Managing social and environmental accountability: an impression management perspective

Purpose – Corporate social behavior has become an important feature of business society. Organizations face the challenge to meet stakeholders’ expectations, but also to report information on social and environmental issues. Drawing on accounting literature this study proposes a conceptual framework linking organizational impression management and social accountability. Theoretical framework – This study is supported by literature on organizational legitimacy, impression management, and corporate social reporting to propose a theoretical framework to help understanding how organizations manage corporate social accountability in a context of institutional complexity. Design/methodology/approach –This theoretical essay is drawn on recent accounting literature. Findings – Corporate social reporting seems more reflective of impression management rather than of the release of functional accountability. Such practices appear to be motived by the quest of social legitimacy and the improvement of organizational image and the desire to obfuscate a negative performance. Research, Practical & Social implications – These findings are of societal and ethical concern as impression management behavior may undermine the transparency of social and environmental reporting. Originality/value – The conceptual framework proposed is useful for future studies aiming at understanding how organizations use impression management on their corporate social reporting in the accountability process. In this vein, we bridge the gap between organizational legitimacy, impression management, and social accountability.(undefined

User Adoption of Enterprise Resource Planning Systems in the Public Sector

The importance of aligning information technology and business strategies to exploit capabilities and change business practices has increased as firms strive for competitive advantage in a diverse and changing marketplace. Nevertheless, over 50% of firms implementing enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems ranked expected process and value enhancements as inadequate, whereas only 13% indicated that implementations met their needs. The unified theory of acceptance and use of technology (UTAUT) model formed the conceptual framework of this single case study. The study comprised a purposeful sampling of 8 business managers in Southeast Alabama working in related job roles and based on established eligibility criteria. Data collection involved semistructured interviews, casual observations, and document analysis. Through method triangulation and predetermined themes directly related to the UTAUT conceptual framework, 5 themes emerged: management endorsement, change management, training and education, dedicated resources, and governance. Results of this research may influence the elimination of key barriers central in the deployment and adoption of ERP systems by the public sector. The study\u27s implications for positive social change include the potential to enhance social and intellectual capital formation through recognizing strategies that mitigate employees\u27 gender and age variances during an ERP implementation

Business process discovery through conversation log analysis in pluralist and coercive problem contexts

Business process discovery is one of the most fundamental steps of business process management (BPM) lifecycles. Incorrect, misleading or biased results of this stage can cause the whole BPM project to fail or the information systems that are created based on them to have great alignment problems with the reality of the organisation and how people carry out their work. The main problems of the business process discovery phase stem from two main sources. Firstly, the wrong attachment of BPM definitions and business process discovery techniques to the functionalist social paradigm whose only objective is the survival of the organisation through ensuring its efficiency and adaptability like a machine. This attachment to the functionalist paradigm has made BPM definitions to assume that organisations as social systems are in a unitary problem context, which means its constituents have similar beliefs and interests, they share common goals and objectives and they have all been involved in the decision-making. These assumptions are obviously far from the reality of today’s organisations which are normally either in pluralist or coercive problem contexts. The second source of problems in the business process discovery phase are BPM’s definitions and techniques over-reliance on human memory and cognition that has made them suffer, like any other knowledge acquisition technique, from human memory and cognition limitations. Using Design Science Research methodology, this research develops a conceptual framework in which new definitions for business task, business process and business process model in pluralist and coercive problem contexts will be presented. It will also be shown that conversation logs are a good source of information for business process discovery based on the new definitions and that using conversation logs can reduce the limitations caused by human memory and cognition. To develop the new conceptual framework, organisations as social systems have been analysed using the creative holism systems approach, and sound theories such as viable system model (VSM), i* framework, speech act theory, conversation for action diagrams and episodic memory have been leveraged.Based on the conceptual framework that consumes email messages as the conversation log and as its source of information, a method for business process discovery has been developed.Using two case studies it has been demonstrated that the proposed definitions and the developed methods are applicable in unitary, pluralist and coercive problem contexts; and taking advantage of the conversation logs as their information source, they suffer to a lesser extent from human memory and cognition limitations. As a consequence, the resulting business process models created from applying the proposed definitions and methods are closer to the realities of the organisations and can increase the success rate of the business process management projects and reduce the information system’s alignment problems

The nature of professional small business advisor knowledge and the knowledge transmission process : A regional Australian perspective

This thesis specifically examines the relationship between professional business advisor (PBA) knowledge and the knowledge transmission actions undertaken by such advisors when addressing the knowledge requirements of businesses, specifically Regional Australian small businesses. The thesis adopts a qualitative research approach to explore perceptions of individuals who provide advisory services to small businesses, within the context of Regional Australia. The analysis undertaken is a practical application of the critical realist research paradigm to explain how human agency, social structures, and mechanisms interact in the process of creating a knowledge transmission event by PBAs. The conceptual framework developed in this thesis brings together key concepts from scholarly research disciplines of knowledge management, information management, communications, services marketing and business advice. The conceptual framework reflects the research aims and provides the basis for the research methodology. The framework is of a unique critical realist research design that allows the study to progress through sequential world views. Each world view allows the continual broadening of the reality being studied, enabling more focused answers to the research questions posed. This study focuses on PBAs who service small businesses operating in four inner regional and two outer regional locations within the State of Victoria. Over the six regions, a total of 29 face-to-face interviews were conducted, along with one focus group in each region. The findings from this database, using the conceptual framework as a guide, identified a complex, heterogeneous, open environment in which PBA knowledge transmission occurs. This research process recognises PBAs as social structures with causal powers whose knowledge stock is the primary mechanism through which these powers are exercised to generate a knowledge transmission event. A significant conclusion emerges that PBA tacit (and not explicit) knowledge is a conditional mechanism which gate-keeps whether the PBA knowledge transmission event is enacted.Doctor of Philosoph

Examining Successful Management Practices Among Senior Women Using AI Technology

Artificial intelligence (AI) technology innovations are envisioned to intensify the digital ecosystem affecting management practices and the quality of life for female senior business leaders in the United States. The purpose of this qualitative, transcendental phenomenology study was to examine the lived experiences that some female senior business leaders, ages 55 - 95, face using AI technology in decision making. The conceptual framework included the technology acceptance model and the mindspace model. Data was collected through semistructured interviews with 12 successful female senior business leaders from nine different industries in the United States. The Van Kaam method, as supported by Moustakas\u27 theoretical process, was used to analyze the data. Descriptive and inductive coding was used to uncover and categorize the found themes: (a) AI technology is beneficial, (b) leadership and change management, (c) technology adaptation and acceptance, (d) decision making and communication, and (e) information sharing and privacy. This study may contribute to positive social change as a benefit to other seniors by strengthening their AI technology decision making experiences, leadership, and supporting community awareness in addition to influencing positive social change across management and business platforms

Internal Control Strategies to Mitigate Fraud in Small Manufacturing Businesses in Cameroon

Approximately 51.3% of small manufacturing businesses lack effective internal controls to deter fraud. Internal control strategies, when adequately implemented, can mitigate fraud and improve profitability in small manufacturing businesses. The objective of this single qualitative case study was to explore the internal control strategies used in a small manufacturing business to mitigate assets misappropriation fraud and improve profitability. Agency theory was the conceptual framework for this study. Five business managers in a small manufacturing firm in Cameroon participated in face-to-face semistructured interviews. The data analysis process included Yin\u27s 5-step process. Identified themes included (a) governance at a higher management level, (b) vendor-related management approach, and (c) operational practices at the department level. Business leaders in small manufacturing firms could benefit from implementing the internal controls and procedures highlighted in this study to deter fraudulent billing from vendors, deceitful payment disbursement to vendors, and misrepresentation of financial statements by company executives. Fraud reduction might help business leaders to safeguard the company\u27s assets and improve production goals by streamlining operational practices, leading to company profitability. In turn, business profitability would result in company leaders paying more taxes, which government officials may use for social amenities and change benefiting people in the community

Increasing Universities\u27 Tuition Fee Revenues from International Undergraduate Students

Universities are losing expected tuition revenues due to attrition of international undergraduate students. The purpose of this multiple case study was to explore strategies that university leaders use to increase tuition fee revenues from international undergraduate students. The participants in this study were 3 former leaders of the European division of Laureate International Universities, a global university group with university locations in the United Kingdom, Germany, France, Spain, Portugal, Italy, and Cyprus. The conceptual framework of this study was institutional theory as part of the change management of universities. Data collection included semistructured interviews of 3 former leaders of the European division of Laureate International Universities and a review of background and demographic information. Data analysis revealed 5 themes: business strategies, leadership, politics and governmental practice, social mobility, and attrition. These themes aligned with the institutional theory and change management conceptual framework. Recommendations for action include further research in the application of university business models to adopt or enhance a process for retaining international undergraduate students. The results of this study may contribute to social change by indicating how universities can be financially sustainable by providing international students access to an international education. University leaders may implement some of my recommendations and suggested strategies to avoid losing expected tuition revenues due to attrition of international undergraduate students. International undergraduate students may enroll in better prepared universities and therefore, succeed in completing and graduating from their selected studies

Strategies to Improve Business Performance with Information from Social Media

In the past 3 decades, China has experienced rapid economic growth. The China retail market reached renminbi (RMB) 29,651 billion in 2016, up by 10.4% from 2015. Using traditional ways that developed before the Internet era to acquire information regarding customers\u27 changing preferences for products and services in a fast-moving business world is insufficient to support management in the retail industry to make informed strategic decisions. The purpose of this multiple case study was to explore successful customer-centric strategies that business leaders used to improve business performance with marketing information acquired from social media. The population comprised business leaders from 5 different companies in the retail industry in Southern China who have successful experience in improving business performance with the marketing information acquired from social media. The conceptual framework for this study was built upon the diffusion of innovations theory. The data were collected through semistructured interviews, social media sites, and analyzed using Yin\u27s 5-step data analysis process for case studies to identify themes. The findings revealed 3 emergent themes: knowledge strategies, persuasion and decision strategies, and implementation strategies. The findings from the study may contribute to positive social change when local employment opportunities can increase through increased employee spending in Southern China

Effective Stakeholder Management Strategies for Information Technology Projects

Information Technology (IT) projects have become critical to business strategy. However, one major issue is that, historically, IT projects have high failure rates, with scholars asserting that ineffective stakeholder management strategies were a major factor for project failure. The purpose of this multiple case study was to explore strategies IT executives use for managing IT project stakeholders by exploring the experiences of 2 CIOs and 4 IT directors in two multinational companies, based in Switzerland. Stakeholder theory was the conceptual framework for this study. Data were collected through semistructured interviews and company documentation, and analyzed using Yin\u27s 5-step data analysis process to identify and code themes. Five main themes emerged from the data analysis: organizational culture, organizational maturity, leadership, competencies, and post-implementation reviews. The results of this study revealed the importance for leaders to articulate business strategies enabling stakeholders to have a common perspective on project objectives, and to act as a foundation upon which IT executives can create effective stakeholder management strategies. Results indicated that the deployment of effective stakeholder management strategies was dependent on several factors, including organizational culture, leadership style, competencies, and organizational maturity. Findings may contribute to positive social change by encouraging effective stakeholder management to improve knowledge sharing, individual and team motivation, management across cultural boundaries, and stimulate a culture of social responsibility and sustainability

Successful Demand Forecasting Modeling Strategies for Increasing Small Retail Medical Supply Profitability

The lack of effective demand forecasting strategies can result in imprecise inventory replenishment, inventory overstock, and unused inventory. The purpose of this single case study was to explore successful demand forecasting strategies that leaders of a small, retail, medical supply business used to increase profitability. The conceptual framework for this study was Winters\u27s forecasting demand approach. Data were collected from semistructured, face-to-face interviews with 8 business leaders of a private, small, retail, medical supply business in the southeastern United States and the review of company artifacts. Yin\u27s 5-step qualitative data analysis process of compiling, disassembling, reassembling, interpreting, and concluding was applied. Key themes that emerged from data analysis included understanding sales trends, inventory management with pricing, and seasonality. The findings of this study might contribute to positive social change by encouraging leaders of medical supply businesses to apply demand forecasting strategies that may lead to benefits for medically underserved citizens in need of accessible and abundant medical supplies