Malaysian Management Journal (MMJ) Vol. 10 No.1 & 2 June/ December 2006
Revisiting the Relationship between Organisational Commitment and Professional Commitment: A Case Study of Academicians in a Private Educational Institution
Nik Mutasim Ab. Rahman, Mohmad Adnan Alias & Suharni Maulan
Faculty of Economics and Business
Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia
Abstract Ɩ Full Text
Many studies have dwelled on various issues related to the concept of commitment. One particular issue concerns the relationship between organisational commitment and professional commitment. Between these foci of commitments, the issue has been whether both are compatible or in conflict with each other. The nature of the relationship between these variables is worth noting as it may have impact on the behaviour of individuals in organisations, and hence, the formulation and practice of human resource policies in these organisations. This paper reports the findings of a study conducted to investigate this issue of compatibility or conflict between the variables. The unit of analysis were academicians employed in a private research institution in Malaysia. The result of the mail survey revealed the existence of a commitment dilemma within the sample. No significant correlations were recorded between professional commitment and the various dimensions of organisational commitment. Additionally, professional commitment and organisational commitment correlated significantly with intent to stay in the profession and intent to stay with the organisation, respectively. Directions for further research were also discussed.
Keywords: Organisational commitment; Professional commitment; Intent to stay with the organization; Intent to stay in the profession.
The Impact of Information and Communication Technology Utilisation on Firm Performance: A Case Study of Women Entrepreneurs
Rahmah Ismail & Nor Aini Haji Idris
Faculty of Economics and Business
Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia
Abstract Ɩ Full Text
Rapid economic development and globalisation make Information and Communication Technology (ICT) become more important as media of production, marketing, and sourcing information. In this era, the level of computerisation is viewed as crucial for the development of industries. Enterprises that are lagging in the ICT facilities are regarded as out-dated and not progressing. Women entrepreneurs are always seen as lagging behind and there is a wide digital divide among them, hence different levels of performance prevails. This paper attempts to examine this issue through focusing on factors that influence level of ICT utilisation in women owned enterprises and how far this will affect their firm performance. In this paper performance is measured by percentage sales, percentage export, value of sales, and profit earned by the firms. The analysis is based on 200 women entrepreneurs surveyed in 2004 in the Klang Valley. They are involved in various types of manufacturing and services sub-sectors. The study found that the level of ICT utilisation is significantly determined by the entrepreneur’s level of education, period of firm establishment, and firm size. It was also found that capital and labour are the two most important determinants of total sales. Other factors that significantly determine total sales are firm size, ICT workers, Internet usage, and computer usage in the production and accounting management.
Readability of Corporate Annual Reports of Top 100 Malaysian Companies
Rosli Mohamad & Azhar Abdul Rahman
Faculty of Accountancy
Universiti Utara Malaysia
Abstract Ɩ Full Text
The main purpose of this paper is to compare the readability of two narrative sections in Malaysian corporate annual reports. Further more the authors investigate whether readability of one section reflects the readability of another section. On top of that, consistency of the readability level across companies is also reviewed. The study assess the readability of the chairman’s statement and notes to the accounts of top 100 Malaysian corporations using Flesch readability formula. Overall results indicated consistent finding with prior studies with which the readability of both narratives is considered as very difficult to read. Specifically, the findings revealed that the management does not present the chairman’s statement in a more readable style despite greater flexibility offered in its presentation than notes to the accounts. Further test also confirmed that a readable chairman’s statement is not necessarily followed by readable notes to the accounts and vice versa. Finally, the study reported that readability of notes to the accounts is more consistent among companies than the chairman’s statement. It is therefore recommended that the management should consider presenting the chairman’s statement in a plain English to ensure that investors accurately receive the conveyed message.
Keywords: Corporate Communication; Annual Reports; Chairman’s statements; Flesch Readability Formula; Malaysian Companies.
Globalisation, Unemployment, and Poverty: The Need for a New Perspective on Social Protection in Malaysia
A.H. Roslan & M.M. Mustafa
Faculty of Economics
University Utara Malaysia
Abstract Ɩ Full Text
The integration of an economy to the global market, even when it leads to a higher standard of living, usually results in economic uncertainties and insecurity, as well as eroding social values and traditions of the society. Some people may gain, while some others may lose out from it, which may cause distributive conflicts to emerge. The economic uncertainties and insecurity, as well as the distributive conflicts that arise from globalisation, could disrupt the economy from securing the benefits of globalisation, and consequently could pose an impediment to economic growth. Hence, some scholars has argued that globalisation also increases the demand for greater role of government to stabilise the economy in terms of providing adequate social protection, if the benefits from globalisation are to be realised. This paper attempts to examine the impact of globalisation on the welfare of the Malaysian society, particularly on unemployment and poverty, and discusses the issues and challenges with regards to the provision of social protection in Malaysia. The paper argues that Malaysia needs a new perspective on social protection, as the existing institutions are deemed inadequate in providing protection to the society in the globalised economy.
Multivariate Analysis on the Effectiveness of Monetary and Fiscal Policies in Fiji
Jauhari Dahalan
Faculty of Economics,
Universiti Utara Malaysia
T.K. Jayaraman
Economics Department
University of the South Pacific
Abstract Ɩ Full Text
By utilising a Cointegrating Vector Autoregressive Model, this paper assesses the relative effectiveness the fiscal and monetary policies on growth. It is observed that government expenditure has the strongest effect on Fiji’s national income which significantly explains Fiji’s GDP error variance even after a three year period with regard to the effect of shocks, we observed that the national income impulse respons to the one standard error shock among all macroeconomic variables, i.e. government expenditure and foreign assets, which is not permanent but transitory.
Keywords: Vector autoregressive; Co-integration; Variance decomposition; Impulse response function.
The Impact of Leadership Communication and Empowerment on Job Motivation Amongst Public Sector Employees in Malaysia
Wan Abd Aziz Wan Mohd Amin, Mohd Shaladin Muda & Nik Wan Omar
Collage Sciences and Technology
Universiti Malaysia Terengganu
Abstract Ɩ Full Text
This paper describes a research project that investigated the influence of leadership communication and staff empowerment on job motivation among civil servants. The aim was to fill a gap in the management literature, especially in the Malaysian perspective under the dynamic context of the recent civil servant empowerment practices between state and federal agency departments. Three dimensions on leadership communication had been examined, namely, initiating structure, consideration, and communication orientation, and their link with empowerment and job motivation. A face-to-face survey was performed on 198 respondents from five state agency departments and five federal agency departments using a stratified random sampling technique. As well as the importance of literature contribution, some of the conclusions from this study can give an important insight for the Malaysian practitioners in public sector management. Part of the conclusion suggests that the consideration dimension is proven to be able to encourage empowerment practice and consequently would increase staff motivation. Another finding is that leadership communication based on the three dimensions above is better practised in the federal agencies than the state agencies. The study also proved that leadership communication, empowerment, and forecast factors would contribute toward the increase of motivation among workers.
