Building capacity in climate change policy analysis and negotiation: methods and technologies

Capacity building is often cited as the reason “we cannot just pour money into developing countries” and why so many development projects fail because their design does not address local conditions. It is therefore a key technical and political concept in international development. Some of the poorest countries in the world are also some of the most vulnerable to the impacts of climate change. Their vulnerability is in part due to a lack of capacity to plan and anticipate the effects of climate change on crops, water resources, urban electricity demand etc. What capacities do these countries lack to deal with climate change? How will they cope? What steps can they take to reduce their vulnerability? This innovative and high-profile research project was part of a larger project (called C3D) and conducted with non-governmental organisations in Senegal, South Africa and Sri Lanka. The research involved several participatory workshops and a questionnaire to all three research centres

Trust and psychological empowerment in global virtual teams: quantitative ethnography research

Although global virtual teams are becoming more commonplace because of their many benefits, they are also challenged by a lack of interpersonal and emotional trust between team members. Based on this problem, this study adopted a quantitative ethnographic methodology to explore team members\u27 perceptions of the relationship between trust and psychological empowerment components, such as the meaning of work, competence, self-determination, and impact, in global virtual teams. In addition, this study examined how the team members\u27 perceptions of trust and psychological empowerment differ based on their attributes. To achieve this research purpose, the researcher collected data via semi-structured interviews with 16 employees in global virtual teams of five consulting firms headquartered in the U.S. and South Korea. This study utilized the Epistemic Network Analysis (ENA) as an analysis tool to investigate the perception patterns of participants. As a result, the study found that trust is primarily linked to competence, responsible behavior, and communication between employees. In contrast, competence is related to communication, recognition, self−determination, and impact on the team or society. Furthermore, the study found the differences in employees\u27 perceptions according to characteristics−age, gender, nationality, working period, and role−excluding the expertise realm. The findings could aid organizations in developing strategies for global virtual teams and contribute to developing academic fields related to psychological empowerment and trust. More research is needed on segmented global virtual team types, cultural diversity, and team leadership

Factors affecting entrepreneurial intentions among black managers in the banking sector: a South African perspective

A research report submitted to the Faculty of Commerce, Law and Management, University of the Witwatersrand, in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Management specialising in Entrepreneurship and New Venture Creation Johannesburg, 2017In South Africa, very little research has been conducted to test the entrepreneurial intentions of highly educated and skilled black professionals. A significant portion of entrepreneurial intention research is primarily focused on students. Very little is known about the entrepreneurial intentions of mid-career individuals who are in highly specialised industries. More specifically, no research has looked at testing the entrepreneurial intentions among managers within the banking sector. Specifically, the study is aimed at determining whether self-efficacy, family background and the role of government influences entrepreneurship intentions among black managers within the banking sector. The study was done within the major banks in the Gauteng province of South Africa. 220 questionnaires were sent to bank employees who are managers and specialists in their role. The testing for hypothesis involved the relationship between dependent variable, entrepreneurship intention and the independent variables; desirability of self-efficacy, family background, government support. The analysis was done using SPSS version 23 using descriptive statistics and hierarchical multiple regression analysis. ANOVA was carried out where there was a need to compare groups of cases for differences in their means along particular variables. The analysis concludes that the independent variables, such as self- efficacy, family background and government support have a significantly positive relationship to entrepreneurship intention. The regression analysis also verified that there is a significant influence between independent variable and attitudes toward entrepreneurship among black bank managers. The findings suggest that there are high levels of self-efficacy among black managers in the banking sector. The results revealed that entrepreneurial self-efficacy has the most significant and positive impact on their intention to become an entrepreneur. It is also worth noting that government support plays an integral part in influencing the entrepreneurial intentions of the respondents. Although this study focused on the antecedents of intentions to start a business, future research must also explore relationships between intentions and behaviour.MT201

Linking empowering leadership to employee service innovative behavior: A study from the hotel industry

The purpose of this paper is to expand an integrated model of the factors that help to predict employees\u27 service innovative behavior in the hotel industry. The study also takes into account the mediating roles of creative improvisation, self-efficacy (CISE) and employee engagement (EE). Data were obtained from front line hotel employees operating in Indonesia. The sample was based on non-probability convenience sampling technique with some inclusive criteria namely the hotels accessibility, location and their adequacy to the research\u27s objectives. A total of 121 respondents returned valid questionnaires thereby giving an average response rate of 51 % for the research study. Structural equation models using SMART PLS 2.0 were employed to empiric test as the hypothetical research model. The study findings supported the proposed hypotheses which are consistent with theoretical framework and suggest a significant positive association between empowering leadership and employee service innovative behavior. Further, the results of structural equation modelling analysis revealed that creative improvisation self-efficacy and employee engagement partially mediated the relationship between empowering leadership and employee service innovative behavior. This is one of the first studies attempts to test a conceptual model that links the empowering leadership to the employee service innovative behavior through the mediating role sequence of creative improvisation self-efficacy and employee engagement. This research contributes to the current body of literature by providing insight into the influence of empowering leadership, creative improvisation self-efficacy and employee engagement on employee service innovative behavior

Leader-Member Exchange, Perceived Organizational Support, Psychological Safety, and Self-Efficacy in Project-Based Organizations

Interactions between managers and their employees will likely affect the employees’ perceptions of the organization. Yet, this relationship may be mediated by how the employee views the psychological safety of the work environment and how the employee perceives their ability to accomplish the task and goals given by their manager. This quantitative study investigated how project managers’ relationship between managers and employees affected their perceived organizational support as mediated by psychological safety and self-efficacy. Participants associated with the Project Management Institute completed a demographic questionnaire and the Leader-Member Exchange Scale, Perceived Organizational Support Measure, Job Self-Efficacy Scale, and Psychological Safety portion of the Team Psychological Safety and Learning Behavior Survey. These scales and measures were assessed using hierarchical multiple regression. The results showed that the Leader-Member exchange positively correlated to an employee’s perceived organizational support. Psychological safety partially mediates the relationship between the leader-member exchange and perceived organizational support. However, self-efficacy did not show support for mediation. The results indicated that the exchanges between leaders and members affect employees’ perceptions of support by the organization, and this relationship is influenced by the employees’ feelings of psychological safety of the team or group they work with

An Empirical Study on the Influence of ICT-Based Tools on Team Effectiveness in Virtual Software Teams Operating Remotely During the COVID-19 Lockdown

Aim: The research aims to examine the impact of the usage of Information-and-Communication Technology tools on Software Team Effectiveness, especially the virtual teams, during work from home because of the Covid-19 outbreak. Variables: The research has considered the Salas et al. (2005) model with eight constructs (adaptability, mutual performance monitoring, mutual trust, team orientation, closed-loop communication, leadership skills, shared mental models, and backing-up behavior) for measuring team effectiveness. The usage of ICT tools has been measured using the instrument developed by Nagi and Habok (2018). In addition, the moderating effects of the variables ‘age’ and ‘gender’ have also been tested in this research. Methodology: This study employed quantitative research methods. Cluster sampling was used to collect data from 279 software professionals who worked at home during the pandemic. In order to analyze the primary data, SPSS software is used. In order to test hypotheses, the research uses ANOVA, regression, simple percentages, and principal component analysis. Findings: The findings showed that using ICT tools impacts all 8 constructs of the variable team effectiveness. Among the most used ICT tool, project management tools, and social media were mostly used by the employees. Similarly, mutual team trust, backup behavior, and shared mental models were found to be more impactful than other constructs

Experiencing information: using systems theory to develop a theoretical framework of information interaction

2021 Spring.Includes bibliographical references.This study outlines the construction, development, and initial testing of a proposed theoretical framework and measure for information interaction. To address the challenges associated with experiencing information, I synthesized existing literature from complementary and multidisciplinary domains of cognitive psychology, computer science, and organizational communication. I initially proposed theoretically driven components of information interaction based on a literature review, followed by a multimethod evaluation to further develop and refine the framework. Quantitatively, I researched organizational practices used for managing the information environment. Empirically, I collected data using multiple samples to test the psychometric properties of a proposed measure of information interaction. I used structural equation modeling to assess relationships associated with information interaction to develop its nomological network. The findings of these studies have implications for research and practice by establishing a new theoretical space in Industrial and Organizational Psychology, using a systems approach to construct development and application, and providing organizations with a mechanism for constant, minimally obtrusive collection and assessment of the information experience of members within the organizational system

Satisfaction of hotel professionals study of the relationships with personal and organizational variables

Tourism on a global scale has become one of the main drivers of the economy and of economic activities. It is one of the sectors that has the highest growth rates globally (BPI, 2016). In this context, hospitality is one of the main tourism products and probably one of the largest industries in the world. Therefore, the understanding of the factors that directly or indirectly cause the employee to be satisfied may have implications for the entire process of service delivery, return of the tourist (loyalty), as well as on the sustainable and healthy growth of the hotel units. Based on this information, and in the existence of a large number of published studies with several variables in the scope of the organizations in general, we carried out four studies with very specific sequential objectives. The first two studies carried out were a systematic review of the literature and had the specific purpose of making an evaluation of what has been published in terms of tourism variables and satisfaction with work itself. These were followed by two other empirical studies, with the specific aim of creating practical and functional models that would be of value to hotel managers and directors, as well as to human resources departments. We intended to create two models that could be implemented in the hotel work environment and that would substantially improve workers' satisfaction and productivity, translating into a win-win strategy for both managers and hotel employees. In general the results of the studies show the importance of studying the variable satisfaction with work within Algarve hotel workers and also create two empirical models that can be used by directors and managers of hotel units and human resources departments, with the objective to increase workers´ satisfaction, motivation, and engagement. Subsequently, the implications of the results are discussed

Strengthening Organizational Performance through Integration of Systems Leadership, Participatory Communication, and Dynamic Capabilities

This dissertation seeks to include systems leadership and participatory communication as facilitators of the elements that enhance dynamic organizational capabilities to improve performance. The study employs the normative theory-building process to show how systems leadership and participatory communication can facilitate and enhance dynamic capabilities. Specifically, this dissertation offers an integrative model that combines systems leadership, participatory communication, and dynamic capabilities. The proposed integrative model is accompanied by a series of propositions that extend the dynamic capabilities theory through the integration of systems leadership and participatory communication. The potential relevance and application of the proposed model are demonstrated through multiple case examples. The study may also guide nonprofit and for-profit organizations on improving performance through leadership skills, effective communication, and enhanced dynamic capabilities. This dissertation is available in open access at AURA (https://aura.antioch.edu/) and OhioLINK ETD Center