Teresa Kraśnicka

Relationships Between Miles and Snow Strategic Types and Organizational Performance in Polish Production Companies

Abstract Purpose: Miles and Snow’s conception of strategic types is the most popular and extensively studied typology of strategic choices. Consequently, in recent years it has been related to organizational performance measures. Despite numerous studies conducted in different environmental and organizational settings, the research results of relationships between strategic types and organizational performance are ambiguous. In this paper, we seek to advance the knowledge regarding how a chosen strategic type affects organizational performance measures in the transition economy of Poland. Methodology: Using quantitative research results, on the basis of data from 96 organizations we statistically test four research hypotheses. Findings: Research results reveal the existence of “clear” strategic types in majority of companies but highlight moderately strong relationships between declared strategic type and organizational performance. In turn, they suggest that Prospector and Analyzer strategic types promise slightly higher performance than Reactor and Defender types. Originality: This research project on strategic types in SMEs in a transition economy is one of few dealing with this topic that have been conducted in Eastern European countries to date.

Management Innovation and Its Measurement

The aim of this paper is to explain the nature of management innovation, as well as to propose its measurement instrument. The paper offers a review of key publications on management innovation published in research journals within the last two decades. The critical analysis – primarily focused on definitions, the proposed dimensions of management innovation and the scales used for their measurement – has allowed for the development of an original tool for measuring management innovation (MI). Five dimensions of management innovation are proposed, namely, strategic dimension, structural dimension, employee motivation and development dimension, interorganisational relations and partnership dimension, and ICT dimension. Using survey data of 301 employees from different companies in Poland, the validation of the management innovation measurement instrument was conducted. Internal consistency analysis (Cronbach’s alpha) and factor analysis, used to test the statistical reliability of the tool, yielded satisfactory results. The findings of this study contribute to advancing innovation research, particularly the state of knowledge on management innovation. Implications for both research and managerial practice are also presented. The proposed five-dimension management innovation model can be used to measure the scope of management innovation in further research and develop the knowledge about links between MI and an organisation’s performance or its impact on technological innovativeness. In addition this study uncovers a wide range of information on management innovation issues for interested parties and for future research.

Uwarunkowania intencji przedsiębiorczych studentów uczelni ekonomicznych Polski i Czech

Streszczenie Celem artykulu jest przedstawienie wynikow badan empirycznych na temat intencji przedsiebiorczych rozpatrywanych w kontekście wybranych cech osobowych studentow uczelni ekonomicznych w dwoch krajach: Polsce i Republice Czeskiej. Autorzy przyjmują teze, iz intencje przedsiebiorcze mlodych ludzi – zgodnie z istniejącym stanem wiedzy – związane są z postrzeganiem przez nich swojego potencjalu przedsiebiorczości. Pod tym pojeciem autorzy rozumieją wybrane cechy psychologiczne (ich subiektywną ocene dokonywaną przez respondentow), uwzgledniane w wiekszości modeli przedsiebiorczości. Uznając, ze zachowania przedsiebiorcze uwarunkowane są licznymi czynnikami, przyjeto, ze proces przedsiebiorczości indywidualnej zaczyna sie od percepcji i pozytywnej oceny wlasnych mozliwości – kompetencji, umiejetności czy cech charakteru.