Michael Brookes - Academia.edu (original) (raw)
Papers by Michael Brookes
African Journal of Business Management, 2013
In the Southern Africa Region, the textile, leather and clothing industry has undergone many stru... more In the Southern Africa Region, the textile, leather and clothing industry has undergone many structural pressures in the face of increased low cost competition from South-East Asian countries but many firms have closed. Despite wholesale firm closures, significant numbers of firms have survived. This article seeks to explore in what sense the survival areas (firms who have survived or new entrants) in the textile, leather and clothing industry in the Eastern Cape Province are continuously coping face to these low cost competition, with an objective to explore mechanisms that may led to the sector’s modernization. It looks at two important alternative strategies used in the production process on how to help survival firms and explores the effectiveness of these survival areas to promote the textile, leather and clothing industry’s competitiveness. This paper discusses about value added production paradigm and labour repression as two alternative strategies. It then highlights some o...
International journal of multidisciplinary and current research, 2016
For some time now more rigorous and extensive debates about outsourcing and development have take... more For some time now more rigorous and extensive debates about outsourcing and development have taken place. This has occurred due to unfavourable policy formulation and implementation which has resulted in the increased poverty levels and low economic growth rates that are believed to characterise developing countries. However, changes from ‘neoliberal’ philosophy and zeal about specifically market-driven approaches have created room for more informed discussions to take place. This study evaluated contextualizing outsourcing and development from a theoretical and practical perspective through the use of secondary data collection method. The findings suggest that there is a relationship between development and the practice of outsourcing. Domestic and offshore outsourcing strategically executed can yield successful outcomes. Key aspects that should be considered to ensure successful outsourcing outcomes are outsourcing relationships, ensuring post-purchase satisfaction, managing the c...
International journal of multidisciplinary and current research, 2016
Outsourcing has become very sophisticated and technology intensive. This is attributed to the dem... more Outsourcing has become very sophisticated and technology intensive. This is attributed to the demand for enhanced productivity and the maintenance of standards. It cannot be emphasised enough that skilled personnel is a key requirement when conducting outsourcing. This article investigates The Dynamics and Complexity of Outsourcing through the use of secondary method of data collection. The key findings suggest that the increase in outsourcing of core and non-core activities creates business opportunities. The successful management of outsourcing relationships, the adoption of Total Quality Management (TQM) and the skillful compilation of outsourcing contracts are considered to be of paramount importance in attaining successful outsourcing outcomes. Outsourcing creates jobs with minimal remuneration for vendor companies to attain higher profits and job loss of permanent personnel which is a complex issue to address. Union leaders globally have viewed outsourcing as unfavourable for ...
International Studies of Management & Organization, 2019
The International Journal of Human Resource Management, 2017
African Journal of Business Management, Oct 14, 2013
Quality of Life and Work in Europe, 2011
The International Journal of Human Resource Management, 2016
Economic and Industrial Democracy, 2016
This article explores empirically the economic validity of the relatively limited approach to the... more This article explores empirically the economic validity of the relatively limited approach to the regulation of employment protection pursued in the UK over the last three decades and within the European Union more recently. It does so by comparing the UK’s manufacturing labour productivity performance with those of three countries – France, Germany and Sweden – that possess more stringent employment protection laws. The findings reveal that while productivity growth in the UK was superior to France and Sweden, it was lower than in Germany. More generally, the study’s findings fail to support the existence of a straightforward negative relationship between regulatory stringency and productivity growth.
Journal of Management, 2015
Compensation systems, such as individualized pay-for-performance (I-PFP) schemes for employees, r... more Compensation systems, such as individualized pay-for-performance (I-PFP) schemes for employees, represent an important approach to aligning employer-employee interests. However, the adoption of I-PFP is much less common in many countries than in the United States. Employing a multilevel analysis of over 4,000 firms in 26 countries, we explore determinants of its adoption. At the country level, we distinguish between cultural and institutional (labor regulation institutions) influences. At the firm level, we distinguish firms that view human resources as strategically important and firms that are foreign owned. On the one hand, our findings indicate that both cultural and institutional effects at the country level significantly influence the adoption of I-PFP. On the other hand, senior managers’ agency counts. We find the effect of labor regulation on I-PFP to be mediated by its effects on labor union influence, and we find the effects of culture on I-PFP to be entirely mediated by l...
This independent research review was commissioned by ILO in order to contribute to establishing a... more This independent research review was commissioned by ILO in order to contribute to establishing a solid empirical basis for future research and interventions. It reviews the empirical relevance of the assumption that a win-win scenario exists in SMEs, especially in the context of developing economies. It also seeks to identify the factors or conditions that influence its emergence. More broadly, the report builds upon a thorough review of international literature to present responses to a range of enquiries relating to the links between working conditions, safety and health, skills and productivity.
At the current moment there are lots of examples within the literature of cross-sectional estimat... more At the current moment there are lots of examples within the literature of cross-sectional estimates of gender wage differentials and discriminiation, however attempts to explain the dynamic processes which lead to the wage differences are rare. Furthermore studies which seek to analyse these processes on a cross-country basis are even rarer. The purpose of this paper is to establish the role that is played by earnings mobility in the dynamic process of narrowing (or widening) wage differentials. By applying an innovative Ordered Probit technique I have been able to establish that over the period 1991-1996 West German women were at a disadvantage when compared to British and East German women in terms of earnings mobility. This poorer earnings mobility performance was a major contributory factor to the worsening of the West German gender wage gap relative to the UK and East Germany.
South African Journal of Economics, 2005
The International Journal of Human Resource Management, 2011
Human Relations, 2010
This article investigates where financial participation is most likely to be encountered, and exp... more This article investigates where financial participation is most likely to be encountered, and explores its compatibility with collective forms of employee voice. It is based on the findings of a major international survey of human resource management (HRM) practices. We found that financial participation was not affected by collective employee voice, but that national context and associated HRM strategies had significant effects on its nature and extent. As financial participation is likely to make for greater variation in wage rates, it tends to weaken industry-level bargaining. By re-casting the fundamental determinants of wages, it is also likely to facilitate greater wage dispersion within the firm. Hence, it was found that financial participation is more commonly encountered in liberal market contexts, and in firms practising calculative HRM, where countervailing employee power is weak, whether or not collective bargaining is formally present.
British Journal of Industrial Relations, 2008
Based on a nationwide survey, this article focuses on the perceptions of Congress of South Africa... more Based on a nationwide survey, this article focuses on the perceptions of Congress of South African Trade Unions (COSATU) members on two of the central issues that have dominated debates on the South African labour movement: the advisability of COSATU's Alliance with the African National Congress (ANC) and the extent of internal union democracy. The survey revealed that the ANC‐Alliance continues to enjoy mass support, while internal democracy remains robust. At the same time, the federation faces the challenges of coping with — and contesting — neoliberal reforms, retaining and re‐energizing rank and file in the post‐apartheid era, and in reaching out to potential members in the informal sector and other areas of insecure work.
Copyright and moral rights to this thesis/research project are retained by the author and/or othe... more Copyright and moral rights to this thesis/research project are retained by the author and/or other copyright owners. The work is supplied on the understanding that any use for commercial gain is strictly forbidden. A copy may be downloaded for personal, non-commercial, research or study without prior permission and without charge. Any use of the thesis/research project for private study or research must be properly acknowledged with reference to the work’s full bibliographic details. This thesis/research project may not be reproduced in any format or medium, or extensive quotations taken from it, or its content changed in any way, without first obtaining permission in writing from the copyright holder(s). If you believe that any material held in the repository infringes copyright law, please contact the Repository Team at Middlesex University via the following email address:
We investigate whether certain performance management practices are used more in some national co... more We investigate whether certain performance management practices are used more in some national contexts and amongst MNEs rather than in other national contexts or in indigenous companies. We use data from Europe collected as part of the comparative Cranet survey data of HRM practice to focus on the use of performance appraisal, adopting the lens of comparative capitalisms. We find that, in comparison to firms operating in the Anglo-Saxon liberal market economies, performance appraisal (and, notably, systems linking pay to rewards) is considerably less used in the various categories of coordinated market economies found in continental Europe. This may be a reflection of systemic restraints on effective people management, although a look at national productivity rates might suggest otherwise. As expected, foreign owned MNEs tend to use performance appraisal more than organizations in our sample; this may be a reflection of either country of origin pressures (with most originating in LMEs). However, even in the latter, MNEs were likely to make usage of more comprehensive forms of performance management than their domestic counterparts, infusing elements that went beyond rewards, to encompass training and development and career planning. This may either reflect the superior resources MNEs may have at their disposal and/or an emerging best practice model. We found little no tendency for firms worldwide to default to the LME model indicating the continued relevance of national institutional recipes.
African Journal of Business Management, 2013
In the Southern Africa Region, the textile, leather and clothing industry has undergone many stru... more In the Southern Africa Region, the textile, leather and clothing industry has undergone many structural pressures in the face of increased low cost competition from South-East Asian countries but many firms have closed. Despite wholesale firm closures, significant numbers of firms have survived. This article seeks to explore in what sense the survival areas (firms who have survived or new entrants) in the textile, leather and clothing industry in the Eastern Cape Province are continuously coping face to these low cost competition, with an objective to explore mechanisms that may led to the sector’s modernization. It looks at two important alternative strategies used in the production process on how to help survival firms and explores the effectiveness of these survival areas to promote the textile, leather and clothing industry’s competitiveness. This paper discusses about value added production paradigm and labour repression as two alternative strategies. It then highlights some o...
International journal of multidisciplinary and current research, 2016
For some time now more rigorous and extensive debates about outsourcing and development have take... more For some time now more rigorous and extensive debates about outsourcing and development have taken place. This has occurred due to unfavourable policy formulation and implementation which has resulted in the increased poverty levels and low economic growth rates that are believed to characterise developing countries. However, changes from ‘neoliberal’ philosophy and zeal about specifically market-driven approaches have created room for more informed discussions to take place. This study evaluated contextualizing outsourcing and development from a theoretical and practical perspective through the use of secondary data collection method. The findings suggest that there is a relationship between development and the practice of outsourcing. Domestic and offshore outsourcing strategically executed can yield successful outcomes. Key aspects that should be considered to ensure successful outsourcing outcomes are outsourcing relationships, ensuring post-purchase satisfaction, managing the c...
International journal of multidisciplinary and current research, 2016
Outsourcing has become very sophisticated and technology intensive. This is attributed to the dem... more Outsourcing has become very sophisticated and technology intensive. This is attributed to the demand for enhanced productivity and the maintenance of standards. It cannot be emphasised enough that skilled personnel is a key requirement when conducting outsourcing. This article investigates The Dynamics and Complexity of Outsourcing through the use of secondary method of data collection. The key findings suggest that the increase in outsourcing of core and non-core activities creates business opportunities. The successful management of outsourcing relationships, the adoption of Total Quality Management (TQM) and the skillful compilation of outsourcing contracts are considered to be of paramount importance in attaining successful outsourcing outcomes. Outsourcing creates jobs with minimal remuneration for vendor companies to attain higher profits and job loss of permanent personnel which is a complex issue to address. Union leaders globally have viewed outsourcing as unfavourable for ...
International Studies of Management & Organization, 2019
The International Journal of Human Resource Management, 2017
African Journal of Business Management, Oct 14, 2013
Quality of Life and Work in Europe, 2011
The International Journal of Human Resource Management, 2016
Economic and Industrial Democracy, 2016
This article explores empirically the economic validity of the relatively limited approach to the... more This article explores empirically the economic validity of the relatively limited approach to the regulation of employment protection pursued in the UK over the last three decades and within the European Union more recently. It does so by comparing the UK’s manufacturing labour productivity performance with those of three countries – France, Germany and Sweden – that possess more stringent employment protection laws. The findings reveal that while productivity growth in the UK was superior to France and Sweden, it was lower than in Germany. More generally, the study’s findings fail to support the existence of a straightforward negative relationship between regulatory stringency and productivity growth.
Journal of Management, 2015
Compensation systems, such as individualized pay-for-performance (I-PFP) schemes for employees, r... more Compensation systems, such as individualized pay-for-performance (I-PFP) schemes for employees, represent an important approach to aligning employer-employee interests. However, the adoption of I-PFP is much less common in many countries than in the United States. Employing a multilevel analysis of over 4,000 firms in 26 countries, we explore determinants of its adoption. At the country level, we distinguish between cultural and institutional (labor regulation institutions) influences. At the firm level, we distinguish firms that view human resources as strategically important and firms that are foreign owned. On the one hand, our findings indicate that both cultural and institutional effects at the country level significantly influence the adoption of I-PFP. On the other hand, senior managers’ agency counts. We find the effect of labor regulation on I-PFP to be mediated by its effects on labor union influence, and we find the effects of culture on I-PFP to be entirely mediated by l...
This independent research review was commissioned by ILO in order to contribute to establishing a... more This independent research review was commissioned by ILO in order to contribute to establishing a solid empirical basis for future research and interventions. It reviews the empirical relevance of the assumption that a win-win scenario exists in SMEs, especially in the context of developing economies. It also seeks to identify the factors or conditions that influence its emergence. More broadly, the report builds upon a thorough review of international literature to present responses to a range of enquiries relating to the links between working conditions, safety and health, skills and productivity.
At the current moment there are lots of examples within the literature of cross-sectional estimat... more At the current moment there are lots of examples within the literature of cross-sectional estimates of gender wage differentials and discriminiation, however attempts to explain the dynamic processes which lead to the wage differences are rare. Furthermore studies which seek to analyse these processes on a cross-country basis are even rarer. The purpose of this paper is to establish the role that is played by earnings mobility in the dynamic process of narrowing (or widening) wage differentials. By applying an innovative Ordered Probit technique I have been able to establish that over the period 1991-1996 West German women were at a disadvantage when compared to British and East German women in terms of earnings mobility. This poorer earnings mobility performance was a major contributory factor to the worsening of the West German gender wage gap relative to the UK and East Germany.
South African Journal of Economics, 2005
The International Journal of Human Resource Management, 2011
Human Relations, 2010
This article investigates where financial participation is most likely to be encountered, and exp... more This article investigates where financial participation is most likely to be encountered, and explores its compatibility with collective forms of employee voice. It is based on the findings of a major international survey of human resource management (HRM) practices. We found that financial participation was not affected by collective employee voice, but that national context and associated HRM strategies had significant effects on its nature and extent. As financial participation is likely to make for greater variation in wage rates, it tends to weaken industry-level bargaining. By re-casting the fundamental determinants of wages, it is also likely to facilitate greater wage dispersion within the firm. Hence, it was found that financial participation is more commonly encountered in liberal market contexts, and in firms practising calculative HRM, where countervailing employee power is weak, whether or not collective bargaining is formally present.
British Journal of Industrial Relations, 2008
Based on a nationwide survey, this article focuses on the perceptions of Congress of South Africa... more Based on a nationwide survey, this article focuses on the perceptions of Congress of South African Trade Unions (COSATU) members on two of the central issues that have dominated debates on the South African labour movement: the advisability of COSATU's Alliance with the African National Congress (ANC) and the extent of internal union democracy. The survey revealed that the ANC‐Alliance continues to enjoy mass support, while internal democracy remains robust. At the same time, the federation faces the challenges of coping with — and contesting — neoliberal reforms, retaining and re‐energizing rank and file in the post‐apartheid era, and in reaching out to potential members in the informal sector and other areas of insecure work.
Copyright and moral rights to this thesis/research project are retained by the author and/or othe... more Copyright and moral rights to this thesis/research project are retained by the author and/or other copyright owners. The work is supplied on the understanding that any use for commercial gain is strictly forbidden. A copy may be downloaded for personal, non-commercial, research or study without prior permission and without charge. Any use of the thesis/research project for private study or research must be properly acknowledged with reference to the work’s full bibliographic details. This thesis/research project may not be reproduced in any format or medium, or extensive quotations taken from it, or its content changed in any way, without first obtaining permission in writing from the copyright holder(s). If you believe that any material held in the repository infringes copyright law, please contact the Repository Team at Middlesex University via the following email address:
We investigate whether certain performance management practices are used more in some national co... more We investigate whether certain performance management practices are used more in some national contexts and amongst MNEs rather than in other national contexts or in indigenous companies. We use data from Europe collected as part of the comparative Cranet survey data of HRM practice to focus on the use of performance appraisal, adopting the lens of comparative capitalisms. We find that, in comparison to firms operating in the Anglo-Saxon liberal market economies, performance appraisal (and, notably, systems linking pay to rewards) is considerably less used in the various categories of coordinated market economies found in continental Europe. This may be a reflection of systemic restraints on effective people management, although a look at national productivity rates might suggest otherwise. As expected, foreign owned MNEs tend to use performance appraisal more than organizations in our sample; this may be a reflection of either country of origin pressures (with most originating in LMEs). However, even in the latter, MNEs were likely to make usage of more comprehensive forms of performance management than their domestic counterparts, infusing elements that went beyond rewards, to encompass training and development and career planning. This may either reflect the superior resources MNEs may have at their disposal and/or an emerging best practice model. We found little no tendency for firms worldwide to default to the LME model indicating the continued relevance of national institutional recipes.