Home About us Contact
|
Home About us Contact | ||
|
|
||
Managerial Practices (managerial + practice)
Selected AbstractsEncouraging knowledge sharing among employees: How job design mattersHUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT, Issue 6 2009Nicolai J. Foss Abstract Job design is one of the most frequently researched practices in the Human Resource Management (HRM) literature, and knowledge sharing has become an important and heavily researched managerial practice. The links between these practices, however, have received little attention in the literature. We argue that job design matters to knowledge sharing for motivational reasons. Specifically, jobs contain characteristics that stimulate different kinds of motivation toward knowledge sharing, which have different effects on individual knowledge sharing behavior. We develop six hypotheses that unfold these ideas and test them on the basis of individual-level data collected within a single firm. The hypotheses are tested in a LISREL model that confirms that job characteristics, such as autonomy, task identity, and feedback, determine different motivations to share knowledge, which in turn predict employees' knowledge sharing behaviors. © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. [source] Lost in translation: exploring the link between HRM and performance in healthcareHUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT JOURNAL, Issue 1 2007Timothy Bartram Using data collected in 2004 from 132 Victorian (Australia) public healthcare providers, comprising metropolitan and regional hospital networks, rural hospitals and community health centres, we investigated the perceptions of HRM from the experiences of chief executive officers, HR directors and other senior managers. We found some evidence that managers in healthcare organisations reported different perceptions of strategic HRM and a limited focus on collection and linking of HR performance data with organisational performance management processes. Using multiple moderator regression and multivariate analysis of variance, significant differences were found in perceptions of strategic HRM and HR priorities between chief executive officers, HR directors and other senior managers in the large organisations. This suggested that the strategic human management paradigm is ,lost in translation', particularly in large organisations, and consequently opportunities to understand and develop the link between people management practices and improved organisational outcomes may be missed. There is some support for the relationship between strategic HRM and improved organisational outcomes. Implications of these findings are drawn for managerial practice. [source] The impact of brand orientation on managerial practice: a quantitative study of the UK's top 500 fundraising managersINTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF NONPROFIT & VOLUNTARY SECTOR MARKETING, Issue 1 2002Philippa Hankinson This paper explores the impact of brand orientation on the managerial practices of fundraising managers in the top 500 UK charities and, in particular, on their ability to attract voluntary income. A series of hypotheses was tested including whether level of brand orientation is associated with different patterns of influence within charities, with the range and type of brand communicators used and with the extent to which organisational objectives are fulfilled. A key finding of the research was that high brand-oriented fundraising managers attract significantly more voluntary income than low brand-oriented fundraisers, but that level of brand orientation was not related to statutory income. Such findings are consistent with current theory and practice of branding in which a brand is perceived as a product or organisation plus, where the plus indicates a unique set of values which allows differentiation and hence, donor choice, within competitive environments. Copyright © 2002 Henry Stewart Publications [source] A current overview of consumer neuroscienceJOURNAL OF CONSUMER BEHAVIOUR, Issue 4-5 2008Mirja Hubert The emerging discipline of neuroeconomics employs methods originally used in brain research for investigating economic problems, and furthers the advance of integrating neuroscientific findings into the economic sciences. Neuromarketing or consumer neuroscience is a sub-area of neuroeconomics that addresses marketing relevant problems with methods and insights from brain research. With the help of advanced techniques of neurology, which are applied in the field of consumer neuroscience, a more direct view into the "black box" of the organism should be feasible. Consumer neuroscience, still in its infancy, should not be seen as a challenge to traditional consumer research, but constitutes a complementing advancement for further investigation of specific decision-making behavior. The key contribution of this paper is to suggest a distinct definition of consumer neuroscience as the scientific proceeding, and neuromarketing as the application of these findings within the scope of managerial practice. Furthermore, we aim to develop a foundational understanding of the field, moving away from the derisory assumption that consumer neuroscience is about locating the "buy button" in the brain. Against this background the goal of this paper is to present specific results of selected studies from this emerging discipline, classified according to traditional marketing-mix instruments such as product, price, communication, and distribution policies, as well as brand research. The paper is completed by an overview of the most prominent brain structures relevant for consumer neuroscience, and a discussion of possible implications of these insights for economic theory and practice. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Organizational Risk as it Derives from What Managers Value: A Practice-Based Approach to Risk AssessmentJOURNAL OF CONTINGENCIES AND CRISIS MANAGEMENT, Issue 3 2010Hervé Corvellec Two observations serve as starting points for this paper. First, conventional risk assessment techniques provide sophisticated ways to identify and estimate hazards, but eschew the fact that there is no risk unless something of value is considered to be at stake. Second, what managers consider as being of value follows from how they organize their managerial practice. Based on a case study of a Swedish public transportation administration, a claim is presented that organizational risk conceptions derive primarily, although not exclusively, from what managers consider being of value both in and for their organizational practice. In particular, it is suggested to begin the risk assessment process with a critical appraisal of what managers hold as being of value and why. [source] Conceptualizing Knowledge Creation: A Critique of Nonaka's Theory*JOURNAL OF MANAGEMENT STUDIES, Issue 7 2006Stephen Gourlay abstract Nonaka's proposition that knowledge is created through the interaction of tacit and explicit knowledge involving four modes of knowledge conversion is flawed. Three of the modes appear plausible but none are supported by evidence that cannot be explained more simply. The conceptual framework omits inherently tacit knowledge, and uses a radically subjective definition of knowledge: knowledge is in effect created by managers. A new framework is proposed suggesting that different kinds of knowledge are created by different kinds of behaviour. Following Dewey, non-reflectional behaviour is distinguished from reflective behaviour, the former being associated with tacit knowledge, and the latter with explicit knowledge. Some of the implications for academic and managerial practice are considered. [source] Comparing Innovation Capability of Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises: Examining the Effects of Organizational Culture and EmpowermentJOURNAL OF SMALL BUSINESS MANAGEMENT, Issue 3 2010Nigar Demircan Çakar This study analyzes the impact of organizational culture and empowerment on innovation capability, and examines the peculiarities of these effects. The study's hypotheses are tested by applying both individual and firm-level analyses to survey data collected from 743 employees from 93 small and medium-sized firms located in Turkey. For medium-sized enterprises on both the individual and firm level of analysis, results suggest that collectivism and uncertainty avoidance are positively associated with empowerment, whereas power distance is negatively related to empowerment. Assertiveness focus has no relations with empowerment and innovation capability, yet among cultural dimensions, only uncertainty avoidance is related to innovation capability. For small-sized enterprises, findings suggest that both power distance and uncertainty avoidance are linked to both empowerment and innovation capability on the individual level, whereas two new paths between collectivism and innovation capability and between assertiveness focus and empowerment are found on the firm level. Also, empowerment is found to be positively related to innovation capability for both small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) on both the individual and firm level. In terms of managerial practice, our study helps clarify the key role played by cultural dimensions in the process of shaping an empowering and innovative work environment. Findings also reveal that managers should focus on participative managerial practices (e.g., empowerment) to promote innovation capability of SMEs. [source] Edith Penrose, organisational economics and business strategy: an assessment and extensionMANAGERIAL AND DECISION ECONOMICS, Issue 2 2005*Article first published online: 7 MAR 200, Christos Pitelis The aim of this paper is to expound Penrose's contribution to the theory of the firm, and examine the contribution of her thinking to economics and business strategy, as well as to discuss some limitations and provide some generalizations of Penrose's work. We also discuss implications for managerial practice and public policy. We claim that Penrose's contribution was seminal. In recognizing the significance of organization to generate new knowledge she went well beyond the bounds of even her own agenda; from a theory of the growth of firms, to a theory of the generation of organizational knowledge and beyond. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] The Effect of Sales Force Adoption on New Product Selling PerformanceTHE JOURNAL OF PRODUCT INNOVATION MANAGEMENT, Issue 6 2000Erik Jan Hultink Although several studies have suggested that the sales force is a major contributing factor to new product success, few studies have focused on new product adoption by the sales force, particularly with respect to its relationship with selling performance. The present article presents empirical evidence on the impact of sales force adoption on selling performance. We defined sales force adoption as the combination of the degree to which salespeople accept and internalize the goals of the new product (i.e., commitment) and the extent to which they work hard to achieve those goals (i.e., effort). It was hypothesized that the impact of sales force adoption on selling performance will be contingent on supervisory factors (sales controls, internal marketing of the new product, training, trust, and supervisor's field attention), and market volatility. Therefore, this article also provides evidence of the conditions under which sales force adoption of a new product is more or less effective in engendering successful selling performance. The hypothesized relationships were tested with data provided by 97 high technology firms from The Netherlands. The results show that sales force adoption is positively related to selling performance. This finding suggests that salespeople who simultaneously exhibit commitment and effort will achieve higher levels of new product selling performance. Outcome based control, internal marketing and market volatility are also positively related to new product selling performance. The effect of sales force adoption on selling performance is stronger where outcome based control is used and where the firm provides information on the background of the new product to salespeople through internal marketing. Training and field attention weaken the adoption-performance linkage. These findings may indicate that salespeople in The Netherlands interpret training as "micromanaging" and field attention as "looking over their shoulder." We conclude with implications of our study for research and managerial practice. [source] Testing the Time-Variancy of Explanatory Factors of Strategic Change,BRITISH JOURNAL OF MANAGEMENT, Issue 2 2006José David Vicente-Lorente The article proposes an empirical framework able to: (1) assess the relative validity of both adaptive and inertial views of strategic change and (2) verify the potential time- or context-dependency by testing the structural stability of the empirical model, in Spanish banks, 1983,1997. Results offer inconclusive findings regarding (1) but strong evidence to answer (2). The assumption of structural stability is rejected and the effect of many explanatory factors considered in the empirical model varies over time as some factors show different effects and/or significance levels depending on the period considered. These findings suggest that explanatory models of strategic change should be viewed as ,time-' or ,context-dependent'. The article provides a conceptual model in which alternative explanations operate in a sequential way. The results highlight, first, that inconclusive past findings about adaptive versus inertial views should be reviewed under this new evidence, and future empirical research must assure that its methods and interpretations are robust to potential structural breakdowns; and second, the limitations raised by the static approach offered by the available theories/models when approaching the dynamic and complex nature of strategic change. Theoretical developments and implications for managerial practice are suggested. [source] Bridging the Relevance Gap: Aligning Stakeholders in the Future of Management ResearchBRITISH JOURNAL OF MANAGEMENT, Issue 2001Ken Starkey This report examines the relevance gap in management research. Its focus is the nature of knowledge created by research at the interface between business and academia in the context of major changes likely to affect the nature of demand for such knowledge. Management research has been accused of a lack of relevance to managerial practice and of too narrow a discipline base. The report examines the conditions giving rise to this criticism, in the UK and elsewhere, and identifies an important strategic need to increase the stakeholding of users in various aspects of the research and knowledge creation and dissemination process. The report concludes with recommendations concerning new forms of research partnership and research training that will address the relevance gap. However, bridging this gap does not only require changes in the academic mind-set. Managers and firms too need to rethink their involvement in the research process. [source] Queering Management and OrganizationGENDER, WORK & ORGANISATION, Issue 2 2002Martin Parker This article makes connections between ,queer' theory and contemporary thinking about management and organization. The article contains a re-presentation of queer, particularly the work of Butler and Sedgwick, and a discussion of the potential implications of queering for managers, managerial practices and the science of management. Most importantly, the article is also concerned with authority claims , both personal and institutional , and the relationship between (critical) theory and (critical) practice. [source] The impact of brand orientation on managerial practice: a quantitative study of the UK's top 500 fundraising managersINTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF NONPROFIT & VOLUNTARY SECTOR MARKETING, Issue 1 2002Philippa Hankinson This paper explores the impact of brand orientation on the managerial practices of fundraising managers in the top 500 UK charities and, in particular, on their ability to attract voluntary income. A series of hypotheses was tested including whether level of brand orientation is associated with different patterns of influence within charities, with the range and type of brand communicators used and with the extent to which organisational objectives are fulfilled. A key finding of the research was that high brand-oriented fundraising managers attract significantly more voluntary income than low brand-oriented fundraisers, but that level of brand orientation was not related to statutory income. Such findings are consistent with current theory and practice of branding in which a brand is perceived as a product or organisation plus, where the plus indicates a unique set of values which allows differentiation and hence, donor choice, within competitive environments. Copyright © 2002 Henry Stewart Publications [source] Evaluating animal welfare with choice experiments: an application to Swedish pig productionAGRIBUSINESS : AN INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL, Issue 1 2008Carolina Liljenstolpe In this study, the demand for animal welfare attributes when buying pork fillet is investigated among Swedish respondents. The issue is of importance in order to ensure an economically viable pig industry while applying an increasing number of animal friendly practices. In order to obtain information about consumer demand, an indirect utility function and willingness to pay (WTP) for animal welfare attributes are estimated. The attributes are solely associated with animal friendly practices. An investigation of numerous housing and managerial practices of pig production has not yet been performed. The indirect utility function is estimated using a random parameter logit model. A realistic approach when modeling consumer choice is to allow for heterogeneity in preferences. The relevance of assuming randomness of some of the parameters is evaluated by using a specification test developed by McFadden and Train (2000). The WTP is also estimated at the individual level. The results indicate that WTP for animal welfare attributes may be negative or positive. The preferences are also heterogeneous among respondents, which may be explained by a segmentation of preferences. Finally, the WTP estimates for animal welfare practices are compared with cost estimates for such production systems. [Econlit subject codes: C010, C500, Q100] © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. [source] Leadership training for managers: An Adlerian approachJOURNAL OF LEADERSHIP STUDIES, Issue 1 2007Amy Preiss Adlerian theory,a social model of human behavior,provides an effective framework to improve managerial practices and enhance organizational leadership. Developed by Alfred Adler (1870,1937), founder of the influential school of individual psychology, Adlerian theory promotes principles of social interest, democracy, and encouragement. These principles may guide leaders in building collaborative, productive workforces through participative management, coaching, and employee engagement. Experiential training exercises that integrate Adlerian principles can help managers expand their interpersonal competencies and increase leadership effectiveness. [source] The nurse executive: challenges for the 21st centuryJOURNAL OF NURSING MANAGEMENT, Issue 1 2000BAPPSCI(NSQ), DEPAPPSCI, M. Fedoruk MHA Aim The aim of this paper is to examine the challenges facing the nurse executive in the 21st century by questioning the traditional attributions of leadership to the nurse executive role. Background Historically, the leadership role in nursing has been assumed by the nurse executive. The predominantly female character of nursing, however, has ensured that demonstrations of leadership amongst nurses have been infrequent and compatible with prevailing male-defined ideologies. Examples of this include career restructuring and educational reforms in Australia. Findings This paper found that the apparent lack of leadership in nursing was able to be traced back to early management theories which categorized leadership as a function of management. Conclusions If nurses are to assume leadership positions in the health care system of the 21st century, nurse leaders will have to let go of traditional managerial practices and behaviours. In the emerging health care system of the new century, nurse executive practices will focus on achieving change rather than predictability in organizational outcomes. [source] Validating the organizational climate measure: links to managerial practices, productivity and innovationJOURNAL OF ORGANIZATIONAL BEHAVIOR, Issue 4 2005Malcolm G. Patterson This paper describes the development and validation of a multidimensional measure of organizational climate, the Organizational Climate Measure (OCM), based upon Quinn and Rohrbaugh's Competing Values model. A sample of 6869 employees across 55 manufacturing organizations completed the questionnaire. The 17 scales contained within the measure had acceptable levels of reliability and were factorially distinct. Concurrent validity was measured by correlating employees' ratings with managers' and interviewers' descriptions of managerial practices and organizational characteristics. Predictive validity was established using measures of productivity and innovation. The OCM also discriminated effectively between organizations, demonstrating good discriminant validity. The measure offers researchers a relatively comprehensive and flexible approach to the assessment of organizational members' experience and promises applied and theoretical benefits. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Comparing Innovation Capability of Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises: Examining the Effects of Organizational Culture and EmpowermentJOURNAL OF SMALL BUSINESS MANAGEMENT, Issue 3 2010Nigar Demircan Çakar This study analyzes the impact of organizational culture and empowerment on innovation capability, and examines the peculiarities of these effects. The study's hypotheses are tested by applying both individual and firm-level analyses to survey data collected from 743 employees from 93 small and medium-sized firms located in Turkey. For medium-sized enterprises on both the individual and firm level of analysis, results suggest that collectivism and uncertainty avoidance are positively associated with empowerment, whereas power distance is negatively related to empowerment. Assertiveness focus has no relations with empowerment and innovation capability, yet among cultural dimensions, only uncertainty avoidance is related to innovation capability. For small-sized enterprises, findings suggest that both power distance and uncertainty avoidance are linked to both empowerment and innovation capability on the individual level, whereas two new paths between collectivism and innovation capability and between assertiveness focus and empowerment are found on the firm level. Also, empowerment is found to be positively related to innovation capability for both small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) on both the individual and firm level. In terms of managerial practice, our study helps clarify the key role played by cultural dimensions in the process of shaping an empowering and innovative work environment. Findings also reveal that managers should focus on participative managerial practices (e.g., empowerment) to promote innovation capability of SMEs. [source] TRADITIONS OF LOCAL GOVERNMENTPUBLIC ADMINISTRATION, Issue 3 2009KEVIN ORR This article explores local government traditions in the UK. This task is an important one for scholars who wish to understand and appreciate the rich cultural complexity of local government organizations. In local government settings, traditions can be used in the study and evaluation of political and managerial practices. They provide lenses through which the routines, structures and processes of management and politics may be viewed. The delineation of multiple traditions heightens the sense that local government is not a unified homogeneous organizational entity, but rather a melange of voices, interests and assumptions about how to organize, prioritize and mobilize action. They can be used to engage practitioners with the idea that different traditions inform political and managerial practices and processes in local councils. The approach embraces the significance of participants' constitutive stories about local government rather than the search for essential truths about the politics and management of the public sector. [source] Building dynamic capabilities for innovation: an exploratory study of key management practicesR & D MANAGEMENT, Issue 2 2008Hyunsuk Lee While both the innovation literature and the dynamic capabilities perspective identify loose processes as most appropriate for high uncertainty domains, this produces little reassurance to organizations seeking to improve their ability to commercialize innovations. This paper takes the position that practices for managing innovation project leaders are a key component of an organization's dynamic capabilities for innovation. Our comparative case analysis of divisions of two established Korean organizations suggests that managerial practices include the deployment of entrepreneurial resources having particular skills, characteristics, and motivation. In addition, we identify the relational and decision support roles of managers. [source] The South Pacific Stock Exchange: Is it a Market or Status Symbol?AUSTRALIAN ACCOUNTING REVIEW, Issue 1 2009Rajni Mala Listing on a stock exchange is one of the most significant events in a company's life cycle. Using a case study approach we examine why companies in Fiji list on a stock exchange. The various factors that have been found to motivate companies to list include enhancing their image and reputation, increasing the firm's value and introducing better financial and managerial practices. Importantly, the accessing of new sources of finance has not been a determinant of a company's listing decision. The findings imply that in emerging economies, stock exchange listing can be perceived as a status symbol. [source] Environmental strategy and low waste operations: exploring complementaritiesBUSINESS STRATEGY AND THE ENVIRONMENT, Issue 2 2010Dayna Simpson Abstract Organizations require guidance on the most effective functional areas in which to invest in order to improve and sustain environmental performance. As managerial practices progress from concerns with compliance towards practices seeking competitive advantage, more theory is needed regarding the manner in which corporate strategy and operational practices influence environmental performance. This research considers the potential for previously under-researched complementarities between strategy and operations and the bridging role of environmentally specific practices such as the use of environmental experts as determinants of environmental performance. Using a sample of manufacturing firms, this study explores the relative contribution to environmental performance of strategic intentions, core operational practices such as data and quality management and environmentally specific practices that link strategy to operations. The most significant influence on environmental performance was found to be environmental expertise , which creates a bridge between strategy and operations , and information-intensive practices such as quality and data management. Strategic intentions or core operational practices in isolation were not considered sufficient support to successfully maintain or improve environmental performance. This research provides a contribution to our understanding of interactions between those functions that have the greatest influence on environmental performance management in manufacturing firms. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd and ERP Environment. [source] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||