management theory – GlobalFocus

Why management history matters…

The economic crisis has prompted many to call for a greater emphasis on studying the history of business and management. Morgen Witzel looks at the lessons that could be learned and why they are so important.

Collaborate locally for enhanced benefits

As the world grapples with the COVID-19 crisis, a debate is arising across the globe regarding university education and, more specifically, management education. By Samir Dani, Colin Rigby and Emma Bonfiglio The higher education sector has worked rapidly throughout the crisis to adopt a digital learning environment to enable continued learning. This emergent approach has…

Aplicar liberalmente

Hacia un modelo liberal de educación gerencial Howard Thomas defiende la integración de las artes liberales en la educación gerencial, de modo que el énfasis de los planes de estudio existentes en la perspicacia tecnológica y analítica se equilibre con las aptitudes de pensamiento crítico e inteligencia ética necesarias para el juicio administrativo

Building new ecosystems to create customer solutions

Interest in ecosystems is back with a vengeance but, say Arnoud De Meyer and Peter J Williamson, setting them up and maintaining them is far from easy. We all know that the world in which businesses operate is changing fast. Agility and speed have become more important for an organisation than stability, predictability and…

Apply liberally: Towards a model of liberal management education

Howard Thomas argues the case for integrating the liberal arts into management education so that the existing curricula emphasis on technological and analytical acumen is balanced with skills of critical thinking and ethical intelligence necessary for managerial judgment.

Where is management education going?

Management education leaders ask themselves this question every day. Dan LeClair cuts through the complexity to offer some insights and guidance. “Describe the future of management education in 1,200 words or less.” Is this an exam question in some Clayton Christensen-esq seminar on disruptive innovation? Maybe. What we do know is that it is…

What should business schools be for?

September 2019 Howard Thomas and Kenneth Starkey report on a new initiative that looks to business schools to re-orient themselves to a challenging new future. Much has been written about the future of the university, diagnosing management and business education either as a symptom of the decline of higher-education values or as a tonic for…

The Power of Ecosystems

Richard Straub tracks the growing interest in ecosystems and their profound implications for management education and research and development. By spotting emerging trends, managers could act on and shape these forces to the benefit of wider society. Peter Drucker always said that his interest in management was an offshoot of his preoccupation with…

Haier’s philosophy: Personal values first

Zhang Ruimin is a world-renowned Chinese entrepreneur, founder of the Haier Group, Chairman of the Board of Directors and CEO of the Haier Group. In recognition of his achievements in management innovation, he has received numerous awards in the field of international management. In this interview he outlines his unique approach to management, integrating China’s…

An infinite loop: Management and research-in-action

It is time for a new, coordinated and collaborative approach to management research say Andrea Cuomo, Yves Doz, Mikko Kosonen, Christophe Midler and José Santos. Michael Porter and Nitin Nohria, respectively University Professor and Dean of the Harvard Business School, after years of survey research into the role of CEOs, state unequivocally: “surprisingly little…

A new leadership lens to navigate complexity

Sharon Olivier, Viki Holton, Kerrie Fleming and Frederick Hölscher describe Ego, Eco and Intuitive leadership – three capabilities that managers can deploy to successfully navigate complex problems. When, according to the Deloitte Global Human Capital Trends report, 2018, 11,000 business and HR leaders tell us that future organisations will no longer be assessed only on…

Is this the end of strategy as we know it?

Strategy is changing rapidly in response to a volatile environment but, Martin Friesl argues, that is making it more important than ever A “fleet” metaphor is symptomatic of today’s corporate world. Gone are the days, it seems, of grand corporate strategies that aim to maximise synergies across businesses by painting a picture of coherence for shareholders…

Latin America: Management education’s growth and future pathways

A new book looks at some of the key findings from a study of the evolution of management education in Latin America and highlights current issues facing the region. By Gabriela Alvarado, Howard Thomas, Lynne Thomas and Alexander Wilson The book Latin America: Management Education’s Growth and Future Pathways [Emerald, UK] follows a past, present and future perspective on the growth…

Those green shoots may not really be spring

As growth returns after a long financial winter, economic hope as well as spring is in the air. But, says Simon Caulkin, it is impossible not to notice the contrast between the warming of the economic climate and the clouds lowering on the social and emotional front In country after country, society seems fractured. There is deepening distrust of…

‘Inclusive growth and prosperity’ – for whom?

Instead of prosperity the last decade has delivered inequality, insecurity, and the rise of nationalism and populism. Simon Caulkin argues that this is a secular challenge that business, and especially managers, must face head on. Inclusive growth and prosperity, the theme for this year’s Global Peter Drucker Forum in November, sounds like the ultimate motherhood and apple pie.…

New Horizons

Capitalism 2.0 – new horizons for managers Richard Straub in defence of a capitalism rejuvenated. The world has been shattered by a series of crises since the collapse of Lehman Brothers in 2008: the near shattering of the world financial system followed by a severe economic downturn across the advanced economies and the surfacing of…

Management’s Second Curve

Management has served us well. Since the Industrial Revolution it has paved the way for a sustained and accelerating rise in living standards unheard of and unforeseen. But with the ‘digital revolution’, we are entering a new era where the logic of industrial-age organisation has lost its purchase. It is time to reinvent it, says…

Clouds of Change

Charles Handy, like Peter Drucker, has always sought to identify the ‘clouds of change’ threatening society. Here he identifies one such possible threat – the dysfunctional behaviour of our large corporations. One of [Peter Drucker’s] skills was his ability to spot the clouds of change in society while they were still far off on the…