Journal of Management and Research

Influence Of Spiritual Leadership on Green Behavior: The Mediating Role of Green HRM and the Moderating Role of Individual Green Values

Sonia Hassan — 2023-12-31

Given the importance of fostering green behavior among employees in multinational corporations (MNCs), the current study aimed to determine how spiritual leadership influences employees' in-role and out-of-role green behavior. The data was gathered from MBA executives’ programs with at least one year's experience working in the pharmaceutical industry. The sample size was 658 and PLS-SEM software was selected to perform the analysis. According to the findings, MNCs may develop in-role and extra-role green habits with the support of spiritual leadership and adopting green Human Resource Management (HRM) practices. Additionally, this relationship may be restrained by individual green values. Organizations can encourage to promote a culture of environmental sustainability by utilizing green HRM techniques, fostering spiritual leadership, and inspiring people to adopt green behavior through training programs and eco-friendly policies and practices. The results further emphasized that how crucial it is to include spiritual leadership in the creation and application of HRM practices. By doing this, companies may encourage a culture of sustainability and green behavior among their staff which can enhance both organizational performance and social responsibility. The current study added to the body of knowledge by providing new reasons to determine the relationship between spiritual leadership and staff members’ environmentally friendly behaviors (both inside and outside the workplace). Due to environmental concerns, the corporate sector now has a larger role in protecting the environment.

Role of Government in Making Entrepreneurial Ecosystem Conducive in Pakistan: Case of Emerging Businesses

Urooj Qamar — 2023-12-31

Entrepreneurship is strongly linked with prosperity, economic development, and wellbeing of a country. The current study attempted to fill this gap and intended to empirically assess the phenomenon of entrepreneurship in Pakistan as well. This process was carried out by analyzing the local context of Pakistan and the role of government according to the standpoint of entrepreneurs. The current study attempted to determine the entrepreneurial situation as experienced by the entrepreneurs in order to understand as to why the culture of entrepreneurship has not been developed in Pakistan in spite of self-employment arrangements introduced by numerous government regimes. For this purpose, a qualitative research strategy was employed to explore this phenomenon. Moreover, about 65 in-depth semi-structured interviews were conducted based on the experiences of the entrepreneurs with government in their entrepreneurial journey. The majority of the entrepreneurs revealed either a total ignorance or undeniable distrust in the government schemes. The entrepreneurs complained of bureaucratic bottlenecks, delays in responses, corrupt culture, and lack of support by government. The results also showed an indication of ‘informal entrepreneurship’ in Pakistan which connotes that businesses prefer to remain unregistered and non-documented by keeping their financial transactions undeclared in order to escape labor law and tax regulations. This, according to the participants of the current study, is considered fundamental by business owners due to tough and complex regulatory procedures for their new businesses. Moreover, it is also further intensified by the unhelping behavior of the pertinent government institutes and their demand of “illegal gratifications” in lieu of offering any service.

Sense-Making of Governance and Institutional Responses to Covid-19 Pandemic in the Context of Pakistan and Afghanistan

Abid Momand — 2023-12-31

The Covid-19 pandemic has had a profound impact on various aspects of the global community as an atypical disaster. Pakistan and Afghanistan, members of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC), also suffered significant consequences. The current study is based on the sense-making research strategy in which the early response strategies of Pakistan and Afghanistan towards Covid-19 pandemic were determined and compared. The current analysis relies on secondary data gathered from diverse sources. For instance, academic research studies, official government reports, credible statistical websites, emergency plans, and information provided by globally recognized organizations, such as World Health Organization (WHO), United Nations Development Program (UNDP), and International Monetary Fund (IMF). The data was rigorously scrutinized through a comparative analysis of institutional and governance responses of prominent actors in both countries. The two nations of Pakistan and Afghanistan share several commonalities, yet their demographic and political nuances set them apart from one another. Notwithstanding the existing political, economic, and healthcare challenges, the initial responses of the two countries to the Covid-19 pandemic were comparatively favorable, as indicated by the research findings. Despite facing several obstacles, Pakistan, as a developing and burgeoning nation, mounted a relatively effective response to the crisis as compared to Afghanistan. However, Afghanistan's fight against Covid-19 pandemic also proved to be effective owing to the support of international organizations and the community.

The Lean Practices, Lean Culture, and the Industry 4.0 Implementation Process: Mediating Role of Green Practices in Pakistan’s Manufacturing Industry

Mohsin Ali — 2023-12-31

This research aims to determine the effectiveness of lean practices and culture on the Industry 4.0 implementation. This aim is achieved in the context of Pakistan’s manufacturing industry keeping in view the mediating role of green practices. This is a quantitative study, positivism was used. The data was collected from 256 management-level professionals working in the manufacturing industry of Pakistan. Smart PLS was used for data analysis. Besides running structural and measurement models, some other advanced techniques namely Importance-Performance Map Analysis (IMPA) and PLS Predict were also utilized. The results revealed that lean practices and culture have a significant and positive effect on Industry 4.0 implementation in Pakistan’s manufacturing industry. Furthermore, green practices significantly moderate their effects. However, job experience has an insignificant role in this relationship. By implementing Industry 4.0 in the manufacturing sector, costs can be reduced and international competition can be met. Moreover, the current study revalidates the resource-based theory. The findings can be utilized by the manufacturing industry to implement Industry 4.0, successfully. The significance of lean practices and lean culture is well-established. This research would be helpful in strategic planning and decision-making for managers working in the manufacturing industry of Pakistan.

Analysis of Higher Education Reforms in Pakistan: A Public Management Perspective

Hudda Riaz — 2023-12-31

The current study aimed to analyze higher education reforms in Pakistan from the perspective of public management approaches, traditional public administration, NPM, network governance, and new Weberian. Moreover, the study analyzed higher education reforms to situate and locate them in the context of wider international public management imperatives that have given rise to them. Additionally, the current study argued that higher education reforms in Pakistan have been intricately linked with the increasing globalization of the world which is also a cause of decrease in state autonomy. Multiple case study approach was employed to conduct the current study. The data was collected through semi-structured interviews with designated stakeholders of the reform process. Six universities and HEC head office were selected to collect the data. Document analysis and member checks were also used to triangulate the data collected through semi-structured interviews. After the data analysis, findings revealed the complexity of higher education reform process in Pakistan due to the presence of a hybrid structure of public administration paradigms. In a nutshell, the current research employed a public management investigative approach to study higher education reforms pertaining to their goals, design, instruments, implementation, evaluation, and outcomes in terms of strength and weaknesses in higher education in Pakistan.

Factors Enabling the Measurement of Return on Investment (ROI) for Academic Staff Training in South African Public Universities

Ronny Shibiti — 2023-12-31

Institutions spend billions of rands in providing staff with training and development interventions to prepare them to meet the demands of the current dynamic environment. However, executives and other stakeholders demand value from all investments. The increasing pressure from top management to rationalise the costs and benefits of training investments led to the measurement of Return on Investment (ROI). However, measuring the economic value of human capital development is challenging as compared to measuring overall business profitability and performance. This study aims to investigate the factors that enable the measurement of ROI for academic staff training in South African public universities. The study/methodology was qualitative and the philosophical approach of interpretivism was adopted. A multi-case study design was used and 14 participants were purposively selected. The cases were comprehensive universities, traditional universities, universities of technology, and government institutions responsible for funding academic staff in South African public universities. Interviews were conducted and the data was analysed through thematic analysis. The findings revealed that the enablers for measuring ROI for academic staff training included accountability, holistic approach to Human Resource Development (HRD), institutional systems, willingness to conduct ROI, and HRD policy that is explicit on ROI.

The study was qualitative and an interpretivism philosophical approach was adopted. A multi-case study design was used and 14 participants were purposively selected. The cases were comprehensive universities, traditional universities, universities of technology and government institutions responsible for funding academic staff in the South African public universities’ context. Interviews were conducted and the data was analysed through thematic analysis. The findings revealed that the enablers for measuring ROI for academic staff training included accountability, holistic approach to human resource development (HRD), institutional systems, willingness to conduct ROI and HRD policy that is explicit on ROI. The article contributed to the body of knowledge and practice by emphasising the enablers of the measurement of ROI, and providing recommendations for future studies and practice.

Characterizing Circular Supply Chain Practices in Industry 5.0 With Respect to Sustainable Manufacturing Operations

Abdul Sami — 2023-06-27

The current research investigated the significance of circular supply chain practices in Industry 5.0 with respect to their sustainable manufacturing operations. Through a comprehensive review of the literature, the current study identified key circular supply chain practices and their potential benefits for Industry 5.0. The findings indicated that closed-loop supply chains, sustainable sourcing, product design for circularity, and waste reduction may assist Industry 5.0 firms to achieve their sustainability objectives while enhancing the operational efficiency. Moreover, the study also highlighted the challenges associated with the implementation of circular supply chain practices including the necessity for collaboration among supply chain partners, investment in new technologies and infrastructure, and the development of new skills and capabilities. From a practical and managerial perspective, the implications suggest that firms aiming to adopt circular supply chain practices in Industry 5.0 should prioritize collaboration and coordination, make investments in new technologies and infrastructure, and foster the acquisition of new skills and capabilities. To complement this research, future studies could employ empirical research methods in order to validate the findings and recommendations as well as explore potential barriers to the implementation of circular supply chain practices in Industry 5.0.

Role of Customer Participation in Technology Innovation in Higher Education Institutions (HEIs): A Qualitative Study on Value Co-Creation and Co-Destruction

Muhammad Yasir Amjad — 2023-06-27

Bringing innovation to organizations is not only considered to be a growth strategy but also a way to survive in the current technological era. Technological innovation involves customer participation and engagement
for value co-creation and co-destruction, which raises new challenges in theory and practice. It becomes more challenging in the service industry, specifically the education sector. Limited literature is available regarding
different roles played by the participating customers during technology innovation. Therefore, an empirical study was needed to explore the role(s) of customer participation in the entire process of co-creation, the drivers for customers’ positive engagement, and the reasons behind the negative engagement of customers while participating in technology innovation process. The negative engagement of the customers not only hinders the success of the co-creation process, rather it also causes co-destruction from multiple aspects. The current study followed the qualitative method to explore the phenomenon of value co-creation and co-destruction. In order to perform this task, semi-structured in-depth interviews were conducted with the representatives of Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) firms and Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) of Pakistan. The collected qualitative data was sorted in Nvivo 13 and thematic analysis was
performed. The study concluded with the identification of multiple roles/dimensions of customer participation to foster or hinder the cocreation process. The major beneficiaries of the study include ICT firms and HEIs which need to re-assess their business processes. The study also contributes to the evolving theory of value co creation, while engaging the actors (customers).

Impact of Workplace Violence on Sustainable Performance of Nurses with the Mediation of Social Well-being in the Pakistani Context

Sakina Bashir — 2023-06-27

The current study investigated the impact of the predictors of workplace violence (harassment, physical violence, stalking, and ostracism) on sustainable work performance with mediating the role of social well-being of Pakistani nurses considering the ‘hierarchy of need’ theory. A survey method was used to conduct the current study. The data was collected from 400 respondents of four nursing teaching colleges, affiliated with hospitals of Lahore, Pakistan. The data was analyzed in Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) and Smart Partial Least Square (PLS) software using structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) technique. The results revealed a negative influence of workplace violence on the performance of nurses. Moreover, it tends to dissatisfy their safety and social needs, the most important human needs according to Maslow’s theory. Since Maslow’s time, researchers continued to explore how safety and social needs impact the well-being of nurses. Social well-being is related to better physical, mental, and social health and conversely, feeling isolated (unmet safety and social need) bears negative consequences for health and well-being. Eventually, it became the reason for low performance. The findings confirmed that workplace violence is the strong predictor of sustainable performance. Whereas, nurse’s social well-being mediates the relationship between the predictors (workplace violence) and the outcome variable (performance). Therefore, the study concluded that when safety and social needs are fulfilled, nurses perform their duties enthusiastically. This is the first endeavor to use the “hierarchy of need” theory in order to mediate the effect of violence, performance, and social well-being of nurses. Therefore, the current study served as a baseline for further research in this area. The findings helped the higher authorities and hospitals’ management to devise such policies which help nurses towards organizational growth and sustainable work environment.

Examining the Relationship between Relational e-HRM and Organizational Performance: A Study of the Banks of Lahore during the COVID-19 Pandemic

Muhammad Zeeshan Hanif — 2023-06-27

The current study empirically investigated the implementation of relational e-HRM practices in banks and examined their relationship with the overall organizational performance of the banks in Lahore during COVID-19 pandemic. It also highlighted the issues that managers face during the implementation of relational e-HRM practices. The mixed method approach was adopted to conduct this cross-sectional study. Commercial banks with their head offices in Lahore were chosen and 171 branches were selected randomly. The purposive sampling technique was used to collect qualitative data and semi-structured interviews of sixteen (16) branch managers were carried out online. Qualitative data was analyzed thematically while covariance-based structural equation modeling (CB-SEM) was used to understand the effect of e-HRM practices on organizational performance. Most of the banks were found to have implemented all the relational e-HRM practices except e-selection which was implemented only in two branches. Relational e-HRM practices showed a positive effect on the overall performance of banks during COVID-19 pandemic. Centralized decision- making, limited autonomy of bank branches, presence of senior, computer illiterate employees, and inadequate financial resources were found to obstruct the implementation of e-HRM practices. The current research added to the e-HRM literature and examined the association between relational e-HRM practices and overall organizational performance in the context of banks operating in Lahore which apparently was never done before. Only the top commercial banks operating in Lahore, one of the largest metropolitans in Pakistan, were included in this study. The generalizability of findings may be enhanced with further studies.