The Central University of Technology celebrated the academic milestone of Prof. Crispen Chipunza as he was inducted as a full professor on 20 April 2023. The inaugural professorial lecture is an auspicious occasion where academics with full professorship status get to deliver an Inaugural lecture focusing on their professed research expertise.

CUT awards these to academics who are highly accomplished and widely recognised among their peers. Prof. Crispen Chipunza is among the academics who have distinguished themselves with their work.

In his Inaugural address titled, Typology, pervasiveness, and nature-nurture controversy of counterproductive work behaviour: Lessons for HR practice, he said that counterproductive behaviour is any behaviour contrary to the legitimate or dominant norms of an organisation. “If the behaviour undermines the goals and interests of a business or an organisation, it is called counterproductive behaviour. In an organisation or academia, we use the word counterproductive work behaviour.”

He further said that this behaviour is intentional and is not conducted out of involuntary circumstances. “As much as all counterproductive work behaviour is intentional, conscious, and harmful to the organisation and its members, not all counterproductive work behaviour is harmful to an organisation. Mainly because some can be classified as positive deviance or constructive deviance steaming from good intentions and in pursuit of organisational goals.”

Prof. Chipunza mentioned that there are several theories but there is no single theory which can be exclusively regarded as the best to describe counterproductive behaviour. “The interaction between the different ideas will be suitable to explain counterproductive work behaviour. Counterproductive work behaviour is complex and can be viewed from different perspectives. The genesis of its antecedents can be individual or organisational.”

 In conclusion, he mentioned that managing it in an organisation would require knowledge of different types of antecedents. These types of behaviours not only impact the quality of work produced by the employees engaging in counterproductive behaviour but can also negatively affect the productivity of other employees in the company and create undesirable risks for the employer. “Not all counterproductive work behaviours have negative consequences,” he added.