In this two-part case, Richard Davis and StephenHodgetts, co-owners of D&H Management LLC, are tr... more In this two-part case, Richard Davis and StephenHodgetts, co-owners of D&H Management LLC, are try-ing to come to terms with changes in the real estate market—changes that have made their rental homes worth less than their mortgages and at best yielding at most a break-even cash flow. In Part A Davis and Hodgetts are weighing the following options: (1) sell all of the properties, assume a loss (walk away with nothing), and avoid the negative cash flow; (2) walk away from all of the proper-ties, assume a loss (walk away with nothing), and avoid the negative cash flow; (3) delay paying the mortgage on some of the homes, allow these properties, if necessary, to go into foreclosure, and in the interim use the positive cash flow to shore up some of the more positive cash flow homes; (4) contact all of the lenders and try to renegotiate the mortgages so as to have lower monthly rates. In Part B Davis proposes that he and Hodgetts go their
Journal of Behavioral and Applied Management, 2009
Outcomes Assessment (OA) has emerged as the systemic mechanism for academic institutions to demon... more Outcomes Assessment (OA) has emerged as the systemic mechanism for academic institutions to demonstrate to their stakeholders their viability as institutions that create and disseminate knowledge. Properly implementing outcomes assessment plans has been of paramount concern to postsecondary academic institutions whose accrediting bodies are requiring that institutions demonstrate that they have in fact achieved their goals and objectives. This study posits a preliminary methodology (a before/after study) for using grading rubrics, an instrument developed through outcomes assessment programs, for analyzing students' oral and written analyses of business cases. Results from the first round of data gathering from students' oral presentations are presented.
Journal of Behavioral and Applied Management, 2011
Tacit organizational knowledge is intangible, implicit, and profoundly attached to people (Spende... more Tacit organizational knowledge is intangible, implicit, and profoundly attached to people (Spender, 2003). While highly complex, it is also a driving force of organizational performance, and its transfer crucial in capitalizing on existing resources (Cross & Baird, 2000). Spender (1998) suggested that tacit knowledge may represent an alternative system of organizational knowledge, and this author investigated this notion. This research is built upon empirical evidence from six knowledge transfer case studies so as to examine tacit knowledge and provide insight into what makes it tacit. Nine distinct, however not mutually exclusive types of tacit knowledge were identified through this research: Skill, Cause-effect, Cognitive, Composite, Cultural, Unlearning, Taboo, Human, and Emotional. Each type can be discerned with its unique set of elements that is essentially responsible for it being tacit, or subjective. In addition, the relationship between the problematic nature of knowledge and its transferability is explored. Various knowledge transfer channels are examined for their richness. Results indicated that no transfer channel was rich independently of the knowledge it transfers, and that all effective channels involved an active 'pull' of the knowledge by its recipient.
In this two-part case, Richard Davis and Stephen Hodgetts, co-owners of D&H Management LLC, are t... more In this two-part case, Richard Davis and Stephen Hodgetts, co-owners of D&H Management LLC, are trying to come to terms with changes in the real estate market‐changes that have made their rental homes worth less than their mortgages and at best yielding at most a break-even cash flow. In Part A Davis and Hodgetts are weighing the following options: (1) sell all of the properties, assume a loss (walk away with nothing), and avoid the negative cash flow; (2) walk away from all of the properties, assume a loss (walk away with nothing), and avoid the negative cash flow; (3) delay paying the mortgage on some of the homes, allow these properties, if necessary, to go into foreclosure, and in the interim use the positive cash flow to shore up some of the more positive cash flow homes; (4) contact all of the lenders and try to renegotiate the mortgages so as to have lower monthly rates. In Part B Davis proposes that he and Hodgetts go their separate ways. Davis walks away with the two proper...
Scandia, Inc., is a commercial vessel management company located in the New York Metropolitan are... more Scandia, Inc., is a commercial vessel management company located in the New York Metropolitan area and is part of a family of firms including Scandia Technical; International Tankers, Ltd.; Global Tankers, Ltd.; Sun Maritime S.A.;Adger Tankers AS; Leeward Tankers, Inc.; Manhattan Tankers, Ltd.; and Liuʼs Tankers, S.A. The companyʼs current market niche is the commercial management of chemical tankers serving the transatlantic market with a focus on the east and gulf coast of the United States and Northern Europe. This three-part case describes the commercial shipping industry as well as several mishaps that the company and its President, Chris Haas, have had to deal with including withdrawal of financial support by creditors, intercorporate firm conflict, and employee retention. Part A, which was published in the Fall 2010 issue, presented an overview of the commercial vessel industry and set the stage for Parts B and C where the firm℉s operation is discussed.
Scandia, Inc., is a commercial vessel management company located in the New York Metropolitan are... more Scandia, Inc., is a commercial vessel management company located in the New York Metropolitan area and is part of a family of firms including Scandia Technical; International Tankers, Ltd.; Global Tankers, Ltd.; Sun Maritime S.A.;Adger Tankers AS; Leeward Tankers, Inc.; Manhattan Tankers, Ltd.; and Liuʼs Tankers, S.A. The companyʼs current market niche is the commercial management of chemical tankers serving the transatlantic market with a focus on the east and gulf coast of the United States and Northern Europe. This three-part case describes the commercial shipping industry as well as several mishaps that the company and its President, Chris Haas, have had to deal with including withdrawal of financial support by creditors, intercorporate firm conflict, and employee retention. Part A presents an overview of the commercial vessel industry and sets the stage for Parts B and C (to be published in the Spring 2011 issue) where the firmʼs operation is discussed.
Journal of the International Academy For Case Studies, May 1, 2011
CASE DESCRIPTION This field-based, disguised teaching case describes the birth and continued grow... more CASE DESCRIPTION This field-based, disguised teaching case describes the birth and continued growth of H & H Financial Services, LLC and how that growth has impacted work processes and procedures. The data for this case was gathered through personal experience of the primary author and interviews of co-workers. The case was written primarily for an undergraduate class in organizational behavior although it has applications to courses in small business, human resources, and strategic management. The case follows a new hire, Debbie Matthews, as she faces the challenge of dealing with what appears to be a dead end job in that she has little opportunity for job enlargement and enrichment. After 11 months of working at H & H Financial and do the same old job with little to no challenge and growth potential, she wonders if it is worth it for her to stay with the company. Complicating factors in her decision include being a single mother, attending graduate school, and a very tough economic job market. CASE SYNOPSIS The case begins with a description of Christopher Blake's birth and growth of H & H Financial Services LLC. Mr. Blake, finding that a large corporate financial services firm was more interested in selling product than helping its clients, founded a part-time financial services firm which put people's needs above sales goals. With the growth of his little start-up venture, Mr. Blake left corporate to work full time in his burgeoning business and ended up hiring Jane Sutton (a former office manager in his corporate office) and two recent college graduates. The firm grew, moved into new office space, and was then reorganized by the now "office manager" Jane who created two departments; supplier and customer relations. Each college graduate became supervisor of the department as Mr. Blake also expanded his side of the operation by hiring two new agents who he was personally responsible for training and managing. The firm continued to grow and moved once again while retaining its "departmentalization by function" organizational structure. Mr. Blake continued to manage the "front office" (client contact) side of the business while Ms. Sutton managed all of the back office customer and supplier services through her supervisors. Although each supervisor ran a "fun" department Jane ran a much more formal operation where "playing" was kept to a minimum. The case is written from the perspective of the character Debbie Matthews, a recent college graduate who was hired by H & H Financial right out of college. A single mother in graduate school, Ms. Matthews is at first highly elated about the job given her desire to learn everything that she can. Reality sets in though when after two months she finds that all of her questions about how things work in her office are answered by Ms. Sutton in basically the same way; you do not need to know. At the end of the case Ms. Matthews is wondering whether she should stay with the firm given her flexible schedule and her need to take care of her daughter or whether she should quit and find a job that she can grow with and continue to learn. INTRODUCTION "That doesn't concern you" was the response that resonated through the halls; a rejoinder that Debbie Matthews had heard a thousand times from Jane Sutton, the office manager, and was likely to hear again and again. It was around September of 2008 and after working at H&H Financial for 1 1 months, this was the same retort to all of her inquiries. Ms. Matthews thought to herself "I can't take this anymore! Why is it that none of my questions ever get answered? Why am I not allowed to learn here? What is my value to the company? Why do I still feel like an outsider? Why can't I use and improve my skills? Why? Why? Why?" Ms. Matthews was fuming as she walked out of yet another one of Jane's tiresome monthly office meetings having lost all motivation and feeling completely defeated. …
Journal of the International Academy For Case Studies, Aug 1, 2011
CASE DESCRIPTION The case is a field-based, disguised case which describes the birth and continue... more CASE DESCRIPTION The case is a field-based, disguised case which describes the birth and continued growth of H & H Financial Services, LLC and how that growth has impacted work processes and procedures. The data for this case was gathered through personal experience of the primary author and interviews of co-workers. The case was written primarily for an undergraduate class in organizational behavior although it has applications to courses in small business, human resources, and strategic management. The case follows a new hire, Debbie Matthews, as she faces the challenge of dealing with what appears to be a dead end job in that she has little opportunity for job enlargement and enrichment. After 11 months of working at H & H Financial and do the same old job with little to no challenge and growth potential, she wonders if it is worth it for her to stay with the company. Complicating factors in her decision include being a single mother, attending graduate school, and a very tough economic job market. CASE SYNOPSIS The case begins with a description of Christopher Blake's birth and growth of H & H Financial Services LLC. Mr. Blake, finding that a large corporate financial services firm was more interested in selling product than helping its clients, founded a part-time financial services firm which put people's needs above sales goals. With the growth of his little start-up venture, Mr. Blake left corporate to work full time in his burgeoning business and ended up hiring Jane Sutton (a former office manager in his corporate office) and two recent college graduates. The firm grew, moved into new office space, and was then reorganized by the now "office manager" Ms. Sutton who created two departments; supplier and customer relations. Each college graduate became supervisor of the department as Mr. Blake also expanded his side of the operation by hiring two new agents who he was personally responsible for training and managing. The firm continued to grow and moved once again while retaining its "departmentalization by function" organizational structure. Mr. Blake continued to manage the "front office" (client contact) side of the business while Jane managed all of the back office customer and supplier services through her supervisors. Although each supervisor ran a "fun" department Ms. Sutton ran a much more formal operation where "playing" was kept to a minimum. The case is written from the perspective of the character Debbie Matthews, a recent college graduate who was hired by H & H Financial right out of college. A single mother in graduate school, Ms. Matthews is at first highly elated about the job given her desire to learn everything that she can. Reality sets in though when after two months she finds that all of her questions about how things work in her office are answered by Ms. Sutton in basically the same way; you do not need to know. At the end of the case Ms. Matthews is wondering whether she should stay with the firm given her flexible schedule and her need to take care of her daughter or whether she should quit and find a job that she can grow with and continue to learn. INSTRUCTORS' NOTES Intended Instructional Audience & Placement in Course Instruction The case was written primarily for an undergraduate class in an organizational behavior since it is written from a new employee's perspective; a student straight out of college looking for but not getting on-the-job "learning" experiences in what is perceived as a closed, incommunicative environment. The case is fairly comprehensive in nature in that it includes several micro and macro organizational issues (leadership style, work motivation, and job design at the micro level as well as organizational structure, culture, and growth at the macro level) that impact individual and organizational performance. Secondarily, this case could also be utilized in a small business management class since the case talks about the managerial problems a small business experiences as it evolves from a "ma and pa" part-time business through small group operation into a multiple group (departments) organization. …
Contemporary Issues Surrounding Ethical Research Methods and Practice
This second chapter on case research explores the ethical underpinnings of the writing order of t... more This second chapter on case research explores the ethical underpinnings of the writing order of the case/IM, IM authorship and validity, testing the case with a class, and students' plagiarism as well as access to the Internet and the IM. This is then followed by Section 4, entitled “Publish or Perish: The Value of Case Publication,” which addresses the perceived value of publishing teaching cases as well as how the demands for increased publishing (as well as the increased number of publishing outlets) may lead to more pragmatic and perhaps unethical actions by case authors.
Contemporary Issues Surrounding Ethical Research Methods and Practice
There appear two chapters in this textbook that explore the ethical issues surrounding instructio... more There appear two chapters in this textbook that explore the ethical issues surrounding instructional case writing, an area rarely discussed even in case journals. In this chapter, Section 1, “Conducting Research,” five issues (comprehensiveness, multiple realities, researcher bias, high cost, and reporting without influence) surrounding the primary data gathering process are described while Section 2, “Writing Cases,” includes a moral discourse on case author objectivity, authenticity, and co-authorship with students.
Abstract The management and processing of organizational knowledge are increasingly being viewed ... more Abstract The management and processing of organizational knowledge are increasingly being viewed as critical to organizational suc-cess. By exploring how firms access and exploit alliance-based knowledge, the authors provide evidence to support the argu-ment that ...
PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to explore the concept of “common sense” and to distinguish i... more PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to explore the concept of “common sense” and to distinguish it from uncommon sense as it applies to managerial decision‐making under conditions of task uncertainty. The paper enunciates the definition of common sense decision‐making and develops the concept of “uncommon” sense making. A typology of common sense is put forth, and a case study is used to illustrate it in practice.Design/methodology/approachThis is a conceptually developmental paper, which explores and develops the concept of uncommon sense through literature review and typology development. A mechanistic, or internally driven, decision approach is compared with an organic, externally driven one, and the question of how common sense is related to these approaches in varying task uncertainty conditions is explored. A short case study is used as an illustration of the practical managerial implications under low task certainty conditions.FindingsThe concepts of MCS (common sense) and MU...
The sharing and transfer of knowledge and best practices across the organization have long been r... more The sharing and transfer of knowledge and best practices across the organization have long been recognized as a critical driver of a firm's capabilities and performance. In fact, Gupta and Govindarajan (1991) maintained that MNCs exist primarily because of their superior ability to transfer knowledge internally relative to the ability of markets. This paper examines factors that influence the success of intrafirm, cross-border knowledge transfers. We investigate the critical context similarity between best-practice source and recipient units and the impact of critical context similarity on transfer eventfulness. We argue that best practices are embedded within a set of 5 central contextual elements, which are critical to the firm's ability to utilize them. A model is developed and tested that explains the impact of context in enabling or inhibiting best-practice transfers. Our findings suggest that critical context dissimilarity inhibits best-practice transfers. The impact of congruence among the source and recipient units along the dimensions of culture, strategy, decision-making, environment and technology affects the eventfulness of the transfer in terms of time, budget and satisfaction. Additionally, the effect of the fit between the practice characteristics, and the transfer mechanisms employed, is examined.
JIBS is the official publication of the Academy of International Business, publishing papers of s... more JIBS is the official publication of the Academy of International Business, publishing papers of significant interest that contribute to the theoretical basis of business and management studies. The Journal of International Business Studies' broad scope and developmental editorial policies ...
In den Veranstaltungen der Kommunikationswissenschaft werden die Methoden und Konzepte des Faches... more In den Veranstaltungen der Kommunikationswissenschaft werden die Methoden und Konzepte des Faches vermittelt. Dies reicht von den theoretischen Grundlagen der Publizistik und ausgewählten Teilbereichen der Massenkommunikation (insbes. Strukturen, Prozesse und Entwicklung von medialen Organisationen) über Organisationskommunikation, Neue Kommunikationsmedien und Interkulturelle Kommunikation bis zu Geschichte und Strukturen massenmedialer Kommunikation (insb. Presse, Öffentlichkeit, politische Kommunikation).
... Adva Dinur, Long Island University – Brooklyn Campus Herbert Sherman, Long Island University ... more ... Adva Dinur, Long Island University – Brooklyn Campus Herbert Sherman, Long Island University – Brooklyn Campus CASE DESCRIPTION ... The firm continued to grow and moved once again while retaining its “departmentalization by function” organizational structure. ...
In this two-part case, Richard Davis and StephenHodgetts, co-owners of D&H Management LLC, are tr... more In this two-part case, Richard Davis and StephenHodgetts, co-owners of D&H Management LLC, are try-ing to come to terms with changes in the real estate market—changes that have made their rental homes worth less than their mortgages and at best yielding at most a break-even cash flow. In Part A Davis and Hodgetts are weighing the following options: (1) sell all of the properties, assume a loss (walk away with nothing), and avoid the negative cash flow; (2) walk away from all of the proper-ties, assume a loss (walk away with nothing), and avoid the negative cash flow; (3) delay paying the mortgage on some of the homes, allow these properties, if necessary, to go into foreclosure, and in the interim use the positive cash flow to shore up some of the more positive cash flow homes; (4) contact all of the lenders and try to renegotiate the mortgages so as to have lower monthly rates. In Part B Davis proposes that he and Hodgetts go their
Journal of Behavioral and Applied Management, 2009
Outcomes Assessment (OA) has emerged as the systemic mechanism for academic institutions to demon... more Outcomes Assessment (OA) has emerged as the systemic mechanism for academic institutions to demonstrate to their stakeholders their viability as institutions that create and disseminate knowledge. Properly implementing outcomes assessment plans has been of paramount concern to postsecondary academic institutions whose accrediting bodies are requiring that institutions demonstrate that they have in fact achieved their goals and objectives. This study posits a preliminary methodology (a before/after study) for using grading rubrics, an instrument developed through outcomes assessment programs, for analyzing students' oral and written analyses of business cases. Results from the first round of data gathering from students' oral presentations are presented.
Journal of Behavioral and Applied Management, 2011
Tacit organizational knowledge is intangible, implicit, and profoundly attached to people (Spende... more Tacit organizational knowledge is intangible, implicit, and profoundly attached to people (Spender, 2003). While highly complex, it is also a driving force of organizational performance, and its transfer crucial in capitalizing on existing resources (Cross & Baird, 2000). Spender (1998) suggested that tacit knowledge may represent an alternative system of organizational knowledge, and this author investigated this notion. This research is built upon empirical evidence from six knowledge transfer case studies so as to examine tacit knowledge and provide insight into what makes it tacit. Nine distinct, however not mutually exclusive types of tacit knowledge were identified through this research: Skill, Cause-effect, Cognitive, Composite, Cultural, Unlearning, Taboo, Human, and Emotional. Each type can be discerned with its unique set of elements that is essentially responsible for it being tacit, or subjective. In addition, the relationship between the problematic nature of knowledge and its transferability is explored. Various knowledge transfer channels are examined for their richness. Results indicated that no transfer channel was rich independently of the knowledge it transfers, and that all effective channels involved an active 'pull' of the knowledge by its recipient.
In this two-part case, Richard Davis and Stephen Hodgetts, co-owners of D&H Management LLC, are t... more In this two-part case, Richard Davis and Stephen Hodgetts, co-owners of D&H Management LLC, are trying to come to terms with changes in the real estate market‐changes that have made their rental homes worth less than their mortgages and at best yielding at most a break-even cash flow. In Part A Davis and Hodgetts are weighing the following options: (1) sell all of the properties, assume a loss (walk away with nothing), and avoid the negative cash flow; (2) walk away from all of the properties, assume a loss (walk away with nothing), and avoid the negative cash flow; (3) delay paying the mortgage on some of the homes, allow these properties, if necessary, to go into foreclosure, and in the interim use the positive cash flow to shore up some of the more positive cash flow homes; (4) contact all of the lenders and try to renegotiate the mortgages so as to have lower monthly rates. In Part B Davis proposes that he and Hodgetts go their separate ways. Davis walks away with the two proper...
Scandia, Inc., is a commercial vessel management company located in the New York Metropolitan are... more Scandia, Inc., is a commercial vessel management company located in the New York Metropolitan area and is part of a family of firms including Scandia Technical; International Tankers, Ltd.; Global Tankers, Ltd.; Sun Maritime S.A.;Adger Tankers AS; Leeward Tankers, Inc.; Manhattan Tankers, Ltd.; and Liuʼs Tankers, S.A. The companyʼs current market niche is the commercial management of chemical tankers serving the transatlantic market with a focus on the east and gulf coast of the United States and Northern Europe. This three-part case describes the commercial shipping industry as well as several mishaps that the company and its President, Chris Haas, have had to deal with including withdrawal of financial support by creditors, intercorporate firm conflict, and employee retention. Part A, which was published in the Fall 2010 issue, presented an overview of the commercial vessel industry and set the stage for Parts B and C where the firm℉s operation is discussed.
Scandia, Inc., is a commercial vessel management company located in the New York Metropolitan are... more Scandia, Inc., is a commercial vessel management company located in the New York Metropolitan area and is part of a family of firms including Scandia Technical; International Tankers, Ltd.; Global Tankers, Ltd.; Sun Maritime S.A.;Adger Tankers AS; Leeward Tankers, Inc.; Manhattan Tankers, Ltd.; and Liuʼs Tankers, S.A. The companyʼs current market niche is the commercial management of chemical tankers serving the transatlantic market with a focus on the east and gulf coast of the United States and Northern Europe. This three-part case describes the commercial shipping industry as well as several mishaps that the company and its President, Chris Haas, have had to deal with including withdrawal of financial support by creditors, intercorporate firm conflict, and employee retention. Part A presents an overview of the commercial vessel industry and sets the stage for Parts B and C (to be published in the Spring 2011 issue) where the firmʼs operation is discussed.
Journal of the International Academy For Case Studies, May 1, 2011
CASE DESCRIPTION This field-based, disguised teaching case describes the birth and continued grow... more CASE DESCRIPTION This field-based, disguised teaching case describes the birth and continued growth of H & H Financial Services, LLC and how that growth has impacted work processes and procedures. The data for this case was gathered through personal experience of the primary author and interviews of co-workers. The case was written primarily for an undergraduate class in organizational behavior although it has applications to courses in small business, human resources, and strategic management. The case follows a new hire, Debbie Matthews, as she faces the challenge of dealing with what appears to be a dead end job in that she has little opportunity for job enlargement and enrichment. After 11 months of working at H & H Financial and do the same old job with little to no challenge and growth potential, she wonders if it is worth it for her to stay with the company. Complicating factors in her decision include being a single mother, attending graduate school, and a very tough economic job market. CASE SYNOPSIS The case begins with a description of Christopher Blake's birth and growth of H & H Financial Services LLC. Mr. Blake, finding that a large corporate financial services firm was more interested in selling product than helping its clients, founded a part-time financial services firm which put people's needs above sales goals. With the growth of his little start-up venture, Mr. Blake left corporate to work full time in his burgeoning business and ended up hiring Jane Sutton (a former office manager in his corporate office) and two recent college graduates. The firm grew, moved into new office space, and was then reorganized by the now "office manager" Jane who created two departments; supplier and customer relations. Each college graduate became supervisor of the department as Mr. Blake also expanded his side of the operation by hiring two new agents who he was personally responsible for training and managing. The firm continued to grow and moved once again while retaining its "departmentalization by function" organizational structure. Mr. Blake continued to manage the "front office" (client contact) side of the business while Ms. Sutton managed all of the back office customer and supplier services through her supervisors. Although each supervisor ran a "fun" department Jane ran a much more formal operation where "playing" was kept to a minimum. The case is written from the perspective of the character Debbie Matthews, a recent college graduate who was hired by H & H Financial right out of college. A single mother in graduate school, Ms. Matthews is at first highly elated about the job given her desire to learn everything that she can. Reality sets in though when after two months she finds that all of her questions about how things work in her office are answered by Ms. Sutton in basically the same way; you do not need to know. At the end of the case Ms. Matthews is wondering whether she should stay with the firm given her flexible schedule and her need to take care of her daughter or whether she should quit and find a job that she can grow with and continue to learn. INTRODUCTION "That doesn't concern you" was the response that resonated through the halls; a rejoinder that Debbie Matthews had heard a thousand times from Jane Sutton, the office manager, and was likely to hear again and again. It was around September of 2008 and after working at H&H Financial for 1 1 months, this was the same retort to all of her inquiries. Ms. Matthews thought to herself "I can't take this anymore! Why is it that none of my questions ever get answered? Why am I not allowed to learn here? What is my value to the company? Why do I still feel like an outsider? Why can't I use and improve my skills? Why? Why? Why?" Ms. Matthews was fuming as she walked out of yet another one of Jane's tiresome monthly office meetings having lost all motivation and feeling completely defeated. …
Journal of the International Academy For Case Studies, Aug 1, 2011
CASE DESCRIPTION The case is a field-based, disguised case which describes the birth and continue... more CASE DESCRIPTION The case is a field-based, disguised case which describes the birth and continued growth of H & H Financial Services, LLC and how that growth has impacted work processes and procedures. The data for this case was gathered through personal experience of the primary author and interviews of co-workers. The case was written primarily for an undergraduate class in organizational behavior although it has applications to courses in small business, human resources, and strategic management. The case follows a new hire, Debbie Matthews, as she faces the challenge of dealing with what appears to be a dead end job in that she has little opportunity for job enlargement and enrichment. After 11 months of working at H & H Financial and do the same old job with little to no challenge and growth potential, she wonders if it is worth it for her to stay with the company. Complicating factors in her decision include being a single mother, attending graduate school, and a very tough economic job market. CASE SYNOPSIS The case begins with a description of Christopher Blake's birth and growth of H & H Financial Services LLC. Mr. Blake, finding that a large corporate financial services firm was more interested in selling product than helping its clients, founded a part-time financial services firm which put people's needs above sales goals. With the growth of his little start-up venture, Mr. Blake left corporate to work full time in his burgeoning business and ended up hiring Jane Sutton (a former office manager in his corporate office) and two recent college graduates. The firm grew, moved into new office space, and was then reorganized by the now "office manager" Ms. Sutton who created two departments; supplier and customer relations. Each college graduate became supervisor of the department as Mr. Blake also expanded his side of the operation by hiring two new agents who he was personally responsible for training and managing. The firm continued to grow and moved once again while retaining its "departmentalization by function" organizational structure. Mr. Blake continued to manage the "front office" (client contact) side of the business while Jane managed all of the back office customer and supplier services through her supervisors. Although each supervisor ran a "fun" department Ms. Sutton ran a much more formal operation where "playing" was kept to a minimum. The case is written from the perspective of the character Debbie Matthews, a recent college graduate who was hired by H & H Financial right out of college. A single mother in graduate school, Ms. Matthews is at first highly elated about the job given her desire to learn everything that she can. Reality sets in though when after two months she finds that all of her questions about how things work in her office are answered by Ms. Sutton in basically the same way; you do not need to know. At the end of the case Ms. Matthews is wondering whether she should stay with the firm given her flexible schedule and her need to take care of her daughter or whether she should quit and find a job that she can grow with and continue to learn. INSTRUCTORS' NOTES Intended Instructional Audience & Placement in Course Instruction The case was written primarily for an undergraduate class in an organizational behavior since it is written from a new employee's perspective; a student straight out of college looking for but not getting on-the-job "learning" experiences in what is perceived as a closed, incommunicative environment. The case is fairly comprehensive in nature in that it includes several micro and macro organizational issues (leadership style, work motivation, and job design at the micro level as well as organizational structure, culture, and growth at the macro level) that impact individual and organizational performance. Secondarily, this case could also be utilized in a small business management class since the case talks about the managerial problems a small business experiences as it evolves from a "ma and pa" part-time business through small group operation into a multiple group (departments) organization. …
Contemporary Issues Surrounding Ethical Research Methods and Practice
This second chapter on case research explores the ethical underpinnings of the writing order of t... more This second chapter on case research explores the ethical underpinnings of the writing order of the case/IM, IM authorship and validity, testing the case with a class, and students' plagiarism as well as access to the Internet and the IM. This is then followed by Section 4, entitled “Publish or Perish: The Value of Case Publication,” which addresses the perceived value of publishing teaching cases as well as how the demands for increased publishing (as well as the increased number of publishing outlets) may lead to more pragmatic and perhaps unethical actions by case authors.
Contemporary Issues Surrounding Ethical Research Methods and Practice
There appear two chapters in this textbook that explore the ethical issues surrounding instructio... more There appear two chapters in this textbook that explore the ethical issues surrounding instructional case writing, an area rarely discussed even in case journals. In this chapter, Section 1, “Conducting Research,” five issues (comprehensiveness, multiple realities, researcher bias, high cost, and reporting without influence) surrounding the primary data gathering process are described while Section 2, “Writing Cases,” includes a moral discourse on case author objectivity, authenticity, and co-authorship with students.
Abstract The management and processing of organizational knowledge are increasingly being viewed ... more Abstract The management and processing of organizational knowledge are increasingly being viewed as critical to organizational suc-cess. By exploring how firms access and exploit alliance-based knowledge, the authors provide evidence to support the argu-ment that ...
PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to explore the concept of “common sense” and to distinguish i... more PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to explore the concept of “common sense” and to distinguish it from uncommon sense as it applies to managerial decision‐making under conditions of task uncertainty. The paper enunciates the definition of common sense decision‐making and develops the concept of “uncommon” sense making. A typology of common sense is put forth, and a case study is used to illustrate it in practice.Design/methodology/approachThis is a conceptually developmental paper, which explores and develops the concept of uncommon sense through literature review and typology development. A mechanistic, or internally driven, decision approach is compared with an organic, externally driven one, and the question of how common sense is related to these approaches in varying task uncertainty conditions is explored. A short case study is used as an illustration of the practical managerial implications under low task certainty conditions.FindingsThe concepts of MCS (common sense) and MU...
The sharing and transfer of knowledge and best practices across the organization have long been r... more The sharing and transfer of knowledge and best practices across the organization have long been recognized as a critical driver of a firm's capabilities and performance. In fact, Gupta and Govindarajan (1991) maintained that MNCs exist primarily because of their superior ability to transfer knowledge internally relative to the ability of markets. This paper examines factors that influence the success of intrafirm, cross-border knowledge transfers. We investigate the critical context similarity between best-practice source and recipient units and the impact of critical context similarity on transfer eventfulness. We argue that best practices are embedded within a set of 5 central contextual elements, which are critical to the firm's ability to utilize them. A model is developed and tested that explains the impact of context in enabling or inhibiting best-practice transfers. Our findings suggest that critical context dissimilarity inhibits best-practice transfers. The impact of congruence among the source and recipient units along the dimensions of culture, strategy, decision-making, environment and technology affects the eventfulness of the transfer in terms of time, budget and satisfaction. Additionally, the effect of the fit between the practice characteristics, and the transfer mechanisms employed, is examined.
JIBS is the official publication of the Academy of International Business, publishing papers of s... more JIBS is the official publication of the Academy of International Business, publishing papers of significant interest that contribute to the theoretical basis of business and management studies. The Journal of International Business Studies' broad scope and developmental editorial policies ...
In den Veranstaltungen der Kommunikationswissenschaft werden die Methoden und Konzepte des Faches... more In den Veranstaltungen der Kommunikationswissenschaft werden die Methoden und Konzepte des Faches vermittelt. Dies reicht von den theoretischen Grundlagen der Publizistik und ausgewählten Teilbereichen der Massenkommunikation (insbes. Strukturen, Prozesse und Entwicklung von medialen Organisationen) über Organisationskommunikation, Neue Kommunikationsmedien und Interkulturelle Kommunikation bis zu Geschichte und Strukturen massenmedialer Kommunikation (insb. Presse, Öffentlichkeit, politische Kommunikation).
... Adva Dinur, Long Island University – Brooklyn Campus Herbert Sherman, Long Island University ... more ... Adva Dinur, Long Island University – Brooklyn Campus Herbert Sherman, Long Island University – Brooklyn Campus CASE DESCRIPTION ... The firm continued to grow and moved once again while retaining its “departmentalization by function” organizational structure. ...
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