„Effects of Mixed Signals on Employer Attractiveness: A Mixed-Method Study Based on Signalling and Convention Theory“

Traditional recruiting activities are marked by information asymmetry and organisational information control, leading to uncertainty among applicants about employer attractiveness. New technologies profoundly change the picture. Recruiting websites provide more thorough, yet controlled information; online employer reviews offer employee‐generated information mostly out of organisational control. While this diminishes information asymmetry, applicants have to handle incongruent information. It remains largely unclear how so‐called "mixed Signals" affect employer attractiveness and how applicants interpret them. To address the issue, we developed an integrated theoretical framework based on signalling and convention theory to better understand how applicants interpret and evaluate signals about employers. We then conducted a mixed‐method study to examine how congruent and mixed signals influence perceived employer attractiveness. Our results show that while congruent signals increase employer attractiveness and mixed‐signal situations reduce it, distinct evaluative patterns emerge when potential applicants reflect and judge employers. Implications for future research and practice are discussed

Human resource management: the promise, the performance, the consequences

Purpose – The dominant focus of HRM research has been that of “strategic HRM”, that is a focus on the impact of HRM on firm performance. The authors argue that not only are the cumulative results of this “dominant research orthodoxy” disappointing in terms of their external validity, but also they are of limited practical value. Further, it has failed not only in terms of its narrow firm performance-oriented agenda, but also the tenets of its agenda have contributed to serious levels of employee dissatisfaction and to the failure to deal with pressing global issues. The paper aims to discuss these issues. Design/methodology/approach – In order to assess the contribution of the dominant research orthodoxy the authors analyse the 16 most cited journal articles in the field of HRM. Findings – The authors find a predominance of US-centric studies and therefore a questionable cross-national generalizability of the dominant research orthodoxy. The use of cross-sectional data means that long-term effects cannot be gauged. The authors observe a lack of consensus on how to operationalize HRM and firm performance. National context is generally absent. Practical implications – The authors show that for HRM to realize its potential for governments, media, or philanthropic agencies, HRM must abandon its restricted scope and mono-dimensional sources of inspiration. Originality/value – The authors not only point to the shortcomings of the dominant research orthodoxy within HRM, but the authors point to how HRM could become significantly more “centre-staged” by addressing the actors searching for contributions to the big questions of the world – the governments, media, and philanthropic agencies

Introduction to Special Section: Careers in Context

[Excerpt] Career scholars regularly cite Hughes’ (1937: 413) dictum that the study careers as “the moving perspective in which persons orient themselves with reference to the social order, and of the typical sequences and concatenations of office – may be expected to reveal the nature and \u27working constitution\u27 of a society.” Yet the greater part of the careers literature typically ignores this by focusing, largely, on the careers of individuals and influencing factors mainly linked to the person and his or her immediate context, to the neglect of the broader context within which the careers are lived. However, large-scale economic and organizational changes that have affected most industrial societies in recent decades – the rising amount of business activity across national borders (Anderson & Cavanaugh, 2005), the increasingly global arena for entertainment and media, the influence of the internet in economic, social and political affairs, increased labor force participation by women and concomitant changes in family roles, and the emergence of distinctive forms of employment relations across countries (Whitley, 1999; Barley & Kunda, 2004) – make neglect of the social and political contexts in which careers unfold very problematic. These developments have reshaped the multitude of settings in which work careers are lived: the communities of organizations, occupations, geographical areas, and so on. Specifically, the broad social context that provides the canvas on which work careers are painted, rather than the immediate organizational context as discussed, for example, by Johns (2001), is an important, yet partly neglected factor for understanding work careers. The immediate context may, of course, form a link between career and the broader context. However, it is the latter and not the former type of context that is a primary object of interest in this respect. We suggest that research exploring the broad context within which work careers are lived helps us understand better the nature of career in an Internet-based, globalised economy and how these careers, in turn, influence developments in the context

Susceptibility of Bifidobacteria of Animal Origin to Selected Antimicrobial Agents

Strains of the genus Bifidobacterium are frequently used as probiotics, for which the absence of acquired antimicrobial resistance has become an important safety criterion. This clarifies the need for antibiotic susceptibility data for bifidobacteria. Based on a recently published standard for antimicrobial susceptibility testing of bifidobacteria with broth microdilution method, the range of susceptibility to selected antibiotics in 117 animal bifidobacterial strains was examined. Narrow unimodal MIC distributions either situated at the low-end (chloramphenicol, linezolid, and quinupristin/dalfopristin) or high-end (kanamycin, neomycin) concentration range could be detected. In contrast, the MIC distribution of trimethoprim was multimodal. Data derived from this study can be used as a basis for reviewing or verifying present microbiological breakpoints suggested by regulatory agencies to assess the safety of these micro-organisms intended for the use in probiotics

Consequences of voluntary job changes in Germany: A multilevel analysis for 1985-2013

Analyzing the development of the consequences of voluntary job changes in Germany between 1985 and 2013, the study focuses on income gains and job satisfaction increases. Drawing on arguments of the job-search literature on the one hand and the proliferation of choices on the other we investigate whether the returns of job changes have increased or decreased. Results show that income gains have decreased over time while the job satisfaction surplus has remained stable. We further conclude that in determining the outcomes of job changes over time, structural factors seem to be more important than individual ones

Laying the foundations of international careers research

As an editorial to the special issue ‘new avenues in international careers research’ this paper discusses the roots of the international careers research stream, which sits at the intersection between career studies, HRM and international management. In order to support future studies in this emerging area of enquiry, we then attempt to lay down the foundations of a research agenda based around what we see as the three core areas of interest: contextualised careers research, comparative careers research, and careers research in internationally operating organisations. After providing some suggestions for the kinds of theoretical, methodological and research collaboration tools that will be required to build on these foundations, we introduce the five empirical papers that comprise this special issue

Von der Subvention zum Leistungsvertrag. Neue Koordinations- und Steuerungsformen zwischen NPOs und dem öffentlichen Sektor und ihre Konsequenzen für NPOs.

In den Beziehungen und in der Zusammenarbeit zwischen Nonprofit Organisationen und öffentlichen Verwaltungen sind in Österreich markante Veränderungen zu beobachten. "Leere Kassen" und Sparprogramme gelten als Argument umfassender finanzpolitischer Restriktionen der öffentlichen Hand. Die Finanzierung der von NPOs erbrachten gesellschaftlichen Leistungen wird prekär. Eine theoretische Legitimation erhält diese Entwicklung durch die Diskussion zur gesellschaftlichen Verantwortung des öffentlichen und des NPO Sektors unter den Stichworten "New Public Management" und "Zivilgesellschaft". Auch supranationale Einflüsse - insbesondere jene der EU - schaffen neue Rahmenbedingungen für die Arbeit der NPOs. Die Konfrontation mit veränderten Spielregeln bedeutet für beide Sektoren eine Herausforderung. Insbesondere der anhaltende Druck in Richtung Sparsamkeit und Effizienz der öffentlichen Mittelverwendung hat erhebliche Auswirkungen auf das Verhältnis zwischen NPOs und öffentlicher Hand. Ein Kernelement dieser Entwicklung ist der Positionswandel vieler NPOs von der Rolle eines in seinen Aktivitäten weitgehend freien Subventionsempfängers, der durch persönliche Vertrauensbeziehungen gestützt wird, hin zum vertraglich gebundenen Dienstleister. Resultat sind widersprüchliche Forderungen, die zu wechselseitigen Fehleinschätzungen führen und den Eindruck einer "falschen Verbindung" entstehen lassen. Einige Beispiele sollen dies verdeutlichen: 1. Zum einen wird eine verstärkte Eigeninitiative von NPOs gefordert, zum anderen unterbinden enge Ausschreibungen jeglichen Spielraum. 2. Einerseits wird im Rahmen einer Zivilgesellschaft die Beteiligung der Ehrenamtlichen hoch gelobt, andererseits machen die Einklagbarkeit von Verträgen und die Vorgabe strikter Kriterien den Einsatz von Ehrenamtlichen zum Risiko. 3. Auf der einen Seite sollen NPOs wie professionelle Unternehmen agieren, auf der anderen Seite will man von der Tradition der Bevormundung und Detailkontrolle nicht lassen. Bislang durchgeführte qualitative Interviews mit Führungskräften des NPO-Sektors und der Geldgeber sprechen u.a. folgenden Forschungsannahmen hohe Plausibilität zu: - NPOs müssen für öffentliche Geldgeber berechenbar sein. Gründete die Berechenbarkeit früher dominant im politisch-werthaften Vertrauen in bestimmte Personen, so stützt sie sich heute zunehmend auf die Professionalität und auf das Wissenspotential der NPO. Die Steuerungsmedien Macht und persönliches Vertrauen werden überlagert durch jene von Geld und Wissen. - Leistungsvertragliche Beziehungen erfordern Entscheidungen und erzwingen Organisation: In Abgrenzung von informellen Handlungsmustern gewinnt formales Handeln in NPOs an Bedeutung. Auch basisnahen NPOs stehen unter Druck, sich vom Ideal und den Fesseln der Basisdemokratie zu verabschieden. - Es gibt eine Tendenz zur Professionalisierung sowohl im einschlägig-fachlichen wie auch im betriebswirtschaftlich-instrumentellen Bereich. Innerbetrieblich führt dies nicht selten zu einer symbolische Polarisierung zwischen Fachexperten einerseits und Betriebswirten andererseits. (Autorenref.)Series: WU-Jahrestagung 200

Career success across the globe: Insights from the 5C project

The Cross-Cultural Collaboration on Contemporary Careers (5C Project) conducted in-depth, longitudinal qualitative research into what career success means to people in a diverse range of countries; specifically: Australia, Austria, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, China, Colombia, Costa Rica, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, India, Israel, Italy, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Mexico, Netherlands, Nigeria, Norway, Philippines, Portugal, Russian Federation, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, South Africa, Spain, Thailand, Turkey, UK, and USA. This paper presents the seven major meanings of career success that emerged across these diverse global cultures and thus may be deemed relevant all around the world. These are financial security (being able to consistently provide the basic necessities for living), financial achievement (steadily making more money, wealth, incentives, and perks), learning and development (via continuous informal learning on the job and/or formal training and education), work-life-balance (between work and non-work, relationships, activities and interests), positive relationships (as signified by, for instance, enjoying working with people who you respect and admire), positive impact (by helping others in one’s immediate social environment and/or leaving some sort of legacy to a community, or society more broadly), and entrepreneurship founding one’s own enterprise or being able to invent and develop one’s own projects within the work context). We describe examples of each from different cultures and offer practical implications of these meanings for the primary stakeholders of career research: individuals, organizations, as well as counselors, coaches and consultants