Disengaged employees typically cost U.S. corporations $350 billion annually. The purpose of this case study was to explore strategies that some communication business leaders use to engage their employees. The target population consisted of four communication business leaders in Jackson, Mississippi, who possessed at least 1 year of successful employee engagement experience. The self-determination theory served as the study’s conceptual framework. Semistructured interviews were conducted, and the participating company’s archived documents were gathered. Patterns were identified through a rigorous process of data familiarization, data coding, and theme development and revision. Interpretations from the data were subjected to member-checking to ensure trustworthiness of the findings. Based on the methodological triangulation of the data collected, prominent themes emerged from thematically analyzing the data: rewards and recognition, empowering employees, and building a bond between leaders and employees.

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to explore innovation strategies that managers of small and medium-size enterprises (SMEs) used to implement innovation in their organizations to meet performance goals. Design/methodology/approach The participants in this multiple case study research comprised randomly selected managers from SMEs operating in Dubai, United Arab Emirates with specialist expertise in successfully implementing innovation in their organizations. Individual interviews were undertaken with participants to gain both an insight and understanding regarding which innovation strategies are best suited to improve performance goal outcomes. A further analysis of workplace internal documents, policies, procedures, SMEs’ websites, review websites and press releases afforded additional insights related to the application of innovative workplace practices which supported productivity improvements in relation to performance goal outcomes. Findings The findings of this study identified that the role of the top management in cultivating an innovative culture, the identification of ideas as the starting point for innovation and the recognition of customers as resources for the company. Practical implications Implementing the findings from this study may support job creation, economy protection in downturns and contribution to economic growth, since thriving SMEs have a positive impact on community development through the generation of the employment. Furthermore, the results of this study can help in creating an increase in improving the productivity of Dubai SMEs in Dubai’s GDP, improvement in investment opportunities; better working conditions for employees and possibilities for expanding the operations of Dubai SMEs globally. Originality/value This study is of value because its findings may contribute to local and global economic growth. Exploring successful innovation implementation strategies in SMEs can result in useful guidelines that SME managers can use to reach the performance goals of their SMEs. Since governmental policies are critical to improving business performance, the Government of Dubai may benefit from this study by addressing key success factors for SMEs through policies and regulations. This study has particular value given the lack of studies that address the issue of innovation implementation in SMEs, especially for SMEs in emerging economies.

Foresight involves future-oriented awareness and planning, enabling businesses to respond quickly and effectively to future market threats and opportunities. However, knowledge about corporate foresight practices and outcomes is limited. Corporations interested in implementing foresight are unable to identify best practices or anticipate results from foresight activities. Therefore, this qualitative, multiple holistic case study was a foundational investigation of foresight phenomenon within contemporary American corporations. A convenience sample of 14 foresight practitioners represented American corporations or American divisions of European corporations actively using foresight. Interview queries aligned with the guiding research questions explored corporate foresight methods and outcomes. Interview data were coded and synthesized for thematic report of common and unique responses; this documented practices used in and outcomes derived from corporate foresight. Foresight practitioners revealed specific actions taken by corporations in response to foresight outcomes. Actions included organizational changes, introduction of new products or product variations, new research and development projects, and inclusion of foresight project outputs such as reports, presentations, recommendations, in departmental plans. The findings suggested standardization of terminology for professional discourse, education, and practice, would benefit practitioners and corporations. Four tenets emerging from the themes were short-termism, corporate culture, implementation, and feedback loop; these tenets should guide future use of foresight in the context of for-profit corporations.

Over the past two decades, business process reengineering (BPR) has become a popular approach to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of organizations. An examination of relevant BPR literature reveals that available BPR models that have been widely in use have some serious limitations and fail to take into consideration human factors and change management aspects. Both academic researchers and industrial practitioners have acknowledged the existence of this theoretical gap. This article proposes a BPR model that is named process reengineering integrated spiral model (PRISM). PRISM is a systematic agile model that would improve the chances for organizations to successfully carry out BPR initiatives and projects.

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