| The Learning of Senior Managers in Changing Environments: Preliminary Results |
| | Matthews, Judy H. | Queensland U. of Technology | j.matthews@gsm.uq.edu.au | 61-7-3365 6264 |
| | Williams, Trevor A. | Queensland U. of Technology | t.williams@qut.edu.au | 61-7-3864 1298 |
| | Managers have important roles to play in organizational change and the nature of managerial work is significantly affected by organizational change. However, there has been relatively little examination of how managerial roles are changing and of how managers themselves see their work worlds in the context of organizational change.
Managers, like any individuals are seen as more inclined to act in character than out of character in any given situation. They are seen as choosing paths according to their existing knowledge but also according to their sense of efficacy in their environments. They value particular means and ends in their environments, but the strength of their commitment is a function of both the perceived difficulty and their desire to achieve these goals. They are also seen as learning from acting in their environments, and, in this learning, lies the potential for their predispositions, knowledge and sense of ability, and their intentions to change over time.
This dynamic model of learning, where individuals both learn from and act on the environment is used to explore what happens to individuals and environments in the implementation of change. |
| | Keywords: learning; senior managers; change |
| Student Perceptions of Psychological Contracts in the Business School Classroom: Exploring Differences between the U.S. and Taiwan |
| | Niehoff, Brian P. | Kansas State U. | niehoff@business.cba.ksu.edu | (785)532-4359 |
| | Turnley, William H. | Kansas State U. | turnley@ksu.edu | 785-532-4351 |
| | Sheu, Chwen | Kansas State U. | csheu@business.cba.ksu.edu | (785)532-4363 |
| | Yen, Hsiu Ju Rebecca | Yuan-Ze U. | hjyen@saturn.yzu.edu.tw | (use KSU phone # -- 785-532-62 |
| | International exchange programs can only be effective if students experience a comfortable learning environment in the classroom. The
learning environment is greatly affected by the initial expectations of the students concerning their own obligations as well as the teaching
methods of the instructor. Unfortunately, little is known about student expectations of the classroom experience, much less any
cross-cultural differences in these expectations. This study gathered survey data from U.S. and Taiwanese students concerning their
expectations of their own and the teachers' obligations in the classroom. The results showed differences across the two cultures. We
believe that the findings can be used to better understand cross-cultural differences in classroom expectations and improve exchange
students' learning. |
| | Keywords: psychological contracts; international; expectations |
| The Influence of Anglo-American Management Education on Chinese Business Practice |
| | Martinsons, Aelita Brivins | Yen & Martinsons (Hong Kong) Ltd. | N/A | (852) 2761-0890 |
| | Martinsons, Maris G. | City U. of Hong Kong | mgmaris@cityu.edu.hk | (852) 2788-7958 |
| | Hempel, Paul S. | City U. of Hong Kong | mghempel@cityu.edu,.hk | (852) 2788-7853 |
| | As management scholars become more interested in both cross-cultural
issues and the transfer of knowledge to practitioners, it is important
to determine the influence of Anglo-American management education on
foreign business practices. A recent study examined business practices
in Hong Kong, where the principles of Anglo-American human resource
management (HRM) have been widely taught to Chinese students for several
decades.
This paper focuses on clerical recruitment advertising. Little is
known about this HRM activity although Anglo-American management
educators have provided an abundance of prescriptive advice on the topic.
The reported research demonstrated the explanatory power of in-depth
interviews when used in conjunction with an arms-length method like
content analysis.
Hong Kong newspaper advertisements for clerical workers were found to be
inconsisyent with the Anglo-American prescriptive model, which promotes
self-selection by potential employees. Interviews with those placing the
ads indicated that clerical recruiting in Hong Kong is used to signal a
preference for young female applicants, and to gain control of the
subsequent selection process.
The results are explained largely by the distinctive characteristics of
Chinese management, but financial considerations and the absence of
anti-discriminatory legislation at the time of the study were also
salient factors. The transferability of knowledge from Western
management educators to Chinese business practitioners is argued to
merit further research, and specific recommendations are provided. |
| | Keywords: Knowledge Transfer; Chinese Management; Recruitment and Selection |
| Developing Managerial Competence: The Challenge for International Business Education. |
| | Beck, John E. | Nanyang Technological U., Singapore | aebjohn@ntu.edu.sg | (0065) 7905658 |
| | One way in which business schools have been trying to deal with the issues of pluralism
is to internationalise themselves and the curriculum of their business programmes. This has been
done in order to meet the growing demands of corporations for managers and functional specialists
who are capable of operating in a global environment, and at the behest of accreditation bodies.
These attempts have not been met with unqualified success. Indeed many business school
administrators as well as those in business world are not satisfied with what has yet been achieved.
This article will argue that business schools have focused more on internationalising their "inputs" into their programs, rather than the "outputs" in terms of the skills and capabilities that their students can be expected to master at the end of their programs. The article will go on to discuss ways in which "competence" in working internationally can be developed, both in specialized international business programs and outline a pedagogy, based on Action Learning, for enabling expatriate managers to develop "competence" in working on their overseas assignment. It will be argued that the overseas assignment creates an opportunity for the international manager to develop "metaskills" or "metacompetence" by learning to deal with confusing and ambiguous environments. These are exactly the skills required by all managers to cope with the pluralistic an dynamic business environments that will confront them in the next millennium. |
| | Keywords: Managerial Metacompetence; I.B. Education; Action Learning |