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Vast amounts of money are spent on management development. This includes not only formal courses, whether they be in educational organisations or within companies, but also the job related efforts that continue from day‐to‐day. If we add to that the support systems such as the salaries of management development specialists, their secretaries, the office facilities and then take into account the resources in terms of space and educational technology, the sum involved per year is colossal. There is a continuing expansion of management development activities with the pressure of managers to keep us up to date in their respective fields and industries which become increasingly professionalised and complex.

This study investigates the role of national culture on the implementation and effectiveness of quality management practices. Specifically, the authors examine the dual roles of two of Hofstede's national culture dimensions (individualism and indulgence) in driving the implementation of people management practices and in moderating the relationship between people management and product quality performance.

The authors’ dataset combines a survey of 976 firms from 22 countries with Hofstede's national culture index. A multi-level analysis, at firm and country levels, is used for investigating the interplay between two dimensions of national culture (individualism and indulgence) on people management practices and product quality performance.

The authors' findings show the negative relationship between indulgence (at country level) and people management practices (at firm level) while individualism (at country level) strengthens the relationship between people management and product quality performance (at firm level). Furthermore, the finding shows that the joint interaction between individualism and indulgence (at country level) moderates the relationship between people management and product quality performance (at firm level) where the relationship is strongest when individualism is high and indulgence is low.

Understanding the interplay between national culture and management practices is important for managers in making decisions on the practices managers should implement under different cultural contexts to gain the expected outcomes.

The authors' results challenge the universalist view that suggests that quality management practices (in this case people management practices) can be applied in any context effectively to achieve high product quality performance by showing that facets of national culture influence the implementation and effectiveness of people management practices and performance. The results also provide a fresh perspective on the role of indulgence, given that it is the newest dimension in Hofstede's framework. The authors also extend previous studies which commonly only examine the main and not interactive effects of different dimensions of national culture.

While operational factors reduce construction workers' productivity in Zimbabwe, the impact of the people-centred management aspects has not been empirically interrogated as a remedy. This article reports on a study that sought to determine significant people-centred management aspects that lead to improved labour productivity and assesses the existence of statistically significant differences due to the demographic variables of respondents. Demographic-specific strategies that enhance construction “workers” productivity were revealed.

The survey research design using a self-administered questionnaire was deployed to collect the primary data. The design followed a positivist paradigm to evaluate objectively how people-centred management affects construction workers' productivity. The statistical data were descriptively and inferentially analysed.

People-centred management was determined to be significant in improving construction workers' productivity, with the most significant aspect being the building of employee confidence in related approaches. Designations and educational levels mostly indicated a statistically significant difference in several aspects that included the adoption of a functional reward culture for workers and training on people-centred principles. Training on-site management and construction workers in people-centred management and its application are crucial to improving construction workers' productivity.

Construction companies should drastically improve their concern for people while they sustain a high concern for production within their construction sites. Although several factors affect construction workers' productivity, this study determined that management-related factors and people-centred management were significant towards influencing low productivity in Zimbabwe.

The study determined people-centred management and demographic-specific interventions as being able to improve construction workers' productivity in Zimbabwe.

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the relations between people development management (PDM) as independent variable and knowledge management (KM) as dependent variable, in some Iranian healthcare centers. Design/methodology/approach – Applying the structural equation model (SEM) approach. Investigating causal relations of the variables through Lisrel software. Findings – Findings show that in the researched organizations there is a significant positive relation between PDM and its components, and KM. PDM have direct significant effect (0.85) on KM. The relation between the factor titled as “learning needs analysis and induction”, and KM is fairly more important than the other factors. Research limitations/implications – More research needs to be done in the same areas to judge about the effect of human assets strategies on KM. In case of the surveyed organization, it seems there is a vital need to review the PDM and KM strategies and develop some procedures to improve and keep the business up. Practical implications – Although the proposed model has proved no causal relation between PDM components and KM, except in the case of “learning needs analysis and induction”, it does not mean that no correction action is needed in other dimensions. In other words, it is necessary to expand a well‐developed people development management project to meet a successful knowledge management. Originality/value – Our conceptual model of research has two dimensions. In one side we chose Newman's model of knowledge management, On the other side we consider a comprehensive pattern of people development management, named People Developer Standard. Through this model an appropriate framework to manage and develop the human assets and a series of developer activities will be formed to achieve people excellence.

The personalities, style and job demands of top ranking police officers have never before been seriously analysed. Here, by using a management development survey, key personality characteristics and the management and interpersonal styles of top ranking officers are identified. The views of chief officers are discussed, together with an examination of the necessary qualities required. Ways in which senior officers can improve their performance through management training and development and how this can assist their professional growth and development, are emphasised.

Using the backdrop of an (apparently) extended visit to the West Indies, analogies with key concerns of internal audit are drawn. An unusual and refreshing way of exploring the main themes ‐ a discussion between Bill and Jack on tour in the islands ‐ forms the debate. Explores the concepts of control, necessary procedures, fraud and corruption, supporting systems, creativity and chaos, and building a corporate control facility.

In the continuing endeavour to work towards ever better management, the engineering manager has a crucial role to play. The history of the engineer is reviewed and his/her possible present role in management is considered. Management objectives are outlined and defined and the specific role of the engineer emphasised. The best managers are leaders, in particular effective leaders of teams, and this is a management task well within the grasp of the engineer. The engineer′s specific training and initial experience give him/her special qualifications in this area. Indeed, there seems to be no reason why the engineer should not climb the management ladder right to the top, especially these days when technology is continually growing in importance. The demands made on the effective chief executive are outlined. It would seem that engineering management has come of age and that with the appropriate management training the engineer should be well capable of filling a senior management role.

Using the backdrop of an (apparently) extended visit to the West Indies, analogies with key concerns of internal audit are drawn. An unusual and refreshing way of exploring the main themes ‐ a discussion between Bill and Jack on tour in the islands ‐ forms the debate. Explores the concepts of control, necessary procedures, fraud and corruption, supporting systems, creativity and chaos, and building a corporate control facility.