Knowledge Management as a popular management movement is about 25 years old and unsurprisingly it has inspired many theories, practices and methods. So much so, that it is sometimes difficult to define what it stands for. The Handbook of Research on Knowledge Management is an interesting and innovative volume that has appealing features to add to the discussion. It is consistently interesting, has a very wide diversity of contributing scholars and practitioners and has several useful and informative chapters on actual knowledge practices and situations. It also offers historical reflections as well as its own contingency theory of how to best go about working with knowledge. All in all this Handbook is a fine and original contribution to the literature.' - Laurence Prusak, founder and Executive Director of the Institute for Knowledge ManagementThis innovative Handbook widens our understanding of knowledge management, a field that has risen to prominence in recent decades. It collects contemporary insights from more than 30 contributors into the rich tapestry of knowledge management practices across a broad landscape of cultures and socio-political contexts. The contributors offer authoritative analyses to inform practical applications of knowledge management, along with provoking reinterpretations of its developmental potential to guide future innovation and research in this field. The starting point for discussion centers around establishing a common definition for knowledge management, a concept that has remained nebulous since its inception. Expert contributions examine the relevance of this common definition within various contexts, such as Buddhist organizations, law firms, the army and indigenous organizations. The contributors explore how knowledge management could be effectively applied in these very diverse contexts. Some contributors analyze the universality of Ikujiro Nonaka s concept of knowledge management. Other contributors suggest alternative definitions of knowledge management. While previous literature has primarily focused on how knowledge management is practiced currently, this Handbook sets out alternative visions and conceptualizations of knowledge management in diverse settings and is, thus, focused on how knowledge management ideally should be practiced in various contexts. This Handbook of Research on Knowledge Management will appeal as a point of reference for academics and students of business and management, business administration, sociology and organizational behavior. Practitioners, managers and business-owners alike will also find this an invaluable resource. Contributors: C. Abrahamson Loefstroem, A. Ahmad, E. Antonacopoulou, D.A. Blackman, O. Chang, D. Coldwell, D.J. Delgado-Hernandez, J.S. Edwards, C. Filstad, A. Fried, T. Garavan, M. Glisby, P. Gottschalk, S. Harris, N. Holden, J. Hong, S.-W. Hsu, C. Mak, R. McDermott, D. McDowall, A. Mitra, K. Moon, E. Murphy, P.S. Myers, G. Neumann, P. Ngulube, F. O'Brien, A. OErtenblad, X. Ruan, A. Rynne, S.D Sarre, R. Snell, C. Stilwell, S. Talbot, E. Tandi Lwoga, E. Tome, J. Van Beveren

Is corporate social responsibility (CSR) a universal idea? Is the same exact definition of CSR relevant for any organization, regardless of context? Or would such a definition need to be adapted to fit different types of organizations, in different cultures, industries and sectors? This book discusses how CSR should preferably be practiced. The expert authors share their knowledge on whether a broad definition of CSR can be practiced as is or if it first has to undergo changes to suit the context. The leading group of contributors argues that anyone wishing to adopt the CSR idea in their organization needs to take the context into account and, thus, find a version of CSR that fits the specific industry, sector, national culture, religion and so on, in which the organization exists. The book discusses the universality of CSR and includes a comparison of the relevance of a broad, general definition of CSR for organizations in contexts such as Buddhism and Islam, developing countries and the food processing, shipping and pharmaceutical industries. Guidelines for conducting studies on the examination of the relevance of CSR for organizations in any particular generalized context are also provided. Academics, students and practitioners involved in the fresh field of CSR will find this an essential resource. Contributors include: A. Ahmad, T. Aroni, A. Athanasopoulou, F. Azmat, W.L. Chan, J.E.-T. Cheah, D.K. Davidson, I. Fafaliou, S. Goerpe, P. Gottschalk, G.M. Hall, J.M. Hansen, M. Z. Haque, S.-w. Hsu, D. Jamali, C. Karam, M. Lekakou, L. Montanheiro, B. OEksuz, A. OErtenblad, P. Perry, P. Reinmoeller, J.W. Selsky, E. Stefanidaki, I. Theotokas, W. Visser, J. Weikert

This anthology debates the idea of giving all people - no matter which profession or position they have (and whether they have a job or not) - the same pay. Some contributors argue against equal pay for all, some for increased pay equality but not for total pay equality, and some argue for equal pay for all. There is no common conclusion in the book; instead, the book aims to encourage reflection as well as further debate on something that is often taken for granted, namely differentiated pay, by offering a set of various standpoints in the debate, backed-up with various kinds of arguments. Among bases for arguments that are put forward in the book, economy, practicability and ethics belong to the most frequently occurring ones. This book is the first one to be published in the book series Palgrave Debates in Business and Management.

This book presents a lively debate surrounding the professionalization of leadership. With contributions from both sides of the argument, it considers the historical overview of leadership and management as a profession, questions what constitutes a profession, and critically addresses the practicality of professionalizing leadership. With a range of perspectives including political philosophy, behavioral professionalism and management history, the book intends to facilitate further discussion on the issues at stake. With a number of education programs beginning to focus on the art and practice of leading people, this debate is particularly timely.

This book explores whether there is reason to be against entrepreneurship. Just like literature on the darker sides of entrepreneurs and entrepreneurship, the book is an answer to the one-sided, overly positive and uncritical image of entrepreneurship. The "twist" in this book, in comparison with literature on dark sides of entrepreneurship, is to explore being against entrepreneurship. From various perspectives such as lexical semantics, Marxism, philosophy of science and psychology, the contributors contemplate on why there may be reason to be against entrepreneurship discourse as well as entrepreneurship practice. Some chapters are based on first-hand empirical data, others are conceptual. The main overall conclusion is that there are some strong arguments for being against entrepreneurship discourse, as well as for being against certain aspects of entrepreneurship practice. Before it is reasonable to be against entrepreneurship practice in total, a convincing and practicable alternative needs to be developed. This book will be valuable reading for entrepreneurship scholars, as well as academics working in the fields of business ethics, (critical) management, and international business.

"This stimulating collection tackles the question that is uppermost in most of humanity's minds and hearts right now. The novel debating approach that is taken generates a rich understanding of the range of ways in which bad leadership is created, manifested and most importantly, remedied." - Professor Brad Jackson, Waikato Management School, The University of Waikato, New Zealand "In the midst of a world full of incompetent and incoherent leaders this book is exactly what we need: a veritable cornucopia of critical leadership studies." - Keith Grint, Professor Emeritus, Warwick Business School, UK "While we like to have leaders who guide, looking at the present state of the world, there are far too many leaders who misguide. It makes this anthology on bad leadership more than timely. The various contributors, taking many different perspectives, highlight the ways leaders can go astray. In these very difficult times, this book will be a must read for anybody interested in this subject." - Manfred F. R. Kets de Vries, Clinical Professor of Leadership "Debating Bad Leadership, edited by Anders OErtenblad, is a book for this time! The rise of populism and the emergence of so-called 'strong' leaders in many countries have created a social, political, and economic climate that begs for closer examination of the origins, characteristics, and forms of, especially, bad leadership. Taking as its starting-point the question of why there are so many bad leaders in the corporate world, the impressive collection of chapters compiled in Debating Bad Leadership canvasses a comprehensive array of issues ranging from toxic, psychopathic, leadership and ethical failure to issues of poor selection, ill-considered recruitment, leader (in)competence, conflicted or weak followership, to the very concept of leadership itself. In debating these fundamental issues, this book illuminates and educates, and offers some remedies, both theoretically and practically. Debating Bad Leadership challenges scholars, students and practitioners of leadership to continue this fundamental discussion, for the benefit of us all." - Gabriele Lakomski Professor Emeritus, Melbourne Centre for the Study of Higher Education, University of Melbourne, Australia. In this book, leadership experts explore why there are so many bad leaders, and suggest remedies for how the current situation could be improved. Some of the experts suggest that reasons for why bad leaders are so common are searched for in people: more specifically leaders-to-become, acting leaders or followers. Others suggest that reasons are to be found in the leadership role (or expectations on those having such role), in the lack of support for leaders, or in beliefs about leadership. On the backdrop of their suggested explanations as to why there are so many bad leaders, the experts suggest remedies that could be taken to decrease the number of bad leaders as well as their negative impact. The very presumption that this book rests upon also gets its fair share of critique, by some of the experts. Anders OErtenblad is Professor of Working Life Science at the University of Agder, Norway. He is the editing founder of the book series Palgrave Debates in Business and Management.

This timely Handbook establishes the 'contextualization' of the learning organization idea as a research field.In contrast to much of the previous literature, which has approached the learning organization as a panacea that every organization could and should adopt, this major new Handbook puts the learning organization into context. It examines the relevance of the learning organization idea to organizations in various specific contexts, employing examples from a wide variety of cultures including China and Islamic nations, and from industries as diverse as the police force, care services for the elderly and family firms. Scholars and students with an interest in organizational learning will find this important Handbook enriching. Human resource practitioners will also find plenty of invaluable information in this resource. Contributors: C. Abrahamson Loefstroem, A. Ahmad, M. Babur, Y. Baruch, N. Birdthistle, D.A. Blackman, C. Blantern, P. Bogolyubov, T. Boydell, H.T.M. Bui, J. Burgoyne, X. Cong, D.J. Delgado-Hernandez, M. Drobnjak, M. Easterby-Smith, Z. Fan, C. Filstad, T.N. Garavan, P. Gottschalk, J.F.L. Hong, S.-w. Hsu, D. Jamali, B. Li, Z. Li, M. Lin, C. Lloyd, D. McDowall, A. OErtenblad, C. Peng, Y. Sidani, R.S. Snell, C. Stothard, S. Talbot, M. Torokoff-Engelbrecht, K.E. Watkins, D. Weir, J. Zhou

This book focuses on how the Northern futures are transformed through regional cooperation in the Barents eduscape: a study of the social, cultural and political aspects of higher education and the exchanges of learning and people in the Euro-Arctic Barents region, especially between Norway and Russia. Cultural exchange through higher education involving actors such as students and institutions is an integral part both of the Bologna process and of the policies currently changing higher education. It is also a process of social and cultural change of which we have limited knowledge. Cultural exchange is learned, implemented and performed by the actors who are involved, from the highest political level to the grassroots and the students themselves. Available knowledge of these macro- and micro-processes of cultural exchange is largely fragmented and distinctly framed in national and/or disciplinary (i.e. pedagogical) contexts. In order to understand the transformative potentials of higher education and cultural exchange, this book focuses on the social, cultural and political aspects of the transformations of the futures in the North. This book shows that educational cooperation between Norway and Russia is possible, but also that the existing practices are extremely vulnerable to changes seen through micro theoretical perspectives. By developing new theories which bind major theories, international political decisions, methodological procedures and contextual descriptions together, this book is a first step in the direction of institutionalizing educational cooperation between the various and different academic societies, cultures and political systems.

Management research has traditionally assumed that leaders play an essential role in both public and private organizations and are required for a business to run smoothly. However, more recently, a vein of critical research has claimed that leaders can do more harm than good, creating confusion and putting their reputation before production and employee wellbeing. This book asks the question - what would happen if there were no leaders? Would employees be better off without formal (or informal) leaders? And even if such a utopia were desirable, would it be realizable in practice?

Despite its complexity, innovation is often depicted within academic literature as a phenomenon that is innately good and always necessary. This thought-provoking volume presents a more nuanced view - through a number of paired chapters for and against, as well as more general critiques of innovation and several suggested new lines of inquiry, the book will be of interest to all with a broader interest in innovation.

Knowledge Management as a popular management movement is about 25 years old and unsurprisingly it has inspired many theories, practices and methods. So much so, that it is sometimes difficult to define what it stands for. The Handbook of Research on Knowledge Management is an interesting and innovative volume that has appealing features to add to the discussion. It is consistently interesting, has a very wide diversity of contributing scholars and practitioners and has several useful and informative chapters on actual knowledge practices and situations. It also offers historical reflections as well as its own contingency theory of how to best go about working with knowledge. All in all this Handbook is a fine and original contribution to the literature.' - Laurence Prusak, founder and Executive Director of the Institute for Knowledge ManagementThis innovative Handbook widens our understanding of knowledge management, a field that has risen to prominence in recent decades. It collects contemporary insights from more than 30 contributors into the rich tapestry of knowledge management practices across a broad landscape of cultures and socio-political contexts. The contributors offer authoritative analyses to inform practical applications of knowledge management, along with provoking reinterpretations of its developmental potential to guide future innovation and research in this field. The starting point for discussion centers around establishing a common definition for knowledge management, a concept that has remained nebulous since its inception. Expert contributions examine the relevance of this common definition within various contexts, such as Buddhist organizations, law firms, the army and indigenous organizations. The contributors explore how knowledge management could be effectively applied in these very diverse contexts. Some contributors analyze the universality of Ikujiro Nonaka s concept of knowledge management. Other contributors suggest alternative definitions of knowledge management. While previous literature has primarily focused on how knowledge management is practiced currently, this Handbook sets out alternative visions and conceptualizations of knowledge management in diverse settings and is, thus, focused on how knowledge management ideally should be practiced in various contexts. This Handbook of Research on Knowledge Management will appeal as a point of reference for academics and students of business and management, business administration, sociology and organizational behavior. Practitioners, managers and business-owners alike will also find this an invaluable resource. Contributors: C. Abrahamson Loefstroem, A. Ahmad, E. Antonacopoulou, D.A. Blackman, O. Chang, D. Coldwell, D.J. Delgado-Hernandez, J.S. Edwards, C. Filstad, A. Fried, T. Garavan, M. Glisby, P. Gottschalk, S. Harris, N. Holden, J. Hong, S.-W. Hsu, C. Mak, R. McDermott, D. McDowall, A. Mitra, K. Moon, E. Murphy, P.S. Myers, G. Neumann, P. Ngulube, F. O'Brien, A. OErtenblad, X. Ruan, A. Rynne, S.D Sarre, R. Snell, C. Stilwell, S. Talbot, E. Tandi Lwoga, E. Tome, J. Van Beveren

This book channels the debate on the relevance, value, and future of business schools. Could the Business School be like the Titanic, thought to be unsinkable, but ultimately doomed? And if it sinks, what of it? Or is it a ship which can adapt to the changing waters it sails in? In this book, authors from around the world debate the current and future legitimacy of the Business School from different contexts and perspectives. While some see very little or no hope at all to the future of the Business School as a legitimate centre for research and education, others remain critical, but see a way forward to rectify today's concerns, such as around sustainability and inclusivity. This book highlights to readers thought-provoking complexities on the Business School playground and its legitimacy.

This timely Handbook establishes the 'contextualization' of the learning organization idea as a research field.In contrast to much of the previous literature, which has approached the learning organization as a panacea that every organization could and should adopt, this major new Handbook puts the learning organization into context. It examines the relevance of the learning organization idea to organizations in various specific contexts, employing examples from a wide variety of cultures including China and Islamic nations, and from industries as diverse as the police force, care services for the elderly and family firms. Scholars and students with an interest in organizational learning will find this important Handbook enriching. Human resource practitioners will also find plenty of invaluable information in this resource. Contributors: C. Abrahamson Loefstroem, A. Ahmad, M. Babur, Y. Baruch, N. Birdthistle, D.A. Blackman, C. Blantern, P. Bogolyubov, T. Boydell, H.T.M. Bui, J. Burgoyne, X. Cong, D.J. Delgado-Hernandez, M. Drobnjak, M. Easterby-Smith, Z. Fan, C. Filstad, T.N. Garavan, P. Gottschalk, J.F.L. Hong, S.-w. Hsu, D. Jamali, B. Li, Z. Li, M. Lin, C. Lloyd, D. McDowall, A. OErtenblad, C. Peng, Y. Sidani, R.S. Snell, C. Stothard, S. Talbot, M. Torokoff-Engelbrecht, K.E. Watkins, D. Weir, J. Zhou

What makes this book a unique innovative source full of surprising insights is that management panaceas are examined by most competent scholars. In highly readable chapters it is pointed out what it takes to successfully adapt panaceas to different contexts. Adaptation is necessary since management panaceas are all but 'all-healing' and without contextualization they lose their persuasive power which is a crucial ingredient for their healing power.' - Alfred Kieser, Mannheim University and Research Zeppelin University, GermanyOver time management ideas and panaceas have been presented alternately as quick fix cures for all corporate ills and the emperor's new clothes, beset by flaws and problems. This Handbook provides a different approach, suggesting that management ideas and panaceas should not be either adopted or rejected outright, but gives guidance in the art of assessing and applying management ideas and panaceas to various situations and contexts. The contributors discuss the ways in which researchers, organizational actors and higher educational institutions can more wisely test the relevance of management ideas and panaceas, and adapt these to fit organizations in various contexts. They conclude that, in order to accomplish wiser relevance-testing and adaptation, there is a need for diversity, critical examination and transparency. All students, scholars and researchers in management and organization with an interest in the adaptation and translation of management ideas and panaceas, will find this book to be of interest. Reflective practitioners will find the focus on context illuminating and helpful. Contributors: E. Abrahamson, C. Abrahamson Loefstroem, N.J. Adler, S.B. Alavi, S. Ansari, P.A. Bamberger, E. Belogolovsky, A. Berthoin Antal, P. Bhatanacharoen, S. Bohn, S. Bort, P. Boselie, C. Brewster, T. Clark, D. Collins, A. Galander, D. Greatbatch, J. Hanham, S.-w. Hsu, P. Lamb, P. Lillrank, P.Maassen, A. Mamman, C. Mazza, J. McCormick, OE. Ohlsson, A. OErtenblad, M. Parker, J. Reinecke, P. Reinmoeller, B. Rombach, C.-C. Ruling, H.P. Saxi, B. Stensaker, J. Strandgaard Pedersen, P. Thomas, P. Walgenbach, S.R. Whittle, M. Zawadzki

Innovations in management are becoming more numerous and diverse, and are appearing in organizations providing many different kinds of products and services. The purpose of this book is to examine whether some widely-promoted examples of these management innovations - ranging from techniques such as Kaizen to styles of leadership and the management of learning - can usefully be applied to organizations which provide healthcare, and applied in different kinds of health systems. Management Innovations for Healthcare Organizations is distinctive in selecting a wide and diverse range and selection of managerial innovations to examine. No less distinctively, it makes an adaptive, critical scrutiny of these innovations. Neither evangelist nor nihilist, the book instead considers how these innovations might be adapted for the specific task of providing healthcare. Where evidence on these points is available, the book outlines that too. Consequently the book takes an international approach, with contributions from Europe, the Middle East, Australia and North America. Each contributor is an expert in the management innovation which they present. This combination of features makes the book unique.

"This stimulating collection tackles the question that is uppermost in most of humanity's minds and hearts right now. The novel debating approach that is taken generates a rich understanding of the range of ways in which bad leadership is created, manifested and most importantly, remedied." - Professor Brad Jackson, Waikato Management School, The University of Waikato, New Zealand "In the midst of a world full of incompetent and incoherent leaders this book is exactly what we need: a veritable cornucopia of critical leadership studies." - Keith Grint, Professor Emeritus, Warwick Business School, UK "While we like to have leaders who guide, looking at the present state of the world, there are far too many leaders who misguide. It makes this anthology on bad leadership more than timely. The various contributors, taking many different perspectives, highlight the ways leaders can go astray. In these very difficult times, this book will be a must read for anybody interested in this subject." - Manfred F. R. Kets de Vries, Clinical Professor of Leadership "Debating Bad Leadership, edited by Anders OErtenblad, is a book for this time! The rise of populism and the emergence of so-called 'strong' leaders in many countries have created a social, political, and economic climate that begs for closer examination of the origins, characteristics, and forms of, especially, bad leadership. Taking as its starting-point the question of why there are so many bad leaders in the corporate world, the impressive collection of chapters compiled in Debating Bad Leadership canvasses a comprehensive array of issues ranging from toxic, psychopathic, leadership and ethical failure to issues of poor selection, ill-considered recruitment, leader (in)competence, conflicted or weak followership, to the very concept of leadership itself. In debating these fundamental issues, this book illuminates and educates, and offers some remedies, both theoretically and practically. Debating Bad Leadership challenges scholars, students and practitioners of leadership to continue this fundamental discussion, for the benefit of us all." - Gabriele Lakomski Professor Emeritus, Melbourne Centre for the Study of Higher Education, University of Melbourne, Australia. In this book, leadership experts explore why there are so many bad leaders, and suggest remedies for how the current situation could be improved. Some of the experts suggest that reasons for why bad leaders are so common are searched for in people: more specifically leaders-to-become, acting leaders or followers. Others suggest that reasons are to be found in the leadership role (or expectations on those having such role), in the lack of support for leaders, or in beliefs about leadership. On the backdrop of their suggested explanations as to why there are so many bad leaders, the experts suggest remedies that could be taken to decrease the number of bad leaders as well as their negative impact. The very presumption that this book rests upon also gets its fair share of critique, by some of the experts. Anders OErtenblad is Professor of Working Life Science at the University of Agder, Norway. He is the editing founder of the book series Palgrave Debates in Business and Management.

This anthology debates the idea of giving all people - no matter which profession or position they have (and whether they have a job or not) - the same pay. Some contributors argue against equal pay for all, some for increased pay equality but not for total pay equality, and some argue for equal pay for all. There is no common conclusion in the book; instead, the book aims to encourage reflection as well as further debate on something that is often taken for granted, namely differentiated pay, by offering a set of various standpoints in the debate, backed-up with various kinds of arguments. Among bases for arguments that are put forward in the book, economy, practicability and ethics belong to the most frequently occurring ones. This book is the first one to be published in the book series Palgrave Debates in Business and Management.

This book explores whether there is reason to be against entrepreneurship. Just like literature on the darker sides of entrepreneurs and entrepreneurship, the book is an answer to the one-sided, overly positive and uncritical image of entrepreneurship. The "twist" in this book, in comparison with literature on dark sides of entrepreneurship, is to explore being against entrepreneurship. From various perspectives such as lexical semantics, Marxism, philosophy of science and psychology, the contributors contemplate on why there may be reason to be against entrepreneurship discourse as well as entrepreneurship practice. Some chapters are based on first-hand empirical data, others are conceptual. The main overall conclusion is that there are some strong arguments for being against entrepreneurship discourse, as well as for being against certain aspects of entrepreneurship practice. Before it is reasonable to be against entrepreneurship practice in total, a convincing and practicable alternative needs to be developed. This book will be valuable reading for entrepreneurship scholars, as well as academics working in the fields of business ethics, (critical) management, and international business.

This book presents a lively debate surrounding the professionalization of leadership. With contributions from both sides of the argument, it considers the historical overview of leadership and management as a profession, questions what constitutes a profession, and critically addresses the practicality of professionalizing leadership. With a range of perspectives including political philosophy, behavioral professionalism and management history, the book intends to facilitate further discussion on the issues at stake. With a number of education programs beginning to focus on the art and practice of leading people, this debate is particularly timely.

This book focuses on how the Northern futures are transformed through regional cooperation in the Barents eduscape: a study of the social, cultural and political aspects of higher education and the exchanges of learning and people in the Euro-Arctic Barents region, especially between Norway and Russia. Cultural exchange through higher education involving actors such as students and institutions is an integral part both of the Bologna process and of the policies currently changing higher education. It is also a process of social and cultural change of which we have limited knowledge. Cultural exchange is learned, implemented and performed by the actors who are involved, from the highest political level to the grassroots and the students themselves. Available knowledge of these macro- and micro-processes of cultural exchange is largely fragmented and distinctly framed in national and/or disciplinary (i.e. pedagogical) contexts. In order to understand the transformative potentials of higher education and cultural exchange, this book focuses on the social, cultural and political aspects of the transformations of the futures in the North. This book shows that educational cooperation between Norway and Russia is possible, but also that the existing practices are extremely vulnerable to changes seen through micro theoretical perspectives. By developing new theories which bind major theories, international political decisions, methodological procedures and contextual descriptions together, this book is a first step in the direction of institutionalizing educational cooperation between the various and different academic societies, cultures and political systems.

Innovations in management are becoming more numerous and diverse, and are appearing in organizations providing many different kinds of products and services. The purpose of this book is to examine whether some widely-promoted examples of these management innovations - ranging from techniques such as Kaizen to styles of leadership and the management of learning - can usefully be applied to organizations which provide healthcare, and applied in different kinds of health systems. Management Innovations for Healthcare Organizations is distinctive in selecting a wide and diverse range and selection of managerial innovations to examine. No less distinctively, it makes an adaptive, critical scrutiny of these innovations. Neither evangelist nor nihilist, the book instead considers how these innovations might be adapted for the specific task of providing healthcare. Where evidence on these points is available, the book outlines that too. Consequently the book takes an international approach, with contributions from Europe, the Middle East, Australia and North America. Each contributor is an expert in the management innovation which they present. This combination of features makes the book unique.