Michael B. Arthur

Paradox in Project-Based Enterprise: The Case of Film Making

The creation of temporary enterprises for project-based work has become an increasingly salient feature of the new economy. These project-based enterprises challenge several tenets of strategic management theory. Film making has a long tradition of project-based organizing. This article presents an intensive case study of a big-budget motion picture project which provides the context for identifying some paradoxical attributes of project-based enterprises. Each of the paradoxes challenges strategic management theory assumptions of a relatively permanent firm as the locus of learning, knowledge transfer, and competitive advantage. Findings from the film case suggest the importance of human and social capital that is embodied in individual free-agent careers and mobilized within communities of professional and industry practice.

Expatriate assignment versus overseas experience: Contrasting models of international human resource development

Expatriate assignment (EA) and overseas experience (OE) models of international career experience are compared. Analysis of recent case study data suggests OEs advantages over EA for peoples development and its consequences. In turn, the analysis suggests both human resource management and national policy-making shift from planning toward knowledge-centered approaches.

Handbook of career theory: Generating new directions in career theory: the case for a transdisciplinary approach

The limitation of social organization is found in the inability of individuals to place themselves in the perspectives of others, to take their points of view. George Herbert Mead, 1927 When we pause in our studies to reflect on theory and method, the greatest yield is a restatement of our problems. C. Wright Mills, 1959 The concept of the career has never been more popular. Once viewed mainly as a synonym for initial job choice, it is now widely accepted as a central feature in employment arrangements. Career development and human resource management programs are not only widely accepted but also seen as critical to both individuals and organizations. Such programs cover a wide range of issues, from individual careers and work–family accommodation, to policy and strategic concerns such as the aging of the work force, adaptation to new technology, and organizational productivity (Gutteridge, 1986; Mills, 1985). However, these trends mean that much of the practice of managing careers has come close to catching up with the body of theory that inspired it (Hall and Associates, 1986). Either career theory has served its purpose and should be laid to rest or it needs a good shot in the arm. We believe this state of affairs exists not because we are done explaining careers, but because work on the topic has moved away from its conceptually rich heritage. As a result, career studies are at risk of addressing increasingly narrow and decreasingly innovative questions. Our view is that a good shot in the arm will help rejuvenate career theory and also help us adapt to the dynamic character of modern industrial society.

Broken ladders : managerial careers in the new economy

This book is the first comprehensive view, based on hard evidence, of how the role of managers in organizations is changing. The business press is full of stories about managers as an endangered species. Though there is some truth to this, the actual state of affairs is more complex and important to understand.

Studying careers across cultures: international, cross-cultural, and globalization perspectives

Purpose – This paper aims to study careers across cultures, distinguishing among international career, cross‐cultural and globalization perspectives.Design/methodology/approach – The conceptual development is based on a review of four empirical papers in this special issue with a focus on “Careers in cross‐cultural perspective” and other recent research in this area.Findings – Work on international careers has traditionally looked at careers that cross national boundaries, such as those involving expatriate career assignments or self‐initiated international careers. Research into cross‐cultural careers reflects the primary work of this special issues articles, primarily by looking at differences between two or more cultures. Career research into globalization is more recent and more tentative. It covers how careers interact with the economic, political, social and environmental changes commonly associated with the term globalization.Research limitations/implications – The proposed framework is a reflecti...

The relationship of marital status, spouse’s career status, and gender to salary level

The relationship of marital status, spouse’s career status, and gender to salary was examined from five different theoretical perspectives for a sample of managers and professionals in one large organization. Results showed that married individuals whose spouses did not have careers earned more than anyone except those who were divorced, controlling for age, education, type of position, job location, organizational tenure, and job tenure. Results also showed that individuals who had never been married earned the least, women earned less than men, and men with children at home earned more than men with no children at home. These findings are discussed in terms of the different theoretical perspectives, within a changing social content.

Professional identity as the key to career change intention

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to investigate career change intention and its predictors among career change seekers interested in a career opportunity in the information technology (IT) industry.Design/methodology/approach – Ajzens theory of planned behavior (TPB) was used to predict career change intention in this group. In addition, we examined the role of professional identity in predicting career change intention. Data were collected in a sample of 225 aspiring IT professionals from four European countries: Austria, Greece, Italy and The Netherlands.Findings – The findings showed that among four variables assumed to predict career change intention, only professional identity appeared to be a significant predictor.Research limitations/implications – The study is limited by the use of career change seekers registered in one web‐based recruiting system.Originality/value – The paper suggests a higher importance of professional identity in prediction of career change intention compared to other f...

The boundaryless career at 20: where do we stand, and where can we go?

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to reflect on a broad body of work that responds to the boundaryless career concept, first introduced in 1993, and to anticipate new theory-building and research. Design/methodology/approach – Covers the origination of the concept, its meaning and definition, the underlying influence of an earlier group of careers scholars from Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), and the importance of an interdisciplinary perspective. Findings – Identifies three categories of activity – involving internal debates, fresh theoretical contributions, and new collaborative opportunities – that have occurred citing boundaryless career scholarship. Research limitations/implications – Suggests how scholars can build on the legacy of both organizational and boundaryless careers research in their future work. Originality/value – Links between foundational MIT work on careers, boundaryless careers and current debates to suggests future research directions.

The odyssey of career and the opportunity for international comparison

The concept of career is where human resource management (HRM) processes and practices, and received social opinions about work, meet the aspirations and well-being of individuals at work. The effects are not all one way, though, as evolution in individual and collective career patterns can eventually challenge and reshape HRM practices. Thus the power of the concept of career is precisely the recursive link that it provides. To study careers orients attention not only to the external features of working lives – positions, promotions and organizational and occupational career structures – but also to how people perceive these features, as well as to the dialectical relationships between people and their environments. This allows for a wide-ranging examination of the intersection of individuals, organizations and social structures over time and space. Thus, the concept career provides a useful vehicle for exploring social processes and social change (Collin and Watts, 1996; Herriott, 1992; Arthur et al., 1989). There has been renewed interest in careers recently (e.g. Arthur and Rousseau, 1996; Peiperl et al., 2000; Collin and Young, 2000; Inkson et al., 2002), stemming from the widespread debate about the career implications of those organizational and social changes which threaten traditional assumptions about work. The comfortable notion that careers travel predictable routes up organizational or occupational hierarchies appears no longer to hold. In response to the debate, a discernible body of literature has emerged addressing what has been described as a shift from ‘organizational careers’ to so-called ‘boundaryless careers’ involving less predictable career trajectories (Arthur and Rousseau, 1996). Images of careers as protean (Hall et al., 1996), boundaryless (Arthur and Rousseau, 1996), capitalist (Inkson and Arthur, 2002), portfolio (Handy, 1994) and free agent (Hecksher, 1995) have been proposed. Much of this literature invites a sharper focus on the individual and the personal ‘odyssey’ involved in career journeys that are more idiosyncratic in their engagement with the changing world of work over time. Most new approaches to careers converge in exploring ‘independence from, rather than dependence on, traditional organizational career arrangements’ (Arthur and Rousseau, 1996: 6). Emerging ideas about careers as less predictable, less organizationally dependent and more boundaryless have acted as a powerful counterforce to earlier views of careers which have acted as limits to the legitimacy of a wide variety of career stories Int. J. of Human Resource Management 14:5 August 2003 705–712

Interdisciplinary approaches in career studies

This is the opening article in a Human Relations special issue on ‘Interdisciplinary approaches to contemporary career studies’. After introducing a story of an ‘exceptional — but real’ career, we argue for an urgent shift toward greater interdisciplinary inquiry. We reflect on the story to describe differences in the way each of psychology, sociology, social psychology, and economics views the concept of career. We turn to explore what career researchers, representing each of the above social sciences, might not see on their own. In contrast, we highlight how social scientists can move toward a) appreciating the limitations of our separate approaches, b) introducing more appropriate research methods, c) maintaining a wider cross-disciplinary conversation, and d) better serving the client — the person — in our future research. We continue with a preview of the remaining five articles in this special issue, and propose that these can serve as stimuli for a wider conversation.