Innovators and imitators: Organizational reference groups and adoption of organizational routines

Firms vary greatly in their rates of creating and adopting technological and organizational innovations, in part because of their choice of reference group. We argue that the selection of a reference group is a crucial and neglected source of firm heterogeneity. Comparisons to the average of other firms in a population cause most firms to adopt innovations once they are widely accepted. A distinctive feature of the minority of innovating firms that create innovations or adopt them early is that they compare themselves with, compete with, and try to differ from other innovating firms, whereas the majority of firms compare themselves with, and conform to, a broader group of firms. We elaborate this argument based on the behavioral theory of the firm and institutional theory, and test it on a two-period survey on adoptions of innovative organizational forms in Europe and the US. The analysis shows the predicted differences in the adoption patterns of innovating and imitating firms.     

Domesticating Computers and the Internet

The people who use computers and the ways they use them have changed substantially over the past 25 years. In the beginning highly educated people, mostly men, in technical professions used computers for work, but over time a much broader range of people are using computers for personal and domestic purposes. This trend is still continuing, and over a shorter time scale has been replicated with the use of the Internet. This paper uses data from four national surveys to document how personal computers and the Internet have become increasingly domesticated since 1995 and to explore the mechanisms for this shift. Now people log on more often from home than from places of employment and do so for pleasure and for personal purposes rather than for their jobs. Analyses comparing veteran Internet users to novices in 1998 and 2000 and analyses comparing the change in use within a single sample between 1995 and 1996 support two complementary explanations for how these technologies have become domesticated. Women, children, and less well-educated individuals are increasingly using computers and the Internet and have a more personal set of motives than well-educated men. In addition, the widespread diffusion of the PC and the Internet and the response of the computing industry to the diversity in consumers has led to a rich set of personal and domestic services.     

经济转轨时期发展高技术产业的政府行为

本文从我国高技术产业发展及管理模式的现状分析入手，主要研究由计划经济向市场经济转轨时期，我国发展高技术产业的政府行为的特点，探讨在社会主义市场经济的条件下，政府行为模式在发展高技术产业中的宏观调控作用     

e-Government services for faith-based organizations: Bridging the organizational divide

In this paper, we examine the challenges faced by faith-based institutions in a low-income, predominantly Black community seeking to take advantage of grants provided through the White House Office of Community and Faith-Based Initiatives (FBCI). FBCI is an e-Government program that assists nonprofit organizations in competing for Federal dollars with fewer bureaucratic barriers. Informed by the design-actuality framework, we interviewed clergy at seven faith-based organizations. The intent of this analysis is to juxtapose the design intentions of the government officials with the actualities expressed by the intended benefactors of the initiative. Our findings suggest that this e-Government initiative may unwittingly exacerbate existing disparities in the strategic use of information and communication technologies (ICT).     

Influencing citizen behavior: Experiences from multichannel marketing pilot projects

Information technology allows national and local governments to satisfy the needs of citizens in a cost effective way. Unfortunately, citizens still tend to prefer traditional, more costly channels, such as the front desk, phone and mail. Through pilot projects government agencies attempt to influence this behavior of citizens, directing them towards the online channel. With this paper we provide insight into the possibility to influence citizens’ behavior in the complex landscape of multi-channel service provision. The paper systematically compares five pilot projects using a framework that is based on organizational and marketing literature. The results show that socio-psychological factors are crucial in multi-channel management, much more than the technology itself. We conclude that citizens can be directed towards the online channel. However, not all projects are successful. Economic and legal instruments tend to sort more direct effects than communication or service instruments. Moreover, organizational factors such as bureaucracy often hinder eventual success. Choosing a smart and relatively small scope and strong project manager may help to evoke success in directing citizen online behavior.     

浅析出版企业成长的结构效应

结构效应是推动企业由简单到复杂、由低级到高级成长的重要途径。要发挥出版企业成长的结构效应,需要对出版企业的组织结构、战略结构和资源结构进行调整与优化。     

关注公民教育中特色教育资源的个性化服务——延安红色教育资源数字化服务模式构建

延安红色教育资源是新时期开展公民教育的特色教育资源。延安红色教育资源地处陕甘宁边区,在教育的价值与意义上,是中华民族共有的精神财富。为突破延安红色教育资源应用受地域的限制,在新媒体环境下提升公民教育中特色教育资源的个性化服务,利用互联网面向学校与社会公开共享特色教育资源,旨在促进红色教育资源在公民教育中的有效应用。延安红色教育资源数字化建设具有一定的特殊性,其个性化服务是一项长期系统的工程,原有的资源建设与应用模式很难适应新媒体环境下红色教育资源数字化服务的要求,因此需要重新构建延安红色教育资源开发与应用的新模型。基于该模型制定延安红色教育资源数字化建设的标准和规范,设计和分析红色教育网络平台模块的功能、素材建设等,实施网络平台开发;根据对网络教育平台的推广,研究红色教育资源应用模式,深化延安红色教育资源在学校和社会中有效应用的个性化服务。     

Organizational justice and management trustworthiness during organizational Change: Interactions of Benevolence,Integrity, and managerial approaches

Trust and justice play an important role in the process of organizational change to build dynamic capabilities for sustainable competitive advantage. This study investigated the interaction effects of management's benevolence trustworthiness and integrity trustworthiness on employees’ perception of procedural justice during innovation or organizational change. Both the scenario and the field study showed that the patterns of the interaction effects of these two components of trustworthiness are further influenced in a complementary manner by different innovation approaches. The study indicated that the relationships between benevolence trustworthiness and integrity trustworthiness are far more complex than expected and thus need more research efforts.     

当前大学生公民意识培养存在问题及对策

大学生公民意识的现状不仅直接影响着大学生公民个体的现代化发展,作为优秀公民代表的大学生群体的公民意识最终将影响着国家现代化的步伐。通过对大学生公民意识现状的研究分析,研究认为缺少全面的公民教育内容,以及行之有效的大学生公民意识教育手段是大学生公民意识薄弱的原因,应根据大学生自身特点,结合嘉庚精神和＂创先争优＂活动;及时...     

综合实践活动课教师培训的组织设计

为了在短期内培养足够数量的、能够有效促进综合实践活动课开展的优秀教师，需要对新课教师培训进行组织设计，主要包括组织结构设计和组运行设计两个方面。根据综合实践活动教师培训的组织原则，在组织结构设计方面，我们应该选择适当的培养模式；在组织运行方面，我们需要完善每个管理环节。