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This paper focuses on individuals' improvisation in organizations. The extant literature in this area examines improvisation as either a predictor or an outcome variable. However, there is still considerable confusion about the essence of improvisation and its individual-level determinants. To address these deficiencies, we discuss the differences between improvisation, creativity, and intuition, integrating insights and theories from those fields. Then, we propose a comprehensive model describing a process that includes contextual and individual level variables, which leads to improvisation. Finally, we discuss the theoretical and practical implications of our model and suggest avenues for future research.

This paper reviews an empirical study into corporate reputation strategies in large UK organizations. It considers what is meant by corporate reputation and its role in the strategic marketing communications mix. The findings confirm not only that over the past decade planning and implementation of reputation strategies has become a dominant focus of those concerned with corporate governance but also that the organizational communicator now perceives his or her role as one of guardian of that reputation. It notes further, that between academics and practitioners alike there remains much confusion over the terms reputation and image; are the two one and the same? The findings have implications not only for senior management but also for the development of communication strategies aimed at enabling an organization to gain a competitive advantage in an increasingly overcrowded market place. Evidentially corporate reputation has developed more and more in the UK context – and is now recognized by enlightened management as a key weapon in organizational strategy formulations.

Is it in corporations' long‐term interests to exceed their social and environmental obligations and deliver a superior ethical performance? This is one of the key questions raised in the debate launched by the European Commission's green paper last year regarding the concept of corporate social responsibility (CSR). It is clear that the commercial world must rise to the challenge of building the confidence and trust demanded by stakeholders worldwide. There is a broad consensus on the need for businesses to take the social, economic, and environmental impact of their actions — the ‘triple bottom line’ — into account. Businesses are an integral part of the society (local and international) and they have to consider the impact their behaviour has on it. Many businesses highlight the links between CSR and their wider sustainable development agenda. Corporate reputation or image depends on how the company conducts or is perceived as conducting its business. Today the ability to build a sustainable corporate reputation is more important than ever before as stakeholders are more educated, more knowledgeable, and more demanding. The Cyprus Popular Bank, the second largest banking organisation in Cyprus, has developed and launched ‘Radiomarathon’ in support of children with special needs, which has won a place in the Guinness World of Records as the most successful charitable event in the world on the basis of per capita contribution, and was chosen among the top five charity events worldwide by the Chartered Institute of Bankers for 2003. Radiomarathon has been used in order to build a strong corporate identity and corporate reputation: “With the Radiomarathon we have hit a vein of gold…our corporate reputation is stronger than ever before! In such a turbulent climate, a positive corporate reputation can play a vital role in ensuring that the organisation is on a solid footing. ” (Yiannos Pissourios, Cyprus Popular Bank). The bank realised the importance and need for corporate social responsibility in their efforts to build a good corporate reputation and achieve competitive differentiation.

Diffusing tacit knowledge, a transparent and subjective form of knowledge, needs an individual’s ability to externalize and sharing of this knowledge. This paper proposes a framework for the diffusion of tacit knowledge by using the concept of meta‐abilities. The argument of this research is that meta‐abilities develop individual influencing skills and sharing attitudes. These two elements in turn enable individuals to externalize their tacit knowledge in the form of creative idea, actions, reactions and reflection. Documenting these externalized and shared knowledge can provide a basis to keep information systems (IS) updated with relevant and reliable “best practices”. From a discussion of this framework, it is concluded that the future focus for the diffusion of tacit knowledge should be toward an individual’s meta‐abilities development that develop creativity and interpretivity. There should also be an impetus towards creating the right organizational culture and infrastructure that promotes tacit knowledge sharing and externalization within and between employees.

This paper examines co-location as an important solution to design workspaces in research and development (R & D). It argues that co-locating R & D units in multi-space environments serves knowledge creation by leveraging knowledge sharing across boundaries.

This study is based on a co-location project of the knowledge-intensive, multi-national company Novartis. To compare communication and collaboration patterns, we interviewed and observed employees before and after co-location into the “co-location pilot” and investigated a control group that was not co-located. The use of data and method triangulation as a research approach underlines the inherent dynamics of the co-location in this study.

The study suggests findings leveraging knowledge sharing in two different ways. Co-location of dispersed project team members increases unplanned face-to-face communication leading to faster and more precise flows of knowledge by transcending knowledge boundaries. Co-location to an open multi-space environment stimulates knowledge creation by enabling socialization, externalization and combination of knowledge.

This study provides managerial implications for implementing co-location to achieve greater knowledge sharing across functions. The design of the work environment provides the framework for successful co-location.

This paper reports the findings of an empirical case study conducted within the “co-location pilot” of the pharmaceutical company Novartis. This study contributes to an in-depth understanding of the phenomena on a qualitative and micro-level.

To manage intangible assets such as knowledge is perceived as an important capability for competition. One of the main matters for managing knowledge resources is diffusion of knowledge within organizations. Knowledge management needs different forms according to the possibility to code knowledge. Internal individual processes like experience and talent obtain tacit knowledge that is difficult to code. Therefore it cannot be managed and shared as explicit knowledge. To rely on personal tacit knowledge is risky. Conversion of tacit knowledge to explicit or at least ability to share it offers greater value to an organization. But what are the difficulties related to sharing tacit knowledge? Different difficulties are to be found related to perception, language, time, value and distance.

The purpose of this paper is to expand the research in knowledge management, by specifically examining knowledge transfer among expatriates, repatriates and top management teams. The relationships posited here should aid multinational firms in increasing their international assignment return on investment.

Based on previous literature, a theoretical model of the anticipated impact of feedback seeking behaviors and social networks among international assignees and top management teams is presented.

While this article expands the literature in knowledge transfer and encourages multinational enterprises to examine their knowledge management strategies among expatriate, repatriates and top management teams, the model presented is limited. It does not integrate some elements that may cause difficulties for expatriates and repatriates and hinder knowledge transfer.

Top management teams should take an active interest in increasing the knowledge transfer from expatriates and repatriates in the organization because of the expected positive impact it will have on global performance. In order to be more proactive, firms need to implement formal mechanisms, as well as encouraging informal mechanisms in order to transfer knowledge, which should aid the organization in such areas as their expatriation‐repatriation process and foreign subsidiary operations.

To date, no article has addressed how feedback‐seeking behaviors and social networks, together, can enhance knowledge transfer among expatriates, repatriates and Top Management Teams. Furthermore, evidence of effective knowledge transfer during international assignments is scant. Therefore this article fills a gap in the literature by expanding the research on knowledge management.

The paper analysed how the strengths and weaknesses of a firm's social actions with its different types of primary stakeholders impact on its reputation. The paper aims to discuss these issues.

This research adopts Mattingly and Berman's typology to measure corporate social performance data, which differentiates primary stakeholder between institutional and technical. The first provides intangible support and the second tangible support to the firm. The hypotheses compare the effect that different social actions measures can have on corporate reputation (CR). The authors test the hypotheses empirically using two samples composed of US firms and two CR measures.

The authors found that institutional stakeholders are deemed to hold normative expectations of a firm's behavior, impacting strongly on CR, unlike technical stakeholders, that have an economic exchange relationship with the firm. In addition to corporate social actions toward technical stakeholders are viewed as self-serving actions and are therefore less likely to impact on CR.

The research can be very useful for business managers since it provides theoretical discussion and empirical proof about the effect of social actions on CR, which can assist them in designing or modifying social responsibility strategies used by the firm in order to build a positive CR.

The paper develops a framework on CR, highlighting the valuable roles that different types of social actions play in reputation building, and proposes a new model that identifies the impact of different types of social actions on organizational reputation.

The purpose of this paper is to examine two predominant export decision‐making orientations emanating from normative and descriptive decision theory, namely planning and improvisation and their coexistence within exporting firms. In addition, contingencies under which one may be more appropriate than the other for optimal performance consequences are identified.

A qualitative study was conducted with UK exporters by way of in‐depth interviews. The results were analyzed using within‐ and cross‐case displays of in‐vivo and literature‐based codes, based on Miles and Huberman's recommendations.

The study reveals widespread use of improvisation in export functions, and its co‐existence with export planning for enhanced decision‐making. In addition, resource‐ and capabilities‐based moderators are identified that may affect the ways in which planning and improvisation are related to export performance.

This is a preliminary study which addresses the two export decision‐making orientations together for the first time. Further quantitative research is needed to formally test the conceptual model developed.

Export decision‐makers often feel guilty about improvising, believing that planning is the accepted norm. Avoidance and covert use of improvisation, however, are not necessary. Indeed, export improvisation can have many positive consequences for the export function, especially when combined with export planning.

Research on export decision‐making has tended to focus on normative decision theory (from which planning emerges), largely overlooking descriptive approaches which identify improvisation as a valid decision‐making orientation. However, in today's global and competitive environment, better performance consequences are increasingly to be found in the faster and more creative export decisions that improvisation can afford. This study addresses for the first time how benefits can be drawn from employing a combination of export planning and improvisation.