Behavioural determinants of perceived managerial and leadership effectiveness in Argentina

The purpose of this empirical study was to explore the perceptions of Argentinean managers and non-managerial employees about managerial and leadership effectiveness, and the extent to which the findings are generalized to other countries. The central research question addressed was as follows: How do people employed in Argentinean companies behaviourally distinguish effective managers from ineffective managers, and to what extent are the findings culture-specific or context-general? A total of 42 employees from private and public sector organizations in Cordoba, Argentina, were interviewed using critical incident technique. The interviews generated 302 critical incidents of which 155 were examples of positive (effective) managerial behaviour, and 147 of negative (ineffective) managerial behaviour. The findings suggest that Argentineans perceive as effective those managers who are supportive, considerate, motivating, caring, good decision makers, approachable, participative, fair-minded, communicative, actively involved, and who act as role models. This challenges the widely held belief that Argentineans prefer authoritarian managers over democratic ones.     

Perceived managerial and leadership effectiveness in a non-profit organization: an exploratory and cross-sector comparative study

This paper presents the results of an ‘HRD professional partnership’ study of perceived managerial and leadership effectiveness carried out within a UK third sector (non-profit) organization. Using the critical incident technique, concrete examples [critical incidents (CIs) ] of observed effective and least effective/ineffective managerial behaviour were collected from a purposive sample of senior and middle-level managers of the collaborating registered charity. The CIs were content analysed to identify themes and analytical categories. Behavioural statements were then devised to reflect the constituent CIs of each category. The paper also reports the results of a subsequent cross-sector comparative analysis that explored the similarities and differences between the identified behavioural statements and the results of equivalent studies in the UK public and private sector organizations. The findings challenge the widely held image that managers need to adopt different managerial behaviours to be effective in non-profit organizations because of inherent differences between the sectors. How the resultshave been used by the collaborating organization is outlined. Finally, thelimitations, implications for practice and research recommendations are discussed.     

Toward an emergent Asian behavioural model of perceived managerial and leadership effectiveness: a cross-nation comparative analysis of effective and ineffective managerial behaviour of private sector managers in India and South Korea

ABSTRACT

This Type 4 (emic-and-etic) indigenous cross-case/cross-nation comparative study compares the results of two Type 3 (emic-as-emic) indigenous replication studies of effective and ineffective managerial behaviour carried out within private companies in India and South Korea respectively. The method used was ‘realist qualitative content analysis’ involving inductive open and axial coding. Of the Indian findings 100% were found to be convergent in meaning with 94.43% of the equivalent South Korean findings. This has led to the identification of a two-factor emergent Asian behavioural model of perceived managerial and leadership effectiveness comprised of 16 positive (effective) and 6 negative (ineffective) generic behavioural criteria. These criteria could be used in both countries to critically review and improve extant, or develop new, competency-based management/leadership development programmes. The research findings lend no support to claims that national culture has a major impact on managerial and leadership practices, styles, and effectiveness.     

Managerial and leadership effectiveness as perceived by managers and non-managerial employees in Mexico

Using the critical incident (CI) technique, concrete examples of effective and ineffective managerial behaviour (CIs) were collected from managers and non-managerial employees within private and public sector organizations situated in the north and southeast regions of Mexico. The CIs were content analysed using open, axial and selective coding to identify a smaller number of thematic categories. A total of 38 ‘manager’ and 35 ‘non-managerial employee’ behavioural categories were identified respectively, of which 82.19% (n = 60) were found to be either convergent or polar opposite in meaning. The findings suggest that what behaviourally differentiates effective managers from ineffective managers is perceived, described and defined by Mexican managers and non-managerial employees in much the same way. The study provides new insights on the issue of perceived managerial and leadership effectiveness in Mexico and is a rare example of indigenous managerial behaviour research in a non-Anglo country.     

Perceived managerial and leadership effectiveness within a Moroccan Higher Education Institution

The purpose of this research was to determine what behaviourally distinguishes effective and ineffective managers within a Moroccan Higher Education Institution (HEI). The critical incident technique (CIT) was the methodology deployed to collect data from participants in terms of how they perceive managers as either effective or ineffective. The collected data (CIs) were subjected to content and thematic analysis that resulted in derived positive and negative behavioural statements (BSs). A total of 42 participants/informants were interviewed and revealed a total of 418 CIs, of which 189 were positive CIs and 229 were negative. The analysis revealed a total of 49 BSs, of which 19 were positive and 30 were negative behavioural indicators. The findings of this investigation bring empirical evidence to understand what and how managers are perceived as effective or ineffective in the Moroccan academic context and, therefore, adds to the literature. The information obtained can also provide rich information/knowledge that can be used as a basis to address the behavioural developmental needs of managers in HEIs. This research adds value by following by following two previous replication studies in a French and a Hungarian HEI; moreover, this study is the first to be conducted in the Moroccan/North African region.     

Behavioural criteria of managerial and leadership effectiveness within Egyptian and British public sector hospitals: an empirical case study and multi-case/cross-nation comparative analysis

This paper reports the results of a study of managerial and leadership effectiveness carried out within an Egyptian public sector hospital in which concrete examples of ‘effective’ and ‘least effective/ineffective’ manager and managerial leader behaviour, as observed by superiors, peers and subordinates, were collected using the critical incident technique. These critical incidents were then content analyzed to identify a smaller number of discrete behavioural statements and criteria of effectiveness. The paper also reports the results of a subsequent comparative analysis of these Egyptian findings against equivalent behavioural criteria that emerged from studies in two different British NHS Trust hospitals. This latter multi-case/cross-nation study revealed high degrees of overlap, commonality, and relative generalization across all three organizations. The results lend strong empirical support to those who believe in ‘generic’ and ‘universalistic’ explanations of the nature of managerial and leadership effectiveness.     

An examination of associations among manager-boss gender,self-awareness,and managerial derailment

Using the data of managers in the United States (N = 42,792), United Kingdom (N = 3,797), and China (N = 1,893), we examined the associations among manager-boss gender combinations, self-awareness and the managerial derailment potential. First, the study demonstrated an association between manager-boss gender combinations and managerial self-awareness, even though the specific gender joint effects were not consistent among the three countries. Second, both self-awareness and manager-boss gender combinations contributed to explaining additional variance of managerial derailment potential. Consistently across three countries, overestimators were more likely to derail than the managers who were in touch with their bosses. In terms of gender effects, compared to male managers, female managers with male bosses were more likely to derail. These results imply that, to achieve high levels of self-awareness and provide accurate prediction of managerial derailment potential, organizational scholars and practitioners must consider both the gender of both managers and their bosses.     

A Comparative Analysis of Quality Practice in Manufacturing Firms in the U.S. and Taiwan*

The aim of this paper is to determine if there is a causal relationship between multivariate constructs for quality (i.e., customer satisfaction, employee satisfaction, and employee service quality) and organizational performance. The presence of such relationships, as well as the identification of key indicators within each quality construct for different types of firms, are explored in this empirical study on the perceptions of middle managers in Taiwan and the United States. The study found a significant causal relationship between the quality constructs and organizational performance. These relationships are different, however, for the four types of firms based on age and size. Also, within the same firm types, there are differences among countries. For example, for older firms, Taiwanese managers tend to perceive customer satisfaction as the most important quality construct in improving organizational performance, while U.S. managers tend to perceive employee satisfaction as the most important. For younger firms, U.S. managers perceive customer satisfaction as influencing organizational performance, while Taiwanese managers perceive both customer satisfaction and employee satisfaction as doing so. A further breakdown of the quality constructs identified the key indicators within each construct that separates “better performers'’from “lesser performers'’in both countries for the four types of firms. These indicators are dissimilar, thus suggesting that focus on quality constructs may lead to improvements in organizational performance by focusing on different indicators in different environments. These results have implications for the adoption and implementation of quality practices in different countries.     

Personal values and managerial decision-making: Evidence from a developing economy

This study attempts to investigate to what extent the personal values of managers from a developing economy affect their managerial decisions. Previous studies have suggested the relationship between values and managerial behavior. The purpose of the study was to examine this relationship in the context of a developing, less industrialized economy, identify peculiar issues given the context of the study, and discuss the managerial implications of the findings. The subjects studied were Nigerian managers, using the value survey designed by England. Results showed that values do affect behavior, but more significantly, that the cultural values of the managers play a significant role in their managerial decisions.     

Relationships between Sales Management Control, Territory Design, Salesforce Performance and Sales Organization Effectiveness

This research evaluates determinants of sales organization effectiveness in a sample of British companies, and contributes to an important new research stream by following recent empirical studies in the USA and Australia. We discuss a model of sales organization effectiveness determined by salesforce outcome performance and behavioural performance, as well as by the use of a behaviour-based control approach. Sales territory design is also considered as a particularly important managerial variable, which has received little analytical attention in the traditional literature, but which appears to be an important influence on the effectiveness of the sales operation. Our exploratory path analytical model suggests that sales territory design has a large effect on sales organization effectiveness both directly, and indirectly through its relationship with salesforce behavioural performance. These findings are somewhat different to those in similar studies in other countries, and suggest some important implications for managers as well as for researchers in this field.     

A behavioural classification of managerial jobs

This article describes the aims, hypotheses, and first stage of a research project which seeks to compare some of the behavioural characteristics of managerial jobs, and to develop a typology of jobs on this basis. The criteria for selecting these characteristics and the different characteristics that are being explored are described. Management scientists may find that the research can provide them with a new perspective on the jobs of the managers with whom they work.     

Sources of differences between Chinese,Indian, and Caucasian scientists and engineers: Evaluations of managerial potential

This article proposes intrapersonal, interpersonal, and acculturation factors to help explain differences in evaluations of the managerial potential of Chinese, Indians, and U.S. Caucasians. Using data from 1658 scientists and engineers and their managers in 24 U.S. companies, we find that managers evaluate Indians (but not Chinese) to have less managerial potential and to be less effective at working with others than Caucasians. The absence of insecurity in Indians’ self-reported English fluency appears to be detrimental to the evaluation of their managerial potential. In contrast, Indians who report high managerial aspirations receive less harsh evaluations of their managerial potential. We discuss the implications of our findings for future research and practice.     

Does managerial ability influence the quality of financial reporting?

The purpose of this paper is to study the influence of managerial ability on the quality of their financial reporting. Using a large bank sample from nine different countries and for the time period 2004–2010, we expect that bank earnings quality and accounting conservatism increase with more able managers that disclose more accurate earnings and who report higher information about banks’ future earnings and cash flows.The results confirm that managerial abilities play a significant role in the quality of financial reporting in banks, and that capable bank managers are less likely to manage earnings opportunistically. This study is timely and relevant given the recent emphasis on earnings quality of banks over the last few years, and the criticisms of managerial abilities after the financial crisis. The evidence from this study can help standard-setters and regulators to better understand the business practices and accounting behavior of banks in the light of managerial abilities.     

The Identity‐Matching Principle: Corporate and Organizational Identification in a Franchising System*

This paper examines corporate and organizational identification in franchisee organizations from the perspective of the social identity approach. We propose the identity‐matching principle (IMP) as a heuristic for understanding and predicting the different effects of nested identifications. According to the IMP, when identifications and relevant behavioural or attitudinal outcomes address the same level of categorization, their relationship will be stronger. A study is presented with employees (n=281) matched to managers (n=101). Supporting the IMP, organizational identification (but not corporate identification) predicted customer‐oriented behaviour on the level of the local organization, whereas corporate identification (but not organizational identification) predicted attitude toward corporate citizenship behaviour. Furthermore, multilevel analyses showed that these relationships were enhanced in organizations where managers displayed the respective behaviours themselves to a greater extent. Implications for theorizing about leadership and organizational attachments are discussed alongside recommendations for organizational practitioners.     

Constructing managerial manoeuvring space in contradictory contexts

This paper discusses manoeuvring space and demonstrates how autonomy, power and discretion need to be understood as constructed and integrated behaviours where managers manoeuvre between dilemmas in their own management practices. Twenty-seven Norwegian police managers were shadowed and interviewed. We found that constructions of manoeuvring space presupposed that managers balanced dilemmas. We identified three different strategies through which managers constructed manoeuvring space by navigating between dilemmas and actively constructing demands and constraints. These strategies were (1) decoupling, (2) sensegiving and (3) strategic positioning. Our findings add to the managerial discretion literature, arguing that constructions of manoeuvring space are central to managers’ development and to how they create opportunities and possibilities to make choices that balance conflicting dilemmas in contradictory contexts.     

Longitudinal influences of managerial support on employee well-being

A three-wave longitudinal survey of managers working for a food retailer (n = 148) assessed both job characteristics and individual well-being during a period of organizational restructuring. Repeated measures analysis of variance revealed significant changes in both job characteristics and well-being across the three surveys. In addition, longitudinal structural equation models were developed to model the relationships between job characteristics and two indices of strain (job satisfaction and mental health) over time, including the assessment of the relative fit of competing causal process models. After controlling for the temporal stability of all variables, both types of strain were predicted by a combination of prior strain, prior job characteristics and current job characteristics. More specifically, managerial support was found to influence job satisfaction both directly and through perceptions of role ambiguity and control. Mental health was consistently predicted by low current and prior work demands, and in addition was associated with high managerial support. These results suggest that interventions to enhance employee well-being might usefully focus on increasing managerial support. Recommendations for research intending to examine the direction of causal associations between job characteristics and strain are made.     

Measuring Organizational Performance: A Case for Subjective Measures

We review the organizational performance (OP) measurement literature highlighting the limitations of both objective and subjective measures of performance. We argue that, with careful planning, subjective measures can be successfully employed to assess OP. This is because often consistent, reliable and comparable compatible objective data on OP measures – particularly across countries and sectors – is difficult to come by. Considering that an inflated OP measure can be cross‐checked with the use of secondary data, managers have little incentive to report such figures. As a result, when quizzed over the stand‐alone performance measures of their organizations or vis‐à‐vis their rivals, managers accurately assess and respond to questions on the performance of their organizations. An in‐depth statistical exercise conducted on the subjective measures of OP as reported by managers of four sets of companies in four separate countries, show consistent results, thus lending support to this premise.     

Scandinavian Managers on Scandinavian Management

This study explores how Scandinavian managers perceive themselves as managers.In particular the focus is on how and to what degree they perceive themselvesas Scandinavian managers, i.e. managers working within a cultural(and political) context to which they have to adapt their management style.Scandinavian management as a concept is discussed. It is furthermore proposedthat management in the three Scandinavian countries does not differsignificantly from one another, but differ from that in non-Scandinaviancountries. In oder to obtain a deeper understanding of the conceptScandinavian management, a constructivistic approach was chosen. Based onFocus-group interviews the motives behind the preferred managementstyle were revealed. Two types of motives were identified: an ideological andan instrumental, meaning that one group of managers had a more calculativeapproach, whilst the other had a more voluntaristic one.     

Perceptions of facial dominance,trustworthiness and attractiveness predict managerial pay awards in experimental tasks

Positive associations between physical attractiveness and employee reward are well-documented within the organisational literature. Although the impact of facial cues to trustworthiness and dominance on a number of social outcomes has been established outside of the workplace, the extent to which they, in addition to attractiveness, affect pay at different managerial levels is yet to be investigated. This paper presents research into this issue using a face payment task for shop floor managers (Retail Managers) and senior managers (Heads of Retail Operations). Evaluations indicated that all three facial cues were positively associated with awarded pay at both managerial levels. Moreover, attractiveness had a significantly stronger link with shop-floor managers' than senior managers' pay, whereas perceived trustworthiness and perceived dominance had significantly stronger links with pay for senior managers than shop-floor managers. It further emerged that women were paid more in this experimental task where pay was awarded solely based on facial features and that the facial features were more predictive of women's than men's pay. Awareness of the role of physical cues in pay awards can be considered by organisations to reduce biases in remuneration.     

French and British Top Managers' Understanding of the Structure and the Dynamics of Their Industries: a Cognitive Analysis and Comparison

This paper presents the findings of an exploratory study of the content of and differences between managerial frames of references with regard to the structure and dynamics of competitive environments. These frames of references are examined and compared at both the industry level and the country level; and the paper shows the influences of both industry and institutional structures and national culture on managerial thinking. It therefore contributes to the field of comparative management, as well as the growing interest in cognitive analysis in the field of management. The study is particularly significant since (a) its context is the rapidly changing industry environment of Europe, and (b) the managers are all involved in the development of strategies for their firms. Thirty three top managers (16 English and 17 French) were interviewed in four industries (brewing, car manufacturing, retail banking and book publishing) on their understanding of their industry and the strategy of their company. Content analysis of the transcribed interviews surfaces cognitive constructs which facilitate the identification of similarities and differences between managers, (a) within industries, (b) across industries, (c) within countries, (d) between countries and (e) between countries within the different industries. The analysis also provides means whereby the constructs can be represented in the form of cognitive maps.