bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
HOST‐COUNTRY MANAGERIAL BEHAVIOUR AND LEARNING IN CHINESE AND HUNGARIAN JOINT VENTURES*
Authors: Child John , Markóczy Livia 
Published: May 2007

ABSTRACTClose similarities in the behaviour reported of host country managers in Chinese and Hungarian joint ventures have emerged from recent research. an assessment is offered of four perspectives which purport to account for managerial behaviour in these contexts, namely those referring to the system of industrial governance, the nature of industrialization, national culture and resistance to change. the system of industrial governance provides the most direct and comprehensive explanation, and is also linked with influences from national culture and industrialization. the article concludes by examining the modes of host country learning in process within the joint ventures as foreign partners endeavour to change the behaviour of local managers.
SCIENTIFIC COMMUNICATION, INNOVATION NETWORKS AND ORGANIZATION STRUCTURES*
Authors: Perry Nick 
Published: May 2007

ABSTRACTThis article examines changes in the relation between the organization of social power, the production of advanced scientific knowledge, and the position of scientific and technical personnel, from an institutionalist perspective. This is undertaken largely, but not exclusively, by mapping an exemplar of such inter‐institutional and intra‐disciplinary changes, i.e. the transformation in high‐energy physics associated with the development of the atomic bomb. the contrast between the social imperatives of dominant sponsoring institutions and the organizational preconditions for cognitive efficacy is seen as regulated through the emergence of innovation networks. the article concludes with a brief consideration of the relation between the strategies of knowledge workers and the structure of such networks.
CORPORATE CULTURE AND MORALITY: DURKHEIM‐INSPIRED REFLECTIONS ON THE LIMITS OF CORPORATE CULTURE
Authors: Dahler‐Larsen Peter 
Published: May 2007

ABSTRACTIn the May 1986 issue ofJournal of Management Studies, Ray argued that Corporate Culture protagonists have stumbled upon the central ideas of the classical sociologist Durkheim, especially those concerning morality. However, this article demonstrates important differences between corporate culture discourse and the Durkheimian concept of morality. Durkheim's views on moral autonomy, his diagnosis of the problematic nature of modern utilitarian values and his insistence on society as the source and the goal of morality are applied as a frame of reference that allows an identification, analysis and discussion of problematic assumptions about man, organization and society in corporate culture discourses.On this basis, the article discusses the relatively limited fulfilment of the promises issued by corporate culture protagonists, which can be observed by reflecting on the past decade, as well as some alternative ideas for organizational culture practitioners and researchers.
POSTMODERN ORGANIZATIONAL ANALYSIS: TOWARD A CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK
Authors: Hassard John 
Published: May 2007

ABSTRACTThis article discusses a new approach to organizational analysis — postmodernism. We contrast modern and postmodern forms of explanation and explore a family of terms derived from these two concepts. In so doing, we discuss whether postmodernism is best described as an ‘epoch’or an ‘epistemology’, a distinction which underpins current debates. Through reference to the works of Jean Baudrillard, Jacques Derrida and Jean‐Francois Lyotard, we produce an inventory of key concepts for postmodern organizational analysis —‘representation’, ‘reflexivity’, ‘writing’, ‘differance’ and ‘de‐centring the subject’. By explicating the main arguments associated with these concepts — and by developing the middle ground between the epoch and epistemology positions — we lay conceptual foundations for a nascent postmodern approach to organization studies.
WHAT HAPPENS AFTER SUCCESS: THE PERILS OF EXCELLENCE*
Authors: Miller Danny 
Published: May 2007

ABSTRACTThis article examines how past performance influences the way an organization evolves, makes decisions, and adapts to its environment. It argues that compared to other periods of history, those that follow a lengthy interval of success will reveal companies that are especially apt to: (1) exhibit inertia in many aspects of structure and strategy‐making process; (2) pursue immoderation, that is, adopt extreme process orientations; (3) manifest inattention, that is, reduce intelligence gathering and information processing activity; and (4) demonstrate insularity by failing to adapt to changes in the environment. an empirical analysis of the long‐term histories of 36 companies provides tentative support for these notions.
ANATOMY OF A FATAL BUSINESS STRATEGY
Authors: Valentin Erhard K. 
Published: May 2007

ABSTRACTThe reported interpretive case study is focused on the genesis and the maturation of a catastrophic division‐level business strategy and affords an uncommon glimpse of the intraorganizational dynamics of failure. A descriptive account of the focal division's history and the emergence of the fatal strategy provides the backdrop for subsequent diagnoses. Comparative analysis is used to identify salient differences between the focal strategy and the strategies of three sectoral pacesetters; then, the processes that spawned the noted differences are examined within the context of organizational and behavioural decision theory.
ORGANIZATIONAL INNOVATION: REVIEW, CRITIQUE AND SUGGESTED RESEARCH DIRECTIONS*
Authors: Wolfe Richard A. 
Published: May 2007

ABSTRACTDespite broad interest and a vast literature, understanding of innovative behaviour in organizations remains relatively undeveloped. to contribute to the development of a more cumulative knowledge base, the author presents a conceptual review of the innovation literature by summarizing and organizing prior research into three related, though often confounded, research streams and identifies major reasons for the inconsistent and inconclusive nature of the research. Strategies for conducting more generalizable innovation research are suggested.
FIELD RESEARCH METHODS IN STRATEGIC MANAGEMENT: CONTRIBUTIONS TO THEORY BUILDING AND TESTING*
Authors: Snow Charles C. , Thomas James B. 
Published: May 2007

ABSTRACTThis article discusses the contributions that field methods have made to the theory‐development process in strategic management. Field studies drawn from the literature are classified according to their research goal (description, explanation, or prediction) and according to whether they built or tested theory. the overall conclusion is that field research methods will continue to be used heavily to develop strategy theory. However, certain conditions must be met to maximize the contribution of field methods to strategy research. These conditions include a balanced research agenda, multifaceted research approaches, innovative datagathering techniques, and an applied futuristic orientation.
THE REMUNERATION OF NON‐OWNER MANAGERS IN SMALL AND MEDIUM‐SIZED UK ENTERPRISES
Authors: Watson Robert , Storey David J. , Wynarczyk Pooran , Keasey Kevin , Short Helen 
Published: May 2007

ABSTRACTVirtually all prior research on small and medium sized enterprise (SME) management has focused on owner managers. This article, however, empirically examines the determinants of managerial remuneration for a sample of 97 UK SME non‐owning managerial employees. the empirical analysis, based upon data obtained from interviews with middle (i.e. non‐director level) managers and the published financial records of their employing firms lodged at Companies House, first examines the influence of firm size and performance and then augments the empirical model to include pay composition, industrial sector, external labour market and human capital variables.The empirical results indicate that the average profitability of the employing firms is not a significant determinant of managerial remuneration. However, composition of pay appears to have a significant effect upon total remuneration since, even after controlling for other influences, managers in receipt of annual bonuses and/or profit‐sharing bonuses are estimated to earn an additional £6,600. the managers’age and qualifications, and the asset size, industry and location of their employing firms are also significant factors and collectively are able to explain a large proportion of the cross‐sectional variance in remuneration. Though there is a lack of previous empirical research on SME managerial pay.
A PROCESS STUDY OF NEW TECHNOLOGY ADOPTION IN SMALLER MANUFACTURING FIRMS*
Authors: Langley Ann , Truax Jean 
Published: May 2007

ABSTRACTBased on longitudinal case studies of new technology adoption in five smaller Canadian manufacturing firms, this article develops an inductive process model that views the technology adoption process as a partially nested set of three parallel and interacting sub‐processes that are different in nature: the strategic commitment process, the technology choice process and the financial justification process. These processes are themselves intertwined with other strategic decision processes in the firm, and influenced by a dynamic set of contextual elements that interact with one another over time. the study underlines the problems associated with a narrow conception of technology adoption as a ‘decision’while showing how various process models from the literature are useful in understanding different parts of the overall process of adoption
THE ORGANIZATION OF INNOVATION IN THE UNITED STATES AND JAPAN: NEOCLASSICAL AND RELATIONAL CONTRACTING*
Authors: Bolton Michele Kremen , Malmrose Roger , Ouchi William G. 
Published: May 2007

ABSTRACTThis article discusses the role of intermediate governance structures between vertically related industries in the specific context of technological innovation. In the United States, relations between firms in vertically related industries correspond closely to the neoclassical contracting model, characterized by arms‐length, spot contracting on the open market. In Japan, inter‐firm relations are more likely to involve relational contracting, characterized by stable bonding mechanisms and a dense historical network of economic ties between the parties to the exchange. We focus upon the kinyu keiretsu type of relational contracting between firms of unequal size and power in vertically related industries, which is a special case of the more generally studied kigyo shudan, or inter‐market financial group. For illustrative purposes, we compare the contractual arrangements used to manage the development of new technology by 46 US and 27 Japanese semiconductor equipment firms. We conclude by speculating that the organization of innovation in the Japanese semiconductor equipment industry has accelerated their development of new technology and led to their extraordinarily rapid worldwide market penetration.
REFINING COMMON SENSE: TYPES OF KNOWLEDGE IN MANAGEMENT STUDIES*
Authors: Tsoukas Haridimos 
Published: May 2007

ABSTRACTDrawing on Pepper's World Hypotheses we describe four different approaches to obtaining formal knowledge in management studies. These approaches are: formism, mechanism, contextualism, and organicism. All of them are valid ways of refining common sense that resist synthesis. Applying Pepper's framework in as extremely diverse a field as management studies (focusing on organizational behaviour (OB) and strategic management (SM) in particular) we show the different assumptions and knowledge claims made by different types of theorists in management and, moreover, we shed light on the sources of conceptual rivalry that often characterize the field. By way of illustration, the Mintzberg‐Ansoff debate on the nature of strategic management is focused upon for closer examination. It is shown that analysing this debate in terms of Pepper's framework one can understand and evaluate the epistemological differences between Mintzberg and Ansoff, which stem from their adherence to contextualist and mechanistic‐cum‐formistic types of knowledge respectively.
MARKET‐DRIVEN CHANGE IN PROFESSIONAL SERVICES: PROBLEMS AND PROCESSES*
Authors: Whittington Richard , Mcnulty Terry , Whipp Richard 
Published: May 2007

ABSTRACTThis article analyses the processes of market‐driven change in two professional service sectors, Research and Development (R&D) and the National Health Service. Building on these sectors’common experiences, the article proposes a general model of market‐driven change in professional services, highlighting the complex and multi‐level nature of the process. It is argued that, while market‐driven change is an increasingly practised and observed phenomenon, its complexity has been widely underestimated. For managers, the problem is one of synchrony between different levels in the change process, with the top strategic level particularly liable to lag changes at other levels. For academic observers of new market forms of control, the risk is of repeating the simplifications of early ‘labour process’analyses of hierarchical control.
THE ORGANIZATIONAL CORRELATES AND CONSEQUENCES OF SUBCONTRACTING: EVIDENCE FROM A SURVEY OF SOUTH WALES BUSINESSES
Authors: Bresnen Mike , Fowler Carolyn 
Published: May 2007

ABSTRACTRecent interest in the growth of subcontracting, as part of a broader trend towards greater ‘flexibility’in forms of employment relationship, has not as yet been matched by a full consideration of its organizational and managerial implications. In particular, the question of whether or not subcontracting has an impact upon, or is affected by, the organization's structural characteristics remains largely unexplored. the aim of this article is to report findings from a detailed study of subcontracting practices across a sample of British industry, which focuses upon the relationship between subcontracting and organizational characteristics. the results indicate several important points about the practice. Firstly, that there is wide variation in the use of subcontracting across industry, although the overall extent is limited. Secondly, that variation in the practice is significantly related to basic firm characteristics ‐ namely, industrial sector, type of production system and pattern of ownership and control. Thirdly, that, on balance, subcontracting is associated with more, not less, structural complexity. Finally, that this greater complexity is found in particular types of firms ‐ notably, outside the manufacturing sector, in mass and process production systems and amongst British independents and subsidiaries, rather than in their foreign competitors.
Determinants of International Human Resource Management Approaches and Activities: A Suggested Framework*
Authors: Welch Denice 
Published: May 2007

ABSTRACTThe following article reports on the results of a qualitative, comparative case study of the management of expatriates by four Australian companies. International Human Resource Management (IHRM) is a field in its infancy and the study aims to contribute to theory‐building by examining the IHRM activities of selection, predeparture training, compensation and repatriation in the context of the organization in which these activities take place.The purpose was to extend our understanding of IHRM beyond the descriptive studies of earlier research, though existing knowledge in the area was the starting point. Thus, while the initial focus of the investigation was on the IHRM activities, the use of an exploratory qualitative methodological approach allowed the examination of the process of expatriate management. This approach also assisted in identifying underlying relationships, patterns and trends which could be interpreted as linkages or interrelationships between IHRM activities and other organizational factors, such as stage in internationalization, type of industry, strategy and structure. It was possible to identify linkages between the four major IHRM activities, and what were defined as firm‐specific and situation‐specific variables. These linkages were then conceptualized into a suggested framework.
THE INTERPRETATION OF ORGANIZATION: A CONTEMPORARY ANALYSIS AND CRITIQUE*
Authors: Jeffcutt Paul 
Published: May 2007

ABSTRACTThis article is concerned with examining the development of interest in organizational interpretation (exemplified by a decade of analyses of culture and symbolism in organization) as a rhetorical and philosophical episode in Organization Studies. the presumed ‘productivity’ of this recently developed arena of Organization Studies, for both the theory and practice of organization, is carefully considered through the discussion of a broad range of work from the past decade. This body of work is examined as a ‘genre’ of Organization Studies that both manifests particular issues for interpretation and articulates particular styles of representation.The article argues that the rise of interest in organizational interpretation represents a late‐modern phase in Organization Studies, whereby traditional priorities and subordinations in the theory and practice of organization have been rewritten and renewed. In this way, organizational interpretation has come to articulate the most recent form ofavant‐gardeactivity in the continuing modernization of Organization Studies. In contrast, the article concludes with the consideration of a theory and practice for such work which would contribute to the articulation of a postmodern Organization Studies.
ON THE STRUCTURE AND DYNAMICS OF SOME SMALL, UK‐BASED INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY FIRMS*
Authors: Ackroyd Stephen 
Published: May 2007

ABSTRACTThe paper reports on the discovery of some small but successful information technology firms. These firms, which are geographically and structurally highly mobile, were found in a recent survey of information technology firms in the north‐west of England. Detailed investigation of the firms as case studies, revealed that they have many distinctive and interesting properties. Eleven distinguishing characteristics in addition to small size are identified; among them being lack of hierarchy, pervious boundaries, and extreme mobility including growth by replication. In the discussion, some differences in the organization of the firms are identified, it being argued that although all the firms lack hierarchy and tend to adopt very extreme forms of matrix organization, they do this to a greater degree the less they are dependent on technology for the creation of their products, and/or on the extent to which they retain proprietary products in their range. the paper concludes with a consideration of other work on new technology firms and argues that these findings are not unique. However, it is also argued that small firm researchers have not been very creative in their use of the available frameworks to account for the existence of the firms analysed in this paper, or to understand that it is the contingencies they face which allow them to be highly mobile and adaptable.
CAN WE SPEAK OF A HIGH COMMITMENT MANAGEMENT ON THE SHOP FLOOR?*
Authors: Wood Stephen , Albanese Maria Teresa 
Published: May 2007

ABSTRACTThe Commitment model à la Walton has been a key element in conceptions of human resource management (HRM). Is there though any evidence of its application to production workers? Drawing on the HRM literature the authors first develop some measures of practices which might be thought to contribute to high commitment management (HCM). Having acquired data on the extent to which organizations adopt these practices the authors then, using latent variable analysis, assess whether there is a common structure underlying it which represents some kind of HCM‐type approach to labour. In so doing they develop a construct to measure HCM relevant to manual workers. Basing the analysis on data from a representative sample of manufacturing plants in the UK, they conclude that HCM is being practised, albeit to a very varying degree.The research also reveals a growth in the use of HCM practices between 1986 and 1990, and that this has been mainly in practices already popular in 1986; hence the increased use of HCM has been more in plants for whom it was relatively insignificant in 1986, rather than a further heightening of its significance in plants for which it was important before. Using multiple regression analysis, the authors are also able to show that organizational factors rather than factors exogenous to the organization are significantly related to both the level of HCM, and its rate of change between 1986 and 1990. of overwhelming importance is the extent of the strategic integration of personnel management. the authors draw out the relevance of the study for the wider debate about HRM. In particular the results add some support for Walton's and Guest's universalistic theories of HCM, as opposed to what have been called matching or contingency theories of HCM, according to which it is only likely to be found in specific contexts where, for example, high quality is important for competitive advantage.
THE ROLE OF MANAGEMENT CONSULTANTS IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY: THE INDISSOLUBLE NATURE OF SOCIO‐POLITICAL AND TECHNICAL SKILLS*
Authors: Bloomfield Brian P. , Danieli Ardha 
Published: May 2007

ABSTRACTThis paper explores the role of management consultants in the development of information technology (IT) in organizations. Contending that the process of IT systems development is characterized by the exercise of power, the central theme of the argument concerns the indissoluble nature of the technical and socio‐political skills inherent in IT consultancy practice. IT consultancy practice is not just socio‐political when winning a contract ‐ the sales pitch ‐ and technical when developing an IT system. Rather, socio‐political skills centred on the mobilization of discursive and symbolic resources are an inherent part of the construction of such systems.
THE EFFECTS OF INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY ON STRATEGIC DECISION MAKING
Authors: Molloy Steve , Schwenk Charles R. 
Published: May 2007

ABSTRACTInformation technology (IT) may be defined as computer‐based technology for the storage, accessing, processing and communication of information. Many writers have suggested that the use of IT should improve strategic decisions and have developed a number of propositions about the effects of IT on strategic decision making. However, no study has yet addressed the specific effects of IT on major phases of this process. Using Mintzberg, Raisinghani and Theoret's (1976, ‘The structure of unstructured decision processes’, Administrative Science Quarterly, 21, 2, 246–75) strategic decision‐making model, this study assessed the effects of IT on the major phases of the process through an intensive examination of eight decisions in four companies. the results of the study provide new information on the specific ways IT improves decision‐making efficiency and effectiveness at each stage of the strategic decision process.
Rewards and Organizational Goal Achievement: A Case Study of Toyota Motor Manufacturing In Kentucky
Authors: Besser Terry L. 
Published: May 2007

ABSTRACTThis research elaborates a theory which explains how Japanese‐managed organizations use rewards to encourage individuals to co‐operate in organizational goal achievement. I contend that in Japanese organizations the small work group and the community of fate ideology are important intermediary social constructs between individuals and rewards. I illustrate this model by showing that at Toyota Motor Manufacturing in Kentucky, rewards are not tied directly to individual performance, but instead are used to nurture the bonds within the work team and to reinforce belief in the community of fate ideology. the work team and belief in the community of fate ideology in turn, positively impact individual co‐operation in organizational goal achievement thereby enhancing the influence of the rewards on individuals.