scholarly journals Middle managers’ roles after a hospital merger

2019 ◽  
Vol 34 (1) ◽  
pp. 85-99
Author(s):  
Elsa Solstad ◽  
Inger Johanne Petterson
Keyword(s):  
Management Practices ◽  
Middle Managers ◽  
Professional Staff ◽  
Social Aspect ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Hospital Merger ◽  
Top Managers ◽  
The Social ◽  
Social Controls ◽  
Knowledge Intensive

Purpose Mergers are important and challenging elements in hospital reforms. The authors study the social aspects of management and the roles of middle managers in the aftermath of a hospital merger. Especially, the purpose of this paper is to investigate how professional staff and middle managers perceive their relationships with top managers several years after the merger. Design/methodology/approach A survey was conducted among the professional staff in two merging hospitals’ units six years after a merger. Based on the main findings from this survey, a follow-up interview study was done with a group of middle managers. Findings The management practices were diagnostic with few interactive or communicative activities. The respondents expressed that mistrust developed between the staff and the top management, and a lack of involvement and interaction lead to decoupled and parallel organizations. Social controls, based on shared norms, had not been developed to create mutual commitment and engagement. Practical implications Policy makers should be aware of the need in profound change processes not only to change the tangible elements, but to take care of changing the less tangible elements such as norms and values. Professionals in hospitals are in powerful positions, and changes in such organizations are dependent on trust-building, bottom-up initiatives and evolutionary pathways. Originality/value The paper addresses the need to understand the dynamics of the social aspect in managing hospitals as knowledge-intensive organizations when comprehensive restructuring processes are taking place over several years.

Two decades of evolution in tourism competitiveness: a co-word analysis

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Amanda de Paula Aguiar-Barbosa ◽  
Adriana Fumi Chim-Miki ◽  
Metin Kozak
Keyword(s):  
Supply And Demand ◽  
Tourism Industry ◽  
Social Aspect ◽  
Exploratory Research ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Consensus Analysis ◽  
The Social ◽  
New Models ◽  
Social Side ◽  
Integrative Concept

PurposeThe objective of this study was to analyze the evolution of tourism competitiveness over the years, ascertaining the state of the art and the degree of consensus among scholars on its constituent elements to propose an integrative and updated concept.Design/methodology/approachA set of 130 definitions on tourism competitiveness formulated between 1999–2018 was analyzed and segmented into three periods, allowing its historical evolution to be ascertained. It is a qualitative and quantitative exploratory research that uses a combination of techniques, namely, content analysis, analysis of co-words and consensus analysis.FindingsThe results indicated a low use of elements such as the quality of life and the environment in the authors' definitions during 1999–2018, although these elements were present in the first concept of tourism competitiveness by Crouch and Ritchie (1999, 2003). Another finding of this study shows a reduction in the analysis of tourism competitiveness based on the supply and demand side. Nowadays, the research tends to turn on the basis of the population directly affected. It also reveals the enrichment of the theoretical corpus with new lines of research arising and new groups of scholars of the subject, consequently a new frontier in tourism competitiveness.Research limitations/implicationsThe authors recommend deepening the analysis in each category of conceptual elements of tourism competitiveness to identify the origins of the low consensus. The authors also suggest conducting further research on the largest invisible schools of thought on this subject to understand their relations and perspectives, and thus to advance in the theoretical streams of the field. Finally, it is imperative to develop research on new models and monitors of tourism competitiveness that meet its renewed concept and integrate dimensions to consider the perspective of supply, demand, tourists and residents, as well as not excluding the economic bias but including the social side.Practical implicationsOwing to the fact that monitors of tourism competitiveness have practically no variables related to the social, most of the surveys are carried out from the supply or demand perspective, leaving the resident distant from the process. In this way, the results allow authors to indicate that new models of competitiveness measurement should be formulated based on the vision of the community impacted by tourism, i.e. a new version of tourism competitiveness not based on productivity but rather on the social aspect.Originality/valueThe findings of this study contribute to the field literature by offering an integrative concept of tourism competitiveness based on the elements with a higher level of consensus among researchers. Furthermore, the results accentuate a worrying fact regarding the operationalization of this concept, as the theoretical basis is not expressed in the monitors of competitiveness. Thus, nor it is possible in the management of the tourism industry.

scholarly journals Towards a circumplex typology of customer service experience management practices: a dyadic perspective

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Yasin Sahhar ◽  
Raymond Loohuis ◽  
Jörg Henseler
Keyword(s):  
Customer Service ◽  
Management Practices ◽  
Ad Hoc ◽  
Service Providers ◽  
Service Industries ◽  
Customer Journey ◽  
Service Experience ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Knowledge Intensive ◽  
Five Phases

PurposeThe purpose of this study is to identify the practices used by service providers to manage the customer service experience (CSE) across multiple phases of the customer journey in a business-to-business (B2B) setting.Design/methodology/approachThis study comprises an ethnography that investigates in real time, from a dyadic perspective, and the CSE management practices at two service providers operating in knowledge-intensive service industries over a period of eight months. Analytically, the study concentrates on critical events that occurred in phases of the customer journey that in some way alter CSE, thus making it necessary for service providers to act to keep their customers satisfied.FindingsThe study uncovers four types of service provider practices that vary based on the mode of organization (ad hoc or regular) and the mode of engagement (reactive or proactive) and based on whether they restore or bolster CSE, including the recurrence of these practices in the customer journey. These practices are conveniently presented in a circumplex typology of CSE management across five phases in the customer journey.Research limitations/implicationsThis paper advances the research in CSE management throughout the customer journey in the B2B context by showing that CSE management is dynamic, recurrent and multifaceted in the sense that it requires different modes of organization and engagement, notably during interaction with customers, in different phases of the customer journey.Practical implicationsThe circumplex typology acts as a tool for service providers, helping them to redesign their CSE management practices in ongoing service and dialogical processes to keep their customers more engaged and satisfied.Originality/valueThis paper is the first to infuse a dyadic stance into the ongoing discussion of CSE management practices in B2B, in which studies to date have deployed only provider or customer perspectives. In proposing a microlevel view, the study identifies service providers' CSE management practices in multiple customer journey phases, especially when the situation becomes critical.

scholarly journals Recontextualizing Scandinavian practices in a Latin American regional office

2019 ◽  
Vol 18 (1) ◽  
pp. 99-119
Author(s):  
Jacobo Ramirez ◽  
Anne-Marie Søderberg
Keyword(s):  
Latin American ◽  
Multinational Corporation ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Management Practices ◽  
Middle Managers ◽  
Regional Office ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Colonial Legacy ◽  
Meaning System

Purpose The purpose of this study is to explore how Danish and Mexican communication and management practices are recontextualized at the Latin American office of a Scandinavian multinational corporation (MNC) located in Mexico. Design/methodology/approach A case study based on interviews, observations and company documents was conducted. Findings Well-educated Mexican middle managers appreciate the participative communication and management practices of Scandinavian MNCs, which transcend most experiences at local workplaces, but their interpretations and meaning system are influenced by the colonial legacy and political and socioeconomic context framing their working conditions. Originality/value This paper provides a contextualized analysis of a rich case study to further illustrate the challenges faced by MNCs in their quest to establish a regional office in a Latin American context and offers a theoretical model of the elements involved in complex recontextualization processes.

Survey of formal and informal labour relations in contemporary Russian businesses

2016 ◽  
Vol 24 (2) ◽  
pp. 204-224
Author(s):  
Yulia Chilipenok ◽  
Olga Gaponova
Keyword(s):  
Content Type ◽  
Labour Relations ◽  
Top Managers ◽  
The Social ◽  
Informal Labour ◽  
Complete Rejection ◽  
Formal Relations ◽  
Informal Relations ◽  
Modern Russian

Purpose This paper aims to address issues related to informal relationships in modern Russian organisations, namely, the extent of these relationships, the conditions of their existence and their connection with formal relations. Design/methodology/approach The paper contains a discussion of the relevant theoretical issues and a presentation of empirical research conducted by the authors through a survey of the staff of a number of businesses based in major cities of the Russian Federation. The study also includes an analysis of an expert survey of top managers and an assessment of the role of the informal component in the social and labour cooperation of workers and employers in modern Russian organisations. Findings It is concluded that with the further advancement of Russia towards establishing an effective market economy, there is a general trend towards a reduction in the role of personal relationships in social and labour relations, although a complete rejection of protectionism in this area is not possible because of certain peculiarities of the Russian mentality. Practical implications Knowledge and understanding of the Russian national identity and its influence on the informal component of workplace labour issues will enable managers to be more effective in building and developing modern international business relations. Originality/value The paper studies a unique set of empirical data obtained by using authoring tools carefully tailored to the specific conditions of Russia. The results of the study will enable more effective management of informal relations in modern organisations.

The information concept of Nicholas Belkin revisited – some semeiotic comments

2014 ◽  
Vol 70 (1) ◽  
pp. 74-92 ◽  
Author(s):  
Torkild Thellefsen ◽  
Bent Sørensen ◽  
Martin Thellefsen
Keyword(s):  
Design Methodology ◽  
Social Aspect ◽  
Communication Model ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Communication Models ◽  
The Social ◽  
Concept Of Information ◽  
Information Concept

Purpose – The purpose of the paper is to examine and compare Nicholas Belkin's information concept and his concept of communication with the authors' semeiotic inspired communication model – the Dynacom. Design/methodology/approach – The authors compare the two communication models by comparing the requirements given by Belkin and the conditions of the Dynacom. Findings – The authors conclude that Belkin's idea of information and his idea of communication lack the social aspect. Based on his theory, he is unable to point out how information becomes knowledge. These are two major issues the authors believe they can elaborate on by introducing the Dynacom and their semeiotic inspired concept of information. Originality/value – No one has previously specifically analyzed Nicholas Belkin's concept of information and compared it to a semeiotic ditto.

scholarly journals The politics of sensemaking and sensegiving at work

2014 ◽  
Vol 26 (1) ◽  
pp. 3-21 ◽  
Author(s):  
Cathrine Filstad
Keyword(s):  
Leadership Style ◽  
Middle Managers ◽  
Middle Management ◽  
Top Management ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Political Activities ◽  
Political Processes ◽  
Top Managers ◽  
New Knowledge ◽  
Depth Interviews

Purpose – The aim of this paper is to investigate how political activities and processes influence sensemaking and sensegiving among top management, middle management and employees and to examine its consequences for implementing new knowledge. Design/methodology/approach – Data were collected in a Norwegian bank using in-depth interviews with middle managers and financial advisers. Observations of meetings, informal conversations and verbatim notes were also used in data collection among top managers. A practice-based approach was used as an analytical lens. Findings – Top managers' political activities of excluding others from the decision process affect their sensemaking and resulted in sensegiving contradictions between spoken intent and how to change practice. Middle managers' political activities were to accept top managers' sensegiving instead of managing themselves in their own sensemaking to help financial advisers with how to change their role and practice. As a result, middle managers' sensemaking affects their engagement in sensegiving. For financial advisers, the political processes of top and middle managers resulted in resistance and not making sense of how to change and implement new knowledge. Research limitations/implications – A total of 30 in-depth interviews, observations of five meetings and informal conversations might call for further studies. In addition, a Norwegian study does not account for other countries' cultural differences concerning leadership style, openness in decisions and employee autonomy. Originality/value – To the author's knowledge, no studies identify the three-way conceptual relationship between political activities, sensemaking and sensegiving. In addition, the author believes that the originality lies in investigating these relationships using a three-level hierarchy of top management, middle management and employees.

Strategic human resource management practices and organizational resilience

2018 ◽  
Vol 37 (7) ◽  
pp. 537-551 ◽  
Author(s):  
Fatma Bouaziz ◽  
Zouhour Smaoui Hachicha
Keyword(s):  
Resource Management ◽  
Human Resource Management ◽  
Human Resource ◽  
Quantitative Methods ◽  
Management Practices ◽  
Strategic Human Resource Management ◽  
Organizational Resilience ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Top Managers ◽  
Human Resource Management Practices

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to investigate the relationship between strategic human resource management (SHRM) practices and organizational resilience in a Tunisian democratic transition context. It is hypothesized that five SHRM practices influence three organizational resilience dimensions. Design/methodology/approach The research design is based on a deductive approach. The relations were checked over two periods by using quantitative methods. Questionnaires were addressed to top managers of resilient Tunisian companies. The hypotheses were verified after. Findings Results showed that SHRM practices affect the resilience dimensions. Analysis showed that SHRM practices enhance the robustness of firms, especially in the second period, and significantly influence agility and integrity. Practical implications Managers can use these findings to develop targeted actions in HRM to enhance a specific resilience dimension. They can make better decisions based on knowledge surrounding the precise effects of SHRM practices on resilience dimensions. Originality/value The authors highlighted the role of SHRM in developing organizational resilience. Gaps were noticed in the organizational resilience literature. This research is among the rare studies that have investigated the linkage between SHRM practices and organizational resilience. By using quantitative methods and adopting a longitudinal perspective for analyzing data, it leads to better identify the evolution of the influence of SHRM practices on each resilience dimension over time.

scholarly journals Accountability via social and financial performance of the hospitality sector: the role of market orientation

2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Soheil Kazemian ◽  
Hadrian Geri Djajadikerta ◽  
Saiydi Mat Roni ◽  
Terri Trireksani ◽  
Zuraidah Mohd-Sanusi
Keyword(s):  
Financial Performance ◽  
Market Orientation ◽  
Customer Orientation ◽  
Social Performance ◽  
Three Dimensions ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Top Managers ◽  
The Social ◽  
Competitor Orientation ◽  
Hospitality Sector

Purpose This study aims to examine the three dimensions of market orientation, namely, customer orientation, competitor orientation and inter-function coordination, which influence the accountability in the financial and social performance of tourism operators in large touristic cities. Design/methodology/approach In total, 95 usable questionnaires as the required data were collected from the top managers of four- and five-star hotels in Iran. Findings Partial least squares (PLS) results confirm that customer orientation and inter-function coordination influence both the financial and social performance of the hospitality sector yet reveal that competitor orientation has no significant relationship with social performance. Research limitations/implications These findings not only highlight the compatibility of PLS with various forms of statistical analyzes but also furthers the current understanding of hospitality networks in megacity economies, where literature are scarce. Practical implications The findings of this study can help policymakers, tourism associations and practitioners enhance the accountability and sustainable financial and social performance of the hospitality industry in megacities. This study proposes some unique measurements for the social and financial performance of the hospitality sectors. Originality/value The paper states some new measurements for the social performance of the hospitality sectors. In addition, measuring the impacts of market orientation on the financial and social aspects of hotels is totally unique.

How and when environmental regulation induces middle managers’ proactive behavior

2019 ◽  
Vol 24 (5) ◽  
pp. 438-452
Author(s):  
Haixu Bao ◽  
Haizhen (Jane) Wang ◽  
Chenglin Sun
Keyword(s):  
Environmental Regulation ◽  
Middle Managers ◽  
Listed Company ◽  
Proactive Behavior ◽  
Cross Sectional Survey ◽  
Bottom Line ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Top Managers ◽  
Regulation Strength

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to explore how middle managers respond to the career challenges caused by environmental regulation. In particular, this paper examines whether environmental regulation strength is positively related to middle managers’ openness toward change, and whether middle managers’ openness toward change is positively related to proactive behavior. Furthermore, the moderating role of top managers’ bottom-line mentality in these two relationships is examined. Design/methodology/approach Cross-sectional survey research (n=155) was conducted. During a training program, data were collected from 155 middle managers from a listed company that manufactures primary products. With these data the authors examined the main relationship and also explored the moderating effect of top managers’ bottom-line mentality. Findings Analysis of the findings indicates that perceived environmental regulation strength influences middle managers’ openness toward change and consequently their proactive behavior. In addition, top managers’ bottom-line mentality moderates both the link between environmental regulation strength and openness toward change and the link between openness toward change and proactive behavior. Originality/value The findings of this study reveal how environmental regulation induces middle managers’ proactive behavior, and the influence of top managers’ mentality on how middle managers respond to environmental regulation both cognitively and behaviorally.

A design studio experience: impacts of social sustainability

2019 ◽  
Vol 13 (2) ◽  
pp. 368-385 ◽  
Author(s):  
Salih Ceylan ◽  
Murat Deniz Soygeniş
Keyword(s):  
Built Environment ◽  
Social Sustainability ◽  
Architectural Education ◽  
Social Aspects ◽  
Design Studio ◽  
Social Aspect ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Social ◽  
Holistic Understanding

Purpose Sustainability, especially in terms of development and growth, has been in the agenda of the world community for several decades. However, apparently not all the aspects of sustainability are given equal importance. Ecologic and economic components of sustainability have been in the focal point of many theoretical and practical works, as the social aspect has been mostly left out of emphasis. The purpose of this paper is to examine the social aspects of sustainability and its relation to architecture, with respect to the strong connection between the society and the built environment. Design/methodology/approach The core of the paper consists of a case study conducted at a design studio course for third-year architecture students whereas the outcomes of the student works on the design problem are evaluated as examples for design approaches to reflect the effects of the built environment on social sustainability. The case study is supported with a literature review and examination of existing approaches to similar subjects regarding social sustainability. Findings The findings resulted in a better understanding of social sustainability in architectural education which is reflected on the built environment through several architectural strategies. Originality/value This paper contributes to the literature by providing a holistic understanding of sustainability including its social aspects and creating an awareness for the importance of social sustainability in architectural education.

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