Pub Date : 2023-01-09DOI: 10.1108/ccij-06-2022-0068
D. Painter, Brittani Sahm
PurposeThis investigation analyzes Asian, European and North American coverage of esports' justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion (JEDI) issues as a case study of media organizations' communications on these topics.Design/methodology/approachThis quantitative content analysis describes coverage of esports' race, gender, age and social class issues to draw inferences about media organizations' abilities to meet the organizations' social responsibilities when reporting on organizational JEDI issues.FindingsThere were significant differences across continents; however, most stories only mentioned gender and age, seldom noting esports' race or social class issues.Research limitations/implicationsAlthough all stories analyzed were published in English, the findings extend research suggesting culture may shape the tones, frames and salience of social justice issues in the media.Practical implicationsJEDI issues were not the most prominent topic in at least 80% of the coverage, indicating the normative framework guiding professional journalism since the Cold War fails to guide responsible engagement with contemporary social justice issues.Originality/valueAs one of the first studies analyzing media coverage of organizational JEDI issues, the results of this content analysis (N = 763) provide a quantitative basis for a critique of media organizations' social responsibility when reporting on these issues.
{"title":"Framing esports' JEDI issues: a case study in media irresponsibility","authors":"D. Painter, Brittani Sahm","doi":"10.1108/ccij-06-2022-0068","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1108/ccij-06-2022-0068","url":null,"abstract":"PurposeThis investigation analyzes Asian, European and North American coverage of esports' justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion (JEDI) issues as a case study of media organizations' communications on these topics.Design/methodology/approachThis quantitative content analysis describes coverage of esports' race, gender, age and social class issues to draw inferences about media organizations' abilities to meet the organizations' social responsibilities when reporting on organizational JEDI issues.FindingsThere were significant differences across continents; however, most stories only mentioned gender and age, seldom noting esports' race or social class issues.Research limitations/implicationsAlthough all stories analyzed were published in English, the findings extend research suggesting culture may shape the tones, frames and salience of social justice issues in the media.Practical implicationsJEDI issues were not the most prominent topic in at least 80% of the coverage, indicating the normative framework guiding professional journalism since the Cold War fails to guide responsible engagement with contemporary social justice issues.Originality/valueAs one of the first studies analyzing media coverage of organizational JEDI issues, the results of this content analysis (N = 763) provide a quantitative basis for a critique of media organizations' social responsibility when reporting on these issues.","PeriodicalId":10696,"journal":{"name":"Corporate Communications: An International Journal","volume":"14 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-01-09","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"86340620","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2023-01-06DOI: 10.1108/ccij-03-2022-0036
Şenay Yavuz, Engin Tire
PurposeThe present research aimed to identify the motivations, needs, wants, preferences and limitations of corporate professionals with regard to business social analytics.Design/methodology/approachOnline interviews were conducted with 26 professionals the majority of whom work at the management level at 20 reputable corporations in Turkey. Both qualitative and quantitative data was collected during these interviews, which lasted an average of one hour.FindingsThe findings shed light on the motivations of corporate professionals for monitoring social media and other digital media, their perceived capability and limitations in doing so, the media that they monitor and wanted to monitor if possible, their criteria and processes for working with service providers in the field of business social analytics, their needs which are not fully met by service providers, their suggestions on service improvement and their reflections on how internal and external customer data can be analyzed with an integrated approach.Originality/valueThis research is an attempt to bridge the gap between the priorities of engineers who generate artificial intelligence for the purposes of social listening and analytics and the end users, e.g. corporate communication professionals. Only by doing so, this field, which is getting more and more important as people spend more time online, will reach its full potential and benefit corporations by providing fruitful insight upon which strategic steps can be taken.
{"title":"A survey of corporate communication professionals' perspective on social listening and analytics","authors":"Şenay Yavuz, Engin Tire","doi":"10.1108/ccij-03-2022-0036","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1108/ccij-03-2022-0036","url":null,"abstract":"PurposeThe present research aimed to identify the motivations, needs, wants, preferences and limitations of corporate professionals with regard to business social analytics.Design/methodology/approachOnline interviews were conducted with 26 professionals the majority of whom work at the management level at 20 reputable corporations in Turkey. Both qualitative and quantitative data was collected during these interviews, which lasted an average of one hour.FindingsThe findings shed light on the motivations of corporate professionals for monitoring social media and other digital media, their perceived capability and limitations in doing so, the media that they monitor and wanted to monitor if possible, their criteria and processes for working with service providers in the field of business social analytics, their needs which are not fully met by service providers, their suggestions on service improvement and their reflections on how internal and external customer data can be analyzed with an integrated approach.Originality/valueThis research is an attempt to bridge the gap between the priorities of engineers who generate artificial intelligence for the purposes of social listening and analytics and the end users, e.g. corporate communication professionals. Only by doing so, this field, which is getting more and more important as people spend more time online, will reach its full potential and benefit corporations by providing fruitful insight upon which strategic steps can be taken.","PeriodicalId":10696,"journal":{"name":"Corporate Communications: An International Journal","volume":"10 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-01-06","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"88043490","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2023-01-03DOI: 10.1108/ccij-01-2023-171
M. Topić
{"title":"Editorial 28.1: Are we truly listening?","authors":"M. Topić","doi":"10.1108/ccij-01-2023-171","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1108/ccij-01-2023-171","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":10696,"journal":{"name":"Corporate Communications: An International Journal","volume":"41 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-01-03","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"76423195","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2022-12-28DOI: 10.1108/ccij-03-2022-0024
Jeyoung Oh, Eyun‐Jung Ki
PurposePrevious studies have empirically examined the positive outcomes organizations can achieve by engaging in environmentally responsible actions, but the underlying mechanism of the reasons why publics engage in supportive behaviors for those organizations has not been examined in light of theoretical foundations. To fill this gap, this paper builds on a foundation of norm activation theory to explore the effect of publics' awareness of environmental consequences on perceived environmental responsibility of organizations and organizational norm, which can have an impact on publics' supportive behavior toward environmentally responsible organizations. The potential relationships between social media use for environmental information and other variables are also explored.Design/methodology/approachDrawing on norm activation theory, an online survey was conducted among 288 adults in the United States. Participants were recruited from Amazon Mechanical Turk.FindingsFindings indicate the impact of individuals' awareness of environmental consequences on their ascription of responsibility to organizations, which influences organizational norm and supportive behavior intention toward organizations.Originality/valueThis study is one of the first attempts to explore the underlying mechanism of publics' support for environmentally responsible organizations.
{"title":"Extending norm activation theory to understand publics' support for environmentally responsible organizations","authors":"Jeyoung Oh, Eyun‐Jung Ki","doi":"10.1108/ccij-03-2022-0024","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1108/ccij-03-2022-0024","url":null,"abstract":"PurposePrevious studies have empirically examined the positive outcomes organizations can achieve by engaging in environmentally responsible actions, but the underlying mechanism of the reasons why publics engage in supportive behaviors for those organizations has not been examined in light of theoretical foundations. To fill this gap, this paper builds on a foundation of norm activation theory to explore the effect of publics' awareness of environmental consequences on perceived environmental responsibility of organizations and organizational norm, which can have an impact on publics' supportive behavior toward environmentally responsible organizations. The potential relationships between social media use for environmental information and other variables are also explored.Design/methodology/approachDrawing on norm activation theory, an online survey was conducted among 288 adults in the United States. Participants were recruited from Amazon Mechanical Turk.FindingsFindings indicate the impact of individuals' awareness of environmental consequences on their ascription of responsibility to organizations, which influences organizational norm and supportive behavior intention toward organizations.Originality/valueThis study is one of the first attempts to explore the underlying mechanism of publics' support for environmentally responsible organizations.","PeriodicalId":10696,"journal":{"name":"Corporate Communications: An International Journal","volume":"5 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-12-28","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"75669974","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2022-12-21DOI: 10.1108/ccij-06-2022-0066
Juan Meng, Marlene S. Neill
PurposeThe rise of a professional career presents women in today's public relations profession an intense challenge in balancing professional and family responsibilities. Therefore, this study is motivated to investigate female public relations professionals' perceptions of work–family conflict in their daily life. Specifically, the authors focused the research on women working in the professions of communication and public relations in the United States.Design/methodology/approachAn online survey was designed and conducted in the United States. The final sample includes 512 women working full-time in public relations and communication. In addition, the authors pre-specified several demographic quotas in sampling design in order to recruit a diverse group of female professionals nationwide.FindingsThe findings of this research study confirmed that female professionals have to constantly make changes to their plans for family activities when there is a conflict due to work-related duties. Such impact is particularly intense for professionals in the age bracket of 31–40. They have to use a wide variety of coping strategies to manage the work–family conflict. Findings in the present research study confirmed the critical role of mentoring in providing extra support and to help junior female professionals find coping solutions. Effective mentor–mentee networks can be established and used as valuable resources to support women in managing work–family conflict.Originality/valueBy investigating current female professionals' perceptions on work–life conflict and their adoption of relevant coping strategies in the workplace, this research provides solid evidence that organizations should dedicate efforts in providing strong support in programs and policies and makes the options available to female professionals at all levels. The present research highlights the importance of building mentor–mentee relationships as an effective supportive approach when managing work–family conflict.
{"title":"Diversifying gender equity in leadership in public relations: the role of mentoring and instrumental support at the organizational level","authors":"Juan Meng, Marlene S. Neill","doi":"10.1108/ccij-06-2022-0066","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1108/ccij-06-2022-0066","url":null,"abstract":"PurposeThe rise of a professional career presents women in today's public relations profession an intense challenge in balancing professional and family responsibilities. Therefore, this study is motivated to investigate female public relations professionals' perceptions of work–family conflict in their daily life. Specifically, the authors focused the research on women working in the professions of communication and public relations in the United States.Design/methodology/approachAn online survey was designed and conducted in the United States. The final sample includes 512 women working full-time in public relations and communication. In addition, the authors pre-specified several demographic quotas in sampling design in order to recruit a diverse group of female professionals nationwide.FindingsThe findings of this research study confirmed that female professionals have to constantly make changes to their plans for family activities when there is a conflict due to work-related duties. Such impact is particularly intense for professionals in the age bracket of 31–40. They have to use a wide variety of coping strategies to manage the work–family conflict. Findings in the present research study confirmed the critical role of mentoring in providing extra support and to help junior female professionals find coping solutions. Effective mentor–mentee networks can be established and used as valuable resources to support women in managing work–family conflict.Originality/valueBy investigating current female professionals' perceptions on work–life conflict and their adoption of relevant coping strategies in the workplace, this research provides solid evidence that organizations should dedicate efforts in providing strong support in programs and policies and makes the options available to female professionals at all levels. The present research highlights the importance of building mentor–mentee relationships as an effective supportive approach when managing work–family conflict.","PeriodicalId":10696,"journal":{"name":"Corporate Communications: An International Journal","volume":"71 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-12-21","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"87982756","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2022-12-20DOI: 10.1108/ccij-10-2021-0115
Abyshey Nhedzi, C. Azionya
PurposeThis study answers the call for research and theorising exploring ethical communication and brand risk from the African continent. The study's purpose was to identify the challenges that strategic communication practitioners face in enacting ethical crisis communication in South Africa.Design/methodology/approachThe researchers conducted ten in-depth interviews with South African strategic communication professionals.FindingsThe dominant theme emerging from the study is the marginalisation and exclusion of the communication function in decision-making during crisis situations. Communicators were viewed as implementers, technicians and not strategic counsel. The protection of organisational reputation was done at the expense of the ethics and moral conscience of practitioners. Practitioners were viewed and deployed as spin doctors and tools to face unwanted media interactions.Originality/valueThe article sheds light on the concepts of ethical communication and decision-making in a multicultural African context using the moral theory of Ubuntu and strategic communication. It demonstrates the tension professionals experience as they toggle between unethical capitalist approaches and African values. The practitioner's role as organisational moral conscience is hindered, suppressed and undermined by organisational leadership's directives to use opaque, complex communication, selective transparency and misrepresentation of facts.
{"title":"The limited role of African strategic communication practitioners in ethical communication practices","authors":"Abyshey Nhedzi, C. Azionya","doi":"10.1108/ccij-10-2021-0115","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1108/ccij-10-2021-0115","url":null,"abstract":"PurposeThis study answers the call for research and theorising exploring ethical communication and brand risk from the African continent. The study's purpose was to identify the challenges that strategic communication practitioners face in enacting ethical crisis communication in South Africa.Design/methodology/approachThe researchers conducted ten in-depth interviews with South African strategic communication professionals.FindingsThe dominant theme emerging from the study is the marginalisation and exclusion of the communication function in decision-making during crisis situations. Communicators were viewed as implementers, technicians and not strategic counsel. The protection of organisational reputation was done at the expense of the ethics and moral conscience of practitioners. Practitioners were viewed and deployed as spin doctors and tools to face unwanted media interactions.Originality/valueThe article sheds light on the concepts of ethical communication and decision-making in a multicultural African context using the moral theory of Ubuntu and strategic communication. It demonstrates the tension professionals experience as they toggle between unethical capitalist approaches and African values. The practitioner's role as organisational moral conscience is hindered, suppressed and undermined by organisational leadership's directives to use opaque, complex communication, selective transparency and misrepresentation of facts.","PeriodicalId":10696,"journal":{"name":"Corporate Communications: An International Journal","volume":"59 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-12-20","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"89760707","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2022-12-14DOI: 10.1108/ccij-10-2022-0120
F. Lefley, V. Janeček
PurposeThe corporate communications literature recently raised the question, “Board gender diversity and women in leadership positions – are quotas the solution?” This paper extends the debate by asking, “What is an equitable target percentage for women on corporate boards?”Design/methodology/approachThe paper explores and gives a conceptualised viewpoint on the issues expressed in the literature concerning the meaning of board gender equality, focussing on what is regarded as an equitable number of women on corporate boards.FindingsThe arguments and questions raised in this paper highlight the difficulty in answering the research question. The question will only be answered when it no longer needs to be raised. In other words, when gender equality is no longer seen as an issue and men and women are treated equally, when qualifications, experience and ability are the key issues on board selection, not gender. Highlighting gender inequality issues by setting target figures may in itself deter some women from seeking board-level promotion. The target should not just be to place women in what is currently a masculinised board culture but to change this culture to reflect non-masculinity.Practical implicationsThis paper can guide practitioners in their policy-making decisions on corporate board gender diversity and refocus the minds of academics on such an important issue. It should also help change the hegemonic understanding of leadership and thus influence recruitment policy.Originality/valueThis is believed to be the first paper to give a conceptualised viewpoint on the issue of targets concerning the number of women on corporate boards and brings into perspective the wide variation highlighted in the literature. It adds to the current debate on board gender diversity and the lack of women on corporate boards by highlighting the questions regarding gender targets. A research opportunity lies in exploring this paper's conceptual issues and questions by soliciting the views of male and female management students and corporate directors.
{"title":"What is an equitable target percentage for women on corporate boards?","authors":"F. Lefley, V. Janeček","doi":"10.1108/ccij-10-2022-0120","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1108/ccij-10-2022-0120","url":null,"abstract":"PurposeThe corporate communications literature recently raised the question, “Board gender diversity and women in leadership positions – are quotas the solution?” This paper extends the debate by asking, “What is an equitable target percentage for women on corporate boards?”Design/methodology/approachThe paper explores and gives a conceptualised viewpoint on the issues expressed in the literature concerning the meaning of board gender equality, focussing on what is regarded as an equitable number of women on corporate boards.FindingsThe arguments and questions raised in this paper highlight the difficulty in answering the research question. The question will only be answered when it no longer needs to be raised. In other words, when gender equality is no longer seen as an issue and men and women are treated equally, when qualifications, experience and ability are the key issues on board selection, not gender. Highlighting gender inequality issues by setting target figures may in itself deter some women from seeking board-level promotion. The target should not just be to place women in what is currently a masculinised board culture but to change this culture to reflect non-masculinity.Practical implicationsThis paper can guide practitioners in their policy-making decisions on corporate board gender diversity and refocus the minds of academics on such an important issue. It should also help change the hegemonic understanding of leadership and thus influence recruitment policy.Originality/valueThis is believed to be the first paper to give a conceptualised viewpoint on the issue of targets concerning the number of women on corporate boards and brings into perspective the wide variation highlighted in the literature. It adds to the current debate on board gender diversity and the lack of women on corporate boards by highlighting the questions regarding gender targets. A research opportunity lies in exploring this paper's conceptual issues and questions by soliciting the views of male and female management students and corporate directors.","PeriodicalId":10696,"journal":{"name":"Corporate Communications: An International Journal","volume":"14 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-12-14","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"74799746","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2022-12-09DOI: 10.1108/ccij-05-2022-0050
Sarah Marschlich, Diana Ingenhoff
PurposeFor corporate communications, it is crucial to know how news media outlets report and frame the sociopolitical activities of multinational corporations (MNCs), including their corporate diplomacy, that affect perceptions of their legitimacy. Therefore, this study aims to identify how local news media frame corporate diplomacy in a host country and, in turn, benefit the media legitimacy of MNCs.Design/methodology/approachTo identify media frames in the host country, a quantitative content analysis involving factor and cluster analyses of 385 articles published in newspapers in the United Arab Emirates from 2014 to 2019 addressing the corporate diplomacy of large European MNCs operating in the country was conducted.FindingsThis study identified three media frames, two of which establish moral and pragmatic media legitimacy. Results suggest that media legitimacy grows when news media emphasise institutional relationships between MNCs and local, established organisations and corporate diplomacy's benefits for society.Practical implicationsFindings provide insights into how corporate communications can contribute to legitimacy building by emphasising corporations' relationships with institutional actors in host countries and the benefits of corporate activities for local communities.Originality/valueTo the best of the authors’ knowledge, this study was the first in corporate communications to empirically investigate news media's role in corporate diplomacy and how media frames contribute to the media legitimacy of MNCs at the moral, pragmatic, regulative and cognitive levels.
{"title":"The role of local news in constructing media legitimacy: how news media frames the sociopolitical efforts of multinational corporations in host countries","authors":"Sarah Marschlich, Diana Ingenhoff","doi":"10.1108/ccij-05-2022-0050","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1108/ccij-05-2022-0050","url":null,"abstract":"PurposeFor corporate communications, it is crucial to know how news media outlets report and frame the sociopolitical activities of multinational corporations (MNCs), including their corporate diplomacy, that affect perceptions of their legitimacy. Therefore, this study aims to identify how local news media frame corporate diplomacy in a host country and, in turn, benefit the media legitimacy of MNCs.Design/methodology/approachTo identify media frames in the host country, a quantitative content analysis involving factor and cluster analyses of 385 articles published in newspapers in the United Arab Emirates from 2014 to 2019 addressing the corporate diplomacy of large European MNCs operating in the country was conducted.FindingsThis study identified three media frames, two of which establish moral and pragmatic media legitimacy. Results suggest that media legitimacy grows when news media emphasise institutional relationships between MNCs and local, established organisations and corporate diplomacy's benefits for society.Practical implicationsFindings provide insights into how corporate communications can contribute to legitimacy building by emphasising corporations' relationships with institutional actors in host countries and the benefits of corporate activities for local communities.Originality/valueTo the best of the authors’ knowledge, this study was the first in corporate communications to empirically investigate news media's role in corporate diplomacy and how media frames contribute to the media legitimacy of MNCs at the moral, pragmatic, regulative and cognitive levels.","PeriodicalId":10696,"journal":{"name":"Corporate Communications: An International Journal","volume":"35 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-12-09","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"75384184","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2022-12-06DOI: 10.1108/ccij-07-2022-0075
K. Miller
PurposeRecently, scholars are pushing for an internal corporate social responsibility (CSR) view through employee perspectives regarding CSR efforts, particularly in considering how organizations can act responsibly toward internal stakeholders (May, 2011). Thus, research has begun taking a “micro-turn” in analyzing CSR (Aguinis and Glavas, 2012), focused on individual analysis of such practices within organizations. The purpose of this study is to uncover the organizational sensemaking of CSR by an important yet less understood stakeholder group, employees.Design/methodology/approachThis study takes a primarily qualitative, micro-approach via interviews (n = 42) to understanding the internal sensemaking of various organizations' CSR efforts from the perspective of employees. Organizational discourse analysis is utilized.FindingsAt the individual level, findings from over 40 one-on-one interviews highlighted how this stakeholder group rationalizes, perceives and identifies with their employers' socially responsible efforts. Findings uncover both macro- and micro-level understandings of CSR, as well as the reality of CSR within particular organizations from an operational standpoint.Research limitations/implicationsThis study provides important theoretical and methodological implications, particularly in its explicitly interpretive and qualitative approach. Specifically, this work contributes to the micro-foundations and limited internal view of CSR by interviewing over 40 employees.Practical implicationsThis study provides important pragmatic implications, particularly when considering how CSR is communicated to (internal) stakeholders. Additionally, CSR must be seen as strategic and embedded in core business practices, rather than a one-off campaign.Social implicationsOn a societal level, there is an expectation that corporations take care of their employees in terms of emotional and physical well-being, equity, work–life balance, among others. This study suggests a move to more inward-facing CSR practices—specifically those benefiting internal members.Originality/valueThis work contributes to research on the micro-foundations and limited internal view of CSR and provides important pragmatic implications. Specifically, the use of interviews of employees in gaining access to an important stakeholder group is a significant contribution to CSR scholarship.
{"title":"Employee sensemaking of CSR: on micro-discourses of corporate social responsibility","authors":"K. Miller","doi":"10.1108/ccij-07-2022-0075","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1108/ccij-07-2022-0075","url":null,"abstract":"PurposeRecently, scholars are pushing for an internal corporate social responsibility (CSR) view through employee perspectives regarding CSR efforts, particularly in considering how organizations can act responsibly toward internal stakeholders (May, 2011). Thus, research has begun taking a “micro-turn” in analyzing CSR (Aguinis and Glavas, 2012), focused on individual analysis of such practices within organizations. The purpose of this study is to uncover the organizational sensemaking of CSR by an important yet less understood stakeholder group, employees.Design/methodology/approachThis study takes a primarily qualitative, micro-approach via interviews (n = 42) to understanding the internal sensemaking of various organizations' CSR efforts from the perspective of employees. Organizational discourse analysis is utilized.FindingsAt the individual level, findings from over 40 one-on-one interviews highlighted how this stakeholder group rationalizes, perceives and identifies with their employers' socially responsible efforts. Findings uncover both macro- and micro-level understandings of CSR, as well as the reality of CSR within particular organizations from an operational standpoint.Research limitations/implicationsThis study provides important theoretical and methodological implications, particularly in its explicitly interpretive and qualitative approach. Specifically, this work contributes to the micro-foundations and limited internal view of CSR by interviewing over 40 employees.Practical implicationsThis study provides important pragmatic implications, particularly when considering how CSR is communicated to (internal) stakeholders. Additionally, CSR must be seen as strategic and embedded in core business practices, rather than a one-off campaign.Social implicationsOn a societal level, there is an expectation that corporations take care of their employees in terms of emotional and physical well-being, equity, work–life balance, among others. This study suggests a move to more inward-facing CSR practices—specifically those benefiting internal members.Originality/valueThis work contributes to research on the micro-foundations and limited internal view of CSR and provides important pragmatic implications. Specifically, the use of interviews of employees in gaining access to an important stakeholder group is a significant contribution to CSR scholarship.","PeriodicalId":10696,"journal":{"name":"Corporate Communications: An International Journal","volume":"96 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-12-06","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"74687878","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2022-11-28DOI: 10.1108/ccij-08-2022-0102
Hassan Imam, Anu Sahi, Mobina Farasat
PurposeOrganizations generally seek to achieve higher productivity and performance from employees but leave out the vital roles of engagement and communication. Employees' role at the micro, meso and macro levels cannot be ignored in organizational growth. However, the question remains: how to engage employees to reap performance benefits? This study examines how leaders' support and communication increase subordinates' engagement and performance by applying social exchange theory (SET).Design/methodology/approachDyadic data of 249 full-time (middle-level) employees and their leaders were collected from the Indian automobile sector through a survey. After achieving the goodness-of-fit indices, the hypothesized framework was analyzed.FindingsThe authors found that employees who perceived support from their leaders were engaged, which consequently adds to their performance. Similarly, the results of moderation analysis highlighted that internal communication is a crucial factor in engagement.Practical implicationsBy measuring employee engagement across three dimensions (cognitive, emotional, and physical), this study adds to the business communication literature and calls attention to human resource professionals to update the organization's policies to enable managers to engage their subordinates for better performance. Organizational development specialists can improve internal communication, which further enhances the relationship between leaders' support and engagement.Originality/valueThis study advanced the literature by discussing the marginally discussed role of internal communication in the nexus of engagement–performance. Additionally, this study contributes to our understanding of the engagement–performance nexus as an outcome of leadership.
{"title":"The roles of supervisor support, employee engagement and internal communication in performance: a social exchange perspective","authors":"Hassan Imam, Anu Sahi, Mobina Farasat","doi":"10.1108/ccij-08-2022-0102","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1108/ccij-08-2022-0102","url":null,"abstract":"PurposeOrganizations generally seek to achieve higher productivity and performance from employees but leave out the vital roles of engagement and communication. Employees' role at the micro, meso and macro levels cannot be ignored in organizational growth. However, the question remains: how to engage employees to reap performance benefits? This study examines how leaders' support and communication increase subordinates' engagement and performance by applying social exchange theory (SET).Design/methodology/approachDyadic data of 249 full-time (middle-level) employees and their leaders were collected from the Indian automobile sector through a survey. After achieving the goodness-of-fit indices, the hypothesized framework was analyzed.FindingsThe authors found that employees who perceived support from their leaders were engaged, which consequently adds to their performance. Similarly, the results of moderation analysis highlighted that internal communication is a crucial factor in engagement.Practical implicationsBy measuring employee engagement across three dimensions (cognitive, emotional, and physical), this study adds to the business communication literature and calls attention to human resource professionals to update the organization's policies to enable managers to engage their subordinates for better performance. Organizational development specialists can improve internal communication, which further enhances the relationship between leaders' support and engagement.Originality/valueThis study advanced the literature by discussing the marginally discussed role of internal communication in the nexus of engagement–performance. Additionally, this study contributes to our understanding of the engagement–performance nexus as an outcome of leadership.","PeriodicalId":10696,"journal":{"name":"Corporate Communications: An International Journal","volume":"13 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-11-28","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"82161947","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}