The compensation of top managers and the performance of Italian firms

This paper examines one of the most studied aspects regarding the compensation of top managers: the relationship between remuneration and corporate performance. The principle research objective is to find evidence of this correlation in Italian companies. Based on a sample of 145 Italian companies listed on the Milan Stock Exchange, as analysed during the period between 2004 and 2009, the research findings do not demonstrate a link between company performance and the pay of top managers. Another empirical result that should be highlighted is the presence of a greater correlation between rate of pay and company size, in terms of stock turnover, which demonstrates the likely presence, at least in certain situations, of a dimensional premium that is to the benefit of the managers of larger companies. This research project evidences empirical results in the Italian context that support the findings of the most important international literature on the subject, as regards the absence of a connection between the compensation of managers and the performance of their firms.     

The effects of cultural intelligence on expatriate performance: the moderating effects of international experience

In recent years, cultural intelligence (CQ, or the ability that an expatriate has to adapt across cultures), cultural effectiveness (the ability to interact and communicate with host nationals), and cultural adjustment are regarded as three of the most important factors for expatriate performance. However, the interrelationships between these variables have largely been ignored. Moreover, the role of previous international experiences on the above interrelationships has also not been determined. This study focuses on how CQ and expatriates' experience affects cultural adjustment, cultural effectiveness, and expatriates' performance. The results reveal that the positive effect of CQ needs to be mediated by cultural adjustment and cultural effectiveness before affecting expatriate performance. Furthermore, expatriates' prior international working and travel experiences moderate the effects of CQ on cultural adjustment and cultural effectiveness.     

Individual efficiency and club performance: a panel analysis of professional baseball

This paper investigates whether players' individual‐ and club‐level efficiency has substantial impact on club performance in the Chinese Professional Baseball League (CPBL). Using data from 1990 to 2000, and a stochastic frontier model, we propose a different way to measure club‐level efficiency. Our empirical results indicate that club‐level efficiency is crucial to club performance, measured by the winning percentage. Although the literature shows that some inefficient clubs with abundant resources are still very successful on the diamond, our results confirm that club‐level efficiency has a moderate impact on the success of a baseball club in the CPBL. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Top managers in the digital age: Exploring the role and practices of top managers in firms' digital transformation

This study explores the role and facilitating actions of top managers in response to the digital transformation. Building on 27 in-depth interviews with top managers and close associates from large German firms, we find that top managers respond to the digital transformation by engaging in three key actions: understanding digitalization, setting the formal context for digitalization, and leading change. Moreover, findings emphasize that top management team support is essential in firms' digital transformation. Overall, this study contributes novel insights about the consequences of top managers for firms and establishes an initial foundation for investigating top managers in the digital age.     

A comparative analysis of performance assessment: international joint venture managers versus regional headquarters managers

This paper examines a relatively unexplored dimension within the IHRM literature: whether JV CEOs and representatives of their foreign parents' regional headquarters differ in their evaluations of JV effectiveness. This study is based upon a sample of 153 JVs located in China. Existing theories suggest an alternate rationale detailing why the evaluations of JV managers and their foreign parent companies should differ and why they should be similar. Our investigation generally finds that evaluations are similar, with some differentiation occurring when our sample is divided by JV age and by JV industry. Overall, the results suggest that isomorphic forces may exist between managers of JVs and managers of their foreign parents in the JV system.     

Job involvement and performance among middle managers in Sri Lanka

This paper examines performance evaluation outcomes for middle managers in the garment sector in Sri Lanka and seeks to explain variations in levels of job involvement and perceptions of organizational support. Some 155 middle managers across three firms were segregated into high- and low-performing groups. High-performing managers tended to have higher perceptions of organizational support, resulting in a social exchange relationship with their employer, and expressed higher job satisfaction and lower turnover intentions. Managers assessed as low performers experienced more negative perceptions of organizational support, lower job satisfaction and an economic exchange relationship with their employer. Significantly, for both high and low performers these outcomes were moderated by job involvement. These findings highlight the need for organizations to pay careful attention to the factors influencing job involvement and perceived organizational support. The paper concludes with a discussion on the practical implications of the findings for human resource managers.     

企业经营者职业化的条件、作用及最终路径

经营者的职业化是现代企业制度的必然要求.它需要建立三项基本制度,即职业证书制度、职业经理评级制度和市场化聘任与解聘制度;需要三个基本条件即要有理性的买者、充裕的卖方和规范的中介机构;职业化的路径是体制外经理市场压迫体制内经理市场,最终导致二者并轨.     

A framework for strategic decision making and performance among Chinese managers

This study develops an integrative model that explains the relationship between Chinese culture, managers' strategic decision making (SDM) processes, and organizational performance. For the study 1200 participants were randomly selected from a business club's company register, resulting in 204 valid respondents. The results highlighted two significant SDM paths used by managers: (1) the cognitive-speed path, which suggested that Overseas Chinese managers (the Chinese who live outside of Mainland China) focus on the big picture, draw analogies from past experiences, and use extensive networks to reduce the duration of the decision process; and (2) the social-political path which shows that Overseas Chinese managers focus on collective interests, strive to maintain harmony, and to save face while using a collaborative style to handle conflict; this approach reduces dysfunctional political behavior, while reinforcing the decision team's focus on common goals. From these results we concluded that a speedier decision making process (based on intuition, experience, and networks) accompanied by the appropriate use of political behavior (that created harmony, through a hierarchical structure, during conflict management) in the Overseas Chinese managers' strategic decision making process could positively influence organizational performance.     

The strategic interaction between managers and workers in Soviet industrial enterprises: Work-place motivation and economic performance

We construct a model of Soviet industrial enterprises, examining the strategic interaction between managers and workers as technology and workers' pay/performance relations evolve. Before 1965, when both players started sharing a bonus fund, workers received piece wages and selected their effort independently of management. With standardised technology, this regime fostered economic growth, at least until the weakening of the pay/performance nexus in 1965. After 1965, the game changed: anything making one player less motivated engendered a similar action by the other. The economy's vulnerability as technology changed and inflation weakened motivation no doubt contributed to its recent collapse.     

“洋打工皇帝”的落败

沃德与韦杰夫的“闪电陨落”,未免让人叹息。但可以肯定的是:尽管“洋高管”曾在海外有过辉煌的业绩,但如果在现任岗位上不能胜任或者满足投资者的预期,最终只能走人。在中国,一句老话忽视不得:适者生存     

Professors,managers, and human resource education

his article examines whether Masters of Business Administration (MBA) programs adequately prepare human resource professionals. It also compares managers' and professors' evaluations of the competencies HR managers will need in the twenty‐first century. It finds that both managers and professors view interpersonal and problem‐solving competencies and integration of HR with bottom line concerns as more important than technical know‐how. HR managers, however, are much more critical of what MBA programs are doing than are HR professors. HR professors may be risking complacency about their product. © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

Innovation shock,outsourcing strategy,and environmental performance: The roles of prior green innovation experience and knowledge inheritance

To investigate under what conditions an outsourcing strategy can show superior environmental performance, one stream of scholars has underscored the importance of prior green innovation experience, and another stream of scholars has underscored the importance of the in‐house possession of outsourced component knowledge. However, the empirical findings regarding the positive role of both scholarly streams when studied separately are mixed and sometimes contradictory. This study bridges these two distinct but related streams and suggests that prior green innovation experience and in‐house knowledge regarding outsourced components play a complementary role in enhancing environmental performance. The U.S. hybrid electric vehicle market lends support to the argument of this study. In so doing, this study increases our understanding of the role of prior green innovation experience and outsourced component knowledge on environmental performance while pursuing an outsourcing strategy. This study also provides guidance for managers and policymakers on how to achieve superior environmental performance in outsourcing.     

职业经理人的职业特征与职业素养

职业经理人由于其职业的特殊性,从而表现出明显的职业特征,同时也要求具有相应的职业素养.本文从从社会职业分工类型、企业(公司)治理结构和企业规模因素等方面考察和分析了职业经理人的职业特征;在对职业经理人职业素养界定的基础上,解析了职业精神、职业价值观、职业道德、职业作风、职业心理等五个构成要素.     

Antecedents and consequences of performance management enactment by front-line managers. Evidence from Belgium

Although researchers have extensively stressed the critical role of line managers in the effective implementation of HR practices, little is known about what exactly causes managers to enact these practices. In this paper, we draw from signaling theory, theory of planned behavior and social exchange theory to investigate both the antecedents and the outcomes of front-line management’s enactment of performance management (PM) activities. Results from two Belgian samples of 731 front-line managers and 425 employees show that line management’s beliefs regarding the usefulness of PM activities mediate the relationship between HR support and line management’s implicit person theory, on the one hand, and PM enactment, on the other. This relationship is moderated by the manager’ span of control. Furthermore, line management enactment shows to be positively related to employee engagement and job satisfaction.     

The impact of performance measurement on purchasing group dynamics: The Canadian experience

Purchasing groups were first created in the healthcare sector, which has faced unprecedented challenges in terms of cost control for over two decades. Purchasing groups are indeed supposed to generate additional savings and more efficient purchasing processes. However, although various aspects of purchasing groups have been studied since the early 2000s, both their performance measurement and the influence that this measurement has on inter-organizational dynamics have been neglected. In purchasing groups, the dynamics between the group itself and its members often results in tensions between both parties. Performance measurement within purchasing groups could alleviate those tensions, since “objective” data could then be used to improve communication.Based on a case study, this research sheds light on performance measurement in a purchasing group, on the dynamics between the group and its members, and on the interaction between performance measurement and inter-organizational dynamics. Results indicate that measuring performance impacts the dynamics between both parties, but that the relationship is also the other way around, and that the inter-organizational dynamics is quite complex. In addition, this paper proposes a framework summarizing the research findings.