When knowledge matters: job change made easier? unpacking the black box

This research aims to assess direct and indirect influences of organizational culture on job performance, as well as to evaluate the impact of each sub-element of organizational culture on such performance. It is argued that employees performance derives, on the one hand, from a long-term perspective related to changes that organizations manage and implement during their process of growth. A second dimension of organizational culture can be given through organizational values, routines and distinctive aspects of culture that allow organizations to create solid competitive advantages. Since most studies in this field were held in Western work cultures, this paper will be devoted to the analysis of this relationship within an Arabic cultural environment and more specifically within a Saudi context. A quantitative study tool, based on a comprehensive research questionnaire, was used and the sample was selected from various government departments being operative in Alkharj. The findings indicate a positive relationship between organizational culture and job performance. Likewise, four organizational culture sub-elements, namely Managing Change, Achieving Goals, Coordinating Teamwork and Cultural Strength, were found affecting positively on job performance, but with varying and distinct intensity. Only Customer Orientation was found negatively associated with job performance.

In modern conditions, the higher education system of the Russian Federation is characterized by high degree of changeability. It is caused by need of quick and adequate response to changes of internal and external environment. The specified changes are determined by the nature of requirements and interests of stakeholders, which interact with higher education institutions: satisfaction of needs of stakeholders becomes an ultimate goal of development and the most important condition of existence of any organization, including the sector of higher education. Therefore, stakeholders become the main driving forces (drivers) of change in activity of higher education institutions. The research goal is to systematize drivers of change in the higher education system of the Russian Federation. The main research methods are analysis (for detection of the set of drivers of change), classification (for allocation of types of drivers), and the construction method of managerial models (for creation of matrices of changes). Following the research results, current changes in activity of Russian higher education institutions are divided into 4 types: changes in educational, research, innovation and entrepreneurial management activity. The main groups of stakeholders (drivers of change) are distinguished, and their influence on change in activity of higher education institutions is justified. Drivers of change are classified by 2 features: “by attitude to a higher education institution” – into external and internal, “by nature” – into obligatory and initiative. The matrices of necessary and initiative changes are designed. They create interrelation between types of changes and their influence on interests of key stakeholders of Russian higher education institutions (effects, which can be favorable, unfavorable and neutral). The possibility of using the matrices of changes as a tool of managerial decision-making in activity of Russian universities is justified.

Environmental policies may have a negative side effect on employment, often in a specific industry in the short run. Workers in regulated industries can be affected by losses in job-specific human capital. The informal sectors in developing countries are often associated with environmental pollution and thus targeted by such policies. Welfare loss due to this side effect can be problematic in developing countries, since they often lack safeguarding schemes, including unemployment insurance. Inducing workers in informal sectors to change their jobs can mitigate these negative side effects. This study examines efficient methods of inducing informal workers to change jobs. An alternative job is offered to informal workers at a dumpsite in the Philippines and whether changing the scheme of wage payment increases the acceptance of the offer is examined. The impacts of changing payment schemes are evaluated by using a randomized field experiment. The sampled 112 waste pickers each randomly receive one of four offers for an alternative job, and the number of those who accept the offer is observed to evaluate the impact of less frequent payment (i.e., once every three days instead of daily). Piece rates and fixed wages are also compared. Those offered less frequent payment are more likely to accept the job offer compared with those offered daily payment. This preferred payment scheme can mitigate the side effects of environmental policy and workers’ self-control problem related to savings, while minimizing moral hazard.