Non-managerial Employees Research Articles

Linking Organisational Performance and Corporate Social Responsibility

Purpose: Business organisations are at the core of sustainable development, and they can be no longer isolated from social concerns and issues where they operate and exist. While many firms have applied CSR practices successfully and made it fruitful for both business and society, many others are still struggling as no one strategy can usually fit all and CSR initiatives does not promise the same payoffs among different companies and sectors. In this context, the study aims to examine the link between organisational performance and CSR and provide a milestone that would help business organisations to successfully apply CSR initiatives. Design/methodology/approach: Drawing upon field research, 378 questionnaires were collected from various managerial and non-managerial employees of the mobile network operators in Egypt to examine the research hypotheses. Findings: Extending the relation between organisational performance and CSR, this paper demonstrates the heterogeneous ways in which organisational performance can be a key determinant for being engaged in successful CSR initiatives. It argued how organisational performanceــmaterialised in integrating business-related social issues into the organisational strategy, financial performance, CSR capability responsiveness, and social performanceــ can help business organisation establish a win-win situation and create a business-society shared value. Research limitations/implications: The research focuses on four business organisations operating as mobile network service providers in Egypt. Practical implications: The research findings have important implications, more specifically, for firms willing to engage for successful CSR practices, and how social issues and concerns can be translated into business opportunities to motivate business organisations to address them. Social implications: CSR is still controversial to a great extent; especially from an empirical perspective in less developed and developing countries like Egypt, where environmental and social considerations are limited; regarded as a task to be done by a few (Gov., NGOs, NPO, etc.); and where CSR activities are carried through philanthropic perspective. This research implies the possibility to look at social issues and concerns as an opportunity for strategic CSR that create a shared value for business and society and formulate a win-win situation. Originality/value: This paper’s contribution is threefold. First, theoretically, the literature on organisational performance and CSR is extended by considering how they can complement one another. The nuanced focus on this relation provides a “zoom in” that organisational performance is a key success factor while considering CSR. Second, the literature on shared value is deepened by identifying a diverse range of imbricating logics that can be used to discern a more nuanced connection between business and society. Last, these ideas are grounded in a relevant field study context –that of CSR activities in Egypt–, providing more knowledge, over time, of specific actors’ translations of CSR policies into business organisations’ strategies and practices.

The savvy and cheerful employee innovation champions: The roles of political skill and trait‐positive affect in employees' championing and salary levels

As successful innovations depend on how much support an innovation can receive, champion and promote, role theories have investigated characteristics of certain individuals, who promote innovations. Taking an employee‐driven innovation approach, this study enlarges the lens to also include nonmanagerial employees. Compared with champions and people in promotor roles, nonmanagerial employees' championing has received little attention in research. We help in filling this gap by analysing longitudinal questionnaire data from 152 employees from a Danish branch of a global IT consultancy company, who replied to all three questionnaire waves. We investigated how stable championing is across time and examined the relationship between political skills, positive affect, championing behaviour and employee salary level. The findings reveal that employees' level of championing is rather stable. Moreover, the higher level of political skill employees report to have, the more they engage in championing. High levels of positive affect strengthen this relationship between political skill and championing. Additionally, the results reveal a relationship between the level of championing behaviour and the employee's salary band level. This study adds to the extant research in champion and promoter role theories by showing that a sociopolitical approach is also relevant for a broader range of employees.

Perceived Supervisor Support for Health Affects Presenteeism: A Cross-Sectional Study.

We investigated the relationship between perceived supervisor support for health (PSSH) and presenteeism by adjusting for psychological distress and employee work engagement. These are the mediators of the two paths shown in the job demands-resources model. A cross-sectional study was conducted using a questionnaire survey among 15,158 non-managerial employees from seven companies in Japan considered to have relatively high perceived organizational support for health (POSH). PSSH was evaluated with a single question, “My supervisor supports employees to work vigorously and live a healthy life”, on a four-point scale. Presenteeism was estimated using the quantity and quality method. Multilevel logistic regression analyses nested by company were conducted. Lower PSSH was more likely to be associated with presenteeism, but after adjusting for psychological distress evaluated by K6 and for work engagement, the relationship between PSSH and presenteeism weakened. Our results suggested that lower PSSH is linked to presenteeism through both psychological states because of its role as a resource, and other independent factors, even with relatively high POSH. Increased PSSH could act as a measure against presenteeism in the workplace. To achieve this, it is important to create an environment where supervisors can easily encourage employees to improve their health.

Impact of internal brand management on sustainable competitive advantage: An explanatory study based on the mediating roles of brand commitment and brand citizenship behavior.

The existing literature on internal branding has often adopted a managerial-based approach and seldom considered employees’ perceptions. Therefore, there is a need to understand the perspective of frontline and non-managerial employees. In this context, the current study investigates the impact of internal brand management on brand commitment, brand citizenship behavior, and sustainable competitive advantage for the hotel industry. A survey-based quantitative data was gathered from 390 non-managerial frontline staff working in 3-, 4-, and 5-star hotels of Pakistan. The results revealed that internal brand management positively impacts brand commitment, brand citizenship behavior, and sustainable competitive advantage. Besides, brand commitment has a positive impact on brand citizenship behavior and sustainable competitive advantage. Moreover, brand citizenship behavior has a positive impact on sustainable competitive advantage. In addition, the mediating roles of brand commitment and brand citizenship behavior exist between internal brand management and sustainable competitive advantage. The research implications, together with research limitations, have also been discussed.

Does fear of COVID-19 undermine career optimism? A time-lagged quantitative inquiry of non-managerial employees

PurposeThis study intends to examine the impact of a fear of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) on workers' career optimism via perceived job insecurity among non-managerial working restaurant employees.Design/methodology/approachTime-lagged quantitative data were collected in two waves from 316 non-managerial on-job restaurant employees. Structural equation modeling technique was applied to examine the measurement and structural model.FindingsThe study showed that workers' fear of COVID-19 positively impacts their job insecurity. Further, the study found that increasing level of job insecurity depletes workers' career optimism—an outlook of their future career prospects.Research limitations/implicationsThe study suggests organizations should work to make employees feel secure in terms of their job continuity and career progression. Eventually, this would support employees in shielding themselves against possible resource loss (e.g. career optimism) due to pandemic crises.Originality/valueExtant literature has tested the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on employees' workplace attitudes and behaviors such as job satisfaction (e.g. Bajrami et al., 2021) and safety performance (e.g. Kim et al., 2021). However, little has been researched on the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on employees' future career outlook, particularly of non-essential workers in the hospitality industry. To the best of the author's knowledge, an explicit examination of the impact of COVID-19 fear on career optimism has not been conducted previously. Hence, this study will not only be a valuable contribution in the literature of career management, but will also yield important practical implications.

Queen Bees: How Is Female Managers' Happiness Determined?

This paper aims to study the determinants of subjective happiness among working females with a focus on female managers. Drawn on a large social survey data set (N = 10470) in China, this paper constructs gender development index at sub-national levels to study how institutional settings are related to female managers’ happiness. We find that female managers report higher levels of happiness than non-managerial employees. However, the promoting effect is contingent on individual characteristics and social-economic settings. The full sample regression suggests that female managers behaving in a masculine way generally report a high level of happiness. Meanwhile, female managers who refuse to support gender equality report low happiness levels. Sub-sample analysis reveals that these causalities are conditioned on regional culture. Masculine behavior and gender role orientation significantly predict subjective happiness only in gender-egalitarian regions. This study is one of the first to consider both internal (individual traits) and external (social-economic environment) factors when investigating how female managers’ happiness is impacted. Also, this study challenges the traditional wisdom on the relationship between female managers’ job satisfaction and work-home conflict. This study extends the literature by investigating the impacts of female managers’ masculine behavior on their happiness. This study is useful for promoting female managers’ leadership effectiveness and happiness.

Women in hospitality and tourism: a study of the top-down and bottom-up dynamics

PurposeThis study aims to investigate the impact of women’s representation at one hierarchical level on women’s representation above or below that level. No past research investigated these effects in the hospitality and tourism industries. The mixed results of research in other industries and across industries demand tests of curvilinearity and moderators.Design/methodology/approachUsing annual equality reports, a panel data set for 2010–2019 was created for the hospitality and tourism industries. The sample of 581 organizations had up to 5,810 observations over the 10 years.FindingsThe analyses show the following effects of women’s representation: an inverted U-shape from management to non-management, a U-shape from non-management to management and a U-shape from management to the executive team, with more pronounced effect in small organizations.Practical implicationsTo increase the number of female employees, organizations should invest their resources in hiring and retaining female managers until a gender balance is reached while managing any backlash from men. The results suggest that organizations with more than 40% of women non-management employees and 50% of women managers start `experiencing positive bottom-up dynamics. Thus, efforts need to be made to attract and retain a women’s pipeline at the non-management and management levels.Originality/valueThis study delivers pioneering evidence of the top-down and bottom-up phenomena in hospitality and tourism. It refines evidence of such effects found in past research conducted in other industries and across industries.

The Effect of Compensation, Work Environment, and Organization Culture on Employee Job Satisfaction

Employee job satisfaction plays an important role in every company. Job satisfaction reflects the positive response of employees to the assessment and experience of the benefits felt during work. Three factors influence job satisfaction, namely: Compensation, work environment, and organizational culture. This study aims to determine the effect of compensation, work environment, and organizational culture on job satisfaction. Research questionnaires were made using a Google Form, and distributed online via WhatsApp to respondents who are non-managerial employees at a Bank in Central Jakarta. Sampling was carried out using a nonprobability sampling technique with a purposive sampling method where the criteria for selecting the sample were employees who served as staff. The data is analyzed with PLS Algorithm processing procedures. The results of this study indicate that compensation, work environment, and organizational culture each have a positive effect on the job satisfaction of the employees.

Employees’ Satisfaction with Supervisor Communication and Personal Feedback

Abstract The subject of the research in this paper was the examination of satisfaction with the internal communication dimensions that have the strongest correlations with job satisfaction, which are: supervisor communication and personal feedback. Therefore, if employees are satisfied with these communication dimensions, their job satisfaction will be at a satisfactory level. The goal of the research was to determine satisfaction with the observed communication dimensions based on the employees’ attitudes. Managers’ and non-managerial employees’ attitudes towards the observed communication dimensions are presented, also. On the sample of 72 respondents, using descriptive statistics, the results have shown that the employees are not satisfied with the observed dimensions, also, the non-managerial employees are less satisfied than the managerial ones. The results are useful since they provide a description of the observed dimensions and findings of the previous studies, especially the ones which investigated the relationship between satisfaction with the observed communication dimensions and job satisfaction. The results may be useful for (Serbian) managers in the process of managing the observed communication dimensions. The sample size limits the generalizability of the result.

The Influence of Hotel Employees’ Perception of CSR on Organizational Commitment: The Moderating Role of Job Level

This study attempts to investigate the relationships among Korean hotel employees’ perception of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR), their intrinsic motivations, and their organizational commitment (OC). The mediating effect of intrinsic motivation on the relationship between employees’ perception of customer- and employee-related CSR and OC is explored, and the moderating role of job level on the relationship between CSR perceptions and intrinsic motivation is tested. The data were collected via online survey, and the Hayes’ Process macro was used as an analysis tool. We found that (1) both types of CSR perceptions are important in creating intrinsic motivation and OC, (2) intrinsic motivation enhances OC, and (3) job level moderates the link between employee CSR perceptions and intrinsic motivation positively. Interestingly, we found that when customer-related CSR or employee-related CSR is high, the level of intrinsic motivation will significantly differ between managerial and non-managerial employees. This study’s results will contribute to the current literature on CSR, and will aid human resources departments that are considering CSR practices as a means to enhancing employee intrinsic motivation and OC.

Facilitating sustainability control in SMEs through the implementation of an environmental management system

This paper explores the characteristic type and use of sustainability control in small to medium sized enterprises (SMEs) through the implementation of an environmental management system, formally certified to ISO 14001. Through a qualitative study of 18 SMEs and seven auditors operating in Northern Europe, the paper draws on the theoretical framework of sustainability control as an analytical tool to explore the interplay between the formal design of control instruments and the operational use of these in practice for the studied SMEs. The study finds that both the formalised control instrument design and operational use of these controls by employees are characteristically formal and procedure based for ISO 14001 certification. Nevertheless, environmental management in daily tasks is also achieved by engaging non-managerial employees through their passionate interests and intrinsic motivations. In extension to previous sustainability control research, the findings emphasise that local level operator knowledge is not only the product of formalised control system design, and that external factors are also important for guiding employee behaviour in situ. This proposes that daily working tasks are achieved through a combination of organisational and extra-organisational individual values and beliefs about sustainability. Particularly, engaging non-managerial employees in SMEs through a combination of extrinsic and intrinsic rewards appears valuable for sustainable futures. Therefore, in addition to compliance-driven controls, SME owner-managers should ensure supportive structures where employees are given the autonomy to be creative and innovative.

A stakeholder perspective on public sector innovation: Linking the target groups of innovations to the inclusion of stakeholder ideas

Public sector innovation scholarship has not yet systematically explored how the target context (or output phase) of innovations impacts the early phases of innovation processes. This study theorizes and tests whether innovating organizations are more sensitive to ideas from particular stakeholder groups depending on the target group of said innovation. Using a large-scale dataset from the Australian Public Service, the results show that innovations with external target groups are more likely to be built on ideas from external stakeholders (compared with internal stakeholders) and—within the group of internal stakeholders—on ideas from managers (compared with non-managerial employees). Practical and scholarly implications are discussed.Points for practitioners: Innovations benefit from the inclusion of internal and external stakeholder ideas, both substantively (appropriate knowledge leads to better end products) and symbolically (innovations need to be deemed legitimate, and receive support from the actors that will be primarily impacted by the innovation). Innovating organizations need to be aware of the perceptions of the stakeholders affected by the innovation, and properly sense, capture and translate the ideas of those stakeholders in the innovation process.

Developing a Scale for the New-Type Depression: Focusing on the Differences between Working Hours and Free Time

The new-type depression, in which depressive symptoms worsen during working hours and alleviate in free time, has been reported in Japan (especially among office workers) and other countries. The new-type depression, symptoms of which are different from those of the melancholic type, is difficult to cure using pharmacotherapy. The present study aims to develop the Distress Scale for On and Off Duty (DSOOD) to measure distress during working hours and free time separately. The new-type depression is often comorbid with anxiety and hypomania. Therefore, self-rating scales of depression, anxiety, hypomania, and a positive mental state were referred to while developing the DSOOD. The present study was conducted using the Internet. A total of 400 full-time non-managerial employees (200 male and 200 female) answered three questionnaires: DSOOD (37 items), the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9), and the Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7 (GAD-7). The factor analysis indicated two factors of the DSOOD: “distress” (20 items) and “good condition” (12 items). The concurrent validity of DSOOD was high because 1) the distress scores of working hours and free time were highly correlated with PHQ-9 and GAD-7 and 2) the DSOOD distinguishably measured distress in working hours and free time, which was reflected in the answers to additional questions in the PHQ-9 and GAD-7.

Growing up but still be entrepreneurial? The entrepreneurial orientation–performance relationship

The relationship between entrepreneurial orientation (EO) and performance has received significant attention within entrepreneurship research. Yet, the mechanisms that underpin the EO-performance relationship are not fully understood. Recent developments such as an improved theoretical understanding of the manifestation and pervasiveness of EO highlight the need for a more nuanced understanding of EO by investigating nonmanagerial employees’ behaviors and attitudes of EO. Via an in-depth case study of a high-tech venture in Germany, we examine a set of proactive, innovative, and risk-taking behavioral patterns that contribute to the proliferation of EO within firms as they grow. Our study reveals that the employee’s more inwardly focused orientation is directed towards coping with challenges the firm faces during growth-related organizational transformations, rather than introducing innovations in the business or experimenting with opportunities. We conclude that EO is an individual-level construct and a key element in the causal link between organizational performance.

Development and validation of the e-Work Self-Efficacy Scale to assess digital competencies in remote working

The COVID-19 pandemic accelerated the adoption of remote working practices worldwide. This has focussed attention on the need to identify the competencies employers and employees should train and develop to build digital resilience, enabling the benefits of remote working to be realised while mitigating potential risks. This contribution presents a multifaceted e-Work Self-Efficacy Scale, which supports a recently developed Digital Resilience Competency Framework (DRCF), assessing e-skills, trust building, self-care, remote social skills, and remote emotional self-efficacy beliefs. Data from 670 non-managerial employees (54.0% males) from a telecommunications company based in the Czech Republic were analysed, providing support for a bi-factor model. Latent Profile Analysis identified three clusters, characterised by different profiles: the Well-adjusted (with a reasonably good balance in engagement, satisfaction, and productivity), the Unhealthily dedicated (suffering some difficulties in setting boundaries), and the Distrustful self-shielding (the most compromised) remote workers. The results reinforce the importance of focusing on digital resilience competencies to promote sustainable, productive, engaging and healthy remote working. The e-Work Self-Efficacy Scale is a practical and effective organisational tool for managers and employees to use to assess and build digital resilience and sits alongside the Digital Resilience Competency Framework.

Deducing an emergent South Korean behavioural taxonomy of perceived managerial and leadership effectiveness

PurposeThis study aims to identify people’s perceptions of what behaviourally differentiates effective managers from ineffective managers within a South Korean (SK) public sector organization, and the extent to which the findings are similar or different to those of an equivalent previous study in the SK private sector.Design/methodology/approachAdopting the “pragmatic approach” and assuming a post-positivist ontology and constructivist–interpretivist epistemology, examples of “effective” and “ineffective” managerial behaviour were collected from managers and non-managerial employees in an SK central government Ministry using the critical incident technique. The collected critical incidents were coded, classified and reduced to a smaller number of behavioural categories. These were then compared against equivalent findings from a previous SK private sector replication study using open, axial and selective coding to identify generic behavioural criteria (GBCs)FindingsHigh degrees of convergence point towards the emergence of a “two-factor” SK behavioural taxonomy of perceived managerial and leadership effectiveness comprised of positive (n = 11) and negative (n = 4) GBCs of effective and ineffective managerial behaviour.Practical implicationsThe GBCs constituting the deduced SK behavioural taxonomy could be used by HRD practitioners to critically evaluate the efficacy of extant management and leadership development (MLD) programmes, or to inform/shape the creation of new MLD programmes. Additionally, they could be used by other HR professionals to critically evaluate the relevance and efficacy of the assessment criteria used for existing management selection, 360-degree feedback and formal performance appraisal systems.Originality/valueThe emergence of an SK behavioural taxonomy through Type 3 (emic-as-emic) and Type 4 (emic-and-etic) indigenous research is a rare example of Eastern mid-range theory development.

Passive leadership and deviant behaviors: the moderating effect of power distance and collectivism

PurposeThis study investigates the relationship between passive leadership and deviant behaviors targeted to supervisors (supervisor-directed deviance) and coworkers (interpersonal deviance), and the moderating effect power distance and collectivism have on these relationships.Design/methodology/approachThis study uses a survey questionnaire. Respondents were 310 non-managerial employees working in various industries in Surabaya, Indonesia. This study uses partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) to examine hypotheses.FindingsThis study indicates that passive leadership has a positive relationship with supervisor-directed deviance, but not with interpersonal deviance. Moreover, power distance moderates these relationships. Additionally, the findings show that collectivism moderates the relationship between passive leadership and interpersonal deviance, but not with supervisor-directed deviance.Practical implicationsManagers need to be aware of the roles and responsibilities of their positions and understand their subordinates' expectations, specifically related to their cultural values.Originality/valueFew studies have investigated the relationship between passive leadership and deviant behaviors, especially those directed at supervisors and coworkers. Also, there is little study that explored the role of cultural values in these relationships. The present study provides new insight regarding the moderating role power distance and collectivism have in the relationship between passive leadership and deviant behaviors.

Empowering leadership and innovative work behavior: the mediating effects of climate for initiative and job autonomy in Moroccan SMEs

PurposeThe purpose of this paper was to explore the role of empowering leadership, organizational climate for initiative and job autonomy in spurring innovative work behavior (IWB).Design/methodology/approachThis study resorted to the structural equation modeling technique along the Bayesian estimation approach to analyze the mediating role of the organizational climate for initiative and job autonomy in the empowering leadership-IWB link in data gathered from CEOs, middle managers and non-managerial employees of 444 small and medium enterprises in Morocco.FindingsThe findings revealed that empowering leadership is a prerequisite of IWB as subordinates, who are empowered by their leaders, demonstrate IWB. Further, organizational climate for initiative and job autonomy mediate the empowering leadership-IWB link.Practical implicationsThis research has demonstrated that firms and organizational leaders who seek to make their middle managers innovative in their job should adopt empowering leadership practices, build an organizational climate that is favorable for initiative-taking and grant middle managers with autonomy in the way they carry out their tasks.Originality/valueThis paper extends our understanding on the mechanisms linking empowering leadership and IWB by testing the mediating effects of organizational climate for initiative and job autonomy.

The Effect of financial compensation and career development on employee retention with non-physical work environments as moderating variables

This study aims to analyze: (1) the effect of financial compensation on employee retention (2) the effect of career development on employee retention (3) the influence of the non-physical work environment which moderates the effect of financial compensation on employee retention (4) the influence of non-physical work environments that moderate the effect of career development on employee retention. This research is a causal research. The population in this study were all non-managerial employees of Bank Bengkulu Cabang Curup and Bank Bengkulu Cabang Pembenatu Pasar Tengah, with a total of 38 people. The sampling technique was taken using total sampling where the number of samples was the same as the population, namely 38 people. Collecting data using a questionnaire with a Likert scale. The analysis technique used is through the SPSS 20.0 software. The results of data processing in this study indicate that: (1) Financial compensation has a positive and significant effect on employee retention at Bank Bengkulu Cabang Curup dan Bank Bengkulu Cabang Pembantu Pasar Tengah, (2) Career development has a positive and significant effect on employee retention at Bank Bengkulu Cabang Curup dan Bank Bengkulu Cabang Pembantu Pasar Tengah, (3) non-physical work environment does not significantly moderate the effect of financial compensation on employee retention at Bank Bengkulu Cabang Curup dan Bank Bengkulu Cabang Pembantu Pasar Tengah, (4) non-physical work environment does not significantly moderate the effect of career development on employee retention at Bank Bengkulu Cabang Curup dan Bank Bengkulu Cabang Pembantu Pasar Tengah.

Employees’ challenge-hindrance appraisals toward STARA awareness and competitive productivity: a micro-level case

PurposeThis study aims to examine the effect of restaurant employees’ challenge-hindrance appraisals toward smart technology, artificial intelligence, robotics and algorithms (STARA) awareness on individual competitive productivity (ICP) and explore the mediating roles of employees’ work engagement and organizational commitment on the relationship between challenge-hindrance appraisals and ICP.Design/methodology/approachData were collected through an online survey. One hundred and ninety employees who worked at full-time and non-management positions in the USA quick-service restaurants participated. Partial least squares structural equation modeling was used for the data analysis.FindingsThe study identified that restaurant employees’ challenge appraisals toward STARA awareness positively influenced ICP. This relationship is positively mediated by employees’ work engagement.Practical implicationsThis study makes practical contributions to human resource practices in restaurants. Employees’ challenge appraisals toward STARA awareness transmit the job insecurity stressor to a higher level of ICP. Restaurant managers should provide employees with adequate resources and support for non-management employees’ professional competency growth. Quick-service restaurants can enjoy a competitive advantage in the market by enhancing employees’ CP.Originality/valueThis study enriches the literature on the CP model, cognitive appraisal theory and person-environment fit theory. The study investigated employees’ challenge and hindrance appraisals toward emerging STARA awareness and emphasized their distinct characteristics to drive ICP in the quick-service restaurant sector.