Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Central Florida, 2008. / Adviser: Julia Pet-Armacost. Includes bibliographical references (p. 159-165).

Based on analyses of recorded real-life selection interviews in a law firm and in a government department, this study illustrates how crucial it is for job applicants to use the valuable skill of Impression Management (IM), that is, the attempt to portray a particular image by controlling the information available to others so that they will view the actor as he or she intended. By using verbal and non-verbal behaviours persuasively, job applicants can create an image of professionalism in a short period of time, structuring the interviewers’ impressions formed of the applicant in order to lead to high suitability ratings and job. Currently, there is much competition for jobs, hence applicants are faced with increasingly sophisticated selection techniques that aim to ensure only the best applicants are appointed. This study is located within the fields of communication and selection interviewing research and is underpinned by moral and ethical issues in regard to the deployment of power and empowerment of job applicants. The necessarily communicative approach involved qualitative data collection and description i.e. Conversation Analysis (CA) and Content Analysis (ContA). It is argued that because power influences language and language influences power, applicants may empower themselves in interviews by examining their beliefs and by adopting more powerful verbal behaviour. In time, and with further academic inquiry, more equality in interpersonal relations in the workplace could become the norm. The hope is that this study could be a catalyst for future research on preventing misuse of power through communication in the workplace and in social life. / Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

<p> Large organizations continue to outsource information technology services as a method of cost-savings rather than knowledge acquisition. This prioritization leads to failed sourcing projects and increases in overhead expenses. The purpose of the study was to achieve a consensus in regard to an effective staffing balance and collaboration in information services outsourcing. The study canvassed an expert panel of 49 IT professionals in a 3-round Delphi study. This study provided understanding of the internal IT professionals&rsquo; relationship with domestic contractors and offshore resources. Information was gathered from IT professionals with experience working with external partners. The study explored procedures to enhance outsourcing models. This was completed by answering the research questions: (R1) what do IT professionals perceive is an appropriate balance of internal staff, domestic contractors, and offshore resources in a global organization? In addition, (R2) when collaborating with external support, what communication and collaboration techniques should be integrated into a sourcing strategy? A qualitative Delphi method was followed, and participant&rsquo;s responses were analyzed to achieve research findings. </p><p> Recommendations were to maintain a 50% to 70% staff of internal employees, have the domestic contract labor equal to offshore labor, and maintain open, frequent communication with external partners. Over-outsourcing passes too much knowledge to the external partner, reduces internal knowledge, and creates a dependency on the external firm. These issues can be overcome by increasing collaboration across firms. Project managers should closely monitor the performance of external teams. IT organizations should acquire external resources based upon skills first, and costs second. Management should integrate firms to ensure the parent organization retains critical knowledge.</p>

<p>This qualitative case study described how community leaders in one East Texas community use storytelling as a leadership tool. Research questions included purpose, setting, mode, as well as possible distinctions between storytelling in for-profit and non-profit settings. The researcher interviewed six community leaders associated with an East Texas Chamber of Commerce and their direct reports, while also examining artifacts. Described purposes included education, relationship-building, and inspiration. Participants also described coaching and counseling as possible settings for stories and the importance of audience and time. Storytelling modes included oral, written, image-supported, and as a facilitation of followers&rsquo; stories. Distinctives related to for-profit or non-profit status included issues of fund-raising, concerns about manipulation, and the use of storytelling from for-profit leaders in non-profit settings. The researcher suggested the study implied the positive possibilities of storytelling as a leadership tool, but also raised ethical concerns. Another result was an observation of connections between story-facilitation and transformational leadership factors. Recommendations were made for both leadership practitioners and leadership researchers. </p>

Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 2007. / Title from title screen (site viewed July 22, 2008). PDF text: 176 p. : ill. (some col.) ; 4 Mb. UMI publication number: AAT 3291604. Includes bibliographical references. Also available in microfilm and microfiche formats.

Thesis (MBus)--AUT University, 2009. / Includes bibliographical references. Also held in print (x, 128 leaves ; 30 cm.) in the Archive at the City Campus (T 658.81 HER)

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Ohio State University, 2005. / Title from first page of PDF file. Document formatted into pages; contains xv, 290 p.; also includes graphics (some col.) Includes bibliographical references (p. 217-233). Available online via OhioLINK's ETD Center

Globalization increases the integration and interdependence of international, national and local business and stakeholder communities across economic, political and cultural spheres. Communication technology and the international role for English suggest the integrating global communication reality is simplifying. Experience indicates integration produces complex heterogeneous dialogue and asymmetrical relationships with no shared interpretative systems. The global/national/local nexus presents management with universal and particular paradoxes mediated through diverse contextual micro communication practices and behaviours. This thesis derives from a professional service (environmental engineering) TNC request for help to address the business communication and performance concerns implicated in the production of professional bi-lingual English and Indonesian reports for clients. At the heart of this corporate concern lie the multicultural nature of interactions between the individuals, organizations and wider stakeholders involved in the Jakarta, Indonesian branch office operations. A developing nation adds further complexity. This thesis contends that these micro organizational concerns link to critical macro economic, political, and cultural societal concerns for the development of more responsive ethical and sustainable management and governance. This thesis argues for an elevated notion of the role of communication management to enable business to pursue more sustainable goals, improve business performance, and address the issue of risk. The thesis reviews multidisciplinary literature to develop a multifaceted theoretical framework that links macro management issues to this micro contextual concern. / This framework guides a qualitative research strategy to apply an ethnographic-oriented case study-based methodology to map the diverse worldviews of a sample of the Indonesian professional staff, their local senior expatriate management, and Headquarters. The case study assesses the impact of diverse worldviews on the interactions, relationships and performances involved in a specific project involving the international investment sector, a national proponent developer, the national regulatory agency, local and indigenous stakeholder communities and the consulting TNC. The findings have implications for the management of international business, the higher education sector and civil society organizations.

<p> The purpose of this qualitative case study was to explore how business management associate degree students attending a university in Independence, Ohio, valued and applied interpersonal skills in work and classroom settings. The central research issue addressed in this case study was to explore and describe the personal views, instances, and perspectives from respondents on the effects of interpersonal skills in employee relationships, manager relationships, organizational performance, and effective leadership. The research questions that produced an in-depth examination of the central research issue included: 1) What ways have students applied interpersonal skills in employee relationships? 2) What manner have students applied interpersonal skills in manager relationships? 3) What ways have interpersonal skills influenced the student organization&rsquo;s performance? 4) What are the student&rsquo;s perceptions of interpersonal skills to become an effective leader? Using NVivo 9, the data analysis aided in identifying common themes. The findings from the case study build on existing research involving the influence interpersonal skills have on the central research issue.</p><p> Recommendations from the case study highlighted a constant need to instruct interpersonal skills in universities and to review current curriculum and course materials to improve instruction. Universities with new faculty orientations, faculty development workshops, new student orientations, for-profit, and nonprofit institutions can benefit from implementing interpersonal skills training. This case study builds on the body of knowledge on interpersonal skills and its influence on productivity and leadership in the workplace.</p>

<p>This sequential, mixed methods research addressed emerging social media use practices among IT professionals and explored lived experiences of senior IT leaders relative to successful organizational social media adoption and use. The study was informed by structuration theory and elements from the universal technology adoption and use (UTAUT) model, generation theory, and open leadership theory. In the first, quantitative descriptive research phase, an online survey was administered to describe IT professionals' uses of and attitudes toward social media in the workplace. Survey results based on 406 responses from IT professionals in the greater Seattle area indicated widespread use of different social media applications, and also showed that Millennial IT professionals use social media more extensively and are have more positive opinions about social media as compared to their older colleagues. Survey findings also indicated that an increasing number of employers are developing formal social media strategies and adopting policies and guidelines governing the use of social media in the workplace. The second, qualitative hermeneutic phenomenological research phase built on survey results and involved interviews with 13 senior IT leaders in the greater Seattle area. Findings indicated that despite the inherent user-driven nature of social media, senior leadership plays a key role in driving strategic social media adoption and in ensuring broad participation across generational cohorts and employee groups. Findings from the qualitative research phase further suggested that social media can help employees and stakeholders communicate and collaborate more effectively and efficiently, and that leaders can derive significant benefits from social media without compromising the integrity of their organizations. </p>