The organizational, social and psychological meanings of contracts, both written and unwritten, are the focus of this volume. The author addresses a number of important topics including contract making, interpretation of contracts, contract violations, strategies for changing contracts and contracts evolving from circumstances relevant to the 1990s. In addition, a thought-provoking discussion of how contracts are linked to an organization's strategy and its human resource practices is included. The book concludes with an assessment of societal trends that point to large scale changes in future employment contracts.
This book on organization theory adopts a distinctive stance. In contrast to the traditional rational approach, it develops a transformational perspective which focuses on the organizational world as a projection of each organizational member's consciousness. While covering all the basic topics of organization theory, the author's approach reflects today's changing management paradigms.
This book presents a theory of the processes of collective decision-making that draws on theoretical influences, ranging from group decision theory to the authors' social representations theory. The authors offer an analysis of group conflict and the construction of consensus to produce a general theory of collective decisions. Going beyond the traditional view that compromise is a negative process where group members merely comply in order to sustain cohesion, the authors argue that the conflict at the root of group decisions can be a positive force leading to changes in opinion and innovation. Their theoretical framework is illustrated by numerous empirical investigations from around the world, these outline the necessary conditions required to generate consensus and thus to construct new social realities. The text should be of interest to social and organizational psychologists, management scholars and anyone working on inter-group relations and conflict issues.
What is wrong with bureaucracy? What does the post-bureaucratic organization offer in the way of improvement? These and other such questions are addressed in this volume which critically examines the implications of the transformation of organizations from bureaucratic to post-bureaucratic. Beginning with a definition of the 'ideal' post-bureaucratic organization, the book then critiques some of the fundamental assumptions of bureaucratic organizations such as, the ethic of individual merit, decision-making roles and coordinated effort. It also analyzes the process of change from bureaucracy to post-bureaucracy and three alternative approaches to bureaucracy. The book concludes with case studies which illustrate both the strengths and weaknesses of post-bureaucratic organizations.
Organizational and Human Resource Management Dimensions
Over the past decade, many companies have adopted new strategies for manufacturing, which have taken their competitiveness on to new planes. A whole array of initiatives, such as FMS, JIT, TQM, CIM, and MRP II, have been introduced. This book deals with the far-reaching significance of these new approaches - collectively labelled "new wave manufacturing". Considerable research evidence as well as practitioners' own experiences make one crucial point time and time again. The organizational as well as the human resource management aspects of these new strategies are critical to their success or failure. The underlying theme which is tackled in this book, therefore, is to what extent do these new operational strategies require a matching set of organizational and HR strategies? By looking at the issues through the joint eyes of production and behavioural analysts, this book provides an unique introduction to the new developments in manufacturing as well as providing an up-to-date assessment of the organizational and H R dimensions to these methods. New Wave Manufacturing Strategies has a vision which goes beyond the "new technology"/advanced manufacturing technology discussions. The chapters have been written in a clear, accessible manner by leading experts from Europe, the USA and Australia as well as from the UK.
In this volume, a multidisciplinary group of scholars investigate the changing attitudes towards management decisions in today's workplace. Across a variety of areas traditionally reserved for managerial authority - employee hiring and firing, corporate takeovers and plant closings - managers face an increased likelihood of public and legal scrutiny of their decisions and decision-making processes. Formal procedures, decision-making criteria and the use of legal rhetoric within organizations are all addressed in the book.
In this volume, a multidisciplinary group of scholars investigate the changing attitudes towards management decisions in today's workplace. Across a variety of areas traditionally reserved for managerial authority - employee hiring and firing, corporate takeovers and plant closings - managers face an increased likelihood of public and legal scrutiny of their decisions and decision-making processes. Formal procedures, decision-making criteria and the use of legal rhetoric within organizations are all addressed in the book.
Psychoanalyst and organizational consultant Czander asserts the importance of applying in-depth psychology to the organization and its employees by adding to a deeper understanding of the workplace than traditional industrial psychology has offered. He further details a means of intervention in the
