Martyna Sliwa

Profaning the sacred in leadership studies: a reading of Murakami's A Wild Sheep Chase

The leadership literature is full of stories of heroic self-sacrifice. Sacrificial leadership behaviour, some scholars conclude, is to be recommended. In this article we follow Keith Grint’s conceptualization of leadership as necessarily pertaining to the sacred, but—drawing on Giorgio Agamben’s notion of profanation—we highlight the need for organization scholars to profane the sacralizations embedded in leadership thinking. One example of this, which guides us throughout the article, is the novel A Wild Sheep Chase, by the Japanese author Haruki Murakami. By means of a thematic reading of the novel, we discuss how it contributes to profaning particular notions of sacrifice and the sacred in leadership thinking. In the novel, self-sacrifice does not function as a way of establishing a leadership position, but as a way to avoid the dangers associated with leadership, and possibly redeem humans from their current collective urge to become leaders. Inspired by Murakami’s fictional example, we call organization scholars to engage in profanation of leadership studies and, in doing so, open new vistas for leadership theory and practice.

Exploring Narratives and Antenarratives of Graffiti Artists: Beyond Dichotomies of Commitment and Detachment

In this article, we propose engagement in critical analysis of social phenomena—here, that of ‘commitment’—through consideration of narratives of and about graffiti artists (‘graffers’). We discuss ways in which graffers are viewed as demonstrating conformance with or rebellion against prevailing social mores. We address representations of them through their own work, as well as in the media and in academic literature. We find that graffers are generally portrayed in simplistic terms, being either vilified and seen as detached from norms of society or justified through incorporation into the discourse of modern art. In our analysis, we employ Boje’s concept of ‘antenarrative’ to challenge the dichotomous depictions of graffers, particularly in relation to the notion of commitment. We posit that the antenarrative approach can also enable analysis of less extreme groups, helping us to explore relevant concepts and phenomena.

Real or hyper-real? Cultural experiences of overseas business students

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to take a reflexive look at the cultural experiences of a group of overseas students studying at a business school in the North East of England. The paper uses Baudrillards work on simulacra and simulation to challenge notions of second culture contact.Design/methodology/approach – Using primary (i.e. interviews with 14 students and four staff) and secondary sources the paper investigates second culture contact truths associated with English higher education for a group of overseas students. To capture the richness of individual cultural experiences for these students and staff a qualitative approach in gathering empirical data is adopted.Findings – First, it seems the mainstream literature that posits cultures as definable, distinct and measurable entities that can be acquired does not capture the complexity of cultural experiences as revealed by the individuals involved in this study. Second, the findings surface questions about the validity of what educators and ...

Philosophical thought and the origins of quality management: uncovering conceptual underpinnings of W.A. Shewhart’s ideas on quality

This article contributes to the theorisation and understanding of the discipline of quality management as it revisits and unfolds the ideas of the quality pioneer W.A. Shewhart. It attempts to fill a gap in the current writings on the history of management thought by uncovering the major conceptual influences on Shewhart’s works, in particular their link with advancements in science in the early twentieth century, as well as with process philosophy and the philosophy of pragmatism. Throughout the discussion, examples are provided of the impact of process thinking and pragmatism on Shewhart’s writings. In the concluding part of the article, comments are made in relation to the relevance of the conceptual underpinnings of Shewhart’s ideas for the present theory and practice of quality management.

This is not the same city: narratives of postsocialist spatial change

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to contribute to extant literature on socioeconomic transition in Central and Eastern Europe through using a spatial lens in order to address, at the level of individual experience, some of the changes that have affected Polish society post‐1989.Design/methodology/approach – This paper adopts Taylor and Spicers three‐fold conceptualisation of organizational space as a framework to present and discuss qualitative data collected through interviews.Findings – This paper finds that socioeconomic restructuring has brought about changes in space conceived of as distance, as materialisation of power relations and as experience. In the narratives of research participants, present experience of space within the city they live and work in is related to their past experience and to their movement in the space. Different spaces are interconnected to form the individuals “mental map” of the city. The spatial dimension of postsocialist transition has an important impact upon the...

The quality of equality: thinking differently about gender inclusion in organizations

Purpose: This article suggests a shift in thinking about how to improve gender inclusion in norganisations, as well as offering a number of practical action points. nDesign/methodology/approach: This article takes a perspective based on the authors’ own nongoing research as well as synthesis of existing insights into gender inclusion in norganisations. nFindings: In order to retain top talent and improve organisational climate, we need to re-think nhow we measure the success of organisational inclusion policies. Specifically, the article nsuggests moving from numbers and targets to looking at the quality of gender inclusion in nthe workplace. The article explains why this shift in thinking is important, and how to napproach it. nPractical implications: The article provides strategic insights into and practical thinking about nways in which progressive organisations can continue to improve gender equality. nOriginality/value: The article makes a provocative call for a change of perspective on gender ninclusion in organisations based on cutting-edge research, and puts forward action points in nan accessible format.

Service quality measurement: appointment systems in UK GP practices

PURPOSEnA recurring problem in the service quality literature is measurement--knowing which quality aspects should be measured and in what ways. This article aims to assess service quality measurement by focusing on general practice appointment systems.nnnDESIGN/METHODOLOGY/APPROACHnThe authors use a case study, integrating qualitative and quantitative methods, including interviews with stakeholders as well as data regarding appointment systems temporal aspects.nnnFINDINGSnThis study offers insights into service qualitys subjective and context-dependent nature, as reflected in primary healthcare stakeholder perceptions and service qualitys objective and quantifiable aspects, revealing its dynamic, process-based nature.nnnRESEARCH LIMITATIONS/IMPLICATIONSnThe empirical approach to service quality measurement did not focus on all general practice service quality aspects, but instead focused on patient appointments with healthcare professionals. Broader applications to include other service quality aspects should be addressed by research.nnnPRACTICAL IMPLICATIONSnUsing one approach, service operators could have a tool for obtaining a more complex and richer service quality picture, leading to a better understanding of the relationship between service delivery and its evaluations by different stakeholders.nnnORIGINALITY/VALUEnThe service quality measurement method offers innovative insights into different theoretical abstractions, constructively challenges both measurement and service quality, whilst moving beyond managerial and user-based approaches, and is highly relevant to contemporary organisation practice.

Beyond bureaucracy and entrepreneurialism: Examining the multiple discursive codes informing the work, careers and subjectivities of management graduates

This paper examines how discursive codes and demands associated with ‘bureaucratic and entrepreneurial regimes’ of work and career organization shape the work, careers and subjectivities of management graduates. The study is based on an analysis of 30 narratives of management professionals who graduated from an Austrian business school in the early 1970s or 2000s. Its insights suggest that variegated discursive codes manifest in the graduates’ articulated professional practices and subjectivities, thereby challenging established assumptions regarding the organization of work and careers. While the practices and subjectivities of the 1970s graduates are often informed by codes and demands ascribed to ‘entrepreneurialism’, those of the 2000s graduates are infused with several codes commonly portrayed as ‘bureaucratic’.

Exploring gendered inclusion in contemporary organisations - ESRC

The last three decades have seen an unprecedented rise in the number of women in work and the mainstreaming of the equal opportunities agenda. In this context, we are also witnessing a growth of postfeminist rhetoric, suggesting that gender workplace equality has been achieved and that womens progress now depends on individual capabilities, such as confidence levels, because structural barriers have been dismantled. In Sheryl Sandbergs words, women simply need to lean in in order to succeed alongside their male colleagues. Despite this optimism, academic research continues to highlight disadvantage experienced by women in the workplace, such as the gendered pay gap, the glass ceiling, womens concentration in lower-paid industries and low representation at senior levels, comprising only 8.6 per cent of directors in large UK firms in 2015.

A Wild Sheep Chase: Haruki Murakami

In Book III of the Laws, Plato (1997) lays out a series of qualifications that make a leader fit to rule. The first four of these relate to traditional forms of authority through birth and social status: the right of the noble to rule the serf, the parent the child, the master the slave and the old the young. The fifth relates to the authority of those with a superior nature, over the weak. This indeterminate, ‘superior nature’ parallels the trajectory of trait theories of leadership as well as Great Man theories of leadership, both of which posit a nature (sometimes of divine origin)—‘leadership’—then set out in pursuit of this nature. Plato’s sixth qualification is knowledge or expertise and the power of those who know over those who do not. Here we find the precursors for the second major tradition in leadership studies: the idea that the right to lead derives from mastery of a set of skills that can be taught and learned. As the French political philosopher Jacques Ranciere (2001) notes, however, there is a seventh qualification: the paradoxical qualification of having no qualification but, by chance or lottery, being thrown into a position of leadership.