Eleni Apospori

HRM and organizational performance in northern and southern Europe

This article aims to extend understanding of the firm-level impact of strategic HR practices on organizational performance. Adopting a contingency approach, it develops a structural model that considers direct and indirect influences of market growth, business strategy formalization and HRM centrality and practices on organizational performance in Europe. The study uses a comparative approach, revealing differences between northern and southern Europe. Clear differences appeared between the two clusters in the HR policies and practices correlated with higher performance, thus indicating that the link between HRM and performance may be different in different geographies.

Changes in HRM in Europe: A longitudinal comparative study among 18 European countries

Purpose – To examine HRM strategies and practices and HRM position within organizations in various cultural, economic and sociopolitical contexts from a longitudinal perspective.Design/methodology/approach – The study uses the 1995 and 1999 Cranet data in a longitudinal methodological framework to explore the changes and trends in 18 European countries with regard to certain HRM issues between the points of time when measurements took place. Country is the unit of analysis, and cluster analysis is used for each of the two waves of data to classify countries into relatively homogeneous groups/clusters.Findings – The overall picture is that the 18 countries form two major clusters. Countries in Europe can be systematically clustered in a North/West‐South/East distinction, regarding HRM practices. There is no indication of convergence between the major clusters. However, movement from one cluster to another was observed, with Italy and East Germany moving to the North‐western cluster.Research limitations/imp...

Training and firm performance in Europe: the impact of national and organizational characteristics

This study focuses on the relationship between training and development and performance. It expands existing research on the subject by combining national and organizational factors through a hierarchical linear model to explore the training and development and performance relationship in 14 European countries. The main findings point out the importance of cultural, institutional and organizational factors in analysing the relationship between training and development and performance.

The impact of individual and organizational characteristics on work‐family conflict and career outcomes

Purpose – This paper aims to examine the dynamics of individual and organizational characteristics in work‐family conflict (WFC) and career outcomes. It aims to consider the role of self‐esteem, career management and multiple life role commitment, and, as individual characteristics, on WFC and career outcomes; it also seeks to consider the role of career encouragement and organizational culture, as organizational characteristics, on WFC and career outcomes.Design/methodology/approach – The research was carried out in a sample of 399 females at different levels of management in Greek organizations. The hypotheses were tested using structural equation modeling.Findings – The findings show that both individual and organizational characteristics are significant in determining WFC and career outcomes. No relationship is found between WFC and career outcomes. Overall, the results support the depletion theory.Research limitations/implications – Limitations of this study are: the complexity of the model, the use ...

Entrepreneurial and Professional CEOS: Differences in Motive and Responsibility Profile

Purpose --To shed some light on the motivationalprofile of entrepreneurial as opposed to professional CEOs in Greece. Design/methodology/approach -- Based on McClellands motivational patterns,i.e., power, achievement and affiliation, as well as responsibility; interviewswith Greek entrepreneurial and professional CEOs were conducted. Then,interviews were content-analysed, in order to identify differences inmotivational profiles of those two groups of CEOs. Findings -- Achievement, motivation and responsibility were found to be themost significant discriminating factors between entrepreneurial andprofessional CEOs. Research limitations/implications -- The current research focuses only onMcClellands typology. Other aspects affecting entrepreneurial inclination arenot studied in the current paper. Practical implications -- One of the major implications deriving from theidentified characteristics of successful entrepreneurial and professional CEOshas to do with the preparation and training of young leaders for both largerand smaller firms. Originality/value -- This paper studies, for the first time, the leadershipprofile of CEOs in Greece and identifies differences between professional andentrepreneurial ones. This is of great value in an SMEs dominated economy, suchas Greece, where these research findings can be used for the development ofentrepreneurship. (Publication abstract)

Mentoring and women's career advancement in Greece

Abstract This study examines the concept of mentoring as a career-strategy tool in Greek organizations from a protégés point of view and the effect of mentoring on womens career advancement. In particular, we hypothesize, first, that seeking mentoring is a multidimensional concept, consisting of a number of activities and behaviours interconnected in a career strategy scheme; second, that mentoring has a positive effect on career advancement; third, that organizational culture has a moderating effect in the relationship between mentoring and career advancement. The research was carried out in a sample of 297 women employed in Greek organizations. A series of factor and regression analyses were performed. The findings support our hypotheses and indicate the necessity for women to assume proactive behaviours in developing mentoring relationships in order to advance their careers; they also stress the role of the organization in creating a relationship-oriented organizational culture in order to facilitate womens mentorship.

SME corporate social responsibility and competitiveness: a literature review

The importance of SMEs to the economy and society and their special characteristics relevant to the adoption of CSR principles, the implementation of CSR activities, and the study of the relationship between SME, CSR behaviour and competitiveness, have stimulated the interest of both practitioners and academicians. The objective of this paper is to provide an overview of the literature addressing SME CSR behaviour and competitiveness. The paper summarises the major trends emerging from the literature review and provides recommendations for further research.

Cultural and Leadership Similarities and Variations in the Southern Part of the European Union

This paper examines the similarities and differences in cultural (societal and organizational) and leadership aspects in the southern part of the European Union. The study is based on data from the GLOBE project for five countries (Greece, Italy, France, Spain, and Portugal). Even though there are quite a few studies clustering European countries either along the North-South axis or the North/West — South/East axis, we still need to better understand cultural and leadership similarities and differences among countries that for various reasons, such as sociopolitical, economic, cultural, historical, geographical and so forth, may form a unit for purposes of comparative study. The findings of the present study suggest that there are more similarities than differences among these five countries that may support the thesis for considering them as the southern band of EU countries.

Organisational training and development in the European context: a longitudinal comparative study among 18 European countries

This paper examines the changes that have taken place, in 18 European countries, in the area of organisational training and development during the decade of the 1990s. We examine whether a trend towards more similarities (convergence) in training aspects exists in Europe and we hypothesise that the changes are in a direction that brings more peripheral countries closer to a cluster of countries, reducing overall differences between clusters over the last decade. We have used the Cranet data of 1995 and 1999, collected through surveys by the Cranfield network on European Human Resource Management, comparing 18 countries and 27 common indicators.

Prevention of and interventions in workplace bullying: a global study of human resource professionals’ reflections on preferred action

Abstract The aim of this study was to analyze Human Resource Professionals’ reflections on the prevention of and intervention in workplace bullying across different countries. More specifically, the study sought to identify what actions were, in the experience of human resource professionals, best to prevent and intervene in bullying and uncover organizations’ motives for engaging in such work. The study was conducted through semi-structured interviews (n = 214) in 14 different countries/regions, representing all continents and all GLOBE cultural clusters. Qualitative content analysis was performed to analyze the material. The findings indicate that bullying was largely conceptualized as a productivity and cost issue, and that was largely driving efforts to counter bullying. Training and policies were highlighted as preferred means to prevent bullying across countries. In contrast, there were large national differences in terms of preferences for either disciplinary or reconciliatory approaches to intervene in bullying. This study advances our understanding of what human resource professionals consider preferred ways of managing workplace bullying, and adds to our understanding of cross-national differences and similarities in views of this phenomenon. As such, the results are of relevance to both practitioners and scholars.