Conceptualizing communicative leadership

2014 ◽  
Vol 19 (2) ◽  
pp. 147-165 ◽  
Author(s):  
Catrin Johansson ◽  
Vernon D. Miller ◽  
Solange Hamrin
Keyword(s):  
Employee Engagement ◽  
Communication Competence ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Quantitative And Qualitative Research ◽  
Research Fields ◽  
Public Organisation ◽  
Research Questions ◽  
Definition Of ◽  
Practical Implications

Purpose – The concept of “communicative leadership” is used in organisations that analyse and develop leaders' communication competence. A scholarly definition of this concept is lacking, and the implications of leaders' communication and the development of communication competence for organisations are rarely discussed. The purpose of this paper is to create a theoretical framework around the concept of “communicative leadership”, which can contribute to future research and development of leaders' communication competence. Design/methodology/approach – Three research questions were addressed: what communicative behaviours are central to leaders? How can “communicative leaders” be characterised? What is a “communicative leader”? Literature from the leadership and communication research fields was reviewed and related to these questions. Findings – Four central communicative behaviours of leaders (i.e. structuring, facilitating, relating, and representing), eight principles of communicative leadership, and a tentative definition are presented. A communicative leader is defined as someone who engages employees in dialogue, actively shares and seeks feedback, practices participative decision making, and is perceived as open and involved. Practical implications – A theoretical foundation to the practice of analysing and developing leaders' communication competence is provided, which is related to employee engagement and organisational performance. Originality/value – Communicative leadership is a concept emerging from organisational needs, articulated by corporate and public organisation leaders. This article links its core constructs to academic quantitative and qualitative research in an integrated framework, which can guide further research and the development of leaders' communication competence.

Digital competences of the workforce – a research topic?

2017 ◽  
Vol 23 (3) ◽  
pp. 721-734 ◽  
Author(s):  
Matthias Murawski ◽  
Markus Bick
Keyword(s):  
Research Topic ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Digital Competence ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Research Activities ◽  
Starting Point ◽  
Pros And Cons ◽  
Definition Of ◽  
The Individual ◽  
Practical Implications

Purpose Considering working in the digital age, questions on the consequences for the individual workers are, so far, often neglected. The purpose of this paper is to deal with the question of whether the digital competences of the workforce is a research topic. The authors argue for the thesis that it is indeed a research topic. Design/methodology/approach In addition to a literature analysis of the top IS, HR, and learning publications, non-scientific sources, as well as the opinions of the authors, are included. The authors’ thesis is challenged through a debate of corresponding pros and cons. Findings The definition of digital competences lacks scientific depth. Focussing on the workforce is valid, as a “lifelong” perspective is not mandatory for research. Digital competence research is a multidisciplinary task to which the IS field can make a valuable contribution. Research limitations/implications Although relevant references are included, some aspects are mainly driven by the opinions of the authors. The theoretical implications encompass a call for a scientific definition of digital competences. Furthermore, scholars should focus on the competences of the workforce, including occupations, roles, or industries. The authors conclude by providing a first proposal of a research agenda. Practical implications The practical implications include the alignment of multiple stakeholders for the design of “digital” curricula and the integration by HR departments of the construct of digital competences, e.g. for compensation matters and job requirements. Originality/value This paper is one of very few contributions in the area of the digital competences of the workforce, and it presents a starting point for future research activities.

scholarly journals Accountability and responsibility defined

2018 ◽  
Vol 11 (3) ◽  
pp. 687-707 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stephen Keith McGrath ◽  
Stephen Jonathan Whitty
Keyword(s):  
Design Methodology ◽  
Academic Research ◽  
Internal Conflict ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Physical Systems ◽  
Efficiency And Effectiveness ◽  
Governance Models ◽  
Definition Of ◽  
Practical Implications

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to remove confusion surrounding the terms responsibility and accountability from the general and project management arenas by creating “refined” (with unnecessary elements removed) definitions of these terms. Design/methodology/approach A method of deriving refined definitions for a group of terms by ensuring that there is no internal conflict or overlap is adopted and applied to resolve the confusion. Findings The confusion between responsibility and accountability can be characterised as a failure to separate the obligation to satisfactorily perform a task (responsibility) from the liability to ensure that it is satisfactorily done (accountability). Furthermore, clarity of application can be achieved if legislative and organisational accountabilities are differentiated and it is recognised that accountability and responsibility transition across organisational levels. A difficulty in applying accountability in RACI tables is also resolved. Research limitations/implications Clear definition of responsibility and accountability will facilitate future research endeavours by removing confusion surrounding the terms. Verification of the method used through its success in deriving these “refined” definitions suggests its suitability for application to other contested terms. Practical implications Projects and businesses alike can benefit from removal of confusion around the definitions of responsibility and accountability in the academic research they fund and attempt to apply. They can also achieve improvements in both efficiency and effectiveness in undertaking organisation-wide exercises to determine organisational responsibilities and accountabilities as well as in the application of governance models. Social implications Refined definitions of responsibility and accountability will facilitate building social and physical systems and infrastructure, benefitting organisations, whether public, charitable or private. Originality/value Clarity resulting in the avoidance of confusion and misunderstanding together with their consequent waste of time, resources and money.

Construct creation from research questions

2020 ◽  
Vol 54 (8) ◽  
pp. 1817-1838
Author(s):  
Sarah Forbes ◽  
Mark Avis
Keyword(s):  
Design Methodology ◽  
Qualitative Data ◽  
Methodological Problem ◽  
Ecological Validity ◽  
Research Process ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Research Questions ◽  
Practical Implications ◽  
Made In

Purpose Construct Creation (CC) is a methodological problem occurring when a research process, instead of measuring an extant construct in the participant’s mind, creates the construct. The purpose of this paper is to argue that CC derives from problems around ecologically invalid research and attitudinal responses developed on the spot, both resulting from self-generated validity. Design/methodology/approach A between-subjects design was used to explore whether the personification prime (PP), a component of brand personality (BP) methodology, influenced the CC of BP for rocks. Analysis of qualitative data on how participants made their BP ratings in the absence of a PP was also completed. Findings Findings revealed that a methodology can enable CC in the participant’s mind, despite the construct being ecologically invalid prior to them participating in the study. Analysis also revealed that participants will use varied, and sometimes elaborate, strategies to enable CC and provide researchers with the answers to their questions. Research limitations/implications Previous research has drawn attention to CC as a problem but the implications of prior research have so far been “sidestepped”. Consequently, this paper demonstrates CC and why it is a problem, while rebutting some arguments made in prior research for sidestepping CC. Practical implications CC is a potentially serious methodological problem that can result in invalid findings informing or misdirecting theory used by practitioners. As such, this paper proposes methods to ameliorate CC and improve ecological validity of future research. Originality/value This study will contribute to methodological literature by refocusing attention to the currently neglected problem of CC and by proposing a model of CC by participants.

Student work-placements from the company perspective: a case study

2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Reina Ferrández-Berrueco ◽  
Lucía Sánchez-Tarazaga
Keyword(s):  
Future Research ◽  
Student Work ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Work Placement ◽  
Quantitative And Qualitative Research ◽  
University Services ◽  
Staff Recruitment ◽  
Practical Implications ◽  
Selection Of

PurposeThe aim of this paper is to report the motivations and perceived benefits of companies that collaborate with universities by offering student work-placement positions.Design/methodology/approachThe study follows a mixed methodology based on (1) a literature review on the topic, (2) a case study survey including companies that collaborate with one Spanish university in student work-placements and (3) meetings with collaborating companies in different countries and universities.FindingsThe most important reasons for collaborating in student work-placements were related to social duty, the opportunity of training students in company needs and as a source of staff recruitment. Conversely, the less rated motivators were improving the company's position within the sector, benefitting from university services and saving time in the selection of personnel.Research limitations/implicationsFuture research should include a bigger corpus of the number of universities and companies, as well as the type of collaborations with universities, in order to identify any resulting differences.Practical implicationsThe conclusions highlight the need to define/improve the mechanisms that contribute to a win-win context. This is the only way that collaboration can advance towards a genuine partnership that will provide an effective framework for universities and companies to effectively share the same objectives in training future employees.Originality/valueThese results are relevant because of the lack of quantitative and qualitative research on this topic.

CSR adoption in the multinational hospitality context

2019 ◽  
Vol 31 (6) ◽  
pp. 2376-2393 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gopalkrishnan R. Iyer ◽  
Lee Jarvis
Keyword(s):  
Hospitality Management ◽  
Western World ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Prior Literature ◽  
Research Questions ◽  
Hospitality Firms ◽  
Stakeholder Pressures ◽  
Corporate Social ◽  
Practical Implications

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine corporate social responsibility (CSR) issues in the context of the hospitality industry and offer some avenues for future research. Design/methodology/approach The paper reviews several domains of CSR and takes stock of some exemplar research from hospitality management pertaining to each domain. Particular note is taken of research that explores CSR issues outside the Western world. Several unanswered questions are then noted along with suggestions for future research. Findings Based on prior literature, four CSR domains were identified as instrumental, social/legal/political, ethical and environmental. CSR issues in hospitality research have predominantly focused on the instrumental domain while there is scant research on other domains. CSR adoption in the multinational context was identified as due from stakeholder pressures, competitive environment and cultural environment. Research limitations/implications The paper identifies some unanswered questions in transnational operations of hospitality firms and suggests avenues for future research. Practical implications The paper recommends that due attention must be given to contextual issues in the conceptualization, focus and practice of CSR by multinational hospitality firms. Originality/value The paper offers a review of hospitality research on various CSR domains. It offers some unanswered research questions that may spur future research, discussion and debates among academics, students and executives.

Defining the big social data paradigm through a systematic literature review approach

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Gianluca Solazzo ◽  
Gianluca Elia ◽  
Giuseppina Passiante
Keyword(s):  
Machine Learning ◽  
Literature Review ◽  
Systematic Literature Review ◽  
Research Agenda ◽  
Web Of Science ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Definition Of ◽  
Practical Implications

Purpose This study aims to investigate the Big Social Data (BSD) paradigm, which still lacks a clear and shared definition, and causes a lack of clarity and understanding about its beneficial opportunities for practitioners. In the knowledge management (KM) domain, a clear characterization of the BSD paradigm can lead to more effective and efficient KM strategies, processes and systems that leverage a huge amount of structured and unstructured data sources. Design/methodology/approach The study adopts a systematic literature review (SLR) methodology based on a mixed analysis approach (unsupervised machine learning and human-based) applied to 199 research articles on BSD topics extracted from Scopus and Web of Science. In particular, machine learning processing has been implemented by using topic extraction and hierarchical clustering techniques. Findings The paper provides a threefold contribution: a conceptualization and a consensual definition of the BSD paradigm through the identification of four key conceptual pillars (i.e. sources, properties, technology and value exploitation); a characterization of the taxonomy of BSD data type that extends previous works on this topic; a research agenda for future research studies on BSD and its applications along with a KM perspective. Research limitations/implications The main limits of the research rely on the list of articles considered for the literature review that could be enlarged by considering further sources (in addition to Scopus and Web of Science) and/or further languages (in addition to English) and/or further years (the review considers papers published until 2018). Research implications concern the development of a research agenda organized along with five thematic issues, which can feed future research to deepen the paradigm of BSD and explore linkages with the KM field. Practical implications Practical implications concern the usage of the proposed definition of BSD to purposefully design applications and services based on BSD in knowledge-intensive domains to generate value for citizens, individuals, companies and territories. Originality/value The original contribution concerns the definition of the big data social paradigm built through an SLR the combines machine learning processing and human-based processing. Moreover, the research agenda deriving from the study contributes to investigate the BSD paradigm in the wider domain of KM.

The professional lives of expatriate academics

2016 ◽  
Vol 4 (2) ◽  
pp. 112-130 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jodie-Lee Trembath
Keyword(s):  
Future Research ◽  
Narrative Approach ◽  
Professional Lives ◽  
Higher Education Management ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Education Management ◽  
Expatriate Management ◽  
Research Stream ◽  
Definition Of ◽  
Practical Implications

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to provide clarity around the notion of the expatriate academic (EA), a construct that is increasingly essential to theories of expatriate management and higher education management. A review of the literature on academic mobility showed that terms such as “international academic” and “foreign faculty” provide highly variable definitions and results, while those papers that self-consciously used the term “EA” were more likely to provide consistency across definition and findings. This allowed for analysis of the characteristics of this unique group. Design/methodology/approach – This study appropriates a meta-narrative approach to literature review, analysing 23 papers about EAs to develop a more comprehensive conceptualisation of this term and to identify key-related themes. Findings – By reviewing 23 papers identifying with the term, a carefully constructed definition of the EA is provided, distinguishing EAs from other types of internationally mobile academic and demonstrating characteristics that EAs display in their professional lives. Recommendations are made to researchers, universities and EAs themselves for how these findings may affect the EA employment cycle. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed. Originality/value – This is the first paper to aggregate the results of literature on EAs, putting forward a clear definition and description to aid future research and clarify the research stream.

scholarly journals Stakeholder defined

2017 ◽  
Vol 10 (4) ◽  
pp. 721-748 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stephen Keith McGrath ◽  
Stephen Jonathan Whitty
Keyword(s):  
Academic Research ◽  
Internal Conflict ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Public And Private ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Physical Systems ◽  
Private And Public ◽  
Definition Of ◽  
A Company ◽  
Practical Implications

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to create a “refined” (with unnecessary elements removed) definition of the term stakeholder, thereby removing confusion surrounding the use of this term from the general and project management arenas. Design/methodology/approach A method of deriving refined definitions for a group of terms by ensuring there are no unnecessary elements causing internal conflict or overlap is adopted and applied to resolve the confusion. Findings The refined definitions of stake and stakeholder are in terms of an interest and activity. This avoids all extensions of meaning introduced by defining particular types of stakeholders and/ or their degrees of impact. It also resolves the multiplicity of conflicting meanings possible when silent or assumed qualifiers of a word are ignored, restricting definition to, for example, project stakeholders or stakeholders of a firm. These definitions are carried forward into a mapping of the stakeholder locus of interest on an activity rather than a company base, enabling generic categorisation of stakeholders to be proposed for use in both private and public sectors. A governance difficulty with the term customer also emerged and a resolution to this is proposed. Research limitations/implications Resolution of the academic contention around the definition of stakeholders will facilitate future research endeavours by removing confusion surrounding the term. It can also provide clarity in governance arrangements in public and private sectors. Verification of the method used through its success in deriving this “refined” definition suggests its suitability for application to other contested terms. Practical implications Projects and businesses alike can benefit from removal of confusion around the definition of stakeholder in the academic research they fund and attempt to apply. Social implications A refined definition of the stakeholder concept will facilitate building social and physical systems and infrastructure, benefitting organisations, whether public, charitable or private. Originality/value Clarity results in the avoidance of confusion and misunderstanding together with their consequent waste of time, resources and money.

Consumers’ evolving definition and expectations for local foods

2014 ◽  
Vol 116 (11) ◽  
pp. 1808-1820 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mark Lang ◽  
John Stanton ◽  
Yingdao Qu
Keyword(s):  
Repeated Measures ◽  
Farmers Markets ◽  
Price Premium ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Local Foods ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Food Miles ◽  
Definition Of ◽  
Practical Implications ◽  
Light Medium

Purpose – Although locally sourced and produced foods are a growing trend in food marketing, they are not yet clearly understood nor consistently defined. There is no lack of definitions currently offered, however, based on expanding, evolving, and sometimes conflicting, dimensions. The purpose of this paper is to investigate various emerging definitional elements of local foods to determine which elements may be as important to food shoppers today as the prevailing food miles definition. Design/methodology/approach – A shopper survey is fielded and repeated measures ANOVA conducted to measure the relative importance of various definitional elements, assess where shoppers expect to acquire local foods, the price premium they are willing to pay, and differences that may exist across customer groups. Findings – The study finds that consumers do consider other definitional elements as important as distance in their definition of local foods and they expect to find them in secondary outlets beyond farmers markets and the produce department. Consumers are willing to pay a price premium and there are differences across light, medium, and heavy users. Practical implications – This study provides researchers with an expanded and clearer definition of local foods for future research and practitioners with guidance on what shoppers expect and value today and how to better source, merchandise, and promote local foods. Originality/value – By combining definitional elements from across industry, government, and academia and analyzing them together, this study offers a more comprehensive definition of local foods and consumer expectations.

Influence of career identity on ethical leadership: sense-making through communication

2020 ◽  
Vol 49 (9) ◽  
pp. 1987-2005
Author(s):  
Shuang Ren ◽  
Doren Chadee
Keyword(s):  
Ethical Leadership ◽  
Ethical Behavior ◽  
Communication Competence ◽  
Positive Influence ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Identity Salience ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Career Identity ◽  
Sensemaking Theory ◽  
Practical Implications

PurposeThe widespread use of communication technologies and social media platforms such as the #ME TOO movement has amplified the importance for business leaders to demonstrate high standards of ethical behavior for career success. Although the concept of ethical leadership has been widely investigated, a theoretical framework from a career perspective does not yet exist.Design/methodology/approachThis study draws from sensemaking theory to argue that career identity salience shapes leaders' communication behavior to influence the extent to which they are perceived to be ethical by subordinates. We test our hypotheses using multisource data with a sample (n = 337) of business managers.FindingsThe results show that career identity salience has positive influence on communication competence, which positively influences ethical leadership. We further find that communication frequency positively moderates the relationship between communication competence and ethical leadership.Practical implicationsThe theoretical and practical implications that, motivated by their career identity, career-ambitious leaders can manipulate subordinates' perceptions of their ethical behavior are discussed along with suggestions for future research.Originality/valueTo our knowledge, this is the first research to provide a career perspective on ethical leadership.

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