Robert W. Scapens
- Published in print:
- 2006
- Published Online:
- May 2007
- ISBN:
- 9780199283361
- eISBN:
- 9780191712623
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199283361.003.0015
- Subject:
- Economics and Finance, Financial Economics
This chapter discusses the changes that have been taking place in management accounting research and practice in recent years, focusing on management accounting research and practice in the UK. The ...
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This chapter discusses the changes that have been taking place in management accounting research and practice in recent years, focusing on management accounting research and practice in the UK. The chapter begins with a brief history of management accounting thought over the last thirty-five years. Following this, some of the UK responses to Johnson and Kaplan's claim about management accounting's lost relevance are discussed. The changing nature of management accounting practices in the UK over subsequent years is described, followed by a discussion of recent trends in management accounting research. Some current issues in management accounting are outlined. The chapter concludes with some comments on the nature of UK management accounting research and directions for the future.Less
This chapter discusses the changes that have been taking place in management accounting research and practice in recent years, focusing on management accounting research and practice in the UK. The chapter begins with a brief history of management accounting thought over the last thirty-five years. Following this, some of the UK responses to Johnson and Kaplan's claim about management accounting's lost relevance are discussed. The changing nature of management accounting practices in the UK over subsequent years is described, followed by a discussion of recent trends in management accounting research. Some current issues in management accounting are outlined. The chapter concludes with some comments on the nature of UK management accounting research and directions for the future.
John Child, David Faulkner, and Robert Pitkethly
- Published in print:
- 2003
- Published Online:
- September 2007
- ISBN:
- 9780199267101
- eISBN:
- 9780191716706
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199267101.003.0005
- Subject:
- Business and Management, International Business
This chapter examines the management practices associated with the major industrial countries considered in this book. Specifically, it reviews evidence on the salient characteristics of management ...
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This chapter examines the management practices associated with the major industrial countries considered in this book. Specifically, it reviews evidence on the salient characteristics of management practice in the five countries of origin of the acquiring companies investigated: USA, Japan, Germany, France, and the UK. The key management practices that the review of research suggests are particularly associated with the five nationalities considered, are summarized and compared.Less
This chapter examines the management practices associated with the major industrial countries considered in this book. Specifically, it reviews evidence on the salient characteristics of management practice in the five countries of origin of the acquiring companies investigated: USA, Japan, Germany, France, and the UK. The key management practices that the review of research suggests are particularly associated with the five nationalities considered, are summarized and compared.
John Child, David Faulkner, and Robert Pitkethly
- Published in print:
- 2003
- Published Online:
- September 2007
- ISBN:
- 9780199267101
- eISBN:
- 9780191716706
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199267101.003.0007
- Subject:
- Business and Management, International Business
This chapter combines survey and case study results to identify the major trends in post-acquisition management by country of acquirer. It distinguishes between the changes accompanying most of the ...
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This chapter combines survey and case study results to identify the major trends in post-acquisition management by country of acquirer. It distinguishes between the changes accompanying most of the acquisitions and those attributable to national effects. The management practices introduced by American and Japanese acquirers accorded quite closely with their common characterizations, whilst French and German companies less so. These characterizations deserve further investigation and may need revision. Performance-related pay, formal planning systems, tighter cost control, and greater investment in training were common to all countries, and demonstrated some ‘convergence’ of management practices across nationalities. In general, it was found that American companies tend to ‘absorb’ their new subsidiaries. Japanese companies tend to acculturate their new subsidiaries. French acquirers are frequently ‘colonial’ in their attitudes to their acquisitions. German acquirers are somewhat uncertain in their integration methods and vary considerably amongst themselves.Less
This chapter combines survey and case study results to identify the major trends in post-acquisition management by country of acquirer. It distinguishes between the changes accompanying most of the acquisitions and those attributable to national effects. The management practices introduced by American and Japanese acquirers accorded quite closely with their common characterizations, whilst French and German companies less so. These characterizations deserve further investigation and may need revision. Performance-related pay, formal planning systems, tighter cost control, and greater investment in training were common to all countries, and demonstrated some ‘convergence’ of management practices across nationalities. In general, it was found that American companies tend to ‘absorb’ their new subsidiaries. Japanese companies tend to acculturate their new subsidiaries. French acquirers are frequently ‘colonial’ in their attitudes to their acquisitions. German acquirers are somewhat uncertain in their integration methods and vary considerably amongst themselves.
DONALD A. MARCHAND, WILLIAM J. KETTINGER, and JOHN D. ROLLINS
- Published in print:
- 2002
- Published Online:
- January 2010
- ISBN:
- 9780199252213
- eISBN:
- 9780191714276
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199252213.003.0010
- Subject:
- Business and Management, Information Technology
This chapter provides an overview of the key management conclusions that can be derived from this book. It presents the key directions which will be pursued further regarding management practices and ...
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This chapter provides an overview of the key management conclusions that can be derived from this book. It presents the key directions which will be pursued further regarding management practices and strategies to measure and manage IO to improve business performance in the future.Less
This chapter provides an overview of the key management conclusions that can be derived from this book. It presents the key directions which will be pursued further regarding management practices and strategies to measure and manage IO to improve business performance in the future.
John Child, David Faulkner, and Robert Pitkethly
- Published in print:
- 2003
- Published Online:
- September 2007
- ISBN:
- 9780199267101
- eISBN:
- 9780191716706
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199267101.003.0011
- Subject:
- Business and Management, International Business
This chapter focuses on human resource management (HRM) practices and communications — areas likely to be particularly sensitive to cultural influences. Convergence across nationalities in HRM ...
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This chapter focuses on human resource management (HRM) practices and communications — areas likely to be particularly sensitive to cultural influences. Convergence across nationalities in HRM policies was evident in post-acquisition moves towards performance-related pay, training, and team-based product development. Most acquirers also made adjustments to suit local culture. American HRM reflected a short-term individualistic business culture. Japanese HRM generally reflected long-term, consensual, team-based collectivist national philosophies. French companies tended to display an approach that gave precedence to managers of French origin. German companies were the most anxious to adopt international practices in their acquisitions, even when these conflicted with their national tendencies. The research confirmed that firms differ in the HRM practices applied to their subsidiaries, but also showed signs of convergence in some areas.Less
This chapter focuses on human resource management (HRM) practices and communications — areas likely to be particularly sensitive to cultural influences. Convergence across nationalities in HRM policies was evident in post-acquisition moves towards performance-related pay, training, and team-based product development. Most acquirers also made adjustments to suit local culture. American HRM reflected a short-term individualistic business culture. Japanese HRM generally reflected long-term, consensual, team-based collectivist national philosophies. French companies tended to display an approach that gave precedence to managers of French origin. German companies were the most anxious to adopt international practices in their acquisitions, even when these conflicted with their national tendencies. The research confirmed that firms differ in the HRM practices applied to their subsidiaries, but also showed signs of convergence in some areas.
Howard Gospel and Andrew Pendleton (eds)
- Published in print:
- 2004
- Published Online:
- September 2007
- ISBN:
- 9780199263677
- eISBN:
- 9780191718373
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199263677.001.0001
- Subject:
- Business and Management, Corporate Governance and Accountability
This book is about the relationship between corporate governance regimes and labour management. It examines how finance and governance influence employment relationships, work organization, and ...
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This book is about the relationship between corporate governance regimes and labour management. It examines how finance and governance influence employment relationships, work organization, and industrial relations by means of a comparative analysis of Anglo-American, European, and Japanese economies. The starting point is the distinction widely found in the corporate governance, business systems, and political economy literature between countries dominated by ‘shareholder value’ conceptions of corporate governance and those characterized by ‘stakeholder’ regimes. By drawing on a wide range of countries, the book is able to demonstrate the complexities of corporate governance arrangements and to present a more precise and nuanced exploration of the linkages between governance and labour management. Each country-based chapter provides an analysis of the evolution and key characteristics of corporate governance, and then links this to labour management institutions and practices. The book goes beyond the ‘complementarities’ between governance and labour management systems identified in recent literature, and attempts to identify causal relationships between the two. It shows how labour management institutions and practices may influence finance and corporate governance systems, as well as vice versa. The chapters in this book illuminate current debates about the determinants of corporate governance, the convergence of national ‘varieties of capitalism’, and the impact of corporate governance on managerial behaviour. The book highlights the complexities of corporate governance systems and refines the distinction between market/outsider and relational/insider systems.Less
This book is about the relationship between corporate governance regimes and labour management. It examines how finance and governance influence employment relationships, work organization, and industrial relations by means of a comparative analysis of Anglo-American, European, and Japanese economies. The starting point is the distinction widely found in the corporate governance, business systems, and political economy literature between countries dominated by ‘shareholder value’ conceptions of corporate governance and those characterized by ‘stakeholder’ regimes. By drawing on a wide range of countries, the book is able to demonstrate the complexities of corporate governance arrangements and to present a more precise and nuanced exploration of the linkages between governance and labour management. Each country-based chapter provides an analysis of the evolution and key characteristics of corporate governance, and then links this to labour management institutions and practices. The book goes beyond the ‘complementarities’ between governance and labour management systems identified in recent literature, and attempts to identify causal relationships between the two. It shows how labour management institutions and practices may influence finance and corporate governance systems, as well as vice versa. The chapters in this book illuminate current debates about the determinants of corporate governance, the convergence of national ‘varieties of capitalism’, and the impact of corporate governance on managerial behaviour. The book highlights the complexities of corporate governance systems and refines the distinction between market/outsider and relational/insider systems.
Keith Grint
- Published in print:
- 1997
- Published Online:
- October 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780198775003
- eISBN:
- 9780191695346
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198775003.001.0001
- Subject:
- Business and Management, Organization Studies, HRM / IR
This book is designed for those who find current management orthodoxies inadequate, who are interested in alternative ideas and how they might be applied to management practice, but are not ...
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This book is designed for those who find current management orthodoxies inadequate, who are interested in alternative ideas and how they might be applied to management practice, but are not enthralled by the esoteric world of theoretical books about theory. This book offers a bridge between the ‘esoteric’ world of theory and the practical world of management by exploring and illustrating some current theories (Fuzzy Logic, Actor-Network Theory, Chaos Theory, Constructivism etc.) through discussion of some everyday management issues (strategic decision making, appraisals, negotiation, leadership, culture, and motivation).Less
This book is designed for those who find current management orthodoxies inadequate, who are interested in alternative ideas and how they might be applied to management practice, but are not enthralled by the esoteric world of theoretical books about theory. This book offers a bridge between the ‘esoteric’ world of theory and the practical world of management by exploring and illustrating some current theories (Fuzzy Logic, Actor-Network Theory, Chaos Theory, Constructivism etc.) through discussion of some everyday management issues (strategic decision making, appraisals, negotiation, leadership, culture, and motivation).
Donald A. Marchand, William J. Kettinger, and John D. Rollins
- Published in print:
- 2002
- Published Online:
- January 2010
- ISBN:
- 9780199252213
- eISBN:
- 9780191714276
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199252213.001.0001
- Subject:
- Business and Management, Information Technology
In today's fast-moving, e-commerce economy, information is power. For years, companies have been investing in IT, expecting to develop their ability to exploit the power of information and achieve ...
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In today's fast-moving, e-commerce economy, information is power. For years, companies have been investing in IT, expecting to develop their ability to exploit the power of information and achieve better business performance. Frequently, a company's investment has been a cost with no clear payback; a competitive necessity rather than a strategic advantage. The book presents a framework for evaluating IT strategies: Information Orientation. Information Orientation does this by determining the degree to which a company implements and realizes the synergies across three information capabilities: information behaviours and values; information management practices; and information technology practices. This book provides a description of the dimensions of each of the capabilities, along with the analytical basis which validates the research, finding that a company must integrate all three information capabilities as a precondition for achieving superior business performance. It presents the Information Orientation Dashboard as a diagnostic tool to measure and evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of a company's information capabilities.Less
In today's fast-moving, e-commerce economy, information is power. For years, companies have been investing in IT, expecting to develop their ability to exploit the power of information and achieve better business performance. Frequently, a company's investment has been a cost with no clear payback; a competitive necessity rather than a strategic advantage. The book presents a framework for evaluating IT strategies: Information Orientation. Information Orientation does this by determining the degree to which a company implements and realizes the synergies across three information capabilities: information behaviours and values; information management practices; and information technology practices. This book provides a description of the dimensions of each of the capabilities, along with the analytical basis which validates the research, finding that a company must integrate all three information capabilities as a precondition for achieving superior business performance. It presents the Information Orientation Dashboard as a diagnostic tool to measure and evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of a company's information capabilities.
Stefan Tengblad
- Published in print:
- 2012
- Published Online:
- May 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780199639724
- eISBN:
- 9780191738661
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199639724.003.0018
- Subject:
- Business and Management, Organization Studies
In this chapter, the editor summarizes the theoretical themes presented in the book’s chapters and offers advice to future researchers, management educators, and managers. The unifying idea in the ...
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In this chapter, the editor summarizes the theoretical themes presented in the book’s chapters and offers advice to future researchers, management educators, and managers. The unifying idea in the book is that the study of management practices, based on actual managerial experience acquired in empirical investigations, may be more useful for practicing managers than the theoretical models more commonly taught in business schools. The reason is that theoretical and rationalistic models often are not well suited to dealing with the complexity, uncertainty, and relentless pace of work typically associated with management. The alternative practice-based theoretical framework is summarized in ten theses in the chapter.Less
In this chapter, the editor summarizes the theoretical themes presented in the book’s chapters and offers advice to future researchers, management educators, and managers. The unifying idea in the book is that the study of management practices, based on actual managerial experience acquired in empirical investigations, may be more useful for practicing managers than the theoretical models more commonly taught in business schools. The reason is that theoretical and rationalistic models often are not well suited to dealing with the complexity, uncertainty, and relentless pace of work typically associated with management. The alternative practice-based theoretical framework is summarized in ten theses in the chapter.
BARBARA CZARNIAWSKA
- Published in print:
- 2002
- Published Online:
- January 2010
- ISBN:
- 9780199252718
- eISBN:
- 9780191719295
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199252718.003.0006
- Subject:
- Business and Management, International Business
This chapter relates the practices of management in the three cities to the historic and geographic context of their execution. While all three cities strive for modernization of their practices, ...
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This chapter relates the practices of management in the three cities to the historic and geographic context of their execution. While all three cities strive for modernization of their practices, their diverse starting points and dominant philosophies of management lead to different action programs.Less
This chapter relates the practices of management in the three cities to the historic and geographic context of their execution. While all three cities strive for modernization of their practices, their diverse starting points and dominant philosophies of management lead to different action programs.
D. Dudley Williams
- Published in print:
- 2005
- Published Online:
- September 2007
- ISBN:
- 9780198528128
- eISBN:
- 9780191713538
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198528128.003.0010
- Subject:
- Biology, Aquatic Biology
This chapter underlines the importance of temporary water habitats as repositories for rare species and genotypes, at a time when such wetland habitats are being destroyed or altered at a rapid rate. ...
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This chapter underlines the importance of temporary water habitats as repositories for rare species and genotypes, at a time when such wetland habitats are being destroyed or altered at a rapid rate. The problems encountered in trying to protect these habitats and their biodiversity are examined, particularly those associated with protective legislation. Existing management practices are evaluated.Less
This chapter underlines the importance of temporary water habitats as repositories for rare species and genotypes, at a time when such wetland habitats are being destroyed or altered at a rapid rate. The problems encountered in trying to protect these habitats and their biodiversity are examined, particularly those associated with protective legislation. Existing management practices are evaluated.
Thomas Kern and Leslie P. Willcocks
- Published in print:
- 2001
- Published Online:
- October 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780199241927
- eISBN:
- 9780191696985
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199241927.003.0009
- Subject:
- Business and Management, Information Technology
The cross-case analysis in the previous chapter illustrated the adequacy of our framework in characterizing IT outsourcing relationships. Prior to that, the individual case analyses in Chapters 3–7 ...
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The cross-case analysis in the previous chapter illustrated the adequacy of our framework in characterizing IT outsourcing relationships. Prior to that, the individual case analyses in Chapters 3–7 elicited a number of strong links between the dimensions that, combined with Chapter 8's detailed analysis, provide a number of important pointers for outsourcing relationship management. This chapter makes use of the framework in a normative sense to determine a number of critical propositions for relationship management practice. It also suggests some small but important revisions of the framework, for future use by practitioners. The discussion follows closely the main dimensions of the framework, and, for coherence in the discussion, some repetition here of findings from the previous chapter is inevitable.Less
The cross-case analysis in the previous chapter illustrated the adequacy of our framework in characterizing IT outsourcing relationships. Prior to that, the individual case analyses in Chapters 3–7 elicited a number of strong links between the dimensions that, combined with Chapter 8's detailed analysis, provide a number of important pointers for outsourcing relationship management. This chapter makes use of the framework in a normative sense to determine a number of critical propositions for relationship management practice. It also suggests some small but important revisions of the framework, for future use by practitioners. The discussion follows closely the main dimensions of the framework, and, for coherence in the discussion, some repetition here of findings from the previous chapter is inevitable.
Yehouda Shenhav
- Published in print:
- 2002
- Published Online:
- October 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780199250004
- eISBN:
- 9780191697869
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199250004.003.0008
- Subject:
- Business and Management, Organization Studies, Business History
This chapter summarizes the genealogy of management ideology from the Civil War until the Great Depression, and emphasizes the conflictive biography of management rhetoric and practice. It further ...
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This chapter summarizes the genealogy of management ideology from the Civil War until the Great Depression, and emphasizes the conflictive biography of management rhetoric and practice. It further points to the cultural idiosyncrasy of American management and provides an international comparative framework. The chapter ends with the argument that much of management and organization theory is epistemologically infused with the ideological parameters that were born during the efforts to establish the legitimization of management. This is illustrated with a discussion of three key managerial concepts: system, rationality, and uncertainty, and their canonization in organization theory.Less
This chapter summarizes the genealogy of management ideology from the Civil War until the Great Depression, and emphasizes the conflictive biography of management rhetoric and practice. It further points to the cultural idiosyncrasy of American management and provides an international comparative framework. The chapter ends with the argument that much of management and organization theory is epistemologically infused with the ideological parameters that were born during the efforts to establish the legitimization of management. This is illustrated with a discussion of three key managerial concepts: system, rationality, and uncertainty, and their canonization in organization theory.
Rob B. Briner, Lars Engwall, Tina L. Juillerat, Henry Mintzberg, Frederick P. Morgeson, Michael G. Pratt, and Stefan Tengblad
- Published in print:
- 2012
- Published Online:
- May 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780199639724
- eISBN:
- 9780191738661
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199639724.003.0017
- Subject:
- Business and Management, Organization Studies
Seven management researchers, who participated in a plenary session at the Academy of Management 2009 Annual Meeting in Chicago, present their views on how to renew methodological approaches in ...
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Seven management researchers, who participated in a plenary session at the Academy of Management 2009 Annual Meeting in Chicago, present their views on how to renew methodological approaches in management theory and on how to deal with the persistent divide between management theory and practice. Each researcher – Rob B. Briner, Lars Engwall, Tina L. Juillerat, Henry Mintzberg, Frederick P. Morgeson, Michael G. Pratt, and Stefan Tengbald – contributes an essay to the chapter dealing with such topics as experimental research designs, the use of new research methods, the organization of research collaborations, and researchers’ interactions with managers where the goal is the framing, analysis, presentation, and publication of new and/or improved research.Less
Seven management researchers, who participated in a plenary session at the Academy of Management 2009 Annual Meeting in Chicago, present their views on how to renew methodological approaches in management theory and on how to deal with the persistent divide between management theory and practice. Each researcher – Rob B. Briner, Lars Engwall, Tina L. Juillerat, Henry Mintzberg, Frederick P. Morgeson, Michael G. Pratt, and Stefan Tengbald – contributes an essay to the chapter dealing with such topics as experimental research designs, the use of new research methods, the organization of research collaborations, and researchers’ interactions with managers where the goal is the framing, analysis, presentation, and publication of new and/or improved research.
David Faulkner, Robert Pitkethly, and John Child
- Published in print:
- 2012
- Published Online:
- September 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780199601462
- eISBN:
- 9780191743320
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199601462.003.0017
- Subject:
- Business and Management, Finance, Accounting, and Banking, Strategy
In the period 1985–94, US, Japanese, French, and German companies accounted for the largest amounts of foreign direct investment into the UK, the main vehicle for which was merger and acquisition. ...
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In the period 1985–94, US, Japanese, French, and German companies accounted for the largest amounts of foreign direct investment into the UK, the main vehicle for which was merger and acquisition. This chapter reports on a survey of 201 acquisitions by companies from these countries and from a control group of UK/UK acquisitions on the extent and nature of changes and the influence of the new parent. All the national acquirer groups reported a move toward performance-related payment systems, and the adoption of team-based work organization and continuous improvement systems. Such management practices are therefore no longer limited national practices, but now general “best practice” across nations. Many other changes, however, did vary by nationality of acquirer. Japanese acquirers were much more likely to adopt a long-term view than their equivalents from the USA—and German acquirers were very long term in outlook. The US acquirers absorbed their acquisitions completely. French acquirers tended to reduce hierarchical levels and simplify management structures, and were somewhat ‘colonialist’ in behavior. UK acquirers behaved like US acquirers, but less strongly so.Less
In the period 1985–94, US, Japanese, French, and German companies accounted for the largest amounts of foreign direct investment into the UK, the main vehicle for which was merger and acquisition. This chapter reports on a survey of 201 acquisitions by companies from these countries and from a control group of UK/UK acquisitions on the extent and nature of changes and the influence of the new parent. All the national acquirer groups reported a move toward performance-related payment systems, and the adoption of team-based work organization and continuous improvement systems. Such management practices are therefore no longer limited national practices, but now general “best practice” across nations. Many other changes, however, did vary by nationality of acquirer. Japanese acquirers were much more likely to adopt a long-term view than their equivalents from the USA—and German acquirers were very long term in outlook. The US acquirers absorbed their acquisitions completely. French acquirers tended to reduce hierarchical levels and simplify management structures, and were somewhat ‘colonialist’ in behavior. UK acquirers behaved like US acquirers, but less strongly so.
Stefan Tengblad (ed.)
- Published in print:
- 2012
- Published Online:
- May 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780199639724
- eISBN:
- 9780191738661
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199639724.001.0001
- Subject:
- Business and Management, Organization Studies
This book addresses one of the most central issues in the field of management and answers the following questions: What do managers actually do at work? How do they tackle their responsibilities and ...
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This book addresses one of the most central issues in the field of management and answers the following questions: What do managers actually do at work? How do they tackle their responsibilities and work pressures? The book takes a practice perspective by using the behaviour and activities of knowledgeable, experienced, and skilful managers as the primary data for theorizing about management. In this perspective, successful management requires understanding and artistry in addition to knowledge, experience, and skills. The practice perspective calls attention to how widespread certain management practices are, how management practices are performed in everyday work, and what the outcomes of such practices are. Moreover, the book tackles fundamental management questions such as: Why do managers work in a very different ways than most management literature describes? What can we learn from the everyday work practices of successful managers? What are the similarities and differences in work behaviour among different kinds of managers? This book presents thirteen chapters on various kinds of managers: from construction site managers to university vice chancellors and from front-line health-care managers to CEOs of large companies. Another chapter reviews the classic studies on managerial work. Other chapters address research design and research methodology related to management studies.Less
This book addresses one of the most central issues in the field of management and answers the following questions: What do managers actually do at work? How do they tackle their responsibilities and work pressures? The book takes a practice perspective by using the behaviour and activities of knowledgeable, experienced, and skilful managers as the primary data for theorizing about management. In this perspective, successful management requires understanding and artistry in addition to knowledge, experience, and skills. The practice perspective calls attention to how widespread certain management practices are, how management practices are performed in everyday work, and what the outcomes of such practices are. Moreover, the book tackles fundamental management questions such as: Why do managers work in a very different ways than most management literature describes? What can we learn from the everyday work practices of successful managers? What are the similarities and differences in work behaviour among different kinds of managers? This book presents thirteen chapters on various kinds of managers: from construction site managers to university vice chancellors and from front-line health-care managers to CEOs of large companies. Another chapter reviews the classic studies on managerial work. Other chapters address research design and research methodology related to management studies.
Rick Delbridge
- Published in print:
- 1998
- Published Online:
- October 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780198292333
- eISBN:
- 9780191684906
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198292333.001.0001
- Subject:
- Business and Management, Organization Studies, HRM / IR
Much is stated and written about the new world of work but how much do we know about the contemporary workplace? What influence have Japanese management techniques (Just-in-Time Production and Total ...
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Much is stated and written about the new world of work but how much do we know about the contemporary workplace? What influence have Japanese management techniques (Just-in-Time Production and Total Quality Management, for example) had on the way work is organized in ‘transplants’, and more broadly in other firms and sectors? Have the systems and mechanisms of control changed radically in recent years, or are they much the same as they have always been? This book is in a long tradition of ethnographic research in industrial sociology and management/labour studies. Not only does it offer rich empirical data on the lived reality of work and a management practice that may share little in common with that found in the textbooks, it also raises a number of important issues about the best ways to understand the complex and changing nature of work.Less
Much is stated and written about the new world of work but how much do we know about the contemporary workplace? What influence have Japanese management techniques (Just-in-Time Production and Total Quality Management, for example) had on the way work is organized in ‘transplants’, and more broadly in other firms and sectors? Have the systems and mechanisms of control changed radically in recent years, or are they much the same as they have always been? This book is in a long tradition of ethnographic research in industrial sociology and management/labour studies. Not only does it offer rich empirical data on the lived reality of work and a management practice that may share little in common with that found in the textbooks, it also raises a number of important issues about the best ways to understand the complex and changing nature of work.
Simon Lilley, Geoffrey Lightfoot, and Paulo Amaral M. N.
- Published in print:
- 2004
- Published Online:
- October 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780198775416
- eISBN:
- 9780191695360
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198775416.001.0001
- Subject:
- Business and Management, Information Technology, Organization Studies
This textbook provides an accessible theoretical analysis of the organizational impact of information technologies. It seeks to examine and comment upon the myriad ways in which actors, ...
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This textbook provides an accessible theoretical analysis of the organizational impact of information technologies. It seeks to examine and comment upon the myriad ways in which actors, organizations, and environments are represented through these technologies. Contemporary threats to organizational form and stability are considered alongside the potential that information technologies offer to both exacerbate and overcome them. It examines, amongst others, issues surrounding the material and symbolic aspects of information systems; risk and prediction; systems implementation and systems success; knowledge management practices; accountability and other management practices; computerised modelling; and virtual organization. To this end it deploys a number of different theoretical lenses including: systems theory, social constructivism, labour process theory, post-structuralism, and actor network theory. These offer complementary and contrasting insights into the computerisation of managerial work. In order to ensure that the book is both relevant and approachable to students from a range of backgrounds, these theories are applied to real examples of the development and implementation of information systems. This combination fosters practical knowledge that is theoretically informed. The book thus aims to bridge the gap between the abstractions of current theories of organization and the grounded material that forms the bulk of Information Systems literature. It offers a novel way into the ongoing debates surrounding technological change and the perennial problems of managerial control.Less
This textbook provides an accessible theoretical analysis of the organizational impact of information technologies. It seeks to examine and comment upon the myriad ways in which actors, organizations, and environments are represented through these technologies. Contemporary threats to organizational form and stability are considered alongside the potential that information technologies offer to both exacerbate and overcome them. It examines, amongst others, issues surrounding the material and symbolic aspects of information systems; risk and prediction; systems implementation and systems success; knowledge management practices; accountability and other management practices; computerised modelling; and virtual organization. To this end it deploys a number of different theoretical lenses including: systems theory, social constructivism, labour process theory, post-structuralism, and actor network theory. These offer complementary and contrasting insights into the computerisation of managerial work. In order to ensure that the book is both relevant and approachable to students from a range of backgrounds, these theories are applied to real examples of the development and implementation of information systems. This combination fosters practical knowledge that is theoretically informed. The book thus aims to bridge the gap between the abstractions of current theories of organization and the grounded material that forms the bulk of Information Systems literature. It offers a novel way into the ongoing debates surrounding technological change and the perennial problems of managerial control.
C. A. Bayly
- Published in print:
- 2012
- Published Online:
- September 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780198077466
- eISBN:
- 9780199081110
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198077466.003.0026
- Subject:
- History, Economic History
This chapter considers the merchant family in north India during pre-colonial and early periods as a business enterprise. It suggests that many of the patterns of behaviour which seem to characterise ...
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This chapter considers the merchant family in north India during pre-colonial and early periods as a business enterprise. It suggests that many of the patterns of behaviour which seem to characterise the family firm of nineteenth-century north India can be understood as tactics to avoid the risks of operating in a peculiarly hostile business climate. It explains that from early youth, children in merchant families were taught that good business involved the constant division of capital into small, manageable portfolios. It also discusses business management practices including double entry bookkeeping and the use of a central daily cash book.Less
This chapter considers the merchant family in north India during pre-colonial and early periods as a business enterprise. It suggests that many of the patterns of behaviour which seem to characterise the family firm of nineteenth-century north India can be understood as tactics to avoid the risks of operating in a peculiarly hostile business climate. It explains that from early youth, children in merchant families were taught that good business involved the constant division of capital into small, manageable portfolios. It also discusses business management practices including double entry bookkeeping and the use of a central daily cash book.
Nick Bloom, Tobias Kretschmer, and John Van Reenen
- Published in print:
- 2009
- Published Online:
- February 2013
- ISBN:
- 9780226261942
- eISBN:
- 9780226261959
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University of Chicago Press
- DOI:
- 10.7208/chicago/9780226261959.003.0002
- Subject:
- Economics and Finance, International
A debate is raging all over the developed world about quality of work issues. As unemployment has fallen in the United States and United Kingdom, attention has focused more on the quality rather than ...
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A debate is raging all over the developed world about quality of work issues. As unemployment has fallen in the United States and United Kingdom, attention has focused more on the quality rather than quantity of jobs. This has sharpened as women's participation has risen and issues of work–life balance and family-friendly policies have risen up the political agenda. This chapter sheds some empirical light on these debates. It characterizes two opposing views of globalization: the pessimistic and the optimistic view. A hybrid view between these two extremes is found. Finally, looking at U.S. multinationals based in Europe, an intriguing result is found that states that these firms appear to bring over their superior U.S. management practices with them to Europe but then adopt more worker-friendly European work–life balance practices.Less
A debate is raging all over the developed world about quality of work issues. As unemployment has fallen in the United States and United Kingdom, attention has focused more on the quality rather than quantity of jobs. This has sharpened as women's participation has risen and issues of work–life balance and family-friendly policies have risen up the political agenda. This chapter sheds some empirical light on these debates. It characterizes two opposing views of globalization: the pessimistic and the optimistic view. A hybrid view between these two extremes is found. Finally, looking at U.S. multinationals based in Europe, an intriguing result is found that states that these firms appear to bring over their superior U.S. management practices with them to Europe but then adopt more worker-friendly European work–life balance practices.
