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Book part
Publication date: 31 July 2020

Laurie W. Ford and Jeffrey D. Ford

We have been working together as husband and wife, as management professor and management consultant, and as coauthors for over 30 years. During that time, we have tailored an…

Abstract

We have been working together as husband and wife, as management professor and management consultant, and as coauthors for over 30 years. During that time, we have tailored an operations research–based approach to represent the functional infrastructure of organizations as networks of agreements for the transfer of deliverables, e.g., products, services, and communications, which connect internal organizational units and also their external relations. The network model is useful to understand organizations, support organization change, and develop management practices that improve efficiency, teamwork, and effectiveness. Throughout the application of this approach, we have observed often that “management is missing,” in organizations in general and in organization change management in particular, where managers and change agents may underestimate or fail to recognize the productive relationships at the foundation of performance in organizations, that these relationships are different from authority or social/affinity relationships, and that they require management. In this chapter, we distinguish the network approach that is fundamental to our work and the “missing” elements of management that are recognizable by using that approach. We then examine how “management is missing” in change management and how it might be restored.

Details

Research in Organizational Change and Development
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-83909-083-7

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 20 August 2008

Arie van Sluis, Lex Cachet and Arthur Ringeling

The purpose of this article is to present the findings of research into the impact of a new performance system for the police in The Netherlands.

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Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this article is to present the findings of research into the impact of a new performance system for the police in The Netherlands.

Design/methodology/approach

For this research, the international literature about the effects and side effects of performance steering in the public sector was scanned and more than 150 local stakeholders in five Dutch police regions were interviewed in semi‐open interviews, using a checklist. The study analyzed the specific impact of the results‐based agreements in various branches.

Findings

On the whole, the police do not get isolated as a consequence of the results‐based agreements and they do not disassociate themselves from the societal networks they participated in before. The authors offer several explanations why many of the expected negative effects have not occurred.

Originality/value

Valuable in this article is the focus on the situational context and the implementation context for an adequate assessment of the significance of performance‐based steering of the police in practice. It gives an update of the Dutch state of affairs and recommends another starting point for police performance measurement in the near future.

Details

Policing: An International Journal of Police Strategies & Management, vol. 31 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1363-951X

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Article
Publication date: 1 December 2005

Michael O'Donnell and Mark Turner

The purpose of this article is to explore the export of new public management (NPM) to developing countries and to describe and evaluate the introduction of these initiatives in…

2483

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this article is to explore the export of new public management (NPM) to developing countries and to describe and evaluate the introduction of these initiatives in very different environments from their origins.

Design/methodology/approach

The article traces the introduction of performance agreements into the public service of Vanuatu. Performance agreements are identified as an initiative typically promoted by NPM. The Vanuatu case is set within a review of the origin, use and record of performance agreements in countries such as Australia, the UK and the USA.

Findings

The adoption of performance agreements has been slow and has enjoyed limited success. Among the difficulties encountered are suspicion, lack of incentives, an unreceptive environment, and possible identification as being donor‐driven. It is difficult to see performance agreements in their current form making an impact on performance improvement in the Vanuatu public service.

Practical implications

NPM initiatives must be carefully considered before being transferred to other countries. They may offer benefits but what has worked in one environment will often need considerable modification, certain preconditions and lengthy lead‐in time to be effective in another environment.

Originality/value

There are few case studies of attempts to transfer NPM‐style reforms to developing countries and none on performance agreements, yet many countries in the Pacific and elsewhere are becoming interested in this mode of performance management. This case study helps to fill this gap through description and analysis of the Vanuatu experience and provides practical lessons for others considering policy transfer of NPM initiatives such as performance agreements.

Details

International Journal of Public Sector Management, vol. 18 no. 7
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0951-3558

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Article
Publication date: 12 September 2016

Peter BeomCheol Kim and Kevin D. Carlson

The purpose of this paper is to examine whether agreement between frontline employee self-ratings and supervisory ratings of service performance functions as an indicator of…

1126

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to examine whether agreement between frontline employee self-ratings and supervisory ratings of service performance functions as an indicator of healthy supervisor-subordination relationships above and beyond what might be indicated simply by either supervisory ratings or self-ratings.

Design/methodology/approach

Research hypotheses were tested using a sample of 220 matched pairs of frontline service workers and their immediate supervisors from nine full service hotels in the USA.

Findings

The results show that higher levels of agreement in service performance ratings between employees and supervisors is associated with higher levels of leader-member exchange (LMX) and organizational commitment.

Practical implications

Senior managers can refer to the level of performance rating agreement between customer service employees and their supervisors in assessing supervisors’ competency to manage their work relationship with their subordinates.

Originality/value

This study examined rating agreement in a service performance context and found rating agreement between subordinates and their supervisor may have a unique effect on service worker effectiveness, producing a unique incremental effect on LMX and organizational commitment. This is important given that few attempts have been made to examine service performance from both subordinates’ and supervisors’ perspectives and the implication that rating agreement may have for improving employee service performance.

Details

Journal of Service Theory and Practice, vol. 26 no. 5
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2055-6225

Keywords

Book part
Publication date: 23 November 2015

Malcolm B. Coate

Plus Factors have long played an important role in inferring a price agreement from the totality of the evidence. In response to changes in the case law, economists have proposed…

Abstract

Purpose

Plus Factors have long played an important role in inferring a price agreement from the totality of the evidence. In response to changes in the case law, economists have proposed two alternative paths for the future of price fixing analysis. This paper evaluates the suggested approaches and recommends retaining the enhanced Plus Factor methodology.

Methodology/approach

By carefully defining the Plus Factor concept, three key components of the analysis emerge: (1) information on communications associated with the alleged agreement, (2) economic considerations affecting market competition, and (3) characteristics that serve to differentiate explicit from tacit collusion.

Findings

Developments rationalizing the Plus Factor concept show promise, as the methodology is not more closely related to economic theory. On the other hand, replacement of the Plus Factor methodology with one focused on market performance seems problematic. By abandoning the Plus Factor concept, the economist loses a key institutional constraint on over-aggressive enforcement.

Practical implications

Until advocates can address the difficulties associated with using performance evidence to identify price fixing, the standard Plus Factor concept appears more appropriate. Thus, antitrust analysts should continue to use the Plus Factor methodology to infer agreements in price fixing investigations, as long as the economic rationalization of the specific Plus Factor is clearly presented.

Originality/value

The paper synthesizes a number of recent contributions to the price fixing literature and addresses key issues of interest to the enforcement community. By providing a critique of the proposed policy shift to use performance evidence to infer price fixing liability, the study serves to justify continued application of the Plus Factor methodology.

Details

Economic and Legal Issues in Competition, Intellectual Property, Bankruptcy, and the Cost of Raising Children
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-78560-562-8

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Article
Publication date: 1 April 1998

Stéphane Brutus, John W. Fleenor and Manuel London

In order to determine the usefulness of multi‐source rating in different types of organizations, this study explored differences among organization types in four areas: leniency…

3617

Abstract

In order to determine the usefulness of multi‐source rating in different types of organizations, this study explored differences among organization types in four areas: leniency, interrater agreement, relationships between these ratings and effectiveness, and the relationship between agreement and effectiveness. Used self, subordinate, peer, and supervisor ratings for 1,080 target managers in six types of organizations: education, military, government, manufacturing, finance, and health. Interrater agreement was measured in three ways: an index of variance, a point‐difference categorization method, and categories of self‐other agreement. Results indicated that a leniency bias was present in educational institutions, after controlling for demographic characteristics. Interrater agreement was lowest in government agencies and highest in education and manufacturing organizations. In private sector organizations, more poor‐performing managers tended to over‐estimate their performance relative to the perceptions of others. Interrater agreement was positively related to effectiveness especially in education and finance organizations. Results suggest that multi‐source feedback may work differently in different types of organizations, and such differences may need to be taken into account by researchers, practitioners, and feedback recipients.

Details

Journal of Management Development, vol. 17 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0262-1711

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Article
Publication date: 1 April 2005

Glennis Hanley and Loan Nguyen

The diffusion of performance related pay has attracted considerable academic attention over the past decade. While much contemporary debate has focussed on the excesses of…

7248

Abstract

Purpose

The diffusion of performance related pay has attracted considerable academic attention over the past decade. While much contemporary debate has focussed on the excesses of executive remuneration at the “big end of town”, what is not so prominent are the views of unions representing employees at the other end of the remuneration spectrum: this is the purpose of this paper.

Design/methodology/approach

Evidence was gathered at two levels using two sets of research instruments: in‐depth interviews with senior union officials, and primary documentation analysis with specific reference to performance appraisal and performance‐related pay clauses in union Enterprise Bargaining Agreements.

Findings

Document analysis reveals that performance appraisal and performance‐related pay clauses range from mere stipulation of existence to detailed processes and principles of design and implementation. Specific clauses in the white‐collar unions’ agreements suggest that they are not totally opposed. However, the lack of performance appraisal and performance‐related pay clauses in the blue‐collar unions’ agreements illustrate their propensity to restrict pay increases to a job classification structure. Although there were clauses that aimed to ensure a performance‐oriented culture, their agreements seem to be mere sentiments. Overall, only one union supports the notion of performance related pay; the others find performance appraisals difficult to embrace. Negative experiences and consequent problems lead them to argue that the process is complicated and usually puts workers at a disadvantage.

Originality/value

Strands of different explanations account for union opposition, but the principal issue is that performance appraisal has only an evaluative function, that is to link performance to pay. To minimise problems in shaping PRP schemes, the unions advocated the integration of a social dimension; transparency and equality.

Details

Employee Relations, vol. 27 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0142-5455

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Article
Publication date: 8 March 2011

Virginia K. Bratton, Nancy G. Dodd and F. William Brown

This research paper aims to follow a line of research that examines the impact of elements of emotional intelligence (EI), particularly those related to self‐awareness, on…

24811

Abstract

Purpose

This research paper aims to follow a line of research that examines the impact of elements of emotional intelligence (EI), particularly those related to self‐awareness, on self‐other agreement and performance.

Design/methodology/approach

This is a quantitative study that employs the same methodology as Sosik and Megerian to analyze survey data gathered from a matched sample of 146 managers and 1,314 subordinates at a large international technology company based in North America.

Findings

The analysis revealed that the relationship between EI and leader performance is strongest for managers who underestimate their leader abilities. Underestimators earn higher follower ratings of leader performance than all other agreement categories (In agreement/good, In agreement/poor, and Overestimators). The analysis also suggests that there appears to be a negative relationship between EI and leader performance for managers who overestimate their leader abilities.

Research limitations/implications

Implications of the counterintuitive findings for underestimators as well as the imperative for further study utilizing alternative measures of EI are discussed.

Originality/value

Previous empirical work in this area used an ad hoc measure of EI. This study extends this work by utilizing a larger, business sample and employing a widely‐used and validated measure of EI, the Emotional Quotient Inventory. Results further illuminate the nature of the relationship between EI and self‐other agreement and provide a potential selection and development tool for the improvement of leadership performance.

Details

Leadership & Organization Development Journal, vol. 32 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0143-7739

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Article
Publication date: 1 July 2005

Sujatha Perera, Jill McKinnon and Graeme Harrison

This paper uses a stakeholder approach to examine how the role of accounting and the status of accountants changed over a 30 year period (1970 to 2000) in a major Australian…

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Abstract

This paper uses a stakeholder approach to examine how the role of accounting and the status of accountants changed over a 30 year period (1970 to 2000) in a major Australian government trading enterprise. Data are gathered from semi‐structured interviews with organizational participants and documentation. The study provides support for the importance of stakeholders in shaping organizational processes and practices, including accounting practices, and for the effects of changes in stakeholder constituency and agenda on such practices. The study also provides evidence of the roles accounting and accountants may play in implementing a stakeholder agenda, including both instrumental and symbolic roles, and how the status of accountants may rise and fall commensurate with those roles.

Details

Pacific Accounting Review, vol. 17 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0114-0582

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Article
Publication date: 11 November 2020

Valentina Cucino, Nicola Del Sarto, Alberto Di Minin and Andrea Piccaluga

This paper combines the literature on knowledge transfer and that on organizational behavior to analyze how perceived empowerment and perceived engagement affect knowledge…

Abstract

Purpose

This paper combines the literature on knowledge transfer and that on organizational behavior to analyze how perceived empowerment and perceived engagement affect knowledge transfer offices’ (KTOs’) performance, measured in terms of the number of license agreements.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors measured the cognitions which constitute perceived empowerment and perceived engagement through a survey sent to Italian KTOs’ professionals. The authors performed “fuzzy set qualitative analysis” to investigate if this cognition, together or in isolation, may influence KTOs’ management performance, measured by the number of license agreements.

Findings

The results highlight the role of individual cognitions in influencing KTOs’ performance. Furthermore, an important finding from the analysis of the main configurations is that the co-presence of perceived engagement and perceived empowerment leads to more license agreements only in the presence of specific individual cognitions. More precisely, the level of organizational citizenship behavior, the degree to which an individual influences results at work (degree of impact) and the value of a work goal (degree of meaning) are the cognitions which lead to a higher number of license agreements.

Originality/value

Despite the growing interest in the investigation of the determinants of KTOs’ performance, a relevant research gap still concerns the explanation of KTOs’ performance considering individual cognitions such as attitudes, norms, perceived behavioral control and intentions. This study looks at the combined effect of the individual cognition of perceived engagement and perceived empowerment on KTOs’ performances.

Details

Journal of Knowledge Management, vol. 25 no. 5
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1367-3270

Keywords

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