Yaw A. Debrah

Abusive Supervision and Contextual Performance: The Mediating Role of Emotional Exhaustion and the Moderating Role of Work Unit Structure

This study examined the processes linking abusive supervision to employee contextual performance by focusing on the mediating influence of emotional exhaustion and the moderating influence of work unit structure. Data were obtained from 285 subordinate–supervisor dyads from three manufacturing companies in north-eastern China. The results revealed that: (i) emotional exhaustion mediated the relationships between abusive supervision and the contextual performance dimensions of interpersonal facilitation and job dedication; and (ii) work unit structure moderated these relationships such that the relationships were stronger in mechanistic than in organic work unit structures.

Rethinking comparative and cross national human resource management research

This article first briefly highlights the rapid development of the human resource management (HRM) discipline and the need for more cross-national HRM studies. The universal applicability of Anglo-Saxon models of HRM is then questioned. To examine the applicability of HRM models in different settings (national and international), five main HRM models are critically analysed and their main research propositions are identified. This provides the basis for a framework for HRM evaluations in different contexts. Based on such a framework and developments in the literature, finally, a contextual model is proposed for conducting cross-national and comparative HRM studies. The paper also indicates some related directions for future research.

Promoting the informal sector as a source of gainful employment in developing countries: insights from Ghana

Although the informal sector continues to be the main source of employment in developing countries, little empirical research has been conducted into the human resource management (HRM) issues surrounding this sector in sub-Saharan Africa. Against this background, this study seeks to highlight the HRM issues, such as training and employment strategy, which are assuming increasing importance in the informal sector in developing countries. After reviewing the marginalist and structuralist debates on the informal sector, the paper looks at the Ghanaian governments attempt to transform the sector into a source of national economic development, entrepreneurship and self-employment. As part of this examination, the paper explores the question of whether the governments strategies can provide jobs for all who need them. Based on the evidence of the empirical research, the paper argues that although the current Ghanaian governments informal employment strategy is a product of political expediency and, therefore, prone to pitfalls, it nevertheless constitutes a worthwhile attempt to combat unemployment in the long term. The paper also contends that in environments of perpetual economic crisis, which undermine the ability of sub-Saharan African (SSA) governments to generate adequate growth, it makes good socio-economic sense to promote the informal sector as a significant source of employment. The governments strategy should, therefore, be seen as an attempt to help the informal sector generate a level of employment above the marginal and survival. In this respect, the Ghanaian experience provides useful lessons for other SSA countries grappling with similar unemployment problems.

The Protracted Collapse of Ghana Airways: Lessons in Organizational Failure

Although the importance of organizational failure has fostered a steady stream of research, a review of the literature suggests that the majority of studies have focused on firms in the private sector and in developed economies. Despite the increasing occurrence of state-owned firms failing in many developing countries, empirical research on this issue remains scant. Using an in-depth case study of Ghana Airways, this article examines the causes of failure of state-owned organizations in developing countries. This study revealed that, in addition to external factors such as liberalization, frequent changes of the top management team and the decision makers’ characteristics contributed significantly to the firm’s demise. The theoretical, managerial, and policy implications of these findings are discussed.

Human Resource Development in the Sultanate of Oman

This study explores the scenario of human resource development (HRD) in the Sultanate of Oman. The investigation was conducted with the help of a questionnaire survey in stateowned enterprises (SOEs). The research findings highlight an increased emphasis on HRD initiatives at a national level in Omani firms. There is a significant degree of awareness among the top managers regarding the benefits of a strategic approach to HRD. Despite all this, the implementation of HRD programmes has not been particularly successful. This is because the state has not been able to develop the skills and competencies of the Omani workforce to the levels required under the sixth national five–year plan. The article makes a number of recommendations in this regard. It also highlights key research areas for further examination.

Human resource development of professionals in an emerging economy: the case of the Tanzanian construction industry

The issues pertaining to human resource development (HRD) of professionals1 in emerging/developing economies have not received sufficient attention in the literature. This is in spite of the strategic importance of the role of competent professionals in economic development. Using the construction industry in Tanzania as a case study, this study provides a review of the extent of the neglect of HRD for professionals in emerging/developing economies and what needs to be done to address the problem. In particular, it explores why there is no systematic integrated industry-wide training programme for professionals in the industry. It reveals that the existing programmes are fragmented and lack overall strategy and continuity, coordination and sustainable funding. The lack of sustainable funding is identified as the main obstacle to both the creation and sustainability of a training programme for professionals. To overcome this problem, the study suggests the establishment of an industry-specific training levy for professionals. But it warns that in an emerging/developing country environment there is the need to ensure that both the training programme and the administration of finance are not derailed by bureaucratic bottlenecks and other constraints, such as corruption. This study is of both organization and public policy relevance and, in additions, attempts to fill the gap (indicated above) in the HRD literature.

Flexibility, labour subcontracting and HRM in the construction industry in Singapore: can the system be refined?

Labour subcontracting is an important labour-use strategy in the construction industry. In their search for labour-market flexibility, employers in the construction industry in Singapore rely exten...

Emerging managerial competencies of professionals in the Tanzanian construction industry

The managerial competencies required by professionals in the construction industry in Tanzania to operate effectively in a business environment which is changing as a result of a transition from a socialist to a free-enterprise economy, economic liberalization, globalization and regionalization are explored through a qualitative study. The study reveals that local Tanzanian construction firms are finding it difficult to compete with foreign companies for projects. This is mainly because Tanzanian professionals lack the competencies required to compete and manage projects in a liberalized market economy. The study thus highlights the need for Tanzanian construction professionals to acquire a better grasp of both occupational and organizational competencies. In this respect, it is suggested that they need post-experience training in order to acquire the competencies required to function successfully in a commercial environment.

Skills for managing human resources in a complex environment: the perceptions of human resource managers in Singapore

This paper analyses some of the difficulties that human resource (HR) managers have in responding to problems of labour turnover and labour shortages.It provides a brief overview of the complex environments in which Singaporean HR managers operate. This paper suggests that, when the roles of management and personnel are ambiguous or when there is tremendous change, line managers and executives take over some of the functions of HR managers, a practice which is seen as a problem for HR managers. However, content analysis of interviews with HR managers shows that this encroachment becomes a problem only when the HR managers lack the skills necessary to perform their duties competently. Thus, it is suggested that HR managers should adopt an HRM approach which focuses on roles and skills necessary to manage ambiguity. In this respect, a more inclusive model should involve roles such as: reconciliation, recruitment and retention, employee relations, planning and internal management.

Subcontracting, Foreign Workers and Job Safety in the Singapore Construction Industry

The increasing use of contract, temporary and other peripheral workers in advanced industrialized countries has revived research interest in labour subcontracting. Arguably, the rise in labour subcontracting reflects firms’ flexible response to short-term problems and recent changes in their environment. While such a flexibility strategy may be true of many industrial sectors, the construction industry in most countries has always relied on labour-only subcontracting as a permanent employment strategy owing to its peculiar nature. This peculiarity is described in terms of the construction product. In contrast with that of many other industrial sectors, the construction product is immobile, dispersed geographically, and varies in size and composition (Hillebrandt, 1984; Rose, 1992). These unique features of the construction industry have precipitated reliance on a mobile workforce, as firms set up a series of temporary organizations at the point of consumption (Druker and White, 1995). It is argued that the use of a temporary workforce provides the best advantage to firms and, hence, the persistence of labour subcontracting in the industry (Bresnen et al., 1985; Beardsworth et al., 1988). In spite of the well-touted advantages of subcontracting, excessive reliance on this strategy creates difficulties for both employers and employees; the main problems for employers being: (a) declining standards of quality and (b) falling productivity levels. Moreover, the work of subcontractors’ workers is difficult to coordinate, supervise and monitor as they have a temporary and insecure relationship with the firm (Heery and Salmon, 1997). In addition, subcontracting has adverse effects on workers’ wages, working conditions, bargaining and union representation (Stanworth and Stanworth 1995; Underhill and Kelly, 1993; Austrin, 1980). While research has been conducted on many aspects of the effects on employees of subcontracting, there appears to be very little work on the links between labour subcontracting and health and safety in the workplace (Daykin, 1997). But, as Mayhew and Quinlan (1997) have noted, there is some evidence, albeit anecdotal, linking subcontracting to a higher incidence of accidents in the workplace. Thus, subcontracting appears to have some adverse effect on employees’ health and safety (Salminen, 1995).