Dr Smirti Kutaula

Associate Professor in Human Resource Management | Kingston University

London, England, UNITED KINGDOM

Dr Smirti's interests include fairtrade, sustainability, psychological contract, and HRM.

Areas of Expertise (4)

Psychological Contract

Sustainability

Fairtrade

HRM

Biography

Dr Smirti Kutaula is an Associate Professor in Human Resource Management at Kingston Business School. She completed her award-winning PhD in the area of psychological contract from Cardiff Business School, United Kingdom....

Amplifying the voice of consumers is essential for advancing fair trade and sustainability, says Kingston University researcher during Fairtrade Fortnight

Kingston University News online

2021-03-02

Ethical consumer behaviour and sustainability expert at Kingston Business School, Dr Smirti Kutaula, has been examining buying behaviour and perceptions of fair trade and environmental issues in the UK and India.

Fairtrade Fortnight 2021: Should you be supporting the fair trade movement?

Sheffield Wire online

2021-02-22

Sustainability expert Dr Smirti Kutaula similarly praised the Fairtrade Foundation’s model for its clear and traceable benefits. “However, it may not be the solution to all ethical and sustainable issues,” she added.

Fair trade finding new markets in developing countries as India's shoppers outstrip UK consumers in demand for ethical products, Kingston University research reveals

Kingston University News online

2019-10-25

Dr Smirti Kutaula, an ethical consumer behaviour and sustainability expert at Kingston Business School, examined perceptions of fair trade and buying behaviour in the two countries. As part of the research, the team investigated whether being physically, socially or psychologically closer to fair trade producers had an impact on consumers' purchasing.

Accomplishments (5)

Finalist, Carolyn B. Dexter Award, Academy of Management Conference

2019

Distinguished Paper Award in the doctoral thesis competition of the European Doctoral Programmes Association in Management and Business Administration (EDAMBA)

2016

Runners-Up Prize, Marketing and Retail track at the British Academy of Management (BAM) Conference

2016

Best Track Paper Award at the Fair Trade International Symposium

2015

Best Proposal Award at Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad Doctoral Colloquium

2011

Education (3)

Cardiff University: Ph.D., Social Sciences 2014

Jamia Millia Islamia: M.Sc., Human Resource Management 2005

Delhi University: B.Sc., Economics 2002

Affiliations (6)

Committee Member, HRM SIG, British Academy of Management
Member, American Marketing Association (AMA)
Member, Environmental Association for Universities and Colleges (EAUC)
Member, Academy of Management (AOM)
Member, British Academy of Management (BAM)
Member, Indian Academy of Management (IAM)

Links (3)

Articles (5)

Psychological contract breach: Unraveling the dark side of business-to-business relationships

Journal of Business Research

Alvina Gillani, Smirti Kutaula, Pawan S Budhwar

2021 While there is an increasing awareness of the importance of developing successful business-to-business relationships, little research has explored the dark side of these relationships. We drew upon the concept of psychological contract, underpinned by social exchange theory to examine breach and the dark side of business-to-business relationships. We conducted in-depth interviews with 24 consultants in the UK and found that breach could take varying forms, resulting in differing levels of intensity of the dark side.

BAME leadership: sensitising leaders early on

HR Magazine

Smirti Kutaula

2021 One of the major problems in tackling racial diversity lies in a lack of awareness about BAME leadership among students who are future HR leaders. Incorporating successful leadership exemplars from BAME community members, using curriculum as a vehicle, is important at an early stage, and may encourage students to achieve great things themselves. One such BAME leader brought to forefront recently is Kamala Harris, the first Indian-African American vice-president in US history.

An analysis of employment relationships in Asia using psychological contract theory: A review and research agenda☆

Human Resource Management Review

Smirti Kutaula, Alvina Gillani, Pawan S Budhwar

2020 Psychological contract theory is increasingly gaining traction as a means of examining the linkages (black box) between Human Resource Management (HRM) and performance. This paper systematically reviews the existing psychological contract research conducted in Asia over the period from 1998-2019. It takes an important step towards building an understanding of psychological contract theory in Asia while also making a critical contribution to the broad domains of HRM and employment relationship.

Exploring frontline employee-customer linkages: a psychological contract perspective

The International Journal of Human Resource Management

Smirti Kutaula, Alvina Gillani, Leonidas C. Leonidou, Dayananda Palihawadana

2020 Although the concept of psychological contract provides a valuable tool to explore frontline employees and customer relationships, this has received little research attention. To address this gap, we develop an integrated model anchored on social exchange theory and a set of research propositions which link together Human Resource Management (HRM) practices delivered by line managers, frontline employee psychological contract, frontline employee customer-oriented behaviors, and customer psychological contract fulfillment, eventually predicting customer outcomes.

The Impact of Proximity on Consumer Fair Trade Engagement and Purchasing Behavior: The Moderating Role of Empathic Concern and Hypocrisy

Journal of Business Ethics

Alvina Gillani, Smirti Kutaula, Leonidas C Leonidou, Paul Christodoulides

2019 The article reports the findings of an empirical study among consumers, regarding the impact of physical, social, and psychological proximity on their engagement to the fair trade idea and purchasing behavior. Based on a random sample of 211 British and 112 Indian consumers and using structural equation modeling, it was found that high levels of physical, social, and psychological proximity leads to high consumer fair trade engagement. Moreover, consumer fair trade engagement was confirmed to have a positive impact on fair trade purchasing behavior.