, 32 professionals were interviewed. The research sought to understand how PKR was being facilitated, as well as how personal knowledge was made accessible and usable for employees.
Findings
The organizations had not been as successful as anticipated in PKR. The role and responsibility of records professionals was limited in the PKR process. Different professionals seemed unaware of the possible synergy effect of collaborative PKR.
Originality/value
There is a lack of studies that explore the juxtaposition and collaboration of records professionals and HR and training professionals in organizations. The aim of this research was to bridge this gap. Its originality lies in how it approaches diverse professions and their collaborative PKR effort. This research provides a valuable practical and theoretical contribution to a rapidly growing interdisciplinary field of information and records management. It can lay the foundation for further research into the field.
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Emma Parry and Adriano Solidoro
This chapter examines the use of social media within organizations in order to engage with both current and potential future employees.
Abstract
Purpose
This chapter examines the use of social media within organizations in order to engage with both current and potential future employees.
Design/methodology/approach
It is commonly claimed that social media technologies can help organizations to engage with both current and potential employees. This chapter examines these claims through an examination of the use of social media within two organizations: a UK television company and an international UK telecommunications company. Data was gathered from the company websites and via 34 semi-structured interviews.
Findings
The two case studies confirm that social media has promise with regard to facilitating the engagement of existing employees. However, the findings suggest also that the use of social media to engage employees will not be successful unless the culture and leadership of the organization already embraces open communication and participation.
Research limitations/implications
The findings are limited in that they rely on two case studies and therefore might not be applicable to other organizations. Despite the limitations, this chapter has significant implications for organizations considering the adoption of social media as a means to improve employee engagement. It suggests that when adopting social media for organizations, the very first step should be to assess the organizational readiness with a focus on culture and people rather than on the technology itself. This is because managerial behaviors and styles are central to the level of engagement individuals feel with an organization. For the same reason leaders need to be trained to lead collaboratively, and to be able to understand the new social practices.
Originality/value
The chapter makes an important contribution to an extremely sparse literature on social media as a means for engaging with employees through the provision of rare empirical data and is therefore valuable both for managers and for HR scholars and practitioners.
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This paper aims to discuss the interview held with Professor John Bessant conducted by Professor Peter Totterdill. John Bessant has been active in research, teaching and…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to discuss the interview held with Professor John Bessant conducted by Professor Peter Totterdill. John Bessant has been active in research, teaching and consultancy in technology and innovation management for over 25 years. He currently holds the Chair in Innovation and Entrepreneurship at Exeter University where he is also Research Director.
Design/methodology/approach
This wide-ranging and insightful interview looks at the challenges of implementing workplace innovation and the realities involved in the process. It covers questions concerning the importance of innovation to businesses coming out of recession and the relationship between employee involvement and innovation.
Findings
Professor Bessant also discusses the challenge of releasing individual potential and how to harness random creativity. He looks at the “starter conditions” for workplace innovation as well as the factors that mitigate against sustaining it.
Practical implications
Key to sustaining workplace innovation, he argues, are a number of elements including momentum, self-belief and confidence, appropriate resource, leadership and empowerment. In addition, the implementation of workplace innovation does not occur as one big hit but a series of small steps which evolve and develop.
Originality/value
New technology via intranets and social media also help to mobilise a lot more participation. Technology now provides the potential to reach every employee and their involvement can be instantaneous. This can create a notion of shared creativity, the Facebook process of “good idea, I like that, why don’t you try that?”
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Maria Pokryshkina, Niko Kananen and Jutta Viskari
This chapter offers insights on how knowledge management (KM) tools and initiatives contribute to successful internal branding. Knowledge management has gained considerable…
Abstract
This chapter offers insights on how knowledge management (KM) tools and initiatives contribute to successful internal branding. Knowledge management has gained considerable recognition from both business practitioners and academics. However, understanding and implementation of KM practices in relation to internal branding is still a largely unexplored field. The authors, thus, present several models of knowledge sharing and outline their applicability to the field of internal branding. Through a case study of a Finnish multinational company Teleste, this chapter shows the applicability of the presented theories for brand knowledge sharing. The practical case looks at how knowledge sharing helped Teleste in the process of rebranding, particularly when promoting its new brand image within the organization.
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Cathrine Filstad, Boyka Simeonova and Max Visser
The purpose of this study is to investigate the crossing of knowledge and power boundaries within a bureaucratic organization by using enterprise social media (ESM). (Carlile’s…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this study is to investigate the crossing of knowledge and power boundaries within a bureaucratic organization by using enterprise social media (ESM). (Carlile’s 2002) boundary crossing framework is used to guide this research.
Design/methodology/approach
This is a qualitative study based on semi-structured interviews and observations in a large Norwegian public sector organization.
Findings
The authors find that investigating crossing knowledge and power boundaries by using ESM is problematic at syntactic, semantic and pragmatic levels. ESM is used predominantly for sharing, storing and retrieving explicit knowledge, which is a display of crossing the information-processing boundary. Hence, the possibilities of shifts in formal power positions where all employees can participate on equal terms is not achieved. On the contrary, as shared meaning on how to use EMS, taking the perspective of other on how to share knowledge and thus creating new knowledge practices in EMS by overcoming these knowledge barriers is not evident. Therefore, examples of crossing the semantic and pragmatic knowledge boundaries are rarely found.
Research limitations/implications
The framework could be applied to a variety of contexts to further explore the role of ESM in learning and knowledge sharing and its ability to cross power and knowledge boundaries.
Originality/value
This paper addresses a gap in the literature around discussions of power, trust, boundary crossing and the use of ESM for knowledge sharing and learning.
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Marta Ingelmo Palomares, Cristina Navarro and José Ángel Sanz Lara
The purpose of this paper is to explore the factors that influence the success of internal communication in Spanish companies, specifically the importance of the channels used…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to explore the factors that influence the success of internal communication in Spanish companies, specifically the importance of the channels used, activities conducted through ISM and the role played by the communication professional.
Design/methodology/approach
The model employed argues that to obtain success in internal communication, three factors are considered necessary: first, communication professionals must participate in strategic decisions; second, they have to use together social media channel and classical channel to communicate with employees; and finally they must choose which activities they carry out during the use of social media. These elements are developed in the literature review. To research practices of internal digital communications and level of success of internal communication across types of organizations, a quantitative survey between professionals from Spanish companies was conducted.
Findings
The results revealed that the hierarchical level, participation in the strategic decision process and dedication of the communication practitioner, alongside with the use of face-to-face and online communication channels, and the perceived importance of communication activities conducted through social media platforms are the key factors that influence the quality of internal communication. However, no significant relationship between the level of success and the use of social media channels was found.
Research limitations/implications
The current study has several limitations that should be noted and addressed in future research. The main limitation lies in the fact that the dependent variable – success in communication – is entirely based on communication professionals’ perceptions. Replication studies can be conducted to cross-validate the results obtained from this study using business outcome metrics to measure the communication effectiveness. A further limitation is related to the sampling procedure. Obtaining a representative sample of communications professionals in Spanish companies poses a number of limitations due to the impossibility of having accurate data on the total population.
Practical implications
The findings of the current study provide important implications for public relations professionals on what (i.e. the content) and how to (i.e. the channels) communicate within an organization. In general, internal communicators should move from historical roles as information producers and distributors to advisory roles in strategic decision making. Additionally, the implementation and use of ISM should be carefully revaluated. Communication practitioners should examine and address the difficulties involved in choosing the correct channels, devoting the necessary time to their adequate management, analyzing employees’ feedback and improving the engagement.
Originality/value
The study shows that internal communication practices in Spanish companies are changing. The model used in this research can be applied in an individual organization to evaluate what factors improve the communication of its employees and carry out additional research in other countries or types of organizations to identity new challenges.
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The purpose of this paper is to describe Saraswati, a cross‐lingual Sanskrit Digital Library hosted at Banaras Hindu University. The system aims to assist those who know Sanskrit…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to describe Saraswati, a cross‐lingual Sanskrit Digital Library hosted at Banaras Hindu University. The system aims to assist those who know Sanskrit and at least one Indic script out of Devanagari, Kannada, Telugu and Bengali.
Design/methodology/approach
The system is developed with the Unicode standard using PHP as the programming language. The system follows three levels of architecture for search, display, and storage of Sanskrit documents. The system uses the UTF‐8 character representation system and generates on‐the‐fly transliteration from one Indic language script to another.
Findings
The system successfully demonstrates transliteration of Sanskrit text from one language to another. Saraswati is also capable of searching a given keyword across different languages and produces the result in the desired language script.
Research limitations/implications
Some languages such as Tamil (not chosen for study) use context dependent consonants, and with the present algorithm they require further refinement.
Practical implications
With Saraswati, people can read Sanskrit documents and also perform a search for documents available in other scripts. The present system is useful for reading cross‐lingual literature. The present study demonstrates successful implementation of Saraswati over the University Intranet.
Social implications
It is very common among scholars both in India and abroad that they learn Sanskrit with only one Indic script. The present system is helpful for such kind of scholars.
Originality/value
The system is the first of its kind anywhere and will be highly beneficial for scholars.
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Ashok Kumar Wahi, Rajnish Kumar Misra and Moonis Shakeel
This study aims at examining the factors governing business benefits of moving to Enterprise 2.0. Web 2.0 has been around for more than a decade, and has been exploited by a lot…
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims at examining the factors governing business benefits of moving to Enterprise 2.0. Web 2.0 has been around for more than a decade, and has been exploited by a lot of business organizations for improving their operations and profitability. However, the success rate has not been uniform.
Design/methodology/approach
Is there a pattern behind this successful adoption has been a matter of curiosity for most top management personnel. This paper goes into analyzing what factors govern this movement from Enterprise 1.0 to Enterprise 2.0 and uses structured equation modeling to predict the possibilities.
Findings
It concludes by demonstrating that business benefits to the organization are significantly linked to the usage of Web 2.0 tools.
Research limitations/implications
The paper has been done in India, and the authors expect that similar studies around the world will result in similar results.
Practical implications
Results of this paper emphasize the strong correlation between the use of Web 1.0 and Web 2.0 tools with business benefits obtained in terms of improved productivity of resources used and a higher level of information quality leading to better decision-making. Thus, transition to the Enterprise 2.0 state should be strived by all business organizations.
Originality/value
This is an original work of the authors.
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