| 1. |
- Börjesson, Sofia, 1964, et al.
(author)
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Management action in developing market orientation: a report from a customer knowledge project at Volvo Cars
- 2004
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In: Journal of Change Management. - : Informa UK Limited. - 1469-7017 .- 1479-1811. ; 4:2, s. 141-154
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Market orientation is an implementation construct. The inherent paradox is that as a matter of implementation, market orientation is actually hard to implement. This article, based on a study of a change initiative at Volvo Cars, discusses management challenges embedded in developing the market orientation of an organization. It is in much a matter of changed behaviour, i.e. changed actions and practices rather than procedures and proclamations. Managers and managerial actions play an important role. The case presented highlights both the difficulties and the opportunities of managers working in task forces to develop market orientation. The article argues that actions that reflect a willingness to experiment and not only to ‘break in’, is a prerequisite if alternatives models should take on, which in turn is necessary for developing market orientation.
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| 2. |
- Eriksson, Henrik, 1973
(author)
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Experiences from working with in-company quality awards : a case study
- 2003
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In: TQM Magazine. - : Emerald. - 0954-478X .- 1758-6887. ; 15:6, s. 397-407
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- One way to stimulate total quality management (TQM) efforts in an organisation is to work with a quality award. This paper presents a case study, based on both interviews and document studies, of a unit within the Swedish National Road Administration that has worked with an in-company quality award. The purpose of the case study was to study how a unit experiences and is affected by the work connected with an in-company quality award. Some positive experiences and effects were recognised, such as a perceived improved customer orientation, a comprehensive view of the business, a degree of participation by everyone, systematic improvement work and an increase in the average score from the examiners. The perceived main disadvantage is the amount of work that the in-company quality award requires, especially in the phase of description of activities.
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| 3. |
- Florén, Henrik, et al.
(author)
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What do owner-managers in small firms really do? : Differences in managerial behavior in small and large organizations
- 2004
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In: Small Enterprise Research. - Caulfield East, Vic. : School of Accounting, Monash University. - 1321-5906 .- 1175-0979. ; 12:1, s. 57-70
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- The research presented is a replication of Mintzberg's on managerial work. The article focuses on owner-managers in small manufacturing firms in an initial attempt to reveal the nature of the work undertaken by this type of managers. The purpose is to describe what they do and to compare their behaviour with that of managers in large and intermediate organizations as described by Mintzberg and Kurke & Aldrich. Our study compliments an earlier small-scale study on managerial behavior in small firms and includes sufficient data to test Mintzberg's propositions on managerial work. Empirically this paper draws on an observational study that deployed the method of structured observation. The daily activities of the small-firm owner-managers in our study are characterized by, among other things, informality and constant interruption as the process by which their work is organized. This differs partly from the results found in the studies of managers' work in larger organizations, where formal and planned activities serve more often as the procedure through which the managers design their work. Of Mintzberg's seven propositions, we found support for four, although with some hesitation. This calls into question the asserted generality of several such propositions. Our study indicates that there seem to be certain myths about what small-firm owner-managers really do, myths that need to be considered in future research.
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| 4. |
- Baumann, Henrikke, 1964
(author)
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Introduction and Organisation of LCA Activities in Industry — Description and Analysis of Two LCA Projects in Swedish Companies
- 2000
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In: International Journal of Life Cycle Assessment. - 1614-7502 .- 0948-3349. ; 5:6, s. 363-368
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Explorations of the LCA practice have been less numerous compared to the conceptual descriptions of LCA. To counter this imbalance, studies of LCA projects conducted in Swedish industry were carried out. One of them is in a chemical company, the other in an electronics company. The studied LCA projects represent early attempts, but not first attempts, at LCA within these two companies. The two studied cases are contrasted with each other and aspects important for the implementation of LCA are identified. Among other things, the presence of an LCA entrepreneur seems to be important for LCA implementation. The argumentation for the usefulness of LCA needs to be situationally adapted to each organisation. Strategies of the LCA entrepreneur are described.
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| 5. |
- Magnusson, Mats, 1968
(author)
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Managing the knowledge landscape of an MNC: Knowledge networking at Ericsson
- 2004
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In: Knowledge and Process Management. - : Wiley. - 1092-4604 .- 1099-1441. ; 11:4, s. 261-272
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- In organizations striving for continuous innovation, the deliberate handling of knowledge plays a fundamental role. This far, most knowledge management initiatives have consisted of the implementation of new IT tools allowing for more efficient information handling. This approach has been criticized, as it does not consider certain aspects of knowledge, e.g. tacitness, social embeddedness and the creation of new knowledge. Alternative knowledge management approaches based on a more comprehensive notion of knowledge have been called for, but few examples of what these could look like in practice have been given. One example of an attempt to manage knowledge in a more holistic manner is knowledge networking. Based on case studies of seven different knowledge networking initiatives within Ericsson, the key components of the overall approach are described and some of the challenges posed to management are identified. Key issues that need to be attended to when designing and implementing individual knowledge networking initiatives are the extension and focus of user groups, the role of management in the initiatives and the promotion of knowledge-sharing behaviour throughout the organization. Ericsson's knowledge networking strategy aims at developing a loosely coupled structure of nuclei for knowledge creation and sharing, connected to each other by different kinds of knowledge directories. This appears to have some advantages compared to traditional knowledge management strategies, as it supports the creation and sharing of both tacit and explicit knowledge. Furthermore, its strong focus on locally developed initiatives and knowledge directories may offer a more dynamic support structure than traditional top-down initiatives focusing primarily on knowledge repositories. © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
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| 8. |
- Berglund, Henrik, 1973, et al.
(author)
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Enacting Risk in Independent Technological Innovation
- 2002
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In: International Journal of Risk Assessment and Management. ; 3:2/3/4, s. 205-221
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- The present study aims at investigating the role of risk in the activity of independent technological venturing. Altogether 12 deep-interviews were conducted with technological entrepreneurs, who had taken part in the inventive, developmental and the commercialisation phases of a technologybased innovation process. The interviews revealed a number of enactment approaches through which these innovators encountered and affected (dealt with or transformed) risk within the innovation process. Factors thus developed from the empirical material included: human capital, pace and priority, the world moves, activating social networks, risk learning, risk incrementalism, maintaining venture agility, and creating and sustaining autonomy. The paper presents a theoretical contextualisation as to the significance of these factors, and finally suggests a number of ways in which these may be interpreted for the benefit of innovation management.
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| 9. |
- Fredberg, Tobias, 1974
(author)
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Lighting the Campfire: The creation of a community of interest around a media company
- 2002
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In: JMM International Journal on Media Management. - 1424-1277. ; 4:1, s. 4-12
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- This article describes a strategy for community building, labeled cognitive dominance.The strategy highlights the economic value of the concepts enactment and storytellingin a network of people. The article links community theory with network economicsand strategy in the community setting and argues that network effects can be reapedthrough the creation of the community. The cognitive dominance strategy in implementationis illustrated in a single case study from the Swedish media industry onhow a company extensively used such a strategy. The company aimed to create acommunity of interest around its product. To do this, the company needed to gainattention by growing in importance in the public debate, and use storytelling with adistinguished rhetoric to, more evidently jointly create a reality with its audience.The cognitive dominance strategy also allowed the media company to go throughchanges, as it built upon change itself.
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| 10. |
- Lindgren, Rikard, 1973, et al.
(author)
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Rethinking competence systems for knowledge-based organizations
- 2003
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In: European Journal of Information System. - : Informa UK Limited. - 0960-085X .- 1476-9344. ; 12:1, s. 18-29
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Existing competence systems are based on a rationalistic view of competence. While these competence systems might work in job-based organizations, we argue that in more dynamic settings, such as in knowledge-based organizations, the interest-informed actions that capture the emergent competencies of tomorrow require different types of information technology support. The main objective of this paper is to elaborate on the possibilities and implications of using interest-activated technology as a design rationale for competence systems. This paper is based on an action case study of an implemented interest-activated Intranet recommender system prototype at Volvo Information Technology AB in Gothenburg, Sweden. On the basis of how organizational members used this prototype to find information they were interested in, our research team was able to inquire into how personal interest, embodied in information-seeking activities, could be a means for identifying competence. Building on the relation between personal interest and competence, we discuss competence systems design and spell out explicit implications for managerial practice in knowledge-based organizations.
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