Management Theorists Summaries

Chandler: The Enduring Logic of Industrial Success Main claim: Successful companies exploit economies of scale and scope in capital-intensive industries by investing in: †¢ Production capacity: technology, research & development †¢ Strong management hierarchies †¢ National and international marketing and distribution networks Secondary claims: †¢ The ? st companies to make these investments dominate their market and are First Movers; they have the upper hand on the Experience Curve and thus a competitive advantage, and they maintain their position through constant innovation and strategy. †¢ Growth through unrelated diversi? cation is a poor business strategy; the right idea is moving into related product markets or to expand geographically †¢ Companies in an oligopoly become stronger through intense competition. Companies grow horizontally by combining with competitors, and vertically by moving backward to control materials and forward to control outlet s. Greiner: Evolution and Revolution as Organizations Grow Main claim: Organizational growth is characterized by ? ve successive developmental phases, each with a management focus and style, and each followed by a predictable crisis; management practices that work in one phase are unsuitable for the next and precipitate the crisis.Secondary claims: †¢ Organizations should not skip phases; some go quickly through them, some regress †¢ Top managers whose style is no longer appropriate should remove themselves †¢ Growth is avoidable †¢ The future of an organization is determined predominantly by its history (behavior is determined more by past events/experiences than by what lies ahead) Phases of evolution (CDDCC): †¢ Creativity: informal, long hours, market feedback †¢ Direction: hierarchy, specialization, formal communication, managers, supervisors †¢ Delegation: decentralized organizational structure, empowering of lower-level managers †¢ Coor dination: formal planning, top executives initiate and administrate new systems †¢ Collaboration: teamwork, problem-solving, open-door matrix structure Phases of revolution (LACRPs): †¢ Leadership: necessary skills to introduce new techniques †¢ Autonomy: ? eld managers’ experience knowledge is restricted by the hierarchy †¢ Control: top managers seek to regain control of the company †¢ Red tape: excess restrictions and regulations, bureaucracy, ineffectiveness in problem-solving †¢ Psychological saturation Barney Main claim: Internal and External Analysis provides a balanced view of a ? rm’s competitive advantage, which is a moving target. External environment analysis (opportunities and threats) cannot explain a ? rm’s success by itself; strategists must analyze its internal strengths and weaknesses. VRIO Framework: †¢ Value: does a ? m’s resources and capabilities enable it to exploit an opportunity or neutralize thre ats? (high status and quality, low cost and practical) †¢ Rarity: is a resource or capability controlled by a small number of ? rms? †¢ Imitability: is there dif? culty and cost disadvantage in imitating what a ? rm is doing? (history, numerous small decisions, socially complex resources, embedded cultures) †¢ Organization: are a ? rm’s policies and procedures organized to exploit its valuable, rare and costly-to-imitate resources? (reporting structure, management system, compensation policies) SWOT Framework: Composed by Internal and External Environment analysis; aims to identify the key issues facing a company. Strengths: internal resources and capabilities †¢ Opportunities: external trends, industry conditions and competitive environment †¢ Weaknesses and Threats: issues that must be addressed to improve a company’s situation Tangible Resources: †¢ Financial: cash or cash equivalents, borrowing capacity †¢ Physical: plants, facili ties, manufacturing locations, machinery and equipment †¢ Technological: trade secrets, patents, copyrights, trademarks, innovative production processes †¢ Organizational: strategic planning, evaluation and control systems Intangible Resources: †¢ Human: experience, capability, trust, managerial skills, speci? c practices and procedures †¢ Innovation/Creativity: technical and scienti? c skills, innovation capacity †¢ Reputation: brand name, quality, reliability, fairness Organizational Capabilities: †¢ Competencies or skills ? ms use to turn inputs into outputs †¢ Capacity to combine tangible and intangible resources to achieve a desired goal Collins & Porras Main Claim: Successful companies have a clear vision made up from a core ideology and an envisioned future that motivate employees and guide decision-making. Core Ideology: guides, inspires and makes work meaningful for employees. †¢ Purpose: soul of and reason why an organization exists; idealistic motivations †¢ Values: strong beliefs about what is most important Envisioned Future: †¢ BHAGs: clear, compelling goals to engage and energize; they should contain a measurable objective, be dif? cult but not impossible, and achievable in a long-term period (10-30 years) †¢ Vivid description: paints an exciting picture of the future (what’s it going to be like? BHAG types: †¢ Qualitative and quantitative for attainable targets †¢ David vs Goliath for a common enemy goal †¢ Emulation of role models for up-and-coming organizations †¢ Internal transformations for large, established organizations Other Stuff Underlying Assumptions: they form the basis of our beliefs and reasoning; they are the link between the claim and the evidence (they explain the relevancy of evidence to the claim). †¢ Reality: beliefs about how things and events work †¢ Value: ideals, standards of right and wrong and how things ought to be PACCEs: alwa ys put an article through these ? ve concepts. †¢ Persuasive language †¢ Assumptions and values (beliefs that affect how the author sees the world) †¢ Claim (the broader issue, the thesis the author wants you to accept) †¢ Causal logic (claims regarding cause and effect) †¢ Evidence (SCRAAP: is it suf? cient, clear, authoritative, accurate, precise, representative? )