Who leads?

2014 ◽  
Vol 6 (3) ◽  
pp. 317-335 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jonathan H Deacon ◽  
Jacqueline A Harris ◽  
Louise Worth

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to engage with contemporary gender and entrepreneurship theories to gain insights into the division of labour, capitals and capacities and gendered identities within husband and wife heterosexual copreneurial businesses. This paper acknowledges copreneurship as a constituent sub group of research within family business and in doing so, the wider small business domain. Design/methodology/approach – A multiple exploratory interview approach was used, with data generated through face-to-face in-depth interviews and ethnographic participant – observer multi-setting observation. This approach provided exceedingly rich and detailed data, and thus insights into the complex relationships found within copreneurial businesses. Findings – The interviews generated a large amount of qualitative data, which were organised into themes through a process of recursive abstraction. Expelling the myth of the “male lead entrepreneur”, this study found that entrepreneurial identity and roles and responsibilities within a copreneurial business are shared and complementary, and are dependent upon the unique capacities and capitals of each partner. While there is evidence of duties that could be stereotypically described as either “men’s work or women’s work”, there was no apparent role tension between the partners. Thus, no partner’s contribution was deemed more valuable than the other. Originality/value – By examining the division of labour and unique value/contribution of both men and women within the copreneurial/familial relationship the stereotyped perception of the husband being the lead (male) entrepreneur is challenged in favour of the more complementary capacities, roles, responsibilities and, thus, value of each actor/participant.

2019 ◽  
Vol 25 (4) ◽  
pp. 717-730 ◽  
Author(s):  
Veland Ramadani ◽  
Robert D. Hisrich ◽  
Leo-Paul Dana ◽  
Ramo Palalic ◽  
Laxman Panthi

Purpose Throughout Macedonia, beekeeping is becoming popular regardless of ethnicity. Studying ethnicity, the purpose of this paper is to determine what beekeepers in Macedonia thought in their own words about their beekeeping entrepreneurship. The objective is to identify whether motivations of ethnic Albanian beekeepers in Macedonia were the same or different compared to those of ethnic Macedonians in the same country, and if different, how. Design/methodology/approach To accomplish this objective, in-depth interviews were conducted with 40 beekeepers in Macedonia. A total of 29 interviews were conducted face-to-face and the other 11 by phone. The first set of interviews took place between December 2016 and February 2017, followed by more interviews in June 2017. In total, 27 respondents said they were ethnic Albanians, and 13 identified themselves as ethnic Macedonians. Also, ten respondents were women. While eight were full-time beekeepers, 32 were part-time beekeepers. Findings The results indicated that beekeeping businesses play a significant role in the transition economy of Macedonia. Beekeeping provides additional earnings that support rural families and keeps them financially stable. The majority of both Albanians and Macedonians understood that beekeeping on a part-time job basis provided a needed supplement to their income. Some part-time beekeepers are also working as auto-mechanics, locksmiths, medical doctors, restaurant/cafeteria owners, and tailors. A few in the sample were retired from their jobs or full-time beekeepers. An important difference between ethnic Albanian beekeepers and ethnic Macedonians in Macedonia is that the majority of ethnic Albanian participants see beekeeping as following in “my father’s footsteps”, while most Macedonians were motivated by the perceived opportunity of having a good business. Research limitations/implications Limitations of the research are twofold. First, financial data of family beekeeping are not available, which would be useful in determining the contribution made to economic development. It is common, especially in transition economies such as the western Balkans, that financial results are very sensitive to their owners. Second, unavailable databases for beekeepers make any quantitative approach difficult, if not impossible, resulting in most research using the qualitative research approach. Originality/value This paper is one of the first to treat beekeeping as a form of artisan entrepreneurship, which also contributes to the understanding of family business. As in other countries, the important and operation of the family business among family members in Macedonia is passed from generation to generation. The results of this research revealed the value of networking, which was found to be very important to income. For beekeepers to develop, grow, and be branded in the community, networking is an important ingredient.


2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Konstantinos Andriotis ◽  
Pantea Foroudi ◽  
Reza Marvi

Purpose Although love has received considerable attention in the marketing literature, there is limited past research on love in a tourism context. This study aims to overcome past research negligence by proposing the concept of heritage destination love. Design/methodology/approach A qualitative approach was undertaken, face-to-face in-depth interviews with 35 respondents in London to discuss about the concept of heritage destination love antecedents and its consequences, tourists’ behavior and tourists’ feeling, passion and love about the destinations as playing a magnificent role in tourism development. Findings The outcome reveals that heritage destination love has three elements – passion, emotional attachment and identification. Originality/value Despite its limitations, the current study offers theoretical insights of the psychological theory of the love triangle in relation to heritage destination love.


Author(s):  
Nisamar Baute-Díaz ◽  
Desiderio Gutiérrez-Taño ◽  
Ricardo Díaz-Armas

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to study the role of social interaction and reputation when reviewing experiences on the Airbnb platform. Recent studies have suggested that social interaction and aspects related to reputation may encourage positive bias in the case of online ratings and comments.Design/methodology/approachA qualitative research method was used. In total, 20 semi-structured in-depth interviews were conducted with non-professional Airbnb hosts and guests resident on the island of Tenerife (Canary Islands).FindingsFace-to-face interaction between the host and guest could lead to the moderation or omission of negative comments by guests. Reputation is a relevant factor that affects the behaviour of the users on the platform. Users are expected to behave in accordance with certain conventions learned when using the platform.Research limitations/implicationsThe exploratory analysis must be complemented by other quantitative research. The hosts interviewed are not professional hosts.Practical implicationsIt is recommendable for hosts offering average accommodation to pay special attention to welcoming and assisting their guests, with the aim of boosting their reputation on the platform.Originality/valueThis is the first qualitative study to deal with the effect of social interaction and reputation from the point of view of hosts and guests when reviewing experiences on the Airbnb platform.


2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Olajide Ore ◽  
Martin Sposato

Purpose The purpose of this study is to contribute to the knowledge on the opportunities and risks in the use of artificial intelligence (AI) in recruitment and selection by exploring the perspectives of recruitment professionals in a multicultural multinational organisation. Design/methodology/approach A qualitative approach was used in this exploratory study. Face-to-face, semi-structured in-depth interviews were conducted with ten professional recruiters who worked for a multinational corporation. Findings The findings revealed that AI facilitates the effective performance of routine tasks through automation. However, the adoption of AI technology in recruitment and selection is also fraught with risks that engender fear and distrust among recruiters. The effective adoption of AI can improve recruitment strategies. However, cynicism exists because of the fears of job losses to automation, even though the participants thought that their jobs would continue to exist because recruiters should always be humans. Originality/value This paper provides a unique exploration of the opportunities and risks in the adoption of AI for the recruitment and selection function in human resource management. The benefits are the delegation of routine tasks to AI and the confirmation of the crucial role of professional recruiters.


Facilities ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 34 (13/14) ◽  
pp. 828-854 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nora Johanne Klungseth ◽  
Siri Hunnes Blakstad

Purpose This paper aims to describe and discuss in-house cleaning services in local authorities to gain a better understanding of current practices. These descriptions are intended to increase researchers’, practitioners’ and educators’ understanding of the studied issue, as there at present does not exist a solid understanding of in-house cleaning services in local authorities. Previous studies provide little detailed information regarding the internal environment of facility management (FM) organisations, in particular with regard to FM organisations’ individual services. Design/methodology/approach This research is based on two descriptive case studies, one from Norway and one from the UK. The case studies are based on semi-structured, face-to-face in-depth interviews and document reviews. Findings The cases demonstrate that in-house cleaning services can be structured and managed in different ways, particularly with respect to the split in services, the management of staff and customer contracts, the span of control, the chain of command, self-managed leadership, cleaners’ hours of duty and the use of outsourcing. Research limitations/implications Although the previous research on particular FM services is limited, this paper’s detailed descriptions may stimulate further development and research within the field. The knowledge brought forward is part of bridging a knowledge gap on cleaning in FM research. This knowledge can contribute to advancements in the way this service is discussed and measured across contexts by encouraging more rigour and specific studies on cleaning. Originality/value This paper constitutes one of the first detailed descriptions of in-house cleaning organisation in local authorities. This is a type of service supply that is common in certain contexts and identified as beneficial to cost-saving in other contexts.


2020 ◽  
Vol 41 (4) ◽  
pp. 535-550
Author(s):  
Ronald Busse ◽  
Georg Weidner

PurposeEnvironments coined as “VUCA” (volatility, uncertainty, complexity, ambiguity) are hotbeds for new modi operandi in organisations that involve a shift from face-to-face towards distant leadership, as well as from “classical” towards agile organisation principles.Design/methodology/approachAt the same time, digital collaboration tools have found their way into daily business operations. As the above changes arguably leave deep imprints on performance indicators, our work accordingly illuminates potential impacts on employee engagement. Based on a German sample, we conduct a qualitative investigation featuring in-depth interviews.FindingsOur findings indicate a curvilinear inverted (approximate) U-shaped relation between what we dub “leadership richness continuum” (including specific characteristics of leadership, agility, as well as the application of a digital collaboration tool) and engagement.Originality/valueAlthough our work may inspire practicing managers, we also contribute to theory development providing a new theoretical model for employee engagement.


Author(s):  
Rebecka Cowen Forssell

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to explore what characterizes cyberbullying when it is performed in digital space and in an increasingly boundary blurred working life context.Design/methodology/approachCyberbullying is explored through the lens of Erving Goffman’s theories on everyday life interaction and social media scholars understanding of social life on the internet today. The empirical material for the study is grounded in eight in-depth interviews with individuals who have been subjected to cyberbullying behavior in their professional life. The interview data were analyzed by means of thematic analysis.FindingsThree key themes were identified: spatial interconnectedness, colliding identities and the role of the audience. The empirical data indicate that in order to understand cyberbullying in working life, it is necessary to consider the specific context that emerges with social network sites and blogs. Moreover, this study shows how social network sites tend to blur boundaries between the private and the professional for the targeted individual.Originality/valueCyberbullying in working life is a relatively under-researched area. Most existing research on cyberbullying follows the tradition of face-to-face bullying by addressing the phenomenon with quantitative methods. Given the limited potential of this approach to uncover new and unique features, this study makes an important contribution by exploring cyberbullying with a qualitative approach that provides in-depth understanding of the new situations that emerge when bullying is performed online.


2014 ◽  
Vol 3 (1) ◽  
pp. 65-76 ◽  
Author(s):  
Linda Kvarnlöf ◽  
Roine Johansson

Purpose – Incident sites can be described as the joint work site of the emergency services, where one of their challenges is to interact with the public. The purpose of this paper is to study how this interaction is structured by the emergency personnel's jurisdictional claims. Design/methodology/approach – This paper rests upon qualitative method and in-depth interviews. In total, 28 people have been interviewed, out of which 13 are emergency personnel and 15 are unaffiliated volunteers. The interview material has been analysed qualitatively and thematically by the authors. Findings – The findings show that the interaction between emergency personnel and unaffiliated volunteers can be described in terms of three different boundary practices: cordoning off, division of labour and conversation, varying in degrees of inclusion and exclusion. The result shows that the emergency personnel's relationship to volunteers is ambivalent, as they are both seen as an uncertain element at the incident site in need of control and as a valuable source of information. Originality/value – While most other studies have been focusing on the interaction between emergency organizations, the authors have investigated the interaction between emergency organizations and a group previously unstudied: unaffiliated volunteers. While sociologists in the field of boundary work normally describe boundary practices in terms of negotiation, sympathizing with the concept of negotiated order, the results point to the fact that boundaries are not necessarily a subject for negotiation.


2019 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
pp. 144-160 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pang Heng Lau ◽  
Kamsiah Ali

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to discuss citizen participation in crime prevention in Kuching, Malaysia. This is a study of how citizen participated in crime prevention has helped in crime reduction in Kuching. Roles of citizen in crime prevention with the police have been included in this study. Result showed that citizen and police joint crime prevention has succeeded in crime reduction in Kuching. Design/methodology/approach Three methods of data collection were used in this research study: first, face-to-face interviews of 500 head of households in Kuching. They are selected using systematic sampling among the 159,000 households in Kuching. Second, in-depth interviews of 36 respondents involving community leaders and crime watch groups; and third, secondary crime statistics from the Royal Malaysia Police. It is based on actual crime reported to the police. Findings Police and citizen involvement in crime prevention are effective in reducing crime. Citizen participation in crime prevention was 80.6 per cent. The higher the frequency police and citizen involvement in crime prevention patrols, the lesser the level of crime. With increased joint patrol by police and citizen in the neighbourhood, the level of crime will be lower, and safety will improve, and this is particular valid in the case of the nine geographical areas covered under Kuching police district. Research limitations/implications This study focused on citizen participation in crime prevention in Kuching police district only. Practical implications Police and citizen participation in crime prevention play a key role in crime reduction. This study argued that police and citizen frequent patrol will improve safety in the community. Training plays a key role for citizen to participate in crime prevention. Joint crime prevention patrol calls for a new breed of police officers who can work with the citizens. In return, the citizens trust the police to lead them in crime prevention. Social implications With citizen participation in crime prevention, the community will be safer, peaceful resulting in less crime. Citizens acted as an eye and ear to the police. As and when a citizen see a suspicious person in the neighbourhood, he informs the police. When the police arrives, the suspicious person who may have a criminal intent will either be arrested by the police or escaped before the police arrived. Originality/value This paper provides an insight into crime prevention exercise involving the citizens. The same concept can be implemented throughout Malaysia. Police needs to involve citizens always in crime prevention. Police and the community are one big family.


2017 ◽  
Vol 20 (4) ◽  
pp. 435-451 ◽  
Author(s):  
Helen R. Robinson

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to uncover the underlying motives for individuals’ polychronicity, the preference to multitask with media. Design/methodology/approach For this exploratory study, a qualitative research design is chosen, using face-to-face in-depth interviews and triad groups. In total, 34 in-depth interviews are conducted in the UK, Germany and Australia, with four subsequent triads in the UK. Findings The underlying motives for individuals’ preference for multiple media use include eight dimensions: comfort with multitasking; multi-channel preference; effectiveness and efficiency; convenience; emotional gratification; information and knowledge; social benefits and assimilation. Research limitations/implications A non-probability sample of a specific sample group (Digital Natives) is used in this study and despite the reassurance provided by quality criteria and triangulation, generalisation from this study is problematic. Future research to validate the eight exposed dimensions would be valuable. Practical implications For marketing communications and media channel planners, endeavouring to optimise clients’ budgets, the unique knowledge provided by the depth of understanding offered by the eight dimensions of polychronicity and their associated facets enables the development of relevant communication campaigns. Originality/value This paper presents a unique insight into individuals’ preference for multiple media use, uncovering the underlying dimensions of this behavioural phenomenon. Accordingly, this study makes a valuable contribution to knowledge in this emerging research domain.


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