Organizations Of Different Sizes Research Articles

A study of the use of business improvement initiatives: the association with company size and level of national development

This paper investigates the awareness, use and effectiveness of improvement initiatives in organisations of different sizes and in different countries. In particular, comparisons are made between large firms and small and medium enterprises (SMEs), between organisations in the developing and developed worlds and between organisations in China and India and the rest of the developing world. A questionnaire survey of 453 organisations across 44 countries was conducted with the findings indicating that there are significant differences in comparability of tools. For some tools there are no significant differences between developed and developing countries as well as between large organisations and small organisations. For other tools, there are significant differences with organisations in developing countries, in general, more aware and more likely to use business improvement initiatives when compared to organisations in developed countries. Similarly, organisations in China and India have a higher awareness of and are more likely to adopt improvement initiatives when compared to the rest of the developing world. Finally, larger firms are more aware and more likely to use improvement initiatives when compared to SMEs.

Leading in the connected era

Purpose – Leaders are recognizing that the current connected era is fundamentally changing how customers, employees and partners engage, according to an IBM survey of CEOs and senior public sector leaders from around the globe. Design/methodology/approach – Between September 2011 and January 2012, IBM leaders met face to face with leaders worldwide to better understand their future plans and challenges in an increasingly connected economy. The CEOs surveyed lead organizations of different sizes in 64 countries and 18 industries The analysis also sought to understand differences between responses of CEOs in financially outperforming organizations and those in underperforming organizations. Findings – Key survey findings include: CEOs are creating more open and collaborative cultures – encouraging employees to connect, learn from each other and thrive in a world of rapid change; the emphasis on openness and collaboration is even higher among outperforming organizations; to engage customers as individuals, CEOs are investing in customer insights more than any other functional area; and extensive partnering is providing the edge CEOs need to take on radical innovation. Practical implications – Three suggested initiatives to promote superior performance are: embrace connectivity and openness; engage customers as individuals; and amplify innovation with partnerships. Originality/value – Explains that to create greater value, CEOs must take advantage of newly enabled connections with and among employees, customers and partners. Shows that to lead in this unfamiliar territory amid constant change, CEOs will need to learn from their own networks. They will need to assemble those networks like portfolios – with generational, geographic, institutional diversity. Then, they will need to help their organizations do the same.

How public participation in river management improvements is affected by scale

The importance of extending physically based approaches to catchment management to include social considerations has recently been highlighted alongside increasing legislative pressure to utilise public participation in river management processes. Nine water managers, operating at varying geographical scales, from the UK and north‐west Europe were interviewed to determine their approach to, opinion of, and success in utilising public participation for decisionmaking. The results indicate that despite variations in approaches to, and perceptions of, participation, one dominant factor constrained the use of higher level participation: scale. The results demonstrate that the degree of participation and influence for ‘non‐certified’ experts was inversely proportional to the scale of the project. This was attributed to issues of practicality in communicating between a large number of individuals, but also to underlying factors such as availability of financial support and governing regulations that differ between organisations of different sizes. The findings were used to consider the role of Callon's public education, public debate and co‐production of knowledge models of scientific knowledge production (Callon 1990). It is suggested that, for practical application, traditional models be developed into more reflexive approaches that account for the complexity of real‐world situations.

Employee involvement in strategy-making process and company performance: the mediating role of employee strategic alignment

This article aims to study the mediating role of employee strategic alignment in the relationship between employee involvement in the strategy making process and company performance. We used structural equation modelling techniques with a sample of 372 European organisations of different sizes and from different countries. We found that employee strategic alignment plays a total mediating role in the relationship between employee involvement in the strategy making process and company performance. Our research shows the importance of employee involvement in the strategy making process, as well as the importance of employee alignment with the organisation’s strategy. Our quantitative study can be complemented with a qualitative study in order to better understand how and why this relationship occurs. Our paper is the first to study and validate the mediating role of employee strategic alignment in the relationship between employee involvement in the strategy-making process and company performance.

Medical Equipment Maintenance: Management and Oversight

In addition to being essential for safe and effective patient care, medical equipment also has significant impact on the income and, thus, vitality of healthcare organizations. For this reason, its maintenance and management requires careful supervision by healthcare administrators, many of whom may not have the technical background to understand all of the relevant factors. This book presents the basic elements of medical equipment maintenance and management required of healthcare leaders responsible for managing or overseeing this function. It will enable these individuals to understand their professional responsibilities, as well as what they should expect from their supervised staff and how to measure and benchmark staff performance against equivalent performance levels at similar organizations. The book opens with a foundational summary of the laws, regulations, codes, and standards that are applicable to the maintenance and management of medical equipment in healthcare organizat ons. Next, the core functions of the team responsible for maintenance and management are described in sufficient detail for managers and overseers. Then the methods and measures for determining the effectiveness and efficiency of equipment maintenance and management are presented to allow performance management and benchmarking comparisons. The challenges and opportunities of managing healthcare organizations of different sizes, acuity levels, and geographical locations are discussed. Extensive bibliographic sources and material for further study are provided to assist students and healthcare leaders interested in acquiring more detailed knowledge. Table of Contents: Introduction / Regulatory Framework / Core Functions of Medical Equipment Maintenance and Management / CE Department Management / Performance Management / Discussion and Conclusions

Process Certification: Software and Sustainability

In Healthcare the importance of compliance to existing regulatory and normative requirements has grown significantly over the past few years. Continuous adaptation of Legislation and Standards for both Medical Device Manufacturers (MDM’s) and Healthcare Delivery Organisations (HDO’s) were dedicated to improve protection of Operators and Patients. This Framework has two conformity approaches: Product testing and Quality Management System Auditing. Both have their limitations in terms of appropriateness and affordability for organisations of different sizes and structures. Processes are getting more attention when it comes to evaluating the quality of their output. Therefore Process Certification is becoming increasingly popular, considering its obvious added value, modular scope and favourable cost/benefit ratio.

Information Needs of Agricultural Consultants in Ohio

The research reported here aimed to better further a better understanding of Ohio agricultural consultants' information needs and use. Our sample represented private consultants from organizations of different sizes and types servicing various segments of the agricultural sector. Findings of an online survey show that a high demand exists for information related to crops and environment/conservation subject-matter areas. Agribusiness/economics information also ranked high in importance. Respondents were familiar with the services Ohio State University Extension provided and reported to frequently use Extension information. Most popular were print publications and electronic newsletters followed by visits to Extension websites.

Entry barriers and industry rivalry

PurposeThis study aims to investigate the impact of quality management practices on performance and the extent to which industry rivalry and entry barriers moderate the relationship between the implementation of quality management practices and quality management performance.Design/methodology/approachA survey questionnaire was administered for this research using Powell's quality management framework. The respondents were required to indicate their degree of implementation of quality management practices and to rate their TQM performance in relation to overall performance, the firm's competitive position and the nature of the impact of quality management on the organisation. Structural equation modelling was used to test the hypotheses.FindingsThe results show that firms with high levels of executive commitment to quality management and those that pay close attention to customer needs tend to improve their competitive position, view quality as being positive for the organisation, and improve overall performance. The results suggest that the degree of quality management implementation is positively associated with entry barriers, which would mean reduced level of threat from new entrants; whereas the industry rivalry issues were not significantly associated with either quality management or organisational performance. The findings also show that existing firms' ability to create entry barriers facilitates increased opportunities to improve their organisational performance.Research limitations/implicationsThe sample was relatively small, subjective measures of organisational performance were used which may be biased due to respondents' interpretation of their own firm's performances, and there is a possibility that many firms with low levels of QM implementation may not have participated in the study, leading to self‐selection bias. These factors may limit the generalisability of the research findings to other settings. Therefore further research is required to ascertain whether the same practices are evident across organisations of different sizes and industry groups within a broader sampling frame.Practical implicationsThe findings suggest that quality management implementation by firms within an environment where higher levels of entry barriers exist results in higher organisational performance due to the firms' relative protection against new competitors.Originality/valueThis is one of the very few papers to investigate the role of Porter's industry analysis framework in relation to quality management implementation and firm performance.

Factors considered when outsourcing an IS system: an empirical examination of the impacts of organizational size, strategy and the object of a decision

As IT expenditures have been growing over the last few years, organizations have started to scrutinize them more closely and some are deciding to outsource parts of their Information Systems (IS) operations. Unfortunately, there is a lack of research on the impact that the object of an outsourcing decision may have on the factors considered when making such a decision. The impact of organizational size and the firm's strategy has also not been conclusively established in the literature. This paper examines and compares the different supplier, internal, technology and cost factors considered when outsourcing Online Transaction Processing (OLTP) or Decision Support Systems (DSSs) (the object of a decision). It also examines the divergent decision factors for large, medium and small organizations, and the competitive strategy's impact on the factors that are considered. The paper is based on a study with samples from four large SAP Conferences and includes 1889 individuals working in organizations that use enterprise resource planning software. This research found that the object being outsourced, the firm's competitive strategies, and the organizational size are factors that significantly influence the outsourcing decision process. We found that the relative importance of decision factors for the outsourcing of OLTP is significantly different from those for a DSS and that, where the outsourcing object is of strategic importance, there is a closer attention to internal factors. Our findings confirm that outsourcing strategies are aligned with organizational strategies. For example, cost factors dominate in the outsourcing decision among organizations that employ a low-costs strategy as compared to those following a differentiation or niche strategy. Also, compared to firms pursuing other competitive strategies, for the outsourcing of DSS, differentiators place a significantly higher emphasis on supplier factors. Regarding the role of company size, we found significant differences in the importance given to supplier, internal, technology, and cost factors by organizations of different sizes. For example, compared to smaller organizations, larger organizations gave less importance to supplier and technology factors and more importance to cost factors.

International Joint Ventures, HRM and Viable Knowledge Migration

International joint ventures (IJVs) are an increasingly popular form of voluntary co-operation between organizations of different sizes, sectors and geographical locations to satisfy strategic purposes and manage increasingly complex business environments. However, international joint ventures may fail, and HRM plays an important role in their success or failure. From a systems perspective, IJVs offer several kinds of complexity which may contribute to the generation of con? ict and failure. The paper proposes that we explore the role of HRM in IJVs through viable systems theory, especially in relation to knowledge migration and organizational learning. The theory presented distinguishes between the cognitive, organizing and behavioural domains of the IJV as a system in the analysis of the relationship between types of worldview and behaviour in IJVs. It proposes a model of viable knowledge development in IJVs and its relationship to HRM, involving knowledge migration, appreciation and action, leading to organizational learning, and identi? es directions for future research.

Reducing Food Miles-Analysis of the Perceptions of Stakeholders in Northwest England

This paper presents the findings of a study designed to understand the perceptions and review the initiatives of industrial managers with respect to the reduction of food transportation (food miles). The issue of food miles is particularly topical in the current climate of environmental awareness. A questionnaire survey and telephone interview of 25 food organisations of different sizes was carried out. The questionnaire sought information on the initiatives taken by the respondent organisations to reduce food miles. An Internet review that identified the position of major food retailers with respect to food miles was also carried out. The study indicated that although most manufacturing companies that participated in the questionnaire survey were aware of food miles, most had done very little or nothing to manage its effects at an organisational level. This could be because some of the costs of food miles are not directly attributable to individual companies implying a potential role for government regulation. In contrast, the Internet review indicated that the retailers had made significant efforts to reduce the distances travelled by their food products. This paper concludes by discussing the challenges to overcome if food miles are to be managed.

Die Nutzung psychologischer Verfahren der externen Personalauswahl in deutschen Unternehmen

Zusammenfassung. Die vorliegende Untersuchung bietet eine aktuelle Aufstellung der Einsatzhäufigkeiten verschiedener Personalauswahlverfahren. Mit Angaben von 125 deutschen Unternehmen unterschiedlicher Größe und Branche stellt diese Erhebung eine Fortsetzung der Studien aus den beiden vergangenen Jahrzehnten dar ( Schulz, Schuler & Stehle, 1985 ; Schuler, Frier & Kauffmann, 1993 ). Das Einstellungsinterview und die Analyse von Bewerbungsunterlagen bestätigen sich als verbreitetste Auswahlverfahren, der Einsatz graphologischer Gutachten ist in den letzten Jahren auf ein Minimum zurückgegangen. Verstärkte Verwendung finden vor allem strukturierte Interviews und Assessment Center. Die Nutzung von Online-Verfahren ist mit Ausnahme der Online-Bewerbungsunterlagen noch nicht sehr verbreitet. Es werden detaillierte Betrachtungen der Verwendung von Personalauswahlverfahren für die einzelnen Bewerbergruppen angestellt. Alle Verfahren wurden darüber hinaus von den Personalverantwortlichen hinsichtlich ihrer Validität, Praktikabilität und Akzeptanz bei den Bewerbern eingeschätzt.

INTEGRATING PAID WORK AND FAMILY WORK

This qualitative study explores the nature and variation of parenting in the workplace (PIW) childcare practices in a purposive sample of 55 businesses that allowed employees to personally care for children at the workplace while simultaneously performing their job duties. Major findings indicate that although PIW occurred in a variety of industries and organizations of different sizes, the practice was limited to employees who held administrative type positions. Businesses supported PIW on an occasional basis for employees who experienced breakdowns in routine childcare arrangements or on a regular basis for employees who did not have continuing access to acceptable or affordable childcare. According to business representatives in this sample, the practice helped maintain worker productivity and decrease employee absenteeism but was supported only on the condition that employees accomplish work tasks and supervise well-behaved children. The author also considers what PIW might suggest about the relationship between paid work and family work in today's society. Because family and child well-being appeared to be secondary to business goals, theoretical and practice frameworks that align the needs of children and families with the needs of businesses should direct future research on parenting in the workplace. Insights about father involvement in PIW, implications of PIW for child development, and the potential of Border Theory and the Work-life Systems Framework to inform future PIW studies are addressed. Este estudio cualitativo explora la naturaleza y la variación en el cuidado de los niños en el lugar del trabajo ‘parenting in the workplace’ (PIW) en una muestra planificada de 55 empresas que permitieron que los empleados cuiden personalmente a los niños en el lugar de trabajo mientras simultáneamente hacen sus deberes del trabajo. Los resultados principales indican que aunque PIW ocurrió en una variedad de industrias y organizaciones de tamaños diversos, la práctica era limitada a los empleados con papeles administrativos. Los negocios apoyaron PIW de vez en cuando para los empleados que experimentaron interrupciones en sus arreglos cotidianos para cuidar a sus niños o de manera habitual para los empleados que no tenían acceso a recursos aceptables o asequibles de cuidar a los niños. Según los representantes de negocios en esta muestra, la práctica fomentó el mantenimiento de la productividad del trabajador y disminuyó el ausentismo pero se apoyó solamente a condición de que los empleados lograran sus tareas de trabajo y que los niños se comportaran bien. El autor también considera qué PIW puede sugerir sobre la relación entre el trabajo pagado y el trabajo dentro de la familia en la sociedad de hoy. Ya que el bienestar de la familia y del niño pareció subordinado a las metas de negocio, es necesario que marcos de teoría y práctica que alinean las necesidades de niños y de familias con las necesidades de negocios deben dirigir la investigación futura sobre el cuidado de los niños en el lugar del trabajo. Se tratan también ideas sobre la participación de los padres en PIW, implicaciones de PIW para el desarrollo del niño, y la potencial de Border Theory (teoría de la frontera) y Work-life Systems Framework (marco de sistemas de trabajo-vida) para informar los estudios de PIW más adelante.

Hoshin planning: strategy of a different kind

PurposeOne of the key miracles of Japan’s success in dominating international markets for such a long period of time is their approach to strategic planning. This article talks about their success.Design/methodology/approachIt first presents the origins, definition and methodology involved in Hoshin, contrasts it with other approaches to strategic planning and argues the case by demonstrating how Hoshin can be integrated with total quality management and performance measurement, two essential requirements for modern business practice. The paper covers various best practice case studies and concludes with a roadmap for the effective implementation of Hoshin.FindingsThe spread of Hosin planning from Japan to the USA has been well documented. The uptake of Hoshin in the West seems on the whole to be associated with organizations that are advocating the use of total quality management. This is an “implicit” consideration that Japanese corporations make, having always based their approach to doing business on the use of quality methods and techniques.Originality/valueSeveral case studies of the successful implementation of this pioneering concept are illustrated and a proposed roadmap of Implementing Hoshin Planning is discussed. The roadmap is meant to assist organizations of different sizes and from different sectors, manage their strategic thinking more effectively.

Job Search with Organizational Size As a Signal

It is in workers' interest to leave their jobs if better work can befound, but imperfect information on outside opportunities impedes theirjob search. We describe two theories on workers' search using the organizational size as a proxy for work characteristics and derive hypotheses on how the organizational size distribution in a labor market affects job separations. We test the hypotheses with NLSY 79 data on job separations, finding that diversity in organizational sizes affects worker mobility. Workers are more likely to move within counties with many organizations larger than their current one or many organizations of different sizes and are more likely to leave counties lacking these characteristics. Job changes alter the contents or rewards of work and are thus important for explaining stratification and social mobility. An important feature of the job change process is that many workers search for alternative jobs while holding a job, both implicitly by being willing to consider job information that reaches them through social networks and explicitly by examining want ads or sending out applications. Awareness of job market opportunities allows a worker to change jobs if a better opportunity comes along or to quickly get a new job if the current job is lost. The goal of job search is to find the best alternative possible given personal constraints such as financial difficulty, timing, location, and work environment and social constraints such as job supply, required skills, and discrimination. Sociological models of the job change process seek to model how worker goals and constraints shape the job mobility process. Models of vacancy competition (Briiderl 1992; Sorensen 1977; Tuma 1985) and vacancy chains * Financial assistance from Japan's Ministry of Education, Japan Society for the Promotion of Science is gratefully acknowledged. Two reviewers for Social Forces provided helpful

International HRD alliances in viable knowledge migration and development: the Czech Academic Link Project

International HRD alliances (IHRDAs) are increasingly popular forms of voluntary co-operation between organizations of different sizes, sectors and international locations to satisfy HRD purposes in increasingly complex business environments. However, IHRDAs may fail, often associated with cultural differences and differences in management, training and learning styles. The paper proposes that we explore IHRDAs through viable systems within a critical theory perspective, especially focusing on knowledge development in IHRDAs, explored through the cognitive interests, cognitive purposes and knowledge migrations involved. The framework is applied to the analysis of one particular IHRDA, the Czech Academic Link Project (CZALP), involving UK and Czech partners in the university sector.

Management principles for evaluating and introducing disruptive technologies: the case of nanotechnology in Switzerland

In this paper we address the issue of evaluating and introducing disruptive technologies. The empirical data was compiled in an interview–based survey of 20 Swiss organizations of different sizes and from different industries. All of them have been facing the issue of evaluating nanotechnology, and most of them are currently dealing with the introduction of nanotechnology in their products and processes. The underlying framework was elaborated using approaches mainly found in the following streams of technology management literature: technology intelligence, technological decision–making, and technological capability building. The aim of our project was not to advance new management concepts, but to elaborate management principles allowing the organizations to master the challenges during evaluation and introduction of disruptive technologies. We defined these principles through identifying success factors as well as possible pitfalls, and by distilling best management practices in evaluating and introducing nanotechnology.

Integrating EI/TQM efforts for performance improvement: a model

Many empirical studies verify that a positive correlation exists between employee involvement (EI) and total quality management (TQM) practices. Substantial EI/TQM efforts are beginning to appear in organizations of different sizes and business nature, but there is little general agreement concerning the versatility of EI/TQM planning and implementation. This paper examines the prerequisites of the EI/TQM integration, and proposes a generic EI/TQM implementation model that assists organizations to safeguard their improvement efforts. The construct of the proposed model is built in line with the system frameworks and assessment criteria of the Baldrige Award. The paper also elaborates the essential ingredients of the model, and proposes a 14‐step guideline that facilitates the EI and TQM implementation with organizational strategies. An implementation case of EI/TQM efforts is presented along with a discussion of the applicability of the model.

International joint ventures, HRM and viable knowledge migration

International joint ventures (IJVs) are an increasingly popular form of voluntary co-operation between organizations of different sizes, sectors and geographical locations to satisfy strategic purposes and manage increasingly complex business environments. However, international joint ventures may fail, and HRM plays an important role in their success or failure. From a systems perspective, IJVs offer several kinds of complexity which may contribute to the generation of conflict and failure. The paper proposes that we explore the role of HRM in IJVs through viable systems theory, especially in relation to knowledge migration and organizational learning. The theory presented distinguishes between the cognitive, organizing and behavioural domains of the IJV as a system in the analysis of the relationship between types of worldview and behaviour in IJVs. It proposes a model of viable knowledge development in IJVs and its relationship to HRM, involving knowledge migration, appreciation and action, leading to organizational learning, and identifies directions for future research.

A study of statistical process control: Practice, problems and training needs

To ascertain factors relevant to effective training for statistical process control (SPC), this study examines the training practices and needs of 10 UK manufacturing organizations of different sizes and product ranges. In the companies, which were all actively using SPC, major training needs were found over the whole range of SPC-related activities, from conceptual understanding of its potential effectiveness as a quality tool, through the development of diagnostic and problem-solving skills, down to basic control chart completion and interpretation. The companies that seemed most effective in the use of SPC had devolved more SPC procedures to employees lower in the organizational hierarchy. In those companies, all employees had good levels of education and the training tended to focus on domain-relevant and conceptually concrete approaches. In the other companies, a diverse mixture of forms of training were used, with limited success. From the training needs identified and the comparison of the forms of training, some recommendations for the design of SPC training have been inferred.