Workplace learning initiatives are influenced by perceptions, and negative perceptions hinder organizational innovation and productivity. This exploratory study presents an argument that messages shared among trainees regarding their training experiences shape such perceptions. The application of Symbolic Convergence Theory reveals two discursive…

This paper aims to examine the combined effects of self-efficacy and organizational culture on employees' transfer of knowledge/skills acquired through training. The questionnaires were distributed to 252 newly hired employees working in a service organization in Greece. Each of the independent variables examined added incrementally to the…

This naturalistic inquiry investigated how instructional designers engage in complex and ambiguous problem solving across organizational boundaries in two corporations. Participants represented a range of instructional design experience, from novices to experts. Research methods included a participant background survey, observations of…

Purpose: The lack of career movement of members of ethnic minority groups in work organizations has been widely documented. The purpose of this paper is to gain insight into conditions for the realization of diversity goals in the case of talent development. Design/methodology/approach: In a case study of management development in the Dutch…

Often, the aim of distance learning (DL) is to enhance individual learning, not to change workplace practices. Changing organizational policies, practices and behaviors related to disability calls for a different DL approach that engages users and contextualizes knowledge. In the disability arena, there is a need for programming that brings about…

An attachment theory perspective of mentoring is presented to explain the degree of functionality of a mentor-protege formal match in an organizational setting. By focusing on Bowlby's (1969/1982) behavioral system of attachment and its triarchic taxonomy of secure, avoidant, and anxious-ambivalent attachment, previous conceptualizations are…

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to explore the sources of meaningfulness at the workplace, according to the perceptions of hospitality employees from different national cultures in one US-based hotel, based on Dimitrov's empirical study about the features of the humane organization. Design/methodology/approach: This was an exploratory…

The aim of this article is to exemplify the value of using a phenomenological approach when investigating graduates' lived experiences of vocational learning. For this study, qualitative data was obtained during a series of email interviews with 35 participants. As a group they are highly aspirational and, during their graduate studies, were…

In today's business thinking, innovation is commonly equated with progress, indicating an underlying assumption that company management have the power to choose a specific future and control the way into it. Drawing on examples from a longitudinal research initiative in the Norwegian petroleum company StatoilHydro, this article raises some of the…

Biometric technology is rapidly gaining popularity as an access control mechanism in the workplace. In some instances, systems relying on biometric technology have not been well received by employees. One reason for resistance may be perceived privacy issues associated with biometrics. This research draws on previous organizational information…

This article focuses on pedagogical aspects of initial vocational training in the context of the Swiss VET system. Even though apprentices are usually the responsibility of one main supervisor within companies, a number of other colleagues, experts and fellow apprentices interact with them as they engage in productive tasks. In that context, the…

A values-centered and team-based behavioral safety process was implemented in a petroleum oil refinery. Employee teams defined the refinery's safety values and related practices, which were used to guide the process design and implementation. The process included (a) a safety assessment; (b) the clarification of safety-related values and related…

This paper aims at testing a conceptual model connecting variables of the internal and external work environment to ITES/BPO employee turnover. Based on the gaps identified from the literature that no single model explains in a comprehensive way as to why, people choose to leave and the lack of turnover studies on call centers located in India.…

Purpose: The aim of this paper is to provide a framework to measure the response of blue-collar workers to new technology in manufacturing and to establish the relationship between learning culture and that response. Design/methodology/approach: The data were collected with a survey questionnaire from 12 manufacturing sites that were implementing…

This article draws upon, but also critiques, activity theory by combining analysis of how an activity theory derived research intervention attempted to address both everyday work practices and organisational power relationships among children's services professionals. It offers two case studies of developmental work research (DWR) interventions in…