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The purpose of this paper is to understand the organizational mechanisms by which schools can increase opportunities for student leadership.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to understand the organizational mechanisms by which schools can increase opportunities for student leadership.
Design/methodology/approach
A review of the student voice literature conducted in high schools was used to identify organizational mechanisms for enhancing student leadership.
Findings
Five leadership-fostering organizational mechanisms were identified: consistency, research, group makeup, governance structure and recognition.
Originality/value
This paper examines the existing body of student voice research to identify organizational mechanisms for fostering student leadership in schools. Researchers can use this to operationalize student leadership mechanisms and study their impact. Practitioners can implement these mechanisms in schools to support youth leadership development.
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Jude Chukwuemeka Emelifeonwu and Reimara Valk
The purpose of this paper is to explore employee voice and silence in the mobile telecommunication industry in Nigeria.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to explore employee voice and silence in the mobile telecommunication industry in Nigeria.
Design/methodology/approach
An exploratory qualitative case study methodology was employed in this study. Participant selection was done through a purposeful intensity sampling technique, which resulted in 30 employees from two different multinational organizations and an indigenous organization taking part in in-depth interviews.
Findings
Findings show the presence of fear of victimization in the Nigerian workplace embellished by the Sub-Saharan culture and the state of the labor market, which resulted in employee silence. The study revealed that the implementation of culturally adapted employee voice mechanisms within organizations in the mobile telecommunication industry in Nigeria promotes employee voice and organizational performance, whereas a lack thereof results in organizational failure.
Research limitations/implications
A limitation is that the purposive sample of employees from three organizations in the mobile telecommunications industry only permits theoretical and analytic generalization.
Practical implications
A focus on the co-creation of a high-performance work environment and the development of a powerful employee value proposition would foster employee voice.
Social implications
It will enable multinationals operating in Nigeria understand better how to operate employee voice in order to obtain optimal performance from workers in Sub-Sahara Africa.
Originality/value
This paper contributes to the literature on employee/industrial relations by showing that a high-power-distance national culture and a high unemployment rate affect employee voice and silence, which brings to the fore the importance of adequate employee voice mechanisms through which employees express their voice in order to arrive at beneficial individual and organizational outcomes.
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Anthony McDonnell, Julia Connell, Zeenobiyah Hannif and John Burgess
The purpose of this paper is to bridge a gap in the call centre literature by considering how individual employees perceive their level of voice over workplace decisions. The…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to bridge a gap in the call centre literature by considering how individual employees perceive their level of voice over workplace decisions. The inclusion of direct voice mechanisms is noteworthy as these are forms that have received much less attention vis-à-vis indirect voice.
Design/methodology/approach
A mixed-method approach was utilized comprising focus groups and questionnaires from over 350 respondents in nine call centres in Australia.
Findings
The most pervasive type of employee voice found across all call centres was through direct channels. The team leader was viewed as especially important in terms of employees asserting that they have some influence over workplace issues. There was evidence that the greater the number of voice mechanisms available the higher the perception of autonomy and influence over work tasks, pace of work and quality standards.
Research limitations/implications
Greater consideration is needed in the voice literature at how employees perceive different mechanisms and how institutionalized and legitimate these are within organizations. There appeared to be minimal positive feedback on how union's influenced the workplace, even in unionized environments. We call for further research on how union representation and direct voice channels work together and the impact on key individual and organizational outcomes.
Practical implications
Employees may view the provision of multiple voice channels more favourable than any particular mechanism. The role of the team leader appears especially crucial in positive perceptions of employee voice.
Originality/value
Call centre environments may be changing for the better and effective team leader/employee relationships appear to be at the heart of these changes. The paper demonstrates that direct voice mechanisms dominate the case study sites and that employee perceptions of “being heard” are as important as the actual voice mechanisms.
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Matthew Allen and Heinz‐Josef Tüselmann
The purpose of this paper is to set out and justify a broader, systemic typology that encompasses, and is built around, the notion of voice. This leads to the development of a…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to set out and justify a broader, systemic typology that encompasses, and is built around, the notion of voice. This leads to the development of a number of insights that can result in the generation and testing of more accurate hypotheses on the links between voice mechanisms and workplace outcomes.
Design/methodology/approach
Drawing on different aspects of the concept of “power” and arguing that these are central to the notion of “voice”, the paper illustrates how “exit”, “loyalty” and “neglect” are also underpinned by power. A corollary of this is that these other concepts should routinely be included in studies of the links among voice and workplace outcomes.
Findings
The paper develops hypotheses that can enhance the understanding of the likely impact of voice policies on employees' attitudes and behaviour as well as on firm performance.
Practical implications
The hypotheses suggest that, if employees perceive voice mechanisms in a negative way, they may respond in a variety of ways that can have a detrimental effect on firm performance. Understanding these different responses and the likely reasons for them can lead to more appropriate policy responses by managers.
Originality/value
The paper specifies the conditions under which relationships between voice, exit, loyalty and neglect will affect workplace outcomes in greater detail. This leads to a re‐examination of factors that should be included in empirical assessments. Research findings may need to be re‐evaluated as a result.
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Agrata Pandey, Ranjeet Nambudiri, Patturaja Selvaraj and Ashish Sadh
The literature on destructive leadership has largely ignored the perspective of the subordinate, especially in terms of conflict coping mechanisms. This study aims to integrate…
Abstract
Purpose
The literature on destructive leadership has largely ignored the perspective of the subordinate, especially in terms of conflict coping mechanisms. This study aims to integrate research on destructive leadership and subordinates’ voice behaviour as a conflict coping mechanism. Drawing on the social exchange, conservation of resources and social identity theories, it argues that destructive leadership negatively affects employees’ voice behaviour and that this relationship is moderated by subordinate personality and organization climate.
Design/methodology/approach
The proposed model was tested on a sample of 275 professionals working in the banking and insurance sector in India using a temporal research design with data collected in two phases six months apart. Partial least squares structural equation modelling was used for data analysis.
Findings
The results support the main effect relationship between destructive leadership and subordinates’ voice behaviour and the moderation of subordinates’ personality and organizational climate. Temporal analysis indicates that the nature of some relationships changed across the two time periods.
Practical implications
A greater understanding of destructive leader behaviour and resultant coping strategies of subordinates is likely to provide insights for managers facing such situations. The findings of this study will inform the creation of redressal and voice mechanisms in organizations.
Originality/value
This is among the first studies to examine the impact of negative forms of leadership on subordinates’ conflict coping mechanisms using a temporal lag design across two time periods.
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Hector Viveros, Senia Kalfa and Paul J. Gollan
The purpose of this chapter is to examine voice as an empowerment practice in a manufacturing company. The case study follows a qualitative approach to analyse employee voice and…
Abstract
The purpose of this chapter is to examine voice as an empowerment practice in a manufacturing company. The case study follows a qualitative approach to analyse employee voice and types of empowerment from a structural perspective. Findings suggest a variety of voice arrangements to empowering employees such as voice surveys, meetings, e-suggestions, opinion boxes and informal means such as casual meetings and walkarounds. In addition, employee voice is linked to types of empowerment such as information sharing, upward problem solving, task autonomy and attitudinal shaping. Further research would benefit from an exploration of employees’ feelings regarding voice mechanisms to examine the psychological perspective of empowerment.
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This paper aims to analyse the effectiveness of European Works Councils (EWCs) as a mechanism of employee voice from the perspective of Hungarian workers in UK‐owned multinational…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to analyse the effectiveness of European Works Councils (EWCs) as a mechanism of employee voice from the perspective of Hungarian workers in UK‐owned multinational companies (MNCs). In addition, it analyses the role of prevailing systems of employee voice in Hungary, such as trade unions and works councils, assessing their capacity to influence the work of the EWC.
Design/methodology/approach
Using a qualitative approach, the data are drawn from three case studies and comprise a series of semi‐structured interviews, whilst observational and archival data provide additional information. Interview participants primarily consisted of EWC representatives from the UK and Hungary, together with a number of central and local managers and trade union officials.
Findings
The data are presented using a five‐themed framework, devised to highlight a number of key themes and comparisons. Evidence suggests fundamental differences in the quality of EWCs, with some providing a better mechanism of voice than others. The level of consultation, managerial and employee attitudes, Eastern European working conditions, training and inadequate communication strategies form some of the major issues identified in the study. Furthermore, trade union involvement and the impact that local works councils have in general proved limited in enhancing the success of the EWC.
Practical implications
The implications for improving the Hungarian voice within the EWC forum are discussed.
Originality/value
The paper confirms existing issues surrounding EWCs, extending the existing field of literature and offering a unique insight into the impact of EWCs in Hungary.
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The paper explores the historical evolution of employee voice in Namibia from an employment relations (ER) perspective and in the context of institutional factors such as labour…
Abstract
The paper explores the historical evolution of employee voice in Namibia from an employment relations (ER) perspective and in the context of institutional factors such as labour legislation, trade union strategies, company policies and governmental regulations. The first part of the paper provides a brief outline of ER conceptions of voice that are manifest in the recent resurgence of interest in the topic. The next part traces the historical evolution of labour regulation and employee voice in Namibia. It is shown that, in the absence of collective voice and statutory protections, informal voice and occupational solidarity were the primary means of defence available to black workers against oppressive conditions. In the final part, an outline of some key features of employee voice in contemporary Namibia is provided. The analysis shows that systems of employee voice are fundamentally a manifestation of the balance of powers at a particular time and place. It is therefore crucial to link voice preferences and behaviours in the workplace to specific preconditions and to highlight the limiting factors that serve to constrain choice.
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Yidan Huang, Heyao Yu, Amit Sharma and Ziang Zhang
This study aims to examine the relation between error management culture and restaurant employee promotive and prohibitive voices. Drawing on socially desirable responding theory…
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to examine the relation between error management culture and restaurant employee promotive and prohibitive voices. Drawing on socially desirable responding theory, the authors also propose a dual-mediation mechanism underlying the impact of error management culture on employee voice: psychological empowerment, as the agentic motive, and psychological safety, as the communal motive.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors recruited 223 participants working in 37 restaurants in China for the two-wave surveys with a one-week interval. The authors use a multilevel modeling paradigm to test the study hypotheses.
Findings
This research examines a multilevel model suggesting that error management culture can boost employee promotive voice and prohibitive voice via the mechanisms of psychological safety and empowerment. In addition, the results suggest that psychological empowerment (vs psychological safety) has a strong mediation effect between error management culture and promotive voice, but the authors find no difference in mediating effects between error management culture and prohibitive voice.
Practical implications
Restaurants can encourage employee voice by developing and maintaining an error management culture. Organizations can also consider motivating employees from both agentic and communal perspectives. Moreover, managers should focus more on empowering employees in areas characterized by Confucianism or collectivism.
Originality/value
The current research adds to the voice literature by identifying an organizational cultural antecedent of employee voice–error management culture. Agentic and communal motives are two motivational paths of employee voice. It also extends the social desirability theory by highlighting the role of the agentic motive in the Chinese restaurant context.
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