Dr. Cara Maurer is an assistant professor of General Management at Ivey. She earned her PhD in strategy from Western University.
Her research explores longitudinal and multilevel aspects of organisational diversity and inclusion. She is also interested in how individuals’ emotions, values and stories influence strategic, organizational, and social change processes.
She has published in several top research journals, including the Academy of Management Review, Organization Science, Organization Studies, and Human Resource Management. She has received grants from the Social Sciences & Humanities Research Council of Canada. Her research has been cited in the popular press, including the Globe and Mail, the Financial Post, and the Ottawa Sun.
For her teaching, she has received the USC Western University Teaching Award and the David Burgoyne HBA1 Teaching Award for outstanding contribution to student development.
In her executive practice, she has worked with companies such as Canada Pension Plan Investment Board, TD Bank Financial group, General Dynamics Land Systems, and Ontario Public Service.
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Crossan, M. M.; Nguyen, B.; Sturm, R. E.; Vera, D. V.; Ruiz Pardo, A.; Maurer, C. C., 2023, "Organizational learning through character-based judgment", Management Learning, November 54(5)
Abstract: We introduce character into organizational learning by building theory about how strength of individual character enhances organizational learning and how unbalanced or weak character undermine organizational learning. Bringing character into organizational learning theory helps to elucidate the type of judgment (i.e. character-based judgment anchored in all dimensions of character) that is missing but required in organizational learning to resolve organizational learning dilemmas that have persisted in the field. In connecting character to organizational learning, we rely on the multi-level processes of the 4I framework of organizational learning as scaffolding to theoretically introduce the processes of character activation, character contagion, and character embeddedness and discuss how the different character configurations and processes enhance organizational learning across levels in an organization.
Link(s) to publication:
https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/13505076221100918
http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/13505076221100918
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Maurer, C. C.; Qureshi, I., 2021, "Not just good for her: A temporal analysis of the dynamic relationship between representation of women and collective employee turnover", Organization Studies, January 42(1): 85 - 107.
Abstract: Many organizations aim to increase the representation of women in their workforce, yet such efforts are often challenged by women’s relatively higher propensity to leave a job compared to men. Overlooked so far, has been the temporal relationship between the representation of women and an organization’s collective employee turnover. We suggest that a substantive and rapid increase in the representation of women positively affects women and results in positive spillover effects for men, leading to a decrease in collective turnover. In our theoretical development, we explain how higher representation of women is associated with higher job embeddedness for all employees, which results in a subsequent decrease in collective employee turnover. We use Latent Curve Model (LCM) analysis to examine a population of 499 organizations over a 14–year time span, and find support for our hypotheses. We suggest opportunities for future research and offer implications for practicing managers.
Link(s) to publication:
http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/0170840619875480
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Konrad, A. M.; Yang, Y.; Maurer, C. C., 2016, "Antecedents and Outcomes of Diversity and Equality Management Systems: An Integrated Institutional Agency and Strategic Human Resource Management Approach", Human Resource Management, January 55(1): 83 - 107.
Abstract: This study examines the development and impact of diversity and equality management systems (DEMS). A national sample of human resource managers from 155 Canadian firms responded to surveys about their firm's diversity and equality management (DEM) practices. Cluster analysis and latent class modeling identified three distinct approaches to DEM: classical disparity DEMS showing limited development of DEM-related practices, institutional DEMS involving complex selection mechanisms and monitoring of employment statistics, and configurational DEMS linking diversity to business strategy. Hypothesis-testing analyses indicated that both institutional and configurational DEMS were predicted by coverage by the Canadian employment equity program, federal contractor status, and the presence of a diversity expert on staff. Only configurational DEMS was predicted by inclusion of HRM in developing business strategy. Configurational DEMS positively predicted the employment of workers with disabilities and members of visible minority groups as well as ROA. These findings support the proposition based on strategic human resource management (SHRM) theory that DEM practices should be considered as bundles and that vertical linkage to strategy is important for DEM effectiveness. As such, SHRM theory explains how managers can structure strategic responses to institutional pressures that go beyond requirements to achieve strategic goals. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Link(s) to publication:
http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/hrm.21713
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Crossan, M. M.; Maurer, C. C.; White, R. E., 2011, "Reflections on the 2009 AMR decade award: Do we have a theory of organizational learning?", Academy of Management Review, July 36(3): 446 - 460.
Abstract: Having received the "Decade Award" for the most cited AMR article from the past decade, we reflect on how our framework of organizational learning (OL) has been used in subsequent research and whether a theory of OL has emerged. Our citation review revealed that although some of the subsequent research has added to the original work, the challenge to develop an accepted theory remains unrealized. We offer promising directions for developing a theory of OL. © 2011 Academy of Management Review.
Link(s) to publication:
http://dx.doi.org/10.5465/amr.2010.0544
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Maurer, C. C.; Bansal, P.; Crossan, M. M., 2011, "Creating economic value through social values: Introducing a culturally informed resource-based view", Organization Science, March 22(2): 432 - 448.
Abstract: The resource-based view (RBV) has historically privileged the firm's internal resources and capabilities, often at the exclusion of its institutional context. In this paper, we introduce a culturally informed RBV that explains how cultural elements in the firm's institutional context shape the economic value associated with a firm's strategy. We posit that a firm's institutional context may create or destroy economic value. If the strategy inadvertently becomes associated with a social issue, it poses a risk for the firm. Firms that recognize the dynamic interplay between their resources and their institutional context in the face of social issues can engage in important cultural work, and thereby preserve their strategy's economic value. © 2011 INFORMS.
Link(s) to publication:
http://dx.doi.org/10.1287/orsc.1100.0546
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