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Leadership in the Era of Economic Uncertainty

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Description: After 10 years of prosperity, inflation has reared its ugly head once again. But this time it's different. Inflationary trends are sweeping across national borders, fueled by strong demand and tight supplies of such critical commodities as oil, metals and food. Efforts to fight rising inflation are almost certain to trigger slow growth or even recessions in many developed economies and in some of the fastest-growing developing nations. But there will be no quick fix. The inflation threat confronting the globe today is in its earliest stages. The companies that understand this reality and make bold moves to adapt to it will be the ones that survive and even thrive in a difficult environment. Internationally renowned business consultant and bestselling business book author Ram Charan presents a road map for what everyone in the company – from senior executive to middle manager – needs to be thinking about and doing to meet the challenge. Ram Charan is a highly acclaimed speaker and advisor. He is the coauthor of Execution and the author of What the CEO Wants You to Know and many other books. A noted expert on business strategy, Ram has coached some of the world's most successful CEOs, and for more than thirty-five years has worked behind the scenes at companies like GE, KLM, Bank of America, DuPont, Novartis, EMC, Home Depot and Verizon, helping them to develop, shape and implement their strategic direction.

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... In our research we also asked the respondents about the critical HR issues in the examined period. The calculated ranking presented in table 181 shows that the highest importance was ascribed to recruitment (3,69), HR planning (3,43), and talent management (3,35). At the same time the lowest rank was achieved by industrial-labor relations (2,12) and HRIS (1,88). ...
... Using the same scale as before, the respondents ranked the HR knowledge flows in HR department of the subsidiary (3.46) and HR knowledge flows between subsidiaries and other departments (3,43) as the most important. Table 187 presents the ranking in this field. ...
... In our research we also asked the respondents about the critical HR issues in the examined period. The calculated ranking presented in table 181 shows that the highest importance was ascribed to recruitment (3,69), HR planning (3,43), and talent management (3,35). At the same time the lowest rank was achieved by industrial-labor relations (2,12) and HRIS (1,88). ...
... Using the same scale as before, the respondents ranked the HR knowledge flows in HR department of the subsidiary (3.46) and HR knowledge flows between subsidiaries and other departments (3,43) as the most important. Table 187 presents the ranking in this field. ...
... In our research we also asked the respondents about the critical HR issues in the examined period. The calculated ranking presented in table 181 shows that the highest importance was ascribed to recruitment (3,69), HR planning (3,43), and talent management (3,35). At the same time the lowest rank was achieved by industrial-labor relations (2,12) and HRIS (1,88). ...
... Using the same scale as before, the respondents ranked the HR knowledge flows in HR department of the subsidiary (3.46) and HR knowledge flows between subsidiaries and other departments (3,43) as the most important. Table 187 presents the ranking in this field. ...
Chapter
The aim of this chapter is to examine recent developments of human resource management (HRM) practices in the Central and Eastern European (CEE) region and to compare these against the similarities and differences of their national contexts.
... A quick cost savings campaign, the interjection of cash flow has been absolutely critical in these companies. In case of full-time workers -wherever possible -they took over assignments of the contracted workers (Charan, 2009). ...
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Turbulent business conditions, globalised business operations and increasingly manifest technical and tech nological development imply creating and implementing an efficient performance measurement and manage ment system. Actually, a company’s intangible assets gain increasing significance in contemporary business conditions. For this reason, relating financial to non-financial performance measures, quantitative to non quantitative performance indicators, and internal to external performance is becoming a necessity. It is the only performance system establishing connections at company level, and thus providing high performance achievements. All of this implies developing and using the Balanced Scorecard as one of company perfor mance measurement instruments. It provides insight into four areas of management process – finance, con sumers, internal business processes and innovation and learning.
... Institusi yang memiliki efektivitas leadership berpeluang tiga kali lebih besar untuk menjadi top 20% institusi dengan finansial terbaik dibandingkan dengan institusi yang tidak memiliki leadership efektif(Axon, Frieedman dan Jordan, 2015). Oleh sebab itu, tidak dapat dipungkiri bahwa leadership merupakan suatu hal krusial yang sangat dibutuhkan oleh setiap institusi(Charan, 2009).Tipe leadership secara garis besar terbagi menjadi transactional, transformational, dan laissez faire (Avolio danBass, 1991). PenelitianBenjamin dan Flynn (2006) menunjukkan bahwa tipe leadership yang paling baik adalah kepemimpinan transformasional (transformational leadership) karena mampu meningkatkan kepuasan followers secara maksimal dibandingkan tipe leadership lainnya5. ...
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Transformational Leadership and Development
... Institusi yang memiliki efektivitas leadership berpeluang tiga kali lebih besar untuk menjadi top 20% institusi dengan finansial terbaik dibandingkan dengan institusi yang tidak memiliki leadership efektif(Axon, Frieedman dan Jordan, 2015). Oleh sebab itu, tidak dapat dipungkiri bahwa leadership merupakan suatu hal krusial yang sangat dibutuhkan oleh setiap institusi(Charan, 2009).Tipe leadership secara garis besar terbagi menjadi transactional, transformational, dan laissez faire (Avolio danBass, 1991). PenelitianBenjamin dan Flynn (2006) menunjukkan bahwa tipe leadership yang paling baik adalah kepemimpinan transformasional (transformational leadership) karena mampu meningkatkan kepuasan followers secara maksimal dibandingkan tipe leadership lainnya5. ...
Presentation
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Transformation Leadership
... Organizations endowed with effective leadership will have three times as many opportunities to become top organizations (Axon, Friedman, & Jordan, 2015). It cannot be overstated that leadership is a critical element of every organization (Charan, 2009), including when leveraging a country's economic growth. Therefore, leaders in the public or private sectors must be more committed to inclusive development and balanced growth to enhance the standard of living for all (World Economic Forum, 2017). ...
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This paper’s main thesis is that frugal innovation and transformational leadership offer additional sources of growth. Our main contribution is the proposal of what we refer to as the breakthrough possibility frontier (BPF) model, which integrates two aspects of leadership: innovation quality (frugal innovation) and leadership competency (transformational leadership). We test the BPF model on two groups of respondents, one group consisting of university students who had never been formal leaders and the other formal leaders who had office experience. The BPF analysis suggests that transformational leadership is a game changer, required for breakthroughs. Transformational leadership is key to encouraging innovation quality and leadership competency and, we argue, to facilitating new sources of growth. Our results imply the development of an integrated institutional framework for innovation. We believe that innovative leadership development programs that can be easily implemented and replicated in other regions are needed to develop transformational leadership competencies.
... Recognising the value represented by employee benefits is, in fact, of increased importance in complicated situations such as those recently experienced. The value of benefits received is often underrated by employees, but this perception needs to change and the effectiveness of benefits to be clearly shown [3]. ...
Conference Paper
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The aim of this study is to compare Hungary and the Slovak Republic in terms of employee benefits in practice. The study provides a brief introduction to both the fixed and flexible forms of employee benefit systems as well as to their legal environment. Our empirical conclusions are based on the results of a survey conducted among 420 Hungarian and 126 Slovakian employers in the year 2013. In the course of our investigation we studied the practice of fixed and flexible benefits in compared countries, as well as the organisational specifics of cafeteria system usage. Topical issue of the study is the way of operating a cafeteria system at today´s rapidly changing environment and that´s impact to the financial framework of cafeteria systems. Above all we´ve investigated the probable future of benefit systems by seeking the willingness of employers with no experience to launch cafeteria. The findings of the study suggest that the different tax regimes are responsible for the major employer-related differences in the ways in which the two countries provide benefits in kind-that is, non-financial benefits to their employees.
... An institution with effective leadership has an opportunity to be a top twenty-percent institution with the best finance three times as much as an institution lacking effective leadership (Axon, Friedman, & Jordan, 2015). Therefore, we cannot deny the fact that leadership is a very crucial matter needed by all institutions (Charan, 2009). ...
Article
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The world is now facing such a volatile, uncertain, complex, and ambiguous situation known as VUCA that it has generated such new challenges. Therefore, it is imperative that a leader to have competences that always grow. Transformational leadership is a type of leadership deemed superior to anticipate those challenges, where a leader is supposed to always be agile in achieving the organizational goals. This study aimed at analyzing a correlation among leadership aspects (through Multifactor Leadership Questionnaire/MLQ assessment), cognitive functions (through Wechsler Bellevue assessment), and brain activity pattern/brain mapping (through Electroencephalography/EEG). Then, we gave a stimulus through neurofeedback to train the participants’ control over their brain waves. The results revealed that all participants that became the research samples had a transformational leadership type with idealized influence (behavior) and inspirational motivation subtypes. Moreover, the presence of stimulation to the brain (neurofeedback) enabled the participants to control their brain waves when they were conscious. The leaders will be able to perform optimally when they can control their brain waves and when they are conscious.
... T his paper argues that dominant accounting conceptual frameworks view corporate entities through an uncritical, distorted lens. The business press depicts mergers and spinoffs as a common occurrence, with enterprise boundaries and longevity being treated as matters of significant uncertainty (Charan 2009;De Geus 1997;Daniell 2000). In stark contrast, accounting reports are prepared based on a philosophical foundation that treats reporting boundaries as self- evident with continuation of the firm's current activities being reasonably assured. ...
Article
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Contemporary accounting conceptual frameworks depict reporting entities as self-evident stand-alone units whose current activities are likely to continue. That representation is revisited in light of Veblen’s (1904) sabotage thesis that managers routinely utilize mechanisms that disrupt underlying markets. Credit default swaps played a significant role in the 2008 subprime financial crisis, blurring the boundaries of entities to create entanglements that threatened the global financial infrastructure. The reporting entity and going concern concepts developed in a climate of philosophical pragmatism operating from a flawed premise that a scientific approach assures objective, value-free data. The conventional treatment of reporting entities is contrasted with emerging conversations that paint ‘the firm’ as a legal fiction functioning within a dynamic and potentially unstable matrix. The paper argues that a distorted view on the underlying nature of the firm masks significant public interest issues, making it difficult to address problems inherent in interdependent institutional structures.
... Public sector employees are more motivated by workload, personal growth, recognition, individual decision-making, interesting work and an opportunity to learn something new (Urbancová and Hudáková, 2015). According to Charan (2008) if the managers continue to treat the employees in the same way, their already low motivation for work will decrease even more. It can be said that practically all motivators are in the hands of the management (Kropivšek et al., 2011). ...
Article
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The aim of the paper is to compare the level of employee motivation in Hungary and Slovakia. Using sociological survey through questionnaires, a research was conducted in all regions of Hungary and Slovakia in 2016. Total of 30 motivation factors were divided into 5 groups of motivation factors. We analyzed motivation factors relating to mutual relationships, to career aspiration, to finance, to work conditions and to social needs. Significantly different preferences were observed in 4 of 5 groups of motivation factors preferred by Hungarian and Slovak respondents (motivation factors relating to mutual relationships, to career aspiration, to work conditions and to social needs). Surprisingly, motivation factors relating to mutual relationship were highly preferred by Hungarian respondents. Financial motivation factors were the most important for Slovak employees. Motivation factors relating to social needs were the least important for both groups of respondents. For Hungarian and Slovak employers, we recommend focusing on motivation factors relating to mutual relationships when creating motivation programmes. It will improve relations in the workplace. Simultaneously for Hungarian employers, our suggestion is to focus on motivation factors relating to career aspiration.
... A wave of trends and developments, like globalization (Lawrence, 2002;Bakker et al., 2004;Starbuck, 2005;Schuster and Copeland, 2006;Sirkin et al., 2008;Ramamurti and Singh, 2009), new technology (Sadler, 2002;Malone, 2003;Light, 2005), ascension of Asian markets and especially India and China (Backman and Butler, 2007;Kamdar, 2007;Nath, 2008;Nobrega and Sinha, 2008), environmental issues (Rosen, 2000) and demographic shifts (Rosen, 2000;Martin, 2002), was hitting the business world at the same time as the credit crisis was going on and thus helped to reshape the global business economy. Many authors (Kely, 2006;Charan, 2009;Flatters and Willmott, 2009;Guth, 2009;Hagel et al., 2009;Kotler and Caslione, 2009) agree with Colvin but not all. Main critic is Mintzberg who finds that little has changed in the activities of managers between the 1970s and 19902 (Mintzberg, 1973(Mintzberg, , 2009. ...
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Because of the recent recession, interest into the factors that determine sustainable organisational success has increased. Managers all over the world are trying out various improvement concepts, seeing mixed results. One likely reason for this is the lack of consensus on the organisational characteristics that lead to high performance. The research study described in this article aimed at identifying the factors which have a positive relation with organisational performance, through a literature review of 290 research studies into high performance and subsequent testing of possible high performance factors in 1470 organisations worldwide. The research yielded 35 characteristics – grouped into five factors – that have a significant correlation with high performance and seem to be generic for all types of organisations, industries and countries. The research results provide managers with a framework that adds focus to their continuous improvement efforts in order to achieve better performance. The framework will also support academics in their pursuit of ever more specific improvement factors.
... During a period of economic down-turn and in the time of a company restructuring, there are many demotivating factors that occur; and those that already existed regarding unsatisfying business results grow even stronger (Bryan and Farrell 2008;Charan 2008). Employees are facing uncertainty, amongst other fears such as the potential of losing jobs or lower salaries. ...
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This research analyzed the motivating and demotivating factors amongst employees in a wood processing and furniture manufacturing company. Research was conducted over the year 2010, during the time of a full economic crisis and before the restructuring of the company was done. Analysis also was conducted in 2014, during the beginning of the economic recovery and after the restructuring of the company. Research was conducted with a survey using a questionnaire containing six questions with multiple choice statements. The questions were closed-ended, and respondents used the Likert four-level scale of importance for each statement. A total of 180 employees were surveyed, and results were statistically processed by using the χ 2-test and cluster analysis. This study established that the motivation factors most important to employees in a company are significantly different during the time of an economic crisis, and in the period of economic recovery, i.e. before and after restructuring of the company. Employees were most concerned about physiological needs in the time of a crisis, whereas in the time of an economic recovery, employees consider social needs to be of more importance. Also, employees consider psychological circumstances of work to be more important in the year 2014 than in the year 2010. Employees' overall motivation can be linked to higher efficiency and higher quality production and business results, and such research should be conducted more often.
... Such strategy can be developed and adopted by construction firms in a way that suits their operation during turbulent economic times. Several authors (such as Charan 2009;Colvin 2009;Leinwand, Mainardi 2010) have proposed that that there are always companies that not only (2010) provided a succinct summary view that there are basically six courses of action that companies can adopt in times of crisis, three of which are defensive based on a policy of survival (i.e. focusing on cost reduction, focusing on core operations and downsizing) and three of which are offensive with the company benefitting by growing profitably (i.e. ...
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Firms in the construction industry have always had to deal with the challenges of the economic cycle and develop strategies to deal with the resulting fluctuations in their business environment. In the context of the 2008–2011 double-dip recession in the UK, the results of a survey targeting the top one hundred construction companies in the UK are reported here. This research is particularly intended to assess whether the strategies of large companies in the construction sector, when faced with the issues associated with the variation in the economic cycle, have changed since the previous business cycle (i.e. the 1986–1990 boom followed by the 1990–1991 recession). The survey reveals the challenges that companies have faced, reports on company behaviour and on the policies adopted. While there are many similarities between policies adopted during the recessionary periods of the two cycles, the research found notable changes in attitudes towards diversification, human resource management and price bidding.
... Organizations are faced with the growing challenge of increasing the capabilities of their leaders with less time and less resources (Bennis & Nanus, 1997;Linsky & Heifetz, 2002;Lojeski, 2010). A new and wider array of skills and competencies are needed by leaders in the 21st century (Charan, 2008;Menkes, 2010;Pearce & Conger, 2003;Sashkin & Sashkin, 2003). The high rate of leadership failure points to an alarming trend in contemporary organizations. ...
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Action learning is being used increasingly as a primary method for building leadership skills and improving leadership behavior. This article discusses the emergence of action learning as a methodology for developing leaders and how action learning is effective in developing and sustaining leadership skills and behavior. A comparison of the effectiveness of action learning to other methodologies currently used to develop leadership competencies is presented. Furthermore, the article illustrates how action learning can be tailored to develop specific leadership competencies identified by individual action learning team members while, at the same time, developing other leadership skills needed in contemporary organizations. Four case examples illustrate how action learning built leadership competencies at the U.S. Department of Commerce, Boeing, the National Institutes of Health and the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
... A wave of trends and developments, like globalization (Lawrence, 2002;Bakker et al., 2004;Starbuck, 2005;Schuster and Copeland, 2006;Sirkin et al., 2008;Ramamurti and Singh, 2009), new technology (Sadler, 2002;Malone, 2003;Light, 2005), ascension of Asian markets and especially India and China (Backman and Butler, 2007;Kamdar, 2007;Nath, 2008;Nobrega and Sinha, 2008), environmental issues (Rosen, 2000) and demographic shifts (Rosen, 2000;Martin, 2002), was hitting the business world at the same time as the credit crisis was going on and thus helped to reshape the global business economy. Many authors (Kely, 2006;Charan, 2009;Flatters and Willmott, 2009;Guth, 2009;Hagel et al., 2009;Kotler and Caslione, 2009) agree with Colvin but not all. Main critic is Mintzberg who finds that little has changed in the activities of managers between the 1970s and 19902 (Mintzberg, 1973(Mintzberg, , 2009. ...
Article
Full-text available
Because of the recent recession, interest into the factors that determine sustainable organisational success has increased. Managers all over the world are trying out various improvement concepts, seeing mixed results. One likely reason for this is the lack of consensus on the organisational characteristics that lead to high performance. The research study described in this article aimed at identifying the factors which have a positive relation with organisational performance, through a literature review of 290 research studies into high performance and subsequent testing of possible high performance factors in 1470 organisations worldwide. The research yielded 35 characteristics – grouped into five factors – that have a significant correlation with high performance and seem to be generic for all types of organisations, industries and countries. The research results provide managers with a framework that adds focus to their continuous improvement efforts in order to achieve better performance. The framework will also support academics in their pursuit of ever more specific improvement factors.
Chapter
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Stratejik Planlama ve Pazarlama Yönetimi Süreci Bu giriş bölümünün amacı, pazarlama yönetim sürecini sunmak ve pazarlama yöneticileri etkili olmak istiyorlarsa, onların ne yapmaları gerektiğinin çerçevesini çizmektir. Bu sayede takip eden bölümlerin de nasıl bir düzen içinde olduğu anlaşılabilecektir. Yapacağımız ilk şey, pazarlama anlayışı olarak bilinen örgütsel felsefeyi gözden geçirmektir; zira kitabın temelini büyük ölçüde bu anlayış oluşturacaktır. Bu bölümün geri kalanı, stratejik planlama ve stratejik planlamanın pazarlama planlama süreciyle olan ilişkisine odaklanacaktır.
Chapter
This case study presents an insight into an African leadership journey over a period of two decades within a professional storytelling format, from 1999 to 2019. It provides an overview of the subject's application of germinal and emerging theoretical concepts in performance improvement innovation, as a female executive of African descent and a working mother. For context, the chapter presents the case study subject's leadership trajectory from early life, with insights to her personal orientation on related issues via an interview with the subject, testimonials, and organizational outcomes of the case study subject's leadership styles. The chapter closes with emerging challenges facing performance innovation practice in Africa, solutions and recommendations for further action, leveraging the case study subject's experience as a performance improvement practitioner. Although the case study presents an African experience, the principles can be explored across cultural and environmental settings, based on this self-application narrative
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Education is a universal tool, which empowers and sets the progressive tenor for future humankind and globe. In view of this, BRICS Network University (NU) has created a co-operative institutional mechanism wherein 12 universities of five nations will engage typically for designing educational programs, initiating research and innovation activities, and planning the academic mobility of faculty, staff, and students. Paralleled, there is also an acute need for BRICS NU to build, nurture, and sustain academic leadership in its universities to enable the expansion of its gamut to address the global opportunities and challenges in higher education. Adopting a qualitative case-based approach this paper seeks to understand how academic leadership will boost the higher education quality through the BRICS NU pact. It also deliberates on the need for conscious responsiveness to the ever-changing nature of higher education, needs to collaborate and engage globally, imbibe the global opportunities and convert the global challenges into research problems and academic programmes.
Conference Paper
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Cieľom nášho výskumu je porovnanie zamestnaneckých výhod na Slovensku a v Maďarsku. Výskum poukazuje na systém fixných a flexibilných benefitov, ako aj ich právnu reguláciu v horeuvedených krajinách. K našim empirickým záverom sme sa dopracovali na základe analýzy prieskumu uskutočneného v okruhu 420 Maďarských a 126 Slovenských firiem v roku 2013. Výsledky prezentovanej štúdie poukazujú na značné rozdiely v trendoch poskytovania zamestnaneckých výhod. Tieto vznikly najmä rozdielnymi daňovými reguláciami v Maďarsku a na Slovensku. Abstract: The aim of this research is to compare Hungary and Slovak republic in consideration of employee benefit practice. The study provides a brief introduction of fixed and flexible forms of emloyee benefit systems as well as their legal environment in the above mentioned countries. Our empirical conclusions are based on the results of survey conducted among 420 hungarian and 126 slovakian employer in the year 2013. The findings of the study suggest that due to the distinct tax regulations, there are serious differences regarding employers of the two countries, in terms of providing non-financial benefits to their employees. Kľúčové slová: zamestnanecké výhody, flexibilný systém benefitov, zdaňovanie, porovnanie
Chapter
This chapter argues the timeliness of establishing leadership as a semi-profession through certification processes driven by managerial professional associations/unions. We point to positioning leadership as a semi-profession as a vehicle for driving a professionalization through knowledge-sharing among development professionals and managers, development of a common vocabulary and not least by directing the attention of scarce, yet often “uneducated” managerial talent to the fact that leadership is a skill that can and should be acquired and nurtured. Although a lack of a grand unifying theory of leadership complicates a certification of leadership, it is argued that the cost of bad leadership and the upside of professional leadership merits that more attention be directed to the development and deployment of professional leadership competence.
Article
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This article reviews the relevant concepts related to the subject, starting off by the general questions of motivation to the strategic significance of fringe benefits. We present what international trends can be observed in this area. In the course of our research, we primarily sought to find out how tax and financial changes affect the management of the companies/institutions and the cafeteria plans. Secondly, we examined connections between the external factors and internal features which influence the organization's decisions in the areas above mentioned. © 2018, Institute of Eastern Europe and Central Asia. All rights reserved.
Article
Cikkünkben áttekintjük a témához kapcsolódó releváns fogalmakat, a motiváció és ösztönzés általános kérdésköréből kiindulva a béren kívüli juttatások stratégiai jelentőségéig. Bemutatjuk, hogy milyen nemzetközi trendek figyelhetők meg ezen a területen. Kutatásunk során elsősorban arra kerestük a választ, hogy az adó- és pénzügyi változások hogyan hatnak a vállalatok/intézmények juttatás menedzselésére és cafeteria rendszerére. Másodsorban pedig összefüggéseket kerestünk arra vonatkozóan, hogy a szervezetek döntését milyen külső tényezők és belső adottságok befolyásolják az előzőekben jelzett területen.***In our article, we review the relevant concepts related to the subject of our contribution, starting from the general questions of motivation and motivation, to the strategic significance of fringe benefits. We present what international trends can be observed in this area. In the course of our research, we primarily tried to find out how tax and financial regulation changes affect the management of the companies / institutions and the cafeteria system. Second, we tried figure out relationships with the external factors and internal features of the organizations influence the above-mentioned area.
Book
Innovation is of crucial importance to the market success of our business, as Schumpeter(1950), the father of today's innovative movement wrote in the middle of the last century In addition to the well-known types of conceptual models (product, technology, and development of markets) the importance of mental- and business models which promote the successful operation and growth of organizations is increasing (Tidd-Bessant, 2013). As a result of the constant changes in forms and subtypes of trade human resources and the management of people has become a key element of organizational competitiveness (Gomez-Mejia et al. 2014 and Torrington et al. 2014). Both empirical literature and the observation of business practice it has been posited that the majority of subsidiaries of foreign companies are more developed than local firms (Hiltrop, 1991 and Hoos, 2000) and they perform a more complex human resource management work (Dowling et al. 2017). In some opinions this difference is conspicuous in the case of countries in transition (Lewis, 2005). The Central and Eastern European International Research Team (hereafter CEEIRT ) – composed of researchers from different universities from the Central and Eastern European (CEE) Region, Russia and Kazakhstan - has begun a long-term research project investigating the transition of HR practices and roles in Multinational Company (MNC) subsidiaries, as these challenges occur within the region. We conducted our first region-wide survey round successfully in 2008 - 2009. Our second survey occurred in 2011-2013. The aim of our current survey (2015-2016) is to understand both the recent and future challenges inherent in human resource management given this new, complex and dynamic landscape. The majority of companies in the competitive sector of the Central and Eastern European (CEE) Russia and Kazakhstan region have largely completed those major legal, strategic and structural modifications that followed privatization. They have essentially completed the reorientation of firm functions and set up competitive business models and HR systems to support these various models. With the intensification of competition continuous renewal is now being emphasized. In this situation, the role of human resources becomes particularly important in both the private and public sector of these countries. There is a deficit in the HRM (Human Resource Management) literature when it comes to identifying new patterns of Multinational Company (hereafter MNC) involvement and its impact on the HR/HRM activities of these firms. In this ongoing regional research project we examine the HR functions and strategic practices of Multinational Company (MNC) subsidiaries in Central and Eastern Europe. The current research is part of long-term research cooperation – the Central and Eastern European International Research Team (CEEIRT) that is composed of researchers from universities across the Central and Eastern European (CEE) region and aimed at examining the changing HR practices and roles in MNC subsidiaries. Some 406 foreign owned, legally independent subsidiaries participated in the questionnaire survey from ten countries (Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Croatia, Hungary, Kazakhstan, Poland, Romania, Russia, Serbia and Slovakia). Our model is built on three components. First, we relied on the widespread perception of international management, in regards to the external factors influencing the HR activities of a subsidiary, that is factors related to firm size, maturity, country of origin and strategic orientation. Given the context provided by these dimensions we secondarily examined how different HR variables (e.g. presence and number of HR professionals employed, the importance of HR functions, HR skills and the employment of external service providers), vary systematically across nations in our regional sample. The third component of our study consisted of a comparison of the similarities and differences of the HR practices of foreign owned companies in the countries surveyed. The book consists of 14 parts and an appendix. The Second section gives a brief overview of the basic features of our research. The Third section describes the theory of the four most important elements of our model (FDI and Employment, Strategic issues of the local subsidiaries, HR in CEE region and Socio-economic and cultural dimensions of Countries Survey). The Fourth chapter summarizes the main results of our research and provides a series of conclusions. The last nine chapters consist of detailed individual country analyses (Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Hungary, Kazakhstan, Poland, Romania, Russia, Serbia and Slovakia). The Appendix includes company names of those firms that provided data for our research. The book concludes with a bibliography. Such a broad and complex research monograph is not to be prepared without the support of a wide variety of hard working professional colleagues. Special thanks go out to all of the members of the CEEIRT (Central and Eastern European International Research Team) Team. The names of the academic contributors to the book may be found on the introductory page. On one level the creation and development of this impressive regional research group may be the most important and long lasting contribution related to this initial report of our collective scholarship. Our growing sense of global and regional solidarity and coordinated scientific curiosity is very appropriate to the type of research we have entered into over the last ten or so years. It is important to list the names of universities that have, by providing appropriate conditions supportive to our research, thereby contributed to the completion of this work. We should particularly mention as follows: 1. Babeş-Bolyai University, (Cluj-Napoca, Romania) 2. Central European University Business School (Budapest, Hungary) 3. Faculty of Economics University of Novi Sad (Subotica, Serbia) 4. International School of Management ISM (Presov, Slovakia) 5. J.Selye University (Komárno, Slovakia) 6. Kazakh Ablai khan University of International Relations and World Languages (Almaty, Kazakhstan) 7. MSU Lomonosova (Moscow, Russia) 8. Szent István University (Gödöllő, Hungary) 9. University of Economics, (Prague, Czech Republic) 10. University of Forestry (Sofia, Bulgaria) 11. University of Novi Sad Technical Faculty "Mihajlo Pupin", (Zrenjanin, Serbia) 12. University of Pécs (Pécs, Hungary) 13. Wroclaw University of Economics (Wroclaw, Poland)
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Higher Education in India is beset with a host of problems pertaining to quality when India is aiming to be an important player in the post globalization knowledge economy. Higher Educational Institutions (HEIs) are in a dire need of strengthening individual and institutional effectiveness in imparting higher education that meets the global quality requirements. In such a situation, Academic Leaders who are the gate keepers of the quality standards, imagination and creativity of higher education need to urgently address the maladies and deficiencies of the higher education to make it more professional and global. To do so, training, practice and skill based selection of academic leaders of HEIs is mandatory and relevant for the maintenance of global quality standards. Also there is a need for the Academic Leaders to explore how the concept of globalization, a meaningful integration of local and global forces, can help them inform and enhance their pedagogy and practice.
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Today you can read from a wide variety of sources about multinational companies in transitional economies. Often the opinions reported are not always flattering. Several sources of literature state that international companies often apply far more efficient and modern Human Resource (HR) methods in comparison with their local counterparts (Hiltrop, 1991 and Horowitz, 2011). These methods have recently been not only efficient, but also begin to contribute significantly to the development of the host-country's workers' competencies (Kuddo, 2009). This integrated collection of research articles will describe our collective experience over the past years related to changes in the HR practices of foreign owned firms in the Central and Eastern European (CEE) region. For each country we will first review the socio-economic situation of countries surveyed and evolution of foreign direct investments in this region. Second, we outline our research model. And last, but not least, we present the empirical experiences, which we received on the subject from seven CEE countries - Croatia, Estonia, Hungary, Poland, Romania, Serbia and Slovakia. Before 1989, hardly any foreign direct investment had been injected by the multinational companies of the developed West into the former socialist countries. Even the former socialist countries urged carrying out foreign direct investment within the economic association of former socialist (COMECON = Council for Mutual Economic Assistance) nations. But, with few exceptions, these forms of investment were not typical. Rather, each country has invested at home. This situation changed radically after the regime changes of the late 1980s. Of course, this process took place in different intensity in the examined countries. Usually the introduction of foreign capital was very closely tied to the privatization process. Let's see what the numbers show. Several times global peaks of foreign capital investment have occurred. The historical record worldwide for such investments over the last twenty years occurred in the year 2000. The next major peak was in 2007. In the past three years, the volume of FDI was a shadow of previous volumes. A recent positive trend has started again in this regard. The countries surveyed have progressively increased the amount of FDI during the years examined. Initially, Hungary was leading the list. Later, Poland took over as regional leader in foreign direct investment. In recent years, the Southern-European countries are catching up in this regard. It's worth a brief look at the most important economic indicators for our focal nations. Analyzed before the crisis, most countries – with the possible exception of Hungary - have grown at a pace exceeding the developed countries. Moreover, these countries have kept up with the pace of emerging countries. The crisis has also has drastically impacted these countries. Everywhere except in Poland an overall economic downturn has occurred. Most of the countries are heavily export-oriented and closely linked to the German economy. This strong economic connection has helped. The economic growth in these countries started increasing again. The institutional systems of the countries examined here have much in common, but, because of the historical and national traditions unique to each nation, there are several institutional differences. They share the historical heritage of socialism, the majority of them (except Croatia and Serbia) share EU full membership (2004: Estonia, Hungary, and Poland, while in 2007, Romania), and therefore we find many of the same institutional solutions in HR-related areas. Differences exist in the areas of unemployment or tripartite interest reconciliation systems. There are significant differences in the field of pension, personal and corporate taxation policies as well. The Western public for some time has treated and considered the former socialist countries as a homogeneous block. The Czech-Slovak peaceful split, the secession of the Baltic States from the former Soviet Union and last but not least the disintegration of the former Yugoslavia after the Balkan civil wars, all show that this simplistic view is not appropriate. In the last decades, years of ongoing cultural studies have reached this region. Both Hofstede (2001) and the GLOBE research both provide empirical evidences of the complex and multifaceted nature of cultures within and across regional and national boundaries. The impact of “the culture factor” in determining the investment potential of the region in the eyes of multinational firms is a critical ongoing question. All countries surveyed want to modernize, and this modernization will require a great deal of capital. Besides the EU community funds, the other logical potential source is foreign capital. Of course, many of these countries also worried about the strong influence of foreign capital in the economy – the “sovereignty” question. Many political parties and interest groups are explicitly campaigning against FDI, but the more dominant political forces in the region have always sent consistent signals of balance, neither totally for nor against foreign capital. Rather, all governments more or less give legal benefits to foreign investors. Hungary in the past few years has tried to get significant tax incentives to lure foreign capital into the country. The current government - as well as previous governments - has tried to support job creation programs associated with foreign investors. The former Slovak government offered tax incentive programs and infrastructural facilities (e.g. employee homes, roads etc.) to the biggest foreign investors in the car industry. Our model is built on three components. First, we relied on the widespread perception of international management, besides the external influencing factors the HR activities of a subsidiary, factors related to firm size, maturity, firm country of origin and strategic orientation. Given the context provided by these dimensions we examined how different HR variables (e.g. presence and size of HR professionals, the importance of HR functions, HR skills and the employment of external service providers), vary systematically across nations in our regional sample. The third component of our study was that we compared the similarities and differences on HR practices of foreign owned companies in the countries surveyed. Pécs, Gödöllő and Richmond (Kentucky), July 2011. Farkas, F., Poór, J. and Engle, A.D.
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Purpose Many organizations emerge from a crisis in a weak position because they focused too much on cost reductions. However, a review of past crises reveals that there are always organizations that seize the opportunities offered by crises. During difficult times these organizations tailor their strategy to their specific circumstances to achieve an optimum balance between what they have do and what they can do. These organizations do not automatically choose for a cost reduction strategy but consider a wide range of courses of action. As a result, they strengthen their position and, after recovery of the economy, they emerge as a frontrunner in their industry. This article reviews the possible courses of action during a recession, illustrated by companies that took these actions in practice, and explains how you can determine the course you need to take to help your organization to not only survive but thrive in a crisis. Design/methodology/approach On the basis of a previous meta analysis into high performance which identified five factors characteristics of a HPO, and a review of the financial strength of an organization, six courses of action are identified and illustrated with practical examples. Findings The examples of the courses of action as taken by the organizations described in this article reveal that “one size does not fit all”: each organization needs to examine its position carefully to identify the status of its financial situation and internal organization. Research implications/limitations Organizations can use the matrix of courses of action to determine the most appropriate course for the coming time. Originality/value This is the first time that the courses of action that an organization can take have been underpinned by scientific research, and as such managers can be more confident that they will take the right course of action.
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National parks in both rich and poor nations face internal and external challenges to which they must respond. These range from budget restrictions to crowd control, from pressure by environmentalists to increased demand for recreation, and from mining rights advocates to souvenir vendors. Some want to expand the parks, others wish to privatize them. We examine how Canada and the USA tackled the expansion of national park systems, and take a brief look at how other countries are now proceeding. All must meet the challenge of multiple mandates, as well as that of intergenerational needs in a complex, bureaucratic world. Managing in a proactive way involves attracting and educating various stakeholders, building trust and relationships, and offering diverse programs. Just as important, park systems must create an identity and practice soft power diplomacy.
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Leaders during a deep and prolonged downturn should introduce organizational practices that build capability in the organization, not only to withstand the uncertainties of rough times better, but also to emerge stronger for the future. We present a set of organization design changes that can create closer connections to the marketplace and better use knowledge in the organization to introduce new ways to deliver value while consuming fewer resources. During rapid change and extreme threats, steering the ship is not sufficient. Leaders must introduce approaches that tap employees' energies throughout the organization. © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
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