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The purpose of this paper is to draw attention to the lack of a clear theoretical framework in management education programs to allow students to understand the world in which gig workers operate. The article asserts the need for practical guidance for pedagogy to prepare students to manage in the gig economy.

This paper provides a rationale for the assertion that, beyond training students to create their own work configurations in the new world of work, management education should acquaint students with the specific challenges faced by managers responsible for a spectrum of workers in various work configurations. This paper explicates gig work configurations and offers theoretical and practical issues related to worker and manager identity to be considered in the development of an educational framework.

Management curricula over time have successfully augmented several competencies to the manager identity. Bolstering the competency of simultaneously managing employees working in multiple employment arrangements is the next natural progression of management education.

Particular challenges for prospective “gig managers” may relate to the management of somewhat elusive processes that enhance their own and their workers' organizational identity and related outcomes.

The authors invoke the literature of holding environments for identity development, along with the distinctness and inclusion facets of Kegan's theory of the evolution of consciousness and tenets of institutional theory, in a call for the examination of methods that may help aspirant managers recognize distinction and inclusion needs in others and cultivate tools to assist in their workers' need fulfillment.

Investing in Industry 4.0 is an important consideration for manufacturing firms who strive to remain competitive in this global economy, but the uncertainty and complexity of where to focus technology investments is a problem facing many manufacturers. The purpose of this paper is to highlight a region of manufacturing firms in the Midwest USA to investigate the role of firm size, access to funds and industry type on decision to invest in and deploy various Industry 4.0 technologies.

A survey was developed, piloted, and deployed to manufacturing companies located in the Midwest USA, specifically, Indiana, USA. A total of 138 manufacturing firms completed the full survey. The survey participants were requested to rank order the various technology categories with respect to previous historical spending, workforce capabilities and anticipated return on investment. The survey was supplemented with publically available data. Due to the use of rank-order data to identify Industry 4.0 priorities, a non-parametric analysis was completed using the Kruskall Wallis test.

The findings suggest that manufacturers with less than 20 employees and/or less access to funds (sales less than $10m) prioritize digital factory floor technologies (e.g. technology directly impacting productivity, quality and safety of manufacturing processes). Larger manufacturers with 20 or more employees and/or access to more funds (sales greater than or equal to $10m) prioritize enterprise support operations technologies.

Research studies and reports tend to lump manufacturing’s perspective of Industry 4.0 into one homogenous group, and rarely acknowledge the limited participation of “smaller” Small and medium-sized enterprises, which account for the far majority of manufacturing firms in the USA. The value of this study is on the “novelty of approach,” in that the data collection and analysis focuses on heterogeneity of manufacturing firms with respect to size, access to funds and industry type. The findings and recommendations are beneficial and relevant to organizations supporting Industry 4.0 efforts through workforce development and economic development initiatives.

The purpose of this paper is to explore how educators can benefit from data on teaching methods or sources of learning used for the leader development of undergraduate students. To advance the field, the authors contend that programs for leader development need to clearly identify what area of development is being improved (e.g. conceptual understanding, personal growth, skill building, feedback), intentionally build connections toward those objectives for development, and incorporate experience within the structure of undergraduate education to facilitate better outcomes.

Ratings on the teaching methods used by participants with experience facilitating leader development activities for undergraduate students were solicited in an online survey. Each participant (n=66) responded to questions about 25 sources of learning for leader development. Questions asked the degree to which each source of learning provided the learning outcomes of conceptual understanding, feedback, skill building, and/or personal growth to undergraduate students.

Participants perceived small group discussion, and film/television clips to promote conceptual understanding, while internships and 360-degree feedback did so to a lesser degree. Sources of learning perceived to facilitate skill building were group projects, and giving presentations. Conversely, completing case studies and listening to lectures were rated as unlikely to foster personal growth.

The results can help educators make a more informed decision about the adoption of teaching methods for leader development. Hopefully, this practice will create standardization in undergraduate leader development that researchers have asked for and serve as a platform for recommending timetables and sources of learning that better define the what and how of leader development. Likewise, these findings benefit industry, because strong parallels to both the content and techniques used in industry and by universities exist.

The purpose of this paper is to synthesize the advice executives gave aspiring student leaders in one‐hour talks. The author was interested in understanding how well the aspiring student leaders interpreted the messages given by the executives.

Thematic analysis was used to identify common themes across speakers. The themes were given to students in questionnaire format to determine if the students heard the same message.

The themes identified within and across speakers suggested that their recommendations for leader development were relatively consistent. Themes included people orientation, relationships, communication skill, full commitment, accepting difficult challenges, ethics, and continued education. Participants were able to identify the presence of themes and did not project their individual differences onto the message when interpreting the speakers’ insights.

The findings suggested the researcher‐identified themes were also generally identified by the students. Future research should seek to determine which themes students dedicate the most effort towards accomplishing.

The themes provide a unique vantage point of perceptions by executives of what led to their effective leadership. Identification of these behaviors and experiences illuminated ways that aspiring leaders could learn and develop their leadership capability.

The research applied qualitative and quantitative data creation, analysis, and interpretation thereby exhibiting an inductive and mixed methods research approach. Mixed method research may lead to more valid results and helps understand the leadership development process. The research indicates that leadership relationships are fundamentally rooted in communication and that language is the dominant mode of interaction between leaders and staff.

While past IT investment research has looked at a number of important factors, one issue that needs to be resolved in supply chain IT is the ability of different types of software to improve a firm's productivity or sales. Specifically, the purpose of this paper is to investigate which factors influence the number and types of supply chain bolt‐ons systems that are used by companies to improve system functionality.

In total, 2,000 questionnaires and personalized cover letters were mailed to qualified individuals who were selected from APICS's active membership and employed in manufacturing firms in the USA and 187 useful responses (a 9.3 per cent return rate) were obtained.

The results were encouraging and they indicated the use of bolt‐ons were most common in large firms, firms with defined plans and objectives, firms with existing ERP systems, and firms who believe that the application of best practices is of maximum importance. Most importantly, Bolt‐on usage did not seem to be impacted by recent sales or productivity increases, but was instead a result of a critical need in the supply chain.

This research used a single survey methodology and all measures were collected at single point in time. This may limit its generalizability to all time periods and conditions.

Investment in supply chain IT like all strategic initiatives does not end with its installation and implementation but requires continuous improvement. Bolt‐ons seem to be one way firms customize their systems to optimize performance and develop a competitive advantage.

The paper employed a survey study approach to examine investments in Bolt‐on technologies used to supplement and/or augment ERPs across a wide variety of companies. This is a particular novel research area because much of the existing ERP research has focused almost exclusively on ERP deployment and integration with other systems; while relatively little research has focused on those key Bolt‐on systems that might be needed to enhance ERP systems once they have been installed.

The objective of this chapter is to provide strategy researchers with a general resource for applying structural equation modeling (SEM) in their research. This objective is important for strategy researchers because of their increased use of SEM, the availability of advanced SEM approaches relevant for their substantive interests, and the fact that important technical work on SEM techniques often appear in outlets that may not be not readily accessible. This chapter begins with a presentation of the basics of SEM techniques, followed by a review of recent applications of SEM in strategic management research. We next provide an overview of five types of advanced applications of structural equation modeling and describe how they can be applied to strategic management topics. In a fourth section we discuss technical developments related to model evaluation, mediation, and data requirements. Finally, a summary of recommendations for strategic management researchers using SEM is also provided.

This paper aims to review the latest management developments across the globe and pinpoint practical implications from cutting-edge research and case studies.

This briefing is prepared by an independent writer who adds their own impartial comments and places the articles in context.

Participants in a study on how educators can benefit from data on teaching methods or sources of learning used for the leader development of undergraduate students, perceived small group discussion, and film/television clips to promote conceptual understanding, while internships and 360-degree feedback did so to a lesser degree. Sources of learning perceived to facilitate skill building were group projects and giving presentations. Conversely, completing case studies and listening to lectures were rated as unlikely to foster personal growth.

The paper provides strategic insights and practical thinking that have influenced some of the world’s leading organizations.

The briefing saves busy executives and researchers hours of reading time by selecting only the very best, most pertinent information and presenting it in a condensed and easy-to-digest format.