Browsing by Author "Clarke, Martin"

Now showing 1 - 15 of 15
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    Aligning business leadership development with business needs: the value of discrimination
    (Emerald Group Publishing Limited, 2008-09-01T00:00:00Z) Bailey, Catherine; Clarke, Martin
    Abstract Purpose – This paper is derived from a two-year study that sought to provide a critical understanding of the current state of business leadership development (BLD) and to identify directions for innovative future practice. The first of two companion papers, this contribution aims to examine the issue of achieving business relevance in BLD and the quality of HR/management development strategy formulation. Design/methodology/approach – The paper analyses four organisation case studies of BLD strategy derived from interview data sourced from 103 senior line/HRD managers in 20 organisations. Findings – The findings highlight the need for HRD managers to take a discriminating approach to linking BLD strategy, development method, evaluation and the role of management development. In particular, the cases studied reflect the importance of informal activity and politics in the execution of BLD and the positive effect of individual leadership in moderating the effectiveness of the linkages between business context, BLD strategy and its implementation. Practical implications – The paper provides a conceptual framework to enable practitioners to discriminate between different bundles of development practices that can, over time, be translated into behaviours that suit the changing needs of an organisation. A list of useful starting points is provided for managers to review and improve BLD strategy and practice in their own organisation. Originality/value – The paper provides a framework that shows the importance of different development populations, different sponsors, interest groups and strategic timeframes in enabling more informed discussion about the strategic alignme
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    Engaging employees
    (Cranfield University School of Management, 2010-03-01T00:00:00Z) Clarke, Martin
    Engaged employees perform better; are advocates for their organisations; generate more creative ideas and provide better customer service.
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    Good governance: a role for organizational politics and organizational democracy in creating moral communities
    (Elsevier, 2012-07) Butcher, David; Clarke, Martin
    Accusations of irresponsible trading have been leveled at the financial services sector in the aftermath of the global economic downturn of the last three years. In turn, this has led to calls for even greater regulation and public scrutiny of board decisions. Yet why should these be necessary? After all, the corporate world was changed by the comprehensive overhaul of governance practices that followed the scandals of Enron, WorldCom and others, now a decade ago. The answer is a stark indication of the limits to hierarchical control that exist in today's organizations. It is clear from the autopsies of sub-prime lending casualties like Lehman Brothers, Fannie Mae, and Freddie Mac that boards cannot simply require that good governance is practiced within their organizations. Yet this should not be of surprise. For failure to take account of differing stakeholder interests is unlikely to be effective in encouraging responsible corporate behaviour.
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    The impact of regulation, ownership and business culture on managing corporate risk within the water industry
    (IWA Publishing, 2013-06-30T00:00:00Z) Allan, Richard; Jeffrey, Paul; Clarke, Martin; Pollard, Simon J. T.
    Although the specifics of water utility ownership, regulation and management culture have been explored in terms of their impact on economic and customer value, there has been little meaningful engagement with their influence on the risk environment and risk management. Using a literature review as the primary source of information, this paper maps the existing knowledge base onto two critical questions: what are the particular features of regulation, ownership and management culture which influence the risk dynamic, and what are the implications of these relationships in the context of ambitions for resilient organizations? In addressing these queries, the paper considers the mindful choices and adjustments a utility must make to its risk management strategy to manage strategic tensions between efficiency, risk and resilience. The conclusions note a gap in understanding of the drivers required for a paradigm shift within the water sector from a re-active to a pro-active risk management culture. A proposed model of the tensions between reactive risk management and pro-active, adaptive risk management provides a compelling case for measured risk management approaches which are informed by an appreciation of regulation, ownership and business culture. Such approaches will support water authorities in meeting corporate aspirations to become "high reliability" services while retaining the capacity to out-perform financial and service level targets.
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    Leadership development: making a difference in unfavourable circumstances
    (Emerald Group Publishing Limited, 2008-08-01T00:00:00Z) Clarke, Martin; Bailey, Catherine; Burr, Joanna
    Abstract Purpose – This paper is derived from a two-year study that sought to provide a critical understanding of the current state of business leadership development (BLD) and to identify directions for innovative future practice. The second of two companion papers, this contribution aims to investigate the influence of unfavourable competing agendas on BLD and how human resource development (HRD) professionals can work effectively within such circumstances. Design/methodological approach – The paper analyses three case studies of HRD managers who made significant contributions to their organisation's BLD despite unfavourable political circumstances. These individuals were selected from a population of 190 managers from the first phase of the overall study. Findings – The cases highlight the centrality of political activity to effective BLD design and implementation that is subject to unfavourable circumstances. In particular, the individuals demonstrated the importance of relationship management, challenge and critique and of building change from the bottom up, irrespective of direct senior management support. Practical implications – The cases shed light on the types of behaviour that may enable HRD professionals to make an effective contribution to BLD, even when there is little formal senior management support. Questions are provided to encourage personal learning and debate about the role and value of HR in the enactment of BLD. Originality/value – The findings indicate that much best practice advice on leadership development needs to be tempered with an acknowledgement of the degree to which it is subject to competing interests and postulates that constructive political action may be a legitimate activity for HRD managers despite mainstream unitari
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    Management development as a game of meaningless outcomes
    (Blackwell, 1999-04) Clarke, Martin
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    Management development: a new role in social change?
    (Emerald, 1999) Clarke, Martin
    Traditional approaches to organizational change are of little use in the bid for increased innovation as they reinforce top-down predictability. An alternative approach is through the creation of pockets of good practice which act as role models of change. These pockets need to be subversive of existing practices but simultaneously deliver organizational success criteria. The success of this approach is dependent upon managers developing a critical perspective about organizational control systems. Contrary to received wisdom the foundation for this critical perspective may be most usefully developed from the manager’s own cynical experience of organizational life. In building this critical perspective management development may begin to fulfil a wider educational role in society.
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    Organizational democracy, ethics and leadership: the mediating role of organizational politics
    (2011-11-01T00:00:00Z) Clarke, Martin
    There has been a growing concern amongst commentators about the disconnection between the apparent pluralisation of society and the relatively limited adoption of democratic practices in the corporate workplace. This paper examines the experience of employees in an international broking company in order to explore the extent to which a political leadership perspective can provide insight into furthering organizational democratisation. Attention is given to the integral relationship between democracy, ethics and a political mindset, and the influence this has upon others. In the account reported here, the ethical and developmental agenda of one influential senior manager is central to both the enactment of politics and the form of democratisation which it enables.
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    Organizational Politics: the cornerstone for organizational democracy
    (Elsevier, 2002-08) Butcher, David; Clarke, Martin
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    Political leadership in democracies: some lessons for business?
    (Emerald Group Publishing Limited, 2006) Butcher, David; Clarke, Martin
    The purpose of this paper is to show that, with demands from a widening range of stakeholders for more democratic approaches to governance, there is an evident need to develop alternative models of organizing. In seeking to understand how to conceptualise this alternative, an analysis of the organizational and political institutional contexts for leadership is provided.
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    Political leadership, bureaucracies and business schools: A comfortable union?
    (SAGE Publications, 2009-11) Clarke, Martin; Butcher, David
    One of the central issues in reconciling pluralistic and bureaucratic forms of organizing lies in the absence of a coherent model of leadership. The intention here is to stimulate debate about the notion of political leadership as a contribution to this analysis. This approach to political leadership prioritizes the explicit acknowledgement of power relations as being central to the reconciliation of diverse interests, and to the building of moral communities in organizational settings. In developing this idea we explore the organizational context for the emergence of political leadership and consider its distinguishing features with reference to both theory and practice. Consideration is given to its utility in building moral organizational communities and how this approach to conceptualizing leadership might be furthered through business school education.
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    Reconciling hierarchy and democracy: the value of management learning
    (Sage Publications, 2006-09) Clarke, Martin; Butcher, David
    Pluralistic organizations are often argued to have become an indisputable reality for senior managers. In consequence, the role of hierarchy has come under close scrutiny. How can organizations balance the need for congruence, provided through hierarchy, with the need for greater organizational democracy? As yet, the potential for management education and learning to impact on this debate, at either an organizational or a societal level, has been largely unfulfilled. This article argues that the aspirational values of liberal adult educationalists have a significant contribution to make to the management of contemporary organizations. It positions these values alongside the business requisites that shape organizations and examine the motivations of senior managers to apply these ideas in practice. The concept of voluntarism, derived from the field of political philosophy, is proposed as an alternative organizational binding mechanism that alters the rationale for the role of hierarchy. The implications for senior executives and management educationalists are considered.
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    The role of voluntarism in stimulating organization democracy
    (Cranfield University, 2006-10) Clarke, Martin; Butcher, David
    This thesis represents a body of work developed over 10 years in the areas of management learning, organizational politics, and change and organization democracy. It focuses on the role of hierarchy in balancing the need for strategic coherence with the ever burgeoning plurality of organizational life. In recent years, there has been a variety of academic discourses that have illuminated this debate. Often coming from different epistemological traditions, each makes a helpful contribution to the debate. However, I argue that none provides, nor in some cases is intended to provide, senior managers with robust and practical methods of re-conceptualising the role of hierarchy in organization. Based on this analysis, four key requirements for the development of theory in the area are suggested. Using these principles as a starting point, this thesis makes a contribution to knowledge in three interrelated areas. Firstly, by developing the concept of voluntarism, derived from the field of political philosophy, as an alternative organizational binding mechanism that alters the rationale for the role of hierarchy. Secondly, this concept is operationalised as a form of ‘representative’ leadership. Research data are provided which explore the behavioural dimensions and cognitive antecedents of this approach to leadership. The findings are suggestive of a democratic orientation toward leading and organizing, and on this basis, the third contribution focuses on how such leadership principles may be more widely adopted through the vehicle of management learning.
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    A Study of the role of ‘Representative’ leadership in stimulating organization democracy
    (Sage Publications, 2006-11) Clarke, Martin
    There has been a growing concern among commentators about the disconnection between the apparent increase in the plurality of society, and the relatively limited facets of democracy practised in the corporate work place. Specifically, models of distributed leadership appear at odds with the dominant bureaucratic and unitary model of organizing. In addressing the problem, this article offers a model of Representative Leadership (RL) derived from a political institutional discourse and suggests that in settings of contested plurality, the representation of different organizational constituencies, by a wide range of individuals is central to effective organizing. This model of leadership is explored in the context of data derived from 31 senior managers in five different commercial organizations. Observations are provided about the causal relationships between organization context, managerial cognitions of plurality, personal interest, authority and politics. The potential for RL behaviour to inform future discourse on democratic governance is considered.
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    Voluntarism as an organizing principle for 'responsible organizations'
    (Emerald Group Publishing Limited, 2006-01-01T00:00:00Z) Clarke, Martin; Butcher, David
    The aim of this paper is to promote the concept of organizational voluntarism, borrowed from political philosophy and to stimulate feedback and debate as to its efficacy in furthering the discourse on corporate responsibility.