09/20/2019 | Location: Ingersoll Hall | Time: 3:00 - 4:30 pm
Title of Seminar: How Controlling Failure Perceptions Affects Performance (Evidence from a Field Experiment)
Jason Schloetzer, Georgetown University

ABSTRACT: We conducted a clustered randomized field experiment with 20 Brazilian distributorships of a multi-national direct sales organization to examine whether controlling failure perceptions through formal communications increases performance. We used the organization’s weekly sales meetings to deliver a video-based message from the regional head that either communicates failure is a normal part of business that is embraced by the organization (treatment condition) or simply summarizes the organization’s history (control condition). We find that those who were assigned to the treatment condition were more likely to sustain their effort in response to economic adversity that coincided with our experiment. Additional analyses suggest that our experimental treatment accomplished this by increasing job-specific confidence, and by reinforcing social norms that encourage workers to persevere after failure. Overall, our findings highlight the benefits of using formal communications from senior management to control how workers interpret and respond to failure.

08/01/2019 | Location: Ingersoll Hall | Time: 3:00 - 4:30 pm
Title of Seminar: Introduction to the Design Structure Matrix (DSM) for Management and Engineering Researchers
Tyson Browning, Texas Christian University

07/17/2019 | Location: Reed 201 | Time: 3:00 - 4:30 pm
Title of Seminar: Influence over-qualification on hiring decisions, job-selection, and performance
Patricia Martinez, Loyola Marymount University

05/30/2019 | Reed Hall 201 | 3:00 - 4:30 pm
A DDDAMS-based Surveillance and Crowd Control via UABs and UGVs
Young-Jun Son, University of Arizona

01/31/2019 | Reed Hall 201 | 3:00 - 4:30 pm
Labor Market Impacts of the Seattle Minimum Wage Initiative
Jacob Vigdor, University of Washington