Search results
1 – 10 of 843This study seeks to examine the managerial behavior of Chinese managers, as observed by their superiors, subordinates, and peers in a state‐owned enterprise in China…
Abstract
Purpose
This study seeks to examine the managerial behavior of Chinese managers, as observed by their superiors, subordinates, and peers in a state‐owned enterprise in China. Specifically, this study aims to explore two questions. First, what managerial behaviors are perceived as being effective in the Chinese state‐owned enterprise? Second, what managerial behaviors are perceived as being least effective or ineffective in the Chinese state‐owned enterprise?
Design/methodology/approach
An exploratory qualitative study was conducted using critical incident (CI) interview techniques. From 35 managers of one large state‐owned telecommunication company in Western China, 230 usable CIs were collected. In total, 31 themes were identified from the thematic analysis, of which 14 related to effective managerial behaviors and 17 related to ineffective behaviors.
Findings
An effective Chinese manager is perceived as being supportive, caring, fair, engaging, self‐disciplined, unselfish, responsible, and knowledgeable. While findings of the study highlight the continuing influence of the traditional Chinese culture on the perceived effectiveness of managerial behaviors, they also suggest a clear shift from traditional values that emphasize authoritarian management to Western values that encourage participative management.
Research limitations/implications
While the small sample may limit the generalizability of the study, findings expand the current knowledge base of Chinese management and can be useful for further empirical testing.
Practical implications
This study provides some parameters for benchmarking and evaluating Chinese managerial practices. The identified indicators of effective and ineffective managerial behaviors can be incorporated into the development of a Chinese management competency model or instrument, and a more targeted management development intervention.
Originality/value
This study taps an under‐explored research territory – China, and is one of the first attempts at identifying effective managerial behavior indicators of Chinese managers using the CI technique. By adopting an inductive approach this study provides rich qualitative data that can be useful for developing an indigenous tool appropriate in the Chinese context.
Details
Keywords
Charlotte K. Shelton and John R. Darling
The traditional management skills of planning, organizing, directing and controlling are inadequate in the fast‐paced, constantly changing, highly complex world of twenty‐first…
Abstract
The traditional management skills of planning, organizing, directing and controlling are inadequate in the fast‐paced, constantly changing, highly complex world of twenty‐first century organizations. This article uses concepts from quantum mechanics and chaos theory as metaphors for a new management skill set that can enable managers to actualize more of their leadership potential. The seven quantum skills are ancient and futuristic, scientific and spiritual, simple and complex. Together they form a model that balances the traditional left‐brain management skills with new skills that more fully utilize both hemispheres of the brain. As managers master these skills, they transcend the limitations of mechanistic, deterministic, reductionistic thinking and become authentic change masters, changing themselves and their organizations at depth.
Details
Keywords
– The purpose of this paper is to illustrate that the magnitude of interest in and of enthusiasm for transformational leadership is out of proportion with its weaknesses.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to illustrate that the magnitude of interest in and of enthusiasm for transformational leadership is out of proportion with its weaknesses.
Findings
The theory has some grave problems: there are conceptual limitations; managerial leadership is conflated with political leadership; the theory is presented as a universal as well as a contingency theory; the claim that transformational leaders are more effective is not empirically supported; and the use of the term “followers” rather than “subordinates” creates confusion in the study of formal organizations. Finally, and perhaps most fundamentally, does transformational leadership theory qualify as a managerial leadership theory?
Research limitations/implications
Transformational leadership is a political leadership theory and thus less relevant for managerial leadership.
Originality/value
This paper addresses the theoretical limitations of the transformational leadership theory as well as the lack of empirical support regarding the effectiveness of transformational leaders.
Details
Keywords
Dean Elmuti, Heather Jia and Henry H. Davis
This study was undertaken to discover working public thoughts about roles of United States women in leadership positions and to test the relationship between managerial leadership…
Abstract
This study was undertaken to discover working public thoughts about roles of United States women in leadership positions and to test the relationship between managerial leadership styles and organizational effectiveness. A survey of perceptions of leadership roles and effectiveness distributed 700 randomly selected entities from industries in the United States. Findings suggest approximately 50% of women leaders perceive barriers that prevent women for entering management positions and lower advancement rates for women. This study shows that aspiration in women exists whether or not they take action and motivate themselves to advance for top management positions. However, barriers like discrimination, family-life demands, prejudice, and stereotyping result in fruitlessness in many cases. The majority of women and men felt education and training could increase the preparedness of women for leadership roles. Respondents expressed overwhelming support for a participative leadership style. A positive association existed between participative leadership style and organizational effectiveness.
Farhad Analoui, Abdulla A. Ahmed and Nada Kakabadse
This paper seeks to report on the findings of a recent study which explores the ways/factors which influence and/or determine the effectiveness of the senior management in the…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper seeks to report on the findings of a recent study which explores the ways/factors which influence and/or determine the effectiveness of the senior management in the Muscat Municipality, Oman, by assessing the perception of senior managers concerning the influences (parameters) on their effectiveness.
Design/methodology/approach
The research has utilized a combination of qualitative and quantitative methodologies. Analoui's model of “eight parameters for effectiveness” has been used as a basis to explore the awareness, perceptions, skills, organizational standards, motivation, degree of demands and constraints, and the presence of choices and opportunities for effectiveness.
Findings
Analoui's model of “managerial effectiveness” is applicable to the public sector in Oman. Senior managers are aware of their own effectiveness and better understanding of their effectiveness requires paying attention to the identified parameters and contexts in which they perform their tasks. Unfortunately, little attention has been paid to their management development.
Practical implications
It is suggested that senior managers should be enabled: to communicate effectively with other people; to manage their own time and use it effectively; to make decisions/resolve problems; and to lead and motivate employees effectively at work. The reward system needs revising and a learning environment ought to be established to foster transformational leadership.
Originality/value
This first time study contributes to the present stock of knowledge and understanding of the subject by contextualising the concept of “managerial effectiveness” in Oman's public sector.
Details
Keywords
Carlos E. Ruiz, Jia Wang and Robert G. Hamlin
The aim of this study was to identify what people in Mexican organizations perceive as effective and ineffective managerial behavior.
Abstract
Purpose
The aim of this study was to identify what people in Mexican organizations perceive as effective and ineffective managerial behavior.
Design/methodology/approach
A qualitative study based on the grounded theory approach was conducted. Interviews using the critical incident techniques were conducted with 35 participants from six different companies located in Yucatan, Mexico.
Findings
Results suggest that effective managers in Mexico are considered approachable, democratic, fair, considerate, understanding, supportive, caring, and hard working with problem solving skills.
Research limitations/implications
This study is based on the responses of participants located in one region of Mexico. This study focused on the perceptions of Mexican participants only.
Practical implications
Findings of this study have practical implications for human resources professionals, Mexican managers, and expatriates who manage operations and manage people in Mexico. Human resources professionals can use the findings of this study to develop programs for leadership and management development. For Mexican managers, this study set parameters of what is considered effective or ineffective management behavior. Also, the findings of this study can help multinational companies better prepare expatriates for their international assignments in Mexico.
Originality/value
The article explores leadership practices internationally.
Details
Keywords
Robert G. Hamlin and Taran Patel
This paper aims to report the results of a replication study of perceived managerial and leadership effectiveness within a Romanian public sector hospital, and to discuss the…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to report the results of a replication study of perceived managerial and leadership effectiveness within a Romanian public sector hospital, and to discuss the extent to which they are similar to and different from findings from equivalent studies carried out in two British NHS Trust hospitals.
Design/methodology/approach
Concrete examples (critical incidents) of effective and ineffective managerial behaviour were collected using Flanagan's critical incident technique (CIT). The critical incidents were content analyzed to identify a smaller number of behavioural statements (BSs). These were then compared and contrasted against two British BS data sets using realist qualitative analytic methods, and deductively coded and sorted into extant behavioural categories.
Findings
A total of 57 BSs were identified of which 30 were examples of effective and 27 of least effective/ineffective managerial behaviour. The multi‐case/cross‐nation comparative analysis revealed high degrees of commonality and relative generalization between the Romanian and British findings.
Research limitations/implications
Data saturation may not have been achieved during the CIT collection phase of the study. The relevance and transferability of the findings to other public sector hospitals in Romania have yet to be demonstrated empirically. The results have potential as “best evidence” to inform and shape “evidence‐based HRD” initiatives designed to train and develop effective managers and leaders within the health services sector of Romania and the United Kingdom.
Originality/value
The study is a rare example of indigenous managerial behaviour research in a non‐Anglo country. The results lend strong empirical support for universalistic explanations of the nature of perceived managerial and leadership effectiveness.
Details
Keywords
Poornima Madan and Shalini Srivastava
The purpose of this study is to examine the relationship between mentoring, managerial effectiveness and demographic variables. Being in a mentoring relationship offers a low-cost…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this study is to examine the relationship between mentoring, managerial effectiveness and demographic variables. Being in a mentoring relationship offers a low-cost experiential learning, encourages diversity and inclusion, helps in expanding professional associations and boosts engagement. The use of mentoring programs can achieve this to a larger extent by making managers effective.
Design/methodology/approach
The study was administered on 350 middle-level managers, representatives of five private sector banks in Delhi/NCR. Variables in the study were assessed using validated instruments. Descriptive statistics, t-test, correlation and hierarchical regression were used for data analysis.
Findings
The study depicts that mentoring has a positive and significant impact on managerial effectiveness. The research contributed in establishing that the demographic variables (gender and marital status) positively moderate the relationship between mentoring and managerial effectiveness.
Research limitations/implications
Although the knowledge base and skillfulness of the young mangers are taken care by the way of organizational training, mentoring relationships complement it with added focus on personal directions to deal with minutiae of organizational processes. Mentors provide a critical linkage to an organization’s competitive advantage by helping expanding connections and networks of employees, and thereby, enhancing productivity which directly affects profitability. Managers and policymakers should chart out the mentoring plans, keeping in perspective the demographic variables, specially the gender of the mentee and the marital status.
Originality/value
This is a pioneer study contributing to the present reserve of knowledge and understanding of the subject by contextualizing the impact of demographic variables on mentoring and managerial effectiveness in Indian private sector banks.
Details
Keywords
Linda E. Morris and Christine R. Williams
This paper aims to provide a deeper understanding of behaviors effective technical managers and executives use to lead complex projects, programs and organizations.
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to provide a deeper understanding of behaviors effective technical managers and executives use to lead complex projects, programs and organizations.
Design/methodology/approach
Described is a qualitative study to identify and document behaviors and attributes of effective technical executives at NASA. Methods included observation, shadowing and interviews with 14 NASA executives, who possessed a technical background and a systems orientation, and whom agency leadership identified as highly effective in their roles. Included also is a review of related theoretical and empirical scholarship on leadership and managerial effectiveness, focusing on research describing leaders' behaviors and competencies and approaches to deal with project and organizational complexity.
Findings
The study surfaced 225 observable behaviors clustered into 54 elements, within six broad themes: leadership, attitudes and attributes (including executive presence), communication, problem solving and systems thinking, political savvy and strategic thinking.
Research limitations/implications
Limitations include the small number of executives interviewed for 60‐90 minutes and observed for a brief period. Future studies might include more executives, from a variety of organizations, and/or employ a quantitative approach based on or incorporating these findings.
Practical implications
The study's rich data will serve as a framework to help develop technical executives where complexity and technology drive the need for systems‐oriented leaders with technical backgrounds.
Originality/value
The study and literature review provide a context for a deeper understanding of technical leaders' behaviors and use of systems thinking within complex situations.
Details
Keywords
K. Skylar Powell and Serkan Yalcin
The purpose of this paper is to add to the significant contributions of past research by assessing what the overall effectiveness of managerial training has been over a period of…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to add to the significant contributions of past research by assessing what the overall effectiveness of managerial training has been over a period of 50 years and by identifying changes in overall effectiveness during this time period. Additionally, this study aims to evaluate what the overall findings on the effectiveness of training has been based on study design and subgroups focusing on the equivalent of Kirkpatrick's famous learning, behavior, and results outcomes.
Design/methodology/approach
This study quantitatively integrates and extends the literature on management training through a meta‐analytic procedure. The resulting sample of past research includes studies from the time period between 1952 and 2002, representing 85 interventions and 4,779 subjects.
Findings
The results do not suggest a great deal of improvement in the effectiveness of managerial training from 1952 through 2002 and effect sizes have remained moderate. Additionally, outcome subgroup appears to moderate results. Specifically, programs implemented to achieve learning outcomes tended to have the largest effect sizes and were consistently significant relative to programs targeted at behavior and results outcomes.
Research limitations/implications
The implications are directly related to the selection of evaluation methods for future studies assessing the effectiveness of managerial training programs. This implication is important to both the academic community and practitioners. The limitations of this study include the possible exclusion of past research and the heterogeneity of assessment methods used in past research, beyond the broad categories of objective and subjective assessment.
Originality/value
In addition to identifying the moderating effect of outcomes being measured, the main contribution of this study is that it covers a large time period. As a result, the analysis offers a more expanded view of managerial training over time.
Details