Amidst rapid and fundamental shifts in the economic, geo-political, technological, and societal landscape, this cutting-edge book makes the timeless case that research can be informed by problems in the 'real world' and make important contributions to theory and practice. Throughout the book, the authors argue that there is a 'sweet spot' where both scholarly and practical research can be done simultaneously. It offers readers insightful and rich examples of how this can be achieved, including frameworks, examples, ideas, and tools which will guide researchers in the lifelong task of defining themselves as researchers and crafting their own unique research practice. It also features critical insights into careers oriented toward having impact on practice, reflective questions that make the principles personal and relevant, and a framework to help develop the network of connections required for research to impact practice. Speaking to the graduate student in all of us, How to Do Relevant Research will greatly benefit Ph.D. students and early career academics who gravitate towards this kind of research but worry about its feasibility and instrumentality, mid-to-late career scholars who do research for practice and teach young scholars how to do it, and to researchers in a think-tank or consultancy who want their work to be scientifically sound and practically useful.

Amidst rapid and fundamental shifts in the economic, geo-political, technological, and societal landscape, this cutting-edge book makes the timeless case that research can be informed by problems in the 'real world' and make important contributions to theory and practice. Throughout the book, the authors argue that there is a 'sweet spot' where both scholarly and practical research can be done simultaneously. It offers readers insightful and rich examples of how this can be achieved, including frameworks, examples, ideas, and tools which will guide researchers in the lifelong task of defining themselves as researchers and crafting their own unique research practice. It also features critical insights into careers oriented toward having impact on practice, reflective questions that make the principles personal and relevant, and a framework to help develop the network of connections required for research to impact practice. Speaking to the graduate student in all of us, How to Do Relevant Research will greatly benefit Ph.D. students and early career academics who gravitate towards this kind of research but worry about its feasibility and instrumentality, mid-to-late career scholars who do research for practice and teach young scholars how to do it, and to researchers in a think-tank or consultancy who want their work to be scientifically sound and practically useful.

Volume 4 extends the examination of "Organizing for Sustainable Healthcare" (Volume 2 of the same series, 2012). It presents case studies and theoretical analyses that illustrate practical approaches to, and further the theoretical understanding of, the creation of a more sustainable healthcare. Given economic, ecological, and population trends, the sustainability of healthcare delivery as it is organized today cannot be taken for granted. Politicians, healthcare regulators and professionals worldwide are debating how to redesign today's delivery paradigms to deliver greater value to our societies while consuming fewer resources. Even in countries with national health systems, healthcare organization has been fragmented, diminishing outcome effectiveness and wasting society's resources. With complex value chains and dynamic interactions among various players, the reconfiguration of the healthcare system will require the reconciliation of different - often conflicting - goals, values, conceptions of social justice, work processes, knowledge bases, and business models. The chapters in this volume build on multiple disciplines and varied approaches to address this complexity.

" Achieving Strategic Excellence offers a unique and practical perspective based on solid research on how HR impacts business success. The inclusion of data from senior line managers adds a dose of reality to how the HR function has actually changed. This important work is a must-read for HR professionals as well as business leaders seeking to maximize human capital." -- Daryl D. David, Executive Vice President, Human Resources, Washington Mutual, Inc.
" This latest update of CEO's longitudinal HR study provides almost a decade of perspective on the challenges and changes in the HR function. HR leaders in all industries and stages of career experience will find Lawler, Mohrman, and Boudreau's conclusions insightful and provocative with some interesting twists. The strategic HR journey continues . . ." -- Mary Eckenrod, Chair Elect, The Human Resource Planning Society; Vice President, Global Talent Management, Kraft Foods

Stewardship entails a profound understanding and acceptance of the challenges that result from the organization's interdependence with the societal and ecological contexts in which it operates-and of what it takes to embrace the challenges to be a force for building a viable future. This book dares to ask `why' business leaders should embrace stewardship in the current market where profit reigns supreme. A shift in approach represents fundamental change for the corporate world, and even the most advanced corporations consider themselves to be in the starting block of this transition. The book sets out the practical ways in which corporate stewardship can be achieved through embedding new approaches across the different functions of a business. This book, written by the leading thinkers in sustainability research, provides practical guidance on how companies can resolve the paradoxical challenges they face. How can they be at the same time profitable and responsible, effective and ethical, sustainable and adaptable? It explores what businesses are doing, what they can and should do to effectively respond to external challenges, and focuses on how leaders can create cultures, strategies, and designs far beyond "business as usual". Stewards must not only make proper current use of that which they hold in trust, they also must leave it in better condition for use by future generations. Corporate Stewardship challenges managers, executives, and directors of global corporations to think and act as stewards of both their organizations and the physical and social environments in which they operate.

A large literature has been generated about sustainability, and many organizations, governments, communities and citizens have focused on it. Yet, given how quickly the limits of the current models of the global economy are being approached, we must accelerate the rate at which we learn to operate differently. This first volume of the Emerald series Organizing for Sustainable Effectiveness learns from some of the pioneers articulating these challenges and organizing to address them. There is an urgent need to grow the knowledge bases to guide the transition. Each chapter in this volume, crafted to bring together the knowledge of practice and theory, is based on rich empirical data about particular cases in which organizations are, individually or collectively, working to build a more sustainable future. Contributors bring theoretical knowledge to bear on these case examples and test the applicability of the formal knowledge base about management and organizations, while refining, modifying, and extending it to increase its usefulness in addressing the challenges of organizing for sustainable effectiveness.

Corporations are undergoing dramatic changes that have significant implications for how human resources are best managed and organized. There is growing consensus that human capital is critical to an organization's success. But how should the HR function itself be organized? Is change in HR keeping pace with organizational change overall?
"Creating a Strategic Human Resources Organization" reports the findings from a 6-year longitudinal study of whether and how the HR functions in large corporations are responding to the challenges and opportunities posed by the changing business environment. The book identifies the changes that will be required in order for HR to become a true strategic partner, and suggests why, in too many companies, this transition is not occurring. It examines the paradoxical roles played in this transition by the focus on talent management and the application of IT capabilities, and proposes a new way of conceptualizing HR as providing three service lines. It finds that the most effective HR teams are substantially changing their mix of activities to become knowledge-based contributors to organizational strategy and effectiveness.
The authors conclude that HR is at a crossroads, and will either have to face up to these challenges or become a marginal contributor to corporate success.
The study was carried out at the Center for Effective Organizations in the Marshall School of Business at the University of Southern California, and was funded by the Human Resource Planning Society and the corporate sponsors of the Center for Effective Organizations.

Health care, as it is currently organized, is not sustainable. Health care systems in the developed world are encountering increased demand for high quality health care but facing societal resource limits. Health care managers, professionals and academics worldwide are debating how to redesign its current organizational configurations and delivery paradigms to deliver more with less, amidst profound changes in demographics, increased cost of new technology and changing health care priorities. Health care is inextricably linked to the overall sustainability of society and it is critical that solutions are found. The chapters in this volume examine health care systems that are building the foundations for sustainable, high quality health care. Case-based analyses discuss substantive organizing changes aimed at operating within resource limitations, while taking advantage of new knowledge and medical advances that could have an unprecedented positive impact on the health of individuals and societies. The volume also explores the change capabilities and learning mechanisms that health care systems need in order to implement fundamental change and continue to improve over time.

This handbook provides the latest thinking, methodologies and cases in the rapidly growing area of collaborative management research. What makes collaborative management research different is its emphasis on creating a close partnership between scholars and practitioners in the search for knowledge concerning organizations and complex systems. In the ideal situation, scholars and their managerial partners would work together to define the research focus, develop the methods to be used for data collection, participate equally in the analysis of data, and work together in the application and dissemination of knowledge. The handbook contains insightful reflections on the state of the art as well as detailed descriptions of the collaborative efforts of an international group of leading edge academics and their practitioner counterparts. The applications of collaborative research methods included in this volume include those aimed at individual development, organizational development, regional development efforts and economic policy. The insights from the cases suggest that collaborative management research has been a highly effective means of getting at issues that other research methods and intervention techniques have failed to address. The rationale for conducting this highly engaging type of research is explored in the first section of the handbook, followed by sections that offer new methodologies, descriptive cases, views from those directly involved, and issues and enablers about the use of this approach in advancing knowledge and practice. The handbook does appeal to scholarly practitioners as well as practical scholars. Meet author Niclas Adler! http: //www.jibs.se