EPH-International Journal of Business & Management Science
EPH – International Journal of Business and Management Science is a peer-reviewed, open-access scholarly journal that publishes original research and review articles in the fields of business, management, and related disciplines, with a focus on advancing academic research and professional practice. Journal Information Journal Title: EPH – International Journal of Business and Management Science Online ISSN: 2208-2190 Published Since: 2015 Language: English Publication Frequency: From 2015-2025:- Quarterly From 2026:- Monthly Publication Format: Online Publisher: Southern Cross Academic Press
REMEMBERING EMPIRE: MEMORY, IDENTITY, AND HISTORICAL CONSCIOUSNESS IN TAYEB SALIH’S SEASON OF MIGRATION TO THE NORTH AND KAZUO ISHIGURO’S THE REMAINS OF THE DAY
The present paper examines the reconstruction of historical consciousness in Tayeb Salih’s Season of Migration to the North and Kazuo Ishiguro’s The Remains of the Day. Using a qualitative, interpretative and comparative approach. The study analyzes how both novels revisit the past through retrospective narration and personal experience. Drawing on the postcolonial theories of Edward Said, Homi K. Bhabha, and Gayatri Chakravorty Spivak, it explores the relationship between empire, memory, identity, and marginalized perspectives. The analysis demonstrates that selected texts question dominant historical narratives by foregrounding individual recollection, cultural negotiation, and overlooked experiences. It further reveals that imperial legacies continue to shape selfhood and historical understanding beyond the formal end of colonial rule. By presenting identity as fluid and historical knowledge as interpretive, the novels challenge claims of historical certainty and authority. The study concludes that both works construct a distinctly postcolonial historical consciousness in which the past remains open to revision, negotiation, and competing interpretations.
Copyright (c) 2026 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/deed.en
EXPLAINING IMPULSE BUYING IN SOCIAL COMMERCE THROUGH PARASOCIAL IDENTIFICATION: THE ROLES OF CREATOR AUTHENTICITY AND FEAR OF MISSING OUT
Social commerce has revolutionized online shopping by bringing social interaction, user-generated content, and eCommerce together in an immersive environment. While previous research has focused on the effects of parasocial relationships or impulse buying behavior separately, there is a lack of research in understanding the combined effect of creator authenticity and fear of missing out (FOMO) on impulse buying through parasocial identification (PSID). This study is based on Stimulus–Organism–Response (S–O–R) model and aims to investigate how creator authenticity, social attraction and FOMO influence consumers' impulse buying behaviour through the mediation of parasocial identification as the psychological mechanism. Using secondary survey data from a data set of social commerce users who have active social commerce accounts on creator-driven digital platforms & partial least squares structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM) we evaluated measurement and structural models. The findings show that creator authenticity and social attraction positively contribute to parasocial identification. Moreover, parasocial identification has a positive effect on impulse buying behaviour, thus reinforcing its importance as a mediation mechanism between the creator's characteristics and its consumers' purchase responses. Additionally, FOMO also proves to be a substantial direct predictor of impulse buying, emphasizing the psychological urgency in social commerce contexts. The study advances the social commerce and consumer behaviour research field by building upon the S–O–R model and incorporating creator authenticity, FOMO, and parasocial identification into a single model. The results offer actionable insights for content creators, marketers, and platform developers aiming to enhance customer interaction and drive purchasing decisions by delivering genuine and emotionally compelling digital experiences.
THE ROLE OF EMPATHY AND ENCOURAGEMENT IN IMPROVING CANDIDATE OUTCOMES: EVIDENCE FROM GLOBAL RECRUITMENT REPORTS
The recruitment process has evolved from a transactional hiring activity to a strategic function that emphasizes candidate experience and organizational attractiveness. In this context, empathy and encouragement have emerged as critical interpersonal factors that influence how candidates perceive and respond to recruitment interactions. This study examines the impact of empathy and encouragement on candidate outcomes and investigates their role in shaping positive recruitment experiences. Drawing upon Social Exchange Theory, the study proposes that supportive recruiter behaviors foster favorable candidate attitudes and behavioral intentions. A quantitative research design was adopted, and data were collected from 151 respondents who had recently participated in recruitment processes. The study employed a structured questionnaire using a five-point Likert scale to measure empathy, encouragement, and candidate outcomes. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, reliability analysis, validity assessment, and Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM). The findings reveal that both empathy and encouragement significantly and positively influence candidate outcomes. Empathy emerged as the strongest predictor of candidate outcomes (β = 0.472, p < 0.001), followed by encouragement (β = 0.391, p < 0.001). The model explained 64.2% of the variance in candidate outcomes, indicating substantial explanatory power. The results demonstrate that empathetic communication, active listening, emotional support, constructive feedback, and motivational interactions contribute to higher levels of candidate satisfaction, confidence, engagement, organizational trust, employer brand perception, and job offer acceptance intentions. The study contributes to recruitment and candidate experience literature by highlighting the importance of human-centered recruitment practices. The findings offer valuable implications for recruiters, human resource professionals, and organizational leaders seeking to enhance candidate experiences and strengthen employer branding through supportive recruitment interactions.
BEHAVIOURAL DETERMINANTS OF PERSONAL FINANCIAL INVESTMENT DECISION-MAKING: THE MEDIATING ROLE OF FINANCIAL AWARENESS IN AN EMERGING MARKET CONTEXT
Rapid expansion of financial markets, digital investment platforms, and diversified financial products has increased the need to understand how retail investors make investment decisions. In emerging economies such as India, investment behaviour is influenced not only by economic considerations but also by behavioural and cognitive factors. This study investigates the effects of Investor Attitude, Risk Perception, and Financial Awareness on personal financial Investment Decision-Making among retail investors in West Bengal and Eastern India. A quantitative cross-sectional survey design was adopted, and 550 questionnaires were distributed. After data screening, 408 valid responses were retained for analysis. SPSS was used for exploratory analysis, while SmartPLS and PLS-SEM were employed to assess the measurement model, test structural relationships, examine predictive relevance, and evaluate mediation effects. The results indicate that Financial Awareness is the most influential determinant of Investment Decision-Making, suggesting that investors with greater knowledge of financial products, market information, and risk-return trade-offs make more informed investment choices. Investor Attitude and Risk Perception also exert significant direct and indirect effects on Investment Decision-Making through Financial Awareness. The study extends behavioural finance and bounded rationality theory and provides practical implications for financial institutions, policymakers, advisors, and investor education initiatives aimed at improving investment decision quality.
GREEN HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT AND WORKPLACE ATTRACTIVENESS: A COMPARATIVE STUDY OF SERVICE AND MANUFACTURING SECTOR EMPLOYEES
Environmental sustainability has appeared as a strategic organizational priority, leading firms to increasingly integrate Green Human Resource Management practices into their human resource systems. The present study focused on the effect of Green Human Resource Management on the attractiveness of the workplace among employees from manufacturing and service industries, as well as the mediation of perceived organizational support for the environment. A cross-sectional quantitative research design was used and data was gathered with 240 full-time employees of whom 120 were from manufacturing and 120 were from service organizations from India. This study used hierarchical regression analysis, Structural Equation Modeling and Multi-Group Analysis on SPSS 28 and SmartPLS 4. The results showed that the Green Human Resource Management has a significant indirect effect on workplace attractiveness through the partial mediation by perceived organizational support for the environment (β = 0.29, p < 0.001), and an important direct effect (β = 0.51, p < 0.01). Furthermore, sectoral comparison indicated that the total effect of Green Human Resource Management on workplace attractiveness was stronger in manufacturing (β = 0.53) than in services (β = 0.38). The study concludes that sector-sensitive implementation of GHRM practices is essential for strengthening workplace attractiveness and sustainability-oriented employer branding.
Perceived Organizational Support for the Environment
POWERING PERFORMANCE: THE IMPACT OF COMPENSATION AND INCENTIVE PRACTICES ON SALES FORCE EFFECTIVENESS IN THE PHARMACEUTICAL EQUIPMENT INDUSTRY
This research aims to determine how compensation and incentive practices affect the sales force’s effectiveness in the pharmaceutical equipment industry. This industry is notable for its high levels of pressure and complexity. Sales personnel must undertake product demonstrations, manage institutional customers, cope with long sales cycles, and carry out after-sales with an additional pressure of targets. The research used a quantitative methodology. A systematic questionnaire was used to gather data. The research looked at remuneration for recruiting and keeping people, compensation for performance, incentive alignment with sales objectives, motivating structure of compensation, compensation competition, non-financial appreciation, and sales staff performance. SmartPLS and SPSS were used to analyse the data. The results showed that the sales staff polled had a favourable opinion of the incentive and pay policies. The measuring model demonstrated the validity and reliability of the study components for further examination. The structural model stated that incentive and pay policies addressed sales staff performance. Within the studied variables, non-financial appreciation and compensation competitiveness were the strongest predictors of sales personnel performance. The study recommends that a balanced reward system, comprised of fair and competitive compensation, performance-based compensation, recognition, career advancement opportunities, and supportive practices be implemented to improve the effectiveness of the sales force in the pharmaceutical equipment industry.
CONSCIOUS OPERATIONAL EXCELLENCE: INTEGRATING THE INNER ENGINE WITH LEAN, SIX SIGMA, AGILE AND TOTAL QUALITY MANAGEMENT
Operational excellence models such as Lean, Six Sigma, Agile, and Total Quality Management have significantly improved process discipline, defect reduction, responsiveness, and quality culture. Yet organizations with mature process systems continue to experience avoidable failures caused by communication overload, false urgency, weak escalation, ambiguous directives, blame-oriented reviews and poor decision timing. This conceptual article develops Conscious Operational Excellence (COE) as an integrative framework that combines operational-excellence traditions with the Inner Engine disciplines of decision stillness, strategic silence, structured reflection, timing discipline, governed speech and institutional consequence. Using conceptual synthesis, the paper maps Lean to communication-waste reduction, Six Sigma to mental-variance reduction, Agile to timing discipline and TQM to leadership speech as a quality input. The article contributes to business and management scholarship by distinguishing process defects from leadership-origin defects and by theorizing how leadership cognition and communication influence operational performance. Six testable propositions are developed to guide future empirical research. The framework has practical relevance for operations leaders, HR professionals, quality managers, and digitally enabled organizations that rely on dashboards, AI alerts, and real-time performance data but require reflective human interpretation before action.
Quality Administrative Workload And Documentation Burden, Burnout, And Job Satisfaction Among Emergency Department Physicians: A Healthcare Management Perspective On Workforce Well-Being And Operational Performance
Quality documentation is essential in healthcare management for ensuring patient safety, supporting accreditation standards, facilitating quality improvement initiatives, and maintaining organisational accountability. Its importance, increasing documentation requirements can impose additional administrative responsibilities on physicians, potentially affecting their well-being and work experience. This study aimed to evaluate the perceived quality Administrative workload and documentation burden, Employee strain and burnout-related symptoms, and job satisfaction among Emergency Department doctors. A quantitative cross-sectional descriptive study was conducted among 80 physicians working in the Emergency Department of a tertiary care hospital. Data were collected using a structured self-administered questionnaire consisting of 15 items grouped into three domains: quality Administrative workload and documentation burden, Employee strain and burnout-related symptoms, and job satisfaction. Responses were recorded on a five-point Likert scale and analysed using descriptive statistics, including frequencies, percentages, mean scores, and standard deviations. The findings indicated a high level of Administrative workload and documentation burden, with most respondents reporting that documentation consumed substantial working time and increased workload through accreditation and audit-related activities. Employee strain and burnout-related symptoms, particularly mental fatigue and reduced motivation, were also reported by many participants. Overall job satisfaction remained high among respondents. The study concludes that Administrative workload and documentation burden contributes to workload pressure and Employee strain and burnout-related symptoms, while supportive organisational practices may help sustain physician job satisfaction, engagement, and overall professional well-being.
Quality Administrative workload and documentation burden
Employee strain and burnout-related symptoms
CHALLENGES AND WORKLOAD BURDEN AMONG QUALITY PERSONNEL DURING ELECTRONIC MEDICAL RECORDS (EMR) IMPLEMENTATION IN PRIVATE TERTIARY CARE HOSPITALS OF TELANGANA
Electronic Medical Records (EMRs) are increasingly introduced in hospitals to improve documentation, operational efficiency, quality monitoring, and accreditation compliance. However, their implementation creates organisational and managerial challenges, particularly for quality personnel responsible for documentation review, audit preparedness, compliance monitoring, and coordination between clinical and information technology teams. Guided by the Technology Organisation Environment (TOE) framework, this study examined technological issues, organisational support, training adequacy, workload burden, and compliance-related pressures during EMR implementation in private tertiary care hospitals in Telangana. A cross-sectional descriptive study was conducted among 75 quality personnel using a structured questionnaire, and data were analysed through frequency and percentage distribution. The findings revealed that 85.3% of respondents reported increased work responsibilities, while 85.3% identified inadequate training as a major implementation challenge. Increased documentation workload was reported by 70.7%, and 56.0% experienced higher audit and compliance monitoring activities. Staff resistance and technical issues were reported by 42.7% and 40.0%, respectively. The study concludes that effective EMR implementation requires structured training, workload planning, leadership involvement, technical support, workflow redesign, and change management to improve quality outcomes.
CORPORATE ESG PERFORMANCE AND FINANCIAL OUTCOMES: EVIDENCE FROM A MULTI-INDUSTRY PANEL
Environmental, social, and governance (ESG) considerations have become increasingly important in corporate finance and investment decision-making, yet empirical evidence on their financial implications remains mixed. This article examines the relationship between corporate ESG performance and financial outcomes using a multi-industry panel dataset of firm-year observations. A quantitative empirical approach is employed to analyze how overall ESG performance and its individual environmental, social, and governance dimensions relate to corporate financial outcomes, with particular emphasis on market capitalization as a measure of firm valuation. The analysis combines descriptive statistics, correlation analysis, and regression techniques to assess the strength and direction of ESG–financial performance linkages across industries. The results indicate a positive association between overall ESG performance and firm valuation. Notably, environmental ESG performance emerges as the most influential dimension, exhibiting a statistically significant and economically meaningful relationship with market capitalization. In contrast, social and governance ESG dimensions display weaker and statistically insignificant direct effects on financial outcomes. These findings suggest that financial markets increasingly price environmental sustainability and environmental risk management when valuing firms. Environmental ESG performance appears to serve as a forward-looking indicator of strategic resilience, reflecting firms’ ability to manage regulatory pressures, climate-related risks, and resource constraints. The weaker effects observed for social and governance dimensions imply that their financial relevance may operate through indirect or longer-term channels. The study contributes to the ESG literature by highlighting the heterogeneous financial impacts of ESG dimensions and by providing evidence from a multi-industry panel context.
HUMAN CAPITAL DEVELOPMENT CHALLENGES IN RESEARCH CAPABILITY BUILDING: ACADEMIC, TECHNICAL, AND PSYCHOLOGICAL BARRIERS AMONG YOUNG SCHOLARS IN INDIA
Research engagement among young scholars is vital for innovation, knowledge creation, and human capital development. However, young researchers in India often face academic, technical, and psychological barriers that restrict effective research participation. This study examines these barriers among undergraduate, postgraduate, and early-stage research scholars across Indian higher education institutions. A mixed-method design was adopted, combining quantitative analysis of a structured Likert-scale questionnaire with qualitative thematic analysis of open-ended responses. Data were collected from a simulated sample of 300 respondents. The questionnaire assessed key dimensions of the research process, including literature review, methodology, data analysis, supervision, and motivation. From a business and management perspective, research capability is positioned as an essential element of human capital development, knowledge workforce readiness, organizational learning, and evidence-based decision-making. Reliability analysis confirmed strong internal consistency across constructs. Multiple regression results showed that academic, technical, and psychological barriers significantly influenced research engagement, with psychological barriers emerging as the strongest predictor. Findings indicate that young scholars show strong research interest but struggle with methodological competence, data analysis anxiety, motivation, and limited support. The study recommends structured mentoring, AI-assisted research support, methodology training, and psychological well-being initiatives to strengthen research capability and research culture in India.
THE IMPACT OF JOB STRESS ON KEY DIMENSIONS OF EMPLOYEE RESILIENCE
In the modern organizational, employees are constantly subjected to various types of workplace stress related to increased workload, technology and organization changes. Stress at workplace has become an important issue for employee health and productivity. On the other hand, although employee resilience has been identified as a psychological resource to cope with work adversity and recover from stressful events. The present study is a systematic review of the empirical evidence concerning how job stress impact employee resilience in organizations. Relevant studies were identified by searching databases including Scopus, Web of Science and Google Scholar. Following application of predefined inclusion and exclusion criteria, 43 peer-reviewed empirical articles published between 2019 and 2024 were selected for in-depth analysis. Results show that job stress has a significant impact on several features of resilience in workers as follows: emotional stability, adaptability, ability to cope and event recovery. It also emphasizes that providing an environment that fosters resilience among improve employee resilience benefits from perceive organizational support, leadership behaviours at work, culture and relationships. The significance of the final review is to help to understand both existing links between job stress and resilience in order to direct new research towards justifying their connection.
THE IMPACT OF RETURN-TO-OFFICE TRANSITIONS ON PSYCHOLOGICAL SAFETY AND ORGANISATIONAL TRUST: A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW OF POST-PANDEMIC WORKPLACE RESEARCH
The shift from remote work to return-to-office and hybrid arrangements has become a major organisational challenge after the pandemic. These transitions influence how employees experience trust, autonomy, communication, and psychological safety at work. This article examines how moving from remote work to return-to-office or hybrid work arrangements affects employees’ psychological safety and organisational trust. Using a systematic literature review approach, it synthesises peer-reviewed studies published between 2020 and 2025 on remote work, hybrid work, return-to-office policies, leadership communication, flexibility, employee voice, psychological safety, and organisational trust. The review shows that rigid or poorly communicated return-to-office policies can weaken employee trust, particularly when such policies are viewed as signs of managerial control rather than organisational support. Psychological safety may also decline when employees face reduced autonomy, uncertainty, surveillance, loss of flexibility, or limited involvement in workplace decisions. However, the findings suggest that transparent communication, inclusive leadership, fair policy implementation, flexible work design, and employee participation can strengthen both trust and psychological safety. The article concludes that organisational trust and psychological safety are closely connected relational mechanisms that shape employee voice, collaboration, engagement, and adaptation during workplace transitions.
URBAN ENVIRONMENTAL EVOLUTION AND BUSINESS SUSTAINABILITY IN PUNE: A BAI AND IMURA MODEL-BASED ANALYSIS
Urban environmental change is not only a municipal planning concern. It also shapes the operating conditions of firms, industries, workers, markets, and local economic systems. This study examines the environmental evolution of Pune city through the Bai and Imura model and interprets this evolution from a business sustainability perspective. The model classifies urban environmental issues into four categories: poverty-related issues, rapid industrialization-related issues, rapid economic growth-related issues, and wealthy lifestyle-related issues. Using secondary data from Census sources, Pune Municipal Corporation reports, socio-economic surveys, Maharashtra industrial statistics, transport records, and pollution-related institutional sources, the study maps Pune’s urban indicators to these four categories. The analysis indicates that Pune has made visible progress in several Type I indicators, including water access, sanitation, literacy, and infant mortality. Type II issues remain important because of the city’s strong MSME and industrial base, although selected air pollution indicators remain within prescribed standards in the data used. The city’s present environmental pressure is more strongly reflected in Type III and Type IV issues, particularly vehicle growth, two-wheeler dependence, electricity consumption, solid waste generation, e-waste, and lifestyle-related health concerns. The study argues that these issues have direct implications for business sustainability, industrial efficiency, workforce conditions, infrastructure reliability, compliance planning, logistics, and emerging circular-economy opportunities. The paper contributes by extending the Bai and Imura model from an environmental classification framework to a diagnostic framework for understanding the changing business sustainability conditions of a rapidly growing Indian city.
COGNITIVE SECURITY IN THE AI AGE: HR’S STRATEGIC ROLE IN BUILDING THE INTELLIGENT HUMAN FIREWALL FOR SUSTAINABLE DECISION-MAKING
The accelerated integration of Artificial Intelligence (AI) into organizational processes has fundamentally transformed how individuals think, teams interact, and decisions are made. While AI enhances efficiency, analytical depth, and innovation capability, it simultaneously reshapes cognitive processes, interpersonal communication, and collective judgment. Over-dependence on algorithmic recommendations, diminishing reflective thinking, AI-mediated communication, and diffusion of responsibility increasingly threaten decision quality, team bonding, ethical conduct, and long-term organizational sustainability. In this context, many organizational failures no longer originate from technological breakdowns but from compromised cognition, behavioural drift, and erosion of trust. This paper advances the concept of cognitive security, defined as the organizational capability to safeguard human judgment, ethical reasoning, communication integrity, and behavioural discipline in AI-enabled environments. Anchored in Organizational Behaviour, strategic Human Resource Management, and leadership practice, the paper positions HR as the strategic custodian of cognitive security. The paper proposes an Intelligent Human (Cognitive) Firewall, operationalized through the OWNER framework, to ensure that inputs from data, analytics, AI tools, and human stakeholders are filtered through human judgment, accountability, and command responsibility. Reinforced by BMW (Body–Mind–Words), Emotional Intelligence, and the military ethic of “walking the talk,” the framework aligns thought, communication, and action.
A CONTEMPORARY STUDY ON CONSUMER PROSPECTS OF E-MOBILITY HYBRID ELECTRIC VEHICLES IN INDIA: ISSUES AND CHALLENGES
Indian automotive industry is experiencing a paradigm shift towards sustainable transport systems; however, there is limited scientific evidence related to the customer behavior toward HEVs despite their increasing relevance. Although BEVs dominate the policies, HEVs can be a good choice in this regard for Indians because of lower fuel dependency but no need for charging infrastructure. In this research, an attempt is made to explore the issues associated with purchase intention and consumer perception of HEVs among 110 individuals from urban areas of Pune city using structured quantitative survey. The validity of constructs was performed using Cronbach’s Alpha and Exploratory Factor Analysis by conducting Principal Component Analysis with Varimax rotation (KMO = 0.812). Three factors including Economic & Policy Consideration, Environmental Awareness & Perception and Adoption Barriers contributed to explain 59.4% of the variance in HEV purchase intention (R² = 0.594, F = 51.87, p < .001). One-way ANOVA revealed income-based difference in readiness for purchasing an HEV (F = 9.63, p < .001). As per results, major obstacles include relatively high purchase cost, lack of adequate incentives, uncertainty regarding resale value, and concerns about life expectancy of batteries. It seems appropriate for policymakers to streamline the tax policies related to HEVs, while automobile companies need to promote awareness among potential customers.
VIRTUAL MANAGEMENT OF FLUID WORKFORCE IN HYBRID WORK ENVIRONMENT: LEADERSHIP ROLE IN DIGITAL TRANSFORMATION
The pace of hybrid working has changed the way HR teams operate, impacting their people, processes, technology and performance. It is a conceptual study to explore how to virtual manage a fluid workforce in hybrid working and specifically how digital leadership can support the organizational transformation. The study builds on interdisciplinary literature from human resource management, leadership studies, information systems, digital transformation, and organizational behavior, to create a conceptual understanding of how leadership capabilities influence effectiveness of hybrid workforce. The study introduces a conceptual model that connects the dimensions and constructs of digital leadership competencies, digital transformation enablement, hybrid workforce management, and organizational outcomes (employee engagement, productivity, innovation, well-being, and organizational resilience). It also identifies sectoral differences between IT/software, healthcare, manufacturing, and education/EdTech, revealing how different the requirements for leadership are for each of these sectors based on the level of digital maturity, regulatory pressure, task structure, and the fluidity of the workforce. The study adds to the theory by combining e-leadership, transformational leadership and the socio-technical viewpoints in the hybrid working discourse. In practice, it provides management insights into building sustainable hybrid working systems by means of outcome-based performance management, inclusive digital cultures, continuous learning and context sensitive leadership. The study is based on the premise that the effectiveness of hybrid working is more about quality leadership in implementing hybrid technology in a human centric way than the technology itself.
RESKILLING AND UPSKILLING FOR SUSTAINABLE EMPLOYABILITY IN TOURISM AND HOSPITALITY: A SYSTEMATIC LITERATURE REVIEW AND RESEARCH AGENDA
The rapid transformation of the global tourism and hospitality industry, accelerated by Industry 4.0 technologies, digitalization, and post-pandemic workforce disruptions, has intensified the need for reskilling and upskilling to ensure sustainable employability. This study systematically reviews the existing literature on reskilling and upskilling within the tourism and hospitality sector to examine their role in workforce sustainability, future employability, and organizational adaptability. Using the PRISMA framework, 113 peer-reviewed studies published between 2009 and 2023 were identified and analyzed from major academic databases including Scopus, Emerald, EBSCOhost, ScienceDirect, and Google Scholar. The findings reveal that reskilling and upskilling significantly contribute to employee adaptability, career resilience, workforce productivity, and sustainable organizational performance. The review further highlights that the emergence of Industry 4.0 technologies, automation, artificial intelligence, and digital tourism ecosystems has widened the skill gap between existing workforce competencies and evolving industry requirements. The study identifies experiential learning, industry-academia collaboration, vocational training, soft-skill enhancement, and technology-oriented learning as critical drivers of future employability in tourism and hospitality. The review also demonstrates a substantial increase in scholarly attention toward workforce reskilling and employability after the COVID-19 pandemic, emphasizing the growing importance of sustainable human capital development in service-intensive industries. Drawing upon Human Capital Theory, the study proposes that continuous skill development serves as a strategic mechanism for improving organizational resilience, employee retention, and long-term industry competitiveness. The paper contributes to the literature by synthesizing fragmented knowledge on sustainable employability within tourism and hospitality and by proposing a future research agenda focusing on AI-driven workforce transformation, green skills, digital competencies, and sustainable human resource development. The findings provide practical implications for policymakers, educational institutions, tourism enterprises, and human resource managers seeking to build a future-ready and sustainable workforce.
HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT PRACTICES AND EMPLOYEE PERFORMANCE: A STUDY OF ORGANIZATIONAL COMMITMENT AND ENGAGEMENT
Human resource management (HRM) practices relate to employee performance under the influence of employee engagement and organizational commitment. The study is based on secondary data using an organizational human resources dataset to combine the archival HR data with employee engagement to create a holistic evaluation of HRM performance. The last sample has 311 employees, who are from different departments such as production, information and software engineering. Indicators such as compensation, development opportunities, and performance appraisal are used to operationalize HRM practices, whereas survey-based indicators are used to measure employee engagement. Behavioral measures that capture organizational commitment are employment status measures. The results indicate that employee performance is directly and indirectly related to HRM practices. Employee engagement becomes a powerful psychological process between HRM practices and performance results and proves that engaged employees have always higher performance ratings. The role of organization commitment is also significant, and active employees have higher performance outcomes than those who left the organization. Engagement and commitment give a complementing account of how HRM practices lead to improved employee performance. The research contribution to the HRM literature is that it combines both attitudinal and behavioral processes into a single empirical model and provides valuable organizational implication of developing a HRM system that facilitates long-term employee performance.
STRATEGIC MANAGEMENT PRACTICES AND LONG-TERM EMPLOYEE PERFORMANCE: AN EMPIRICAL ANALYSIS
Strategic management practices related to human resources are widely regarded as important drivers of employee performance and sustained organizational effectiveness. Drawing on the resource-based view and dynamic capabilities perspective, this study empirically examines the association between strategic HR practices and long-term employee performance using objective organizational performance evaluation data. The analysis focuses on training and development and employee engagement as central components of strategic human resource management. A quantitative research design is employed using a comprehensive employee-level dataset that includes demographic characteristics, training records, engagement indicators, and formal performance appraisal outcomes. Descriptive analysis and multivariate regression techniques are applied to assess whether strategic HR practices are meaningfully associated with variations in long-term employee performance. The results indicate that training intensity, employee engagement, and related HR practices do not exhibit a statistically significant direct relationship with long-term employee performance outcomes. Although descriptive patterns reveal minor performance variation across training and engagement levels, these differences are not robust when controlling for employee characteristics and organizational factors. The findings suggest that the effects of strategic HR practices may be indirect, context dependent, or insufficiently captured by formal performance appraisal systems. By highlighting the limits of direct HR–performance linkages, this study contributes to ongoing debates in strategic human resource management and emphasizes the importance of contextual and measurement considerations in evaluating HR effectiveness. The findings offer theoretical insight and practical guidance for organizations seeking evidence-based approaches to human resource strategy and performance evaluation.
HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT PRACTICES AND ORGANIZATIONAL EFFECTIVENESS IN THE CONTEMPORARY BUSINESS ENVIRONMENT
In the modern-day business world, where the complexity of the workforce and competitive demands are the order of the day, Human Resource Management (HRM) has proved to be an effective tool in improving the effectiveness of the organization. This study has discussed how some of the HRM practices apply to organizational performance measured in terms of employee performance and employee turnover. Secondary organizational data of 1,200 employees in various functional areas and levels of jobs were examined using a quantitative, explanatory research design. The HRM practices that were analyzed were training and development, work-life balance and salary increment. Odds ratio and ordinal logistic regression and binary logistic regression methods of descriptive statistics and multivariate regression were used with demographic and job-related factors. The results have shown that work-life balance positively affected employee performance and negatively affected employee attrition significantly, which demonstrates its core importance in workforce effectiveness. The increase in compensation was identified to be a considerable stimulus in improving employee performance but it did not have a significant impact on attrition. The direct effect of training and development on performance and attrition did not show any statistically significant effect in the estimated models. In general, the findings show employee well-being-based HRM practices are instrumental contributors to organizational performance in modern business settings. The research has added empirical results to the strategic HRM literature and offered practical implications to the managers aiming at enhancing performance and retention using data-driven HRM approaches.
VIRTUAL MANAGEMENT OF FLUID WORKFORCE IN A HYBRID WORK ENVIRONMENT: LEADERSHIP ROLE IN DIGITAL TRANSFORMATION
This conceptual study examines the virtual management of a fluid workforce in hybrid work environments with specific emphasis on the leadership role in digital transformation. Hybrid work has transformed organizational structures by enabling employees to operate across flexible locations, digital platforms, changing roles, and diverse work arrangements. While such flexibility improves agility, productivity, and access to talent, it also creates challenges related to coordination, employee engagement, communication, performance monitoring, digital fatigue, trust, and organizational cohesion. Drawing on literature from human resource management, organizational behavior, leadership studies, business information systems, and digital transformation, the study adopts a thematic synthesis approach to develop a conceptual framework linking leadership competencies, digital transformation enablement, and workforce and organizational outcomes. The findings indicate that leadership competencies such as digital fluency, virtual communication, emotional intelligence, trust-building, ethical governance, and change management are essential for managing hybrid and fluid workforces. Digital transformation acts as an enabling mechanism by supporting collaboration, knowledge sharing, performance tracking, data-driven decision-making, and employee engagement. The study further identifies employee engagement, productivity, innovation, employee well-being, and organizational resilience as key outcomes of leadership-driven digital transformation. Industry-specific analysis shows that hybrid workforce management varies across IT, healthcare, manufacturing, education, banking, financial services, and consulting sectors. The study contributes to business and management literature by presenting leadership as a central driver of digital transformation and effective virtual workforce management.
THE ROLE OF DIRECT BENEFIT TRANSFER IN PROMOTING FINANCIAL INCLUSION IN VIDARBHA
Direct Benefit Transfer has emerged as an important tool of welfare delivery in India as it can transfer government welfare directly to the bank accounts of beneficiaries. In addition to increasing transparency of welfare distribution, DBT has been linked to more people engaging with formal financial services. This study focuses on the DBT's contribution towards financial inclusion of the beneficiaries in the Vidarbha region of Maharashtra. The study employs descriptive quantitative research with primary survey data from 400 beneficiaries of the DBT and secondary data of the DBT fund transfers and transactions volume from 2019-2020 to 2023-2024. Descriptive statistics, paired sample t-tests, chi-square tests, one-sample t-tests and effect size interpretation are used to analyze the data. The findings reveal that average annual income and average savings rose significantly. The paired sample t-test results show that there were statistically significant differences between the income and savings before and after DBT. There was also high level of consensus among the beneficiaries that DBT contributed favourably to the financial security and utilization of banking services. No significant associations were found between occupation and self-reported financial stability or financial services use, indicating that DBT financial inclusion outcomes were experienced across occupational groups. In conclusion, the study found that DBT can play a role in promoting financial inclusion in Vidarbha by enhancing the engagement of beneficiaries with the banking sector, their perception of financial stability and their savings habits among the rural and semi-urban beneficiaries.
“Sustainable Development Goals in Star Hotels; A Systematic Literature Review of Integration Practices, Drivers & Implications of Sustainable Hospitality”
The hospitality industry plays a critical role in advancing sustainable development due to its significant environmental, social, and economic impacts. The SDGs offer an extensive framework for directing sustainability measures in hotel operations. However, there is still a lack of systematic synthesis and fragmentation in the current research on SDG integration in star hotels. With a focus on integration strategies, important drivers, and implications for sustainable hospitality, this study attempts to methodically assess and analyse academic literature on the integration of SDGs in star hotels. The study uses a Systematic Literature Review technique and adheres to PRISMA principles to find, filter, and evaluate peer-reviewed publications that were published between 2020 and 2025. Thematic analysis is employed to synthesize finding & the review reveals that star hotels predominantly integrate SDGs related to responsible consumption and production, decent work, and clean energy through operational, strategic, and human resource practices. Key drivers influencing SDG adoption include regulatory pressures, market demand, cost efficiency, and top management commitment. The findings further highlight positive environmental, social, and economic implications of SDG integration for sustainable hospitality, while also identifying gaps related to measurement, reporting, and underexplored SDGs and outline directions for future research in sustainable hospitality management.
ITC's ESG Framework: A Commitment to Community Well-being
Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) has become a key framework for assessing responsible business conduct, sustainability performance and corporate accountability. In India, ESG has gained importance due to climate concerns, stakeholder expectations, investor pressure and evolving sustainability reporting requirements. This study evaluates the ESG performance of ITC Ltd. over five financial years, from 2019–20 to 2023–24. It adopts a descriptive and analytical research design based entirely on secondary data collected from ITC’s ESG Fact Book, annual reports, sustainability disclosures, Business Responsibility and Sustainability Reporting documents and relevant published literature. The study applies trend analysis, percentage change analysis and comparative interpretation across selected environmental, social and governance indicators. The findings show that ITC’s renewable energy consumption increased from 9,806 TJ to 13,185 TJ, reflecting a rise of approximately 34.5%. Waste recycling remained consistently high, while groundwater withdrawal declined, indicating progress in resource efficiency. However, plastic packaging increased from 40,851 MT to 70,578 MT, highlighting a major sustainability concern. Socially, Climate Smart Agriculture coverage expanded from 7.37 lakh acres to 27.90 lakh acres, along with growth in livestock beneficiaries and water harvesting structures. Governance performance improved through stronger board independence, board attendance and code of conduct compliance, although women’s board representation remains limited. Overall, ITC shows measurable ESG progress, but challenges remain in plastic reduction, Scope 3 emissions, inclusion consistency and gender diversity.
“YOGA, WELLBEING, AND ORGANISATIONAL PRODUCTIVITY: EVIDENCE FROM WOMEN LEADERS”
The Theory of Human Productivity emphasises that organisational goals can be achieved effectively when human energy, motivation, skills, and mental well-being are utilised in a balanced manner. In contemporary workplaces, women leaders play an important role in economic development and organisational growth while managing multiple professional and personal responsibilities. These responsibilities often require emotional resilience, cognitive clarity, balanced judgment, and effective decision-making, especially in high-pressure situations. This study examines the role of regular yoga practice in improving mental well-being, decision-making effectiveness, leadership performance, and organisational productivity among women leaders. Unlike previous studies that have largely examined yoga from a psychological or health perspective, this research attempts to explore yoga from an organisational and economic perspective by linking well-being with workplace productivity. The study adopts a mixed-method approach. Quantitative data were collected from 50 women leaders through a structured Likert-scale questionnaire, while qualitative insights were obtained through opinion-based responses, documented experiences, and case-based observations. The findings indicate that regular yoga practice positively influences key managerial outcomes. Respondents reported improvement in work productivity, work quality, focus, emotional balance, stress management, leadership confidence, and rational decision-making. The study concludes that yoga can serve as an effective well-being intervention for women leaders by enhancing mental clarity, reducing fatigue, supporting balanced decisions, and improving leadership effectiveness. From an organisational perspective, integrating yoga-based wellness initiatives may contribute to improved employee well-being and productivity outcomes.
CAREER GROWTH AND WORKPLACE INCLUSION OF EMPLOYEES WITH DISABILITIES: A BIBLIOMETRIC AND KNOWLEDGE MAPPING STUDY (2010–2025)
The recent global prioritization of equality, diversity, and social inclusion has ignited interest in the workforce participation of persons with disabilities. Although interest in research has increased, the field of study on the career advancement and workplace inclusion of persons with disabilities is still a research black hole. Therefore, this study employs the use of knowledge and bibliometric maps to show the research field's intellectual structure, research themes, and patterns and maps out the study’s complexity. A bibliometric analysis was conducted on a data set of 203 articles on disabilities and employment that were indexed in the Scopus database for the period ranging from 2010 to 2025. The bibliometric analysis was conducted using the Bibliometrix and VOSviewer tools and the analysis dealt with issues such as publication trends, top journals, authors, collabouration networks, and keyword co-occurrences. The results indicated positive growth in the scholarly work of 9.37% per year, which demonstrated the growth of interest in the employment of persons with disabilities and workplace inclusion. The dataset constituted 203 articles in 154 journals and 578 authors. Through a keyword analysis of the articles, the research themes around disability employment and workplace inclusion, diversity management, organizational support, career development, and accessibility were identified. The results also showed that the research collabouration across different countries and various research disciplines for disability employment studies increased. The results are significant for researchers and program developers to identify research gaps, and for organizations to redesign employment processes and career pathways to provide inclusion. We hope to spark interest in the study of disabilities in the workplace.
TEACHING COMMUNICATION IN THE AGE OF AI: A SIMULATION-BASED INCLUSIVE CLASSROOM FRAMEWORK FOR MANAGEMENT EDUCATION
Artificial Intelligence is transforming higher education by changing how students access knowledge, interpret information, communicate, collaborate, and make decisions, requiring management communication pedagogy to move beyond traditional skill-based instruction toward AI-responsive organisational learning. This paper develops a simulation-based inclusive classroom framework for teaching managerial communication to undergraduate management students. Using a conceptual and exploratory qualitative approach, the study draws on literature related to artificial intelligence in education, experiential learning, transactional communication, simulation pedagogy, AI literacy, and inclusive classroom practice. It proposes the ‘Market Shock Simulation’ as a pedagogical model in which students engage with staged business disruption, AI-generated information, stakeholder inputs, team negotiation, written communication, oral presentations, and reflective assessment. The framework positions communication as an adaptive capability rather than isolated language skills. Students would thereby realise and appreciate communication as a process of interpretation, negotiation, and problem-solving. Through the simulation, students practise listening, reading, writing, speaking, collaboration, ethical judgement, critical evaluation of AI, and strategic decision-making in realistic organisational contexts. The paper positions the communication classroom as an interdisciplinary and experiential space that supports learning across subjects, not just language skills. The model may be implemented over two to three classroom sessions and assessed using rubrics that cover AI evaluation, communication clarity, teamwork, strategic reasoning, and reflection. This study contributes to management education by integrating AI literacy, communication pedagogy, experiential learning, and inclusivity into a practical framework for preparing future managers.
AN ASSESSMENT OF CONSUMER PERCEPTIONS OF CARE LABELS ON GARMENTS AND TEXTILE PRODUCTS IN THE SEKONDI-TAKORADI METROPOLIS
Care labels are permanent labels attached to clothing and textile products, that provide instructions on how to maintain the product in the best way possible including cleaning, ironing, drying, and bleaching. With the increase in the complexity of fabric compositions, and the still advancing technology of textiles, care labels have increasingly become an important tool in helping consumers, as well as professional caregivers, make informed post-purchase decisions. Nevertheless, consumer orientation of care label symbols is not adequately researched within the context of sub-Saharan Africa. The paper examines consumer attitudes and real knowledge of care labels in Sekondi-Takoradi Metropolis of Ghana. We sampled 180 respondents using simple random and stratified random sampling methods, with three groups (members of the general population, workers in the laundry establishments, and fashion designers) being sampled. Structured interviews and semi-structured questionnaires were used to collect data, which were analysed with the help of the SPSS and one-way ANOVA. Findings reveal that the rate of accurate recognizing care label symbols was significantly low in most of the categories with the notable exception of basic ironing symbols. Another finding of the study was that educational attainment is positively correlated with care label literacy. The implications on consumer education, textile labelling policy, and practice in the fashion industry in Ghana are discussed
ORGANIZATIONAL LEARNING PATHWAYS AS A RETENTION MECHANISM: THE ROLE OF EMPLOYABILITY PERCEPTIONS AMONG INDIAN SOFTWARE ENGINEERS
Background: The rapidly evolving Indian software industry has intensified concerns regarding skill obsolescence and employee turnover, making workforce adaptability a critical organizational priority. Strategic organizational learning initiatives are increasingly recognized as essential for enhancing employee employability and retention. Purpose: This study develops and empirically tests a multi-level model examining the relationship between organizational learning pathways, employability perceptions, and retention intentions among Indian software engineers, while investigating the moderating roles of proactive personality and managerial support for learning. Methods: A mixed-methods research design was employed. In the qualitative phase, semi-structured interviews with HR managers and software professionals informed the refinement of the conceptual model. In the quantitative phase, survey data were collected from 400 software professionals across 20 Indian IT organizations. The majority of respondents were aged between 25 and 35 years (62%), with an average work experience of 6.2 years. Data were analyzed using Hierarchical Linear Modeling (HLM) to assess cross-level relationships. Results: The findings revealed that organizational learning pathways significantly enhanced employability perceptions (β = 0.47, p < 0.01), which subsequently reduced turnover intentions (β = –0.39, p < 0.01). Employability perceptions partially mediated the relationship between organizational learning pathways and retention intentions. Furthermore, proactive personality (β = 0.21, p < 0.05) and managerial support for learning (β = 0.28, p < 0.05) strengthened these relationships, indicating the importance of both individual and organizational enabling factors. Conclusion: The study demonstrates that inclusive organizational learning pathways contribute to stronger employability confidence and lower turnover intentions among software professionals. Findings further suggest that employee retention is shaped through the interaction of organizational learning mechanisms and individual psychological characteristics.