Widely known as a leading intellectual, Zygmunt Bauman's thinking is often categorized as sociology or philosophy. But his work has been hugely influential in other fields as well, not least within organization studies. From increasing management control and growing standardization of work activities, to the increase in uncertainty and insecurity experienced by contemporary workers, organizations themselves are becoming ever more ephemeral entities. Bauman's themes: globalization, liquid modernity and postmodern ethics are arguably fundamental to contemporary notions of organization and management and his thinking has never been more relevant. However, despite the obvious and continuing influence of Bauman's ideas on business studies, there has been no comprehensive attempt to chart his impact on organization theory. In this innovative and insightful collection, an international selection of leading management scholars explore key topics in current organizational discourse, including networked organizations, control and ambiguity, technologies, work and responsibility, extending Bauman's liquid modernity to the "liquid organization". The book will be essential reading for scholars and academics and students in management and organizational theory, and also sociology, managing culture and organizational ethnography.

The concepts of knowledge management and knowledge-intensive work have been developing for quite a while as one of the most critical components to organizational success. Despite its importance across the globe, there has never been a truly international resource to address the issues, trends, and theories involved in this area of study. ""The Handbook of Research on Knowledge-Intensive Organizations"" offers an international collection of studies on knowledge-intensive organizations with insight into organizational realities as varied as universities, consulting agencies, corporations, and high-tech start-ups. As one of the first comprehensive books to cover the topics vitally important for the whole theory of organization and management, this ""Handbook of Research"" delivers a state-of-the-art view on this timely issue.

The concept of innovation management and learning organizations concepts strongly emphasize the high role of human/intellectual capital in the company and the crucial function of knowledge in modern society. However, there is often a paradox between managerial language and actual practice in many organizations: on one hand, knowledge-workers are perceived as the most valued members of organizations while, on the other, they are being manipulated and "engineered"-commonly driven to burn-out, and deprived of family life. All this leads to the emergence of new organizational phenomena that, up to now, have been insufficiently analyzed and described. Management Practices in High-Tech Environments studies this issue thoroughly from an international, comparative, cross-cultural perspective, presenting cutting-edge research on management practices in American, European, Asian and Middle-Eastern high-tech companies, with particular focus on fieldwork-driven, but reflective, contributions.