Determinants of SMEs' perceptions of electronic banking in Pakistan

This study aims to collect the perceptions of Small- and Medium-sized Enterprise (SME) owners/executives/managers on the potential benefits and risks associated with Electronic Banking (EB) in Pakistan. The SMEs were selected from the yellow pages and every hundredth company was targeted randomly. Data were collected through primary sources and examined via frequency analysis and mean score analysis. The results indicate that the SMEs perceive EB as a tool to save time, facilitate quick responses and minimise the risk of carrying cash. The firms' most desired EB facilities are the payment of utility bills, submission of complaints and downloading of daily account reports. The SMEs also consider that EB increases the chances of government access to public data, fraud and data losses. The outcomes help bankers understand the concerns and demands of SMEs which not only represent a viable market segment in terms of the number and value of accounts, but also provide a considerable amount of retail profits

Zooming in on the workplace bullying and turnover intentions pathway: The role of well-being and a cultural boundary condition

Purpose: Despite the well-established association between workplace bullying and turnover intentions, the mechanisms underlying this relationship and its boundary conditions remain understudied. The purpose of this paper is to examine employee affective well-being as a mediating mechanism by which exposure to workplace bullying may trigger employee intentions to leave the workplace. It also aims to explore the role of national culture in moderating the effects of workplace bullying on employee well-being and turnover intentions. Design/methodology/approach: This research is conducted through a cross-cultural analysis of data obtained from 627 Australian and Pakistani employees. Findings: The findings reveal that exposure to workplace bullying triggers turnover intentions through its negative effect on affective well-being in cross-cultural/national contexts. However, national culture moderates these effects such that the effects of workplace bullying on well-being and turnover intentions are weaker for Pakistanis than for Australians. Originality/value: This paper reports original research that deepens the understanding of how, why and when exposure to workplace bullying will prompt employees to leave the workplace in a cross-national context. The research findings will assist international organisations in designing strategies tailored to the national culture in order to mitigate the adverse effects of workplace bullying on staff turnover. © 2019, Emerald Publishing Limited

Bankers perception towards Bai Salam method for agriculture financing in Pakistan

Islamic banking is planning to increase its market share up to 12 per cent of the total banking sector in Pakistan by 2012, as compared to its current market share of 5.6 per cent. This article collected the bankers views towards agriculture financing under the Islamically acceptable mode-Bai Salam (forward sale agreements of crop). It further compared agriculture financing under Islamic and interest-based financial systems. Overall, findings from this article are that bankers at large are confused about the application mechanism of Bai Salam contracts mainly because of improper land record maintained by the Revenue Department, widespread illiteracy and current government policy of issuing a single loan against each passbook (property record). The article presents recommendations that can be useful for the financial institutions not only in developing effective monitoring mechanisms, but also in minimizing financial losses. © 2010 Macmillan Publishers Ltd

The Quran and poverty alleviation: A theoretical model for charity-based Islamic microfinance institutions (MFIS)

The Quran prohibits interest and encourages trade and charity as alternates. This article seeks guidance from the verses of the Quran and develops a theoretical model of charity-based Islamic microfinance institutions (MFIs), which can be used as an alternative approach to reduce poverty. The article argues that charity-based Islamic MFIs will be financially and socially sustainable as these are to be based on the concepts of brotherhood, local philanthropy, and volunteer services. Charity-based Islamic MFIs will provide money for consumption as well as production purposes and, thus, can broadly target the economic and social needs of the poorest of the poor. They can help minimize indebtedness and reduce unequal distribution of wealth in society. © 2010 SAGE Publications

Religion and finance: Comparing the approaches of Judaism, Christianity and Islam

This book examines each of these three major world faiths, considering their teachings, social precepts and economic frameworks, which are set out as a guide for the financial dealings and economic behaviour of their adherents

Application of Islamic banking instrument (Bai Salam) for agriculture financing in Pakistan

Purpose: Islam prohibits interest as a source of income or profit. The purpose of this paper is to explore the possible application of Bai Salam contract (forward sale agreement) as an alternative financial instrument in the agriculture sector of Pakistan. Design/methodology/approach: A survey was conducted in four districts of the Punjab with a specifically designed questionnaire. A convenient sampling technique was used to gather farmers' concerns related to crops inputs, output and credit requirements. Findings: Empirical findings conclude that agriculture income represents only up to 60 percent of the income of an average farm household. About 70 percent of farmers participate in the credit market. They need money to purchase crops inputs, to pay the labour and to hire rental machinery. Farmers believe that they can save up to 25 percent in costs if they purchase inputs on cash. The survey also discloses that middlemen are the larger financers and buyers of crops in the rural economy whereby only 10 percent of transactions are conducted on a purely cash basis. Farmers usually return the money after the sale of the crop. Research limitations/implications: The concept of the paper can be extended to areas where large landlords dominate the scene. Alternatively, it can be extended towards non-farm activities such as cattle raising and poultry. Originality/value: The paper is a first comprehensive effort to explore the possible application of an Islamic banking instrument in the agriculture sector of Pakistan. It also suggests three possible models for financing under a Bai Salam contract. Some policy recommendations are also given. © Emerald Group Publishing Limited

Academics’ perceptions of bullying at work: insights from Pakistan

© 2017, © Emerald Publishing Limited. Purpose: Despite an extensive history of research into workplace bullying and the psychosomatic harm associated with it in western contexts, research into the occurrence and manifestation of bullying behavior in the academic workplaces of non-western countries is sparse. In response to this gap, the purpose of this paper is to start a research conversation by reporting an empirical enquiry into the occurrence, forms and perceptions of workplace bullying among academics in Pakistan. Design/methodology/approach: This study was conducted with a representative sample of academics in a large Pakistani province through a cross-sectional survey. Findings: This study reveals that workplace bullying is prevalent among academics in the Pakistani context, with up to half of them regularly exposed to practices such as excessive work monitoring, undermining of professional competence, lack of recognition of work contributions and obstruction of important work-related matters. Research limitations/implications: The findings underscore the need for developing broader institutional actions, clear policies and grievance procedures to discourage bullying at work in Pakistan. Higher educational managers will find the results useful for development of anti-bullying policies and codes of conduct. Originality/value: This is the first study to examine the perceptions, occurrence and demographic risk factors associated with workplace bullying among academics in the Pakistani context

Workplace bullying in Pakistan: Mapping the implications of social cynicism and the moderation of Islamic work ethic

The herein reported study aims to expand the literature on antecedents of workplace bullying by examining its relationship with social cynicism in the context of Pakistan. In addition, this study aims to examine whether Islamic Work Ethic (IWE) moderates this relationship. The study has adopted a quantitative research design with data collected through a survey of 350 healthcare professionals in Pakistan. The findings reveal that while social cynicism has a direct and positive effect on perceived bullying in the workplace, IWE moderates this effect, such that the effect is weaker among employees with a higher IWE as compared to those with a lower IWE. The findings have important implications to understanding the process of how bullying may be perceived in the workplace, and the role played by employees’ values and belief systems in shaping these perceptions. Importantly, the findings highlight that IWE can safeguard against perceived bullying in the workplace by buffering the potential positive impact of social cynicism on it. All in all, this is the first study that examines the relationship between social cynicism and workplace bullying. It also explores the boundary conditions placed by IWE in this relationship

The nexus of corporate social responsibility (CSR), affective commitment and organisational citizenship behaviour in academia: A model of trust

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to advance knowledge on the implications of perceived corporate social responsibility (CSR) on employee levels of commitment and citizenship behaviour (OCB) by investigating a trust-based mediational process in the context of academia. Design/methodology/approach: The research data are collected from a sample of 736 academics through a questionnaire based survey administered in different Pakistani universities. The nature of trust-based mechanism underlying the relationships between CSR, affective commitment and OCB is determined through structural equation modelling of the research data. Findings: The findings suggest that the perceived CSR is an important predictor of academics’ attitudes and behaviour in universities. Whilst the findings implicate the mediating role of trust in the process by which perceived CSR influences academics’ commitment, trust does not appear to mediate the perceived CSR’s relationship with OCB. Research limitations/implications: This study utilises single-sourced and cross-sectional data, which may have resulted in common method bias. Practical implications: By furnishing evidence of the beneficial effects of perceived CSR on academics’ levels of trust, commitment and citizenship behaviour, this study provides a business case for universities’ involvement in CSR. The findings are particularly useful to academic administrators and managers who are interested in nurturing positive attitudes and behaviours amongst academic staff. Originality/value: There is a paucity of research on CSR in the academic work settings of developing countries. This is the first study to examine the trust-based microfoundation of CSR in the context of academia in Pakistan

How ethical leadership stimulates academics’ retention in universities: The mediating role of job-related affective well-being

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to investigate the relationship between ethical leadership and academics’ retention in universities. It draws on the conservation of resources theory to deepen the understanding of a process underlying this relationship whereby academics are more likely to stay in universities through the practice of ethical leadership. Specifically, it advances academics’ job-related affective well-being as a potential mediating mechanism, fostered by ethical leadership, which lowers their intention to leave. Design/methodology/approach: This study is conducted through a cross-sectional survey of 303 academics in Australian universities. Univariate, bivariate and multivariate analysis procedures are deployed to analyse academics’ data. The research hypotheses are tested through a bootstrapped regression analysis of academics’ perceived ethical leadership, affective well-being and intention to leave. Findings: The findings lend support to the hypothesised relations, indicating a significant role of ethical leadership on enhanced intentions of academics to stay in universities by directly conserving their job-related affective well-being. Research limitations/implications: This paper contributes to knowledge of the relationship between ethical leadership and academics’ retention by identifying job-related affective well-being as an underlying mechanism in the university sector. Practical implications: This paper has practical implications for higher educational institutes seeking to retain their academic staff. Its findings show that the practice of ethical leadership in universities matters, because it lowers academics’ intentions to leave by nurturing their well-being at work. Originality/value: This is the first study to examine the impact of ethical leadership on academics’ well-being and intentions to leave in the context of universities in Australia. It is one of the first studies to explore the mediating role of affective well-being in the ethical leadership and leadership and intention to leave relationship. © 2018, Emerald Publishing Limited