Articles 1 to 10 of 49
Successful Small Team Leadership: Manage the Group, Not the Individuals
Differentiated leadership -- a management style in which leaders treat individual staff members differently based on such factors as their skills, perceived value or personalities -- is a widely accepted approach to management. It seems like common sense, but new research from management Professors Angelo Kinicki and Anne Tsui and Joshua Wu of the University of Miami finds that differentiated leadership doesn't work in a team setting -- in fact, it's downright damaging.
Crisis Communication: Now More Than Ever, a Timely Topic
When it comes to examples of crises in business, we have "an embarrassment of riches," according to the author of "Crisis Communication: Practical PR Strategies for Management and Company Survival." The debacle of Enron's collapse, the Tylenol package-tampering scare, the horror of Union Carbide's chemical accident in Bhopal, India -- these are but a few memorable crises that brought untold suffering to millions. We can learn from these examples how to handle crises -- and how not to. In his new book, Peter Frans Anthonissen brings a lot more to the table: Chapters written by 20 authors who are senior crisis communication consultants from IPREX, the worldwide corporation of independent PR firms.
Business Groups in China: Is Qiyejituan Membership a Guaranteed Advantage?
The "qiyejituan" -- collections of companies and firms that are joined via social and economic ties -- have been playing an increasingly vital role in China's economy, just as the "chaebol" have been so important to Korea and the "keiretsu" to Japan. Membership in these groups can help firms compete in the global marketplace, but a research team led by the W. P. Carey School's Robert Hoskisson has discovered that this may not always be the case. Some business groups -- specifically those subject to heavy government intervention, or those managed by individuals coming from the central-government tradition -- actually stunted innovation.
The Faith-Based Corporation: Organizational Sacralization and Sacrilege
From Google to Jet Blue and Patagonia to Trader Joe's, companies of all kinds are attempting to craft cultures and identities so idealistic that they could rightly be called "sacred." These companies are espousing these sacred ideals, values, beliefs, goals, behaviors and processes not only to attract and motivate employees and stakeholders but also as means to distinguish themselves from their competition. In fact, some say companies that take the sacred route may be able to offer something nearing spiritual fulfillment to customers and employees. Recently, three W.P. Carey management researchers -- Professors Blake Ashforth and Kevin Corley and doctoral candidate Spencer Harrison -- set out to investigate what might be behind this trend.
In Today's Process-Driven Workplace, Collaboration Is King
"The in-box culture is dead," says Evan Rosen in his new book, "The Culture of Collaboration: Maximizing Time, Talent and Tools to Create Value in the Global Economy." This may come as a surprise if you're one of those people who start work every day facing 500 e-mails begging ASAP replies. If, however, your company embraces a collaborative culture, those 500 e-mails can be addressed in minutes or even seconds using the appropriate tools of collaborative technology. This book is not for the casual reader, but if you are committed to understanding exactly how and why collaborative tools will motivate your employees and drive your business, this is the book for you.
Keeping It in the Family: Family Firms Willing to Take Risks to Retain Control
Studies show family-led companies implement better long-term planning and generally have greater internal organizational commitment than public companies. Even so, business researchers have for some time contended that because so few individuals control so much at family firms, executives there are less likely than their counterparts in public firms to take the kind of risks that truly successful companies need to take. This idea that family firms are naturally risk-averse has become a standard line of thinking in business academia. Unfortunately, says W. P. Carey management Professor Luis R. Gomez-Mejia, it's just not true. At least not entirely.
Academic Consultants Bring a Different Perspective to Business Problems
The stereotypes are familiar to consultants and people who hire them: Commercial consultants are in it for the money. They offer boilerplate products and simple answers to complex problems. Then there are academic consultants. They are detached from the real world, miss deadlines, and make things more complicated than they need to be. While kernels of truth can be found in these simplistic characterizations, commercial and academic consultants, in fact, bring different and important perspectives to problems companies face, according to W. P. Carey School of Business researchers.
Doing Business in the Political Marketplace: Strategies for Success
For many business people, politics is unfamiliar territory, where missteps bring unforeseen and often unfortunate consequences. But because so many issues that affect business wind up in the political arena, ignoring politics is not a good option, according to researchers at the W. P. Carey School of Business. They offer this piece of advice: Approach politics like it's a business, only with different rules.
Podcast: 'Culture Eats Strategy for Breakfast'
Companies that attempt strategic change without considering organizational culture risk failure, according to management Professor Angelo Kinicki of the W. P. Carey School of Business. When culture is not aligned with strategy, he explains, culture wins every time. Herb Kelleher, former CEO and current chairman of the board of Southwest Airlines, has been quoted saying that culture is the most important focal point for leaders. In this podcast, Kinicki describes how to identify your corporate culture, and how to manage it.
Want to Lure R&D? Investing in Tech Capabilities Trumps Financial Incentives
Where a multinational corporation (MNC) decides to put its manufacturing and research and development (R&D) facilities is important both for the MNC and for the host country. An MNC that makes the right move can gain a significant technological advantage over competitors, while the wrong decision can deal a major setback to its innovation efforts. The location choices of MNCs are the subject of a recent study by W. P. Carey management professor Robert Hoskisson. Hoskisson and his co-authors conclude that companies locating manufacturing and R&D facilities in more technologically advanced locations are better able to gain technological advantages. Countries that want to attract foreign investment often hold out tax breaks as a lure, but this study suggests that developing technical assets at home may be more important.
