Neil Paulsen

Uncertainty during organizational change: Is it all about control?

Uncertainty is a major source of psychological strain during organizational change. This study tested a model of change-related communication, uncertainty, and control and their relationship with psychological strain, job satisfaction, and turnover intentions. Self-report data were obtained from staff at a psychiatric hospital undergoing restructuring. Results indicated that uncertainty had a direct and an indirect (via feelings of lack of control) relationship with psychological strain. Partialling out common method variance led to a complete mediation of this relationship by control. Other predictions about the relationship of these variables with psychological strain, job satisfaction, and turnover intentions were supported. Implications for future research and practice of change communication are discussed.

Charismatic leadership, change and innovation in an R&D organization

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to investigate the effects of the charismatic dimension of transformational leadership on team processes and innovative outcomes in research and development (R&D) teams.Design/methodology/approach – Data are collected by surveying 34 teams that totalled 178 participants. Surveys measured charismatic leadership style, team identity, cooperative strategies and team innovation.Findings – Results reveal the importance of managers assuming a charismatic style of leadership to encourage innovation. Charismatic leaders promote team innovation by supporting a sense of team identity and commitment, and encourage team members to cooperate through the expression of ideas and participation in decisions.Research limitations/implications – The study is conducted in a single R&D organization and future research should explore the influence of these factors in other settings. The measures of team innovation are based on the perceptions of the team members, and future research needs ...

A new role for place identity in managing organizational change

In an extension of organizational identity research, we draw on place identity theory (PIT) to argue that employees’ identification with their place of work influences their perceptions of large-scale organizational change. To determine how different types of employees respond to threats to their sense of place identity, we conducted 34 interviews with senior and middle managers, supervisory and nonsupervisory staff, and external stakeholders at a public hospital undergoing change. Groups of employees at lower levels of the organizational hierarchy experienced a stronger sense of place and belongingness and greater disruption to their place identity than those at higher levels. We discuss how place identity operates as a component of social identity as well as the responses managers can make to ways in which employees with different place identifications deal with change.

Group-Directed Criticisms and Recommendations for Change: Why Newcomers Arouse More Resistance Than Old-Timers

Three experiments examine the extent to which newcomers are able to influence their groups relative to old-timers. Specifically, how group members respond to criticisms of their group was assessed as a function of the intragroup position of the speaker. When criticizing their workplace (Experiment 1; N = 116), their profession (Experiment 2; N = 106), or an Internet community (Experiment 3; N = 189), newcomers aroused more resistance than old-timers, an effect that was mediated by perceptions of how attached critics were to their group identity. Experiment 3 also showed that newcomers could reduce resistance to their criticisms by distancing themselves from a group of which they were previously members. Theoretical and practical implications of these findings are discussed.

The downsides of downsizing: Communication processes and information needs in the aftermath of a workforce reduction strategy

This study explored the impact of downsizing on levels of uncertainty, coworker and management trust, and communicative effectiveness in a health care organization downsizing during a 2-year period from 660 staff to 350 staff members. Self-report data were obtained from employees who were staying (survivors), from employees were being laid off (victims), and from employees with and without managerial responsibilities. Results indicated that downsizing had a similar impact on the amount of trust that survivors and victims had for management. However, victims reported feeling lower levels of trust toward their colleagues compared with survivors. Contrary to expectations, survivors and victims reported similar perceptions of job and organizational uncertainty and similar levels of information received about changes. Employees with no management responsibilities and middle managers both reported lower scores than did senior managers on all aspects of information received. Implications for practice and the management of the communication process are discussed.

Transformational leadership and innovation in an R&D organization experiencing major change

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to add to the understanding of how transformational leaders influence R&D team outcomes around being more innovative. In particular, the study aims to focus on the role of group identification in mediating innovative outcomes.Design/methodology/approach – In total, 104 participants in a large Australian R&D organization were surveyed twice during a 12 month period of major restructuring and change. These matched respondents came from 29 different teams.Findings – Results revealed that group identification and perceived support for creativity exerted equal independent effects in fully mediating the relationship between transformational leadership and team innovation.Research limitations/implications – The potential for leadership to influence innovation through identification raises interesting alternative possibilities. Future research may generate new insights by investigating alternative samples, leadership styles or using qualitative methods.Practical implications...

Managing Boundaries in Organizations

Drawing together an international group of scholars, this book provides fresh and provocative perspectives on boundaries in organizations. The emergence, management and transformation of organizational boundaries is intrinsic to modern organization and poses one of the most persistent and potentially rewarding challenges to researchers and managers alike. The book offers the latest insights into the nature of boundaries, how they may be interpreted and studied, as well as implications for managing. The chapters include theoretical perspectives and cases from Europe, Canada, the USA, Australia, the Middle East and Africa.

Who are we now?: Group identity, boundaries, and the (re)organizing process

Who am I? and Who are we? are questions that have occupied the minds of philosophers (e.g. Plato, Aristotle, Descartes), sociologists, and psychologists (e.g. James, Mead, Goffman, and Erikson) for many centuries. Identity is central to a conception of what it means to be human. An individuals identity is based in part on the groups to which he or she belongs, and identification with these groups forms part of an individuals self-concept. Within organizational contexts, employees are members of a number of groups, all of which are potential targets of identification: the organization itself, divisions, departments, or work units, as well as management teams, project teams, professional groups, or other informal groups. In other words, organizations are structured both formally and informally such that individuals within them relate to one another in essentially an intergroup context. Organizational life is replete with change processes. As new structures and working arrangements are created, employees are often required to form new groups and teams, as well as different lines of authority. Such changes rearrange the existing order and the connections between units, and modify the ways in which each unit is differentiated from others. These processes define new boundaries, which alter how individuals and groups relate to each other in the organization. Individuals forge new identities with and within the organization as new groups form. During organizational change, employees and managers alike must constantly redefine and renegotiate group boundaries. Drawing from Social Identity Theory, this chapter presents the argument that managers of organizations undergoing change need to remain cognizant of the fact that change not only involves the restructuring or reorganization of work, but also involves the need for employees to renegotiate new ways of relating to, and feeling a part of, the organization. The chapter reports on studies that have investigated the impact of these dynamics on employee perceptions and outcomes.

“We Do It, but They Don't”: Multiple Categorizations and Work Team Communication

The present study adopted an intergroup approach to information sharing and ratings of work team communication in a public hospital (N = 142) undergoing large-scale restructuring. Consistent with predictions, ratings of communication followed a double ingroup serving bias: while team members reported sending about the same levels of information to double ingroup members (same work team/same occupational group) as they did to partial ingroup members (same work team/different occupational group), they reported receiving less information from partial ingroup members than from double ingroup members and rated the communication that they received from partial ingroup members as less effective. We discuss the implication of these results for the management of information sharing and organizational communication.

Decline and turnaround: a literature review and proposed research agenda for the hotel sector

Tourism systems are composed of an inter-related and inter-dependent set of individual businesses, organisations and servicescapes. The hospitality industry, and more specifically the hotel sector, comprises many businesses that contribute significantly to the tourism system. Yet, the industry is renowned for business failures and poor financial returns. Increasing competition, globalisation, technology, social change and internal weaknesses are some of the reasons why tourism and hospitality businesses fail or perform significantly below expectations. When in a state of decline or poor performance, many businesses attempt a ‘turnaround’. Declining performance can have wide-ranging impacts not only on hotel businesses directly, but also upon those communities where local economies rely on tourism for jobs and economic prosperity. Consequently, an improved understanding of the processes of declining performance and turnarounds is particularly important to both researchers and practitioners. However, there has been limited research focused on turnarounds in the tourism industry, in general, and in the hotel industry, in particular. In this study we assess the literature on decline and turnarounds and propose an agenda for future research that will enhance our knowledge and inform ongoing debate on the process and impact of turnarounds in the hotel industry.