infonet-economy

Um flexibler und schneller auf Veränderungen reagieren zu können, entwickeln Firmen
verstärkt netzwerkartige Formen der Zusammenarbeit. Um ihre eigene Leistungsfähigkeit zu stärken, müssen Teams die dadurch verschwimmenden Teamgrenzen selbst aktiv aufbauen und managen. Eine empirische Studie des Instituts für Führung und Personalmanagement der Universität St. Gallen bei einem international tätigen Automobilunternehmen zeigt, wie Teams so die Beschleunigungsfalle vermeiden können.

Purpose - In light of the increasingly aging workforce, it is interesting from both a theoretical and practical perspective to empirically investigate the commonly held stereotype that older workers are more resistant to change (RTC). Thus, the main purpose of this paper is to investigate the age/RTC relationship, considering tenure and occupational status (blue-/white-collar employees) as additional boundary conditions. Furthermore, we investigate the relationship between RTC and individual performance, thereby introducing RTC as a mediator in the age/job performance relationship.

Design/methodology/approach - Study hypotheses are tested among a sample of 2,981 employees from diverse companies. Structural equation modeling with bootstrapping procedures is applied to investigate the moderated-indirect model.

Findings - Contrary to common stereotypes, employees' age is negatively related to RTC. Tenure and occupational status are further identified as boundary conditions for this relationship. Moreover, RTC also shows an association with individual job performance, which allows for the establishment of an indirect-mediation mechanism from age to job performance via the intermediation of RTC. These results can be explained using current life span concepts, particularly the Selective Optimization with Compensation (SOC) model.

Research limitations/implications - Hypotheses were tested in a cross-sectional data set, which does not allow for conclusions of causality.

Originality/value - This study contributes to the age stereotyping literature that has thus far neglected the age/RTC relationship. Furthermore, the age/job performance literature is extended by introducing RTC as an important mediating factor. In sum, this study should help provide a more positive and more differentiated picture of older employees in the workplace.

The article presents the results of research on the relationship between age diversity in the workplace and corporate performance. It focuses on perceptions of ageism in the workplace. An overview of related previous studies is provided, along with details of the research protocol, which involved a survey of over 18,000 employees and executives. It was found that increased age diversity correlated with higher levels of perceived age-based discrimination. Perceived age discrimination was also negatively correlated with performance.

Drawing upon theory on the job demands-resources model, we explain how team boundary-buffering activities enhance team innovative performance taking into account the roles of team productive energy and job demand overload. A multi-source field study with 89 R&D teams (813 employees and their team leaders), fully supported our hypothesized model.

Younger employees are often promoted into supervisory positions in which they manage older subordinates. Do companies benefit or suffer when supervisors and subordinates have inverse age differences? In this study, we examine how average age differences between younger supervisors and older subordinates are linked to company performance. We propose that the average age differences determine how frequently older subordinates and their coworkers experience negative emotions, and that the frequency levels in turn relate to overall performance. However, the indirect association between age differences and performance occurs only if subordinates express their feelings toward their supervisor, but the association is neutralized if emotions are suppressed. We find consistent evidence for this theoretical model in a study of 61 companies and responses from 175 top management team members, 61 human resources director, and 7,802 employees.

The ongoing demographic change, triggered by decreasing birth rates and increasing life expectancy, urges companies to deal with an increasing aging and age diversity of their workforce (Dychtwald et al. 2004). A previous study (Kunze et al., 2010) has shown that age diversity in the company as a whole is related to higher levels of age-discrimination Saturday 8:30-9:45 472 EAWOP Conference 2011 climate that in turn negatively affects company performance, arguing with social-identity (Turner, 1987), timetable-violation (Lawrence, 1988) and prototypematching theories (Perry & Finkelstein, 1999). However, beyond these results, for practitioners it would be extremely helpful to gain knowledge on potential boundary conditions that might prevent the emergence of age discrimination in age diverse companies. Therefore, this study aims (a) at replicating the mediating role of age discrimination climate in the age diversity/ company performance linkage and (b) at introducing age stereotypes of the top management team (TMT) and organizational efforts to support diversity as moderators for the age diversity/age-discrimination climate relationship. Age stereotypes of the TMT are expected to positively moderate the age diversity/discrimination relationship by affective sharing (Barsade, 2002), contagion effects (Hatffeld et al., 1994), as well as socialization processes (Ashfort & Humphrey, 1993) that might spillover negative stereotypes of the TMT in the whole company. On the other hand, organizational efforts to support diversity (Triana & Garcia, 1999) are assumed to be a negative moderator for the age diversity/discrimination association through creating an environment that enables respect for all employees, regardless of their age group (Hicks-Clarkes & Illies, 2000; Mor-Barak & Levin, 2002). Hypotheses of the moderated-mediation model are tested, applying structural equation modeling and bootstrapping procedures, in a sample of 76 small and medium sized companies with more than 18.000 employees. To circumvent common method concerns, the study's constructs were collected from different data sources (employees, HR-representatives and TMT members). Overall, all hypotheses receive support in our sample, providing practitioners in companies with first indications, which context factors are relevant to avoid negative performance consequences of age diversity.