Can SMEs retain talent during the BREXIT process period?

Talent Management (TM) shows ways of developing and engaging employees that are able to make a difference within organisations, domestically and internationally. It is associated with the process of attracting, improving, managing and retaining employees. There are two schools of thought in TM approach, namely the exclusive and inclusive one. The former focuses only on the best performers within a company claiming that developing and maintaining practices should focus on them. The latter argues that TM practices should include all employees by focusing on developing their strengths, skills, abilities, capabilities, and knowledge. In the inclusive approach the term ‘talent’ is referred to as anyone who is able to influence achieving the organisation's objectives. This approach seems to be the case in most Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs)

Towards the adoption of new management methods in a modernising national business system?: a study of the responses of middle managers to Total Quality Management in Greek service industry

Total Quality Management (TQM) emerged as a promising management practice mainly in the US and the UK. Its principles challenge the managerial traditions of other countries. A prime example is Greece. In view of the widespread argument that Middle Managers (MMs) are key elements in making TQM work, this study explores the relationship between these people and TQM in the Greek National Business System (NBS). It focuses on how TQM is perceived by them and it investigates whether MMs' perceived awareness of TQM affects their responses to a set of individual and organisational aspects. This study adopts the contingency approach to TQM. This approach argues that TQM does not have determinate effects and that its consequences are shaped by the context in which it operates. This thesis expands knowledge by developing a theoretical framework that addresses the relationship between TQM and Middle Management in this specific national context. It offers strong evidence on four specific contingencies, in the light of which managers' responses to TQM should be explored. These factors are the business/management culture, the modernisation agenda, the sector of employment and the educational background of managers. Moreover, this study contributes to the development of the research methodology in the area, by combining quantitative (survey questionnaire) and qualitative (follow-up interviews) methods. 241 questionnaires were collected and 18 follow-up interviews were conducted in 43 different public (19) and private (24) service organisations. Finally this thesis offers statistically reliable measurement of the 'soft' and 'hard' sides of TQM. In this respect, six major arguments about the relationship between TQM and MMs are supported. First, it is recognised by the MMs that the business system needs modernisation and QM is a part of it. Second, although the acronym TQM and some of its concepts and practices are known by a range of public and private sector managers, actual awareness of its 'soft' side is often superficial, and people have a relatively poor understanding of it. Third, MMs tend to see TQM from the technical point of view, being aware only of the importance of its 'hard' aspects. Fourth, whilst MMs perceive TQM as enhancing individual aspects like autonomy, loyalty and career prospects, at the same time they acknowledge the increased work effort and stress due to the perceived awareness of TQM. Fifth, they hold sceptical positions about the adoption and actual application TQM related organisational issues like empowerment and top management commitment and support. The sixth, overall, conclusion is that TQM was neither resisted nor directly absorbed. The principles of quality improvement have been widely accepted, but convincing Greek managers to apply 'soft' TQM aspects remains a major challeng

Social Brain-Constructed Relational Leadership: A Neuroscience View of the Leader-Follower Duality

Relationship-based approaches to leadership represent one of the most fast growing leadership fields that emphasize the interaction between the leader and the follower. The critical question though is the way that leadership actors (leaders and followers) are linked to each other and in particular how they try to understand how to do that in the workplace. Also, what is even less understood is the role of consciousness in this relationship. In this respect, this conceptual paper explores consciousness within the context of the social brain theory to argue that leadership actors need to revise their approach to individuality and focus on mutually dependent relations. We introduce the concept of Homo Relationalis arguing that leadership is not just social constructed element, but also social brain constructed phenomenon. We finally recommend a new approach of applying cognitive style analysis to capture the duality of leader/follower in the same person, following the self-illusion theory

Understanding Total Quality Management in Context: Qualitative Research on Managers’ Awareness of TQM Aspects in the Greek Service Industry

This study addresses managers’ awareness and familiarity with Total Quality Management (TQM). Eighteen (18) semi-structured, in-depth interviews were conducted with managers working in a variety of service organizations in Greece. The major argument of the study is that although the acronym TQM and some of its concepts and practices are known by a range of public and private sector managers, actual awareness of its “soft” side is often superficial, and managers have a relatively poor understanding of it. TQM is neither resisted nor directly absorbed by them, but they tend to see it from the technical point of view, being aware only of the importance of its “hard” aspects

Enhancing Service-Oriented Behaviors in an Asian Business Context: Lessons From a Pakistani Bank

This article examines how service organizations can enhance employees’ customer orientation, often exhibited through the display of service-oriented citizenship behaviors. The study, in this respect, quantitatively analyses the relationships between organizational distributive justice, leader-member exchange (LMX), and team-member exchange (TMX) on customer orientation. Data were gathered through a survey of 658 middle managers working in a Pakistani bank and were analyzed via full structural equation modelling. The findings reveal that organizational distributive justice, LMX, and TMX are key predictors of customer orientation. Specifically, the analysis suggests that the relationships between organizational distributive justice and LMX with customer orientation are mediated partially and fully, respectively, by TMX. Simultaneously, TMX partially mediates the relationship between organizational tenure and customer orientation. Our study contributes to both theory and practice of service organization functioning by signifying the importance of the organization’s fair distribution of rewards as well as it’s leader’s and co-worker’s behaviors in affecting organizationally desired employee behaviors and thereby, arguably, enabling positive organizational outcomes. Service organizations can, based on our findings, create a culture of service excellence by placing emphasis on specific elements at the organizational, leadership, and team level

Towards the adoption of new management methods in a modernising national business system? : a study of the responses of middle managers to Total Quality Management in Greek service industry

Total Quality Management (TQM) emerged as a promising management practice mainly in the US and the UK. Its principles challenge the managerial traditions of other countries. A prime example is Greece. In view of the widespread argument that Middle Managers (MMs) are key elements in making TQM work, this study explores the relationship between these people and TQM in the Greek National Business System (NBS). It focuses on how TQM is perceived by them and it investigates whether MMs' perceived awareness of TQM affects their responses to a set of individual and organisational aspects. This study adopts the contingency approach to TQM. This approach argues that TQM does not have determinate effects and that its consequences are shaped by the context in which it operates. This thesis expands knowledge by developing a theoretical framework that addresses the relationship between TQM and Middle Management in this specific national context. It offers strong evidence on four specific contingencies, in the light of which managers' responses to TQM should be explored. These factors are the business/management culture, the modernisation agenda, the sector of employment and the educational background of managers. Moreover, this study contributes to the development of the research methodology in the area, by combining quantitative (survey questionnaire) and qualitative (follow-up interviews) methods. 241 questionnaires were collected and 18 follow-up interviews were conducted in 43 different public (19) and private (24) service organisations. Finally this thesis offers statistically reliable measurement of the 'soft' and 'hard' sides of TQM. In this respect, six major arguments about the relationship between TQM and MMs are supported. First, it is recognised by the MMs that the business system needs modernisation and QM is a part of it. Second, although the acronym TQM and some of its concepts and practices are known by a range of public and private sector managers, actual awareness of its 'soft' side is often superficial, and people have a relatively poor understanding of it. Third, MMs tend to see TQM from the technical point of view, being aware only of the importance of its 'hard' aspects. Fourth, whilst MMs perceive TQM as enhancing individual aspects like autonomy, loyalty and career prospects, at the same time they acknowledge the increased work effort and stress due to the perceived awareness of TQM. Fifth, they hold sceptical positions about the adoption and actual application TQM related organisational issues like empowerment and top management commitment and support. The sixth, overall, conclusion is that TQM was neither resisted nor directly absorbed. The principles of quality improvement have been widely accepted, but convincing Greek managers to apply 'soft' TQM aspects remains a major challengeEThOS - Electronic Theses Online ServiceGreek State Scholarship Foundation (IKY)University of Warwick (UoW)GBUnited Kingdo

Should I say something? A framework for understanding silence from a line manager’s perspective during an economic crisis

The impact of the recent economic crisis on firms’ key employment priorities has been widely discussed in the literature. Although research has focused on how employee silence is manifested in times of economic crisis, less is known about how line managers experience voice and silence from their own perspective and organizational position. Line managers are an intriguing group to study because they act as both supervisors to their teams and as supervisees (employees) to senior managers/business owners. We draw on qualitative data gathered from line managers in 35 small non-unionized enterprises in Greece in two periods of time (2012 and 2014) during the economic crisis. We develop a framework for understanding line manager’s experience of silence in such contexts and, within this framework propose ‘cynical silence’ as a new type of silence relevant to an economic crisis context

CSR perceptions and employee behaviour: Evidence from Bangladesh

The influence of CSR on organisations’ consumers has been studied extensively. However, there is lack of studies investigating the impact of employee CSR perception on their behaviour. Moreover, most of these studies have been conducted in the setting of developed economies, mainly western business contexts. Considering this two-fold lacuna, this study analyses to what extent CSR strategies applied by multinational organisations that operate in a non-western context, influence their employees’ behaviour. Results of a study of 204 employees working in MNOs in Bangladesh reveal that perceived CSR association along with perceived prestige increase organisational identification. Here, perception of CSR shaped is used as an antecedent of perceived prestige and organisational identification. Organisational identification, in turn, affects employees’ organisational commitment, which subsequently influences job satisfaction. Through integrating social identity theory and social exchange theory, this study shows a potential link between social identification and social exchange processes. In the case of CSR, exchange relationships improve when employees have identified themselves with the organisation. We also argue that CSR can enable MNOs to strengthen their relationships with employees

Neuroscience for Leaders: Practical Insights to Successfully Lead People & Organizations (2nd Ed.)

Neuroscience for Leaders (2nd ed.) captures the most up-to-date and important findings in neuroscience and links these to the business world. The book offers a simple framework to put these principles into practice to make better decisions, take the right actions and find faster solutions. The book presents a comprehensive approach to leading people and organizations based on academic research. The authors' 'Brain Adaptive Leadership' approach offers a step-by-step guide to enhancing the way leaders think, understanding and nurturing emotions, shaping automated brain responses and developing dynamic relationships. Examples, activities and practical suggestions are all designed to be clear and engaging. Neuroscience for Leaders is the essential guide for leaders who are ready to gain the business advantage scientifically

Brain-Adjusted Relational Leadership: A Social-Constructed Consciousness Approach to Leader-Follower Interaction

Relationship-based approaches to leadership represent one of the fastest-growing leadership fields and help us to understand better organizational leadership. Relation-based approaches emphasize the relationship and interaction between the leader and the follower. The emphasis is placed on the way that they interact and influence each other at attaining mutual goals. It is known that leaders are linked to followers and vice versa in a sense of responding to other's needs toward the achievement of mutual goals. Leaders and followers are an essential part of this social process implying that they are losing their traditional identity rooted in the formal organizational structure (manager-subordinate) and become inseparable actors of a co-constructing process of leadership. What is less known though is the way that leadership actors are linked to each other and in particular how they try to understand how to do that in the workplace. What is even less understood is the importance and role of consciousness in this relationship. Especially since consciousness appears to be both a fundamental and a very elusive element in human relations. Therefore, this paper conceptually explores the concept of consciousness within the context of the social brain theory to argue that leadership actors need to rethink their approach to individuality and focus on mutually dependent relations with each other. This paper contributes to the field of Neuro-management by introducing the concept of Homo Relationalis. In this respect, we suggest that leadership is not just a socially constructed element but also a social brain constructed phenomenon that requires an understanding of the human brain as a social organ. We further recommend a new approach of applying cognitive style analysis to capture the duality of leader/follower in the same person, following the self-illusion theory. Finally, we conclude that we need to further emphasize a social brain-adjusted relational leadership approach and we introduce two new cognitive styles that can help capture the essence of it