bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
CULTURAL CHANGE: AN INTEGRATION OF THREE DIFFERENT VIEWS[1]
Authors: Meyerson Debra , Martin Joanne
Published: May 2007

In this article we integrate three disparate views of culture and cultural change. With each view comes a distinct set of implications about the nature, scope, source(s), and consequences of culture change. Each view also suggests distinct implications for those who wish to manage cultural change in organizations. We argue that to understand how organizations change, in general, it is important to understand these disparate, yet interrelated processes of cultural change. We present these three views of culture and cultural change processes in organizations.
HOW ORGANIC IS YOUR ORGANIZATION?– DETERMINANTS OF ORGANIC/MECHANISTIC TENDENCIES IN A PUBLIC ACCOUNTING FIRM
Authors: Zanzi Alberto
Published: May 2007

This study compares two units within a major public accounting firm in order to determine their organic/mechanistic tendencies and establish the variables most closely related to these organizational characteristics. Results from a sample of 67 professionals balanced by unit and hierarchical level indicate that the process‐oriented elements of an organization are the more relevant indicators of organizational development and provide a system for evaluating an organization on an organic/mechanistic continuum.
PARTICIPATION UNDER CONDITIONS OF CONFLICT: MORE ON THE VALIDITY OF THE VROOM‐YETTON MODEL[1]
Authors: Ettling Jennifer T. , Jago Arthur G.
Published: May 2007

Previous research validating the Vroom‐Yetton leadership model has provided support for all the prescriptions of the model except the Conflict Rule. This rule prescribes group decision‐making methods when conflict among subordinates is anticipated and acceptance of the decision is critical, on the grounds that a group process provides a more effective vehicle for conflict resolution than other less participative methods. the present experiment tests the Conflict Rule against an alternative hypothesis that predicts conflict intensification and polarization in group settings. Forty groups of five members each considered a decision task chosen for its likelihood of generating task‐based conflict. the 2x2 design (decision‐making process by leader reward structure) created conditions in which a particular decision‐making process either conformed to or violated the normative prescriptions of Vroom and Yetton's model. Both attitudinal and behavioural measures of decision acceptance revealed that the interactive group process was significantly more effective than one‐to‐one consultation in generating support for a leader's solution. A secondary analysis treating the quality of the leader's decision as a covariate revealed no significant variation in the pattern of subordinate acceptance explained by this factor. Overall, the results support Vroom and Yetton's Conflict Rule and suggest that subordinates are far more likely to accept a leader's decision following an interactive group process regardless of either the leader's desire to reach consensus or the technical quality of the decision.
STRATEGIC PROBLEM FORMULATION: BIASES AND ASSUMPTIONS EMBEDDED IN ALTERNATIVE DECISION‐MAKING MODELS
Authors: Lyles Marjorie A. , Thomas Howard
Published: May 2007

This article reviews the major theoretical approaches to strategic decision‐making and identifies how each treats the process of problem formulation. Five models of strategic decision‐making are analysed to determine the assumptions and biases made about strategic problem formulation. Successful strategic problem formulation is described and proposed as a beginning point for future research. Some constructs for further theory development are addressed.
CHALLENGER: FINE‐TUNING THE ODDS UNTIL SOMETHING BREAKS
Authors: Starbuck William H. , Milliken Frances J.
Published: May 2007

The Challenger disaster illustrates the effects of repeated successes, gradual acclimatization, and the differing responsibilities of engineers and managers. Past successes and acclimatization alter decision‐makers’ beliefs about probabilities of future success. Fine‐tuning processes result from engineers’ and managers’ pursuing partially inconsistent goals while trying to learn from their experiences. Fine‐tuning reduces probabilities of success, and it continues until a serious failure occurs.
MANAGERIAL PERCEPTIONS OF MARKETING PLANNING[1]
Authors: Greenley Gordon E.
Published: May 2007

The literature on marketing planning is largely prescriptive in nature, with little reporting of empirical research. Additionally, the latter has been mostly concerned with classifying the official planning procedures that organizations have adopted. This article reports research which has investigated the perceptions of individual managers towards marketing planning. the overall result is that many differences of perception were identified, including major differences between managers in the same organizations. This insight also allowed for the development of a number of theoretical propositions.
PRACTICES OF TREASURY MANAGEMENT IN A SMALL OPEN TRADING ECONOMY: THE BELGIAN CASE
Authors: Soenen Luc A.
Published: May 2007

ABSTRATC

There is little systematic information available on the current practices in the area of treasury management among companies outside the US. The purpose of this study is to investigate management practices in the areas of treasury management for companies located in a small open trading economy: Belgium. This article analyses and compares corporate responses in three important areas of treasury management, i. e. managing banking relations, domestic cash management, and foreign exchange management. The results presented in this article indicate that corporate practice in these areas could be much more sophisticated.
The Dual Meaning of Managerial Careers: Organizational and Individual Levels of Analysis
Authors: Gunz Hugh
Published: May 2007

A theoretical framework is proposed which brings out the duality of managerial careers by distinguishing between organizational and individual levels of analysis. At the organizational level, careers can be seen as part of a process of social reproduction, which points the way to linking organizational form and behaviour with comparatively stable career patterns characteristic of particular firms or kinds of firm. At the individual level careers are expressed as a sequence of work role transitions, representing choices between opportunities presented to managers by organizations. Each level of analysis illuminates a different aspect of managerial careers, but it is equally important that each should be seen in the light of the other.
Parenthetic Learning in Organizations: Toward the Unlearning of the Unlearning Model
Authors: Klein Jonathan I.
Published: May 2007

The organizational ‘unlearning’ model is discussed. It is argued that the model fails to capture the individual and organizational processes necessary to achieve the objectives for which it is proposed. To achieve these objectives, an alternative, ‘parenthetic learning’ model of organizational learning and change is proposed.
COMPETITIVE GROUPS AS COGNITIVE COMMUNITIES: THE CASE OF SCOTTISH KNITWEAR MANUFACTURERS*
Authors: Porac Joseph F. , Thomas Howard , Baden‐Fuller Charles
Published: May 2007

This article explores how the mental models of organizational strategists determine perceptions of competing organizations and responses to competitive conditions. We first outline a cognitive perspective for discussing competitive strategy, and then use this framework to analyse the particular case of the Scottish knitwear industry. We show how the structure of that industry both determines and is determined by managerial perceptions of the environment. We conclude by drawing out a few general implications of our framework for research and theory on competitive strategy.
COGNITIVE TRAILS IN STRATEGIC DECISION‐MAKING: LINKING THEORIES OF PERSONALITIES AND COGNITIONS*
Authors: Haley Usha C. V. , Stumpf Stephen A.
Published: May 2007

This article attempts to reveal Jungian personality types' cognitive biases through a strategic management framework. The four personality types seem to use distinct heuristics to gather data, to generate and to evaluate alternatives. The connected heuristics appear as cognitive trails. We propose that different personality types habitually use certain cognitive trails; consequently, they can fall prey to biases that lurk in these trails. Cognitive trails may include linked input, output, and operational biases. We present the results from a pilot study to illustrate some connections between personality types and biases. We also explore some implications for future research and for management practice.
ENACTING NEW PERSPECTIVES THROUGH WORK ACTIVITIES DURING ORGANIZATIONAL TRANSFORMATION
Authors: Bartunek Jean M. , Ringuest Jeffrey L.
Published: May 2007

This article explores a behavioural counterpart to the changes in interpretive schemes that characterize organizational transformation. It investigates the experiences of organizational members (especially lower level members) who introduce new perspectives through the work they carry out during transformation. Results of a multi‐year study in a religious order undergoing transformation indicated that members engaged in work that enacted a new perspective were less likely than other members to be appointed to organizational committees and more likely to leave the order. Members involved in work enacting a new perspective who remained in the order came to perceive themselves as less important to leaders but more influential in the order than other members did.
CONSTRUING ORGANIZATIONAL TEXTURE IN YOUNG ENTREPRENEURIAL FIRMS
Authors: Bouwen Rene , Steyaert Chris
Published: May 2007

In a young entrepreneurial firm, two developmental processes are identified. One reflects the emergence of a social network whilst the other reflects the emergence of a task domain. The concept of ‘organizational dialogue’ is introduced to describe the action strategies through which these two processes are connected. The resulting textures may critically be examined to produce ‘process’ knowledge. It is argued that organizational theory can benefit from more work of this kind.
THE INDUSTRIAL MARKET AS AN INTERFIRM ORGANIZATION
Authors: Reddy N. Mohan , Rao M. V. Hayagreeva
Published: May 2007

Recent theorizing in the marketing and organization theory literature attests to the notion that the market is a complex organizational form. We discuss the techno‐economic and institutional forces that structure the industrial market as an interorganizational network. The manner in which these forces structure the market determines segmentation and integration and the changing nature of co‐operation and competition in industrial markets.
STRATEGIC TIME PERIODS AND STRATEGIC GROUPS RESEARCH: CONCEPTS AND AN EMPIRICAL EXAMPLE
Authors: Fiegenbaum Avi , Sudharshan D. , Thomas Howard
Published: May 2007

This article briefly reviews previous research on strategic groups and focuses upon the influence of time on strategic positioning. This stability approach also motivates research into the dynamics of strategic group shifts. An illustrative example drawn from the drug industry emphasizes the practical application of these concepts. The analytically‐derived strategic groupings are then compared with evidence drawn from industry and academic research. Finally, following discussion of the results, some suggestions about integrating the strategic group concept into strategic management research are also made.
A STUDY OF ORGANIZATIONAL ‘FRAMEWORK’ AND ‘PROCESS’ MODALITIES FOR THE IMPLEMENTATION OF BUSINESS‐LEVEL STRATEGIC DECISIONS*
Authors: Skivington James E. , Daft Richard L.
Published: May 2007

Organization framework and process are proposed as two modalities for implementing intended business‐level strategic decisions. A model is developed in which the components of these two modalities are defined and related to the implementation of low cost and differentiation strategic decisions. The implementation of 57 decisions in integrated circuits, petroleum, and health care firms are used to test the research hypotheses. The findings suggest that implementation in these firms utilized both framework and process structural elements, but that a different implementation gestalt characterized each type of strategic decision. Implications for strategy implementation are discussed.
THE EFFECTS OF FORMALIZATION ON DEPARTMENTS OF A MULTI‐HOSPITAL SYSTEM*
Authors: Hetherington Robert W.
Published: May 2007

This study tests five propositions concerning the relationships between formalization, technological complexity and organizational performance. Propositions are based on Hage's axiomatic theory, but reinterpreted in terms of Lawrence and Dyer's readaptation hypothesis. Data were collected by questionnaire from 348 respondents from 92 units of an eight‐member government‐operated multi‐hospital system. Measures were of formalization, complexity, co‐ordination, climate for change, quality of care and morale. In general, more support was found for the readaptation hypothesis than for the traditional hypotheses of the Hage theory. In nursing units, formalization tended to have small, negative effects, and management decision‐making should probably aim to loosen up structures. In non‐nursing (clinical services) units, effects were greater and largely positive, suggesting the need for tightening up structures in order to promote readaptation.
STRATEGIC PLANNING AND FINANCIAL PERFORMANCE: A META‐ANALYTIC REVIEW*
Authors: Boyd Brian K.
Published: May 2007

After two decades of research, the effect of strategic planning on a firm's performance is still unclear. While some studies have found significant benefits from planning, others have found no relationship, or even small negative effects. Interpretation of these findings is confounded by the fact that many of these studies base their findings on a small number of firms. This article uses meta‐analysis to aggregate the results of 29 samples on a total of 2496 organizations. Cumulation of previous studies found modest correlations between planning and nine performance measures. Extensive measurement problems suggest that these findings underestimate the true relationship between planning and performance.
THE IMPACT OF SPOUSE'S CAREER‐ORIENTATION ON MANAGERS DURING INTERNATIONAL TRANSFERS
Authors: Stephens Gregory K. , Black Stewart
Published: May 2007

The increasing internationalization of business and the rise of dual‐earner couples in the labour force combine to make the area of international human resource management and career development complex and important. This article examines results obtained from 67 American expatriate managers (EXM) in Japan of whom 47 per cent were part of a dual‐earner couple in America. the study found that career‐oriented spouses were almost seven times as likely to find employment after an international transfer as non‐career‐oriented spouses. It is argued that because career‐oriented spouses in general were able to find employment and avoid major job interruptions, there was no significant difference between the adjustment of expatriate managers whose spouses worked in the US before the transfer but not after and EXMs whose spouses worked before and after the transfer.
ORGANIZATIONAL SYMBOLISM AND IDEOLOGY*
Authors: Alvesson Mats
Published: May 2007

The purpose of this article is to discuss organizational symbolism research from a critique of ideology perspective. Various aspects of ideology as a metatheoretical concept are discussed. Criteria governing when it might be appropriate to conduct a critical analysis of ideological elements in research texts are also suggested. These include restricted social autonomy of researchers, socio‐political relevance and ideological usefulness of research products, social fashionability of research areas, pseudo‐objective style, absence of indicated self‐reflection and lack of manifested awareness of the social context of research in research publications.

The organizational symbolism research field is discussed in relation to ideology and some influential texts are interpreted in the light of ideology‐critique. the criteria for a sensitive reading of research texts in terms of problematical ideological elements are applied and their relevance illustrated. the article also discusses the field of organizational symbolism in terms of Habermas' concepts of cognitive interests, emancipation and undistorted communication.
UK VENTURE CAPITAL FUNDS AND THE FUNDING OF NEW TECHNOLOGY‐BASED BUSINESSES: PROCESS AND RELATIONSHIPS*
Authors: Sweeting R. C.
Published: May 2007

Through the 1980s the UK venture capital industry, with its perceived focus on risky and innovative businesses, has experienced substantial growth in terms of the number of funds, amounts invested and number of individual investments. In this article, the Tyebjee and Bruno (1984) venture capital deal creation model which was originated in the US has been used to explore the process of venture capital provision and the development of relationships between venture capital funds and operating business managements. An empirical study of how UK‐based venture capital funds operate has been undertaken. The findings generally corroborated the model in a UK context. It was also observed that while venture capitalists actively worked to nurture good relationships with operating business managements they were prepared to act decisively and proactively to protect their investments when they saw them being threatened fundamentally. There vas also some evidence which suggested a slackening of interest in innovative, technology‐based businesses, particularly those in their early stages of development. Further work is needed to identify if there are conceptual problems with the provision of venture capital to these types of businesses or implementation problems which are tractable.
AN INVESTIGATION OF INDUSTRY AND FIRM STRUCTURAL CHARACTERISTICS IN CORPORATE TURNAROUNDS*
Authors: Paint Laurie W.
Published: May 2007

This article uses the structure/conduct/performance framework as an underpinning to investigate the attributes of turnaround firms. Turnaround is defined as a substantial improvement of the firms's return on assets relative to the average return of its industry. Industry and firm structural characteristics including concentration, industry growth, R&D, advertising, market share, size, diversification, capital intensity and margins are identified. The results of a series of univariate and multivariate tests run on a sample of turnaround and non‐turnaround firms indicate that size, R&D, and an interaction between operating margin and advertising can be helpful in explaining some turnaround situations.
FORGING THE IRON CAGE: INTERORGANIZATIONAL NETWORKS AND THE PRODUCTION OF MACRO‐CULTURE
Authors: Abrahamson Eric , Fombrun Charles, J.
Published: May 2007

This article examines how organizations participate in shaping the cultural environments of the nations that they inhabit. Cultural environments, we argue, emerge in a primarily unintended fashion as a consequence of routine, network interactions among organizations in four overlapping yet analytically distinct sectors: government, the mass media, educational institutions, and the business community. Differences in the structure of these national networks condition dynamic patterns of change in nations’cultural environments. In highly centric national networks, government will tend to dominate the production of cultural environments. In less centric networks, other institutional sectors play more commanding roles.
INTEGRATED SYSTEM, AUTONOMOUS DEPARTMENTS: ORGANIZATIONAL INVALIDITY AND SYSTEM CHANGE IN A UNIVERSITY*
Authors: Noble Faith , Newman Michael
Published: May 2007

Research on the relationship between computers and organization structure has mainly focused on the probable impact of technology on features of structure, while the effects of structure on technology have been relatively little considered apart from the way ‘organizationally invalid’ systems cause conflict and resistance. In recent processual perspectives, the relationship between technology and organization is seen not as deterministic but as one of mutual influence, with the outcome both for the organization and the technology emerging from interaction among various stakeholders during system development and implementation. This article, using a longitudinal case study, shows how organization structures can impact on the development process so as to alter computer‐based systems to a design which is unintended but more consistent with existing organizational arrangements. It also discusses how systems specialists and managers can assess organizational invalidity, and offers a contingent framework for the courses of action to be taken if invalidity occurs.
MANAGEMENT BY PANACEA: ACCOUNTING FOR TRANSIENCE
Authors: Gill John , Whittle Sue
Published: May 2007

The cyclical nature of much consultant‐led activity designed to improve managerial effectiveness is explored through three consultant‐driven approaches to organizational improvement ‐ management by objectives, organization development and total quality management. Such packaged programmes seem to proceed through phases of high enthusiasm and much activity followed by a period of disillusionment, to be replaced by the next stage panacea. an attempt is made to offer some explanation of the transitory nature of much managerial activity which is believed to lie fundamentally in cultural and psychodynamic phenomena. Such an analysis may provide some clues to the search for remedial steps which might be taken to find more enduring ways to bring about increased managerial effectiveness in organizations, although by the very nature of our diagnosis we remain pessimistic.
PROCEDURAL RATIONALITY IN THE STRATEGIC DECISION‐MAKING PROCESS*
Authors: Dean James W. , Sharfman Mark P.
Published: May 2007

Despite the central place of rationality in the organization theory, strategic management, and decision‐making literatures, we know relatively little about why some strategic decision‐making procedures are more rational than others. This question was addressed in a study of 57 strategic decisions in 24 companies, using a multiple‐informant, structured interview protocol. Results indicate that environmental competitive threat, perceived external control of the organization, and the uncertainty of the strategic issues being addressed are related to procedural rationality. Surprisingly, some of these relationships were in the opposite direction from our predictions. These results are interpreted within a framework that emphasizes the link between procedural rationality and managerial discretion.
THE EFFECTS OF EMPLOYEE OWNERSHIP ON EMPLOYEE ATTITUDES: AN INTEGRATED CAUSAL MODEL AND PATH ANALYSIS*
Authors: Buchko Aaron A.
Published: May 2007

Research on employee‐owned organizations to date has utilized alternative theoretical perspectives and has examined varying attitudinal outcomes. This study reviews previous research and attempts to integrate the findings into a causal model that combines the results of prior studies. the resulting causal model was tested empirically with a sample (N= 181) of employees from a firm that adopted an employee ownership programme. Financial value of the ESOP was positively related to satisfaction with the ESOP plan, but was not related to other attitudinal variables. Perceived influence from ownership was positively related to ESOP satisfaction, job satisfaction, and organizational commitment. ESOP satisfaction, job satisfaction, and organizational commitment were negatively related to turnover intention. ESOP satisfaction and turnover intention were related to actual employee turnover behaviour over an extended time period.
FLEXIBLE DECISION STYLES AND THE CHOICES OF TOP EXECUTIVES
Authors: Nutt Paul C.
Published: May 2007

Managers who have access to several modes of understanding have been described as ideal decision‐makers. This article reports on research that explored how flexible styles of decision‐making, defined by the number and kinds of accessible modes of understanding, influence the choices of top executives. Instruments were used to measure attitude toward ambiguity and uncertainty and to determine the style of the participating top executives. the participants were asked to evaluate eight capital expansion projects in terms of adoptability and risk. Inferences about decision‐making were drawn from these evaluations. the tolerance for ambiguity and uncertainty scores and the adoptability and risk ratings were associated with the participant's style. Top executives with a flexible style who have access to each of the modes of understanding were found to be aggressive decision‐makers with a high tolerance for ambiguity and uncertainty.
FROM APATHY TO ALACRITY: MANAGERS AND NEW TECHNOLOGY IN PROVINCIAL NEWSPAPERS
Authors: Noon Mike
Published: May 2007

The article explores why provincial newspaper managers have shifted from a position of reluctance and uncertainty about new technology to enthusiasm and zeal for the process and product development opportunities it offers. the transformation is assessed in terms of changes in the industrial relations context, market conditions and technological developments between the late 1970s and early 1990s. This can be characterized as moving from reactive management to proactive management, and the article examines how the latter reflects the development of new business opportunities through application of new technology to the information‐gathering process, the pre‐press production process and the product. Data are drawn from case study interviews and trade/professional publications.

The analysis suggests that there is evidence of three prime managerial objectives/motives for introducing new technology: cost, control and market. Each of these were of varying importance for managers at different times, and were affected by technological uncertainty and ignorance. Attitudes transformed because of the changing context and the pursuit of functional interest, with the result that newspaper managers are now in a better position to exploit new technology for competitive advantage.
SUPPLIER COMMITMENT IN RELATIONAL CONTRACT EXCHANGES WITH BUYERS: A STUDY OF INTERORGANIZATIONAL DEPENDENCE AND EXERCISED POWER*
Authors: Provan Keith G. , Gassenheimer Jule B.
Published: May 2007

This study is an examination of the relationship between dependence and power in vertical interorganizational relations. Using data collected from a US national sample of office systems/furniture dealers, power‐dependence ties in low commitment supplier‐buyer dyads were compared with relational contracting dyads characterized by high levels of long‐term supplier commitment. When commitment was not considered, the exercised power of primary suppliers over dealer decisions was found to be related to dealer dependence on its primary supplier in ways that could be readily explained by social exchange views of power. In contrast, the relationship between exercised power and dependence was significantly different when the primary supplier ‐dependent buyer tie was characterized by the high supplier commitment of a relational contract.
IMPLEMENTING STRATEGIC MISSIONS: EFFECTIVE STRATEGIC, STRUCTURAL AND TACTICAL CHOICES
Authors: Covin Jeffrey G. , Slevin Dennis P. , Schultz Randall L.
Published: May 2007

This article describes a study of the impact of strategic mission on the relationships between firm performance and selected strategic, structural, and tactical variables. Moderated regression analysis and subgroup analysis were used to analyse data collected from 91 advanced technology manufacturing companies. Results indicate that firms with build‐oriented strategic missions, relative to those with more hold‐ and harvest‐oriented strategic missions, performed better when they: (1) adopted entrepreneurial strategic postures; (2) had organic organization structures; (3) offered relatively low product prices; (4) employed relatively large sales forces; (5) offered relatively generous customer credit; and (6) offered relatively broad product lines. On the other hand, firms with hold‐ and harvest‐oriented strategic missions, relative to those with more build‐oriented strategic missions, performed better when they emphasized R&D activity geared toward the development and refinement of existing products. Strategic mission did not moderate the effectiveness of the firms’advertising expenditures or their new product development activity.
IN SEARCH OF EXCELLENT MANAGEMENT
Authors: Koch James V. , Cebula Richard J.
Published: May 2007

Despite important advances in recent years, no agreement exists concerning what constitutes management excellence. Specific knowledge of how managerial behaviour is perceived and evaluated by others will help to resolve unsettled questions about what is meant by management excellence and improve the actual decisions of managers. This article examines the determinants of managerial excellence as perceived by corporate CEOs, directors, and financial analysts in Fortune magazine's annual survey of the best‐managed American firms in 33 industries. While the firms perceived to be best managed are more profitable and less risky, and grow faster and reward their stockholders more than less well‐managed firms, these variables explain only about 30 per cent of the variance in management ratings. the firms perceived to be best managed have more involvement in international markets and research and development, while large firm size and firm diversification reflect negatively upon perceived managerial quality. the relative inability of conventional financial measures of firm performance to explain perceptions of managerial excellence underlines the complex nature both of these perceptions and strategic behaviour. the results support Varadarajan and Ramanujam's conclusion that excellent management depends upon a diverse set of competencies and values, as well as Chakravarthy's contention that the most important characteristic of firm performance is management's ability to transform the firm and adapt to a rapidly changing environment. By contrast, little support is found for the maximization of stockholder wealth criterion of Rappaport.
THE EFFECT OF ORGANIZATIONAL CULTURE ON COMMUNICATION AND INFORMATION*
Authors: Brown Andrew D. , Starkey Ken
Published: May 2007

The aim of this article is to demonstrate the importance and utility of the notion of organizational culture for scholars and practitioners in the field of information studies. It presents a theoretical and empirical examination of the effects of culture on communication and information in organizations. First, the concepts of organizational culture, information and communication are briefly explored. Then a case study of the effects of organizational culture on communication and information is presented. In particular, we make a detailed examination of how attitudes to communication and information that had their roots in a dominant organizational culture were a strong influence on the demise of the company (which was ultimately acquired by a stronger firm).
THEORIES OF THE FIRM: IMPLICATIONS FOR STRATEGY RESEARCH*
Authors: Seth Anju , Thomas Howard
Published: May 2007

Theories of the firm provide a perspective for thinking about organizational objectives and a framework for analysing important research problems. Here, we demonstrate the usefulness of several economic theories of the firm for guiding strategy research. We evaluate the relevance of each theory with regard to how the underlying conceptualization of the firm permits us to investigate issues of substantive interest to strategy researchers, and how compatible the assumptions contained within the theory are with the traditional strategy framework. We also examine the relevance of the theories from the viewpoint of philosophical methodology. We argue that, because of the integrative nature of strategy research, it is imperative for researchers to adopt multiple frameworks represented by different theories for the advancement of the field.
BUDGET ALLOCATION IN A UK UNIVERSITY: CONTRASTING PERIODS OF RESOURCE AVAILABILITY WITH RESOURCE SCARCITY*
Authors: Ezzamel Mahmoud , Bourn Michael
Published: May 2007

This paper seeks to identify variables which explain variations in budget allocations in a UK university using a pooled database relating to two periods: one of resource availability, the other of resource scarcity. the results over both periods indicate, consistent with previous research, that a combination of workload and power proxies explains a very high proportion of budget allocations. However, analysis of the two periods revealed that: (i) incremental budgeting, which was observed to be in operation during the period of resource availability, was not supplanted by comprehensive budgeting during the period of resource scarcity, (ii) the impact of power proxies on budget allocation did not materially change in response to changes in levels of resource availability, and (iii) compared with internally based power, externally based power (as proxied) had neither a greater impact on resource allocation during the period of resource scarcity nor a lower impact during the period of resource availability as hypothesized.
VENTURE CAPITALIST RELATIONSHIPS IN THE DEAL STRUCTURING AND POST‐INVESTMENT STAGES OF NEW FIRM CREATION
Authors: Steier Lloyd , Greenwood Royston
Published: May 2007

Entrepreneurs often turn to outsiders for financial assistance. Venture capitalists represent an outside source of finance that generally takes an active interest in managing the firm. Two common practices within the venture capital industry are co‐investing and staged financing. Responding to the call for more process research which examines the deal structuring and post‐investment stages of venture capital involvement, this research utilized a case study approach to explore salient features and themes that emerged in a relationship involving entrepreneurs and multiple co‐investors in a new firm start‐up. Central findings of the study included: penetrating the venture capital network is a significant first step in securing financial resources and, intriguingly, relationships supersede business plans in securing these resources; paradoxically, venture capitalists establish milestones and tight time‐lines yet inadvertently contribute to many of the delays experienced by a start‐up firm; the operating logic of venture capital networks, constrained by the hierarchical structures of their constituents, may be incompatible with the needs of a start‐up firm; activities within the deal structuring and post‐investment stages are more dynamic and iterative than current models suggest; and, staged financing, when combined with multiple venture partners, requires a clear understanding of each party's collaborative role in the enterprise.
Strategic Groups and Inter‐Firm Networks In International High‐Tech Industries
Authors: Duysters Geert , Hagedoorn John
Published: May 2007

Strategic partnering and the analysis of strategic groups are two issues which enjoy a growing interest from industrial economists as well as from strategic management scholars. This contribution focuses on two related topics in the discussion on strategic group formation. the first subject addresses the relevance of strategic groups for understanding industry heterogeneity. the other topic covers the question whether companies from particular strategic groups establish strategic links with each other, or whether intra‐group rivalry leads to inter‐firm cooperation across strategic groups. Although it appears neglected in the literature the possible linking of the analysis of strategic groups with corporate network studies could generate further understanding of the process of strategic group formation. the present contribution focuses on the international information technology industry in order to study the possible symmetry of the structure of strategic group formation and parallel inter‐firm networks of strategic partnering empirically.
CLASSIFYING MANAGERIAL PROBLEMS: AN EMPIRICAL STUDY OF DEFINITIONAL CONTENT*
Authors: Smith Gerald F.
Published: May 2007

Problem categories play an important role in the thinking activities of many professionals. Organizational researchers have proposed that managers employ such categories as ‘threat’, ‘opportunity’ and ‘marketing problem’ in their thinking. This paper reports the results of a study of managerial problem categories, based on an analysis of managers’ verbal definitions of a variety of organizational problems.

Problem categories previously proposed in the literature were rarely evidenced in these data. However, an iterative, inductive analysis led to the identification of a rich set of managerial problem categories satisfying appropriate criteria.
A ‘PARTNERSHIP’ ROUTE TO HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT?*
Authors: Hunter Laurie , Beaumont Phil , Sinclair Diane
Published: May 2007

Collaborative relationships between firms have been growing in importance, including ‘partnerships’ between customers and suppliers. Institutional economists and sociologists have different views on the origins, character and consequences of partnership, and the nature of this debate is outlined, as well as the implications for the reality of ‘partnership’ and its role in the diffusion of business practice. Against this background we use case study and survey evidence to explore the transition within the supply chain relationship, from a customer ‘demands’ model and hence to ‘supplier development’. Supplier development can be seen as an aid to risk reduction, particularly where it involves management control system development in the supply organization.

The partnership implications for the human resource management (HRM) function are explored. Supply‐side partners are likely to be involved increasingly with activities that will underpin the alliance (for example, training, cultural change and removal of industrial relations obstacles to change). These indirect effects may be supplemented by direct involvement by the HRM specialists in the customer organization, especially where partnership development places strong reliance on the human resource dimensions of the two organizations. Examples of this form of development are discussed.

This evidence is assessed in terms of the different disciplinary approaches discussed at the outset. What emerges most strongly is that although ‘partnership’ is used to describe many inter‐firm relationships, many of these are very unequal and are recognized to be so, but in other cases evolutionary steps can be taken to reduce the risks involved and lead to apparently equitable alliances. Within this risk reduction process, the role of human resources appears to be of varying importance.
THE LOW‐TRUST ROUTE TO ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT: INTER‐FIRM RELATIONS IN THE UK ENGINEERING CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRY IN THE 1980S AND 1990S*
Authors: Korczynski Marek
Published: May 2007

There is a growing body of literature that suggests that advanced economies are experiencing an economic restructuring such that the engines of economic development are smaller, more independent, firms acting in an increasingly cooperative manner. In assessing whether the UK economy is actually experiencing such a shift in inter‐firm relations, the paper firstly assesses the existing evidence. This evidence suggests the continued dominance of large firms and only limited and uneven movements away from a low‐trust system. Secondly, the paper presents evidence on the nature of inter‐firm relations in the UK engineering construction industry in the 1980s and 1990s. the research shows considerable improvement in performance against schedule associated with the emergence of management contractors. Management contractors can improve performance either by adopting a high‐trust route in which they seek to make overall efficiency gains by integrating design and construction, or by adopting a low‐trust route in which they seek to reduce scope for opportunism by rigidifying design, and by passing on risk. Evidence is presented which shows that management contractors in the UK have so far predominantly adopted the low‐trust route to improved performance. Cumulatively, the evidence suggests the dominance of the ‘top down’ control of inter‐firm relations in the UK.
Do Managers and Strategies Matter? A Study In Crisis*
Authors: Greening Daniel W. , Johnson Richard A.
Published: May 2007

Highly interactive, tightly coupled, high‐risk technological systems have introduced the potential for catastrophic events. Although many people consider crises and disasters to be inevitable, our results suggest that firms that are better able to avoid crisis events have top‐management teams with a higher level of functional team heterogeneity, higher education levels, shorter organizational tenures, and more tenure heterogeneity. These characteristics serve as proxies for deeper underlying cognitive processes such as more complex thinking, quality decision making, dialectical inquiry, and multiple perspectives in solving potential catastrophic problems. These cognitive and social processes appear to be successful in addressing interactive complexity in high‐risk technologies, and may be associated with fewer faulty assumptions about firms' vulnerability to crises. In addition, firms whose top managers' time and energy is devoted to managing acquisition and divestment activities are more likely to experience crisis events. Highly diversified firms emphasizing financial and bureaucratic controls appear to develop threat‐rigidities, a lack of firm specific knowledge, and decreased information processing capabilities making them increasingly vulnerable to systemic crisis events.
The Conduct of Management and the Management of Conduct: Contemporary Managerial Discourse and the Constitution of the ‘Competent’ Manager*
Authors: Du Gay P. , Salaman G. , Rees B.
Published: May 2007

The character and conduct of the manager has formed a central focus of attempts to govern economic life throughout the present century. and current programmes of organizational change involve radical attempts to reconstitute the nature and conduct of management. This is attempted through the identification and implementation of management competencies. Discourses of organizational reform such as human resource management, total quality management and business process re‐engineering all place a critical emphasis on anti‐bureaucratic, organic and flexible forms of organization, which are also seen to require the development of particular capacities and predispositions among managers. Essential to their vision of ‘managerial work’ is a composite of ‘entrepreneurial’ attributes. Management competencies appear to offer a congenial method for the reconstitution of the manager along ‘entrepreneurial’ lines, not simply because they are inherently founded on managers'self‐management and self‐presentation of identified behaviours, but also because they represent individualized forms of business functions (and are often associated with the establishment of market relations within the organization).
The Ethics of Shifting Ties: Management Theory and the Breakdown of Culture In Modernity
Authors: Feldman Steven P.
Published: May 2007

Despite a long tradition of documenting unethical practices in organizations, the sociology of organization literature has seldom addressed the question of management ethics. One early work in the field, Melville Dalton's Men Who Manage (1959), did develop a contingent approach to ethics that is seen as a precursor to contemporary discussions in modern and postmodern organization theory. In this essay, Dalton's work is interpreted in terms of a premodern or traditional view of moral theory. It is concluded that Dalton and those who have followed him have reduced morality to politics and have provided an intellectual rationale for the contemporary dark ages of moral behaviour with its worship of the cult of the individual.
Understanding Organizational Learning Capability
Authors: Dibella Anthony J. , Nevis Edwin C. , Gould Janet M.
Published: May 2007

This paper presents data on how learning takes place in four organizations, what gets learned, and the factors and processes that facilitate or impede learning. Seven orientations for describing organizational learning capability and understanding learning styles are identified. Each of these orientations is conceived as a bi‐polar continuum that reflect learning processes.

Knowledge source is defined as the extent to which an organization prefers to develop new knowledge internally versus the extent to which it is more likely to seek inspiration in ideas developed externally. Product‐process focus refers to a preference for the accumulation of knowledge related to product and service outcomes versus a preference to invest in knowledge about basic processes that support products. Documentation mode refers to attitudes as to what constitutes knowledge and to the repositories of knowledge that are supported. Dissemination mode pertains to the difference between establishing an atmosphere in which learning evolves and one in which a more structured, controlled approach is taken to induce learning. Learning focus has to do with whether learning is concentrated on methods and tools to improve what is already being done versus testing the assumptions underlying what is being done. Value‐chain focus indicates which functional, core competencies are valued and supported. Skill development focus involves the orientation toward individual versus collective learning.

Organizational learning may be increased by building on existing capabilities or developing new ones. the latter involves a change in culture, the former involves improving current capabilities. Organizations can enhance their learning capability through either approach.
Towards A Critique of Managerialism: the Contribution of Simone Weil*
Authors: Grey Christopher
Published: May 2007

This paper seeks to make a contribution to the critical literature on management and, more particularly, to the critique of managerialism. This is achieved via a consideration of the hitherto neglected writing of Simone Weil (1909–43) on management, work and organizations. Following an introduction to this work, attention is focused on Weil's notion of oppression, and detailed consideration is given to the conceptualization of management as a form of oppression. the bulk of the paper elaborates the significance of Weil's work for the critique of contemporary forms of managerialism. In particular, the development of new forms of managerial expertise, and the phenomenon of self‐management, are analysed as forms of oppression. It is suggested that Weil offers the basis of a non‐relativist post‐Marxist form of ethically grounded critique in the field of management studies.
NONCOOPERATIVE BEHAVIOUR AS A CREDIBLE THREAT
Authors: Rothschild R.
Published: May 2007

In this paper we consider some limitations on the credibility of the threat of noncooperative behaviour as a response to cheating in cartels.
THE FINANCIAL BEHAVIOUR OF CANADIAN PRIVATE CORPORATIONS AND GOVERNMENT ENTERPRISE: A FLOW OF FUNDS ANALYSIS
Authors: Brox James A. , Maclean Wendy A.
Published: May 2007

This paper examines and compares the portfolio behaviour of Canadian non‐financial government and private enterprises. The greatest difference observed is the relatively small size and yet more active management of the government enterprise asset portfolio. In comparing our model of the private Canadian corporate sector with that of the US, we find the main difference to be a Canadian preference for borrowing rather than equity issue. This preference almost certainly reflects the high level of foreign ownership of Canadian resident corporations.
OPTIMUM SAVINGS UNDER REPRESSED INFLATION
Authors: Bennett John
Published: May 2007

It is often argued that centrally planned economies have suffered from repressed inflation over long periods. We consider how the Keynes‐Ramsey rule for optimum savings can be modified for such an economy. The rule that is obtained in effect incorporates the repercussions that are associated with the supply multiplier in short‐term analyses of repressed inflation.