Small and medium enterprises (SMEs) have become a vibrant and dynamic sector of the world economy. Information technology plays a vital role in improving the productivity and competitiveness of SMEs. ...The dynamic business environment has brought fierce competition among SMEs and, therefore, requires the owners to interact with internal and external members actively. Hence, this study aims to investigate the impact of technology, organization, and environment as important factors in the performance of small and medium-sized enterprises. It also examines the mediating role of social media adoption. Items were developed to measure the various purposes of social media use in organizations, which contribute to increasing the measurement of social media usage. For the empirical investigation, this paper used a closed-ended questionnaire. Using a quantitative method, we observed 423 responses through structural equation modeling. The findings of the study indicate that technology, organization, and the environment play effective roles for SME performance. More importantly, social media adoption positively mediates the relationship between technology, organization, environment, and SME performance. The study also helps organizations realize the advantages of using social media and specifies the rationale behind an organization’s investment in social media.
Purpose
By applying displaced aggression and conservation of resource theory, this paper aims to investigate the effect of supervisors’ workplace stress over subordinates' unethical behavior through ...displaced aggression as an underlying mechanism. Moreover, it tests the moderating effect of despotic leadership between supervisors’ workplace stress and displaced aggression.
Design/methodology/approach
The data consists of three hierarchy levels: despotic leadership (top manager), supervisor’s (immediate supervisor/middle manager) workplace stress and displaced aggression and subordinates’ unethical behavior. The data was collected from 80 managers about their workplace stress and displaced aggression besides perceived unethical behavior of their 240 subordinates.
Findings
The data analysis of 80 bank managers of Pakistan about their perception of top managers’ despotic behavior and unethical behavior of their 240 subordinates shows the support for all hypothesized relationships. Supervisors’ workplace stress positively affected their displaced aggression over their subordinates, which motivated subordinates to engage in unethical behavior. Moreover, the findings supported the moderating effect of despotic leadership in the relationship between supervisors’ workplace stress and displaced aggression.
Originality/value
This study contributes to the limited studies on the trickledown displaced aggression phenomenon in the service (banking) sector. Moreover, the manager’s despotic leadership role as a higher-level negative supervisory behavior in increasing the supervisors’ displaced aggression shows the critical aspect in such a stressful workplace situation.
It is very difficult to select the right supplier from supply base for the global supply chain due to many challenges and problems especially for the developing countries such as Pakistan. In the ...present study primary data is collected via adopted questionnaire from cases of the total 170 cases from Kotri manufacturing companies of Sindh, Pakistan. For the analysis of gathered data many tests were applied such as reliability test, factor analysis and structural equation modelling in SPSS and AMOS software. Findings, revealed the partial mediation for both quality and delivery variables in the presence of mediating variable information flow. However, the quality confirmed the more important variable for the supplier selection in manufacturing companies of Kotri, Sindh, Pakistan due to higher beta value than delivery variable. In the past research scholars explored the direct relationship between quality and delivery for the supplier selection but, in the present mediating variable information flow is introduced in order to verify the strength of studied variables. Lastly, based our limited knowledge this would be the first study conducted on Kotri manufacturing companies of Sindh, Pakistan.
Sindh Fruit Traders: Expanding Abroad Umrani, Waheed Ali; Solangi, Rukhman; Mirani, Manzoor ...
Asian journal of management cases,
03/2024, Letnik:
21, Številka:
1
Journal Article
Recenzirano
This case examines the establishment of a small-scale business, Sindh Fruit Traders, owned by Mr Imtiaz and Mr Tehseen. The saturated local market condition is compelling them to look at export ...markets as means of expansion. The core challenges they face are identifying and selecting an appropriate export country and making the necessary preparations for the expansion. All these decisions have to be made before the next harvest season in July 2017.
This case describes in detail the dates business in Khairpur, Pakistan. It provides information about how an individual commences business at a small scale and then expands with time by learning the techniques of the business.
This case also explains the local trading of crops and traditional ways of conducting business in the date market of Khairpur and looks into ways in which research should be conducted to expand the business for exports. After discussion, the students will be able to understand the production and sales business of dates in general. More specifically, the students will understand how entrepreneurs are attracted to a business, what role research can play in making informed decisions, and the potential means to expand a local business into an international venture.
This paper gives an account of entrepreneurial engagements of academics in engineering universities of Pakistan. The study adds to literature on academic entrepreneurship in developing economies ...perspective. Data was collected through self-administered questionnaire from six engineering universities of Pakistan and 306 academics participated in the survey. Findings reveal that academics are involved in all the categories of academic entrepreneurship. However, it is quite evident that academics prefer the soft side of entrepreneurship than hard side. External teaching, seminars and consultancy are the preferred strategies compared to formation of companies within universities or without universities. The paper presents policy recommendations and future research opportunities in developing economies.
PDF
