Twenty-first Century Organizations Research Articles

Mapping pathway towards future HR transformation: prospects & possibilities

The outbreak of pandemic caused disruptive changes for the people, planet and profit made sustainability the paradigm theme for policy making. The sustainability of planet and business depends upon the survivability of the mankind. The central theme of the paper focuses on the avenues to survive and weather such changes required for innovative HR transformations through HR functions, HR practices and HR professionals which will foster growth and development of the organization as well as the economy at large. The HR transformations will make the workforce skilled, adaptive, tech-friendly and competitive to remain buoyant in the VUCA world. The study has made a realistic attempt to showcase innovative HR transformational practices which acts as a panacea for exponential growth for twenty-first century organizations in the days to come.

Slogan T-shirts: Liberalism, abolition and commodity activism in the Midwestern United States

Wearing slogan T-shirts largely began in the United States in the mid-twentieth century with the rise of various social movements. Considering the persistence of slogan T-shirts as a component of commodity activism, we theoretically engage with the ways twenty-first century organizations produce slogan T-shirts within the fashion system, with heightened attention to white progressive politics. We examine two Midwestern organizations in the United States: Raygun, which approaches T-shirt activism as a for-profit business and For Everyone Co., which approaches T-shirt activism as a not-for-profit collective. We conduct a case study to examine the nuance of how and why these collective and for-profit businesses use T-shirt activism, drawing upon multiple theoretical concepts to critically interpret the production and distribution of these products within the fashion system and offering theoretical implications for future study. We conduct a close reading of T-shirt texts and images, the organizations’ biographical information, and their reported philanthropic actions to construct and interpret their public-facing narratives engaging with fashion and activism. Examining T-shirt activism, as both an ‘artivist’ practice and a commodity, requires a critical analysis of how organizations capitalize on consumers’ desire and instances wherein white progressive politics prioritize the appearance of equity and justice or ambiguous fashion activism, over meaningful social-action centred fashion. Our work offers implications for the production, distribution and consumption of these products within the fashion system.

A Model of Leadership Transitions in Teams

Teams with shared leadership arrangements are ubiquitous in twenty-first century organizations. Although transitions in leadership are a common and key feature of such teams, there is little insight into how and when leadership arrangements transition over time. Bridging the shared leadership and team adaptation literatures, we present a model of Leadership Transitions in Teams to describe the adaptive process through which teams intentionally modify the existing leadership arrangement. The basic assumption underlying this model is that leadership transitions occur when there is a mismatch between the team’s needs and its current leadership arrangement. Such a mismatch results from an anticipated or observed change. If it is anticipated, team members can democratically discuss and try out a new leadership arrangement, preventing mismatch and thus lowered team effectiveness. In contrast, if the mismatch has already occurred, teams are more likely to adopt a less democratic process—either a coalition-based or intervening-based process—to change the leadership arrangement in their team to counteract faltering team effectiveness. We propose that the ways in which leadership transition episodes can unfold and relate to team effectiveness will depend on the type (determined by the timing of the leadership transition episode in relation to the change), approach (determined by the extent to which there is consensus on if and how to change the leadership transition episode), and boundary conditions of leadership transition episodes. We advance an agenda for research on leadership transitions in teams and outline practical implications for teams with shared leadership structures.

A Systems Approach to Information Security for the Twenty-First Century Organization

A crisis resulting from disruptive events that threaten to harm the organization or its stakeholders can originate from a plethora of sources. Data breaches, unauthorized disclosures of confidential information, and data leaks, are on the news almost daily. Most guidelines and standards published by prominent International Standards Organizations hold that risk-based thinking supports public, private, and community enterprises (referred for convenience in this work by the generic term “organization”) in determining the forces that could cause their key and enabling processes to deviate from planned arrangements, to apply preventive measures to modify risk, and to take advantage of opportunities as they arise. A well-structured Information Security Management System that is developed, implemented, and maintained through sound risk-based thinking, enables the organization to take appropriate actions to address the risks and opportunities associated with its information resources, in a manner that is commensurate to the complexity of its socio-technical infrastructure and the external environmentassociated with its activities. In this work we explore the Risk Management Process that is outlined in the ISO 31000 international standard, through the requirements/guidelines defined in the ISO/IEC 27000-series of international standards. The knowledge gained is applied to develop a systems driven conceptual structure thatcan be employed by any organization operating on the complexities of an interconnected environment, for the purpose of designing, implementing, monitoring, reviewing and continually improving a structured Information Security Management System.

Spirituality, Symbolism and Storytelling in Twentyfirst-Century Organizations: Understanding and addressing the crisis of imagination

This article introduces the Special Issue concerned with organizational spirituality, symbolism and storytelling. Stressing the growing scholarly interest in these topics, the article makes a two-fold contribution. First, it critically assesses their development over time while identifying the emerging trends and new ways in which spirituality, symbolism and storytelling are taken up in management and organization studies. We make a case for utilizing their promise to transcend the epistemic boundaries and extend the scope of our academic practice beyond self-referential approaches or ‘fashionable’ topics. Second, it links them to what we term the current crises of imagination, calling into question extant institutional and organizational paradigms, as well as the theoretical frames we rely on in our teaching and research. The multiple crises we face – economic, financial, food, water, energy, climate, migration and security – we suggest, are partly due to the fragmentation of meaning that bedevils our scholarship and, implicitly, the failure of our collective imagination. Reaching across foundational disciplines and core methodologies, we bring into the conversation the interlocking fields of spirituality, symbolism and storytelling, highlighting their potential for addressing the cardinal challenges we face as citizens of this world as much as organizational scholars.

Evaluating knowledge management failure factors using intuitionistic fuzzy FMEA approach

The twenty-first century organizations are characterized by an emphasis on knowledge and information. Today’s organizations also require the acquisition, management, and exploitation of knowledge and information in order to improve their own performance. In the current economy, the foundations of organizational competitiveness have turned former tangible and intangible resources into knowledge and the focus of information systems has also changed from information management to knowledge management. Besides, the most important step in the implementation of knowledge management is to examine the significant factors in this regard and to identify the causes of failure. Therefore, the present study evaluated knowledge management failure factors in an intuitionistic fuzzy environment as a case study in Khuzestan Oil and Gas Company. For this purpose, a series of failure factors affecting knowledge management in organizations were identified based on a review of the related literature and similar studies. Then, 16 failure factors in the implementation of knowledge management in the given organization were determined on the basis of interviews with company experts. According to the specified factors as well as the integration of multiple criteria decision-making techniques in an intuitionistic fuzzy environment, knowledge management failure factors in Khuzestan Oil and Gas Company were investigated. The results indicated that lack of management commitment and leadership was the most important factor affecting the failure of knowledge management in the given company.

Diversity Management from A Justice and Fairness Perspective: The Case of Women and Ageing Workforce

In this paper, we examine organisational responses to two primary dimensions of human diversity in twenty-first century organisations: women and mature-age employees. To understand and evaluate how...

A conceptual framework for leveraging team composition decisions to build human capital

Twenty-first century organizations often rely on teams to enact their strategy and to enhance their flexibility in interacting with their external environment over time. Team composition, or the configuration of team member attributes, can influence team effectiveness and is an important consideration in the management of teams. To date, however, there is limited guidance on how seemingly smaller team composition decisions can contribute to organizational effectiveness and competitive advantage. We draw on strategic human resource management (HRM), HRM, and industrial and organizational psychology literatures to develop a conceptual framework for strategic team composition decisions. We describe how organizations use teams to enact their strategy (i.e., fit), and use adaptive teams and networks of teams to achieve fit in a dynamic environment (i.e., flexibility). Using the concepts of fit and flexibility, we develop four guiding principles for strategic team composition decisions.

Performance improvement in twenty-first century organizations: models, tools, techniques

Performance improvement in twenty-first century organizations: models, tools, techniques

The Impact Of Writing Assignments In Business Education: Toward A Competitive Advantage In The Workplace

Twenty-first century organizations are increasingly becoming global information networks where the emphasis on written communication is growing exponentially. Effective writing skills are becoming more essential to workplace success and thus a central focus in business programs across the country. This article addresses writing issues in business education and how they relate to effective workplace writing. The article focuses on three essential factors - teaching writing to international students, faculty attitudes, and workplace writing and how each of these aid in producing students with the effective writing skills that add value to their potential employers.

Morality, ethical awareness and ethical behavior in business: challenges for twenty-first century organizations

Morality, ethical awareness and ethical behavior in business: challenges for twenty-first century organizations

Dancing in the dark: creativity, knowledge creation and (emergent) organizational change

Purpose– The aim of this paper is threefold: to provide a framework for a better understanding of the relationship between creativity, knowledge creation/sharing, and organizational change; to define the key elements at individual and collective level that may contribute to the development of organizational spaces that favour a climate for creativity and knowledge creation as precondition of “emergent change”; and to contribute to the development of a multi-perspective approach to creativity and knowledge creation in twenty-first century organizations.Design/methodology/approach– The paper begins with a review of the emergent non-linear change theories and the change-related processes of knowledge creation. It uses the metaphor of dance to explore the relationship between emergent change and knowledge creation and sharing, and identifies the main factors that may impact this relationship.Findings– The authors' framework suggests that the identified factors act as precondition to emergent change. These factors are critical for change management in organizations operating in today's chaotic environment.Practical implications– The authors' framework suggests that the identified factors act as precondition to emergent change. These factors are critical for change management in modern organizations. The authors propose guidelines and provide examples how to manage work spaces and facilitate the organizational dance.Originality/value– Even though the academic literature already offers some evidence about the role and the centrality of spontaneous change, this paper provides a systematic, multi-perspective approach to the understanding and management of social, cultural and individual characteristics of bottom-up organizational change, focusing on its fundamental aspects of creativity and knowledge creation.

Biographical and demographical variables as moderators in the prediction of turnover intentions

Orientation: The aim of the study was to explore the possible moderation effects of biographical and demographical variables on a prediction model of turnover intention (TI).Research purpose: The main purpose of the study was to determine how biographical and demographical variables have an impact on predictors of turnover intentions.Motivation for the study: Twenty-first century organisations face significant challenges in the management of talent and human capital. One in particular is voluntary employee turnover and the lack of appropriate business models to track this process.Research design, approach, and method: A secondary data analysis (SDA) was performed in a quantitative research tradition on the cross-sectional survey sample (n = 2429). Data were collected from a large South African Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) sector company (N = 23 134).Main findings: The results of the study confirmed significant moderation effects regarding race, age, and marital status in the prediction equations of TIs.Practical and managerial implications: Practical implications of the study suggested increased understanding of workforce diversity effects within the human resource (HR) value chain, with resultant evidence-based, employee retention strategies and interventions. Issues concerning talent management could also be addressed.Contribution and value-add: The study described in this article took Industrial/Organisational (I/O) psychological concepts and linked them in unique combinations to establish better predictive validity of a more comprehensive turnover intentions model.

Prophets, priests and kings: re-imagining ancient metaphors of diffused leadership for the twenty-first century organization

This paper re-imagines the ancient Hebrew threefold leadership typology of prophets, priests and kings for the contemporary organization or community. The essence of what is here termed the “trioptic typology” is that leadership is ideally diffused throughout an organization with different individuals or groups performing functions or roles that correspond to these metaphors. Each of these metaphors is discussed in turn, and interactions between them delineated. The typology is illustrated through two brief cases, one positive and one negative. While the typology arises from within a faith tradition, the metaphors are applicable in other contexts, particularly in those in which spiritual leadership is needed or required. All three roles, it is argued, are necessary for healthy change dynamics within organizations or communities.

Workforce Diversity And Organizational Communication: Analysis Of Human Capital Performance And Productivity

The twenty-first century organizations are increasingly becoming multicultural workplaces for communication. This paper explores recent literature on the increasing global influence of workforce diversity and its affect on workplace communication. It provides a model for the discussion of the opportunities and challenges of diversity in the workplace. The paper then provides an analytical framework that guides readers with practical ideas that can assist them in their endeavors to effectively communicate in a globally diverse work environment. The paper stresses that effective communication in a diverse workforce ensures a high level of performance and productivity for human and intellectual capital and provides business organizations a competitive advantage in their expanded markets and in the global economy.

Strategic leadership for the 21 st century

We are on the precipice of an epoch–—a distinctive, exciting, and challenging time for organizations. My focus is on twenty-first century organizations and the characteristics required for survival and long-term success. To begin, consider that you are a member of the board of directors of a major corporation in the year 2010–—thirteen years in the future. What do you believe will be the characteristics of business organizations in this year? What strategies will they employ? How will they be structured? How will they manage their human capital? (Hitt, 1998, p. 218)

Distributed leadership and shared governance in post-secondary education

Leadership in education and traditional management theory face the challenges of advancing a theory and practice for twenty-first century organization. This article approaches the potential for new frames of reference on leadership through the correlations between the emergent theory of distributed leadership and the philosophy of shared governance in higher education. In clarifying distributed leadership, research provides directions for further theory development. The leadership theory offers much for postsecondary education if conceptualized within the structure of shared governance, and shared governance itself proves valuable to advancing distributed leadership. Developing the integrative power of the theories remains constructive for both leadership in education and the field of organizational behavior (OB).

The intelligence alchemy and the twenty-first century organization

This paper examines the way that a major global organization manages organizational intelligence for competitive and strategic advantage. We demonstrate the full complexity of organizational intelligence management through a case observation. Earlier research has already established the fact that there is a direct relationship between good corporate intelligence and strategic change. The fact that businesses are operating within business environments that are even more complex and dynamic than before means that many firms are planning with less certainty than before. As we begin to explore possible competitive scenarios for the twenty-first century organization, a radical rethink on current organizational intelligence strategy needs to commence, especially as companies deal with more challenging and disruptive scenarios such as terrorism and industrial espionage. The research range will need to be expanded to ensure that its implications can be tested. The procurement of more systems and data centers will not necessarily provide that strategic edge organizations need. Instead, organizations need to focus on enhancing the role of the intelligence analyst and managers. A case study is used to support arguments that the twenty-first century organization cannot be solely reliant for its strategic planning process on systems without substantial investment in the human aspects of intelligence management

Cardiovascular Medicine at the University of Minnesota: Lost and then Found in Translation

Translational research requires basic innovation and development, an infrastructure for deployment to the experimental clinical arena and a distribution system to connect patients to innovation. The University of Minnesota cardiovascular program led the way in translational medicine after World War II. Subsequently, it briefly lost its way. Learning from the lessons of the past, cardiovascular medicine at Minnesota is being reborn as a twenty-first century organization developing medical innovation from ideas and translating the product to patients in a complex healthcare system.

E. Peck and P. 6 (2006), Beyond Delivery: Policy Implementations as Sense-Making and Settlement. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan. £55.00, pp. 237, hbk. - P. 6, N. Goodwin, E. Peck, and T. Freeman (2006), Managing Networks of Twenty-First Century Organisations. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan. £58.00, pp.309, hbk.

E. Peck and P. 6 (2006), Beyond Delivery: Policy Implementations as Sense-Making and Settlement. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan. £55.00, pp. 237, hbk. - P. 6, N. Goodwin, E. Peck, and T. Freeman (2006), Managing Networks of Twenty-First Century Organisations. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan. £58.00, pp.309, hbk.