Walter G. Tymon

Social capital in the success of knowledge workers

The concept of social capital will be key to individual and organizational success throughout the twenty‐first century. Social capital is the stock of accumulated resources that one can access based on the relationships that can aid or be leveraged in accomplishing an end or furthering a pursuit. Several attributes of social capital are explored that distinguish it from other forms of capital; namely, physical, financial, human, market, intellectual, and knowledge capital. These attributes considered are capital’s transferability, controllability, fungibility, entropy, and synergy. Implications for career development and one’s ability to contribute to organization effectiveness are discussed, as well as management practices affecting the development of social capital. Concludes with propositions for future research.

Toward an integrated model of intrinsic motivation and career self‐management

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to develop an integrative process model that explains the mechanisms through which intrinsic motivation can influence career self‐management and subsequent subjective and objective career success.Design/methodology/approach – Research on career self‐management can benefit by incorporating an intrinsic motivation perspective. The paper proposes a model that depicts how four components of intrinsic motivation – meaningfulness, competence, choice, and progress – can contribute to career self‐management.Findings – Because the manuscript is conceptual and theoretical in nature, there are no empirical findings to discuss. The paper does, however, advance six testable research propositions linking components of intrinsic motivation to career self‐management and career success.Research limitations/implications – The model is most applicable for individuals who have some level of control over their own career choices and mobility. Also, we focus on intrinsic, rather than extr...

Communication Apprehension, Interpretive Styles, Preparation and Performance in Oral Briefing

This paper introduces the constructs of interpretive styles from the empowerment literature. It proposes these styles as cognitive variables that shape communica tion apprehension (CA). We report an empirical study of oral briefings by naval officers. Results show that CA was linked to two interpretive styles: it was posi tively linked to deficiency focusing (the tendency to focus on what is wrong, can go wrong, and is wrong with oneself) and negatively linked to envisioning suc cess (the tendency to build mental images of succeeding). Results also show that CA diminished performance on the briefing, and that greater preparation was not an effective way of coping with apprehension.

Consultant or entrepreneur? Demystifying the “war for talent”

The “War for Talent” has made the cover of Fortune Magazine as well as being a top agenda item for the leadership of professional service firms – from McKinsey to the three Bs (Bain, Boston Consulting Group, and Booz Allen) to the big five accounting firms. A boom economy has led to a demand for talent that surpasses the supply, or at least the supply from Ivy League and top tier B‐schools. As consulting firms battle it out on B‐school campuses and scurry to other sources of talent such as engineering schools and PhD programs, one cannot help but ask, “Why are people choosing entrepreneurial positions over a consulting career?” The answers may be more in the failings of consulting firms to define a compelling industry‐wide value proposition than in a new venture’s overarching attractiveness as a moderate risk, high reward opportunity.

Strategic Talent Management: Emerging markets and regional patterns in talent management: the challenge of India and China

Introduction The business context of growth in emerging markets has considerable implications for talent-management strategies. There is a changing balance of economic power from developed to developing countries, accompanied by a new geographical demography that is giving rise to enormous talent pools in the emerging markets of Asia, Africa, and Latin America. In particular, China and India have emerged as the two most dynamic of the BRIC economies (Brazil, Russia, India, and China). These giant labor and consumer markets have attracted large shares of foreign investment, have developed strong indigenous industrial and service sectors, and have experienced rapid market growth, resource acquisition, and deployment. Both countries have served as springboards for the growth of emerging market multinationals, as large heretofore domestic companies globalize. This chapter has three objectives. First, it addresses the need for talent management in the Indian and Chinese context and the challenges associated with talent management in those regions. Second, it considers the state of talent-management practices in China and India and how they have evolved in recent years. Third, it explores the implications of that evolution for management practice and research and our understanding of talent practices generally in the next wave of emerging markets economies. Economic development in both China and India has led to a focus on those factors that enable growth such as the availability of natural resources, investment funding, favorable regulatory policies, and a supportive infrastructure. China and India are the world’s most populous countries. They have sustained the highest annual GDP growth rates over the past decade among all major economies – 9% for China and 6 to 7% for India. Both have exerted strong influence and leverage among the ten emerging-market countries in the G-20. China is the world’s largest source of net capital outflows and India is the world’s largest recipient of foreign outsourcing of computer-based services. China and India are each heavily dependent on imported oil. They are the second and fourth largest importers, respectively. These two countries are by far the most important emerging markets in terms of economic and demographics factors.

Developing Leaders in Difficult Times: A Need for Interdisciplinary Learning in the MBA

Die Herausforderungen von Leaders waren nie so extrem wie heute. Daher mussen MBA Programme angepast werden, neue Ansatze finden. Ausgangspunkt mussen die besonderen Bedarfe von Leaders sein. Beachtet werden mussen die besonderen Herausforderungen bezuglich eines systematischen Denkens und der Entscheidungsfindung im globalen Geschaftsleben mit sehr unterschiedlichen Stakeholders. An der Villanova Universitat ist ein entsprechendes neues Programm entwickelt worden.

Leading to intrinsically reward professionals for sustained engagement

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to identify leader behaviors that foster intrinsic rewards (IRs) in technical professionals, sustain their felt and behavioral engagement, and relate the career outcomes of performance, satisfaction with the organization, and retention. Design/methodology/approach – Employing an action research approach, four studies were undertaken to: first, identify what intrinsically motivates professionals in a large R & D organization; second, create a survey of the leader behaviors that foster a sense of IR and engagement; and third, use the survey with two samples (Canada, Europe) to examine the relationships of engagement with three desired career outcomes. Findings – Leader behaviors can foster a sense of IRs which are related to performance, satisfaction with the organization, and retention. These relationships were partially mediated by felt and behavioral engagement, with felt engagement more strongly associated with satisfaction and retention, and behavioral engagement ...