Patrick McGovern, Philip Stiles and Veronica Hope
This paper proposes to examine the management of the psychological contract — particularly that for professional and managerial staff — in the context of organizations with a…
Abstract
This paper proposes to examine the management of the psychological contract — particularly that for professional and managerial staff — in the context of organizations with a recent history of job losses or downsizing. It offers a critical examination of one of the central tenets of human resource management: that organizations should seek to invest in their employees as assets by providing them with development and career opportunities. The empirical evidence is drawn from an intensive three year study of human resource management conducted jointly by the London Business School and the Judge Institute of Management, University of Cambridge.
Argues that effective board leadership requires directors to achieve a balance between entrepreneurship (i.e. paying attention to strategy, corporate renewal and innovation on the…
Abstract
Argues that effective board leadership requires directors to achieve a balance between entrepreneurship (i.e. paying attention to strategy, corporate renewal and innovation on the one hand) and corporate governance. Posits that medium sized firms have a dilemma in knowing how to expand their businesses in a rapid fashion. Highlights how companies manage this type of move from a corporate type of governance to a more corporate entrepreneurship.
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Why is it that highly trained and seasoned executives fail? On the surface, this doesn’t make sense because they are very successful; yet research in the organization sciences…
Abstract
Why is it that highly trained and seasoned executives fail? On the surface, this doesn’t make sense because they are very successful; yet research in the organization sciences provides no shortage of evidence to prove just that. From the classic Mann Gulch fire disaster of Weick’s famous collapse of sensemaking study, to studies of myopia of learning, escalation of commitment, threat-rigidity, dominant logic, the architecture of simplicity, the Icarus Paradox, to core competencies turning into core rigidities, and navigating new competitive markets using “old” cognitive maps, and many more such examples point to a ubiquitous phenomenon where highly trained and experienced professionals find themselves “stuck” in the heat of battle, unable to move and progress. On the one hand, for some, there is a desperate need for change, but are unable to do so, due to their trained incapacities. On the other hand, some simply cannot see the need for change, and continue with their “business as usual” mentality. For both, their visions of the world shrink, they have a tendency to cling onto their past habitual practices and oversimplify the complexity of the situation. In moments like these: DROP YOUR TOOLS and UNLEARN! This book chapter introduces a framework (grounded in clinical psychology) that has had consistent success in helping seasoned executives and key decision-makers open up the alternatives whenever they find themselves stuck with complexity.
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This article aims to discuss some of the most common ways in which business decisions are affected by cognitive biases. It focuses on the individual level of decision making and…
Abstract
Purpose
This article aims to discuss some of the most common ways in which business decisions are affected by cognitive biases. It focuses on the individual level of decision making and discusses how biases are deeply entrenched in the way that many decisions are made. It also discusses how flaws in decision making can escalate when executives are under pressure, over‐confident or part of a group.
Design/methodology/approach
This article draws on a range of research in cognitive and organizational psychology to show the potential effect of cognitive biases on corporate decision making.
Findings
The article argues that it is necessary to develop a better understanding of the effect of cognitive biases on executive decision making. Whilst research suggests that many aspects of decision‐making processes operate outside one's conscious awareness, it is suggested that these flaws may be easier to monitor and control when one is aware of their potential impact on corporate decisions.
Originality/value
The paper demonstrates how a lack of awareness of the widespread operation of cognitive biases reduces the possibilities for good corporate governance.
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Strategic management development (SMD) uses corporate objectives and strategies as drivers for management development and aims to achieve multiple outcomes. Most studies of SMD…
Abstract
Strategic management development (SMD) uses corporate objectives and strategies as drivers for management development and aims to achieve multiple outcomes. Most studies of SMD have concentrated on consultant‐ or practitioner‐based accounts of “best practice”. There has been little development of conceptual frameworks to inform a more rigorous understanding and evaluation of SMD. Considers the usefulness of some existing frameworks and then, based on literature review and synthesis, proposes new conceptual frameworks for SMD. The first of these new frameworks explores the relationships between individual and organisational objectives in the SMD processes. Many management development interventions have both types of objective and other interventions may be more polarised in purpose. These tensions have to be resolved at the level of the individual manager. Because of environmental change account will need to be taken of emergent needs and opportunities. The second framework reflects this showing how a dynamic environment will lead to more organic forms of management development. The third framework considers the barriers and drivers influencing SMD, and proposes the key requirements for success.
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Philip O'Regan, David O'Donnell, Tom Kennedy, Nick Bontis and Peter Cleary
The emergence of the information and communications technology (ICT) sector in Ireland over the course of the past decade has paralleled a period of exceptional national economic…
Abstract
Purpose
The emergence of the information and communications technology (ICT) sector in Ireland over the course of the past decade has paralleled a period of exceptional national economic growth. This has raised questions regarding wealth distribution, power and governance. This paper seeks to identify some of the characteristics of the governance culture in this sector in Ireland. It deals specifically with issues such as board composition, non‐executive directors and the perceived role and usefulness of accounting information in the decision‐making process.
Design/methodology/approach
Questionnaire feedback from chief financial officers (CFOs), focusing specifically on the board of directors of indigenous, private firms.
Findings
The research indicates that firms operating in this sector adopt structures and cultures similar to those in more traditional sectors. However, there is evidence that Irish ICT firms have responded positively to calls for the roles and responsibilities of non‐executive directors to be recognised and accommodated. It also confirms the continuing centrality of accounting information to the decision‐making process.
Originality/value
The research represents an initial survey of firms operating in this sector. As such it is concerned with identifying overall patterns and contours. It is unusual in seeking feedback from CFOs and, as such, offers some unique insights. The findings will be of interest to those operating in the ICT sector and those seeking to identify the governance features that characterise this emerging and dynamic area.
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Corporate governance has become a core topic in management research and business practice. Recent debates like – environmental responsibility, sustainability, ethics, corporate…
Abstract
Corporate governance has become a core topic in management research and business practice. Recent debates like – environmental responsibility, sustainability, ethics, corporate control, generation, protection and distribution of wealth, the role of the board and senior executives in setting standards for performance management, and stakeholder relationship management – have strong links to organisational trust. However, management literature has been relatively silent on how various corporate governance configurations and perspectives potentially shape trust relations within the organisation, especially in Africa. Thus, this chapter reviews corporate governance through the lens of the institutional logics perspective evident in western capitalism and develops a framework connecting various governance configurations to organisational trust. Doing so provides new directions for those seeking to develop further research in corporate governance, institutional logics and organisational trust.
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This paper addresses the mutual interdependence of ethnic identity politics and conservative religious affiliation. Called “traditionalism” in this paper, conservative religious…
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This paper addresses the mutual interdependence of ethnic identity politics and conservative religious affiliation. Called “traditionalism” in this paper, conservative religious affiliation is seen to appeal most to ethnically homogenous communities who have arrived in the United States from Spanish Catholic countries and who draw on the ethnic identity conveyed by traditionalism to deliberately define themselves at a critical distance from the dominant resident culture, called “Anglo-Protestantism” in this paper.