Sue Smith

The story of a university knowledge exchange actor-network told through the sociology of translation: A case study

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to tell the story of the evolution of knowledge exchange (KE) activity within a department in a university in the north west of England and to understand this activity through the lens of actor‐network theory.Design/methodology/approach – Applying the sociology of translation to one qualitative interview shows how different actors were enrolled and mobilized into a KE actor‐network. The process of translation consists of four stages, problematisation, enrolment, interessement and mobilisation of allies which have been applied to the data to tell the story of the KE actor‐network. This is a cross‐disciplinary approach using a theoretical framework from sociology and applying it to a management/organizational context.Findings – This framework brings fresh ways of looking at the importance of KE networks within universities. Although limited to one interview, the methodology allows for an in‐depth reading of the data and shows how resilient and flexible this actor‐netwo...

How Do Small Business Owner-Managers Learn Leadership Through Networked Learning?

This chapter shows how learning within networked learning can be understood through the lens of situated learning theory through the concept of legitimate peripheral participation (Lave and Wenger, “Situated learning: legitimate peripheral participation”, 1991, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge) and the situated curriculum (Gherardi et al., Manage Learn 29: 273–297, 1998). The focus of the study is a 10-month leadership programme for owner-managers of small businesses. The chapter reports key findings from an ethnographic study, including a virtual ethnography of 1 cohort of 25 delegates. Specifically, it asks “how do small business owners learn to become leaders through networked learning?” It is argued that delegates learn how to become members in this networked learning community. Leadership learning is part of this process and is associated with a shift in identity as the learner gains fuller participation. This chapter argues that the facilitators within this networked learning experience are enablers of the social construction of the delegates’ identity. Given the importance of the enablers’ roles, the chapter finishes by arguing that critical reflexivity is essential within networked learning.

Up the ANTe: Understanding Entrepreneurial Leadership Learning through Actor-Network Theory.

This article explores the role of educators in supporting the development of entrepreneurial leadership learning by creating peer learning networks of owner-managers of small businesses. Using actor-network theory, the authors think through the process of constructing and maintaining a peer learning network (conceived of as an actor-network) and frame entrepreneurial leadership learning as a network effect. The article has significance for theory and practice in terms of understanding the dynamics, challenges and opportunities involved in the construction and ongoing maintenance of networks and how to stimulate entrepreneurial leadership learning.

Universities and Economic Development Activities: A UK Regional Comparison.

A number of UK universities prioritize economic development or regeneration activities and for some of these universities such activities are the main focus of their knowledge transfer work. This study compares two regions of the UK – the North West and the South East of England – which have very different levels of economic performance. Quantitative data from the UK governments Higher Education Business and Community Interaction Survey are used to track economic development funding and activity from universities in these two regions. Strategy documents prepared for the fourth round of the governments Higher Education Innovation Fund are analysed to aid interpretations. Elements of evolutionary theory are used to explore the reasons for the differences and a case study of one university programme, Leading Enterprise and Development, is provided as an illustrative example.

A review of entrepreneurial leadership learning : an exploration that draws on human, social and institutional capitals

This chapter explores entrepreneurial leadership learning – what it is and how it is different to leadership learning within employed contexts. We use Communities of Practice (CoP) theory as a lens for understanding how owner-managers learn entrepreneurial leadership. Drawing upon an empirical case study of an SME leadership development programme and an autoethnographic account of one of the owner-managers, we explore how entrepreneurial leadership learning becomes manifest in the entrepreneurial context and how it can be developed within a CoP. Developing this further we use the notions of human, social and institutional capitals to illustrate how such learning becomes manifest: the connect between individual skills, knowledge and attitudes within social relationships supported through an organised structure with guiding informal rules of collective engagement.

Going for gold: leadership development through a quasi-non-executive board in the SME context

This chapter uses the dynamic of being a non-executive director (NED) as a process for leadership development. Of significance is the context. The participants are owner-managers of growing businesses. Their context is demanding but also isolating from the lifeblood of leadership development – a variety of contexts, a variety of ‘leaders’ to observe and a variety of demanding inter-personal challenges. The process we explore in this chapter is the leadership learning enabled by participating in a peer learning community as a NED theorising it as a community of practice. In particular, we look at how owner-managers stretch their leadership capacity and confidence by engaging in a year long journey as non-executive directors.

Preface: background and introduction to LEAD

Leadership is all around us and is one of the most talked about subjects in business. A search on Amazon.com in April 2015 revealed over 137 000 results on leadership alone, and this number has grown exponentially over the last two decades. With so many books already published, what is the need for another leadership book and why write it? There are many different categories of leadership book ranging from weighty academic tomes and colossal handbooks that are not easily accessible to the practising leader, through to authors who write about their experiences of leadership and the “how to” guides which break complexity down into simple approaches and solutions but lack rigour when examined. This book attempts to bridge the gap between academia and practice. It provides a reallife narrative encapsulating the development of three business people on a leadership programme whilst explaining the key theories, models and techniques that underpin the leadership methods and approaches deployed. Each of the key chapters is split into two parts. First, the personal stories are written in the style of a novel, allowing ease of access for the reader to associate and empathize with the situations of the reallife leaders. At the end of the dialogue there are a few questions (in italics) for the reader to reflect on to assist them with their own personal leadership development. Secondly, the reader can read the academic underpinning of the leadership learning journey. The reader thus can read the book in a normal linear manner or can read the story without the theory and vice versa. The primary purpose of our book is to provide a researchbased examination of leadership learning in the small–medium sized enterprise (SME) context. Yet the unorthodox approach to this examination is intended to enable readers to stand in the shoes of the ownermanager, director, partner or senior manager (hereafter described as owner/manager). Such readers could be academics, undergraduate, postgraduate and doctoral students. They could be policymakers and leadership development practitioners. However, we also hope they could be owner/managers: alumni from the 2000 plus participants who want to compare their experiences