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Some universities rely on their élitism as one mechanism to attract and retain talented faculty. This paper examines two groups of élite and non‐élite universities and the mediating effect that work engagement has on affective commitment and intention to quit. Findings indicate partial support for the mediating effect of work engagement in the non‐élite group but no support in the élite university group. The implications of these diverse results are posed for the management of academics in élite and non‐élite universities, suggesting that a ‘one size fits all approach’ to performance outcomes does not always fit.

Participatory governance in developing countries is broadly viewed as an essential prerequisite for successful implementation of public projects. However, it poses many challenges for public bureaucrats in terms of their skills and willingness to engage citizens. Despite the growing evidence of the pervasiveness of participatory governance, research to date has not explored bureaucratic readiness to adopt participatory practices. This research presents findings of a bureaucratic readiness assessment for participatory governance in Bangladesh by exploring how public bureaucrats perceive the value of participation; how they are educated to collaborate with stakeholders; and the extent to which their attitudes are amenable to enhancing participatory governance. Our findings suggest that we can classify readiness in terms of both motivational and educational factors. The study has implications for how readiness can be developed in public officials that may assist in fostering participatory governance in Bangladesh and be informative to other countries experiencing similar issues.

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The aim of this paper is to audit the efforts made around the support of Indigenous players within the Australian Football League (AFL). Design/Methodology/Approach: Content analysis of the publically available information on websites of organizations associated with the AFL was undertaken to identify the extent of programs and policies around Indigenous representation, inclusion, and development. Findings: The AFL, as an organization, has a high percentage of Indigenous players (employees) in comparison to the wider Australian workforce representation. Largely, Indigenous representation within the AFL is merit based, prioritized on an individual's ability to play football at an elite level. The website audit identified a number of inconsistencies in the public personas portrayed by the AFL and organizations aligned to it such as the AFL Players Association (AFLPA) and clubs. The findings raise a number of questions for future research. Research limitations/implications: The main limitation is that the website audit represents a very small insight into the current situation and does not provide a depth of analysis into the circumstances around Indigenous inclusion within the AFL. The audit also is very focused on one sporting organization which may or may not be representative of the sport industry. Originality/value: The research introduces a number of questions for future discovery.

This article explores the career development and underrepresentation of Indigenous Australians in leadership and management positions within the Australian Football League (AFL); it explains the continued underrepresentation as a case of ‘avoiding discrimination’. Using institutional theory, this research fills a gap in existing scholarship by contributing to understanding the mechanisms by which organisations avoid addressing underrepresentation and enforce discriminatory practices in three significant ways. First, organisations may claim equality and assume that the organisation is characterised by a climate of inclusion as a way of ignoring issues of underrepresentation. Second, organisations utilise diversity management to improve the image of the organisation and engage in legitimising practices that contribute towards improving the brand. Third, organisations also engage in silencing practices by exercising internal control over employees, in this case players, and prohibiting them from participating in public debates about racial abuse. This study concludes that avoiding underrepresentation contributes to the continued exclusion of Indigenous Australians in leadership positions within the AFL, conceptualised here as a case of ‘ discrimination by avoidance’. JEL Classification: M540 Personnel Economics: Labor Management

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