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    Enhancing the information literacy conversation by engaging the voice of New Zealand small businesses : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Business Studies in Communication Management at Massey University, Distance Learning - Manawatu, New Zealand
    (Massey University, 2017) Ninces, Mke
    This research contributes to a small but expanding body of research about information literacy in the workplace. Through the development of a conceptual framework and through a survey of New Zealand small businesses (NZSBs), the goal of this research was to explore the links among the concepts of information literacy, information culture, knowledge management and organisational learning. The survey of NZSBs also identifies NZSBs’ current information practices, the value of information-related skills to NZSBs and how familiar NZSBs are with the terms of information literacy, information culture, knowledge management and organisational learning. This research is significant, being the first of its kind when it comes to attempting to add the voice of NZSBs to information literacy. Amongst other things, the research findings raise questions about source acknowledgement in the workplace, and reinforces the idea of social interaction being a vital aspect of information literacy in the workplace.
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    Finding a reflexive voice : -- researching the problems of implementing new learning practices within a New Zealand manufacturing organisation : a 100pt thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Management in Human Resources Management at Massey University
    (Massey University, 2005) Paardekooper, Kaye Dewe
    This study explored the social forces mediating manager's participation in a new reflexive participative learning practice designed to improve profitability within a New Zealand manufacturing organisation. Despite a large theoretical and managerial body of literature on organisational learning there has been little empirical investigation of how people experience and engage their reflexivity towards challenging the status-quo to create high level learning and new knowledge. Power was identified as a potential moderator of the reflexive learning experience and the variable relations of power and learning were constructed from a review of literature and these relationships were explored and investigated within the case study. Two prevailing discourses were identified as powerful moderators of public reflexivity, the traditionalist discourse which constructed managers actions and conversations towards insularism and survivalist concerns and the productionist discourse in which institutionalised production practices encircled and mediated managers actions and what constituted legitimacy in conversations. This study used a critical action research method to place the reflexive experience of managers and the researcher at the centre of the study and provide data representative of the social discourses that constructed variable freedoms and constraints upon the reflexive voice.
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    The role of organisational memory for learning in project management using lessons learned : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Masters of Business Studies in Human Resource Management at Massey University
    (Massey University, 2000) Gosling, Isobelle Anne
    The notion of learning from experience framed as lessons learned (an output of project management practice) stored in organisational memory has been little discussed in the literature. Prolifically discussed is organisational learning to build capability through generative learning to achieve what an organisation desires. Organisational memory is the fundamental result of organisational learning to store the knowledge from the past that is 'brought to bear' on the activity to hand by means of acquisition, retention, search and retrieval processes. It is argued the storage of lessons learned in human memory and the sharing of lessons learned between projects significantly contributes to project success at the personal level, but not at the organisational level despite lessons learned shared generically. This argument is supported by the strong suggestions of systematic problem solving to get at the 'root' cause, continuous improvement embedded in practice through benchmarking, quality management, flexibility in using standardised tools, the moderate suggestion of an Organisational Memory Management System (OMIS), and project strategic support. These were the findings from a survey of 47 project practitioners at two Project Management Institute (PMI) meetings, and seven semi-structured interviews where participants perceived the organisation they worked in characterised organisational learning practices. These findings raise questions about the competitive advantages for the organisation by using lessons learned, a moderate to weak finding in this study, and the recent initiative by most participants to implement an OMIS system. It is recommended project practitioners make lessons learned an everyday project management practice to build capability to advance organisational learning, or else the lessons learned will be pushed aside by time constraints and the pressure to move onto new projects. Key Concepts: Lessons learned, organisational learning, and organisational memory.
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    Organisational learning and the real estate brokerage industry in New Zealand : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Business Studies in Property at Massey University
    (Massey University, 2001) Flint-Hartle, Susan
    The real estate brokerage industry offers and interesting opportunity to explore organisational response in an environment of rapid change. This thesis studies the effectiveness of organisational learning and more specifically the 'Learning Company' concept as a mechanism to cope with this change. In the present real estate environment, on going learning at both individual and organisational levels would seem a necessary part, not only of the continued commercial viability of real estate offices, but also of the creation of pleasant and fulfilling work environments. The focus of this thesis is organisational learning in real estate brokerage offices and a central purpose is to examine the degree to which they are perceived by staff as places of learning. The study also examines the link between organisational learning and overall office performance. Success criteria such as staff recruitment and retention, management and business competency, ethical practice, reputation, stimulating culture, qualification levels, and innovative marketing practice as well as profitability are used to measure performance. The SPSS statistical package is used to analyse data collected from a survey of real estate offices in the Auckland area. Qualitative information from in-depth staff interviews is also analysed to overlay the quantitative results with some real life stories of learning practices. The thesis finds that organisational learning is occurring at different degrees in real estate offices and that there are important differences between 'high' and 'low' scoring learning offices. It finds that while there is a link between office learning and performance, there are also other important factors such as office size, market location and the office franchise group affiliation. It also finds that the highly competitive nature of the real estate industry, together with emphasis on the training of individuals, may be a barrier to organisational learning. It suggests that some attitudes, behaviours and customs that have become embedded in the real estate culture may need to be changed before the benefits of organisational learning can be fully utilised as one way of coping with a rapidly changing environment.
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    e-Learning systems success in an organisational context : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Management Information Systems at Massey University, Palmerston North, New Zealand
    (Massey University, 2012) Samarasinghe, Samantha Malkanthi
    Issues around effective implementation, management, and success of e-Learning systems have drawn the attention of many researchers. However, e-Learning systems success research still lacks models and frameworks addressing organisational dimensions along with instructor and learner dimensions, particularly in the New Zealand higher education context. Hence, the purpose of this research was to explore the dimensions of e-Learning systems success in an organisational context. Based on a broad review of literature, I formulated a multidimensional framework of e-Learning systems success in the organisational context and used the framework to develop two e-Learning success models: a model from the instructor perspective and a model from the learner perspective. To test the framework and to explore the dimensions of e-Learning systems success, I conducted three empirical studies. First, a preliminary study with 43 e-Learning experts was carried out to confirm the content validity of the measurement instruments. The e-Learning systems success models were then tested in the organisational context of New Zealand universities by fitting the instructor model to data collected from 204 instructors engaged in e-Learning and by fitting the learner model to data collected from 189 students with e-Learning experience. The study identified quality of the e-Learning development and implementation process as a dimension of e-Learning systems success. This study was the first to formulate and to test a measure for e-Learning development and implementation process quality. An insight into the instructor views of this dimension was obtained by qualitative analysis of their free-text comments. Moreover, the study was the first to formulate and to test a multidimensional e-Learning systems success model based on DeLone and McLean’s (2003) IS success model focusing on instructors as the stakeholders. The study investigated the effect of organisational dimensions on other dimensions of e-Learning systems success, accounting for both instructor and learner perspectives in the same organisational context. Of the organisational dimensions considered, quality of the e-Learning system was the most influential. Quality of the e-Learning development and implementation directly affected other organizational dimensions, system quality and institutional support to the instructors, and affected instructor dimensions indirectly.
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    Organisational learning, competitive strategy and export performance : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for a degree of Master of Management in Marketing at Massey University, Auckland, New Zealand
    (Massey University, 2012) Chen, Kai
    With the rise of global competition, organisations must acquire new knowledge and enhance their capabilities in response to fast changing market requirements. In international markets, it is vital for organisations to gather knowledge from both internal and external sources; however, few existing studies explore this topic in detail. This study employs organisational learning theory and competitive strategy theory to formulate a new organisational learning-competitive strategy-performance theoretical model concerning firms operating in the export sector. This research explores the mediating role of competitive strategies in the relation between organisational learning and export performance. This thesis also explores the effect of organisational learning on competitive strategies (low cost, differentiation and innovation) and performance, as well as the impact of competitive strategies on performance. The model was tested using the experience of 105 NZ exporting firms operating in a variety of host markets. The structural equation modelling method was employed as a key statistical analysis method for exploring the organisational learning-competitive strategy-performance path model. The empirical results indicate that export performance is significantly affected by low cost and differentiation competitive strategies, but that organisational learning factors (explorative and exploitative) have no direct effect on export performance. It is also confirmed that organisational learning factors (explorative and exploitative) can act as antecedents of competitive strategy factors (innovation, low cost and differentiation), as they have a significant impact on the choice of competitive strategy. The results confirm the mediation role of competitive strategy in the relation between organisational learning and performance. The outcomes of this thesis provide a new direction for future exporting research regarding organisational learning, competitive strategy and performance.
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    Exploring employees' perceptions of their capability and success of sharing knowledge : implications for human resource management (HRM) : a dissertation presented in partial fulfilment of the requirement for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Human Resource Management (HRM) at Massey University, Palmerston North, New Zealand
    (Massey University, 2012) Abdul Jalal, Hayati
    This thesis considers the relationships among knowledge sharing capability, organisational culture, and knowledge sharing success using employees’ perceptions. By exploring these relationships, the thesis seeks to help HRM become a more robust tool for successful employee knowledge sharing within organisations. Human attributes, incorporating employee perceptions of ability, motivation and opportunity to share, describe the construct “knowledge sharing capability”. The six perceptions of organisational cultural values examined include collaboration, innovativeness, formalisation, autonomy, expertise, and trust. Data were collected from knowledge workers of four MSC status Malaysian-owned Information Technology (IT) organisations in two states of Malaysia. Using random sampling, 500 questionnaires were distributed to employees at all levels of these organisations. Of these, 270 questionnaires were useful for data analysis, a 52% valid response rate. The results of factor analyses, however, showed the emergence of unanticipated combinations of organisational culture questionnaire items. This resulted in the emergence of four new cultural values (i.e. formal collaboration, trustworthiness, expertise, and independence). Correlations and multiple regressions were employed to address the proposed research questions. The results confirmed that: 1) knowledge sharing capability has a positive and significant relationship with knowledge sharing success; 2) knowledge sharing capability has a significant relationship with organisational culture; 3) organisational culture (as found in perceived values of formal collaboration, trustworthiness, and expertise) has a positive and significant relationship with knowledge sharing success; 4) perceived cultural values of formal collaboration, trustworthiness, and expertise perfectly mediated the relationship between knowledge sharing capability and knowledge sharing success; and 5) perceived cultural values of expertise and independence did Abstract ii | P a g e moderate the causal link of knowledge sharing capability and knowledge sharing success, but an increase in independence for employees’ capability reduces the success of knowledge sharing. The results suggest the importance of incorporating human attributes (that translate into capability to share knowledge) and organisational culture into the design of HRM practices. The outcome of re-orientating HRM practices to reflect cultural values so that knowledge sharing success is enhanced would be a valuable future investigation. These results show that the greatest potential for knowledge sharing success can be achieved when cultural values are integrated into HRM practices which are then implemented efficiently.
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    Learning at work : a model of learning & development for younger workers : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Human Resource Management at Massey University, New Zealand
    (Massey University, 2011) Mason, Robyn Lynette; Mason, Robyn Lynette
    An organisation’s competitiveness is largely determined by the capability of its workforce (Combs, Luthans, & Griffith, 2009; Den Hartog & Verburg, 2004). The development of employee capability is, therefore, an important goal for organisations and human resource practitioners. Because the workforce is ageing, organisations need to pay particular attention to developing the capability of younger, novice workers who will become the core workforce as older workers move out of the labour market. However, little is known about the process by which younger workers learn and develop at work or how organisations may be able to influence this process to enhance the development of their skills, knowledge and abilities. To address this gap in the literature, the present study examined a model of learning and development for younger workers. The model posited that younger workers’ ‘development self-efficacy’ beliefs would mediate the relationship between salient contextual (work environment) and individual factors and motivational components of the development process. A total of 1758 young people aged between 16 and 24 years employed full-time participated in the study. Eligible employees were invited to take part via their organisations. Organisations were selected using a multi-stage stratified random sampling method which enabled a diverse and comprehensive sample of younger workers to be achieved. The method resulted in a sampling frame comprising small, medium and large organisations from four major industries (business, construction, manufacturing and retail) located in nine medium and large urban centres around New Zealand. Participants were asked to complete a questionnaire which contained a series of questions about their learning-related beliefs and attitudes, intentions to participate in development activities, and perceptions of developmental support from their organisation, manager and co-workers. The study found that individual and contextual factors both have an important influence on younger workers’ participation in development activities, but affect this through different aspects of the development process. Development self-efficacy mediates the influence of certain contextual and individual factors on learning motivation. In addition, other individual and contextual factors directly influence young people’s intentions to engage in development activities through their learning attitudes, motivation and career-job beliefs. In addition, there is evidence to suggest that certain factors may be more relevant to the development of younger workers than their more experienced colleagues. Consequently, life-stage is a potentially important factor to consider when developing employee capability.
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    The effects of managers on employees' learning in selected New Zealand small manufacturing firms : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Management at Massey University, Wellington, New Zealand
    (Massey University, 2005) Coetzer, Alan John
    The view that there should be increased emphasis on learning in workplaces because of rapid changes in business environments, and the suggestion that managers should foster the learning of employees, is prevalent in the workplace learning, organisational learning and ‘learning organisation’ literature. In New Zealand, and in other developed economies, small firms represent a very significant part of the workplace-learning context. Given the vast knowledge and skills base vested in small firms, how knowledge and skills are developed and maintained through learning processes in these firms are matters of major interest. Overall, this study seeks to answer the question: In selected small manufacturing firms, what effects, if any, do managers have on employees' learning? To help answer this question, data were collected through semi-structured interviews and mail survey questionnaires. Verbatim expressions of the interview participants were analysed using content analytic procedures. Data gathered from employees through mail survey questionnaires were analysed using a range of statistical methods. Findings of the content analysis of the verbatim expressions of the interview participants reveal that managers use a variety of strategies to foster learning at and through work in the small firms studied. Analysis of the mail survey data provides a description of how employees in the sample firms perceive their workplaces as learning environments. Employees' attributions of their work-related learning to various sources and methods of learning are also described. Additionally, specific managerial actions and behaviours that have potential to increase employee satisfaction with workplace learning are identified. Findings of this study contribute to knowledge in the fields of management and human resource management in the small firm context. Synthesis of the qualitative and quantitative findings suggest a conceptual framework that can be used for analysing the effects of managers on employees' learning and help to evaluate the current state of research in the fields.
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    The learning cultures of organisations : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Human Resource Management at Massey University, Palmerston North, New Zealand
    (Massey University, 2003) Ramsey, Philip L.
    While there is significant interest in the area of learning organisations, research in this field has been fragmented. There is a need for an holistic model of learning organisations and a measurement system that can be used by both researchers and practitioners. This thesis applies Dilemma Theory as a means of meeting this need. An holistic model was developed based on a definition of learning organisations as ones that consciously seek to balance capacities with demands. In seeking this balance, an organisation will undertake a learning journey in which it encounters a variety of learning dilemmas: points where it must choose between alternative approaches to learning, each of which is attractive. In making these choices, learning-related values are established in the organisation. These values are the basis for a "learning culture" which shapes the way learning is understood and approached by the organisational community. Presenting people within an organisation with learning-related dilemmas allows learning cultures to be charted, thus providing the basis for a measurement system. Fifteen learning-related dilemmas were identified using three processes. Firstly, literature on learning organisations was reviewed to identify conflicts between metaphors used to explain the learning organisation. Secondly, a group of New Zealand consultants took part in a Delphi Technique process, in which they established criteria for identifying learning organisations and surfaced dilemmas embedded in the criteria. Finally, 'Culture Exploration Workshops' were conducted in three organisations to surface dilemmas experienced by business practitioners engaged in learning journeys. The 15 dilemmas identified were used to chart differences between 5 organisations. The measurement system was successful in identifying differences between organisations. Results were also consistent with values that might be expected from sub-cultures represented in the sample. The study concluded by outlining a programme of research aimed at refining the measurement system and applying it to the study of learning organisations.