Bøger i Contributions to Management Science serien

Benchmarking is considered a must for modern management. The objects considered are taken from IT management, but can be easily transferred to other business areas, which makes the book interesting for all practitioners in the management field.

Management consultancy practice is particularly concerned with helping clients implement strategic organisational change. But what exactly are organisations, and management consultancy interventions in them? Management consulting is said to be a knowledge-intensive industry. But what kind of knowledge do management consultants possess, and how far can we rely on it? Management consultants are often criticised for unethical exploitation of their clients. But how ought management consultants to behave in order to meet acceptable ethical standards?These are questions about the philosophical topics of ontology, epistemology and ethics. The ancient Greek philosophers thought deeply about these topics, and their ideas remain fresh and relevant even to so modern a subject matter as management consulting. Writing between the end of the sixth and the end of the fourth century BCE, these philosophers were drawing upon an intellectual tradition that was very different from our own, and were responding to social and economic conditions that were wholly unlike ours. Approaching these philosophical questions from a perspective that is radically different from our own, their work provides a rich resource for novel thinking about management consulting.From the speculations of the Presocratic philosophers Heraclitus, Parmenides, Leucippus and Democritus about the nature of the universe to the thought of Socrates, Plato and Aristotle about the nature of human beings, this book uses the work of these great thinkers as a lens through which to study major philosophical questions about management consulting. Examined in this way, many established assumptions and principles of management consultancy practice seem questionable, and new ways of thinking possible.

The result of the application of strategic management philosophy to the nexus of entrepreneurship, innovation, and economy, strategic entrepreneurship fosters sustainable development and competitiveness.

This book describes the millennia-long process of the genesis, formation, struggle, and change of views on the management of social organizations in various countries around the world; in other words, it characterizes the worldwide evolution of the History of Management Thought (HMT) - ideas, concepts, theories, paradigms, and scientific schools - from Antiquity to the present. The book is the outcome of extensive research, based on the analysis, generalization, and systematization of foreign and domestic published literature, as well as on the gathering and analysis of unique archival materials. For the first time in the historical and managerial literature, the book puts forward original definitions of three historical and managerial sciences - the History of Management, the History of Management Thought, and the Historiography of Historical and Managerial Research. It addresses the main challenges in pursuing Historical and Scientific Research (HSR), the main ¿subject¿ levels of HSR and specific methodological problems concerning HMT, as well as epistemological methods for identifying key factors in and causes of the advent and evolution of HMT. This book presents both the origins of management thought dating back to the 5th millennium BC and the latest management concepts of the early 21st century. In particular, it traces the origins and sources of management thought, reflected in the works of thinkers and statesmen of the Ancient World (Egypt, Western Asia, China, India, Greece, and Rome), the era of feudalism, and the Middle Ages (Byzantium, Western Europe, and England), the era of inception capitalism (Western Europe and the USA), as well as the new and recent history of management thought of the 20th and 21st centuries. In addition, for the first time in History of Management literature, it presents the history of Russian management thought from the 9th century to modern concepts and scientific schools.

The respective chapters address topics such as entrepreneurial cognition, international entrepreneurial ecosystems, innovation, international market entry decisions, family SMEs, international human resources management, cross-cultural and indigenous entrepreneurship, social capital and sustainability in international markets.

The book describes how to go about understanding and assessing an organization's culture as a basis for culture change interventions as well as culture-sensitive and culture-mindful management and leadership.

Therefore, it is vital for companies to develop a set of strategies in order to survive in the competitive environment of a globalized world. The volume offers a qualified and comprehensive analysis to determine effective competitive strategies taking into account the many different factors that affect company performance.

Collaboration among industry, universities and research institutes plays a vital role in stimulating open innovation, which in turn leads to new products, processes, services and business models. This book brings together a number of real-life examples of how to govern and manage open innovation collaboration projects more effectively, and provides timely insights that project consortia, governance boards and funding agencies can directly apply to implement and monitor projects and achieve greater impacts. All papers were written by recognized leading authorities with extensive experience in governance and management, and reveal how to capitalize on the potential of open innovation.This book shares multidisciplinary research perspectives on the potential benefits and challenges of collaboration, project management, and open innovation, as well as the management of complex organizational cultures and governance models.

This book presents various perspectives on innovative work behaviour, focusing on problem recognition, idea generation, idea promotion and the realisation of these ideas. Lastly, it discusses the implications of idea realisation, examining resource dependence theory, organizational trust and eco-innovations.

This book is an essential guide to understanding how managers in China and Southeast Asia make effective economic decisions. In today's competitive global economy, it's vital to grasp how the most dynamic part of Asia is employing accounting tools in actual practice. The carefully crafted empirical studies presented here demonstrate the application of management accounting concepts in a variety of economic scenarios. Overall, these comparative investigations describe theory and common practices in a way that yields insights for both strategic and day-to-day problem solving. Accordingly, Management Accounting in China and Southeast Asia will interest graduate students, professional practitioners, and researchers in accounting, management, and finance.

This book discusses several product development strategies and tools employed by organizations around the world to implement frugal innovations. Over the past decade, frugal innovations have caught the attention of countless management scholars. This book comes at the right time for academics and practitioners alike, as it explores how the concept of frugal innovation has evolved over the past several years and is shifting its focus from merely featuring ¿cost¿ driven innovations to being more ¿resourceful¿ and ¿sustainable¿ at its core. Furthermore, in light of the ongoing digital revolution and emergence of new business models such as sharing economy and circular economy, the book highlights recent and upcoming trends and their impacts on frugal innovation strategies.

This book transposes the 'free-energy principle', as espoused by the neuroscientist Karl Friston, to strategic governance, and forming the new concept of Free-Energy Governance (FEG). This concept lays the foundation for a new logic of governing continuous transformation. In addition to guiding the structure, cognition, and capabilities of success in strategic renewal, FEG provides a systematic and practice-relevant approach to predicting a firm's potential for entropy.Using this new concept, the author shows that the success of continuous strategic renewal and business innovation, elements crucial for firm survival, are determined by the triplet of a firm's structure, cognition, and dynamic board capabilities. "e;How to govern large organizations in times of high uncertainty and permanent change? To answer this pressing question, ... Bijan Khezri has been the first to apply [the free energy] principle to management science ... This book is an eyeopener for every reflective leader.*Professor Oliver Gassmann, Director of the Institute of Management and Technology, University of St. Gallen"e;I really enjoyed reading this book. It was both exciting and reassuring to see how the same fundamental ideas can be found in fields as disparate as nonequilibrium steady-state physics and theories of governance."e;Professor Karl. J. Friston; Director of the Wellcome Centre for Human Neuroimaging"e;Using a term often applied to best-selling novels, 'it is a page turner' in which I learned something new in every chapter! Every board member, all executives and scholars interested in strategic leadership and governance must read this book if they wish to remain relevant in the coming transformational decades."e;Michael A. Hitt University Distinguished Professor Emeritus, Mays Business School, Texas A&M UniversityFormer President, Academy of Management, and former Editor, Academy of Management Journal"e;We could not ask for a better author to initiate this new conversation in the board research community and convey its merits to the world of board practice."e;Martin HilbProfessor Emeritus, University of St. GallenFounder and Managing Partner, International Board Foundation and President of Swiss Institute of Directors"e;Set against a wide swath of literature, the book impressively makes the case for a new logic of strategic renewal in which the board of directors plays a central role."e;Professor Constance E. Helfat, Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth

Latin American and Iberian entrepreneurship represents a special kind of innovation, risk-taking, and futuristic business activity based on a common cultural heritage. There has been an increased interest in entrepreneurship related to specific cultural groups, and this edited book will be among the first to provide a Latin American and Iberian perspective to the study of entrepreneurship, thereby acknowledging the role of the Spanish and Portuguese diaspora and language on the global economy. Each chapter will focus on a different aspect of entrepreneurship related to countries within Latin America and Iberia. By combining both geographical groups, the authors aim to provide a better understanding of how Latin culture permeates entrepreneurial business activities. 

In handicrafts and artisanal products, industry has witnessed both a technological shift and a renewed interest among customers, especially after the challenges and limitations of mass production became evident under the COVID-19 pandemic.