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1 – 10 of 83The purpose of this paper is to conceptualize employees’ digital skills as signals with which employees tacitly deliver information about their competence and suitability to the…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to conceptualize employees’ digital skills as signals with which employees tacitly deliver information about their competence and suitability to the firm.
Design/methodology/approach
The paper draws on the Spence’s signaling theory.
Findings
Applying Spence’s signaling theory and Walther and Parks’s warranting theory enables the conceptualization of digital skills as signals and warrants among older workers who have been employed in their position for a longer period but nevertheless wish to demonstrate ongoing productivity.
Practical implications
It is recommended to use information about prospective or existent employees’ digital literacy as an indicator of high priority for the purpose of personnel selection, as it entails the acquisition of digital skills, which facilitate high productivity of most industries in today’s era.
Social implications
Older workers may wish to acquire digital skills in order to improve their career chances.
Originality/value
The paper is a theoretical contribution to the scholarship of digital literacy as well as to both signaling and warranting theories.
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Muruganantham G., Suresh Paul Antony and Esther Princess George
The study aims to understand the signaling effects of two major recruitment advertisement (ad) contents – job attributes and organizational attributes (OA) – on the perceptions…
Abstract
Purpose
The study aims to understand the signaling effects of two major recruitment advertisement (ad) contents – job attributes and organizational attributes (OA) – on the perceptions and application intentions (AIs) of potential job seekers.
Design/methodology/approach
A fictitious faculty job ad based on existing real ads was created as a stimulus and the responses to the ad were collected from 270 job seekers of the academic domain in India. The partial least square-structural equation modeling was used to test the hypothetical relationships.
Findings
Drawing from the concept of signaling theory and instrumental-symbolic framework, the results revealed that job attributes and OA exhibit strong signals that generate the following perceptual outcomes in a job seeker – organizational attractiveness, attitude and person-organization fit. These perceptual outcomes mediated effectively to induce an AI in a job seeker. Signals from information on job attributes had a more significant effect on the job seeker than signals from information on OA.
Practical implications
The outcome of the study provides preparatory guidelines to academicians, institutional recruiters and recruitment agencies in posting an effective job ad.
Originality/value
From an Indian context, this is the first paper to present distinctive job advertising strategies to be implemented in the academic institutional recruitment communication.
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Ken Hung, Chang-Wen Duan and Gladson I. Nwanna
This paper explores dividend announcements based on information hypothesis. We explore in particular whether or not information signaling theory existed in Taiwan. We also explore…
Abstract
This paper explores dividend announcements based on information hypothesis. We explore in particular whether or not information signaling theory existed in Taiwan. We also explore the free cash flow hypothesis. In order to eliminate affecting factors, we target companies with irregular dividends as research samples, just like those with specially designated dividends (SDD). We examine whether or not those proceeds may be deemed as future earnings prospection. In this paper we study mainly dividend announcements made during stockholder’s meetings of the companies listed in the Taiwan Stock Exchange (TSE) or R.O.C. Over-the-Counter Securities Exchange (ROSE). We apply event study as means of analyzing abnormal returns of the companies. In addition we use the GARCH model with traditional ordinary least square to estimate the market model. The results indicate that SDDs are considered positive signals by the national exchange, TSE. In addition, we also show that the first-time SDD does transmit a positive signal to the market regarding the firm’s future cash flow, and that the SDD of no payment in the previous three years is negative. Furthermore, we prove that low Q firms have greater market reaction than high Q firms in announcement period. The free cash flow hypothesis and firm size effects could not be verified in Taiwan.
Muruganantham Ganesan, Suresh Paul Antony and Esther Princess George
Grounded in the concept of signaling theory and instrumental-symbolic framework, the purpose of this paper is to develop a model to examine the impact of print job advertisement…
Abstract
Purpose
Grounded in the concept of signaling theory and instrumental-symbolic framework, the purpose of this paper is to develop a model to examine the impact of print job advertisement (ad) dimensions (message contents) and organizational familiarity on job seeker’s perception of attitude, organizational attractiveness, and application intention.
Design/methodology/approach
This paper is a theoretical exploration based on existing literature.
Findings
The presence of instrumental and symbolic attributes in print job advertisement such as job and work characteristics, aesthetics, employee testimonial/picture, corporate image enhancing statements, organizational culture-enhancing statements, and human resource offerings are more likely to play influential roles in creating favorable attitude, organizational attractiveness, and application intention in a job seeker. Apart from this, organizational familiarity plays a moderating role on job seeker’s attitude formation and in gaining organizational attractiveness.
Practical implications
The study offers a clear guideline to recruiting organizations, HR managers, recruitment agencies, or consultants on how to design a recruitment advertisement to pool a large number of potential applicants. The study also throws light on testing the effectiveness of a recruitment advertisement, similar to commercial ads. Moreover, the outcome of testing would help the recruiters understand the pulse of the job seeker toward the ad, job, and organization.
Originality/value
This study theoretically clarifies the role of instrumental and symbolic attributes or dimensions of job ads and the role of organizational familiarity in inducing positive attitude formation and organizational attractiveness, in the process that cultivates application intention in a potential job seeker.
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Mireille Chidiac El Hajj, May Chidiac and Ali Awdeh
This paper aims at shedding light on the entrepreneurs' perception towards crowdfunding as a new mean for raising capital, and their willingness to send appropriate signals to the…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims at shedding light on the entrepreneurs' perception towards crowdfunding as a new mean for raising capital, and their willingness to send appropriate signals to the potential fund providers/backers.
Design/methodology/approach
The research strategy is based on three methodological approaches: desk research on online sources, a map of the crowdfunding phenomenon, and a quantitative approach with a survey performed between June and December 2020. The survey covers a sample of 147 Small and Medium enterprises (SMEs) and startups, in addition to semi-structured interviews with 10 entrepreneurs.
Findings
The study reveals that between losing their work and losing part of their firms' equity, entrepreneurs are keen on sending positive signals to backers. Moreover, they are willing to adopt a new way of thinking, as their primary goal is to save their firms, their jobs, and their source of income. The research highlights the concern of entrepreneurs of losing reputation, losing intellectual property, losing control, and of becoming only shareholders in their enterprises.
Research limitations/implications
The main limitation in this paper is that no single study in Lebanon adequately covers the topic and thus extensive research has been carried out on crowdfunding across the world and analyzed in the Lebanese context.
Practical implications
Overcoming funding challenges can reduce brain drain, promote a culture of entrepreneurship, serve the economy, combat poverty, achieve more equitable society, increase the levels of expectations, and turn the flywheel. Moreover, the paper presents clear implications for the field of policy-making both in developing and developed countries.
Originality/value
Considering the serious financial disintermediation and liquidity shortage Lebanon faces, the findings of this study show how important changing entrepreneurial culture and behavior is, and the crucial role crowdfunding could play in providing funds for the SMEs that form 95% of the total business sector in Lebanon.
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Peter Magnusson, Stanford A. Westjohn and Srdan Zdravkovic
The purpose of this paper is to examine two contextual factors with respect to the influence of corporate social responsibility (CSR) messages on consumer attitudes and purchase…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to examine two contextual factors with respect to the influence of corporate social responsibility (CSR) messages on consumer attitudes and purchase intentions. First, the authors examine the interplay between CSR messages and country image, and second, how consumers’ global identity affects their response to CSR signals.
Design/methodology/approach
The conceptual framework is examined in two samples of US consumers evaluating a new foreign entrant into the US market.
Findings
The empirical findings largely support the conceptual framework. Consistent with expectations, CSR and country image influence attitudes and purchase intentions. Most importantly, the authors also find a significant interaction effect between CSR and country of origin (COO). Further, consumers high on global identity are more responsive to positive CSR signals. These findings are confirmed in two complimentary studies.
Practical implications
CSR has become an important strategic priority for managers. This study allows managers to make more informed decisions regarding the CSR initiatives of their organizations.
Originality/value
This study connects the CSR literature with the COO literature, both of which are very important in the international marketing literature. Viewed through a signaling theory lens, this study provides new insights when, where, and how positive and negative CSR messages help or hurt the firm.
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Tuna Karatepe, Ali Ozturen, Osman M. Karatepe, M. Mithat Uner and Taegoo Terry Kim
Using social exchange, signaling, job demands-resources and reformulation of attitude theories, the purpose of this paper is to propose and test a research model in which green…
Abstract
Purpose
Using social exchange, signaling, job demands-resources and reformulation of attitude theories, the purpose of this paper is to propose and test a research model in which green work engagement (GWEN) mediates the impact of management commitment to the ecological environment (MCEE) on green creativity, task-related pro-environmental behavior (PEB) and proactive PEB.
Design/methodology/approach
Data for the paper were obtained from hotel customer-contact employees in Turkey and South Korea. The hypothesized associations were assessed via structural equation modeling.
Findings
The findings in Studies 1 and 2 supported the viability of the model. Specifically, GWEN partially mediated the effect of MCEE on task-related and proactive PEB, while it fully mediated the influence of MCEE on green creativity.
Practical implications
Management should invest and/or go on investing in environmental sustainability to send strong signals to employees that the organization really cares about the environment and is highly committed to the preservation and protection of the environment. With green training, empowerment and rewards, management can boost employees’ GWEN, which motivates them to engage in environmentally responsible behaviors.
Originality/value
The paper advances current knowledge by testing the relationship of MCEE, as appraised by employees, to their GWEN and green work outcomes. More importantly, the paper has explored the impact of GWEN in the intermediate relationship between MCEE and critical green work outcomes, such as green creativity, task-related PEB and proactive PEB. Further, the paper adds to the extant research by assessing the antecedents and outcomes of GWEN.
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Philipp Schäpers, Talea Stolte and Henrik Heinemann
To increase the share of women in the top management of companies, legal gender quotas are increasingly being introduced worldwide. Their effect, however, especially on perceived…
Abstract
Purpose
To increase the share of women in the top management of companies, legal gender quotas are increasingly being introduced worldwide. Their effect, however, especially on perceived diversity and employer attractiveness, remains unknown. The purpose of this study is to investigate how a gender quota for a company’s executive board affects potential employees’ evaluation of that company as an employer. Drawing on signaling theory and the rationale of diversity attraction, the authors assumed that both the gender composition of a company’s board and the presence of a quota send signals regarding specific factors associated with diversity (i.e. perceived diversity climate, perceived internal motive for gender diversification and perceived competencies of board members). The authors postulated that these signals are perceived by job applicants and used to evaluate the attractiveness of the company as an employer.
Design/methodology/approach
In a scenario study, the authors manipulated the composition of the management board. That is, participants were presented an executive board that was either homogeneously male (Group 1) or had a female representation of 30% (Groups 2 and 3) or 50% (Group 4). The executive board in Groups 3 and 4 was subject to a statutory gender quota of 30%.
Findings
The results showed that a company with a gender-diverse board was perceived as more attractive by potential applicants than an all-male board. Also, a gender quota did not reduce a company’s employer attractiveness. The results suggest that potential applicants attach importance to board diversity but place less value on the causes that led to it.
Originality/value
Against the backdrop of the war for talent, this study contributes to a better understanding of the impact of gender quotas and factors influencing employer attractiveness. The study showed that when a gender quota is in place, applicants assume to a lesser extent that a company staffs its gender-diverse board of directors out of an inner conviction. Nonetheless, the presence of a gender quota does not significantly reduce the perceived diversity climate, nor does a quota have a negative impact on the employer attractiveness. Thus, using a quota as a means to increase gender diversity does not harm the ends.
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Atul Shiva, Nilesh Arora and Bikramjit Rishi
Celebrity endorsement is a preferred marketing communication strategy adopted by business firms. The present study suggests theoretical underpinnings for investigating the effect…
Abstract
Purpose
Celebrity endorsement is a preferred marketing communication strategy adopted by business firms. The present study suggests theoretical underpinnings for investigating the effect of celebrity endorsement on individual investors' intentions to invest in the shares of companies. The study integrates marketing communication and behavioural finance theories to understand investor behaviour in the stock market.
Design/methodology/approach
The study used a questionnaire based on a conjoint analysis technique. The retail investors from India filled out the questionnaire. The authors developed an orthogonal design to generate retail investors' investment intentions and applied the full-profile conjoint method.
Findings
The results reveal that investors prefer to invest in technology-related firms when they employ entertainment celebrities to endorse their products. Investors prefer that entertainment celebrities' personalities match the single brand only they are endorsing. Further, investors choose to invest during corrective market trends in emerging economies, such as India.
Originality/value
The study offers practical implications for corporate entities and marketing professionals by analysing retail investors' investment intentions in financial markets.
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