Leadership Practices, Competitive Priorities, and Manufacturing Group Performance

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine the role of manufacturing leadership in enhancing manufacturing performance for different manufacturing configurations. Design/methodology/approach – Survey data collected from three levels of respondents in excess of 480, from 98 manufacturing units in the USA are used to test the study hypothesis using the cluster analysis and regression models. Findings – Effective leadership is positively associated with overall manufacturing performance beyond the fixed effects of organizational variables, such as competitive orientation and industry membership. The manufacturing leadership, however, does not seem to affect customer satisfaction. Research limitations/implications – The paper illustrates the use of behavioral theory of leadership in the context of managing operations with varying competitive orientations in different industries. Future research should, however, attempt to match different leadership practices/styles to different competitive orientations, and include employee characteristics, such as subordinates\u27 prior experience, training, or skills that may influence the need for demonstrating the leadership practices differently for different competitive orientations. Practical implications – As manufacturers pursue a combination of priorities, their manufacturing managers need to use a gamut of effective leadership practices, such as planning, delegating, inspiring, etc. Manufacturers may also note that effective manufacturing leadership enhances performance on a host of measures, such as quality, timeliness, efficiency, etc. which are directly influenced by the manufacturing group. For measures, such as customer satisfaction, manufacturing leadership needs to be augmented by managing customer expectations and by being more flexible in accommodating customers\u27 requirements. Originality/value – This is the first study to deploy multiple respondents to simultaneously examine the effects of competitive orientation and leadership practices on manufacturing performance

Job search and voluntary turnover in a boundaryless world: a control theory perspective

We propose a cybernetic model of job search and voluntary turnover that is based on the need to remain employable in a volatile economy. The model depicts the process by which individuals engage in ongoing cycles of job search activities that can increase the likelihood of voluntary turnover, which, in turn, provides opportunities to develop additional career competencies. We then examine the implications of the model for future research on the turnover process

Job level, demands, and resources as antecedents of work-family conflict

The article of record as published may be located at http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jvb.2010.10.002Although substantial research has examined the conflict that employees experience between their work and family roles, the literature has not investigated the prevalence and antecedents of work–family conflict for individuals who work at different levels of an organization. This study examines differences in work–family conflict (work interference with family and family interference with work) for lower-level and higher-level employees, the factors that might explain these differences, and the differential effect of resources on conflict across job levels. Results indicate that higher-level workers experience greater conflict in both directions than lower-level workers, and that work- and home-based resources are differentially related to the conflict experienced by employees who hold lower-level and higher-level jobs

Relationship between protean career orientation and work-life balance: A resource perspective

The article of record as published may be found at http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/job.1996Despite the commonly held belief that a protean career orientation (PCO) enables employees to achieve more balance in their lives, little is known about the relationship between PCO and work-life balance. Using two waves of data collection separated by 2.5 years, this study examined the relationship between PCO and work-life balance among a sample of 367 college-educated employees in the United States. Analysis was conducted to empirically distinguish PCO from conceptually related constructs and structural equation modeling was used to examine the process that explains the linkage between PCO and balance. We found that PCO was positively related to work-life balance. We also found support for the role of several resources (social capital, psychological capital, and perceived employability) that explain the relationship between PCO and balance. In particular, PCO was associated with extensive career planning activities that were related to the accumulation of three forms of career capital—human capital, social capital, and psychological capital. In turn, social capital and psychological capital were associated with high employability, which was related to greater work-life balance for individuals who take a whole-life perspective on their careers. We discuss the theoretical and practical implications of the findings and provide suggestions for future research

The family-relatedness of work decisions:a framework and agenda for theory and research

Due to global trends such as the increased labor force participation of women, the growing presence of dual-earner couples and single parents in the labor force, and changing values regarding the importance of life balance, individuals' work decisions are being increasingly influenced by family considerations. However, the “family-relatedness” of work decisions, or the extent to which family situations are considered in these decisions, has not been systematically examined. We propose a framework to examine the family-relatedness of work decisions and a broad agenda for future theory and research to test and extend the framework