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Investigates conflict in the workplace and states that mediation is beneficial to both employees and employers. Suggests that managers should cultivate team communication, and collaborative problem‐solving skills in employees who serve on problem‐solving teams. Summarizes that managers who serve as mediators can learn the root cause of conflicts in organizations, and aid employees to deal with the problems.

Before sending employees to the US, it is critical for foreign employers to understand the basic requirements of US wage and hour law to avoid unintentional but costly violations of that law. Many foreign companies are surprised to learn that the US workers they employ in the United States as well as their own workers who are sent to the United States for short periods are protected by the US wage and hour laws and must be paid in accordance with US law for workweeks in which the employee performs his or her work in the US or its territories. Unfortunately, many foreign companies do not learn about US wage and hour law until it is too late. This article explains the basic requirements of the US wage and hour law. Because most US wage and hour law requires an individualised case‐by‐case assessment of coverage and requirements, companies considering employing workers in or sending employees to the US are encouraged to consult with US employment law counsel about their specific situations.

Globally, organisations are adjusting to meet the challenges of the constantly‐changing marketplace. In the area of human resource management, many multinational organisations are focusing in making the organisation more productive, cost‐effective, and customer service oriented. Recognising that an organisation’s employees are the key to its global success, many organisations are re‐evaluating their methods of appraising and motivating employees. As a result, annual employee evaluations, which have been a staple of human resource managers in many industrialised nations for decades, have been widely criticised in recent years. This article highlights the importance of using such evaluations not only in their traditional function for employee appraisal, but also as a tool for employee motivation, as a legal defence for selection, and as part of the strategic planning process.

Considers the recent increase of violence in the workplace, citing specific situations. Outlines the impact on the workplace in relation to areas such as morale, productivity, communication and responsibility. Covers the legal obligations and responsibilities of employers before profiling a case study of a government department. Provides details of the assessment and the findings together with recommendations for future improvement.

Over the past fifteen years, many organisations have restructured and, in the process, reduced their workforces dramatically. Some of this re‐engineering has been due to such influences as global competition, economic uncertainty, technological change, government deregulation as well as a growing demand for better and faster goods and services. The overall effect of such “downsizing” has not always resulted in desirable outcomes. What lessons have been learned? Are managers using these lessons to reshape organisational strategies, especially those dealing with human resource management?

Despite the breadth of knowledge on self and identity formation across the study of organizations, the field of organizational development and change has limited research on the construction of professional identity. Much has been written to describe the “self-concepts” of those practicing and researching in the field, but there have been no investigations that have explored how these “self-concepts” form. In addition, although women have contributed to defining the “self” in the field, men have held the dominant perspective on the subject. Thus, in this chapter, we address a disparity in the research by exploring the construction of professional identity in the field of organizational development and change, and we give voice to the renowned women who helped to build the field. Using the profiles of 17 American women included in The Palgrave Handbook of Organizational Change Thinkers, we perform a narrative analysis based upon the concepts and models prevalent in the literature on identity formation. By disentangling professional identity formation of the notable women in the field, we can begin to see the nuance and particularities involved in its construction and gain deeper understandings about effective ways to prepare individuals to work in and advance the field.

This article provides a link between marketing theory and application in helping students utilize what is taught in the classroom to attain employment goals. Eight proposals drawn from basic marketing concepts taught in all principles of marketing courses are presented, along with practical ways to encourage students to begin early in seeing themselves as $5.3 million assets and marketing themselves accordingly.

This article aims to examine considerations and strategies for improving team performance in decision‐making by teaching teams to use collaborative modeling based on team mental models.

The article describes the nature of shared mental models and collaborative modeling, the potential effects of collaborative modeling on team performance, and a perspective on communication imperatives that facilitate collaborative modeling. The articles builds upon this information to suggest five imperatives for teams to help them develop collaborative modeling skills

The article offers strategies in the form of five imperatives for teams to observe in order to build skills in collaborative modeling and improve team performance by improving team members’ ability to effect collaborative modeling to accomplish team tasks and goals.

Research over the years in mental modeling and communication has created a powerful argument that effective communication and shared mental models improves team performance. However there is little about application of this concept in the literature. The next step for researchers is to develop application models for collaborative modeling and test those models through empirical research. This paper offers an application model based on imperatives to be observed by decision‐making teams in order to facilitate the creation of shared mental models of team tasks and processes.

In an era in which adapting to change means survival, it is important to study what successful organizations have done. While the airline industry in the USA has not made thriving financial headlines, one small company has been able to satisfy its customers completely and achieve a place among the Fortune 500 in a relatively short period of time. In three steps, this article examines what Southwest Airlines has done to reach this level of achievement and maintain its excellent employee and customer relations. First, the company is defined as “excellent” according to the criteria established by Peters and Waterman. Second, management‐employee relations, organizational training and strong leadership are identified as the sources of employee motivation. Third, loss of strong leadership and organizational structure are discussed as possible future problems influencing motivation and service. The article closes by pointing to Southwest Airline’s concept of service as the true source of motivation and excellence.

Identifies the different mechanisms of alternative dispute resolution, outlining the main features of each one and suggesting appropriate areas of use. Supports the employment of these methods and lists the benefits they bring. Points out that the courts are still required as back up if these methods fail.