TY - JOUR
T1 - Thriving in private family firms as a non-family employee
T2 - an empirical study
AU - Al Riyami, Said
AU - Razzak, Mohammad Rezaur
AU - Al Balushi, Maha Khamis
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2024, Emerald Publishing Limited.
PY - 2024/2/26
Y1 - 2024/2/26
N2 - Purpose: Workplace thriving (WT), self-job crafting (SJC), and workplace belongingness (WB) have been shown to lead to positive outcomes for organizations and their employees. However, there seems to be a dearth of insights into the relationship between the three constructs, and non-existent in the context of non-family employees (NFEs) working in private family firms. Therefore, this study examines whether enabling NFEs to craft their own jobs leads them to reappraise their position in the organization, thus influencing both WB and WT. Design/methodology/approach: Leaning on the conservation of resources (COR) theory and with the support of the self-determination theory (SDT), a set of hypotheses is posited relating the dimensions of SJC (seeking resources, seeking challenges and job-demand reduction) to WT, through WB as a mediator. The hypotheses are tested through partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) by collecting survey data from 256 NFEs working in private family firms in Oman. Findings: The results indicate that all three dimensions of job crafting have a positive influence on WB. In the case of direct effect on WT, only the relationship between seeking challenges and WT was significant. However, the relationships between all 3 dimensions of SJC and WT became significant through WB as mediator. Research limitations/implications: The implication of this study is that merely empowering non-family employees to craft their own jobs may not lead them to thrive in private family firms. However, if they appraise such empowerment as significant resource-gain that leads them to feel that they belong to the organization, then it is likely to enhance WT. Practical implications: This study presents evidence for private family firms that by emphasizing on creating a sense of belongingness among their non-family employees, they can create a workplace where such employees can thrive. Originality/value: Three novel contributions are presented through this research: (1) this appears to be the first study that integrates the COR theory with SDT to enrich the fragmented literature on NFEs in family firms by presenting an integrated framework that links SJC, WB and WT, (2) the study presents nuanced insights into the relationships between the dimensions of SJC and WT and (3) finally, this study provides evidence on the mediating role of WB between dimensions of SJC and WT, which seems to be overlooked in the past.
AB - Purpose: Workplace thriving (WT), self-job crafting (SJC), and workplace belongingness (WB) have been shown to lead to positive outcomes for organizations and their employees. However, there seems to be a dearth of insights into the relationship between the three constructs, and non-existent in the context of non-family employees (NFEs) working in private family firms. Therefore, this study examines whether enabling NFEs to craft their own jobs leads them to reappraise their position in the organization, thus influencing both WB and WT. Design/methodology/approach: Leaning on the conservation of resources (COR) theory and with the support of the self-determination theory (SDT), a set of hypotheses is posited relating the dimensions of SJC (seeking resources, seeking challenges and job-demand reduction) to WT, through WB as a mediator. The hypotheses are tested through partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) by collecting survey data from 256 NFEs working in private family firms in Oman. Findings: The results indicate that all three dimensions of job crafting have a positive influence on WB. In the case of direct effect on WT, only the relationship between seeking challenges and WT was significant. However, the relationships between all 3 dimensions of SJC and WT became significant through WB as mediator. Research limitations/implications: The implication of this study is that merely empowering non-family employees to craft their own jobs may not lead them to thrive in private family firms. However, if they appraise such empowerment as significant resource-gain that leads them to feel that they belong to the organization, then it is likely to enhance WT. Practical implications: This study presents evidence for private family firms that by emphasizing on creating a sense of belongingness among their non-family employees, they can create a workplace where such employees can thrive. Originality/value: Three novel contributions are presented through this research: (1) this appears to be the first study that integrates the COR theory with SDT to enrich the fragmented literature on NFEs in family firms by presenting an integrated framework that links SJC, WB and WT, (2) the study presents nuanced insights into the relationships between the dimensions of SJC and WT and (3) finally, this study provides evidence on the mediating role of WB between dimensions of SJC and WT, which seems to be overlooked in the past.
KW - Belongingness
KW - Family firms
KW - Job-crafting
KW - Non-family employees
KW - Workplace thriving
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UR - https://www.mendeley.com/catalogue/b7d5415f-1dad-3490-ae1d-b23563949d1f/
U2 - 10.1108/jmd-09-2023-0284
DO - 10.1108/jmd-09-2023-0284
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:85185918813
SN - 0262-1711
JO - Journal of Management Development
JF - Journal of Management Development
ER -