Previous literature has explored the positive effects of socially responsible human resource management (SRHRM) on employees, leaving potential dark sides largely ignored. By integrating situational-strength theory and motivation literature, this study investigates the double-edged effects of SRHRM on employee performance. Based on a sample of 314 employee–supervisor dyads from three companies, we found that SRHRM could increase employees’ organizational citizenship behavior (OCB) while decreasing their task performance through role-ambiguity mediation. Interestingly, prosocial motivation serves as a significant moderator in strengthening the positive relationship between SRHRM and OCB and the negative association between SRHRM and task performance. Finally, we discuss the theoretical and practical implications of how managers should conduct SRHRM practices among employees.

PurposeThe purpose of this research is to investigate how critical managerial IT capabilities, such as IT business spanning capability, interact with two pivotal types of technical IT capabilities (i.e. IT flexibility and IT integration) to affect organizational agility. Especially, the authors mainly examine a positive synergy or complementary relationship between IT business spanning capability and IT flexibility and a negative synergy or substitution relationship between IT business spanning capability and IT integration.Design/methodology/approachThe authors develop a research model that integrates IT flexibility, IT integration, IT business spanning capability and organizational agility. Based on a matched-pair, cross-sectional field survey of IT and business managers, they use partial least squares (PLS) to analyze this research model.FindingsIT flexibility and IT integration have been empirically proven to be positively associated with organizational agility. Furthermore, the research results indicate a positive synergy or complementary relationship between IT business spanning capability and IT flexibility, whereas they indicate a negative synergy or substitution relationship between IT business spanning capability and IT integration with regard to organizational agility. This finding demonstrates that IT business spanning capability can differentially influence organizational agility depending on its interaction with specific technical IT capability types. In addition, the effects of IT flexibility on organizational agility are high, whereas the effectiveness of IT integration decreases in the presence of high IT business spanning capability. Each type of technical IT capability displays different effectiveness under high IT business spanning capability. Thus, appropriate technical IT capability types should be carefully deployed, and highly effective technical IT capability types, such as IT flexibility, should be prioritized under high levels of IT business spanning capability.Originality/valueThis research highlights the joint effects of IT business spanning capability and two pivotal types of technical IT capabilities (i.e. IT flexibility and IT integration) on organizational agility, ultimately contributing to OM theories and practices.

While previous research has already revealed the positive influence of socially responsible human resource management (SRHRM) on organizations, little is known about whether employees' perceived SRHRM can lead to a win-win situation between organization and society. We address this void by examining whether employees' perceived SRHRM can contribute to organizational performance (operationalized as task performance and organizational citizenship behavior, OCB), and social performance (operationalized as volunteering). Using a sample of 314 employee-supervisor dyads from three large manufacturing enterprises in Southeast China, we found that perceived SRHRM could increase employees' OCB and volunteering, but not task performance, through both cognitive (i.e., prosocial identity) and affective (i.e., affective empathy) paths. Furthermore, perceived SRHRM was more positively related to prosocial identity and affective empathy when distributive justice was high. We finally discuss the implications of our findings for both theory and practice.

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to explore the joint effects of different types of IT resources and top management support. Especially, the authors attempt to mainly examine a negative synergy or substitution relationship between IT infrastructure resources and CEO support, and a positive synergy or complementary relationship between IT human resources and CEO support among the large-sized enterprises. Design/methodology/approach A research model that integrates IT infrastructure resources, IT human resources, CEO support and the degree of usage of IT for business objectives (i.e. IT business spanning capability) is developed. Based on a sample of 112 large-sized enterprises, partial least squares is used to analyze the research model. Findings Whereas the positive moderating role of CEO support in the effectiveness of IT human resources is insignificant, CEO support and IT infrastructure resources have a substitution relationship in predicting IT business spanning capability. Furthermore, the results can explain under which conditions IT infrastructure resources insignificantly or significantly affect IT business spanning capability in large-sized enterprises. Specially, IT infrastructure resources significantly affect IT business spanning capability only when CEO support is low. Thus, in the presence of high CEO support, IT executives in large-sized enterprises should prioritize developing highly effective IT resources, such as IT human resources. Originality/value This paper highlights the joint effects of two critical IT resource types (i.e. IT infrastructure and IT human resources) and CEO support in the IT assimilation process among the large-sized enterprises, ultimately contributing to information systems theories and practices.

PurposeUser resistance to change has been identified as a significant cause of information system (IS) implementation failure. Previous studies have proposed antecedents of user resistance to change. However, whether project leadership (e.g. authoritarian leadership) can lead to user resistance to change remains unclear. By drawing on project leadership, affective event theory and contingency theory of leadership, the authors address this void by empirically examining whether authoritarian leadership can lead to user resistance to change through the mediation of negative emotion and whether the magnitude of this mediation depends on the power distance level.Design/methodology/approachThis study examines the authors’ research model that integrates authoritarian leadership, negative emotion, power distance and user resistance to change using data from a matched-pair survey of 278 users and their supervisors involved in IS project implementation in China.FindingsNegative emotion plays a mediating role in the relationship of authoritarian leadership and user resistance to change. In addition, power distance moderates the relationship between authoritarian leadership and negative emotion and the indirect effect of authoritarian leadership on user resistance to change in IS project implementation through negative emotion.Originality/valueThe authors’ research provides a comprehensive understanding of the antecedents of user resistance to change in IS project implementation and ultimately contributes to the IS project implementation literature and practice.