Stephen Swailes

Relations, commitment and satisfaction in agency workers and permanent workers

Purpose – To investigate the level of organizational commitment in agency workers compared with permanent workers by taking into account relations between the two groups.Design/methodology/approach – A mixed methods design was employed comprising of a quantitative survey of 157 call centre workers followed by 29 qualitative interviews with permanent workers, agency workers and employers.Findings – Agency workers had a significantly lower level of organizational commitment compared with permanent workers once the relation between agency and permanent workers was controlled. Significant correlations were found within the sample between organizational commitment, being valued and job satisfaction further supported by a hierarchical multiple linear regression.Research limitations/implications – As with all cross‐sectional research causality cannot be confirmed and difficulty accessing call centre workers led to a restricted sample size. The measurement of worker relations needs developing. Further research is...

Conceptualising inclusive talent management: potential, possibilities and practicalities

This paper explores the possibilities and potential surrounding inclusive talent management in contrast to conventional normative treatments. By closely examining the meaning of ‘inclusive’ in relation to talent, the paper moves towards a definition of inclusive talent management which is contextualised in a four-part typology of talent management strategies which offers greater conceptual clarity to researchers working in this field. Our conceptualisation of inclusive talent management is further located in the traditions of positive psychology and the Capability Approach. The practical implications of introducing inclusive talent management strategies are considered.

A capability approach to organizational talent management

This article takes a fresh and radical look at organizational talent management strategies. It offers a critique of some of the prevalent assumptions underpinning certain talent management practices, particularly those fuelled by the narratives of scarcity and metaphors of war. We argue that talent management programmes based on these assumptions ignore important social and ethical dimensions, to the detriment of both organizations and individuals. We offer instead a set of principles proceeding from, and informed by, Sens ‘capability approach’ (CA). Based on the idea of freedoms not resources, the CA circumvents discourses of scarcity and restores vital social and ethical considerations to ideas about talent management. We also emphasize its versatility and sensitivity to the particular circumstances of individual organizations such that corporate leaders and human resource practitioners might use the principles for a number of practical purposes.

Employee reactions to talent pool membership

Purpose – Despite a large literature on talent management there is very little research on the comparative attitudes of employees in talent pools with those not in talent pools. This is an important omission as employee reactions should influence how effective talent programmes are and how they can be designed and evaluated. Consequently, the purpose of this paper is to explore the work-related attitudes of employees who are members and non-members of talent pools. Design/methodology/approach – Matched samples of employees working in a single public sector, scientific organization were surveyed using a standard survey and open questioning to elicit and compare the voices of included and excluded employees. Findings – Employees in talent pools were more positive about their future prospects than employees outside talent pools who reported feelings of lower support from the organization, stronger feelings of unfairness and had lower expectations of the organization’s interest in them. Research limitations/i...

Team Role Preference and Cognitive Styles A Convergent Validity Study

While exploring the relationships between the strength of an individual’s team roles and his or her cognitive styles, this study examines the convergent validity of the Team Role Self-Perception Inventory (TRSPI) with Kirton’s Adaption-Innovation Inventory (KAI). Data were obtained from two samples of 109 managers and 114 students. Results from students were compared to those obtained by Fisher, Macrosson, and Wong (1998) to explore differences arising from the use of Cattell, Eber, and Tatsuokas (1970) 16 Personality Factor Questionnaire (16PF) and the TRSPI. Data from managers were used to examine convergence between team role preferences and cognitive styles. The TRSPI showed convergent validity with Kirton’s cognitive styles. KAI subscale correlations were more coherent than those obtained by Fisher et al. probably due to misinterpretation of innovative and adaptive subscale scores. Cognitive style differences were found in the two samples. Future research and practical implications for team-building interventions and team performance are discussed.

Grand strategies and strategic actions in the pharmaceutical industry 2001–2002

Abstract This paper explores the strategic actions realised by firms in the pharmaceutical industry during 2001 and 2002. The purpose was to develop an empirically derived categorisation of strategic actions and grand strategies from the behaviour of firms that could be used as the basis of a methodological framework for developing understanding of strategic change. Qualitative analysis was used to identify and categorise strategic actions implemented by pharmaceutical firms. Twenty-three grand strategies were identified and are described. Implications for further research in strategy development are discussed.

The Cultural Evolution of Talent Management A Memetic Analysis

Using the concept of memes as cultural transmitters and replicators, this article explores the origins of a talent meme and the subsequent evolution of talent management (TM). The sociogenesis of TM is traced through historic developments in management thinking. The rise of individualism in the late 20th century created the conditions for the birth of TM, and the proliferation of the meme since birth is analyzed. The meme reproduces through its psychological appeal and the logic of itself, and the article uses an established approach to reveal cultural rather than rational explanations for TM. Five reasons for the attractiveness, survival, and replication of the talent meme in business organizations are identified. They are salience with business conditions, lack of a competing meme, ambiguity, complexity reduction, and enhanced control over a powerful group. Understanding more about the psychological attractors attached to the talent meme forms part of an expanded research agenda.

Longitudinal textual analysis: an innovative method for analysing how realised strategies evolve

Purpose – This paper aims to present an innovative methodological framework developed out of primary research that will lead to new understanding about patterns in the strategic actions realised by firms within an industry. The framework is to be applied to increase understanding of how realised strategies evolved in the pharmaceutical industry and overcomes some of the limitations of other methods.Design/methodology/approach – A qualitative approach was developed adapting techniques from text, thematic and content analysis to identify and categorise strategic actions realised by pharmaceutical firms (referred to as grand strategies). Strategic actions were not pre‐selected but allowed to emerge during the data collection process from public announcements by firms in the industrys main journal, Scrip. Building upon the work of Pearce and Robinson grand strategies can be understood as the packages of strategic actions that firms had planned and/or realised in order to achieve long‐term objectives.Findings...

Voluntary Turnover in the Omani Public Sector: An Islamic Values Perspective

Following four decades of economic growth the public sector, Oman is experiencing an emerging problem of labor turnover to the private sector. We examine this phenomenon through semi-structured interviews with 26 current and former public employees. The rate of turnover is low but this masks the impact of losses on key technical and management roles. The main reasons for turnover are dissatisfaction with management style, reward practices, and promotion opportunities. Findings are interpreted in the context of Islamic work values and implications for public management reform in Oman are provided.

Conceptualising and measuring defensive marketing orientation (DMO): some inaugural thoughts on assessing marketing's place in 'society's doghouse'

Many have suggested marketing should be at the heart of organisational decision making whilst, coincidentally, lamenting its continued failure to earn strategic sway. Blame is frequently applied to the organisation itself, implying that marketers are unfairly marginalised. For marketing to succeed, however, it must appear both credible and contemporary, yet there is substantive research suggesting, 1) marketings reputation is far from ideal and, 2) that practitioners remain tethered to traditional means of endeavour, often counter-productive in the context of newer, customer-focused, manifestos. Analysis of both marketing and psychology literatures reveals a lack of tools for determining marketer attitudes toward marketing orientation (MO) or post-MO concerns and, consequently, the commitment of the agent most critical to marketings aspirations is rarely tested. This paper makes a case for rectifying such discrepancy and, via critical reflection on recent measurement debates, suggests an inaugural perspective on how evaluation might be achieved. An agenda for further research is offered, too.