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1 – 5 of 5Pedro Jácome de Moura Jr. and Carlo Gabriel Porto Bellini
The purpose of this study is to contribute to the literature on team management and flow theory by framing shared flow in teams (SFT) as a unique construct of much interest for…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this study is to contribute to the literature on team management and flow theory by framing shared flow in teams (SFT) as a unique construct of much interest for team performance, as well as by proposing team vibration as a metaphor and measurable property of SFT.
Design/methodology/approach
An inductive approach is used to identify the occurrence of SFT by means of team vibration, and scale development procedures are used to offer an instrument to measure team vibration.
Findings
The current state of knowledge does not allow researchers and team leaders to assume that flow in teams depends on team members being in full flow too. Accordingly, it is shown that SFT is an emergent phenomenon of the complex interaction of team members, thus not corresponding to the mere aggregation of flow of individual team members. Moreover, it is also shown that the emergent property of team vibration is an efficient surrogate measure for SFT because it enables better communication in measurement.
Practical implications
Team managers should hire professionals that contribute to high levels of vibration in teams because this is expected to leverage desirable team processes and outcomes. Such individuals possess an ideal balance of individual and group focus. However, the authors warn that managers should be careful in assuming that individuals in full state of flow are necessary for the occurrence of flow in teams.
Originality/value
This study frames SFT as a unique construct in the literature of flow in groups, in addition to developing a metaphor and surrogate measure (team vibration) and a measurement instrument.
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Carlo Gabriel Porto Bellini, Prashant Palvia, Valter Moreno, Tim Jacks and Alexandre Graeml
The purpose of this paper is to discuss two important behaviors related to job mobility in the IT profession, namely, changing jobs to move to another organization (turnover) and…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to discuss two important behaviors related to job mobility in the IT profession, namely, changing jobs to move to another organization (turnover) and changing the profession entirely (turnaway), during a national crisis. Based on the theoretical foundation of the push–pull–mooring perspective, a research model is developed that includes professional self-efficacy (PSE), job insecurity (JI) and job satisfaction (JS) as important antecedents.
Design/methodology/approach
Using a positivist approach and a survey method, the authors analyzed data from IT professionals from different economic segments in Brazil. Data collection occurred in two distinctive moments of the largest crisis in modern Brazilian history – a pre-awareness moment (first half of year 2015) and a crisis-conscious moment (first half of year 2016).
Findings
The findings reveal that PSE negatively influences JI and positively influences JS, JI positively influences turnaway intention, and JS negatively influences both turnover intention and turnaway intention. The effect of the national crisis was observed in that it further accentuated the intention of IT professionals to leave the profession. Another effect was related to age, as older professionals are less willing to turn over but more willing to turn away.
Research limitations/implications
Besides developing a parsimonious model to study both the intention to leave the organization and the intention to leave the profession, the study sheds light on how IT professionals react to economic crises and how the reaction varies by age.
Practical implications
The study puts to question the common belief that IT professionals are secure in the job market due to high demand for their skills and investments made by organizations to keep them on the job. Employers must pay attention to JI and turnover/turnaway intentions.
Originality/value
This study is among the few to study JI and aspects of the theory of human migration in IT. It is also possibly the first to discuss the effects of a national crisis on the mobility patterns of IT professionals.
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Pedro Jácome de Moura Jr and Carlo Gabriel Porto Bellini
The purpose of this paper is to review three decades of the literature on flow measurement and propose issues to advance research on the measurement of social flow at work.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to review three decades of the literature on flow measurement and propose issues to advance research on the measurement of social flow at work.
Design/methodology/approach
In a systematic literature review, the authors analyzed 143 articles published in the first three decades (1983–2013) of scholarly publications on flow measurement, of which 84 articles used scales to measure flow and 16 articles used scales to measure flow at work.
Findings
The main findings are: flow is frequently measured in association with other constructs or by means of proxies; flow measurement is highly dependent on a study’s purposes and context; flow is mostly studied at the level of the individual and, when studied beyond the individual, the measurement of flow in groups is simplified as an aggregation of individual-level measures; and social flow at work is an underresearched construct that nevertheless impacts organizations in important ways, thus deserving a specific research agenda.
Research limitations/implications
The first limitation refers to the databases included in the review. There is always the possibility that important works were ignored. Another limitation is that the coding procedure was highly dependent on the authors’ discretion, as it did not include independent coding and formal assessment of agreement among coders. But the greatest limitation may refer to our very perspectives on flow, flow measurement and social flow at work, as they are highly attached to current models instead of seeing the issues with different lenses. This limitation is also present in the literature.
Practical implications
Reviewing three decades of scholarly publications on how flow has been measured contributes to organizations in their planning for person-job fit. The measurement of flow can reveal if and when flow correlates with personal characteristics and organizational events, thus serving to inform initiatives on personnel development, acculturation and job design. However, considering that flow as a social phenomenon has been conceived in superficial terms, that a vast number of empirical studies were developed with non-professional subjects, and that flow measurement involves significant adaptations to each situation, organizations are thus advised to be careful in adopting extant instruments.
Originality/value
This study provides a rich account on how flow measurement has been addressed in the scholarly literature, and it calls attention to research opportunities on social flow at work.
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Carlo Gabriel Porto Bellini, Rita de Cássia de Faria Pereira and João Luiz Becker
The purpose of this paper is to discuss the structural design of customer teams (CuTes) working with external teams to implement customized information systems (IS). Design…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to discuss the structural design of customer teams (CuTes) working with external teams to implement customized information systems (IS). Design consists of theoretically based measures and a first set of real-world, empirical values.
Design/methodology/approach
A search in the organizational literature suggested that the adhocracy is the preferred structure for CuTes. Adhocracy-like measures were then developed and applied to a high-performance CuTe to reveal a first benchmark for a team’s adhocratic design.
Findings
High-performance CuTes do not necessarily implement the adhocratic principles to the highest degree.
Research limitations/implications
It is still open whether all the structural measures described here are necessary and sufficient to describe the adhocracy-like structural design of CuTes.
Practical implications
The CuTe is highlighted as the key incumbent of cooperation with the technology supplier and consultants in terms of project authority and responsibility. A psychometric instrument and real-world values are proposed as a reference for the structural design of high-performance CuTes.
Social implications
The performance of IS projects is a social concern, since IS products should be aimed at serving people better both inside and outside the organization. Professionals who work in CuTes to develop better IS should receive institutional recognition and management attention.
Originality/value
This study seems to be the first to discuss the structure of CuTes in customized IS projects from a theoretical and applied perspective.
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Sofia Alexopoulou, Joachim Åström and Martin Karlsson
Technology access, digital skills, and digital services are increasingly prerequisites for public life and accessing public services. The digital divide in contemporary societies…
Abstract
Purpose
Technology access, digital skills, and digital services are increasingly prerequisites for public life and accessing public services. The digital divide in contemporary societies matters for efforts to digitalize the welfare state. Research has already mapped individual determinants of digital exclusion and the existence of an age-related digital divide. However, far less attention has been paid to variations in digital inclusion between countries and to their potential explanations related to political systems. This study explores the influence of variations in welfare regimes on the digital divide among seniors (aged 65+) in Europe.
Design/methodology/approach
This article presents time-series cross-sectional analyses of the relationship between welfare state regimes and digital inclusion among seniors in European countries. The analyses are based on data from Eurostat, the World Bank, and the UN E-Government Survey.
Findings
The authors find extensive variation in the digital inclusion of citizens between welfare regimes and argue that considering regime differences improves the understanding of these variations. The findings indicate that the age-related digital divide seems to be least evident in countries with more universalistic welfare regimes and most evident in countries where seniors rely more on their families.
Originality/value
This is the first comparative study of the association between welfare state regimes and digital inclusion among seniors.
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