Institute of Management Sciences

Using a time-lagged field survey, the current study examined the psycho-economic effects of job insecurity among hospitality workers during the recent pandemic of COVID-19. The study also examined social support as a buffering agent against the harmful effects of job insecurity. Data were collected from employees (N = 272) working in numerous hotels, restaurants, and travel agencies across Pakistan. Hierarchical moderated regression analysis was used to test the study’s hypotheses. The results suggested that job insecurity was negatively related to self-esteem and positively related to economic deprivation. In addition, social support significantly moderated the effects of job insecurity on mental health, self-esteem, economic self-efficacy and life satisfaction such that the negative effects of job insecurity were stronger when social support was low. The results for economic deprivation, however, were contrary to the expectations, whereby job insecurity had a strong positive effect on economic deprivation in case of high social support.

When individuals are under stress, they cannot fully expend all their energies at work because they are distracted due to stress. This concept is termed stress-related presenteeism. The primary purpose of this research was to analyze the relationship of challenging job demands (i.e., workload) and hindering job demands (i.e., cognitive job demands) with stress-related presenteeism, and the subsequent relationship of stress-related presenteeism with psychological well-being, by using the job-demands resource model and conservation of resource theory. Data (n=211) were collected in two-time waves from bank employees of three major cities of Pakistan. The collected data were analyzed by using bootstrapping mediation analysis. Findings revealed that workload was negatively associated with stress-related presenteeism, whereas cognitive job demands were positively related to stress-related presenteeism. Stress-related presenteeism also mediated the relationships of challenging job demands...

This study aimed to identify major factors which induce Pakistani graduates while making their career choice. The current research investigated whether career choice factors vary across gender and among leading professions like management, agriculture, engineering, medical and pharmacy. Grounded from literature, a specially designed survey instrument was prepared and pilot tested for data collection. The final questionnaire pertained 24 items and was administered across a valuable sample of 370 students representing various disciplines from 8 different universities. Using principal component analysis, the items were grouped into five factors and were labeled as growth opportunities, occupational charm, self-esteem, societal inspiration and work related factors. The results significantly varied especially for medical, management and pharmacy professions and differed from previous investigations, illuminating the contextual importance of career choice factors. In terms of gender, fema...

Using the job-demands resource theory, the basic purpose of this article was to study the relationship between cognitive job demands, stress-related presenteeism, and procrastination. Stress-related Presenteeism is a kind of psychological state in which individuals are present at work but due to stress are not able to expend their full energies at work and remain distracted. We also tested for the combined effect of psychological capital and cognitive job demands on stress-related presenteeism. Data were collected from 192 full-time working professionals and analyzed using step-wise regression and bootstrapping. Results revealed that individuals with strenuous job demands were facing stress-related presenteeism and were involved in procrastination. Findings also supported the moderating role of psychological capital as an effective personal resource in reducing stress-related presenteeism. In the end implications for practice have been discussed.

Most organizational change studies focus on the individual’s positive or negative reactions towards organizational change, yet there is a lack of understanding in existing literature as to the specific reasons behind individual’s positive or negative response. The purpose of the current study is to empirically examine the impact of individual cognitive appraisal of organizational change on their psychological wellbeing with goal congruence as a mediator between the relationship. The data consisted of a sample (N=191) and were collected from employees who worked for a large distribution firm of multinational products. Our findings suggest that the individuals who appraised their organizational change as a challenge also depicted positive impacts on their psychological wellbeing as mediated by goal congruence. On the other hand, where the individuals appraised organizational change as a hindrance/threat, it negatively impacted their psychological wellbeing. In the end future research ...

This position paper brings together recent and emerging developments in the field of presenteeism. A critical synthesis of the evidence is needed due to persisting conceptual and methodological challenges as well as the increased volume of research in the field. This paper integrates emerging evidence and critical thinking into three areas: (1) concept, (2) measurement and methodological issues, and (3) the context of presenteeism. First, due to the variety of existing definitions, competing understandings, as well as the notion of positive presenteeism, it is important to reconsider the notion of presenteeism. Second, it is important to reflect on the measurement of the act of presenteeism and the productivity loss associated with that. Third, following the call to investigate presenteeism in specific contexts, it is important to explain the social, occupational, cross-cultural aspects, as well as the contemporary workplace changes. Based on this critical synthesis, we conclude by identifying recommendations for future research on presenteeism.

Using data from a diverse sample (n=194, paired samples based on data from employeesand their supervisors) from various organizations across Pakistan, this study examined an emergent construct knowledge hiding (which we conceptualized as a silence behavior based on EVLNC, Exit, Voice, Loyalty, Neglect, Cynicism model) and its relation to innovative performance. Against knowledge hiding we also tested job insecurity and innovative performance. Data was analyzed using bootstrapping and regressions analysis. Results supported that knowledge hiding could be significantly predicted by employee's reaction to job insecurity in organizations. Further our findings also indicated that when people feel insecure at their job they indulge in somewhat counterwork behaviors like hiding knowledge and which can negatively affect their innovative performance.

The aim of this study was to understand the effect that proactive personality has on individuals’ knowledge creation ability and innovative work behaviors. This study proposed a model which assists in understanding the effects that proactive personality has on innovative work behaviors through individual knowledge creation. The results were based on data that was collected through a cross-sectional field survey. The data consisted of a diverse paired sample of employees and their supervisors (N=249) who belonged to various organizations in Pakistan. The results of the main effects regression revealed that proactive personality had a positive relationship with both knowledge creation ability and innovative work behaviors. To test the mediating hypothesis, mediating regression analysis was used which showed that individual knowledge creation ability mediated the link between proactive personality and innovative work behaviors. The results of the mediation were also confirmed through a...

This research intends to investigate the impact of self-influencer (actual-self and ideal-self) congruence on the purchase intention of customers through the mediation of para-social interaction and perceived altruistic motive. It demonstrates the contextual examination of self-influencer congruence with reference to the Apparel Industry of Pakistan. An online questionnaire was developed to collect data from 270 respondents who were members of fashion related forums. The study hypotheses were tested using structural equation modelling through SmartPLS. The findings revealed that self-influencer congruence has a significant indirect relationship with purchase intention through the mediating effects of para-social interaction and perceived altruistic motive. Additionally, the findings provide valuable insights regarding the use of social media influencer marketing and contribute to the scarce body of knowledge concerning self-influencer congruence especially in the context of the emer...

This study measures the level of student satisfaction with current services offered by Pakistani universities. The
exploration and comparison of possible differences in terms of level of satisfaction across gender and various
programs/disciplines formulate key objectives. General survey guided by well structured questionnaire through
connivance sampling has been administered across a valuable sample of 401 students. Bahauddin Zakariya
University (BZU) has been selected as sample case and data was collected from eighteen different disciplines
and/or programs. Ten major constructs i.e. teaching, administrative/management support, transportation, library,
computer labs & general labs, accommodation, medical; sports, prayer/religious facilities, and class room
facilities were used. Mean analysis reflect student dissatisfied with many core services & facilities like teaching,
administrative support, library, labs, accommodation, medical, and sports, while satisfaction has been reported
only in three augmented areas like transportation, class room and prayer facilities. Quite interestingly, no
significant differences of opinion have been recorded among male or female respondents. Overall, satisfaction
level is alarming low and results indicate dissatisfaction of university students on educational services offered by
Pakistani universities.

This paper compares recycling attitudes and behaviours of key participants in Pakistan's plastics recycling supply chains. It involved initially informal interviews guided by a semi-structured questionnaire, cross sectional surveys of 360 households and 51 scrap dealers, and multiple case studies with 26 plastics pre-processors and 28 plastics recyclers (moulders/converters) at seven cities in Pakistan. Guided by the model of consumer recycling behaviour proposed by Thøgersen. It appears that households lacked awareness of the process involved after plastics recyclables are collected and they lacked opportunity to participate; furthermore their recycling behaviour was largely motivated by financial benefits. Material recovery facilities provided by the government appeared to be inadequate. For other private-sector participants (scrap dealers, re-processor and moulders), they lacked investment in equipments for sorting and storage of plastics waste. We further explain the roles of social norms, ability to recycle, opportunity to recycle and motivation (awareness or monetary) and extend Thøgersen's model to include not just households but also scrap dealers, re-processors and moulders. The developed measurement instrument is useful to study other recycling supply chains.

This study aimed to identify major factors which induce Pakistani graduates while
making their career choice. The current research investigated whether career choice
factors vary across gender and among leading professions like management, agriculture,
engineering, medical and pharmacy. Grounded from literature, a specially designed
survey instrument was prepared and pilot tested for data collection. The final
questionnaire pertained 24 items and was administered across a valuable sample of 370
students representing various disciplines from 8 different universities. Using principal
component analysis, the items were grouped into five factors and were labeled as growth
opportunities, occupational charm, self-esteem, societal inspiration and work related
factors. The results significantly varied especially for medical, management and
pharmacy professions and differed from previous investigations, illuminating the
contextual importance of career choice factors. In terms of gender, females seemed more
socially inspired as compared to their male counterparts while making a career choice.

This study was carried out in twin cities of Islamabad and Rawalpindi of Pakistan focusing on teachers of both public and private secondary schools. The study identifies the factors affecting teachers overall job satisfaction by conducting two studies with a total sample comprised 523 teachers. This study was an extension of teacher 2000 project and the same survey instrument was used here. Study-1 with a sample size of 252 teachers was used to develop new scales using exploratory factor analysis from the perspective of a developing country like Pakistan, as the original questionnaire was designed and used in a developed country, Australia. In Study-2, a précised questionnaire with new scales was used and a sample size of 271 teachers was gathered to investigate overall satisfaction caused by factors relating to contribution, commitment and health issues. Results of motivating factors towards teaching showed that though, teaching was not the first choice of majority of respondents, but they joined this profession as it would fit well with their family commitments. Majority agrees that training played a positive role in enhancing their teaching ability. The most important aspect is that majority is overall satisfied; currently more satisfied from the past and also willing to carry on this profession in future, especially females. Regression results showed that teachers' contribution has positive relationship with their performance, whereas health issues are the source of decreased performance of teachers. However, relationship of commitment with satisfaction found to be insignificant.

This study elaborates the importance of network perspective in driving performance outcomes especially in the context of agriculture (Textile) supply chains. The impact of network factors (i.e. actors, resources, and activities) on overall supply chain performance have been explored. By deploying survey, a two-stage cluster sampling was used to attain study objectives. The Textile firms from Punjab and Sindh were selected for data collection. Through a structured questionnaire, 482 responses were generated and analyzed using PLS-SEM. The findings of the study confirmed that Network Actors (Textile Firms), the activities they perform, and the resources they have, generate a significant and positive impact on supply chain performance. The study recommends the need for understanding the role of integrative initiatives between the studied variables, i.e. network factors. Further, it is argued that integrated Network Factors can generate a significant impact on Supply Chain Performance.

Though addressed widely by academicians and researchers across the globe, the subject of counterfeiting dates back to historical times of 27BC. In academic literature, the discussion on counterfeit(ing) began a century back when researchers started to define its boundaries through their understanding. Ranging from the classical descriptions on counterfeit, counterfeiting, counterfeit trade and counterfeit product(s), this article intends to use text analysis technique to provide the reader with a summary of the existing academic literature on the aforementioned subjects. It summarizes key definitions from the respective area with a broader aim to bridge the gap in the existing counterfeiting and counterfeit product-related literature by providing a brief (yet ample) list on counterfeit(ing). Moreover, it also identifies the key similarities exiting in the definition set. The article concludes with authors own definition of counterfeiting and counterfeit product(s) based on the concep...

In this study, an attempt has been made to analyze and estimate the macroeconomic forecasting for Pakistan and its major twelve trading partners for the period of 1995Q1 to 2012Q4, using Global Vector Autoregressive (GVAR) Model. The key feature of GVAR model is to capture the independence and co-movement across countries. Secondly, it provides better forecasting performance. The GVAR model is estimated for twelve trading economies. During estimation, Pakistan economy is treated as single and domestic economy, whereas the other trading partners are treated as foreign economies. The important findings of this study are that the GVAR forecasts better than the VAR forecasts in most of the cases. Second, the foreign real GDP and foreign inflation rates are reflecting the significant impact of their domestic counterparts of Pakistan real GDP and inflation

In recent years, due to environmental implications many global issues such as global warming, greenhouse gases (GHGs), natural hazards, air & water pollution, landfills, energy crisis have gained fabulous attention. Consequently, sustainable supply chain practices emerged as competitive weapon and since then organization(s) are consistently endeavoring hard to adopt sustainable strategies. Presently, there is a theoretical argument for the use of sustainable practices in logistics operations. Still, there is a lack of clarity and empirical evidences regarding successful adoption of sustainable practices especially when companies’ outsource their logistics operations. This paper through case study of leading (food & beverages) MNC from FMCG sector of Pakistan, exposed various successful practices such as audits, partial usage of LEED criteria in building design, use of LED lights, bar coding and tracking system, use of wooden pallets for storage, energy efficient material handling eq...

ARTICLE DETAILS ABSTRACT History: Accepted 05 Dec 2020 Available Online 31 Dec 2020 This paper aims to investigate the impact of sustainable practices especially sustainable production and sustainable supplier management on supply chain performance. This empirical study demonstrates the contextual examination of sustainable practices especially with reference to an emerging economy like Pakistan. Survey was employed to collect data from 100 Food Manufacturing Firms. Exploratory Factor Analysis and Structure Equation Modeling were used through AMOS to test hypothesis. The results reveal that sustainable production and sustainable supplier management both significantly impact triple bottom line. However, sustainable production generate stronger impact on social performance, while, sustainable supplier management significantly effects environmental performance. Additionally, the findings provide valuable insights regarding the use of sustainable production and sustainable supplier mana...

Using fuzzy Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) model, this study exposed criteria and sub criteria which are commonly being practiced and declared significantly important in supplier selection process. Through structured questionnaire, data were collected from twenty seven Pakistani Automotive firms including both nationals and multinationals. Procurement and supply chain managers have participated in prioritization of ten major criteria and forty four subcriteria as per their significance in supplier selection process. Based on variation in the priority weights (both local and global), this study has classified selection criteria into three group i.e. critical (most significant), supportive (moderately significant) and maintaining (least significant). Quality, cost, delivery of goods and communication were ranked as the most influential criteria and hence classified as critical. While, technology, integration, relationship, and services were being declared as supportive criteria. F...

Nadir Munir Hassan, Muhammad Nauman Abbasi Department of Business Administration, Air University, Multan, Pakistan, [email protected] Institute of Management Sciences, Bahauddin Zakariya University, Multan, Pakistan, [email protected] ARTICLE DETAILS ABSTRACT History Revised format: November 2020 Available Online: December 2020 Purpose: Integrating network factors (i.e. Actors, Activities, and Resources), help organizations in achieving superior supply chain performance. Despite reasonable evidence on positive relationship between SCI and SCP, there exists sufficient contradiction on universal integration of chains. This paper is a qualitative exploratory study, which based on the network perspective intends to explore the current and required levels of supply chain integration among actors, activities, and resources in the agriculture supply chain of Pakistan. Design/Methodology/Approach: The data was collected through in depth semi-structured interviews from public sector...