Azlyn Ahmad Zawawi

To share or not to share knowledge: Observing the factors

Due to the changing business environment, organizations are facing challenges of global competitiveness. Sharing knowledge is an important aspect of most modern organization. University governance is not immune from the impacts of this environmental fluctuation. Universities are creators of new knowledge through research and education but it should not be forgotten that Universities are organizations which will need to utilize knowledge to develop competitive advantage as any other business entity would need to do. This study examines the factors influencing knowledge sharing behavior amongst academicians, taking Universiti Teknologi Mara (UiTM), Kedah as a sample. The factors influencing knowledge sharing behavior include motivation to share knowledge, management support, information technological literacy and teamwork spirit. The result of correlation showed that there is a positive relationship on teamwork spirit and management support toward knowledge sharing behavior amongst academicians.

Reporting Misdeeds: An Evaluation on Intention to Blowing the Whistle

 Abstract—The aims of this study are two folds, to identify whether intention to whistle blow exists; and to ascertain the relationship between perceived organizational support, channel of communication, attitude and intention to blow the whistle. The study was conducted in seven public offices in West Malaysia, involving 511 employees. The findings indicate that all the predicted elements are moderately associated with the act of whistle blowing. On the other hand, channel of communication is proven to be the most dominant variable where the existence of facilities to complaint is seen as the driver for employees to move forward and tell the truth. Moreover internal programs held by the organizations also supported the findings, as a powerful tool to create awareness of the importance to blow the whistle within the organization setting; while fair and just treatments by the organization have generated trust and confidence amongst the employees where they feel empowered and belongingness. Whistle blowing is also perceived as a new commitment by the respondents as reflecting their loyalties to the organization.

Team Context and Team Performance: An Integrated Review

High-quality teamwork has been recognized as central for organizational success. As such, researchers and practitioners have attempted to uncover how best to ensure high team performance. A review of the literature on teams suggested that team performance is a function of a variety of factors. While research shows that team context is important, investigations on this subject are still inadequate particularly for manufacturing teams within the context of a developing country like Malaysia. Therefore, the purpose of this paper is to review the extant literature on team performance and subsequently propose a model linking team context (team leaders’ transformational leadership style and perceived team support) with team performance in the Malaysian manufacturing industry with a focus on the electrical and electronic sector. In addition, trust is explored as a mediator in the above-mentioned relationship.

The impact of task characteristics on the performance of nursing teams

Purpose This study sought to examine the relationship between team task features and team task performance. Team task performance revolved around the teams technical knowledge and the technical core activities of the organization. On the other hand, team task characteristics include task identity, task significance, and task interdependence. Methods This study involved a total of 300 nursing teams (1436 individual nurses) from seven state hospitals in Peninsular Malaysia. Data were collected using two sets of questionnaires which were initially distributed to 320 teams. One set was given to the team members and another set was given to the team leaders. Of the 320 sets sent out, 300 sets were returned. Responses were then combined and aggregated to the team level to get the teams final score. Analyses of the hypotheses were done using Partial Least Squares (PLS) through assessment of the measurement and structural model. Results Results from the path analysis revealed that of the three dimensions of team task attributes, only task significance was positively and significantly related to team task performance (β = 0.076, P > 0.05), while task identity (β = 0.076, P > 0.05) and task interdependence (β = −0.037, P > 0.05) were found unrelated to team task performance. Conclusions This study demonstrated that task significance is important to predict team task performance. Task significance reflects meaningfulness and nobility of tasks, thus elevate the desire to perform better in each assigned task.

Whistle blowing intention in relation to perceived organizational support, attitude to whistle blow, channel of communication among public servant

The aims of this paper are two folds, to identify as to whether intention to whistle blow exists; and to ascertain the relationship between perceived organizational support, channel of communication, and the attitude of those who with intention to blow the whistle. The study has undertaken population study in one of the Northern Regions public office which consists of 400 populations in total. At least 204 public servants were involved in this research as the respondents. Data were collected through self-administered questionnaire. The findings indicated that there exists intention to whistle blow on the part of the within the organization (mean=4.059). Further analysis discovered that there are positive relationships between all variables with regards to the intention to blow the whistle. Channel of communication is the most dominant variable that drives the respondents to act morally in the organization.

Too good to leave, too bad to stay: Anti-retaliation precautionary measures for whistle blowers

Whistle blowing is an act of exposing the wrongdoings in an organization, either committed by its members of the lower level or the top management. Many have agreed that whistle blowing is an effective means of deterring and detecting organizational mishaps. Whistle blowers have been referred to as ‘canaries in the coal mine’. The idea of telling the truth however, may result in exposure to uncontrolled risk by the whistle blower. The extent to which the whistle blower is protected and safe after information is leaked to the public or the relevant authority remains unknown. In the Malaysian context, whistle blowing is not new. Being honest is a custom among Malaysians. Honesty is deeply rooted in Malaysian culture and is supported by the high value Malaysian place on spiritual belief which also put a premium on moral virtue. But being loyal to the management is another thing. A critical issue that whistle blowers face is the tension between the virtues of honesty and the virtues of loyalty. The ethical dilemmas faced by the whistle blowers place them in situations where there are significant and difficult ethical conflicts. Recently, the Parliament of Malaysia has passed the Whistle Blowing Protection Act which was seen as an holistic approach to cover all Malaysians who were willing to blow the whistle. Some do not feel confident that such program under the Act can be accomplished in Malaysia as the Malaysian culture believing ‘keeping things to ourselves’. Thus the paper intends to explore the anti-retaliation precautionary factors mediate by the culture that will most likely explain motivational issues subordinates face in publicizing the wrongs that are harmful to the organization in Malaysia.