Drivers and relationship benefits of customer willingness to engage in CSR initiatives

2020 ◽  
Vol 30 (1) ◽  
pp. 5-29
Author(s):  
Ingrid M. O'Brien ◽  
Robyn Ouschan ◽  
Wade Jarvis ◽  
Geoffrey Norman Soutar

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to assess the impact of CSR initiative preference, customer helping orientation and customer participation on willingness to engage in CSR and to demonstrate the influence this engagement has on their commitment and loyalty to the organisation.Design/methodology/approachThis study entailed an online survey of customers from a large not-for-profit organisation (n = 210). Choice modelling is used to test a structural equation model of drivers and outcomes of willingness to engage in CSR.FindingsResults demonstrate the CSR initiative preferred by customers has a stronger impact on their willingness to engage with the CSR initiative (volunteering their time, effort, money) than either customers' helping orientation or customer participation. Furthermore, willingness to engage in CSR influences customer commitment and loyalty to support and recommend the organisation.Research limitations/implicationsThe results clearly demonstrate the significant impact that customers' preferences for and willingness to engage in CSR initiatives have on customers' relationship with not-for-profit organisations.Social implicationsThe results highlight the importance of taking into account customer preferences for CSR issues to encourage customers to engage in CSR initiatives designed to benefit society.Originality/valueTraditionally CSR literature has focused on how commercial firms' engagement in CSR creates value for the firm and society. The marketing literature has focused on how customer engagement in brand communities benefits the firm. This study extends the research by exploring customers’ willingness to engage in CSR with not-for-profit organisations. It uses Choice modelling to demonstrate the impact of customer preferences for local and aligned CSR initiatives on customer willingness to engage.

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
David Gligor ◽  
Sıddık Bozkurt

Purpose The concept of agility has been applied to several domains to help firms develop the capability to quickly adjust their operations to cope and thrive in environments characterized by frequent changes. Despite the soaring number of social media users and the benefits associated with agility in other domains, the application of agility in a social media context has yet to be explored. Further, little is known about how agility in a social media context impacts desirable customer-related attributes, such as customer engagement and customer-based brand equity (CBBE). This paper aims to address this gap by adapting the construct to social media (i.e. perceived social media agility) and exploring its impact on customer engagement and CBBE. Design/methodology/approach This paper conducted an online survey with 200 adult subjects. This paper used multivariate regression analyzes to empirically test a scale for perceived social media agility and explore its impact on CBBE and customer engagement, along with the moderating role of customer change-seeking behavior. Findings The study results show that perceived social media agility directly and indirectly (through customer engagement) positively influences CBBE. Also, results show that the positive impact of perceived social media agility on CBBE is further magnified for customers high on change-seeking. However, customer change-seeking does not affect the strength or direction of the impact of perceived social media agility on customer engagement. Originality/value This paper contributes to social media literature by adapting and testing a measurement scale for the construct of perceived social media agility and exploring its role in enhancing customer engagement and CBBE.


2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Stacey Kaden ◽  
Gary Peters ◽  
Juan Manuel Sanchez ◽  
Gary M. Fleischman

PurposeThe authors extend research suggesting that external funders reduce their contributions to not-for-profit (NFP) organizations in response to media-reported CEO compensation levels.Design/methodology/approachEmploying a maximum archival sample of 44,807 observations from US Form 990s, the authors comprehensively assess the extent that high relative NFP CEO compensation is associated with decreases in future contributions.FindingsThe authors find that donors and grantors react negatively to high relative CEO compensation but do not react adversely to high absolute executive compensation. Contributors seem to take issue with CEO compensation when they perceive it absorbs a relatively large portion of the organizations’ total expenses, which may hinder the NFP’s mission. Additional findings suggest that excess cash held by the NFP significantly exacerbates the negative baseline relationship between future contributions and high relative CEO compensation. Finally, both individual donors and professional grantors are sensitive to cash NFP CEO compensation levels, but grantors are more sensitive to CEO noncash compensation.Research limitations/implicationsThe authors’ data are focused on larger NFP organizations, so this limits the generalizability of the study. Furthermore, survivorship bias potentially influences their time-series investigations because a current year large-scale decrease in funding due to high relative CEO compensation may cause some NFP firms to drop out of the sample the following year due to significant funding reductions.Originality/valueThe study makes three noteworthy contributions to the literature. First, the study documents that the negative association between high relative CEO compensation levels and future donor and grantor contributions is much more widespread than previous literature suggested. Second, the authors document that high relative CEO compensation levels that trigger reductions in future contributions are significantly exacerbated by excess cash held by the NFP. Finally, the authors find that more sophisticated grantors are more sensitive to noncash CEO compensation levels as compared with donors.


2020 ◽  
Vol 33 (8) ◽  
pp. 1969-1996 ◽  
Author(s):  
Amr Kotb ◽  
Hany Elbardan ◽  
Hussein Halabi

PurposeThis paper reviews the field of internal auditing (IA) post-Enron to develop insights into how IA research has developed, offer a critique of the research to date and identify ways that future research can help to advance IA.Design/methodology/approachA structured literature review (SLR) was used to analyse 471 papers from 64 journals published between 2005 and 2018 based on a number of criteria, namely author, journal type, journal location, year, theme, theory, nature of research, research setting, regional focus, method and citations.FindingsThe IA literature has not significantly contributed to knowledge of the internal audit function (IAF), and one still knows relatively little about the factors that contribute to making the impact of IA practice effective and measurable. The IA literature is US-dominated (authors and journals), focussed on the American context (publicly listed companies), reliant on positivist analyses and largely makes no explicit reference to theory. Central regions (emerging economies) and key organisational settings (private SMEs and not-for-profit organisations) are largely absent in prior IA research. This paper evaluates and identifies avenues through which future research can help to advance IA in order to address emerging challenges in the field.Originality/valueThis is the first comprehensive review to analyse IA research in the post-Enron period (2005–2018). The findings are relevant to researchers who are looking for appropriate research outlets and emerging scholars who wish to identify their own research directions.


2017 ◽  
Vol 36 (8) ◽  
pp. 991-1007 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kenneth McBey ◽  
Len Karakowsky ◽  
Peggy Ng

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to empirically examine the impact of perceived organizational support (POS) on organizational commitment in the voluntary and not-for-profit sector. The study extends the work done so far on the mediating roles of self-expression and perceived influence. Design/methodology/approach This paper reports an empirical research study which examined the impact of POS on organizational commitment in the voluntary and not-for-profit sector. Survey data were collected from a sample of health services workers (n=275) from a large not-for-profit organization. Findings Analyses showed that perception of organizational support positively influenced self-expression. In addition, self-expression mediated the relationship between perception of organizational support and organizational commitment, and both self-expression and perceived influence were statistically significant in their relationship with organizational commitment. Research limitations/implications First, because of the cross-sectional nature of the authors’ design, it is difficult to establish the direction of causality. For example, POS and organizational commitment may be reciprocally related. It is possible that volunteers who are committed may perceive themselves as being valued and contributing members of the organization. Second, the measures used in this study were based on self-report, suggesting therefore that method variance could possibly influence the results. Because the measures reflect individual perceptions, it was not possible to obtain data from sources other the participants. However, preliminary CFA analysis showed that each measure was distinct which should minimize concerns about method variance. Further, some scholars argue that common method variance may be overstated and not as severe as is generally claimed (Lindell and Whitney, 2001). Practical implications Given the need to maintain adequate levels of volunteerism, it is of critical importance for volunteering organizations to understand how to retain their volunteers for the long-term, particularly because volunteer turnover can be very costly in terms of decreased organizational morale, recruitment and training, and decreased ability to effectively serve the public. The authors’ study serves to underscore the fact that those organizations needs to be mindful that volunteers need to perceive adequate organizational support and feel the opportunity for self-expression if those volunteers are to remain committed. Social implications The authors’ study extends the work done so far on the mediating roles of self-expression and perceived influence in the relationship between POS and organizational commitment in voluntary and other not-for-profit organizations. The results suggest that POS positively influenced self-expression but not perception of influence. It also suggests that self-expression mediated the relationship between POS and organizational commitment, and both self-expression and perceived influence are statistically significantly related to organizational commitment. Even though prior research has examined POS as an antecedent, outcome, and a mediator, there is a paucity of research that has examined the proposed model within the context of voluntary and other not-for-profit sectors. Given the current rate of expansion in the voluntary sector, it is the authors’ hope that the present study will provide an impetus for additional research in this area. Originality/value Few studies have examined the impact of POS on self-expression and perceived influence, and the resulting impact on organizational commitment in the voluntary sector. This paper makes a notable contribution to the literature by empirically exploring this understudied relationship.


2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Saifeddin Alimamy ◽  
Waqar Nadeem

PurposeRapid advancements in augmented reality (AR) technology have created new opportunities for service providers and customers to cocreate value. Using AR as a platform for generating authentic experiences, the purpose of this study is to explore the impact of authentic experiences on customers' intention to cocreate value while considering the mediating influence of perceived ethics and customer engagement on this relationship.Design/methodology/approachAn online survey was used to collect data. Participants were asked to download and try the “IKEA PLACE” AR application. The responses were used as inputs into a structural equation model.FindingsThe findings reveal that AR generates perceptions of authentic experiences but no direct relationship between authentic experiences and intention to cocreate value was found. On the other hand, the authentic experiences generated through AR increases customer perceptions of ethics and customer engagement, both of which lead to an increased intention to cocreate value.Originality/valueThe findings from this study highlight the importance of authentic experiences within the cocreation process. The results provide a unique understanding of the relationship between authentic experiences generated through AR technology on the intention to cocreate with the service provider, which is fully mediated by perceived ethics and customer engagement. The findings of this study extend the understanding of the cocreation process and the role of technology within this process.


2011 ◽  
Vol 32 (3) ◽  
pp. 291-309 ◽  
Author(s):  
James C. Sarros ◽  
Brian K. Cooper ◽  
Joseph C. Santora

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to investigate the relationships among leadership vision, organizational culture, and support for innovation in not‐for‐profit (NFP) and FP organizations. It hypothesizes that in NFPs, a socially responsible cultural orientation mediates the relationship between leadership vision and organizational support for innovation, whereas in FPs, a competitive cultural orientation mediates this relationship.Design/methodology/approachThis is an empirical study that draws upon a large survey of 1,448 managers and senior executives who are members of the Australian Institute of Management.FindingsPath analytic modelling provides partial support for the hypotheses. Although the predicted mediation effects occurred in NFPs and FPs, the strength of relationship between leadership vision and the two dimensions of organizational culture did not differ between the sectors. This was despite the observation that NFPs scored higher on a socially responsible cultural orientation than FPs, whereas FPs scored higher on a competitive cultural orientation.Practical implicationsStrategies for building innovative and sustainable organizations in the NFP sector are discussed on the basis of these findings.Originality/valueThe paper describes the first study in Australia that compares the responses of NFP and FP managers on leadership and related constructs, and provides evidence of the impact of organizational culture on leadership and innovation in these two sectors.


2015 ◽  
Vol 30 (4/5) ◽  
pp. 435-455 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tyge-F. Kummer ◽  
Kishore Singh ◽  
Peter Best

Purpose – The purpose of this study is to investigate the effectiveness of fraud detection instruments in not-for-profit (NFP) organizations. Not-for-profit organizations rely on trust and volunteer support. They are often small in size and do not have relevant expertise to prevent fraud. Such organizations are more vulnerable to fraud and, consequently, require effective fraud detection instruments. The existing literature on fraud detection is primarily descriptive and does not measure instrument performance. The authors address this research gap and provide a detailed overview of the impact of nine common fraud detection instruments. Design/methodology/approach – Data were obtained from an NFP fraud survey conducted in Australia and New Zealand. A set of contingency tables is produced to explore the relationship between the existence of a specific fraud detection instrument and actual detection of fraud. We also investigate the relationship between organization size and fraud detection strategy. Findings – The findings provide valuable insights into understanding fraud detection mechanisms. Although most fraud detection measures may not lead to more fraud detection, three highly effective instruments emerge, namely, fraud control policies, whistle-blower policies and fraud risk registers. The results also reveal that commonly used fraud detection instruments are not necessarily the most effective. This is true in a significant number of small organizations that appear to be focusing on ineffective fraud detection instruments. Practical implications – Implementation of more effective fraud detection measures will reduce the damage caused to an organization and is highly relevant for practitioners. Originality/value – The results show that differences in the effectiveness of fraud detection instruments in the NFP sector exist. This knowledge is directly applicable by related organizations to reduce fraud damage.


2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Guinevere Gilbert ◽  
Michelle Turner ◽  
Sarah Holdsworth

PurposeIn Australia, it is estimated that volunteers provide over $14.6 billion of unpaid labour to not-for-profit organisations. Much of the work that volunteers undertake is within a project context, yet the impact of a project and its environment on volunteer commitment is unknown. A conceptual model proposes three categories of factors that impact volunteer commitment to a project: purposeful, emotional and contextual. The purpose of this research is to empirically explore the conceptual model of volunteer commitment with volunteers working on projects in order to seek support for, and refine, the model.Design/methodology/approachThe research design was exploratory and Q methodology was used as a framework to collect and analyse data. Forty-one Australian volunteers engaged in project-based tasks participated in the study.FindingsRefinement of the initial conceptual model of volunteer commitment is required. The three categories that influence volunteer commitment to a project should be labelled “my contribution”, “relationships” and “the project”. The revised model shows early evidence that the project itself is the main commitment building factor.Originality/valueWhilst volunteer retention is not a new field of knowledge, research such as this further informs not-for-profit organisations in their volunteer recruitment and retention practices.


2019 ◽  
Vol 29 (4) ◽  
pp. 462-487 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jodie Conduit ◽  
Ingo Oswald Karpen ◽  
Kieran D. Tierney

Purpose The ability to attract and retain volunteers is crucial for not-for-profit organizations, and consequently, the need to understand and manage volunteers’ engagement is paramount. The purpose of this paper is to investigate the role of five volunteer engagement dimensions (cognitive, affective, behavioral, social and spiritual engagement) on perceived value-in-context, and its subsequent role for volunteer retention. Thus, providing for the first time an understanding of how unique types of value are determined through different facets of volunteer engagement. Design/methodology/approach To establish the nature and consequences of volunteer engagement, the authors collaborated with an Australian not-for-profit service organization. Using a survey method, the authors studied the organization’s volunteer workforce resulting in 464 usable responses. To capture volunteers’ degree of spiritual engagement, this paper introduces a rigorously developed unidimensional measure. Findings The results demonstrate the importance of the five engagement dimensions on volunteers’ perceived value-in-context, while highlighting significant effect differences including some counterintuitive consequences. The authors also establish the role of spiritual engagement and demonstrate the impact of value-in-context for volunteer retention. Originality/value This research explores the volunteer engagement-retention chain, by empirically studying the role of value-in-context. The authors provide first evidence for the relationship between volunteer engagement and value-in-context, examining the independent yet relative effects of various facets of volunteer engagement. In doing so, the authors offer new insight into the dimensionality of the volunteer engagement construct, broadening its conceptualization to include spiritual engagement as a core constituent. The authors further demonstrate the impact of value-in-context on volunteer retention, helping organizations to better make sense of meaningful volunteer experiences with long-lasting impacts and mutual benefits.


2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Azam Kaveh ◽  
Mohsen Nazari ◽  
Jean-Pierre van der Rest ◽  
Seyed Abolghasem Mira

PurposeThe purpose of this study is to explore the impact of customer engagement in sales promotion on purchase intention. Utilizing value co-creation and customer engagement theories, the authors tested a model that specifies the effect of customer engagement in sales promotion on purchase intention, through its impact on perceived value and customer satisfaction.Design/methodology/approachThe model was tested with the PLSc-SEM approach.FindingsEngaging customers to store's offers by giving them the possibility to choose the type of promotional discount that suits their personal preferences and needs is positively associated with purchase intention, and that this relationship is mediated in serial by perceived value and customer satisfaction.Practical implicationsInvolving customers in sales promotion provides opportunities for retail front line management, as well as for customer relationship management to attract attention and interest.Originality/valueWhile previous research concerned situations where firms and customers collaborate in the co-creation of value, its role in the sales promotion process is yet unclear. This study starts filling this gap by taking a closer look at customer participation in the sales promotion process and its impact on customer purchase intention.


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document