In this exciting volume, a diverse and accomplished group of scholars work to integrate theories of institutions with strategic management. The research they present examines a wide range of industrial contexts, ranging from American retailing at the end of the nineteenth century, to German tax law at the beginning of the twenty-first.

A volume devoted to understanding the competitive and collaborative challenges that firms face when interacting with different actors in dynamic environments increasingly referred to as business or innovation 'ecosystems'. New findings in 'ecosystem analysis' are discussed and the unique roles of individual actors within this system explained.

This unique book is positioned at the crossroads of strategic management and international business. Based on an in-depth literature review, the author empirically assesses the widely shared, implicit assumption that strategic management processes can be globally applied in a standardized, i.e., culture-free, manner. So far, a variety of tools have also been recommended but without incorporating cultural differences. As many organizations observe that this ethnocentric view is more an illusion than reality, strategic management research has started to focus on the cultural sensitivity of its theories, tools, and processes to provide practitioners in a multicultural setting with adequate know-how and tools. To foster long-term decision-making despite uncertainty, scenario planning is frequently applied by practitioners. Up until today, scenario planning has however gained little attention from the academic community. Through this book, the author presents a newly developed framework for strategic management that combines the cultural value scale to test the cultural sensitivity of the long-term planning tool called “scenario planning.” The different process steps of scenario planning have been individually examined for their sensitivity toward the cultural dimensions of uncertainty avoidance and long-term orientation. The investigation is based on a unique, global set of management consultants working for a leading professional service firm. The results of this research show the cultural sensitivity of scenario planning, with different degrees of the process steps and the tested cultural dimensions.

The field of strategic management is facing new challenges, as two phenomena, sustainability, and information and communication technologies, have altered the classic pillars of business strategy. These far-reaching changes require companies to make rapid adaptations in order to achieve optimal situations, which can no longer be developed as they did in the past. To help academics and managers understand the new fields of study and research within strategic management, Javier Martínez-Falcó, Assistant Professor at the University of Alicante, has written a groundbreaking book, New Perspectives and Possibilities in Strategic Management in the 21st Century: Between Tradition and Modernity. This book is an essential guide for reflection and critique, offering insights into the new currents and challenges of the discipline, shedding light on the modernization of strategies in the corporate world. It addresses the renewal and future directions of the field, covering topics such as sustainability, circular economy, green innovation, and information and communication technologies, including blockchain, big data, artificial intelligence, and IoT. The book serves as a must-read for academics, academic students, and policymakers interested in gaining a deeper understanding of current issues impacting deliberate business planning and organization. It also serves as a valuable support material for undergraduate and master's business students, providing a comprehensive understanding of the new fields of study in the discipline. This book is an excellent addition to any academic collection and offers a thought-provoking perspective on strategic management.

As the world is currently in the midst of financial and economic crises, this collection of expert contributions focuses on strategy formation and implementation at various organizational levels to address the challenges ahead. The latest economic turmoil and its ongoing impact on business performance are compelling top managers to develop effective business strategies and redefine the boundaries of their operational and strategic activities. On one hand, tremendous challenges in the competitive business environment have become a source of global threats for many small entrepreneurs. On the other, investors faced with today’s volatile economic conditions demand more gains on their capital investments to counter-balance the growing risk of global threats. This book explores the question as to whether it is possible to efficiently and effectively address these threats and obstacles. Are managers capable of planning and implementing strategic actions? What should the major managerial strategy be in order to overcome fluctuations in a market-oriented society? The strategies and practices recommended here are aimed to design continuous development competencies and contribute to the stability, recovery and sustainability of global business operations under volatile economic conditions. This refreshingly novel book seeks to establish managerial strategies and practices for effectively responding to challenges in the competitive business environment, as global volatility and fluctuations continue to worsen.

The SAGE Handbook of Organizational Institutionalism brings together extensive coverage of aspects of Institutional Theory and an array of top academic contributors. Now in its Second Edition, the book has been thoroughly revised and reorganised, with all chapters updated to maintain a mix of theory, how to conduct institutional organizational analysis, and contemporary empirical work. New chapters on Translation, Networks and Institutional Pluralism are included to reflect new directions in the field. The Second Edition has also been reorganized into six parts: Part One: Beginnings (Foundations) Part Two: Organizations and their Contexts Part Three: Institutional Processes Part Four: Conversations Part Five: Consequences Part Six: Reflections

Institutional theory lies at the heart of organizational theory yet until now, no book has successfully taken stock of this important and wide-ranging theoretical perspective. With insight and clarity, the editors of this handbook have collected and arranged papers so readers are provided with a map of the field and pointed in the direction of new and emerging themes. The academics who have contributed to this handbook are respected internationally and represent a cross-section of expert organization theorists, sociologists and political scientists. Chapters are a rich mix of theory, how to conduct institutional organizational analysis and empirical work. The SAGE Handbook of Organizational Institutionalism will change how researchers, teachers and advanced students think about organizational institutionalism.

In discussing a management topic, scholars, educators, practitioners, and the media often toss out the name of a theorist (Taylor, Simon, Weber) or make a sideways reference to a particular theory (bureaucracy, total quality management, groupthink) and move on, as if assuming their audience possesses the necessary background to appreciate and integrate the reference. This is often far from the case. Individuals are frequently forced to seek out a hodgepodge of sources varying in quality and presentation to provide an overview of a particular idea. This work is designed to serve as a core reference for anyone interested in the essentials of contemporary management theory. Drawing together a team of international scholars, it examines the global landscape of the key theories and the theorists behind them, presenting them in the context needed to understand their strengths and weaknesses to thoughtfully apply them. In addition to interpretations of long-established theories, it also offers essays on cutting-edge research as one might find in a handbook. And, like an unabridged dictionary, it provides concise, to-the-point definitions of key concepts, ideas, schools, and figures. Features and Benefits: Two volumes containing over 280 signed entries provide users with the most authoritative and thorough reference resources available on management theory, both in terms of breadth and depth of coverage. Standardized presentation format, organized into categories based on validity and importance, structures entries so that readers can assess the fundamentals, evolution, and impact of theories. To ease navigation between and among related entries, a Reader’s Guide groups entries thematically and each entry is followed by Cross-References. In the electronic version, the Reader’s Guide combines with the Cross-References and a detailed Index to provide robust search-and-browse capabilities. An appendix with a Chronology of Management Theory allows readers to easily chart directions and trends in thought and theory from early times to the present. An appendix with Central Management Insights allows readers to easily understand, compare, and apply major theoretical messages of the field. Suggestions for Further Reading at the end of each entry guide readers to sources for more detailed research and discussion. Key themes include: Nature of Management Managing People, Personality, and Perception Managing Motivation Managing Interactions Managing Groups Managing Organizations Managing Environments Strategic Management Human Resources Management International Management and Diversity Managerial Decision Making, Ethics, and Creativity Management Education, Research, and Consulting Management of Operations, Quality, and Information Systems Management of Entrepreneurship Management of Learning and Change Management of Technology and Innovation Management and Leadership Management and Social / Environmental Issues PLUS: Appendix of Chronology of Management Theory PLUS: Appendix of Central Management Insights

Brings together a variety of scholarly contributions from a European perspective. This book covers dimensions of MNE corporate strategy in the face of complex policy environments: corporate strategic responses to national policy institutions; pro-active institution-oriented strategies; and, dynamics of international business-government relations.

The Institutional Logics Perspective is one of the fastest growing new theoretical areas in organization studies (Thornton, Ocasio & Lounsbury, 2012). Building on early efforts by Friedland & Alford (1991) to "bring society back in" to the study of organizational dynamics, this new scholarly domain has revived institutional analysis by embracing a