What drives social enterprise activities in Europe on a regional level?: A multilevel analysis of socio-economic factors influencing social enterprise growth

The objective of this study is to explore the socio-economic drivers of social entrepreneurship activities at regional-level. In particular, it aims at identifying factors causing regional heterogeneity in terms of social enterprise growth and social impact development in Europe by applying multilevel analysis as this method allows a correct treatment of hierarchical data structures. The estimates indicate that access to appropriate sources of finance as well as a high level of social trust among the regional society are both strong drivers of social enterprises’ growth. Since social enterprises require voluntary activity to operate they tend to flourish in areas with strong degrees of social capital. However, social enterprise activities are not simply a wealth phenomenon to which individuals and enterprises can turn if they can afford to so do. They simultaneously evolve and grow as a response to social needs, as their main purpose is to create positive social change

Exploring Conceptualization and Operationalization of Interorganizational Interactions: An Empirical Study

Collaboration and other forms of interaction between complex arrangements of private, nonprofit, and public organizations to address challenging policy problems now occurs routinely. In many cases collaboration is mandated by law, and often disbursement of grants to nonprofits is contingent upon demonstrating collaboration with other organizations. To understand this contemporary landscape of public administration and develop cumulative knowledge, theory requires reliable and valid constructs of collaboration and other forms of interorganizational interaction. Theoretical rigor then underpins practice, including the growing discipline of evaluating the level of interaction between organizations or an organization’s “collaborative capacity,” and to understand more broadly how public administrators should best lead, manage and interact in complex multiorganizational situations. This dissertation reviews the approaches to conceptualization and operationalization of interorganizational interaction in the public administration literature. While many frameworks, typologies and arrays have been offered, few have been tested empirically. Furthermore, the literature incorporates a widely stated but untested notion that interactions between organizations can be placed on a “continuum” of intensity or integration. Using insights from previously developed systems-based frameworks and arrays, this research creates a generalized interorganizational interaction array (GIIA) that conceptualizes and operationalizes three forms of interaction common in public administration literature: cooperation, coordination and collaboration. From a sample of over 200 interorganizational interactions between national and international defense organizations, the GIIA is tested using cluster analysis to determine: the extent to which collaboration, coordination and cooperation are observed; which variables are most important in differentiating interaction states, and to explore the concept of a continuum of interaction

Towards Sustainable Project Governance : A Multisystem and Multilevel Analysis

Multilevel assessment has been put forward in this study as a key tool for tackling the challenges of sustainable development. Therefore, in addition to the micro scale, two other important levels are analysed: the meso and macro levels. Through spatial modelling, this research contributes to the context of project portfolio management and presents a gestalt of systems. The study starts from the analysis of macro scale sustainable development within the European context. Four key elements of the model are introduced: innovation, efficiency, co-creation and environment. This approach also presents a solution to the challenge of the paradigm shift that has increased the complexity of project portfolio management. Subsequently, the front-end of the portfolio has been formulated with a sustainable method. Meanwhile, the trend of eco-efficiency in the EU-15 countries is evaluated, and a longitudinal analysis determines the cases that are promoting sustainability. Furthermore, the challenge of sustainability requires a business model that governs the whole system. Thus, the meso scale has been studied through a systematic review of the literature and exploratory case studies of prominent companies in Europe. Consequently, an open innovation model as a mediator of the Agile method is discussed as a framework. The study gradually narrows down towards the micro scale in Finland. Although the efficiency of various cases has been analysed, another layer of analysis is performed in order to explore the reasons behind the efficiency in Finland. The performances of projects in Finland are assessed through decomposition analysis.Tämä tutkimus esittää monitasoista arviointia keskeiseksi välineeksi kestävän kehityksen haasteiden ratkaisemiseen. Sen johdolla on analysoitu mikrotason lisäksi kahta muuta tärkeää tasoa: meso- ja makrotasoa. Spatiaalisen mallinnuksen avulla tämän tutkimuksen tarkoituksena on edistää projektisalkunhallintaa sekä muodostaa systeemien kokonaisuus. Tutkimus on aloitettu kestävän kehityksen makrotason analyysilla eurooppalaisessa kontekstissa. Mallin neljä keskeistä elementtiä ovat innovaatio, tehokkuus, yhteiskehittäminen ja ympäristö. Tämä lähestymistapa tarjoaa myös ratkaisun paradigman muutoksen aiheuttamalle haasteelle, joka on lisännyt projektisalkunhallinnan monimutkaisuutta. Tämän seurauksena projektisalkun alkuvaihe on muodostettu kestävää menetelmää hyödyntäen. Samalla on arvioitu ekotehokkuuden kehitystä EU-15 maissa sekä pitkittäisanalyysin avulla määritetty ne tapaukset, jotka ovat edistyneet kestävästi. Kestävän kehityksen haasteet vaativat myös liiketoimintamallin, jolla voidaan hallita koko järjestelmää. Siten mesotasoa on tarkasteltu sekä systemaattisen kirjallisuuskatsauksen että merkittävien eurooppalaisten yritysten avulla. Sen seurauksena viitekehityksenä on käsitelty avointa innovaatiomallia ketterän mallin muuntavana tekijänä. Tutkimus kapenee asteittain kohti mikrotasoa Suomessa. Vaikka monien eri tapauksien tehokkuutta onkin jo analysoitu, tehdään toinen analyysi tehokkuuden syiden selvittämiseksi Suomessa. Projektien suorituskykyä Suomessa on arvioitu dekompositioanalyysillä.fi=vertaisarvioitu|en=peerReviewed

Hubungan antara amalan operasi perkhidmatan dengan prestasi Tentera Darat Malaysia (TDM) : gaya kepimpinan sebagai moderasi

A study on delivery of services in the public sector in general and army in particular is insufficient. This study focuses on the level of service operations practices adopted by Malaysian Army and its relationship with performance. It aims to determine the relationship between the practice of service operations with the performance of the Malaysian Army in Peninsular Malaysia. In addition, this study also aims to identify whether leadership style acts as a moderator in the relationship between the practice of service operations with the performance of the Malaysian Army. Research method carried out was in the form of field study in which questionnaires were used as instrument. Data were analyzed using Pearson correlation, multiple regression and hierarchical regression analysis. 800 sets of questionnaires were sent to a unit in the organization of the Army of Malaysia with a return rate of 244 sets (30.5%). Data collected through questionnaires were analyzed using Statistical Package for Social Science (SPSS).The findings show a significant relationship between the dimensions of the practice of some service operations such as leadership practice, relationship oriented, the process of delivering a uniform, customer participation with the performance of the Malaysian Army. In addition, variables moderation leadership style namely transformational leadership style and transactional leadership style also affect the relationship between the practice of service operations with the performance of the Malaysian Army. The results of this study may contribute to the development of theory and knowledge in influencing the performance of the Malaysian Army to the proliferation of knowledge related to the field of operations management, especially help the Malaysian Army in the implementation of the operational management more efficiently and effectively

Knowledge management, corporate entrepreneurship, motivation, organizational commitment and job performance of the local government managers

Local governments are in the frontline government position of public service delivery to individuals and organizations in the country. However, they constantly face widespread criticisms and are often viewed as inefficient and lacking accountability. Therefore the objective of this study was to examine the relationship between knowledge management, corporate entrepreneurship, and job performance among the middle level managers of local governments. The study also aimed to determine the mediating effect of public service motivation and the moderating effect of organizational commitment on these relationships. The quantitative survey method was adopted in the data collection. A total of 728 usable responses were gathered from the respondents of the local authorities in Peninsular Malaysia, Sabah and Sarawak. The Partial Least Squares (PLS) path modeling was employed to analyze the data. The results revealed the existence of significant relationships between knowledge management, corporate entrepreneurship and job performance. On the mediation relationship, public service motivation was found to mediate the relationship between knowledge management and job performance, but not the relationship between corporate entrepreneurship and job performance. However, the study did not find any moderating role of organizational commitment on the relationship between knowledge management and job performance, and also on the relationship between corporate entrepreneurship and job performance. This study not only provides evidence on the importance of knowledge management and corporate entrepreneurship to job performance in the public sector but also validates the research framework which is well established in the corporate sector. The study further contributes to the existing body of knowledge in the local governments where similar studies are generally scarce. Moreover, it specifies a strategy and sketches a road map on how to improve performance in the local government sector. Finally, study limitations and suggestions for future research are provided and discussed

The mediating effect of knowledge sharing between intrinsic motivation, high-performance work system, authentic leadership on employees' creativity in Pakistan territory education institutions

In recent management literature, employee creativity is considered to be an essential factor in achieving positive work outcomes and organizational effectiveness”. Most prior studies have explored the role of psychosocial factors in explaining employee creativity. However, in this stream of research, the role of individual and organizational factors in enhancing employee creativity has gained little attention. This specific research intended to analyse the relationship between the authentic leadership, high-performance work systems and intrinsic motivation on the creativity of the employees. In addition, this particular research also analysed the mediating impact of knowledge sharing between authentic leadership, high-performance work systems and intrinsic motivation on the creativity of the employees. Two crucial theories have been investigated in this study namely self-determination theory as well as social exchange theory. In order to constitute the sample of the research, the researcher selected random sampling technique and selected 313 faculty members who were the full-time faculty members at the Public Universities of Punjab, Pakistan. The researcher integrated a self-administrated questionnaire in order to accomplish the aim and objectives of the study. The data collected through this research design was analysed by the means of PLS-SEM approach using Smart PLS 3.2.8. The outcomes of the research indicated that there is a position association between all the variables of the research and the creativity of the employees in the organization. The outcomes of the research also pointed out that there is a positive association among high performing work system, intrinsic motivation, and knowledge sharing. The knowledge sharing act as a partial mediator for the relationship between employee creativity, high-performing working systems and at the same time authentic leadership. The outcomes of this research are valuable for the policy-making as well as regulators and it could facilitate them in escalating the level of high-performance work system, authentic leadership and at the same time intrinsic motivation

The implications and impact of artificial intelligence, big data and HR analytics in HRM: A critical analysis of EU enterprises

This study offers a critical evaluation of HR analytics. Specifically, the ideas and concepts surrounding HR analytics, such as what is HR analytics, the development of HR analytics in organizations and how it may impact organizational performance. To advance and answer these research questions, this study relied on systematic reviews, logistic regression, interaction effect analysis, and interviews with the European Company Survey (ECS) to assess the interrelationship between HR analytics and organizational factors. Based on the findings, certain key areas are addressed. Firstly, research question 1 has succeeded in developing a more systematic and coherent definition of HR analytics and artificial intelligence in HR. It has also successfully identified some factors that influence the use of HR analytics in organisations. In particular, the results of study two found that factors such as firm age, firm size, the complexity of the firm process and the type of variable pay systems have been shown to be key indicators of why certain companies use HR analytics while others do not. Furthermore, the results for study three also provided a bigger picture of how organizational factors might be the reasons for explaining firms’ financial returns when examining the relationship between variables. In particular, factors such as employee motivation, the use of HR analytics, and variable pay systems are also believed to be critical in determining which factors affect a company’s financial returns. In addition, the study provides additional knowledge for five specific areas in analytics and artificial intelligence in HR, namely firm characteristics, challenges, key reasons to adopt HR software, new trends and user traits

IFPOC Symposium:Discovering antecedents and consequences of complex change recipients' reactions to organizational change.

IFPOC symposium: Discovering antecedents and consequences of complex change recipients' reactions to organizational change Chairs: Maria Vakola (Athens University of Economics and Business) & Karen Van Dam (Open University) Discussant: Mel Fugate (American University, Washington, D.C) State of the art Organisations are required to continuously change and develop but there is a high failure rate associated with change implementation success. In the past two decades, change researchers have started to investigate change recipients' reactions to change recognizing the crucial role of these reactions for successful change. This symposium aims at identifying and discussing the complex processes that underlie the relationships among antecedents, reactions and outcomes associated with organizational change. New perspective / contributions This symposium consists of five studies that extend our knowledge in the field by (i) providing an analysis of change recipients' reactions going beyond the dichotomous approaches (acceptance or resistance) (ii) revealing understudied antecedents-reactions and reactions-consequences patterns and relationships (iii) shedding light on the role of contextual factors i.e team climate and individual factors i.e emotion regulation on the adaptation to change. This symposium is based on a combination of both quantitative (i.e diary, survey) and qualitative (i.e interviews) research methodology. Research / practical implications This symposium aims to increase our understanding of the complex processes associated with change recipients' reactions to change. Discovering how these reactions are created and what are their results may reveal important contingencies that can explain how positive organizational outcomes during times of change can be stimulated which is beneficial for both researchers and practitioners

Qigong at Work: Where East Meets West

State of the Art Qigong is part of Traditional Chinese Medicine (TMC) and aims to balance body and mind. The roots of Qigong lie in China, where Confucian and Daoist scholars (500-400 B.C.) noted that one must learn to balance and relax one’s thoughts and emotions to avoid illness (Yang, 1997). In the Western world, Qigong is best known for its slow and coordinated movements. According to TCM, these movements will help regulate one’s ‘qi’, or life energy, through the body to improve the health and harmony of mind and body. During the practice of Qigong, one’s breathing, attention and movement are aligned. As such, Qigong is sometimes considered Mindfulness in movement (although there are many important differences). New perspectives / contributionsQigong has many positive outcomes on health and wellness. In both patient groups and healthy individuals, Qigong has been shown to improve psychological well-being, quality of life, immune function, balance and related risk-factors, and bone density (Jahnke et al., 2010). As such, Qigong offers a validated way to reduce the physical and mental activation that results from a person's work. While recent research has demonstrated how important it is to take short breaks at work, there is still little attention for Qigong exercises as a means to recover at work.Practical Implications In this presentation, we will explain and practice several Qigong exercises. These movements can be used at work (and at home) to recover from (hormonal) activation, ‘empty’ one’s head, and restore the body-mind balance. <br/