Champions in the time of COVID-19: tracing paths to recovery in Ibero-America

Purpose The purpose of this study is to analyze the case of Ximena Aguilera, a prominent Chilean epidemiologist, as an exemplar of a champion in times of COVID-19 in Ibero-America. We also refine our understanding of the nature of a champion facing wicked problems. Design/methodology/approach The authors use qualitative case analysis to examine Aguilera’s actions in response to COVID-19 and compare her actions with the characteristics of an emerging theory of champions facing wicked problems. Findings This study builds iteratively upon prior analysis of gender equality champions and finds that the depth, scope and leverage of embracement of champions in times of COVID-19 are parallel to those of gender equality champions. The authors also discuss the findings from the perspective of wicked problems. Research limitations/implications Future qualitative and quantitative work is needed to examine the boundaries of the theory of champions facing wicked problems across a wider range of problem domains and in a wider population of champions. Practical implications Wicked problems can occur in multi-level organizational structures, and understanding the characteristics of individuals best-suited to contribute to the definition and solution of these problems is relevant to organizational selection, development, policy and practices. Social implications Many of the society’s greatest challenges are defined as wicked problems, so understanding the champions of wicked problems is critical for public policy and societal advancement efforts. The nature of wicked problems is considered, and the implications of champions of wicked problems for society are discussed. Originality/value This work offers an in-depth examination of a champion facing a wicked problem, here the COVID-19 pandemic, while the crisis is ongoing. By capturing the champion’s observations and experiences in real time, the authors obtain a perspective that is unique and unavailable through other methods.

The role of Dark Triad of personality in the relashionship between attachment type and leadership style

Leaders can be found at any hierarchical level of the organization, representing a determinant factor in the global performance and their subordinates’ level of job satisfaction. The present study aims to investigate the relationship between the leader’s attachment type and his leadership style, but also try to understand how this relationship can be impacted by the presence of accentuated personality traits. In this regard, data was collected using a set of self-report instruments (N = 110) from a sample consisting of 72 women (65.5%) and 38 men (34.5%) which take part in NGOs, between the ages of 19 and 43 years old. Results showed that the anxious attachment type significantly and negatively predicts efficient leadership styles, as opposed to the avoidant type that doesn’t seem to share such effects. Moreover, neither of the two insecure attachment types could significantly predict the leader’s inefficacy. Regarding to the effect that accentuated personality traits may exhibit, results indicated that Machiavellianism is the only dark trait which has a moderating effect on the relationship between attachment type and leadership style, but only at a lower level of the trait and in a way that reduces the efficacy of the avoidant leader. These results are characterized by a considerable practical importance, mainly in the fields of psychologists and social workers’ activity, in organizational selection and training.

The role of Dark Triad of personality in the relashionship between attachment type and leadership style

Leaders can be found at any hierarchical level of the organization, representing a determinant factor in the global performance and their subordinates’ level of job satisfaction. The present study aims to investigate the relationship between the leader’s attachment type and his leadership style, but also try to understand how this relationship can be impacted by the presence of accentuated personality traits. In this regard, data was collected using a set of self-report instruments (N = 110) from a sample consisting of 72 women (65.5%) and 38 men (34.5%) which take part in NGOs, between the ages of 19 and 43 years old. Results showed that the anxious attachment type significantly and negatively predicts efficient leadership styles, as opposed to the avoidant type that doesn’t seem to share such effects. Moreover, neither of the two insecure attachment types could significantly predict the leader’s inefficacy. Regarding to the effect that accentuated personality traits may exhibit, results indicated that Machiavellianism is the only dark trait which has a moderating effect on the relationship between attachment type and leadership style, but only at a lower level of the trait and in a way that reduces the efficacy of the avoidant leader. These results are characterized by a considerable practical importance, mainly in the fields of psychologists and social workers’ activity, in organizational selection and training.

The Gendered Experiences of Women Staff and Volunteers in Sport for Development Organizations: The Case of Transmigrant Workers of Skateistan

This study seeks to better understand broad management issues associated with the employment of female workers in one sport for development (SfD) project. Through interviews with the executive director and five female staff members of Skateistan—the skateboarding SfD project operating in Afghanistan, Cambodia, and South Africa—this study offers insights on female transmigrant workers who relocated to work for the project in Afghanistan, focusing particularly on how formal and informal management strategies are experienced by international female staff and volunteers. Extending the work of Black, Mendenhall, and Oddou with a poststructural feminist approach, we identify six key themes related to the experiences of female transmigrant workers moving into and during SfD assignments: (a) initial motivations, (b) organizational selection mechanisms, (c) management of risk, (d) work–life balance, (e) managing the self, and (f) negotiating postcolonial critiques of development work. In so doing, this paper recognizes women’s lived experiences as a valid and valuable form of knowledge that could be used to inform management approaches adopted by SfD organizations.

Examining Worker Underrepresentation in Selection Research: The Domain Matters

We concur with Bergman and Jean (2016) that worker samples tend to be underrepresented in organizational research, which could have deleterious effects on the conclusions and practices derived from this research. However, we argue that the effects of underrepresentation could vary considerably by organizational domain (e.g., selection vs. leadership vs. satisfaction). Our focus with this commentary is to address its effects on organizational selection, particularly with employment interviews, including issues such as criterion-related validity, prevalence of student samples, and the four criteria outlined by the focal authors (overlooked phenomena, differences in construct meaning, worker status, and human capital patterns).

A Conceptual Descriptive-Comparative Study of Models and Standards of Processes in SE, SwE, and IT Disciplines Using the Theory of Systems

The increasing design, manufacturing, and provision complexity of high-quality, cost-efficient and trustworthy products and services has demanded the exchange of best organizational practices in worldwide organizations. While that such a realization has been available to organizations via models and standards of processes, the myriad of them and their heavy conceptual density has obscured their comprehension and practitioners are confused in their correct organizational selection, evaluation, and deployment tasks. Thus, with the ultimate aim to improve the task understanding of such schemes by reducing its business process understanding complexity, in this article we use a conceptual systemic model of a generic business organization derived from the theory of systems to describe and compare two main models (CMMI/SE/SwE, 2002; ITIL V.3, 2007) and four main standards (ISO/IEC 15288, 2002; ISO/IEC 12207, 1995; ISO/IEC 15504, 2005; ISO/IEC 20000, 2006) of processes. Description and comparison are realized through a mapping of them onto the systemic model.