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The End of Business Schools? Less Success Than Meets the Eye
Abstract
Although business school enrollments have soared and business education has become big business, surprisingly little evaluation of the impact of business schools on either their graduates or (he profession of management exists. What data there are suggest that business schools are not very effective: Neither possessing an MBA degree nor grades earned in courses correlate with career success, results that question the effectiveness of schools in preparing their students. And. there is little evidence that business school research is influential on management practice, calling into question the professional relevance of management scholarship.
... The Master in Business Administration (MBA) program is highly regarded for its preparation of individuals for leadership and management positions in the business world (Pfeffer & Fong, 2002). The curriculum of an MBA program is crucial in shaping the knowledge and skills of graduates, ensuring their effective navigation of the complexities of the modern business landscape (Pfeffer & Fong, 2002). ...
... The Master in Business Administration (MBA) program is highly regarded for its preparation of individuals for leadership and management positions in the business world (Pfeffer & Fong, 2002). The curriculum of an MBA program is crucial in shaping the knowledge and skills of graduates, ensuring their effective navigation of the complexities of the modern business landscape (Pfeffer & Fong, 2002). According to existing literature, key elements contribute to a comprehensive and effective MBA curriculum, such as a balance between theoretical knowledge and practical application, a focus on leadership and strategic thinking, integrative and interdisciplinary coursework, and opportunities for experiential learning and internships (Pfeffer & Fong, 2002;Mintzberg, 2004). ...
... The curriculum of an MBA program is crucial in shaping the knowledge and skills of graduates, ensuring their effective navigation of the complexities of the modern business landscape (Pfeffer & Fong, 2002). According to existing literature, key elements contribute to a comprehensive and effective MBA curriculum, such as a balance between theoretical knowledge and practical application, a focus on leadership and strategic thinking, integrative and interdisciplinary coursework, and opportunities for experiential learning and internships (Pfeffer & Fong, 2002;Mintzberg, 2004). ...
This qualitative review of the Master in Business Administration (MBA) program focused on evaluating its curriculum. The findings suggest that while the
program generally aligned with current business needs, there was room for improvement. Recommendations for updates included incorporating topics such as innovation, entrepreneurship, sustainability, and data analysis. Respondents also emphasized the importance of experiential learning and developing skills related to
emerging technologies. By considering these perspectives and making necessary adjustments, the program can ensure its continued relevance and effectiveness in preparing graduates for success in the business industry. Additionally, a
comprehensive and effective business program should cover core subjects while also
emphasizing practical application, real-life experiences, and specialized and emerging
topics. Incorporating practical and real-world assessments, such as business simulations, internships, and industry projects, can provide a well-rounded evaluation of students' abilities. Furthermore, placing a stronger emphasis on critical thinking,problem-solving skills, and utilizing innovative and technology-driven assessment
techniques can enhance the evaluation process and create a more engaging learning
experience. Overall, by incorporating these themes into the MBA program, educators
can better prepare students for the ever-evolving business landscape and ensure that
assessment methods truly reflect the skills and knowledge required in the business world.
... Yet while research in this area will help institutions design new programs and rethink existing ones, we could not find any to date that has quantified business students' selection criteria for which school best fits them. The review of business school critiques is deficient in empirical studies (Pfeffer & Fong, 2002;Slater & Dixon-Fowler, 2010) which are essential as a business school's ability to differentiate itself from others is critical for supporting marketing, program development, and recruitment efforts. It will enhance an institution's ability to attract prospective students and recruiters (Hammond & Webster, 2011). ...
... Business schools need to produce graduates with competencies that meet the requirements of international business. Multiple academic papers have cited business school programs as being out of touch with such needs (Pfeffer & Fong, 2002;Slater & Dixon-Fowler, 2010). Global organizations are hiring individuals capable of working in a global environment while meeting global goals, making a greater emphasis on interdisciplinarity and international business acumen a differentiator in the education industry (Datar, Garvin, & Cullen, 2010). ...
... As economy constitutes the kernel of globalization and businesses/institutions are its agents, strong criticism is being exercised and doubt is expressed regarding the effectiveness of university studies in business administration and its contribution in achieving excellence in management practice. Therefore, the need for restructuring and improving business education has been stressed by scholars like Donaldson,(2002) ;Etzioni,(2002); Mintzberg et al., (2002); Pfeffer and Fong, (2002) ;Ghoshal,(2003Ghoshal,( ), (2005 ;Emiliani, (2006); Bennis and O` Toole,(2005) ;Holstein,(2005) ;Tsurumi,(2005);Ferraro et al., (2005) and Hamel,(2009). Others have expressed their concern regarding business education, its quality and whether this actually serves the needs of the corporate world (Elmuti,2004;Thomas,2007;Blass and Weight,2005). ...
... Others have expressed their concern regarding business education, its quality and whether this actually serves the needs of the corporate world (Elmuti,2004;Thomas,2007;Blass and Weight,2005). In addition, a number of scholars such as Pfeffer and Fong,(2002); Mintzberg and Gosling (2002) ;Donaldson, (2002) have also identified the problematic management education that has resulted in promoting the ego mentality. ...
Amid criticism and discussions among academic scholars and practitioners that were fueled by the current multifaceted crisis regarding the effectiveness and quality of business education, the paper aims a) to examine whether and to what degree business schools are responsible for the worst economic crisis of modern era and b) to suggest possible changes in business education that could improve the quality of management practice in the future. Findings suggest that business schools are responsible for global crisis, as part of the general educational and social system, but they are not solely responsible for the behaviour and actions of their graduates.
... Findings suggest that "The end of business schools? Less success than meets the eye" (Pfeffer & Fong, 2002) is the most cited article. This study examined the effectiveness of business schools in terms of career success and revealed that the schools did not significantly affect graduates' career success (Pfeffer & Fong, 2002). ...
... Less success than meets the eye" (Pfeffer & Fong, 2002) is the most cited article. This study examined the effectiveness of business schools in terms of career success and revealed that the schools did not significantly affect graduates' career success (Pfeffer & Fong, 2002). The second most cited article is "Exploring the principal's contribution to school effectiveness: 1980-1995" by Hallinger & Heck (1998). ...
School effectiveness research has received considerable attention for over half a century, resulting in abundant literature. However, there is a gap in the literature in terms of presenting this knowledge base through a bibliometric analysis. To fill this gap, the current study examines the articles on school effectiveness published in journals indexed in the Web of Science Core Collection (WoS) database between 1981 and 2021. The search was conducted using the terms "school* effectiv*", "effectiv* school*", "effectiv* of school*", "effectiv* in school*" and "or" between them. Only articles published in the English language were included in the analysis. The initial search yielded a total of 3089 articles, but when the studies that did not satisfy the study's inclusion criteria were excluded, a total of 1102 studies remained. The research findings include the general profile of the articles, the annual frequency distribution of the articles by year, the most productive researchers, journals, and countries by the number of articles, the most influential articles in terms of the number of citations, the most frequently occurring author keywords, and their co-occurrence pattern. The findings also reveal co-authorship and cross-country collaboration patterns. The findings are anticipated to provide substantial implications for researchers to develop a deeper and more detailed insight into school effectiveness as a research field by structuring the existing literature. Additionally, some suggestions were made based on the findings.
... This critique has led to the development of more adaptive and flexible strategic management frameworks that prioritize agility and continuous learning. Pfeffer and Fong (2018) further contend that while strategic management education provides valuable tools and frameworks, its success largely depends on how these tools are applied in practice. The disconnect between theoretical instruction and practical implementation remains a key area of concern. ...
This study explores the impact of strategic management education on professional development through a longitudinal analysis. The primary objective is to evaluate how strategic management education influences decision-making skills, leadership capabilities, and career advancement over time. Using a comprehensive review of theoretical foundations, this research integrates both traditional and contemporary perspectives to examine strategic management's role in professional growth. The study employs a mixed-methods approach, combining quantitative surveys and qualitative interviews to track the progress of individuals who have undergone strategic management education across various industries. Key findings reveal that strategic management education significantly enhances cognitive and analytical abilities, fosters leadership development, and promotes continuous learning. These improvements translate into accelerated career growth and increased job mobility. Additionally, the research highlights challenges in translating theoretical knowledge into practical application and emphasizes the need for adaptive learning frameworks that align with dynamic business environments. The study concludes that strategic management education is crucial for professional success, particularly in today's complex and competitive markets. The recommendations call for integrating emerging technologies, interdisciplinary learning, and ethical decision-making frameworks into curricula. Future research should focus on optimizing hybrid learning models, leveraging AI for strategic analysis, and exploring the global implications of strategic management education. This study contributes valuable insights for educators, policymakers, and professionals seeking to enhance strategic management education's impact on career trajectories and organizational success.
... The Western world has also played a leading role in the globalisation of business Graduates of these programmes often carry Western management concepts and practices into their careers, further disseminating them around the world (Pfeffer & Fong, 2002). One of the carriers of these concepts appears to be the case study methodology. ...
This chapter explores the evolution of management theories and practices that have originated from the Western world, particularly focusing on North America and Europe. Western management's influence stems from foundational theories such as scientific management, administrative theory, and bureaucratic management, all of which have laid the groundwork for modern organisational practices. A key shift in Western management thinking occurred with the introduction of human relations and behavioural theories, or the contingency theory with the structural adaptation movement. The essay also explores how globalisation and the rise of international competition, especially from Japan in the late 20th century, forced Western companies to re-evaluate their management strategies, leading to the development of strategic management.
... These critics argue that the business school curriculum has produced MBA graduates who engage in aggressive risktaking and short-term profit maximization at any cost. Yet, business scholars offer a different critique, lamenting the lack of impact business education and scholarship has had on business practice (Pfeffer and Fong 2002). Our findings indicate that the agency-theoretic assumption of shareholder-value primacy, touted in business school curricula, has inf luenced the cognitive frameworks of future business leaders, with implications for the kinds of strategies they pursued during crucial historical moments. ...
Understanding the causes and consequences of corporate risk-taking has remained a crucial topic for organizational scholars. Using the case of U.S. banks and one dimension of their risk-taking behavior around the 2008 financial crisis, we offer a theory of how the diverse experiences of corporate leaders can shape their risk-taking behavior. Building on the imprinting literature, we theorize how different types of experiences that bank CEOs had in the past interact to shape current risk-taking behavior, resulting in risk moderation under crisis conditions. We focus on two imprinting experiences with particular relevance for bank CEOs’ risk-taking behavior—MBA education and past crisis experience. We argue that the latter played a pronounced role during the crisis because of greater imprint-environment fit. Our analysis using data from 170 large banks between 2001 and 2019 shows that bank CEOs’ firsthand experience of a prior banking crisis not only directly tempered bank risk-taking but also did so indirectly by limiting the risk-taking tendencies of CEOs with an MBA, particularly during the crisis period. Our study contributes to the sociological literature about organizational risk-taking by emphasizing the crucial role of organizational leaders’ biographies and exploring how earlier institutional conditions shape their risk-taking behavior later.
... The role of business schools in developing ethical future business leaders has come under increased scrutiny in recent years. Critics cite a pedagogical overemphasis on the scientific approach and on analytical skills at the expense of integration, holistic thinking, and norms of ethics (e.g., Bennis & O'Toole, 2005;Hawawini, 2005;Mintzberg & Gosling, 2002;Pfeffer & Fong, 2002). ...
... Those suggestions have been influential in altering how business schools attempt to contribute to training individuals to be successful in that paradigm, regardless of whether or not those changes are desirable (as noted below.) Pfeffer & Fong (2002, Mintzberg (2004), Bennis & O'Toole (2005), Ghoshal (2005), Khurana (2007), and other scholars have provided powerful critiques of how well, or perhaps how poorly, current business and management education does its job within the existing paradigm and how it needs to evolve to continue to do so (e.g., Thomas, Lee, Thomas, & Wilson, 2012). But while some of those authors and others offering similar traditional critiques may hold very grave concerns about the existing for-profit-business paradigm, their critiques in what we call the traditional vein do not challenge the essence of that system. ...
... In fact, BME education is, according to many assessments, in crisis for orienting future business leaders and entrepreneurs too narrowly and analytically (Clegg & Ross-Smith, 2003;Michels et al., 2020). Particularly hard has been the criticism of business schools where BME education is often developed and provided (Cavico & Mujtaba, 2009;Sadler-Smith & Cojuharenco, 2021;Schlegelmilch, 2020;Spicer et al., 2021), with some even suggesting their end (Giacalone & Wargo, 2009;Pfeffer & Fong, 2002). Specifically, business schools have been blamed for teaching wrong theories and topics that exclusively follow the neoliberal logic of the market, giving priority to short-term profitability and profit maximisation to the detriment of social and environmental interests (Sadler-Smith & Cojuharenco, 2021;Schlegelmilch, 2020). ...
The business, management, and entrepreneurship (BME) education provided by universities is believed to influence the way in which organisations are managed in the business world. In recent decades, it has been criticised for its focus on profit and short-term goals, while new approaches inspired by the humanities, particularly religious and spiritual traditions, have been proposed. Although research in this area is growing, it is scattered. In this study, we systematically review the existing literature to deepen our understanding of this emergent stream of research. From a sample of 216 papers, 51 articles from 1996 to 2023, selected from the Web of Science and Scopus databases, are analysed. Overall, the findings highlight that the literature on this topic is predominantly theoretical and suggest that some of the wisdom embedded in religion and spirituality might be considered to inform different discussions in BME courses, with a prominent application of sacred and ancient texts in the teaching of business ethics. Future research avenues are discussed in relation to a variety of themes and pedagogical and empirical approaches that can benefit scholars and advance this area of study.
... These lectures provide a deeper understanding of the practical implications of these concepts and enhance students' ability to analyze and address complex issues. In a study by Pfeffer and Fong (2002), it was found that guest speakers who share their practical experiences and provide real-world examples can enhance students' understanding of the subject matter and improve their problem-solving abilities. ...
In the field of public management, the gap between theory and practice has long been a concern. Academic programs focus on providing students with theoretical
knowledge and analytical skills, but applying these concepts in real-world settings can be challenging. To bridge this gap, many educational institutions have introduced guest lectures, where experienced professionals from the field share their insights and
experiences with students. This qualitative case study aimed to examine the impact of guest lecturers on the public management curriculum, instruction, and student
performance. In conclusion, guest lectures in public management courses have a positive impact on student engagement, motivation, and practical learning. They
provide real-world insights, inspire students, and bridge the gap between theory and practice. However, careful planning, selection, communication, and evaluation are necessary to address challenges and optimize the benefits. Overall, guest lectures play a crucial role in enhancing public management education and preparing students for successful careers in the field.
... However, no pure social science is colorblind or otherwise abstracted from context 11 . Nevertheless, fields like psychology and management, in the US and elsewhere, subscribe to forms of positivist epistemology 12 . Positivist epistemology, because it is similar to philosophies of science in the natural sciences, has historically enhanced the legitimacy of social sciences through shared methods and practices [13][14][15] . ...
Scholars of color remain underrepresented in US institutions in academia. In this paper, we will examine one factor that contributes to their continued marginalization in psychology and management: the scientific method’s commitment to traditional notions of objectivity. We argue that objectivity—defined as practices and policies rooted in the heightened value placed on a research process that is ostensibly free from bias—is central to the prominence of primarily White scholarship in psychology and management research and remains central to knowledge production. To investigate this, we employ a mixed-methods approach, integrating qualitative and quantitative data to codify how scholars of color experience objectivity interrogations, or written and verbal questioning in academic contexts that implicates their scientific rigor. We also identify how scholars of color engage in objectivity armoring, or self-presentational strategies (toning down and stepping up) to contend with these interrogations. Finally, we reveal these toning down processes in language use within publications on racial scholarship. Overall, these studies reveal the unique challenges scholars of color face to legitimize and validate their work on race and racism within predominantly White institutions and disciplines.
... For example, students may review institutional and program rankings to help them choose which schools might be most capable of training them to work in the sport industry or academia, whereas faculty might employ program rankings to help them select which institutions to apply to and/ or join when on the job market (Brown & Laksmana, 2004;de Magalhães Chada & Linhares, 2013;Jisha & Pitts, 2004;Mullane & Fraina, 2017). Next, administrators and program leaders frequently use program rankings to help them make budget allocation decisions, conduct internal assessments, facilitate hiring and recruiting initiatives, change curricula, assist fundraising, and augment promotional/publicity-related activities or initiatives (Aguinis et al., 2020;Brown & Laksmana, 2004;de Magalhães Chada & Linhares, 2013;Challis, 2021;Chan et al., 2016;Dawkins et al., 2015;Mahony et al., 2017;Pfeffer & Fong, 2002). Siemens et al. (2005) further added that this information could determine how administrators decide on summer research stipends or grants, seed money for studies, assistantship allocations, and equipment or software purchases. ...
The present essay aims to promote further dialogue within the sport management community about research productivity and impact by outlining various considerations that should take place within any potential ranking attempt. Some may question why examining research production and impact matters to sport management education, but the mission of many institutions of higher education is not exclusively centered on teaching and training the next generation of leaders. In many instances, sport management programs and faculty are collectively compelled by their host institution to develop theory and search for answers to important questions that can shape future sport management practices, including classroom activities and materials. In the present essay, a rationale is provided for why sport management programs and individual faculty should be interested in developing their own tailored research output and impact rankings. Next, a list of research product variables is offered for consideration, and a conversation is provided about their need and impact with respect to the uniqueness of sport management—a multi-interdisciplinary field. Finally, recommendations for the weighing of such variables to tailor an approach best suited to programs based on college or department home, faculty appointment/workload, and faculty-to-student ratio are submitted.
... Taylor (1909) thought successful college education might require co-op assignments or it might be better for students to leave college after 1 year and get on-the-job training. While management degrees expanded throughout the 20th century, periodic criticism continued about their relevance to the world of management (Pfeffer & Fong, 2002). Over a 100 years after Taylor articulated his critique, King et al. (2010) identified asymmetries between management education in universities and company sponsored training. ...
This article presents an integrative review of research on gender in the Journal of Management Education (JME) between 1975 and 2023. After representing an overview of chronological themes in the journal, the article reports on three types of change in the material published during this period: the shift from gender as a binary to a fluid gender discourse, the introduction of the concept of intersectionality, and the internationalization of research. As a critical review, the article questions whether sufficient evidence exists to show that the women in management courses and gender-related experiential exercises reported in JME actually produced managers who were more effective at promoting gender equity than managers who had not participated in such interventions.
... Business schools in this context are already facing a huge criticism regarding the several aspects of the business education. Mintzberg and Gosling (2002) along with Pfeffer and Fong (2002) argue that business schools effectiveness is not at the level which is required; they point to the courses of these schools which have relatively low relationship with the skills actually required in the practical field. According to (Tay, 2001), curriculum and its delivery to the students is the issue to be discussed for filling the gap of the future leaders. ...
Corporate world is always looking for a trained and better equipped business graduate who could deliver results instantly as well as in the long term. And business graduates are expecting an instant return to their investment made in their business education. Both of the sides can achieve their objectives through better aligned business curriculum and relevant development of skill-set of the business graduates. This study draws on the opinions of the MBA students and business professionals about the MBA core curriculum and required skills in the business and professional world. Study found some similarities as well as some significant differences of opinion in the MBA core curriculum and required skills. Explanations and suggestions are presented to these findings. Underlying factors are also identified within the MBA core curriculum and required skills for a business professional.
... Business schools have become players in numerous and diversified PD markets (Amdam, 2016;Smith & Keaveney, 2017;Stanton & Stanton, 2017). However, with all the resources spent on PDP, there is little evidence that it has added value to participants or their firms (Pfeffer & Fong, 2002;Tushman, et al., 2007). Universities are often viewed as impractical, providing academic perspective without corporate experience (Lombardi, 2007), and current teaching methods offer little added value for participants. ...
This paper aims to explore the marketing and managerial implications of university- based Professional Development
Programs (PDPs), in the light of the current market opportunities and trends, value-added to providers and participants, the diverse
providers’ methodologies in launching these programs, and the
challenges faced by providers. This exploratory study adopted a
qualitative research method approach, where semi-structured in-depth interviews were held with university executives and decision makers of two private universities in Egypt in their early PDP stages. The findings of the study provide several recommendations that may aid providers in the formulation of efficient PDPs that provide value for both providers and participants.
... Building strong competitive advantage through active human resource management is crucial. Organizational effectiveness and fair treatment of human capital drive competitive advantage, as highlighted by Pfeffer, J., et al. [54]. To outperform rivals, organizations must differentiate their performance and strategy, enhancing their resources, a top priority per Khawaja et al. [55]. ...
The ability of management to influence employee attitudes and behaviours towards organizational goals is pivotal for an organization’s competitiveness, development, and survival. The study’s objective was to investigate the link between entrepreneurial leadership, competitive advantage, and manufacturing development, mediated by employees’ innovative behaviour, via the lens of resource-based view theory. Convenience sampling was used to collect quantitative data from the 378 manufacturing sector employees through the use of a cross-sectional design. There is a lack of research on the underlying mechanisms by which leaders influence organizational processes, such as innovation stimulation. This study explores the psychological mechanisms influencing entrepreneurial leadership and employee innovative behaviour, revealing that entrepreneurial leadership reduces work uncertainty, encourages innovation, and significantly impacts a firm’s competitive advantage in the market. The findings of the study revealed that entrepreneurial leadership fosters an encouraging and supportive environment in the workplace, which in turn leads to a sustainable competitive advantage. Additionally, the findings showed that innovative behaviour significantly mediates the relationship between entrepreneurial leadership and competitive advantage. By expanding the applicability of resource-based view theory, the results of this research also contribute to the comprehension of the interplay between innovative attitudes, manufactural development, competitive advantage, and leadership, specifically in the context of manufacturing sector organizations.
... These include enhancing the caliber of educators, seamlessly integrating soft skills into the curriculum while upholding analytical rigor and business knowledge, and navigating the influence of information and communication technologies on pedagogical methods. In the words of (Pfeffer & Fong, 2002) nonetheless, a complication arises when instruction is delivered by a full-time faculty member who hasn't engaged in the practical realm of management or craft, thereby lacking the requisite depth of comprehension regarding tangible business challenges. ...
The current chapter is a comprehensive critical overview that examines the current state of internationalization in business education. In today's interconnected world, the globalization of markets and the rise of multinational corporations have propelled the need for a globally oriented business education. This chapter encapsulates the key themes and insights explored in the critical overview. The critical overview begins by delving into the concept of internationalization in business education, elucidating its significance and impact on students, educators, and institutions. In this paper researcher explores the motivations behind internationalizing business education, such as fostering cultural competence, enhancing cross-cultural collaboration, and preparing students for the complexities of the global marketplace. Furthermore, the critical overview investigates the various strategies employed by business schools and universities to internationalize their curricula, faculty, and student body. This study also examines the integration of global perspectives into course content, the establishment of international partnerships and exchange programs, and the recruitment of diverse faculty members and students. Drawing from a wide range of empirical studies and expert opinions, the critical overview critically evaluates the benefits and challenges associated with internationalizing business education. This study also explores the positive outcomes, such as the development of global competencies, the expansion of networks and opportunities, and the cultivation of a multicultural learning environment. Simultaneously, it addresses the potential drawbacks, including cultural clashes, language barriers, and the need for significant financial investments. Moreover, the critical overview examines the role of technology in facilitating the internationalization of business education. It investigates the impact of online learning platforms, virtual classrooms, and digital resources on bridging geographical divides, expanding access to education, and fostering global collaboration. In addition, the critical overview takes into account the evolving trends and future directions of internationalization in business education. It explores emerging models, such as joint-degree programs, collaborative research initiatives, and the incorporation of sustainability and ethical considerations into the curriculum.
... Difficulties for more responsible management education have increased in recent ages (Holland, 2009; Samuelson, 2011). (Pfeffer and Fong, 2002;Bennis and O'Toole, 2005;Mintzberg, 2004) have absorbed on the apparently growing gap between academic research and practice, which could approach the relevance of the first-hand knowledge for professional practice. The conversion of the educational process that is expressed by the Principles of Responsible Management Education must begin by critically assessing the adequacy of current research paradigms and theories and reassuring the development of original ones. ...
Difficulties for more responsible management education have increased in recent ages (Holland, 2009; Samuelson, 2011). (Pfeffer and Fong, 2002; Bennis and O'Toole, 2005; Mintzberg, 2004) have absorbed on the apparently growing gap between academic research and practice, which could approach the relevance of the first-hand knowledge for professional practice. The conversion of the educational process that is expressed by the Principles of Responsible Management Education must begin by critically assessing the adequacy of current research paradigms and theories and reassuring the development of original ones. The purpose of this paper is to review and judgmentally analyse the role of research in enabling the responsible management education for a sustainability world. Design/Methodology/Approach: The present paper is a review of current literature contributed in the field of management education, responsible management education and research in the arena of management education contributed in both Indian and global perspective. Findings: Basically the management education needs to transform them through research in supporting the responsible management education and sustainability. Business school research rarely talks societal issues and inform important public policy questions, relating to issues like public education, poverty or sustainability. Originality/Value: The paper pulls together insights from a diverse area of literature review and provides recommendation and conclusion.
... The study finds a significant link between both the type of degree and school selectivity with Tobin's Q. Results are explained by citing the length of time that lapses between the attainment of formal education and becoming CEO. This time gap renders formal education irrelevant (Maxam et al., 2006;Mintzberg, 1996;Pfeffer & Fong, 2002). ...
This study analyses the relationship between managerial skills and performance of commercial banks in Zimbabwe and managerial skill characteristics namely the level of education, years of experience and gender composition. The study also examined the substitution possibilities between a manager's level of education and years of experience in relation to bank performance. The hypotheses of the study were that a positive relationship exists between managerial skill characteristics and return asset and that there are substitution possibilities between years of experience and education level. Using a fixed effect model to analyze the relation between managerial skills and profitability among banks listed on the Zimbabwe stock exchange and the key findings of the study was that there exist substitution possibilities between managers' level of education and years of experience in relation to bank performance. The results encourage banks in Zimbabwe to monitor and evaluate these factors for improvement to enable the sustainability of banks and industry for economic growth. The banking sector was recommended to invest in analysis of gender composition on performance as part of corporate governance issues. The study also suggested further research into a comparative study on the effects of managerial skills on all financial institutions to improve operational performance. The overall performance of non-banking financial institutions may be focused in future in order to improve the profitability of the financial sector as a whole.
... Young & Jordan [9] The most significant critical success criterion for organizational performance is top management support. Management support in the form of facility support and promotion of organizational activities, including giving awards for innovative ideas so that they can realize the specified organizational goals [10] Elkeles & Phil [11] state that organizational success in realizing good governance requires good management support and commitment from all levels of management. Belout & Gauvreau [12] stated that management support has a significant effect on organizational success. ...
The implementation of the process of achieving good university governance carried out at state universities in managing academic and nonacademic domains involves the support of top management and university performance. This study investigates the impact of the implementation of good university governance, top management support, and the performance of State Universities in Indonesia with data processing and analysis using PLS Structural Equation Modeling (SEM). The results of the study illustrate that the implementation of good university governance has a positive and significant effect on top management support, the implementation of good university governance has a positive and significant effect on university performance, and top management support has no effect on university performance. Efforts need to be increased on the dimensions of stakeholder participation, adequacy of resources (financial, infrastructure, information systems), and the internal processes of higher education.
The Global Financial Crisis arose an increasing interest toward the role of management education in not anticipating the crisis and, to a certain extent, in having provided some ideological premises of the crisis itself (i.e., ruthless look for profit). The critique on business schools and management education becomes prominent during the current never-ending crisis, since it does not seem that management education is able to provide Boards with instruments to face the current challenges. Therefore, management education institutions should make the effort to stop teaching “management as usual” and take into serious account the current crisis and its present and future implications. A complete U-turn of the management narrative is needed: from success stories highlighting the role of brave top managers winning business wars, to stories of survival and resilience where Boards were able to face strong challenges. To do this, cross-disciplinary teaching about the current crisis, how it affects organizations and society in broad terms as well as its new persisting social nature is in high demand. We propose three areas of reflection: (i) the hybridization of management education, calling for a multidisciplinary and not overly specialized content of management knowledge; (ii) the redesign of the relation between Boards and management, rediscovering the role of business schools as avant-garde of multidisciplinary studies about the “managerial phenomenon”; and (iii) the redefinition of management as esprit de finesse. Along with these three lines of thought, we outline the need to re-focus management education on teaching how Boards’ decision-makers should take risks.
Scholars, in the field of management education, have questioned the efficacy of current focus of business education in creating effective managers. Gulf between theory and practice, undue emphasis on conceptual knowledge, and lamentable attention to knowledge assimilation are cited as the prominent reasons for significantly low level of managerial effectiveness. In this regard, this chapter analyses the current paradigms of management education in its attempt to make a case for the need for a paradigm shift in education. Review of prior research clearly articulates the need for a cross functional approach to management education to bridge the gap between theory and its application. Further, this chapter discusses the dimensions of the process-orientation paradigm that it articulates. Potential contributions of process orientation paradigm and challenges before the cross-functional perspective of management education are also presented.
This book chapter examines critically the concept of Education 4.0, intersection of technologies, and the social learning theory of Albert Bandura, highlighting the need for successful alignment between instructors and learners to achieve effective knowledge transfer. Moreover, the discussion extends to the challenges and opportunities presented by hybrid and blended learning approaches pre-to-post Covid-19, emphasising the importance of readiness and pedagogical scaffolding for both educators and learners alike. Drawing on experiential learning theories, we suggest that individual environment experiences shape students’ awareness of new digital experiences. A shift in mindset from transactional to transformational engagement in (HEI) contexts is required to constructively realign the focus on creating engaging and purposeful digital learning experiences. Crucially, issues around the misalignment that can occur in digital transformation within higher education institutions, suggest a need for a more nuanced approach that goes beyond task-oriented actions.
Purpose
We investigate practitioner integration (PI) within higher education institutions (HEIs) by taking a closer look at the entrepreneur in residence (EiR) initiative. Engaging experienced entrepreneurs through EiR initiatives to facilitate entrepreneurship education (EE) has become a familiar PI model within HEIs; nevertheless, how EiRs perceive their role and integration in academia has been under-researched. We deepen the understanding of how EiRs facilitate EE and their role and fit into academia.
Design/methodology/approach
This qualitative research employs interpretative phenomenological analysis (IPA) as the methodology. Following IPA guidance, we purposively selected seven EiRs working within HEIs and conducted one semi-structured interview with each participant. The data were analysed using IPA data analysis guidelines.
Findings
The findings suggest that the previous experiences of EiRs influence their confidence, skills and intrinsic motivation in their role in academia. EiRs play a multifaceted role that goes beyond students and simple educational activities to develop trust and understanding among university communities while bridging academic–practitioner, structural and communication gaps that hinder entrepreneurship in higher education. The study reveals the disconnected nature of EiRs’ role in academia and the tensions between academics and EiRs.
Originality/value
This study provides space for unheard EiRs’ voices, enriching the scarce EiR literature by advancing our knowledge about their role and fit in academia. The novel insights into the role of EiRs broaden the scope of EE to university communities beyond students. The findings deepen our understanding of how EiRs foster entrepreneurship by acting as a trust ladder and developing a networked approach to supporting university stakeholders. The challenges lie in how EiRs are integrated and the tensions between academics and practitioners. We also found that EiRs with greater authority, prior exposure to strategic roles within the institution and strong relationships with institutional leaders perform their role efficiently. Hence, this study establishes the importance of a more coordinated, strategic approach to PI within HEIs.
This paper proposes a systemic narrative that contributes to understanding the current state of management studies. It argues that a lock-in situation is occurring due to the convergent impact of cognitive, functional, and political constraints. Cognitive lock-ins originate from a dominant epistemology. Functional lock-ins relate to the oligopolistic structure of the industry. Political lock-ins derive from the cooperative behavior of power structures. The paper suggests that a lock-in situation is inherently resilient, but signs of a possible change are increasingly visible.
In this article, we introduce and discuss the potential benefits of structured shadowing, a distinct pedagogy in which the action-proximity of traditional unstructured job shadowing is supplemented by carefully designed pre-, intra- and post-shadowing pedagogical support. We suggest that structured shadowing is a promising yet under-utilized and overlooked pedagogy to enrich management learning and education. Drawing on an interview-based evaluation study of several cohorts of final-year undergraduates in a UK business school, we find that structured shadowing helps students to establish meaningful connections between theory and managerial practices, better appreciate management’s complexities and dispel existing myths and preconceptions. It also allows them to reflect on the types of managers they imagine or aspire to be and helps to model management as a reflective activity. Based on our teaching experience and our results, we argue that structured shadowing offers valuable lessons for our field. It helps to address the challenges of substance, contextual understanding and reflection, which we identify as central to current management education debates. We also acknowledge that while structured shadowing is a powerful resource, it demands significant investment and potential trade-offs, and may reflect certain professional privileges.
Fostering a sense of belonging is ofthen seen as the foundation that unites Europe. Forty-four alliances were created among European universities since 2020. This initiative came about as a recognition of the lack of capacity of the European Union to create a European citizenship. This study focuses on summarising the results and lines of research within this European Universities Initiative (EUI) by completing action research and a review of existing literature. A scoping review was used to assign each of the articles found to one of the analytical variables: lecturers, students, and managers. Where a study fell into more than one category, it was assigned individually to each variable. The results show that most of the studies focus on a single university or country. Furthermore, there is a disproportionate interest in students, to the detriment of lecturers and managers. Based on the literature review analysis, the conclusions ascertain that the alliances need a full rebranding to achieve visibility and communicate their purpose. The application of an action research methodology has allowed the authors to identify the lack of branding of the initiative and they propose the term EuroAgora Digital University (EDU) to describe the new paradigm that these EDUs stand for. In the wake of the European Union’s efforts to forge a unified educational space, the European Universities Initiative (EUI) emerges as a pivotal experiment in fostering a European identity through higher education. This paper delves into the transformative potential of the EUI, set against the backdrop of ongoing debates about the Europeanisation of education and the quest for cohesive European citizenship.
Many scholars are struggling to find their way in a reality characterised by a growing sense of urgency to solve pressing social problems and a diminishing faith in traditional institutions, such as universities, spreading through society. Some scholars respond by turning towards activism, which manifests in overtly ideological teaching, increasingly radical critical research agendas, and even public actions in the name of science. Others may feel attracted to enter into academia, perhaps as PhD students, primarily in search of a platform to advance deepfelt issues. In this chapter, we problematise the self-proclaimed role and practice of Homo academicus activistarum —i.e., the academic activist—within the scholarly fields of management and organisation. However, our suggested alternative is not the idealistic Homo academicus , devoted to knowledge but detached from managerial and organisational practice. Instead, we propose the role of Homo academicus imaginatus , or the imaginative scholar, who explores, illustrates, and communicates productive and thought-provoking alternatives to current states of affairs and practices. In the chapter, we outline how the imaginative scholar can engage in “imaginative performativity” as an approach to both teaching and research, promoting reflexivity and alternative thinking while simultaneously avoiding the pitfalls and perils of academic activism.
This chapter suggests that academics are as human—in terms of, mainly, striving to appear legitimate—as practitioners are. The author argues that not only practitioners are gaining legitimacy through fashion-followers, but that so are academics. Examples from the literature on, especially, management fashion and academic fashion are used as cases in point, along with a few self-experienced anecdotes. Four assumptions to the relation between the degree to which practitioners’ and academics’ are considered to possess human weakness are suggested: the extraordinary academic assumption, the Übermensch assumption, the ivory tower assumption and the ordinary citizen assumption. The author suggests that quite a few academics have the extraordinary academic assumption, while he himself supports the ordinary citizen assumption. A few implications from each of these two approaches are discussed, and the chapter ends with the author’s own self-reflection.
Organizational sociology and organization studies have a long history together, while also sharing a proclivity to self-diagnose crises. Instead of taking these assessments at face value, this paper treats them as an object of study, asking what conditions have fueled them. In the case of organizational sociology, there are indications of a connection between rising levels of discontent and community building: self-identified organizational sociologists have progressively withdrawn from general debates in the discipline and turned their attention to organization studies, which, they suspect, has seen dramatic levels of growth at their expense. Organization studies, on the other hand, are still haunted by "a Faustian bargain": leaning heavily on the authority of the social sciences, business school faculty were able to facilitate the emergence of a scholarly field of practice dedicated to the study of organizations, which they control. However, in doing so, they also set organization studies on a path of continued dependence on knowledge produced elsewhere: notably, in by university disciplines such as sociology.
College graduates earn higher wages than noncollege graduates, but questions remain about the degree to which this wage difference is driven by learning in college or by the signal that the degree sends to employers. Based on a review of the literature, I propose that the value of a marketing degree is much less related to learning marketing than it is to the business school’s brand equity. A business school with strong brand equity can be more selective in admissions decision making, which in turn leads to increased graduate success and further builds the school’s brand equity. This brand-centric perspective resolves several persistent questions including why student evaluations of teaching are so important in business schools, why improvements in learning are underfunded, and why marketing education research is under-emphasized. Implications and recommendations for future research are discussed.
Are abstracts or titles a good proxy for what an article contains? The majority of scientometric studies have used easily accessible representations of publications such as reference and author lists, citations, keywords, titles, and abstracts, rather than full-texts. However, better accessibility to full-text databases is on the rise. First studies employing full-texts are promising, yet the extent to which scientometric exploration of papers beyond title and abstract is beneficial to gain further insights is still under discussion. In this paper, we analyse the similarity between a paper’s title, abstract and full-text and examine whether scientometric analyses should better rely on full-texts. Our dataset includes 66,392 articles published in 27 leading journals in the business administration and economics literature. We examine the use of these representations in textual analysis, topic modelling and research evaluation. The results suggest that, unlike titles, abstracts and full-texts exhibit significant similarities and can be used interchangeably. While, abstracts contain less extraneous information and approximately 30% less noise compared to full-texts in topic modelling, full-text-based models to explain future number of citations yield a 5% higher explanatory power. Additionally, we recommend considering the influence of diverse writing styles as a textual and rhetorical property, as our analysis demonstrates its significant explanatory power for future publication success.
With the rising demand for a “competent workforce” in the 21st-century business environment, Workplace learning is the centre stage of higher learning curriculum, which nobody can deny. In this direction management education plays its role as a path-leader. To nurture and prepare future managers for the changing requirements of the business world Bilimoria (2000), B-Schools can play a pivotal role. A plethora of research established on the issue of the “curriculum gap” to equip learners with the identified and relevant workplace competencies. Management education imparted by the B-schools and universities must deliver the most relevant workplace competencies.It is very important that the present educational system broadens its scope and equips future graduates with the latest and relevant competencies as per the demand of the industry. Does it so in reality and practice? In the global arena of management education, Indian B-schools are not resistant to the pressures of the recent times requirements of the industries. To meet the interests of society, industry, government, and the global community in general, Indian business schools must reinvent their management education to ensure its relevance over time. The present study is an effort to delve into associating workplace competencies most desired by industry with relevant standard pedagogic practices and comprehend how they differ from each other, based on the students and faculty of the select B-schools who perceive the source of workplace competencies through the various educational practices by the Russel and Rao Proximity Analysis.
The landscape of entrepreneurship, innovation, and technological change among college students presents a dynamic and evolving challenge in contemporary society. As the global economy becomes increasingly reliant on innovation and entrepreneurship for growth and competitiveness, understanding the factors that drive entrepreneurial behavior and technological innovation among college students is essential. The proliferation of startup initiatives on campuses, there remain significant gaps in our knowledge regarding the specific challenges and opportunities faced by college students in navigating the entrepreneurial and innovation landscape. One key area of concern is the extent to which entrepreneurship and innovation education programs effectively prepare college students for the complexities of starting and managing ventures in today's rapidly changing business environment. While there has been a proliferation of entrepreneurship courses, incubators, and accelerators on college campuses.The impact of cultural, institutional, and socioeconomic factors on entrepreneurial intentions and activities among college students remains underexplored. The drivers, barriers, and outcomes of entrepreneurship, innovation, and technological change among college students. By addressing these issues, scholars, educators, policymakers, and practitioners can develop evidence-based strategies to foster an entrepreneurial and innovative mindset among college students, enhance the effectiveness of entrepreneurship education programs, and promote inclusive entrepreneurship ecosystems that harness the full potential of diverse talent.
Purpose
This article explores whether six broad categories of activities undertaken by Canadian business scholars’ academics: publications record, citations record, teaching load, administrative load, consulting activities, and knowledge spillovers transfer, are complementary, substitute, or independent, as well as the conditions under which complementarities, substitution and independence among these activities are likely to occur.
Design/methodology/approach
A multivariate probit model is estimated to take into account that business scholars have to consider simultaneously whether or not to undertake many different academic activities. Metrics from Google Scholar of scholars from 35 Canadian business schools, augmented by a survey data on factors explaining the productivity and impact performances of these faculty members, are used to explain the heterogeneities between the determinants of these activities.
Findings
Overall, the results reveal that there are complementarities between publications and citations, publications and knowledge spillovers transfer, citations and consulting, and between consulting and knowledge spillovers transfer. The results also suggest that there are substitution effects between publications and teaching, publications and administrative load, citations and teaching load, and teaching load and administrative load. Moreover, results show that public and private funding, business schools’ reputation, scholar’s relational resources, and business school size are among the most influential variables on the scholar’s portfolio of activities.
Originality/value
This study considers simultaneously the scholar’s whole portfolio of activities. Moreover, the determinants considered in this study to explain scholars’ engagement in different activities reconcile two conflicting perspectives: (1) the traditional self-managed approach of academics, and (2) the outcomes-focused approach of university management.
Business education is increasingly integrating sustainability and moving towards the responsible management agenda, with the rise of the United Nations’ Principles of Responsible Management Education initiative. This includes reference to the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals, although its reach remains limited in terms of the operations and culture of business schools. Empirical evidence continues to highlight that economic and financial ideologies and considerations often usurp wider issues of sustainability including social impacts. This study draws from an international expert inquiry into the understanding and use of social value and social impact principles and methods in business education and involved stakeholders across 16 countries. The findings highlight that whilst there are practices aligned with the broad notion of social value and social impact, there needs to be a more nuanced understanding of social value impact methodology and its technical methods and tools. This paper therefore outlines eight key principles and associated methods of social value methodology as a basis to prompt new directions, and an urgent call for more holistic thinking across the university ecosystem.
Religion inspires honesty. The love of money incites dishonesty. Religious and monetary values apply to all religions. We develop a formative theoretical model of monetary wisdom, treat religiosity ( God ) and the love of money ( mammon ), as two yoked antecedents—competing moral issues (Time 1), and frame the latent construct in good barrels (performance or humane contexts, Time 2), which leads to (dis)honesty (Time 3). We explore the direct and indirect paths and the model across genders. Our three‐wave panel data (411 participants) show that religious and monetary values are negatively correlated. Directly, religiosity consistently curbs dishonesty; surprisingly, the love of money has no impact on dishonesty. In the performance context, the two mediation effects reduce dishonesty. Across genders, this mediation effect is nonsignificant for males but significantly excites females' honesty. In the humane context, the two mediation effects are nonsignificant. Across genders, for the love of money, males passively curb dishonesty by omission , and females actively engage in honesty by commission . Decision‐makers must challenge people's moral issues, frame them in good barrels, and help people become good apples, choice architects, and moral and ethical decision‐makers, promoting the Matthew effect in religion. We offer practical implications to individuals and organizations.
Research into responsible management education has largely focused on the merits, attributes, and transformation opportunities to enhance responsible business school education aims. As such, a prominent part of the literature has occupied itself with examining if responsible management modules are inherently considered a non-crucial element of the curriculum and determining the extent to which business schools have introduced such learning content into their curriculum. However, there has been scant research into how to apply novel teaching approaches to engage students and promote responsible management education endeavours. As such, this paper seeks to address this gap through the development of a teaching framework to support educators in designing effective learning environments focused on responsible management education. We draw on constructivist learning theories and Lego Serious Play (LSP) as a learning enhancement approach to develop a pedagogical framework titled The Educator's LSP Journey. LSP is chosen due to its increasing application in learning environments to help promote critical discourse, and engage with highly complex problems, whether these are social, economic, environmental, or organisational. Therefore, this paper contributes to the responsible management education discourse by providing educators with a practical methodology to support student engagement and co-creation of knowledge by fostering exploratory learning environments and enriching the practices of active learning communities.
This paper presents a method for assessing whether members of two subcultures, in this case academics and practitioners, have influenced each other's interpretations. Conceptual and symbolic influence are seen as special instances of acculturation, and their occurrence can be studied by specifying changes in the language that members of different subcultures use to frame a topic or issue. Models of academic- and practitioner-oriented discourse on organizational culture were derived from early papers on the topic. The texts of 192 articles on organizational culture written between June 1975 and December 1984 were then examined for evidence of acculturation. The data strongly suggest that those who wrote for practitioners and academics initially conceptualized organizational culture differently. Over time, however, academics appear to have moved toward the practitioners' point of view, while the latter appear to have been little influenced by the former. Besides showing that it is possible to study acculturation by investigating language use, the analysis raises important questions about the links between theory and practice in organizational behavior.
Following the article by Scott Armstrong and Tad Sperry on business school prestige are comments by David Webster, Arnold Barnett, Frederic Murphy, Edwin Locke and Shelley Kirkpatrick, and Richard Franke. Scott and Tad then reply to the comments. The subject of this group of papers is the determinants of business school prestige and whether business schools should emphasize teaching over research. Each author has his or her own perspective. Important to the analyses presented here are the data developed by Shelley Kirkpatrick and Edwin Locke to formally measure research. In compiling these papers, we first obtained peer reviews of the Armstrong and Sperry paper. Then we asked the other participants to contribute comments. We then provided all the participants with peer reviews of their own and each other's commentaries. In addition, we sent the package for review to William Ross at The Wharton School. Although the subject of this collection does not directly relate to the practice of management science, it affects our ability to practice management science in the future. The current graduates of MBA programs are future customers for our models and analyses. Business schools have been reacting to beauty contests, such as Business Week's annual survey measuring student satisfaction. As a response, some business schools have reduced the amount of quantitative material, which students find difficult. This increases the ignorance of future managers and makes our jobs of communicating quantitative management models more difficult. Through their surveys, the press has affected educational curricula without examining the educational issues in business schools. This collection of papers is a step towards articulating what the agenda should be.
Made predictions of the annual compensation of 136 alumni of a graduate management program by using years of work experience, graduate grades, and data obtained prior to graduate school admission. Stepwise multiple regression analyses revealed that work experience was more predictive of staff than line compensation. After adjusting for the effect of work experience, graduate grades were significantly correlated to both line and staff earnings, though the incremental predictive validity was much higher for line managers. Several pregraduate academic and nonacademic variables were also significant predictors. Results support the ability to predict managerial compensation prior to career and graduate school entry. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)
Correlations were computed between earnings and each of 15 variables for 196 businessmen who had received the Master of Business Administration degree 15 years earlier. 4 correlations were significant at the 5% level. The highest, .24, was for offices held as an undergraduate. The other 3 were grades in elective graduate courses, Masculinity of the SVIB, and undergraduate professors' ratings. The group was reduced by omitting owner-operators. The remaining group constituted 116 employees. The only variable which correlated significantly with an Administrative-Level criterion was the SVIB scale for Personnel Director. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)
Tested the generalizability of findings reported by J. Pfeffer (see record
1978-26287-001) by examining the determinants of starting and current salaries for 314 graduates (mean age 29 yrs) from the business schools of 3 large state universities. Results support Pfeffer's conclusion that a master's in business administration (MBA) is particularly useful for persons not coming from the highest socioeconomic backgrounds. A variety of factors identified by Pfeffer were controlled for, and the possession of the MBA degree was positively related to starting salary irrespective of socioeconomic origin but was positively related to current salary only for those not coming from upper-middle and upper-class backgrounds. Current salary sex differences only were observed for Ss from upper-class socioeconomic backgrounds. This was attributable to a salary advantage possessed by upper middle- and upper-class males. (10 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)
This essay describes differences between papers that contain some theory rather than no theory. There is little agreement about what constitutes strong versus weak theory in the social sciences, but there is more consensus that references, data, variables, diagrams, and hypotheses are not theory. Despite this consensus, however, authors routinely use these five elements in lieu of theory. We explain how each of these five elements can be confused with theory and how to avoid such confusion. By making this consensus explicit, we hope to help authors avoid some of the most common and easily averted problems that lead readers to view papers as having inadequate theory. We then discuss how journals might facilitate the publication of stronger theory. We suggest that if the field is serious about producing stronger theory, journals need to reconsider their empirical requirements. We argue that journals ought to be more receptive to papers that test part rather than all of a theory and use illustrative rather than definitive data.
The process of theory construction in organizational studies is portrayed as imagination disciplined by evolutionary processes analogous to artificial selection. The quality of theory produced is predicted to vary as a function of the accuracy and detail present in the problem statement that triggers theory building, the number of and independence among the conjectures that attempt to solve the problem, and the number and diversity of selection criteria used to test the conjectures. It is argued that interest is a substitute for validation during theory construction, middle range theories are a necessity if the process is to be kept manageable, and representations such as metaphors are inevitable, given the complexity of the subject matter.
Argues that the formal structure of many organizations in post-industrial society dramatically reflect the myths of their institutional environment instead of the demands of their work activities. The authors review prevailing theories of the origins of formal structures and the main problem which those theories confront -- namely, that their assumption that successful coordination and control of activity are responsible for the rise of modern formal organization is not substantiated by empirical evidence. Rather, there is a great gap between the formal structure and the informal practices that govern actual work activities. The authors present an alternative source for formal structures by suggesting that myths embedded in the institutional environment help to explain the adoption of formal structures. Earlier sources understood bureaucratization as emanating from the rationalization of the workplace. Nevertheless, the observation that some formal practices are not followed in favor of other unofficial ones indicates that not all formal structures advance efficiency as a rationalized system would require. Therefore another source of legitimacy is required. This is found in conforming the organization's structure to that of the powerful myths that institutionalized products, services, techniques, policies, and programs become. (CAR)
Government regulation is frequently advocated as a solution to many economic problems. In a review of a number of studies examining the effects of government regulation, it is seen that regulation and occupational licensing have typically operated so as to increase price, restrict entry, and enhance the rate of return earned by the industry or occupation. Some organizational factors accounting for these outcomes are advanced.
This article argues that quality business requires rediscovering pedagogy as a professional calling and studied activity. The authors chronicle forces driving reform in business and higher education. They then explore both the growing importance of reflective learning in professional education and a model that they have developed and implemented for encouraging such practice. The results of their training program are discussed in terms of interventions that promote reflective pedagogy by capitalizing on the competencies that faculty professionals already possess as researchers.
This article addresses two questions: What is the current state of organizational knowledge? What agenda for the field should be proposed for the 1990s? The author points out that the better work in the field of organizational knowledge has come from problem-oriented rather than from theory-oriented research. This point is explored in more detail, and seven suggestions for how best to do behavioral research are offered.
This paper proposes that organizations overcome problems of market uncertainty by adopting a principle of exclusivity in selecting exchange partners. This general proposition in turn implies two specific hypotheses. First, the greater the market uncertainty, the more that organizations engage in exchange relations with those with whom they have transacted in the past. Second, the greater the uncertainty, the more that organizations engage in transactions with those of similar status. A study of investment banking relationships in the investment grade and non-investment-grade debt markets from 1981 to 1987 provides support for the hypotheses. The implications of this analysis for stratification and concentration in the market are discussed.