Sven Heidenreich

Leadership in the Context of Temporary Organizations: A Study on the Effects of Transactional and Transformational Leadership on Followers’ Commitment in Projects

This article follows the call for more empirical research on leadership in different organizational contexts. Organizations react to environmental dynamism and uncertainty by using temporary forms or organizing such as projects. This organizational context factor raises questions about the nature of effective leadership in temporary settings. Transactional leadership has been found to be particularly effective in settings without a shared history of leaders and followers. In turn, prior research indicates that transformational leadership succeeds in times of uncertainty, which is essential to temporary organizations. We extend the existing transactional and transformational leadership approaches by examining leadership in the context of the temporary organization. We empirically test for effects of transactional and transformational leadership in projects and find that both leadership behaviors positively influence the followers’ commitment. However, transformational leadership is more effective than transactional leadership. The effects of both leadership behaviors are amplified by increasing complexity of the project.

Adoption of technology-based services: the role of customers’ willingness to co-create

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to develop and empirically evaluate an adoption model for technology-based services (TBS) that integrates a customer’s willingness to co-create (WCC) as mediator complementing the well-known individual differences and innovation characteristics in predicting customer adoption of TBS. Design/methodology/approach – The manuscript uses structural equation modeling to analyze survey data from two empirical studies (n=781 and n=181). Findings – The empirical results show that WCC represents a key mediator between established antecedent predictors (innovation characteristics and individual differences) and the likelihood of TBS adoption. Additionally, the analysis reveals that WCC can even better explain and predict adoption intention of TBS than the commonly used individual differences and innovation characteristics. Finally, the results also suggest that a lack of customers’ WCC may help to explain persuasion-decision discrepancies within TBS adoption. Research limitatio...

THE WILLINGNESS OF A CUSTOMER TO CO-CREATE INNOVATIVE, TECHNOLOGY-BASED SERVICES: CONCEPTUALISATION AND MEASUREMENT

Customer co-creation is a phenomenon, whose relevance for innovative technology-based services (TBS) has been acknowledged both by scientific and management practice. However, empirical research on this topic is scarce. Above all others, the lack of a good metric for this construct to establish a common ground for empirical research has hampered progress to date. Thus, the purpose of this paper is to develop and test a construct measuring the willingness of a customer to engage in co-creation (hereafer, WCC) of innovative, TBS.This article provides a thorough literature review on customer co-creation, proposes a scale to measure the willingness to co-create (WCC) innovative, TBS and reports the results of a validation process using expert judges, an exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis. The results of our studies show that the scale has good psychometric properties and that its relationships with other constructs and consumer adoption behaviour conform to theoretical expectations.

Innovative Work Behaviour: The Impact of Comprehensive HR System Perceptions and the Role of Work--Life Conflict

Human resource (HR) systems have the potential to both foster innovative work behaviour (IWB) and reduce work–life conflict (WLC)—enabling employees to engage in IWB. We investigate the proposed relationships between comprehensive HR systems, WLC and IWB using variance-based structural equation modelling. We found that HR systems that are perceived as comprehensive significantly enhance IWB and decrease feelings of WLC. Contrary to our expectation, we found a significant yet positive effect of WLC on IWB. Employees may respond to WLC constructively by being innovative, improving their environment and making the work–life interface manageable. By promoting IWB, HR systems might also help employees to deal with residual—and, perhaps, unavoidable—levels of WLC.

The role of task-related antecedents for the development of turnover intentions in temporary project teams

Abstract High turnover can cause serious problems in organizations. Yet, previous research confirmed that HRM practices are useful to influence the development of turnover intentions. Existing studies have revealed a variety of factors that drive individuals to leave permanent organizations (POs) but almost no research has considered turnover in temporary organizations (TOs). Yet, TOs, such as project teams, have become increasingly prevalent and exhibit several characteristics that are distinct from POs. Hence, the antecedents of turnover intentions in TOs may also differ from those in POs. However, empirical evidence for this proposition is still lacking. In order to address this research gap, this study examines task-related antecedents of turnover intentions in temporary organizations (TITO) using a sample of 253 employees working in project teams. The results show that inter-role conflict is the most influential antecedent of TITO. Unlike suggested by extant literature, members of TOs seem to be willing to accept down-cuts in job autonomy and meaningfulness of their work, without developing turnover intentions while working for TOs. Furthermore, the results confirmed a direct relationship between TITO and turnover intentions from the permanent organization (TIPO). Members of TOs that want to, but cannot leave their project team seem to develop TIPO.

Customer delight: universal remedy or a double-edged sword?

Purpose Over the last years, the concept of customer delight has moved into the focus of attention. The necessity of surprise for achieving customer delight and the problem of increased customer expectation (spiral of expectations) have been controversially discussed in the literature. The purpose of the paper is therefore to investigate whether customer delight necessarily requires surprise and whether a misdirected delight strategy can backfire by creating disloyal customers. Design/methodology/approach This study employs a 2 (after-sales extra value: yes vs no)×2 (knowledge about the extra value: yes vs no) between-subject, scenario-based experiment (n=472) in a hotel environment and partial least squares structural equation modeling to analyze the data. Findings Study results show that surprise is not a necessary prerequisite for achieving customer delight, but its presence strengthens the delight experience for the customer, positively impacting customer loyalty intentions. Conversely, a surprising nonoccurrence of an expected delight measure causes anger, inducing negative word of mouth and reduced repurchase intentions. Practical implications To pursue a sustainable customer delight approach, companies should recognize that they do not need to surprise their customers on every occasion, but rather ensure that customers do not fall short of anticipated delightful events. Originality/value The current research strives to contribute to the theory and practice by shedding light on two so far not appropriately addressed research areas of customer delight: the necessity of surprise to evoke customer delight and the consequences of absent but expected delight measures.

Tarifwahl-Anomalien bei optionalen Mobilfunktarifen — Eine Analyse der Ursachen von Flatrate-Präferenz und Flatrate-Bias

ZusammenfassungEinige Studien zeigen, dass sich Konsumenten nicht immer für den günstigsten Vertragstarif entscheiden, sondern insbesondere Flatrates anderen Tarifen vorziehen. Damit unterliegen sie einem kognitiven Fehler, dem sogenannten „Flatrate-Bias“. Der vorliegende Beitrag will am Beispiel von Mobilfunktarifen die Existenz, Ursachen und Konsequenzen des Flatrate-Bias empirisch überprüfen. Die Ergebnisse verdeutlichen, dass bei der Wahl von Mobilfunktarifen fast 75% der Probanden einem Flatrate-Bias unterliegen, wobei ihr Rechnungsbetrag im Durchschnitt 35% höher liegt als im eigentlich günstigsten Tarif. Die Ursachen für einen Flatrate-Bias liegen in systematischen Abweichungen des individuellen vom optimalen Tarifwahlverhalten, sogenannten Tarifwahl-Anomalien. Neben motivations- und kognitionsbedingten A nomalien (Bequemlichkeits- und Überschätzungseffekt) kann erstmalig auch der Einfluss emotionsbedingter Anomalien (Flatrate-Präferenz) nachgewiesen werden. Überdies kann gezeigt werden, dass eine Flatrate-Präferenz durch die Bedürfnisse nach Entkopplung, Versicherung und Flexibilität motiviert ist. Auf diesen Erkenntnissen aufbauend können Implikationen für die Gestaltung und Kommunikation des Tarifangebots von Unternehmen sowie für den Verbraucherschutz abgeleitet werden.AbstractEmpirical studies provide evidence that many consumers prefer a flat-rate, even though their billing rate would be lower on a pay-per-use tariff. When it comes to tariff choices, some consumers thus seem to be subject to a cognitive error, a so-called “flat-rate bias”. Based on survey data, we analyze existence and causes of flat-rate biases in the German mobile telephony industry. The results indicate that about 75% of the 244 interviewed consumers are subject to a flat-rate bias with billing rates about 35% higher than in the cheapest tariff available. As potential causes of such bias, so-called tariff-choice anomalies, we find (1) motivational anomalies (“convenience effect”), (2) cognitional anomalies (“overestimation effect”), and, for the first time, (3) emotional anomalies (“flat-rate preference”) to drive flat-rate biases. We also investigate which factors cause flat-rate preferences and find consumers’ need for “insurance” and for “decoupling”, to be the main drivers, while the need for “flexibility” inhibits the preference for a flat-rate. Based on these findings, implications are derived for research, for management practice, and also for consumer protection policy.

IMPROVING INNOVATION CAPABILITIES BY COOPERATION: EXAMINING EFFECTS OF CORE NETWORK MANAGEMENT FUNCTIONS AND RELATIONAL MECHANISMS IN THE INDUSTRIAL GOODS SECTOR

For companies, cooperation represents a way to innovate more effectively. Within this respect, past literature stresses the importance of core network management functions and relational mechanisms for the effectiveness of interorganisational cooperation. However, it is still unclear whether and how core network management functions and relational mechanisms improve a firm’s innovation capability from interorganisational cooperation. Based on data of 154 industrial companies, the results from structural equation modelling provide evidence that core network management functions significantly enhance innovation capability improvement of individual firms by interorganisational cooperation. Furthermore, both formal and informal relational mechanisms partially mediate the impact of core network management functions on innovation capability improvement. With regard to informal relational mechanisms, companies should foster trust, guarantee equal power distribution and ascribe high importance to their cooperation. With regard to formal relational mechanisms, companies should provide organisational support to their cooperation, continuously share knowledge with their partners and also meet and communicate on regular basis.

FIRM INNOVATIVENESS — THE SUFFICIENT CONDITION FOR BUSINESS SUCCESS? EXAMINING ANTECEDENTS OF FIRM INNOVATIVENESS AND HOW IT AFFECTS BUSINESS SUCCESS

The continuous development and introduction of new products has been addressed by companies of all industries through continuously high investments to foster a firms ability to successfully develop and introduce innovations and new technologies (firm innovativeness). However, it still lacks empirical evidence about the direct antecedents of firm innovativeness and how this ability contributes to firm success. Moreover, previous literature often restricts the operationalisation of firm innovativeness to quantitative indicators, like the number of patents a company possesses, as its sole indicator. The present paper tries to close this gap by measuring effects of firm innovativeness on business success using a mixed measure of patent counts and patent citations thereby accounting for not only quantitative but also qualitative requirements. Furthermore our study is the first to determine the relative effect of R&D intensity and innovation experience as direct antecedents of firm innovativeness. We use secondary data from 246 Fortune 500 and S&P 500 to test our model. The model results show that our combined measure clearly captures firm innovativeness and represent a good predictor of business success. Moreover, our results point out that firm innovativeness is primarily influenced by R&D intensity. Also notably, our results confirm the often questioned statement that smaller firms are indeed better to translate innovativeness into business success.

Proud to Stay or Too Proud to Stay? How Pride in Personal Performance Develops and How It Affects Turnover Intentions

Although a considerable amount of research has been devoted to the formation of turnover intentions, the influence of pride in personal performance (PP), which is one of the most frequently felt workplace emotions, has been largely neglected. Employing a three-stage study design, this article explores how PP develops and how it affects turnover intentions among frontline employees. First, relying on affective events theory, a prestudy that employs a qualitative diary approach was performed to empirically identify work events that are the primary causes of PP. The prestudy was followed by Study 1, which applied a quantitative research design to determine which job characteristics promote these events. Finally, Study 2 utilized three-wave panel data of frontline employees to investigate the effects of PP on turnover intentions. The findings of the latter study confirm that PP triggers two processes that contrarily affect turnover intentions: (1) PP enhances job satisfaction, which decreases turnover intentions, and (2) PP increases self-efficacy, which enhances turnover intentions. However, further analyses reveal that the latter effect is not relevant for highly satisfied employees and that overall, increasing PP results in decreasing turnover intentions, suggesting that companies should foster PP to retain their frontline employees.