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Article
Publication date: 9 July 2019

Irene H. Yoon and Annie Barton

In empirical research and practitioner guides, turnaround processes tend to be described in terms of discrete stages and strategies. Though necessary, this characterization belies…

Abstract

Purpose

In empirical research and practitioner guides, turnaround processes tend to be described in terms of discrete stages and strategies. Though necessary, this characterization belies the twists and turns of turnaround leadership. The purpose of this paper is to expand the assumptions of how turnaround proceeds in linear chronos time with the sensibilities of kairos time or the “right” time for turnaround leadership moves.

Design/methodology/approach

This study is an exploratory qualitative multi-case study with principals and their key supports (assistant principals, district leaders, teacher leaders) in four public turnaround schools. The grounded theory analysis conceptualizes the experiences of turnaround principals in flexible, complex ways.

Findings

The findings begin with a metaphor and definition of “shifting gears” at chronos and kairos times that emphasizes how turnaround principals make adaptive, agentic adjustments when moving forward through changing terrain. The second half of findings describes each principal’s experiences and reflections on their discernment of the right times for change within a chronological trajectory of turnaround. In addition, the leaders described shifting gears as strategic and responsive to contexts, sometimes taking a psychological toll.

Originality/value

Expanding notions of time in turnaround re-centers turnaround leaders as engaging in intellectually and emotionally demanding work. Such recognition challenges future research to address experiences and emotions in dynamic contexts. Hence, with this study, preparation programs and state and local systems may adjust holistic supports and leadership pipelines to sustain turnaround leaders.

Details

Journal of Educational Administration, vol. 57 no. 6
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0957-8234

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 6 February 2017

Chad R. Lochmiller and Colleen E. Chesnut

The purpose of this paper is to describe the program structure and design considerations of a 25-day, full-time apprenticeship in a university-based principal preparation program.

1037

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to describe the program structure and design considerations of a 25-day, full-time apprenticeship in a university-based principal preparation program.

Design/methodology/approach

The study used a qualitative case study design that drew upon interviews and focus groups with program participants as well as program-related documents. Qualitative data analysis was completed using ATLAS.ti.

Findings

The analysis suggests that the apprenticeship had three specific design features that were intended to support the apprentice’s development for turnaround leadership. These included locating the apprenticeship experience in a turnaround school setting; focusing the apprenticeship on district structures and procedures; and situating the apprentice’s work within the district’s approved improvement process.

Research limitations/implications

The study was limited in that recurring, on-site observations of apprenticeship activities were not possible. The study has implications for principal preparation programs related to the design of fieldwork experiences, as well as for educational scholars seeking to study the impact of fieldwork on principal efficacy.

Originality/value

The study contributes to the broader discussion of effective fieldwork experiences for aspiring school leaders, particularly when specific conceptions of leadership are infused within program designs.

Details

Journal of Educational Administration, vol. 55 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0957-8234

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 5 December 2020

Mampe Kumalo and Caren Brenda Scheepers

Organisational decline has far-reaching, negative emotional and financial consequences for staff and customers, generating academic and practitioner interest in turnaround change…

1386

Abstract

Purpose

Organisational decline has far-reaching, negative emotional and financial consequences for staff and customers, generating academic and practitioner interest in turnaround change processes. Despite numerous studies to identify the stages during turnarounds, the findings have been inconclusive. The purpose of this paper is to address the gap by defining these stages, or episodes. The characteristics of leaders affect the outcome of organisational change towards turnarounds. This paper focusses, therefore, on the leadership requirements during specific episodes, from the initial crisis to the full recovery phases.

Design/methodology/approach

A total of 11 semi-structured interviews were conducted with executives from the public sector in South Africa who went through or were going through turnaround change processes and 3 with experts consulting to these organisations.

Findings

Contrary to current literature in organisational change, this study found that, in these turnaround situations, leadership in the form of either an individual CEO or director general was preferable to shared leadership or leadership distributed throughout the organisation. This study found four critical episodes that occurred during all the public service turnarounds explored, and established that key leadership requirements differ across these episodes. The study shows how these requirements relate to the current literature on transactional, transformational and authentic leadership.

Practical implications

The findings on the leadership requirements ultimately inform the selection and development of leaders tasked with high-risk turnaround change processes.

Originality/value

Four episodes with corresponding leadership requirements were established in the particular context of public sector turnaround change processes.

Details

Journal of Organizational Change Management, vol. 34 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0953-4814

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 10 May 2011

David P. Boyd

Environmental uncertainty threatens many companies. This paper seeks to offer a strategic model to help imperiled firms overcome employee inertia, counter competitive forces, and

3076

Abstract

Purpose

Environmental uncertainty threatens many companies. This paper seeks to offer a strategic model to help imperiled firms overcome employee inertia, counter competitive forces, and speed organizational renewal.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper presents a change model which outlines five major steps, each comprised of three elements. Examples from the field illustrate sequential stages of the cycle.

Findings

This framework aligns human resources and organizational processes. By adhering to this approach, leaders can become transformational change agents.

Practical implications

The proposed strategic format evolved from face‐to‐face discussions with exemplary turnaround leaders. In their visits to the author's classroom over the last six years, they offered insights that should prove beneficial to other leaders in turnaround situations.

Originality/value

The paper extends existing business models by providing a comprehensive set of action steps to engage all organizational members.

Details

Strategy & Leadership, vol. 39 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1087-8572

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 1 February 2000

Michael Harker and Bishnu Sharma

Three firms engaged in the heavy engineering industry undergoing the transition from organisational decline to recovery were studied in‐depth in a period of significant change for…

5827

Abstract

Three firms engaged in the heavy engineering industry undergoing the transition from organisational decline to recovery were studied in‐depth in a period of significant change for the industry. The purpose of the study was to explore the way in which leaders manage the company turnaround process. The turnaround performance and processes of recovering firms were compared to those of a less successful rival. Effective turnaround management involved making a series of holistic changes to strategies, structures and practices throughout the organisation; changes which were orchestrated by leaders at different levels in the firms. This study of leaders at work presents a model linking leadership and the turnaround process which challenges conventional prescriptions for company revival in a mature industry and identifies three core dimensions which mediate the effectiveness of relationship between leadership and company turnarounds.

Details

Leadership & Organization Development Journal, vol. 21 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0143-7739

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 1 February 2008

Joseph Murphy

The purpose of this paper is to review the literature from the organizational sciences to develop a grounded narrative of turnaround leadership.

3140

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to review the literature from the organizational sciences to develop a grounded narrative of turnaround leadership.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper is a review of literature, which employs a ten‐step process to explore and make sense of the turnaround literature from the organizational sciences. The paper relies on strategies appropriate for document analysis, and borrows analytic strategies (e.g. memoing, coding) employed with interview data.

Findings

The paper finds three defining themes that flow from the review of empirical and theoretical work on organizational recovery in firms, non‐educational public agencies, and not‐for‐profit organizations: leadership as the critical variable in the turnaround equation; change of leadership as a generally essential element in organizational recovery; and type of leadership, but not style, as important in organizational reintegration work.

Practical implications

The paper posits that the literature on turning around failing organizations in sectors outside of education provides blueprints for recovery activity in failing schools. The implications for turnaround leadership are particularly strong.

Originality/value

This paper is the first systematic effort to mine research in the corporate, not‐for‐profit, and public sectors to develop insights for leadership in failing schools.

Details

Journal of Educational Administration, vol. 46 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0957-8234

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 7 April 2015

M.S. Rao

– The purpose of this paper is to embrace change effectively to achieve organizational development.

2958

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to embrace change effectively to achieve organizational development.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper outlines the case studies on two turnaround leaders – Alan Mulally and Lou Gerstner. It explains various aspects of organizational change and development. It unveils a blueprint to embrace change effectively.

Findings

It underscores that the only thing constant in the current global business environment is change and competition. It enlightens that change requires a new mindset, tool set and skill set. The only successful leaders are the ones who accept and mould themselves as per the changing times and technologies.

Practical implications

The methodologies adopted by turnaround leaders can be applied to any type of organizational change, in any industry and any size of organization.

Social implications

The social implications of this research suggests that turnaround leaders can do much better by communicating clearly to overcome resistance to lead change effectively.

Originality/value

It differentiates between change and growth. It justifies the need to effect change swiftly in the present dynamic business environment. It concludes that change is inevitable to achieve organizational excellence and effectiveness.

Details

Industrial and Commercial Training, vol. 47 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0019-7858

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 1 May 2000

Nancy E. Landrum, Jon P. Howell and Lori Paris

Organizations in need of strategic turnaround often seek charismatic leaders to lead change efforts. With the growing popularity of democratizing workplaces, team‐based approaches…

12270

Abstract

Organizations in need of strategic turnaround often seek charismatic leaders to lead change efforts. With the growing popularity of democratizing workplaces, team‐based approaches to strategic change are emerging. The literature on each of these change approaches is reviewed. Several research propositions are offered which suggest that strategic teams can be a better choice than charismatic leaders for turning around an organization. The authors also note the need for future research to compare the effectiveness of charismatic leaders with the effectiveness of strategic teams in planning and initiating strategic change.

Details

Leadership & Organization Development Journal, vol. 21 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0143-7739

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 19 October 2021

Mayuree Sengupta

The purpose of this paper is to understand how Chairman and Managing Director (CMD) of the National Research Development Corporation, India, Hanumanthu Purushotham had facilitated…

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to understand how Chairman and Managing Director (CMD) of the National Research Development Corporation, India, Hanumanthu Purushotham had facilitated a turnaround of the organization and ensured profitability during his tenure there. This is one of the series of interview-based studies that focuses on a South Asian CEO, with the goal of ascertaining his leadership and management style in a volatile situation. This brief paper expounds how leader traits and transformational leadership can positively impact an organizational turnaround and fuel growth.

Design/methodology/approach

This paper uses primary interviews and complements the findings with secondary data sources such as annual reports and management literature on leadership trait, transformational leadership and organizational turnaround.

Findings

The study found that socioeconomic factors have a bearing on leadership attributes. In this instance, the CMD's early years, diverse work experiences, bright traits and transformational leadership positively impacted organizational performance. Therefore, not only the qualifications but also the qualities of a leader are pivotal in shaping success of an organization.

Originality/value

The narrative provides an instance of how decision-making driven by strategic leadership can change firm performance. The rich experiences of the India-educated CMD, a government job holder all-through, provides a veteran's view to decision-making in a state-controlled firm and helps us understand how an organization can be transformed in a limited time and with scarce resources.

Details

South Asian Journal of Business Studies, vol. 12 no. 4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2398-628X

Keywords

Abstract

Details

Accelerating Change in Schools: Leading Rapid, Successful, and Complex Change Initiatives
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-78635-502-7

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