Purpose Although the numbers of online community members continue to increase every day, most of the user-generated content in online communities comes from only a small percentage of members who are motivated to participate and contribute. While studies have been conducted on other professional online communities (e.g. teachers, mathematics practitioners, software developers, etc.), the online community for ServiceNow practitioners is not fully understood. Studies of this group could be useful to organizations that seek to understand ServiceNow practitioners’ motives to participate in these communities, fulfill their specific needs, and build and maintain a thriving community of users. Design/methodology/approach A qualitative case study method was used to learn what motivates ServiceNow practitioners to contribute and participate in ServiceNow communities. Data were collected from interviews with the participants, their stories and testimonials and physical artifacts created and used by them. Data analysis was carried out using data triangulation and continuous coding process. Findings Three primary motives were identified: find answers to questions or issues, learn about ServiceNow products and services, and share knowledge and expertise with others. Research limitations/implications As a single-case research method was used, findings of this study may not be generalized to a larger population. Originality/value Results should encourage and increase participation by ServiceNow Community's members, create a repository of knowledge and relationships that can improve their value and effectiveness, and help their organizations maintain competitive advantage.

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PurposeThe purpose of this empirical research was to investigate the individual effects of three dimensions of flexible human resource management (HRM) practices – skill flexibility, behavioral flexibility and human practice flexibility on firm performance and to what extent these relationships are strengthened/weakened when there was the moderation of empowering leadership in small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) of the Kingdom of Bahrain.Design/methodology/approachThe data were collected from chief executive officers (CEOs) through a questionnaire survey method to test the hypothesized relationships. A final dataset of 315 valid responses was utilized for data analysis, and results were analyzed using the Smart partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) technique.FindingsThe findings revealed positive effects of skill flexibility, behavioral flexibility and human practice flexibility on firm performance. The moderating role of empowering leadership further strengthened the effects of employee skill flexibility and employee behavioral flexibility had on firm performance. However, empowering leadership did not pose any moderating effect on human practice flexibility and firm performance relationship.Research limitations/implicationsThis paper offers implications for theories on HRM and leadership. It also provides valuable insights for organizations and leaders seeking to boost firm performance across SMEs.Practical implicationsThis paper offers implications for theories on HRM and leadership and also contributes in the understanding of the modern managers.Originality/valueThis paper investigated the effects of flexible HRM practices on firm performance and the role of empowering leadership across SMEs in Bahrain. It also explored how the performance of SMEs can be improved using flexible HRM practices followed by the presence of empowering leadership.

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