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1 – 10 of over 3000Adela Chen and Nicholas Roberts
Practitioners and academics are starting to recognize the benefits of green IT/IS practices. Despite these benefits, this study aims to know more regarding the factors that would…
Abstract
Purpose
Practitioners and academics are starting to recognize the benefits of green IT/IS practices. Despite these benefits, this study aims to know more regarding the factors that would drive organizations to use green IT/IS practices within their IT function and across the enterprise. To further understanding in this area, this study applies a strategic cognition framework of firm responsiveness and institutional theory to determine the extent to which an organization uses green IT/IS practices in response to stakeholder concerns. This study investigates the extent to which two organizational logics – expressive and instrumental – and three institutional pressures – coercive, mimetic and normative – jointly affect an organization's use of both green IT practices and green IS practices.
Design/methodology/approach
This study tested the hypotheses with survey data collected from 306 organizations. Structural equation modeling was used for data analysis.
Findings
Findings support four joint effects: (1) individualistic identity orientation and coercive pressure positively affect green IT practices; (2) collectivistic identity orientation and normative pressure positively influence green IS practices; (3) cost reduction orientation and mimetic pressure positively affect green IT practices; and (4) revenue expansion orientation and normative pressure positively influence green IS practices.
Originality/value
This study contributes to the literature by providing evidence for joint drivers of green IT and green IS practices. Green IT and IS practices represent organizations' different levels of commitment to environmental sustainability and responsiveness to stakeholders (i.e. green IT/IS practices). Organizations of different expressive and instrumental orientations are attuned to institutional pressures to various degrees, which leads to different green IT/IS practices.
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Marcia Cassitas Hino and Maria Alexandra Cunha
The purpose of this study is to investigate how women's individual differences influence urban mobility service technology-use behavior. The reduction in urban mobility is a major…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this study is to investigate how women's individual differences influence urban mobility service technology-use behavior. The reduction in urban mobility is a major problem in countries with emerging economies, thus affecting both the economy and quality of life.
Design/methodology/approach
The theoretical approach follows the individual differences theory of gender and information technology (IDTGIT). This research combines structured interviews to understand how the use of urban mobility service technology in daily routines is perceived, questionnaires to map individual differences and user demonstrations to capture how participants used mobility applications on their cell phones.
Findings
This study shows the influence of individual characteristics on the use of mobile apps and presents five behavioral profiles of women. This article goes beyond gender segregation to also show intragender differences.
Practical implications
This study explains women's behavior regarding urban mobility mobile applications through the generation of five profiles. These profiles can inform public policy managers on urban mobility and provide opportunities for improving the services of companies in the urban transport service chain.
Originality/value
With an intragender perspective, this study identifies the influence of individual characteristics on the use of technology and suggests that contextual identity, a novel dimension of characteristics that influence technology-use behavior, is relevant in the adoption of technology by its users.
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The purpose of this paper is to add to our understanding of how external factors such as funding and external accountabilities affect the organisational inner workings, especially…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to add to our understanding of how external factors such as funding and external accountabilities affect the organisational inner workings, especially identity issues.
Design/methodology/approach
The paper is based on a comparative case study of two professional chamber orchestras, one in Sweden and one in the UK. The two orchestras had significantly different funding conditions and had different relations with funders and were thus exposed to different kinds of accountability dilemmas. The two organisations were studied using and ethnographically inspired approach. The developments of various parts of the organisations were studied, such as funding, management, strategy, management control and identity issues.
Findings
The paper illustrates how the solution to accountability dilemmas in an organisation can, over time, result in the protection or the dilution of a perceived organisational core and thus in an identity struggle. Especially, management has to deal with the balance between financial and operational accountability, where organisational members could perceive the decisions to be confirming or rejecting what they perceived as being the higher purpose of their work.
Practical implications
This paper may help managers become more aware of the long ranging consequences of managerial decisions and how such decisions may affect the identity orientation of organisational members.
Originality/value
The paper combines the concept of identity with the concept of accountability, something that has not been done to a large extent in previous research.
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Massimo Battaglia, Shanshan Zhou and Marco Frey
The purpose of this paper is to deal with the link between identity and crisis deriving by natural disasters, exploring the function of the shared identity linking individuals…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to deal with the link between identity and crisis deriving by natural disasters, exploring the function of the shared identity linking individuals, groups, organizations and its external networks. The shared identity is not static. It is a dynamic self-reflexive learning process and is reciprocal. The object of the research is a medium-sized multi-utility company, which experienced the 2012 earthquakes, and how responsibly and rapidly it responded and recovered in collaboration with its stakeholders in the local territory.
Design/methodology/approach
Semi-structured interviews were directed to both managers and to selected representatives of the “vertical external networks” of the company (local authorities, a consumer association and a trade association). The primary data were supplemented by archived materials for data triangulation.
Findings
The research highlights the importance of identity and relationship with local stakeholders and communities when facing the earthquakes. Believing themselves to be socially responsible, ethical and capable, employees were highly motivated and collaborative. Resuming normal services was AIMAG’s priority. The behavior of AIMAG, its employees and its local stakeholders were guided by a shared community identity. After the earthquakes, this shared community identity was strengthened, thus improving the community’s resilience.
Originality/value
The paper highlights the role of identity in linking both inside and outside an organization, in contributing greatly to joint decision making and action, and, finally, in increasing the awareness of the company leaders and staff regarding the importance of their actions for the whole local community. This research advocates the role of identity in disaster risk reduction.
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Laurence Vigneau and Carol A. Adams
This paper aims to examine the existence of a transparency gap between voluntary external sustainability reporting and internal sustainability performance of an organisation…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to examine the existence of a transparency gap between voluntary external sustainability reporting and internal sustainability performance of an organisation arising from the operationalisation of transparency as an instrumental tool.
Design/methodology/approach
This study combined an analysis of a firm’s sustainability report (secondary data) with a qualitative case study data (primary data comprising interviews, meetings and internal documents) to understand how the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) sustainability reporting guidelines are applied in practice.
Findings
By comparing what is reported with a range of primary case study data, this study finds evidence of transparency gaps, particularly in terms of the quality of measurement of sustainability performance, the materiality of issues covered and the completeness of the report. This study posits that voluntary disclosures following the GRI guidelines (transparency technique) shape the external expression of acceptable corporate behaviour (transparency norm) that is nevertheless at odds with actual behaviour or performance.
Practical implications
The findings indicate the importance of mandatory sustainability reporting requirements that facilitate accountability to all key stakeholders and that are externally assured and enforced. Such requirements might take the form of standards that put boundaries on judgement and address material sustainable development impacts and that are accompanied by implementation guidance. Non-financial assurance practices must be developed to cover adherence to reporting principles and processes.
Social implications
Transparency gaps that result from voluntary disclosure guidelines or standards being used to imply a transparency norm may undermine accountability for the impacts of the organisation and hinder alignment of business models and corporate strategies with sustainable development.
Originality/value
The paper contributes to a theoretical understanding of transparency as a form of self-regulation and has implications for the further development of sustainability reporting standards.
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David Solnet, Mahesh Subramony, Robert C. Ford, Maria Golubovskaya, Hee Jung (Annette) Kang and Murat Hancer
With the ever-increasing adoption of technology and automation radically changing the nature of service delivery, the purpose of this paper is to explore the role of human touch…
Abstract
Purpose
With the ever-increasing adoption of technology and automation radically changing the nature of service delivery, the purpose of this paper is to explore the role of human touch, introducing hospitable service as an enhancement for value creation in service organizations.
Design/methodology/approach
Drawing on management, social sciences and hospitality literatures, a four-configuration model is presented to illustrate dimensions which arise from the confluence of different degrees of relationship orientation – shared mental models held by the host organization (self- or other-oriented), and guests’ service preferences (transactional or relational).
Findings
A theoretically grounded model of configurations resulting from variations on three key dimensions is offered. These are: employee organization relationships – social exchange processes governing the interactions between employees and their employers; HRM systems – internally consistent combinations of HR practices; and tech-touch trade-off – prioritization of technology vs employees to deliver services.
Research limitations/implications
Embedding hospitable service as a construct to support the leveraging of human touch in service organizations opens up new research opportunities including avenues to further conceptualize the nature and dimensions of hospitable service. Future research that supports further understanding about the role of human touch and value creation in service organizations is proposed.
Practical implications
Through the value-enhancing capability of human in the service encounter, firms can be enabled to accurately position themselves in one of the four relational configurations on offer and then identify opportunities for managers to leverage human touch to combat the diminishing role of the human touch in a technology-ubiquitous service context.
Originality/value
This is among the first papers to explore the influence of technology on the degree of human touch in the interface between hospitality employee and customer, and to develop a configuration model through which researchers and practitioners can operate during this declining era of human to human service interactions.
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Simone Alves Pacheco de Campos, Shalimar Gallon and Rúbia Goi Becker
This study aims to identify the nature of the characteristics and the social results of partnerships established between nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) and the company.
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to identify the nature of the characteristics and the social results of partnerships established between nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) and the company.
Design/methodology/approach
This research is a qualitative collective case study. Data were collected through 12 interviews and analyzed through the content analysis technique.
Findings
The findings indicate that in the first case, the partnership is driven by the company’s interest in qualifying its supplier, facing a relational identity orientation, establishing philanthropic relationships. In the second case, the search for social legitimacy is evident, in the face of a collectivist identity orientation, in which Petro establishes a relationship of a transactional nature. Thus, the differential in intersectoral collaboration lies in the interaction among company, NGO and cooperatives. The results also show that the dialogue proximity between companies and civil society have a strong relationship with social results for the local communities.
Social implications
This study reveals the need to broaden the understanding of the social results of social partnerships to local communities.
Originality/value
The nature of the relationship among state, companies, NGOs and local communities in developing countries are different from developed countries. In the first case, companies are called to assume state’s role in improving quality of life and income generation.
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Sigrun M. Wagner and Stephanos Anastasiadis
This chapter addresses the research question of whether multinational enterprise (MNE) lobbying can contribute to sustainable development.
Abstract
Purpose
This chapter addresses the research question of whether multinational enterprise (MNE) lobbying can contribute to sustainable development.
Methodology/approach
It presents the results of two case studies, from different perspectives, whose results strengthen and complement each other. Both studies use interviews as their main source of data within triangulation, and both adopt iterative processes for their analyses: one uses data coding, the other takes a narrative approach.
Findings
The findings suggest that whilst companies see both costs and opportunities in environmental regulations, this is not perceived by their policy-making counterparts. Furthermore, company-internal communication suggests that lobbying and corporate social responsibility (CSR) are not joined up, which leads to mixed (external) messages sent from the company to policy-makers and the public.
Research limitations
The chapter focuses on one industry (automobiles) in one host country setting (EU).
Practical implications
Policy-makers, as well as companies that want to contribute to sustainability, could usefully adopt the concept of internalising external costs as a minimum proxy for sustainability. Companies that wish to promote sustainable development, or even wish to act in a consistent manner, might usefully examine their assumptions about the political process. This is particularly the case with MNEs as they operate in numerous jurisdictions.
Originality/value
The chapter integrates the MNE literature and the literature on international business (IB)–government interactions. The findings underline the importance of addressing both environmental issues and the relationships between policy-makers and MNEs, an area that can be further developed by extending the scope of the study to other industries in further research.
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The purpose of this paper is to develop a typology of sustainable business strategies that may help to guide future empirical research.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to develop a typology of sustainable business strategies that may help to guide future empirical research.
Design/methodology/approach
The approach involves a review of prior typologies and an application of the resource-based view of the firm to identify the resources and capabilities associated with each strategy.
Findings
Research propositions concerning the relationship between implementation of each strategy and requisite capabilities are offered.
Research limitations/implications
The research propositions developed in the paper offer a means to catalyze future empirical research at the intersection of strategy and sustainability.
Originality/value
Barriers to understanding the capabilities necessary to implement sustainability strategies render sustainable development an elusive goal. This paper helps to advance this understanding, identifying the primary capabilities needed to implement distinct sustainability strategies.
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