Home Menu
icon-menu-close.svg

Faculty & Research

Faculty & Research

Research Productive

Show result

Clear
Search Query :
Area :
Search Query :
3819 items in total found

Journal Articles | 2017

How to answer some tricky interview questions?

Asha Kaul

HBR Ascend

Go to link

Journal Articles | 2017

Impact of religion-based caste system on the dynamics of Indian trade unions: Evidence from two state-owned organizations in North India

Jatin Pandey and Biju Varkkey

Business and Society

Religion and its envisaged structures have both macro- and micro-level implications for business. Of the many stratification schemas prevalent in India, two macro-social stratification schemas are important at the workplace: caste, which has been an age-old, religion-mandated, closed social stratification prevalent in Hinduism that had led to inequality in the society, and trade union, which is a relatively new and optional open workplace stratification that empowers workers and fosters equality. This study tries to decipher whether these two structures influence each other; if yes how and why do they influence each other (the tensions and contradictions that may happen between them), and whether the influence is uniform for all members. We conducted in-depth interviews with 43 trade union members, three trade union leaders of two state-owned organizations in North India. Initially, we found that caste does not have any superficial effect on the relationship between union members. However, a deeper analysis reveals that roots of this social reality reflect in the social and workplace exchanges between union members, and affect their social identity and loyalty. In the discussion we present a model of twin loyalties between union and caste. From the institutional logic perspective, we also delineate the caste and trade union perspective, and show how there is a change in trade union identity because of the influence of caste-based logic. Our findings have implications for industrial democracy, worker representation, and union effectiveness.

Go to link
Read More

Journal Articles | 2017

Convergence or Divergence: The impact of globalization on employee relations in India and China

Jatinder Kumar Jha and Biju Varkkey

International Journal of Employment Studies

This paper explores the underlying principles of employee relations and the pattern of their evolution in India and China, in the context of globalisation. Globalisation has deeply influenced the way economies function and altered the national patterns of employee relations. Using evidences from available extant literature, we mapped the approaches taken by both India and China to highlight the impact of globalisation on employee relations and found that competition, followed by globalisation, and changes in the trade union structures, have prompted the introduction of the 'human' element to employee relations practices, particularly at the enterprise level; besides, a lucid convergence in employee relations patterns is also witnessed, alongside some divergences in the approaches. The points of convergence include the introduction of the human element in employee relations, labour flexibility, reduction in union membership and increased focus on individual employment contracts. Divergence is primarily witnessed in the degree of involvement of trade unions and governments in employee relations. The differences in patterns observed between the countries can be attributed to the unique institutional factors of each country.

Go to link
Read More

Journal Articles | 2017

Contribution of HR systems in development of ethical climate at workplace: A case study

Jatinder Kumar Jha, Biju Varkkey, Praveen Agrawal, and Narendra Singh

South Asian Journal of Human Resource Management

This article elucidates the relationship between HR systems and ethical climate at workplace with primary focus on the procedure adopted for development of ethical climate, using case study of an Indian power distribution company (Tata Power Delhi Distribution Limited [TPDDL]). The study categorizes TPDDL’s endeavours undertaken into two categories, explicit and implicit initiatives. Explicit ways of promoting ethics include ethics trainings, seminars on ethics, rewards and punishment policy, and mechanism of reporting ethical concerns/issues (ethics portal, whistle blower policy, IVRS, etc.). Implicit ways of creating ethical climate include HR practices, namely selective selection, training for developing interpersonal and technical skills, fair performance appraisal system and various engagement initiatives. The support and guidance of the senior management and line managers ensured successful execution of both initiatives. Results from the study suggest, over the period of time, the untiring efforts of various actors that saw the development of an ethical climate.

Go to link
Read More

Journal Articles | 2017

Professionalizing religious family-owned organizations: An examination of human resource challenges

Anamika Sinha, Jatin Pandey, and Biju Varkkey

South Asian Journal of Management

Transformation of the Human Resource (HR) function from the traditional to a modern and professional one continues to be a challenge for most family-owned organizations. This paper discusses the traditional HR practices followed in an Indian religious family-owned organization, the actions taken during the transformation process of professionalizing the firm and the challenges faced by the newly recruited HR head while executing this process, along with the change management schema adopted for professionalization. During this process, deeply-rooted traditions prevalent in the firm had to be a balanced with a need for modernization. A steady approach with small steps at a time-rather than a radical transformation at a fast pace-was adopted for the change process. The intention of the professionalization process was not to harm or do away with the inherent good people-management practices that already existed but build upon them. At the same time, practices and styles had to be changed, and concerns of employees addressed. The paper also brings forth the impact of owner/promoter's religious beliefs on the organizational and also opens avenues for future research on the relatively unexplored domains of religion and management. We discuss a three-pronged plan comprising of overall strategy development, tuning the HR systems to meet transformation goals and building a new professional culture. The paper adds to the existing theory and practice by proposing the secularization matrix for managing transformation in such organizations.

Go to link
Read More

Journal Articles | 2017

Professionalizing a religio-centric firm through workplace learning

Anamika Sinha, Biju Varkkey, Rajesh Kikani, and Priyanka Dave

Vikalpa

On a Monday morning, after a three-week holiday in Brazil, Rakesh Patel, Chairman of Steel Tubes and Pipes Ltd (STPL), was consolidating his thoughts on the tasks ahead. He was back to work after his first family holiday in many years. Experiencing lovely beaches, football fever, and a leisurely cruise in the Amazon basin had rejuvenated the family. He too was recharged, and ready to take his medium-sized company into, as they say, the next orbit.

Go to link
Read More

Journal Articles | 2017

Transnational Indian business in the twentieth century

Chinmay Tumbe

Business History Review

This article argues that migration and investment from India moved in tandem to chart the evolution of transnational Indian business in the twentieth century, first toward Southeast Asia and Africa and later toward the United States, Europe, and West Asia. With a focus on the banking and diamond sectors, the overseas investment project of the Aditya Birla Group, and the transnational linkages of India's one hundred richest business leaders, the article locates important events, policies, and actors before economic liberalization in 1991 that laid the foundation for subsequent globalization of Indian firms.

Go to link
Read More

Journal Articles | 2017

Factors affecting Web 2.0 adoption: exploring the knowledge sharing and knowledge seeking aspects in health care professionals

Jang Bahadur Singh, Rajesh Chandwani, and Mayank Kumar

Journal of Knowledge Management

Purpose

This research aims to explore the factors that affect the adoption of Web 2.0 among knowledge workers. The research specifically investigated the role of factors related to both knowledge seeking and knowledge sharing, in the context of Web 2.0 use by health care professionals.

Design/methodology/approach

For this research, a cross-sectional survey design was adopted. The data were analyzed using the partial least square-structural equation modeling.

Findings

The results confirmed that the intention to adopt Web 2.0 depends upon both the knowledge-seeking and the knowledge-sharing attitudes. However, between the two, it is knowledge-sharing factors that are more important. Health care professionals tend to share knowledge driven by intrinsic motivators rather than by extrinsic motivators. On the other hand, knowledge-seeking attitude was determined by usefulness of knowledge and was not affected by the effort involved.

Research limitations/implications

All the respondents were health care professionals from India, and convenience sampling was used to reach them. This may limit the generalizability of the findings.

Practical implications

This research provides useful insights on implementing Web 2.0-based knowledge management systems, specifically for health care professionals. Particularly, it emphasizes the need to focus on reinforcing intrinsic motivators like self-efficacy and the joy of sharing.

Originality/value

It is perhaps the first study that integrates the factors related to knowledge sharing and seeking in a single theoretical model, thereby presents and tests a more realistic model of knowledge management.

Go to link
Read More

Journal Articles | 2017

Gendered BoP hygiene markets in rural India: A case study of social entrepreneurship and social innovation

Sukhpal Singh

The Hong Kong Journal of Social Work

Water scarcity and non-existent or poor sanitation have special implications for the poor in a rural context of a developing country such as India, especially in the case of women due to their personal hygiene needs. The penetration of sanitary napkins is very low in Indian villages for reasons such as the high cost of branded napkins, availability, and cultural barriers. Over 88% of rural women use unhygienic alternatives during menstruation, with 77% using a piece of old cloth and many others nothing at all. These practices lead to a deterioration in health of the mother as well as the child and, sometimes, the death of the mother. Furthermore, a large proportion of girls in India do not go to school during their menstruation period, for an average of 4–5 days every month, and at least 23% of girls drop out of school when they start menstruating. Adult women cut down on their productive day-to-day activities. Menstruating lower-income women also have to follow certain social exclusion norms and treat it as a purely private matter as it is considered a social taboo. The access to personal reproductive hygiene products and services thus becomes indispensable in terms of addressing hygiene and sanitation needs. Furthermore, this is more of a developmental/social venture rather than just pure rural marketing. This paper examines the issue from a social enterprise and social innovation perspective in order to understand the issues involved in changing the situation. It examines the case of a social venture in India (Goonj) which has attempted to deal with this market in terms of its approach, product design, market creation, performance, issues faced, and impact made. The paper attempts to infer lessons for making social entrepreneurship and social innovations work in developing country health and hygiene contexts in the form of a Bottom of Pyramid (BoP) market solution.

Go to link
Read More

Journal Articles | 2017

How inclusive and effective are farm machinery rental services in India? Case Studies from Punjab

Sukhpal Singh

Indian Journal of Agricultural Economics

Increasing cost of cultivation in most parts of India has led to the realisation that mechanisation of farm operations is one of the ways to tackle it as mechanical solutions are more efficient as well as cost effective compared with human labour based activities in most situations. However, given small farm dominance of Indian agriculture, it is not possible and viable for small farmers to own farm machinery and equipment for its use. Therefore, what they need is access to it, and not ownership. This has led to a new phenomenon of custom rental services of farm machinery and equipment in many parts of India by a range of players like co-operatives, private entrepreneurs, organised sector players and even producer companies. In this context of changing landscape of farm mechanisation, the paper examines the small holder inclusiveness of agro machinery rental service channels and the nature and the level of their effectiveness in helping the farmers access better services. It compares the performance of co-operative, private organised and local informal service providers in Punjab and identifies major issues and challenges in delivery of such services across types of farmers and examines the possible policy and enabling provisions to promote cost and quality effective custom rentals of farm machinery in India.

Go to link
Read More
IIMA