Toby Marshall Egan

Factors Influencing Individual Creativity in the Workplace: An Examination of Quantitative Empirical Research

Research on individual creativity within human resource development (HRD) has emerged as a body of research fairly recently. This article explores individual employee creativity by detailing identified roles of individual factors and external influences featured in HRD-related research utilizing a quantitative empirical methodology. Research examining the effect of general personality characteristics, self-perception, goal setting, feedback, leadership, role modeling, and other factors associated with individual creativity are detailed. Recommended future directions regarding research on employee creativity with particular focus on HRD-related issues are described.

Creativity in the Context of Team Diversity: Team Leader Perspectives

In spite of demands for teaming and creative outputs in organizations and for increasing workforce diversity overall, to date researchers have only scratched the surface regarding team creativity and appear to have ignored the role of diversity altogether. Fortune 500 team leaders identified as both successful in leading creative teams and who identify team diversity as important to their successes were interviewed for this study. In addition to several other key elements, team leaders credited a mix of employees with different characteristics as a key reason for team development of creative outputs directly impacting organizational success. Study findings are discussed and compared to related research. Recommendations for further study are provided.

Action Learning Research: A Systematic Review and Conceptual Framework

Despite considerable interest in action learning, no systematic investigation of action learning literature has been reported. Two purposes of this study are (a) to systematically access and examine recent empirical studies on action learning and related themes using Garrard’s Matrix Method for reviewing literature (the review of the literature covered an 8-year period from 2000 to 2007; 50 studies have been selected based on the search criteria) and (b) based on Revans’s proposition regarding the need for a conceptual and practical balance between action and learning, to categorize empirical studies into action-oriented, learning-oriented, and balanced action learning. Studies selected from the systematic literature review process are highlighted, and Revans’s balance issue and the quality of select studies are discussed. A conceptual framework for the future studies of action learning, key concluding themes, and the limitations of the study are also articulated.

The Impact of Learning Goal Orientation Similarity on Formal Mentoring Relationship Outcomes

The problem and the solution. Protégé-mentor pairs were examined regarding the impact of the similarity of their learning goal orientation (LGO) on mentoring support provided and protégé outcomes. In this study, 143 protégé-mentor pairs who articipated in a formal mentoring program in a large health care organization were the respondents. Results supported Ragins’s theory that pair homogeneity may influence support and outcomes for the protégé. Protégé-mentor pairs sharing high LGO were reported to have higher levels of idealized influence, managerial aspirations, and commitment to achieving goals than protégé-mentor dyads who had low or dissimilar levels of LGO. Implications for human resource development research and practice are discussed.

Career Development: Load-Bearing Wall or Window Dressing? Exploring Definitions, Theories, and Prospects for HRD-Related Theory Building

Career development (CD) has long been cited as a core area associated with human resource development (HRD). Despite this explicit connection, few publications focusing on CD are available in general HRD-related literature. This review outlines selected theories, examines selected definitions of CD, and analyzes the aims of career development in relation to HRD. The authors argue that there is much more opportunity to explore CD as a necessary component of HRD than has been undertaken to date. Furthermore, they make recommendations for multilevel integration and related theory-building approaches that may enhance the role of CD in HRD.

Does our literature support sectors newer to project management? The search for quality publications relevant to nontraditional industries

Despite the broadening use of systematic approaches to project management, the majority of related literature is focused on a handful of industries–construction, engineering, government, information technology, and utilities– that have, until recently, been the traditional areas for project management. Currently, the nontraditional project management areas include banking, pharmaceuticals, consulting, advertising, legal, health care, safety, and non-traditional manufacturing and industrial sectors (Kerzner, 2001). In recognition of growth, scholars and practitioners have begun to include viewpoints generalized across the field as well as perspectives from specific industries. We report on the findings from a systematic review of project management literature.

The State of the Art of Action Learning Research

Action learning founder Reginald Revans emphasized the importance of striking the right balance between action and learning during the action learning process. In this article, the authors outlined key themes and patterns identified across studies based on Cho and Egan’s (2009) systematic literature review of action learning research. The article includes two major sections: (a) current state of action learning focusing on the issue of balance and (b) future directions in action learning research in line with research methods and theoretical frameworks. Addressing the need for balance between action and learning through a discussion of the current state and the quality of action learning research provides an informative picture regarding the manner in which action learning is being framed by scholars and in practice.

Establishing a Formal Cross-Cultural Mentoring Organization and Program: A Case Study of International Student Mentor Association in a Higher Education Context.

Purpose – The aim of this paper is to offer potential insight regarding formal cross‐cultural mentoring organization and program development in higher education contexts and beyond, by elaborating regarding the founding and programmatic efforts of an International Student Mentor Association (ISMA) at a large university in North America.Design/methodology/approach – The research approach used was an exploratory case study. Data were collected from various secondary sources. As ex‐post factor reporting, data analysis was also based on memory and experiences recalled by the first author – one of the ISMA founding members.Findings – ISMA was distinctive in employing cross‐cultural mentoring. International, cultural components were embedded in the overall organization structure, board and team designs, paired mentor system, mentor and protege matching, training content, and multilevel mentoring activities. Organization and program flow charts were identified.Research limitations/implications – Future research ...

Inspecting the Hierarchy of Life Roles A Systematic Review of Role Salience Literature

Role salience is a reflection of the importance and value that people attribute to the roles central to their lives and identities. One pivotal aspect of role salience is individual responsibilities to organizational roles. Role salience has meaningful implications for employees and organizations. Understanding and acknowledging the importance of holistic treatment of role salience has the potential to affect organizational policies, HRD practices, and, ultimately, employee learning and performance. In this study, findings from a systematic review of the role salience literature are reported. Following a search of four Human Resource Development (HRD) journals, the PsycINFO database, and the Academic Search Complete database, 67 articles and papers were identified for inclusion in the literature review. The authors argue that role salience research has implications for HRD professionals; however, role salience has largely been ignored in the HRD literature. The authors speculate on why role salience has not been common in HRD literature and ways in which role salience perspectives and related applications can benefit HRD, organizations, and individuals.

Three Approaches to Multilevel Theory Building

Human resource development (HRD) is a dynamic field requiring multilevel considerations in the use and development of theory and theory-building approaches. Despite considerable support in HRD literature for systems and multilevel perspectives, commonly featured general theory-building models do not overtly include or integrate related considerations. It is has been argued by scholars that failures to address inherent levels across HRD have led to reductionism and a micro—macro divide that is, in the long run, an ineffective dichotomy leading to a focus on either large system or individual issues in HRD. Theorizing holistically about multiple levels concurrently has been advocated by HRD scholars as a realistic approach to the naturalistic work environment. Three multilevel theory-building frameworks are introduced, explored, and critiqued as important developments for HRD. Recommendations for advancing HRD theory building based on the aforementioned multilevel theory-building examination are outlined.