Why business academics remain in Australian universities despite deteriorating working conditions and reduced job satisfaction : an intellectual puzzle

In the last two decades, Australia's 38 universities have been subjected to profound changes affecting the working lives of their academic staff. That the working conditions of staff have deteriorated cannot be denied, while many studies have shown that job satisfaction has been affected adversely. Paradoxically, there is little evidence that academics are seeking employment outside the university system. In this article, the authors report the findings from their survey of over 3000 academics employed in business disciplines in Australian universities, which aimed to find explanations for this phenomenon.

Perceptions of quality in higher education : a comparative study of Turkish and Australian business academics

Finding a common definition of ‘quality’ in studies of quality and quality improvement in higher education institutions is very important. This study identifies the views of a key stakeholder group, academics, with reference to their beliefs (what is currently occurring) and their attitudes (what ought to be occurring) in relation to quality in their departments. The focus of this paper is on the collection of data from 64 business administration academics in Turkish universities. Face-to-face interviews were conducted using an instrument titled ‘Quality in Accounting Education Survey’. The questionnaire was developed by Watty and is based on the conceptions of quality framework, developed by Harvey and Green. The results are compared with the beliefs and attitudes of Australian accounting academics as reported in an earlier paper by Watty. The findings show that academics from Turkey adopt the perspective of quality as excellent or élitist, both in their beliefs (current situation perception) and in their attitudes (desired situation perception). This compares with the findings that Australian academics’ attitudes reflect a quality perspective as fitness for purpose in the current situation and beliefs that reflect a transformational quality perspective as the desired situation (what ought to be).

Students' perceptions of academic and business dishonesty : Australian evidence

Publicly available information indicates that the collapse of the high-profile corporations during the recent past were due to the unethical actions of a number of major players, including high level managers in those corporations. These examples of the ethical misdeeds of corporate actors have influenced accounting professional bodies and academic institutions around the globe to revisit the issue of ethical training of business and accounting students—the corporate managers of tomorrow. However, little is known about the ethical perceptions of business and accounting students, and business academics are finding it challenging to develop and promote ethics-based accounting and business curricula. This study addresses the research gap. It explores the ethical perceptions of accounting and business students in two Australian universities using three paradigms, that is, whether there are differences between regional and metropolitan, male and female, older and younger accounting students with respect to their ethical perceptions. Empirical evidence provided in this study
suggests that while there are no differences in ethical perceptions of the regional and metropolitan accounting and business students, female and older students are found to be more ethical compared to male and younger students.

Changes in higher education and valuing the job : the views of accounting academics in Australia

In a previous article (Bellamy et al., 2003), the authors reported on survey research that investigated reasons why academics from business disciplines enter and remain in academia, and the conditions they deem necessary to creating ideal work satisfaction. For both entering and remaining, as well as in achieving ideal work satisfaction, the most important factors were found to be autonomy and flexibility, with teaching and research the next most important factors. In a subsequent analysis of the data, reported in this article, the authors identify and explore significant differences between accounting academics and other business academics in the relative importance placed on these key factors. The findings may be used to inform policy makers and university administrators of the importance of discipline differences when identifying key factors for recruitment and retention of accounting academics specifically, and business academics generally.

Reconceptualising engagement : a study of Australian academics

The management of human capital is a strategic imperative for knowledge based firms such as universities. Human capital has been described as the investment in people necessary to build the skills and capabilities to operate at their full potential and enable them to act in ways that enhance the competitiveness of organisations. This thesis is set amidst the series of changes made to the Australian Higher Education sector that have had a profound effect on the management of its human capital. The changes have larg ely been driven by government policy in response to globalisation, increased competition and technological advances. As a result the climate of universities has moved to a more cost efficiency-focused managerialism. Various studies have illustrated the significant consequences for the academic workforce and the way in which work has changed in the sector. Academics now face greater accountability for the quality and quantity of their teaching and research at a time when university funding has been constrained. The results have not been all positive for the quality of academics’ working lives and evidence points to heavy workloads and a steadily disengaging workforce. Despite this, many of the sectoral changes rely on an engaged and cooperative workforce to bring about greater productivity and quality of education to attract a larger share of international and domestic students. ... The two aims of this thesis are: to clarify the current definitions of engagement by bringing together the constructs and concepts that contribute to engagement; and to provide insight into the dimensions that shape engagement in Australian business academics ... The thesis also contributes to the dialogue on human capital and in particular, how it can be harnessed in key areas such as the knowledge industries and for targeted purposes such as the management of talent.

A grouping journals using multi-dimensional perceptual criteria of North American marketing academics

This paper seeks to develop groupings of journals (A, B, C) using multi-dimensional perceptual rankings, based on North American respondents’ evaluation of a journal’s prestige, contribution to theory, contribution to practice and contribution to teaching. Nonparametric comparisons of criterion mean values indicate that there are generally statistically significant correlations between criteria. Cluster analysis identifies A, B, and C 'categorisations' of journals are different in regards to all four evaluative criteria.

Plagiarism – can preventative measures and a commitment to the value of learning by academics and students reduce plagiarism in classrooms?

Plagiarism is an interruptive act in the teaching and learning value chain. This paper analyses the impact of both plagiarism and effective assessment in the learning value chain. Effective assessment is the positive outcome. Plagiarism negates or breaks the chain. Anecdotal evidence suggests the incidences of plagiarism are increasing in faculties across the Queensland University of Technology (QUT), and where every subject/unit outline includes a statement and warning to students of the penalties of this activity, deterrence tools do not overcome the harmful impact of plagiarism on the teacher/student learning relationship. A working party established in 2000 in the Faculty of Business at QUT, examined the literature, university policies, teaching and learning practices, and examples of plagiarism and penalties in order to identify the wider learning and assessment issues surrounding plagiarism and options for action and policy. A three-semester study of acts of plagiarism and wide consultation with staff presented the working party with an opportunity to develop a set of preventative measures, and also exposed the legal, cultural and accountability issues of diverse attitudes and values.

The paper presents the findings and recommendations from the investigation, and also proposes an interpretation of marketing theory of the impact of plagiarism on the teaching and learning value chain.

Fit for intended use : a manufacturing metaphor applied to international business students and learning outcomes

It is no secret that contemporary tertiary education in Australia is significantly reliant on international student fee income in a competitive market. Accordingly, the need to attract fee paying students involves strategies for increasing competitive advantage, new course structures, flexible learning initiatives and marketing. However Jackling (1) has found that employers are reluctant to employ graduate international students in the accounting field as they consider them to lack the skills required to effectively meet employment needs. This paper seeks to focus the spotlight on the role of academics/universities in ensuring that graduates have the skills necessary for employment as part of the education process.

Cooperative inquiry in a business school : scope, process and dimensions

The presentation will describe a cooperative inquiry project being undertaken within the School of Management and Marketing, Faculty of Business and Law. This project involves both HRM and Management academics and was commenced in February 2008 with the broad aim of developing an ongoing teaching and learning dialogue within these discipline areas to enhance teaching and learning.
The project is also aimed at enabling individuals and unit teams to develop and pursue their own priorities in teaching and learning and align these with the goals and objectives of the Faculty and University.
In the presentation we will describe the scope, nature and methods of the inquiry and the outcomes of the project to date. One major outcome to date has been a comprehensive review of all the units within the HRM and Management majors. This review has, in turn, lead to the initiation of four further projects.
These include an activity to benchmark the School’s HRM and Management units against universities in Australia and overseas; a literature review entitled ‘Linking practice, research and the scholarship of teaching’; a project that seeks to integrate individual and institutional needs; and an action research project to capture the process of change within the Management and HRM team. These four projects will be described briefly in the presentation.

Education and training as a social science : some empirical evidence in the Rosebank Business Precinct of Auckland New Zealand

Tertiary institutions should seek continuous feedback from industries to keep track of the needs of businesses to provide education and training. Academics should stay in touch with businesses by networking and consulting. Holland and De Cieri (2006) refer to theories of child learning (pedagogy) to inform their understanding of andragogy, the study of adult learning. Adult learners would be continuous learners and would move in and out of formal education according to individual needs or life circumstances, job requirements or career development. In designing programmes and up-grading curricula, these are important factors to bear in mind so that programmes “cater” for these learners as well.

This study was financed by Auckland City Council focussing on Auckland’s Rosebank Business Precinct (ARBP). The surrounding communities, particularly Mäori, Pacific peoples and recent migrants, experience disparities in employment. Our research questions were:
• Is there a skills match between the present-day workforce and actual business needs over the medium term?
• What can these data tell us about Rosebank’s trajectory as a skilled business cluster and about its future workforce requirements?
• What education and training will be necessary for these organisations to maintain their competitive advantage and profit margins?

The target population were the 500-600 businesses operating on Rosebank Road. A total of 529 businesses were identified. Interviews with 102 companies with a 36-question questionnaire were conducted. The sampling frame was owner-managers (senior, non-shareholding managers). Of the respondent firms, 68.75% had vacancies for up to 3 months and 31.24% vacancies for 6 months.

This paper highlights areas identified in the ARBP for developing programmes and curricula for tertiary institutions to provide employable students with the right knowledge, skills and attributes (KSAs) to grow existing ventures. A fine balance must be struck between human and organisational needs. In the analysis and discussion we point out what education or training is necessary for the ARBP to provide greater efficiencies and subsequent improvement to their profit levels by current and future employees entering the workforce; well “equipped” employees with knowledge and skills to add value in their organisations. Recommendations, future perspectives and conclusions form the last part of this paper

Dot.Com rise as an indicator of business growth and economic progress : a retrospective view on telecom and banking sectors in Australia and India

In the year 2000, businesses in banking and telecom sectors worldwide re-engineered their value chain by extending their services by adapting ebusiness through dot.com launches. Subsequently, their validity became questionable with the spate of dot.com crashes and the IT stock meltdown. This book takes a retrospective view, indicating that e-business, as measured by dot.com growth trends, was a positive indicator for business growth in the sector and overall economic growth as it stimulated the respective economies. The book details an inductive analysis that studied if dot.com floats suggested any positive market capitalisation (broadly regarded as a measure of profitability) for the organisations, within two sectors, in two economies. In addition, there is detailed content analysis of global business trends, drivers, theories, sector/economy perspectives, achieved progress and instrumental cases. The book will be a view in retrospect for economists, business analysts, students of ebusiness and management (particularly MBA); academics and researchers.

Communication for business

Communication for Business introduces students to the core topics necessary for their undergraduate studies in business communication and is designed with the future professional in mind. It bridges academic theory and real-world business knowledge and provides lots of practical examples in the companion digital obook. It offers a fresh approach to the subject in the form of the three business communication principles: logic, clarity and courtesy in the way they frame the contents of the book. Written by a combination of management, communication, ethics and journalism academics it presents information that is practical and interesting in a style that is theoretical and accessible.