bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
RESEARCH ON STRATEGIC GROUPS: PROGRESS AND PROGNOSIS[1]
Authors: Thomas Howard , Venkatraman N. 
Published: May 2007

ABSTRACTThe progress made in strategic groups research is evaluated by identifying its relevance and importance to the field of strategic management. A classificatory scheme is developed using two dimensions: the operationalization of strategy; and the approach to group development. A review framework incorporating key analytical dimensions is drawn up to (a) develop a taxonomy for classifying the available empirical research on strategic groups; (b) assess the research and identify important summary patterns and (c) develop specific research directions from a stategic management perspective.
MANAGERIAL THINKING: AN AFRICAN PERSPECTIVE
Authors: Jones Merrick 
Published: May 2007

ABSTRACTCross‐cultural studies of managerial attitudes, beliefs and values have produced evidence to support both the view that industrialization is a force for convergence, and for the notion that national cultural realities continue to support divergence. Data from an investigation of Malawian managers are considered in relation to those from comparable previous studies in other countries, and more specifically in terms of the African context. Some tentative hypotheses are advanced, to account for distinctive aspects of managerial thinking in Malawi.
STUDIES OF MANAGERIAL JOBS AND BEHAVIOUR: THE WAYS FORWARD
Authors: Stewart Rosemary 
Published: May 2007

ABSTRATCThe main achievements and limitations of studies of managerial jobs and behaviour are summarized drawing upon the review articles of Martinko and Gardner (1985) and Hales (1986). Ways forward are explored by developing a map of the field for future studies, which is shown in figure 1. The figure has three aims: to show different areas for research; to help in identifying neglected areas that could be fruitful ways forward; and to show the interrelationship between different aspects of the study and thus to act as a guide for data collection. The main purpose of the article is to be a guide to what can, and what might most fruitfully, be studied, but some suggestions are also made about methods.
ANALYSING MANAGEMENT DECISION‐MAKING: FURTHER THOUGHTS AFTER THE BRADFORD STUDIES
Authors: Rowe Christopher 
Published: May 2007

ABSTRATCDespite the vast range of contributions, the study of decision‐making has remained highly fragmented. Early writers adopted a psychological perspective, viewing the individual as an information processing system, and this detracted from a consideration of political aspects such as conflict and power. The subsequent move towards an approach that saw decision‐making more as a political process was to be welcomed, and this article argues that this owed much to the work of Thompson and Tuden (1964). Their matrix model was extended further by Astley et al. (1982) and Hickson et al. (1986) in what became known as the Bradford Studies, and the author believes that this lineage in theoretical development can be taken further by focusing upon the ‘flow’ of management decisionmaking. Two explanatory case studies are used to show how, in the specific case of computer installations, different decision‐making processes can move along alternative routes through the matrix. The hypothesis put forward is that a particular process flow depends primarily on the nature of organizational power (i. e. whether it is specialist or structural), and consequently upon the level of management involved, and the stage at which they become involved.
LINKING COGNITIVE, ORGANIZATIONAL AND POLITICAL FACTORS IN EXPLAINING STRATEGIC CHANGE
Authors: Schwenk Charles R. 
Published: May 2007

ABSTRACTMuch recent research on strategic decision‐making and strategic change from many different perspectives challenges the view that decision outcomes are the product of rational choice. Allison's (1971) classification scheme is used to categorize recent strategic decision research within three different perspectives. Discussions of research on cognitive, organizational and political perspectives are followed by an integrative discussion showing how these three perspectives can be combined to deal with the full complexity of strategic decisions and the strategic change process.
EXPLORING STRATEGY PERCEPTIONS IN CHANGING ENVIRONMENTS*
Authors: Grösnhaug Kjell , Falkenberg Joyce S. 
Published: May 2007

ABSTRACTThis article explores how a firm perceives its own strategy and that of its competitors. Findings from an exploratory, sociometric study covering both a period of ‘boom’ and a period of ‘bust’ demonstrated that firms and competitors differ greatly in their strategy perceptions. These perceptions were also found to differ from ‘objective’ evaluations made by the investigator. None of the firms studied was found to change their basic strategy in response to environmental jolts.
LINKING CHANGES IN REVEALED CAUSAL MAPS AND ENVIRONMENTAL CHANGE: AN EMPIRICAL STUDY
Authors: Fahey Liam , Narayanan V. K. 
Published: May 2007

ABSTRACTThis article explores the cognitive maps of the dominant coalition of one firm over time. It begins with an overview of the cognitive mapping literature and discusses ‘revealed cognitive maps’ as one strategy for measuring managerial cognitive structures. Next, the revealed cognitive maps from one company over a 20‐year period are analysed for their fit with the company's environmental context. The data suggest that the fit between cognitive structures and the environment was less than perfect, and that decision‐makers both under‐identified and over‐identified certain environmental factors. These and other data are discussed within the context of a cognitive approach to managerial thinking.
IMPORTANT DIMENSIONS OF STRATEGIC ISSUES: SEPARATING THE WHEAT FROM THE CHAFF*
Authors: Dutton Jane E. , Walton Eric J. , Abrahamson Eric 
Published: May 2007

ABSTRACTDecision‐makers in organizations use dimensions implicitly or explicitly to sort strategic issues. This article compares the dimensions implied by three literatures and dimensions generated by an empirical study. While some similarities are identified, there are striking differences between what the literature assumes and what dimensions decision‐makers in the NY/NJ Port Authority use to sort issues. Implications for theories of decision‐making and interpretation in organizations are discussed.
THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN TYPES OF INNOVATION AND ORGANIZATIONAL PERFORMANCE
Authors: Damanpour Fariborz , Szabat Kathryn A. , Evan William M. 
Published: May 2007

ABSTRACTThe relationship between adoption of administrative and technical innovations over time and its impact on organizational performance was studied. A confirmatory analysis of the data from 85 public libraries showed that, over consecutive time periods, changes in the social structure, portrayed by the adoption of administrative innovations, lead to changes in the technical system, portrayed by the adoption of technical innovations. Empirical support was also provided for Daft's (1982) framework for organizational innovation that was found to be effective in separating organizations based on their performance levels.
COMPUTER USE AND STRUCTURAL CONTROL: A STUDY OF AUSTRALIAN ENTERPRISES
Authors: Zeffane Rachid 
Published: May 2007

ABSTRACTThis article investigates underlying relationships between the extent of use of computers and dimensions of organization structure. Empirical tests on a sample of 149 Australian work‐units show strong associations between computer use and structural characteristics. Specifically, greater computer use is found to be related to less centralization and greater formalization and departmentalization. Further tests show that these associations are to some extent moderated by size. However, this moderating effect is most apparent in small organizations for formalization and departmentalization while the relationships involving centralization are more prominent in larger work‐units.Factor analysis led to the diagnosis of two major types of computer use (i.e., informational and operational use). Tests on these categorized effects and the factor‐analysed structural dimensions revealed that: (1) the effects on centralization are more strongly explained by the impact of operational use on the ‘centralization of operational decisions’ sub‐measure and that of informational use on ‘financial decisions’; (2) formalization and departmentalization are found to be most strongly influenced by greater informational use. Here again, significant relationships were found between sub‐measures, the most important of which is the relationship involving the informational factor of formalization with the informational use of computers and the relationship between departmentalization of core functions and the operational use of computing technology.
PROFESSIONALS AND INNOVATION: STRUCTURAL‐FUNCTIONAL VERSUS RADICAL‐STRUCTURAL PERSPECTIVES*
Authors: Drazin Robert 
Published: May 2007

ABSTRACTThe study of the role of professionals in the organizational innovation process has been dominated by a Structural‐Functional perspective. The assumptions associated with this perspective are examined, critiqued, and shown to have led to research findings marked by equivocality and instability. An alternative approach, based on Radical‐Structural principles is developed, and suggestions for implementing this approach in future research are offered.
THE SYMBOLIC IMPACT OF DOUBLE BIND LEADERSHIP: DOUBLE BIND AND THE DYNAMICS OF ORGANIZATIONAL CULTURE
Authors: Hennestad Bjørn W. 
Published: May 2007

ABSTRACTThey are playing a game. They are playing at not playing a game. If I show them I see they are, I shall break the rules and they will punish me. I must play their game, of not seeing I see the game (Laing, 1971).Members of an organization are supposedly led, but very often they do not see the way. On the contrary, they are exposed to conflicting management signals and caught in double bind situations. Double bind connotes a situation where conflicting messages occur, but where it is vitally important to discern what message is being communicated, and where the individual is unable to comment upon the ambiguity. The result is that the individual is not capable of meta communication and thus incapable of learning about the situation. We presume that the double bind phenomenon can often be found in organizations. In extreme cases this creates ‘double bind organizations’ in which the members are continuously confronted with double bind situations. The members become incapable of exploring the existing models of organizational behaviour. Organizational dynamics emerge ‘behind the back’ of people in the organization. The organization's meaning horizon is narrowed due to a lack of authentic dialogue. Attempted changes of organizational direction are experienced as just another double bind, and attempted changes of the double bind patterns become victims of the logic they attempt to alter. In such cases, the organization could be said to be characterized by a form of institutionalized learning incompetence. Understanding the double bind phenomenon should be seen as being important for managing organizations in general, and for the change and the management of change in particular.
PUBLIC SERVICES MANAGEMENT: ACTIVITIES, INITIATIVES AND LIMITS TO LEARNING
Authors: Harrow Jenny , Willcocks Leslie 
Published: May 2007

ABSTRACTPrivate sector‐style management initiatives to ensure UK public services managers’ learning from private sector management practice are examined, and their rationale questioned. The lack of a coherent, systematic and agreed view of what constitutes ‘management’ and ‘managerial work’ in the private sector is discussed. It is argued that there are reasons for believing that the particular character and organizational contexts of public services will require different managerial behaviours.The manner in which experimental managerial initiatives in some public services have shifted into mandatory innovations is examined. Such innovations can be incompatible with the values of those managing in the public service, who frequently fail to recognize the advantages of late innovation, incrementalism and circumspection. In public services particularly, many managerial activities are the province of ‘non managerial’ staff. Though frequently not considered, the values of these de facto managers may be central to the progress of such innovations. It is further argued that risk‐taking as applied in a business context is inappropriate to the degree that public services managers must be concerned with the common weal, equity and accountability.The article concludes with a detailed research agenda to support the need to recognize public services management as a rich and varied area of managerial behaviour in its own right. Its character and variation warrants further investigation as a basis for formulating more appropriate management concepts against which to measure public services managers’ behaviour and performance.
PLANNING AND TACTICAL FACTORS IN THE PROJECT IMPLEMENTATION PROCESS
Authors: Pinto Jeffrey K. , Prescott John E. 
Published: May 2007

ABSTRACTIt has been a well‐recognized axiom in project management research that the project implementation process can be greatly facilitated by addressing a variety of project critical success factors. It is argued here that critical factors often fall into two distinct sub‐groups: those related to initial project planning and those concerned with subsequent tactical operationalization. A field study was conducted to explore changes in the perceived importance of project planning and tactical factors across four stages in the project life cycle. The sample consisted of 408 managers currently involved in projects. It was found that the relative importance of planning and tactical factors varies across the project life cycle. Further, the perceived importance of these factors is contingent upon the type of success measure employed. When an efficiency success measure is used, planning factors are initially perceived to be of high importance but are overtaken by tactical issues as the project progresses through its life cycle. When ‘external’ success measures (perceived value of the project and client satisfaction) are employed, project planning factors dominate tactics throughout the project's life cycle. Finally, implications for managers are developed and directions for future research are discussed.
STRUCTURED OBSERVATION OF MANAGERIAL WORK: A REPLICATION AND SYNTHESIS*
Authors: Martinko Mark J. , Gardner William L. 
Published: May 2007

ABSTRACTThis study uses structured observation categories to investigate the relationship between managerial behaviour, performance, and environmental and demographic variables. We found significant differences in managerial behaviour related to environmental and demographic variables but not to performance. Our replication and synthesis of other studies generally supports earlier conclusions regarding the brief, varied, fragmented and interpersonal nature of managerial work. The results also point to the important relationship between the environment and managerial behaviour. Implications for managerial practice and research are discussed.
A RESEARCH AGENDA FOR STRATEGIC MANAGEMENT IN THE 1990s
Authors: Lyles Marjorie A. 
Published: May 2007

ABSTRACTThe importance of thinking strategically is often glossed over when academics try to apply this concept to themselves. This frequently results in research or articles that are not very insightful or useful either to other academics or to practising managers. To overcome this problem and to explore the future needs of the field of strategic management, this article proposes topics for a research agenda for strategic management in the 1990s that is based on the forecast of ‘experts’ in the field.
CORPORATE REJUVENATION
Authors: Stopford John M. , Baden‐Fuller Charles 
Published: May 2007

ABSTRACTThis article examines six British manufacturers that have recovered from imminent disaster to create sustained and profitable growth in four mature, European industries. Their record is contrasted with that of less successful rivals. Rejuvenation was achieved by making a series of ‘holistic’ changes in structure, systems, process and strategy affecting the entire organization. Rejuvenation is shown to be much more than a ‘turnaround’, which concentrates on finance and efficiency. Innovation in ‘emergent’ strategies was critical and was based on chief executives’beliefs in opportunities that could not be sustained by ‘rational’ strategy calculations. A model of the sequence of change is developed to show how these beliefs were translated into action. The behavioural aspects of the process highlight the importance of both the role information plays in shaping how problems and opportunities are perceived, and the ability of teams to manage the dilemmas inherent in these markets. Both attributes determine much of an organization's capacity to learn. The evidence challenges conventional prescriptions of strategy for mature firms.
THE CORPORATE PERFORMANCE CONUNDRUM: A SYNTHESIS OF CONTEMPORARY VIEWS AND AN EXTENSION
Authors: Varadarajan P. Rajan , Ramanujam Vasudevan 
Published: May 2007

ABSTRACTWhat characterizes superior organizational performance? The question has always fascinated practitioners and academic researchers, and a string of recent bestsellers attests to the current prominence of performance as an organizational issue. This article brings together recent perspectives on performance and provides some further conclusions of its own based on analysis of a new database. Articles on 74 companies rated by Business Month as being one of the five best‐managed companies during each of the 15 years in the 1972–86 timeframe were content analysed in an effort to isolate the key strategic and organizational factors associated with superior corporate performance. Results indicate that superior performance is associated with a broad product line accompanied by geographic diversity, an emphasis on planning coupled with sound financial controls and reporting systems, a high level of commitment to product and process innovation, investments in modernization of manufacturing facilities, a reputation for superior quality and customer service, and progressive human resource management practices. These findings are compared and contrasted with the conclusions of other recent studies and implications of the findings for management are discussed. Far from being the result of applying any particular formula, superior performance is found to require a diverse mix of competencies and values.
ADOPTING JAPANESE‐STYLE MANUFACTURING METHODS: A TALE OF TWO (UK) FACTORIES*
Authors: Oliver Nick , Davies Annette 
Published: May 2007

ABSTRACTJapanese manufacturing methods such as just‐in‐time production and total quality control are serving as a model of manufacturing organization which many UK manufacturers are currently emulating. This article describes the implementation of just‐in‐time production and its supporting practices in two factories owned by the same company. Empirical evidence demonstrates a profoundly political dimension to these innovations, requiring a significant rewriting of organizations’ political and cultural maps.
WOMEN'S CENTRES: RELATIONSHIPS BETWEEN VALUES AND ACTION
Authors: Brown M. Helen 
Published: May 2007

ABSTRACTThis article adopts an ‘organizing’ perspective to examine the relationship between values and action. Drawing on case studies of organizing activity which is undertaken with reference to the core values of the autonomous women's movement, the essentially negotiated nature of this relationship is argued and illustrated. Variation is shown to occur in the terms and arenas of negotiation and attention is drawn to the dimensions of the characteristic ‘texture of organizing’ in the settings described.
REVIEW ESSAY STUDIES ON TRANSITIONS: MEANINGS AND METHOD
Authors: Starkey Ken 
Published: May 2007

ABSTRACTThis article analyses the link between research methodology and knowledge generation. It argues that the selection of a method of data collection and analysis determines the potential boundaries and depth of knowledge that can be generated. Choice of methodology, therefore, has major constraining or liberating potential. This is illustrated in an examination of three recent texts on transition. The first of these adopts an occupational psychology approach based on large‐scale surveys. It is argued that this approach runs the risk of ignoring key existential issues. The two other texts analysed are a clinical psychology approach to the major transitions in work and power occasioned by the introduction of new information technologies, and a novel examining key transition episodes in the ‘lives’ of its main protagonists. These two texts, it is suggested, provide an extremely rich source of data and are a pleasure to read. The article ends with an argument for the redefinition of the boundaries that constitute knowledge in management and organization studies.
RELATIONSHIPS OF JOB CATEGORIES AND ORGANIZATIONAL LEVELS TO USE OF COMMUNICATION CHANNELS, INCLUDING ELECTRONIC MAIL: A META‐ANALYSIS AND EXTENSION*
Authors: Rice Ronald E. , Shook Douglas E. 
Published: May 2007

ABSTRACTThis study tests hypotheses derived from information processing theory concerning relationships between individuals' job category, organizational level, and levels and patterns of media usage. Media studied include face‐to‐face, meetings, memos/letters, telephone and electronic mail. In the meta‐analysis of over 40 studies, usage of different media was significantly different for managers/executives versus others, and was highly correlated with organizational level. In the individual‐level analyses of four organizations, the majority of respondents were classified into their actual job categories, and according to distances between organizational levels, by a discriminant function involving only relative extent of media use, especially participation in meetings. Contrary to information richness theory, upper‐level respondents (managers) did not necessarily use electronic mail less than did lower‐level respondents (clerical workers). The article concludes by discussing implications for theories of organizational media use and implementation of electronic mail systems.
Entrepreneurial Versus Conservative Firms: A Comparison of Strategies and Performance
Authors: Covin Jeffrey G. 
Published: May 2007

ABSTRACTThis article describes a study of the business strategies and performance levels of firms with entrepreneurial and conservative strategic postures. Data were collected from the senior executives of 111 small manufacturing firms. Results indicate that entrepreneurial firms differ from conservative firms in terms of their growth rates as well as several financial, operating, and marketing‐related variables. the data suggest that the patterns of strategic behaviour associated with high performance are different for entrepreneurial and conservative firms.