Michael K. Mauws

Passing the baton - The importance of sequence, timing, technique and communication in executive succession

Abstract The extensive literature on executive succession gives only scant attention to the actual process of succession. To better understand the dynamics of the succession process, the analogy of a relay race is suggested, where success is influenced by four factors: sequence, timing, baton-passing technique, and communication. These four factors are used as a framework for a longitudinal examination of a failed executive succession in a small, family-owned manufacturing firm. In-depth examination of the attempted succession showed that the four themes are helpful in working toward the development of a general theory of executive succession.

But Is It Art?: Decision Making and Discursive Resources in the Field of Cultural Production

This article illustrates the potential contribution of discourse analysis to the field of judgment and decision making through an empirical investigation of the adjudication of musical submissions made to a government program aimed at funding musical development. The results indicate that the process of decision making is a fundamentally social activity and that its outcomes depend on the broader discursive formation in which it takes place.

Discursive Psychology: An Alternative Approach for Studying Adherence to Exercise and Physical Activity

Within exercise psychology, social cognitive theories have allowed researchers to identify possible influences and mechanisms that account for exercise and physical activity participation. These approaches have advanced the development of interventions to enhance and maintain exercise adherence. Despite this, the adherence problem remains unsolved. This paper introduces an alternative perspective known as discursive psychology. and explores its potential for understanding adherence. How this approach differs from leading approaches is highlighted. Discursive psychologys potential contribution via its focus on discourse and what is accomplished through peoples use of words is considered in detail. How discursive psychology contributes to understanding exercise adherence by opening up new avenues of research and associated methodologies is also discussed. It is concluded this approach will complement and enhance existing approaches by focusing on how people are situated within discourses and how this affords and limits how they speak, feel, and behave with respect to exercise.

Coping with the Sudden Loss of an Indispensable Employee: An Exploratory Case Study

Using real-time longitudinal survey and interview data, the authors assessed explicit and tacit knowledge flows within a small manufacturing firm for an indispensable employee (IE). They then compared those flows to the flows for a replacement employee (RE) who took over after the IE became ill. As expected, they found that (a) explicit and tacit knowledge outflows to coworkers were greater for the IE than for the RE, and (b) tacit knowledge inflows from coworkers were slightly greater for the RE than for the IE. Explicit knowledge inflows from coworkers were not consistently greater for the RE than for the IE. Surprisingly, the loss of the IE did not have a negative impact on the firms productivity.

Teaching versus Learning: An Exploratory Longitudinal Case Study

Abstract Perceived teaching and learning flows across individual, group, and organizational levels over time were studied in a small manufacturing firm as its members developed the capacity to produce a newly redesigned product. Data were collected longitudinally from all employees to track teaching and learning flows across the entire organization, within departments, between departments, and between departments and the owner/manager. The results indicate that the emphasis on teaching was low at the beginning and end of the learning process and high during the middle, and that the emphasis on learning was high at the beginning of the process but gradually declined over time. A two cycle model depicting the teaching and learning flows is proposed. Implications are discussed.