scholarly journals Dogs at the Workplace: A Multiple Case Study

Animals ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 89
Author(s):  
Elisa Wagner ◽  
Miguel Pina e Cunha

As the work environment is increasing in competitiveness and stressfulness, more and more companies try to increase employee well-being. One option is allowing employees to bring their dogs to work, building on the considerable evidence that dogs have a positive influence on people’s well-being. However, little is known about how a dog’s presence influences the employees and the companies in offices. Therefore, we empirically scrutinize the presence of dogs in organizations and the impact of pet-friendly organizational policies, with multiple case studies with semi-structured interviews as their foundation. Based on an inductive approach for the data analysis, we found that organizational members consider that dogs can lower their stress, improve communication, and foster social cohesion when a flexible organizational culture is in place. This includes the following: Problems in the company are openly addressed; employees have job autonomy, with flexibility to take breaks; and mistakes and errors are allowed to be made by employees and their companions alike, and room to find solutions is given. The inflexible permission of pets at work can, on the contrary, create pressure and stress in employees. For the business world, this implicates that this kind of incentive only leads to success if the right framework and culture is in place, and it cannot only be seen as an instrument to increase employee well-being.

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrei Bonamigo ◽  
Camila Guimarães Frech ◽  
Ana Carolina Custódio Lopes

Purpose This study aims to empirically investigate how organizations delivering services in business-to-business relations deal with the boundary paradox and knowledge asymmetry in value co-creation. Design/methodology/approach This study adopted a qualitative multiple case study strategy. Datas were gathered through 13 semi-structured interviews that were then analyzed through the content analysis. Findings The authors identified three mechanisms that organizations use to deal with the boundary paradox and two strategies to handle the knowledge asymmetry. Research limitations/implications First, no opportunities were afforded to involve more participants. Second, owning to confidentiality reasons, not all organizations provided us documents to be analyzed. Practical implications The findings guide managers in balancing the use of contracts and trust in inter-firm collaborations and fostering the learning of customers. Also, insights to protect knowledge based on the paradox of openness in value co-creation. Originality/value This study’s findings address the gap in value co-creation literature concerning the lack of empirical studies.


2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Leonardo Augusto de Vasconcelos Gomes ◽  
Aline Mariane de Faria ◽  
Felipe Mendes Borini ◽  
Ximena Alejandra Flechas Chaparro ◽  
Matheus Graciani dos Santos ◽  
...  

Purpose Accessing and sharing dispersed knowledge in ecosystems is neither easy nor automatic. In ecosystems, focal firms should purposely create the right conditions and act to deal with dispersed knowledge. This study aims to investigate how focal firms manage dispersed knowledge in ecosystems characterized by a set of autonomous, heterogeneous, yet interdependent actors involved in experimentation under uncertainty. Design/methodology/approach Following a conceptual framework based on preceding literature, this study conducted a broad qualitative case study of 6 firms and 12 projects, with 43 semi-structured interviews to identify the patterns of actions associated with dispersed knowledge management (KM) in ecosystems. This paper combines coding and multiple case comparisons to examine the processes and strategies used by the firms to strategically manage dispersed knowledge in ecosystems. Findings This paper proposes a framework that articulates a new type of orchestration (dispersed knowledge orchestration) and offers a new set of dispersed knowledge strategies (transfer, modularity and circular) for ecosystems. Practical implications Innovation and knowledge managers play the roles of dispersed knowledge orchestrators. The study offers guidance on how focal firms should carefully use a particular set of approaches (e.g. integrative theorization) including a portfolio of dispersed knowledge strategies in ecosystems. Originality/value Current literature on KM and ecosystem management offers a limited understanding of how organizations manage dispersed knowledge in ecosystems. The research provides three major original contributions. First, the framework contributes to broadening the current understanding of ecosystem orchestration by identifying the micro-foundations of dispersed knowledge orchestration: integrative theorization, nurturing distributed sensemaking and a new chapter for ecosystem governance (i.e. dispersed knowledge governance). Moreover, the framework proposes a new type of strategy, the dispersed knowledge strategy. Finally, by exploring the interplay between the micro-foundations of dispersed knowledge orchestration and dispersed knowledge strategy, the results contribute to a multi-level approach in the field.


Author(s):  
Marwa Mallouli Ben Zouitina ◽  
Zouhour Smaoui Hachicha

This chapter aims to explore the impact of social networking sites (SNS) usage on individual work performance (IP). A literature review revealed contrasting results. A multiple-case study on 15 employees from eight Tunisian firms has been conducted to highlight the SNS effects on IP in the specific context of democratic transition. Data have been collected by semi-structured interviews and coded using the Nvivo 10 software. The analysis shows that, depending on the level of SNS usage, three types of effect are identified on IP at work: positive, negative, or null. This result invites researcher to consider the usage intensity when analyzing SNS effects on IP. Understanding the different types of SNS usage by actors and their effects on IP could help managers to take appropriate decisions to take profit from this usage. This research suggests also that organizational policy moderates the relationship between SNS usage and IP.


2017 ◽  
Vol 13 (3) ◽  
pp. 381-409 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christine Mitter ◽  
Martin R.W. Hiebl

Purpose This paper aims to analyze the role of management accounting in international entrepreneurship. Its role, thus far, has been a neglected topic in research on accounting and international entrepreneurship, although some quantitative findings indicate the positive influence of management accounting on internationalization capability. Design/methodology/approach This paper is based on a multiple case study of Austrian firms and draws on the resource-based view of the firm as well as effectuation/causation logics. Data for this study were collected via semi-structured interviews, press reports, company chronicles, organizational brochures and websites of the analyzed case firms. Findings The paper finds that management accounting may indeed serve as a key capability for international entrepreneurship. However, reliance on this capability seems to be contingent on the phase of international entrepreneurship and pathway and mode of internationalization. Research limitations/implications The findings add to the accounting literature by showing that the phase as well as the mode and pathway of international entrepreneurship may serve as contingency factors for management accounting, which have been overlooked in the literature. At the same time, they also contribute to the international entrepreneurship literature by offering an initial view on the neglected capability of management accounting. Originality/value This is the first study to analyze the role of management accounting in international entrepreneurship.


2019 ◽  
pp. 176-182
Author(s):  
Gideon Calder

This case study illustrates the experiences of a young caregiver. The case is emblematic of wider questions of distributive justice: the sharing of resources and caring responsibilities in society, and the impact of this on the life chances of children (and indeed their parents). To what extent, for example, should the situations in the case be regarded as the responsibility of outside agencies, and if those agencies intervene, how should they do this, and with what ends in view? It also raises questions about the agency of caregivers, and the extent to which family members have the right to take on roles even when this is detrimental to their well-being.


Author(s):  
Liam Scott Curran

Abstract Little is known about the stressors of working in covert and undercover policing roles and the impact these can have on the health and psychological well-being of police officers. Extant literature focuses upon the social impact of undercover and covert policing in a democratic society, especially in relation to policing political groups. Presented here are the results of an exploratory study into the lives of former police officers who have engaged in various forms of covert/undercover policing. Utilising semi-structured interviews, in a five-participant case-study design, this research investigates the impact that covert and undercover policing has on the well-being of former officers who have undertaken this role, and how they utilised coping strategies. Data were thematically analysed using Braun and Clarke’s framework (Braun and Clarke 2006). Findings were consistent in that fear of violence was a large factor that impacted the well-being and personal relationships of undercover officers. The paper concludes by outlining pertinent suggestions for future research and considers the implications for covert policing.


2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (4) ◽  
pp. 16
Author(s):  
Michael Neubert

This study aims to understand the impact of fundraising innovations on sustainable growth in emerging markets. It opted for a multiple-case study research design using different sources of evidence, including nineteen semi-structured interviews. The subject matter experts (SMEs) were selected using a purposive selection method. The theoretical framework of Porter and Kramer is used. The results suggest that crowdinvesting, initial coin offerings, and accelerators might facilitate sustainable growth of private equity and venture capital markets in Africa due to entrepreneurial ecosystems and networks. The findings are relevant for founders and investors. The study contributes to the literature on entrepreneurial finance in emerging markets.


2018 ◽  
Vol 68 (suppl 1) ◽  
pp. bjgp18X696929
Author(s):  
Jill Mitchell

BackgroundThere is an emerging debate that general practice in its current format is out-dated and there is a requirement to move to a federated model of provision where groups of Practices come together. The emergence of federations has developed over the past 5 years but the factors that influence how federations develop and the impact of this new model is an under researched area.AimThe study explored the rationale around why a group of independent GP practices opted to pursue an alternative business venture and the benefits that this strategy offered.MethodA single organisational case study of a federation in the North of England was conducted between 2011–2016. Mixed methods data collection included individual and group semi-structured interviews and quantitative surveys.ResultsFederations promote collaborative working, relying on strategic coherence of multiple individual GP practices through a shared vision and common purpose. Findings revealed many complexities in implementing a common strategy across multiple independent businesses. The ability of the federation to gain legitimacy was two dimensional – externally and internally. The venture had mixed successes, but their approach to quality improvement proved innovative and demonstrated outcomes on a population basis. The study identified significant pressures that practices were experiencing and the need to seek alternative ways of working but there was no shared vision or inclination to relinquish individual practice autonomy.ConclusionOrganisational development support is critical to reform General Practice. Whether central funding through the GP Five Year Forward View will achieve the scale of change required is yet to be evidenced.


2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
pp. 336
Author(s):  
Jelena Maric ◽  
Djukic Aleksandra ◽  
Branislav Antonic ◽  
Danilo Furundzic ◽  
Vladimir Parezanin

Working people spend around 54% of their waking hours at a workplace, according to recent statistics. Work-related stress is unavoidable, and it can damage the health of employees and affect business performance. In this paper, we argue that open space inside the workplace environment can have a positive influence on reducing overall stress levels in all the categories of users. To our knowledge, there is a significant lack of research considering specific business districts and the gated complexes called business parks, especially in post-socialist Eastern European cities, where there they are still a novelty. Empirical research in this study is on the single case study of Business Park “Airport city” in Belgrade, Serbia. Its main focus is on the survey conducted with 235 participants based on a questionnaire, which examines the relation between workplace stress and workplace environments. The findings from the questionnaire show that the frequency, duration, and activity of open space usage influence the stress levels of employees in this specific workplace, while it is not visible relating to their age and gender. Additionally, final implications suggest that improved open space, such as well-expected greenery, but also the urban design non-associative to workspace and the socialization and exercise amenities customized for frequent and short work breaks, can facilitate the overall well-being of employees. They are innovative elements in relatively underdeveloped research on stress measures with open space usage characteristics in the specific (gated) workplace setting.


2021 ◽  
pp. 092405192199274
Author(s):  
Cathérine Van de Graaf

Fair procedures have long been a topic of great interest for human rights lawyers. Yet, few authors have drawn on research from other disciplines to enrich the discussion. Social psychological procedural justice research has demonstrated in various applications that, besides the final outcome, the manner in which one’s case is handled matters to people as well. Such research has shown the impact of procedural justice on individuals’ well-being, their acceptance of unfavourable decisions, perceptions of legitimacy and public confidence. The ECtHR has confirmed the desirability of these effects in its fair trial jurisprudence. Thus far, it remains unclear to what extent the guarantees offered by Article 6(1) of the European Convention on Human Rights (the right to a fair trial) coincide with the findings of empirical procedural justice research. This article aims to rectify this and uncover similarities between the two disciplines.


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