Employee benefits : effect of bankruptcy on retiree health benefits : report to the Honorable William J. Coyne, House of Representatives /

"B-233532"--P. 1.

Abordagem multimetodológica do impacto da mentoria e relações de ajuda no processo informal de employee branding: o efeito de marca de empregado

O processo de employee branding tem demonstrado promover e reforçar o contrato psicológico entre os colaboradores e a organização, pelo incremento e potenciação do sentimento de comprometimento e lealdade do colaborador de acordo com Miles e Mangold. Esta investigação foca-se no estudo do impacto da mentoria e relações de ajuda no processo de employee branding, numa visão integrada da gestão de recursos humanos e do comportamento organizacional, com base nas relações de troca do marketing do relacionamento numa perspetiva da gestão por competências e foco nas Pessoas. Com a introdução da nova variável (mentoria e relações de ajuda) esta investigação, ao enriquecer e incrementar o processo de employee branding de Miles e Mangold proposto em 2004 e 2005, apresenta a construção de um instrumento de diagnóstico do inovador processo de Efeito de Marca de Empregado. A investigação decorreu em 30 organizações, com um total de 725 questionários, que permitiu a validação e fiabilidade do instrumento, bem como demonstra através de métodos estatísticos a influência das ações de mentoria e relações de ajuda e da atuação das relações interpessoais que promovem o processo employee branding. Se o processo de employee branding já incrementava os resultados organizacionais, com esta investigação, pode-se afirmar que o processo de Efeito de Marca de Empregado não só incrementa como também impulsiona a imagem de marca da organização pela atuação dinâmica e catalisadora das relações interpessoais dos seus colaboradores, dentro e fora da organização, com a introdução e promoção de ações mentoria e relações de ajuda entre chefias e chefiados; ABSTRACT: The employee branding process has shown as to promote and strengthen the psychological contract between employees and the organization, by increasing and maximizing the sense of employees’ commitment and loyalty, according with Miles and Mangold. This research focuses on the impact of mentoring and helping relationships in the employee branding process, in an integrated view of human resources management and organizational behavior, based on the exchange ratio of the relationship marketing in a perspective of management by competencies and people focused approach. With the introduction of the new variable (mentoring and helping relationships), this research enriches and enhances the Miles and Mangold employee branding process proposed in 2004 and 2005 and presents the construction of an diagnostic instrument for the innovative process of Employee Brand Effect. This research took place in 30 organizations with a total of 725 questionnaires, which allowed the validation and reliability of the instrument and the evidence through statistical methods of the influence of mentoring and helping relationships actions and of the interaction of interpersonal relationships promoting the employee branding process. If the employee branding process was already boosting organizational results with this research, it can be stated that the Employee Brand Effect process not only increases, but also boosts the organization’s brand image by the actuation of the dynamics of employees’ interpersonal relationships, inside and outside the organization, with the introduction and promotion of mentoring and helping relationships actions between leaders and followers.

Influence of employee volunteering on brand commitment

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to explore the impact of corporate volunteering on employee bonding and to understand the barriers and motivation to participation in these events. In contrast to other studies the participants volunteer in their spare time without expecting any financial reward. Design/methodology/approach – Employees (n 3951) of a logistic company participated in the study based on an online questionnaire with 6 items and open questions. The employee sample was divided into 3 groups depending on the frequency of participation in volunteering events. Findings – Significant differences were found on bonding between the three groups. In addition, the relevance of control variables like gender, age and job level were obtained. Furthermore a moderation effect of motivation was found. The results were interpreted within the broader context that ties motivation theory, organizational identification and social exchange theory.

The central role of communication in developing trust and its effect on employee involvement

Communication plays an important role in the development of trust within an organization. While a number of researchers have studied the relationship of trust and communication, little is known about the specific linkages among quality of information, quantity of information, openness, trust, and outcomes such as employee involvement. This study tests these relationships using communication audit data from 218 employees in the oil industry. Using mediation analysis and structural equation modeling, we found that quality of information predicted trust of one's coworkers and supervisors while adequacy of information predicted one's trust of top management. Trust of coworkers, supervisors, and top management influenced perceptions of organizational openness, which in turn influenced employees' ratings of their own level of involvement in the organization's goals. This study suggests that the relationship between communication and trust is complex, and that simple strategies focusing on either quality or quantity of information may be ineffective for dealing with all members in an organization.

The effect of brand extensions on parent-brand relationship quality

A recognized brand name that provides a competitive advantage is considered one of a firm’s most valuable assets. Many firms have benefitted from their well-established brand name by adopting the strategy of brand extension (Aaker and Keller, 1990). Many academic studies have examined the methods used to introduce successful brand extensions, and analysed how consumers evaluate the brand extensions (Aaker and Keller, 1990; Barone, 2005; Bath, 1997; Bottomley and Holden, 2001; Edelman, 2003; Fedorikhin, Park and Thomson, 2008; Kwun, 2004; Lockhart and Ford, 2005). Some researchers have suggested that brand extension strategies may carry the risk of diluting important consumer trust in the parent brand (Martinez and Pina, 2003; C. W. Park, Milberg and Lawson, 1991). Furthermore, some studies have focused on the role of the parent brand in brand extensions (Apostolopoulou, 2002; Bath, 1997; Bhat and Reddy, 2001; Yeung and Wyer Jr, 2005). Brand extensions may have a positive or a negative influence on the parent brand, so it is important to understand the specific impact on dimensions such as brand image, brand awareness, and customer-brand relationships. This study will carry investigate the effects of brand extensions on the relationships customers have with the parent brand.

The effect of video game placements on brand attitude

This study explores the effects of use-simulated and peripheral placements in video games on attitude to the brand. Results indicate that placements do not lead to enhanced brand attitude, even when controlling for involvement and skill. It appears this is due to constraints on brand information processing in a game context.

Predicting employee intentions to support organizational change : an examination of identification processes during a re-brand

This study examined if organizational identification can account for the mechanisms by which two-change management practices (communication and participation) influence employees’ intentions to support change. The context was a sample of 82 hotel employees in the early stages of a re-brand. Identification with the new hotel fully mediated the relationship between communication and adaptive and proactive intentions to support change, as well as between participation and proactive intentions.

The effect of firm-level contracts on the structure of wages: evidence from matched employer-employee data

Revised: 2006-11

‘The Pinocchio Effect’ – when managing the brand creation process, across cultures

In global marketing and international management, the fields of Branding and Culture are well discussed as separate disciplines; within both academia and industry. However, there appears to be limited supporting literature, examining brands and culture as a collective discipline. In addition, environmental factors such as ethnicity, nationality and religion are also seen to play a significant role. This in itself adds to the challenges encountered, by those looking to critically apply learning and frameworks, to any information gathered. In the first instance, this paper tries to bring aspects together from Branding and Culture and in doing so, aims to find linkages between the two. The main purpose of this paper is to distil current brand thinking and explore what impact cross-cultural, cross-national, and ethnic interactions have on a brand’s creation. The position of the authors is that without further understanding in this field, a brand will experience what has been termed by them as the ‘Pinocchio Effect’. Pinocchio was a puppet who longed to become a real human being; but sadly encountered difficulties. The conclusion presented is that the critical long-term success of a brand lies in three areas: how it is created; the subsequent associated perceptions; and more specifically in the reality of the relationships that it enjoys. Collectively these processes necessitate an appraisal of connecting strategic management procedures and thinking. Finally, this paper looks into proposing future methods for brand evaluation and strategic management. The aim is to stimulate further thinking in a field; which transcends national, ethnic and cultural boundaries - in the interests of developing new insight, and to provide a platform for marketers to develop more effective communications.

The impact of talent management practices on employee retention: The moderator effect of leader-member exchange and role modeling

Organizations are undergoing serious difficulties to retain talent. Authors argue that Talent Management (TM) practices create beneficial outcomes for individuals and organizations. However, there is no research on the leaders’ role in the functioning of these practices. This study examines how LMX and role modeling influence the impact that TM practices have on employees’ trust in their organizations and retention. The analysis of two questionnaires (Nt1=175; Nt2=107) indicated that TM only reduced turnover intentions, via an increase in trust in the organization, when role modeling was high and not when it was low. Therefore, we can say that leaders are crucial in the TM context, and in sustaining a competitive advantage for organizations.

The Effect of Sales Promotion on Consumer Based Brand Equity

The study was an attempt to find out the effect of Sales Promotion,Price and Premium Promotion,on Consumer Based Brand Equity.The dimensions of consumer Based Brand Equity under study were Brand Awareness and Associations,Perceived Quality and Brand Loyalty.The Product categories under study were Convenience Products,shopping Products and Specialty Products and the product classes taken were Toothpastes,Colour Television and Athletic Shoes.The brands under study were Convenience Products-Anchor,Closeup,Colgate and Dabur:Shopping products-LG,Onida,Samsung and Sony and Specialty Products-Action,Adidas,Nike and Reebok.The primary objective of the study was to examine the effect of Sales Promotion,Price and Premium Promotion,on Consumer Based Brand Equity(CBBE)

Effect of acceptable use policy on employee computer use : case of Sri Lankan software development organizations

It is a known fact that some employees misuse the organizational computers to do their personal work such as sending emails, surfing the Internet, chatting, playing games. These activities not only waste productive time of employees but also bring a risk factor to the organization. This affects organizations in the software industry very much as almost all of their employees are connected to the Internet throughout them day./ By introducing an Acceptable Use Policy (AUP) for an organization, it is believed that the computer misuse by its employees could be reduced. In many countries Acceptable Use Policies are used and they have been studied with various perspectives. In Sri Lankan context research on these areas are scarce. This research explored the situation in Sri Lanka with respect to AUPs and their effectiveness./ A descriptive study was carried out to identify the large and medium scale software development organizations that had implemented computer usage guidelines for employees. A questionnaire was used to gather information regarding employee’s usual computer usage behavior. Stratified random sampling was employed to draw a representative sample from the population./ Majority of the organizations have not employed a written guideline on acceptable use of work computers. The study results did not provide evidence to conclude that the presence or non presence of an AUP has a significant difference in computer use behaviors of employees. A significant negative correlation was observed between level of awareness about AUP and misuse. Access to the Internet and organizational settings were identified as significant factors that influence employee computer misuse behavior.

The inhibiting effect of brand salience on brand name recall

This paper reports on a replication of Alba and Chattopadhyay’s (1986) study of the effects of substantially heightened brand salience upon the recall of competing brand names. Heightened salience was consistently shown to have an inhibiting effect on recall across a variety of experimental conditions. However, in the replication study this salience effect was not observed. Instead a trend in the reverse direction was found. This new finding is congruent with associative network model of memory and its prediction that subjects concentrating on a brand should trigger links in memory to the brand and other brands in the category.

An examination of the effect on debt/equity ratios with the adoption of IAS 19 : employee benefits

A number of countries have adopted the International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) as a means of harmonising financial statements. .This paper examines the effect of the adoption of IFRS, relating to post employment benefits and its effects on debt/equity ratios. The adoption of the IFRS resulted in most companies reporting a substantial increase in liabilities, a
decrease in shareholders’ equity and a corresponding increase
in debt/equity ratios.

Quality of internal control procedures : antecedents and moderating effect on organisational justice and employee fraud

Purpose – This study aims to bring together theoretical concepts from the organizational justice, internal control and fraud literature to develop two distinct models relating to employee fraud and the quality of internal control procedures (ICP), respectively.

Design/methodology/approach – Survey data from 64 Australian firms were used to develop the two models. The first model was tested using a logistic regression analysis, and the second model was tested using a multiple regression analysis.

Findings – The first model reveals that the quality of ICP has a moderating effect on the relationship between perceptions of organizational justice and employee fraud. The second model indicates that ICP quality is significantly and positively related to three key organizational factors: the corporate ethical environment, the extent of risk management training of staff, and the internal audit (IA) activity level.

Practical implications – Risk management strategies relating to employee fraud will need to pay greater attention to organizational factors that affect both perceptions of justice at the workplace and ICP quality, including fostering a more ethical and equitable work environment, increasing IA activities and staff training in risk management.

Originality/value – Using the fraud triangle framework, this study extends previous literature by providing empirical evidence on the role of organizational justice and ICP regarding employee fraud.