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1 – 7 of 7William Leban and Carol Zulauf
Today's business environment is changing tremendously due to economic forces that result in the redesign of systems to decrease cost, the need to speed up product development and…
Abstract
Today's business environment is changing tremendously due to economic forces that result in the redesign of systems to decrease cost, the need to speed up product development and the focused attention on satisfying customers. These conditions have caused organizations to utilize project management to implement strategic initiatives through projects. By utilizing a “big picture” systems approach to analyze how the system components interact, decisions can be made which are in the “best interest” of the overall project. Project management is ideally matched to this business environment. The study addressed 24 project managers and their associated projects in six organizations from varied industries. The results of the study found that a project manager's transformational leadership style has a positive impact on actual project performance, that emotional intelligence ability contributes to a project manager's transformational leadership style and subsequent actual project performance.
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George Palaigeorgiou and Athina Grammatikopoulou
This paper aims to identify the learning benefits and the challenges of Web 2.0 educational activities when applied in typical learning settings and as perceived by pioneer…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to identify the learning benefits and the challenges of Web 2.0 educational activities when applied in typical learning settings and as perceived by pioneer educators with extensive Web 2.0 experience.
Design/methodology/approach
The testimonies of 26 Greek primary and secondary education teachers were collected. All teachers had an extensive involvement with Web 2.0 in their classrooms. The interviews were semi-structured and focused on personal case studies, students' views of Web 2.0, problems and prerequisites and educational opportunities of Web 2.0.
Findings
The teachers indicated that Web 2.0 learning activities promote the learner to the center of the learning process, open the schools’ doors to society and help students learn how to cooperate and create digital content, while enabling them to reflect more on their thoughts, extend the time-space of the educational dialogue and promote trust between students and teachers. The participants had also to cope with challenges which concerned their colleagues’ attitude and the educational environment, the parents’ attitude, the amount of time and effort required, the unpredictable character of the activities, the limitations imposed by the curriculum, the overestimation of students’ skills and the lack of training opportunities.
Practical implications
The findings can be transformed to a set of critical guidelines for policy makers and for educating the educators.
Originality/value
The set of findings are derived from teachers with a long-term, intensive, daily practice with Web 2.0 and offer an holistic systematic view of problems and opportunities.
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There has been little thought given in science to the impact of direct brain‐machine interfacing upon the future development of human consciousness. Even less thought has been…
Abstract
There has been little thought given in science to the impact of direct brain‐machine interfacing upon the future development of human consciousness. Even less thought has been given to the possibilities for both optimizing and thwarting development in the cyborg child. A neurocognitive model of the evolution of cyborg consciousness is summarized, and from this model grounded speculations are offered pertaining to the future development of the higher cognitive functions in the cyborg child. It will be shown that cybernetic implants are “multistable”; that is, the artificial intelligence (AI) component of the cyborg brain‐machine linkage may function to condition development along ideological lines (the brain conditioned by the “ideological chip”), or may operate to open up neurocognitive development to new and heretofore unrealized limits (the brain’s development optimized by the “guru programme”). Development of the cyborg child may be conditioned in the interests of ideological concerns, or may lead to a consciousness that easily transcends all forms of ideology. Application of the guru programme may foster the emergence of new levels of cognitive complexity and information processing (à la Piagetian and neo‐Piagetian theory) that in turn allows new strategies of adaptation previously beyond human comprehension. The ethical and regulatory problems raised by cyborg technologies are addressed.
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To reconceptualize the organizational environment in a comprehensive manner, it is important to specify not just the velocity but also other aspects of turbulent environments…
Abstract
Purpose
To reconceptualize the organizational environment in a comprehensive manner, it is important to specify not just the velocity but also other aspects of turbulent environments. Concurrently, the purpose of this paper is to also propose that organizational adaptability and, particularly, the speed of adaptations are critical to moderate the impact of turbulence in the environment on organizational performance.
Design/methodology/approach
This paper uses a conceptual methodology to fully specify turbulent environments and commensurate managerial response appropriate for such environments. Based on a perspective borrowed from the field of fluid dynamics used to specify the phenomenon of turbulence, the authors develop a conceptual model with research propositions. Four dimensions that describe turbulence in fluid flow when applied metaphorically offer a comprehensive view of the organizational environment.
Findings
An extreme, unanticipated, sudden onslaught resulting in a prolonged disrupted environment such as during the recent coronavirus crisis is best characterized as having caused turbulent environmental conditions. Management theories have addressed disruptions as high-velocity environments in the context of rapid changes in information technology. With a broadened conceptualization of the organizational environment to better capture extreme disruptions, the authors provide a comprehensive model appropriate for turbulent environmental conditions and offer research directions for scholarly pursuit.
Originality/value
This paper provides a new perspective from the physical sciences to better conceptualize organizational environments during extreme disruptions such as in turbulent environmental conditions.
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Eva A. van Reijmersdal, Marieke Walet and Andrea Gudmundsdóttir
Self-presentation is an important aspect of influencer marketing. Drawing upon self-presentation theory and source credibility theory, this study aimed to unravel how the…
Abstract
Purpose
Self-presentation is an important aspect of influencer marketing. Drawing upon self-presentation theory and source credibility theory, this study aimed to unravel how the self-presentation strategies of a layperson, opinion leadership and micro-celebrity influence source credibility (i.e. trustworthiness, expertise, physical attractiveness and social attractiveness) and how source credibility, in turn, affects brand responses.
Design/methodology/approach
An online experiment among female participants (N = 229) was conducted. Participants were shown a sponsored blog in which the influencer presented herself as either a layperson, an opinion leader or a micro-celebrity.
Findings
The study demonstrated that the presentation strategy of a layperson was more persuasive than a micro-celebrity presentation because of higher levels of (1) trust and (2) social attractiveness. In addition, opinion leaders were perceived as having more expertise than laypeople and, therefore, positively enhanced brand responses.
Research limitations/implications
The current findings provide relevant insights into the theoretical mechanisms (i.e. expertise, trustworthiness and social attractiveness) that explain the effects of self-presentation strategies on brand responses.
Practical implications
Our findings imply that credibility perceptions determine the persuasiveness of the SMI. This study showed that layperson and opinion leadership self-presentation strategies are relatively more persuasive.
Originality/value
This study is the first to show that influencers’ self-presentation strategies determine how people respond to the brands that influencers promote. In addition, we show that these effects are explained by the influencers’ trust, social attractiveness and expertise.
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Although Generation Y consumers contribute significantly to the luxury market, still there is a limited amount of research conducted to explain their luxury consumption behavior…
Abstract
Purpose
Although Generation Y consumers contribute significantly to the luxury market, still there is a limited amount of research conducted to explain their luxury consumption behavior, particularly in context of emerging markets like India. The main objectives of this study are to understand the key factors that affect luxury purchase intentions of Generation Y consumers using the theory of planned behavior (TPB) and to examine the moderating effect of subjective norm on other TPB variables, namely, attitude and perceived behavioral control.
Design/methodology/approach
Purposive sampling method was used to collect data from Generation Y luxury fashion consumers in New Delhi, India. Confirmatory factor analysis and structural equation modeling was employed to analyze the data.
Findings
The findings of this study revealed subjective norm and perceived behavioral control were positively related to luxury purchase intentions. Further, subjective norm was found to moderate the relationship between attitude and luxury purchase intentions.
Originality/value
This study will help consumer behavior researchers and practitioners to understand the core reason behind luxury purchase intentions of Generation Y consumers in India. It will enable luxury brand companies to create suitable marketing strategies which align with the mindset of this new demographic segment.
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