This paper by S. Cohen, G. Spreitzer, and G. Ledford, Jr. draws upon the authors’ research on the use of self-managed work teams (SMWTs) in two service organizations: a telecommunications company and an insurance operation.
Research and Insights Archive
Research and Insights from the Center for Effective Organizations
Available Content
Communication and Collaboration in Distributed Cognition
Richard J. Boland, Jr. and Ramkrishnan V. Tenkasi explain that distributed cognition is manifest when individuals in an organization act autonomously, yet have interdependencies and must take knowledge of each other into account if a coordinated organizational outcome is to emerge.
New Approaches to Organizing: Competencies, Capabilities and the Decline of the Bureaucratic Model
E. Lawler III and G. Ledford, Jr. argue that in an era of constant change and demands for ever higher levels of performance, bureaucratic designs appear clumsy and lethargic.
Transforming the Human Resources Function
Sue Mohrman and Ed Lawler state that the emergence of the global economy, overcapacity in many industries, monumental improvements in the power of computer and telecommunications tools, and the emergence of the knowledge economy are among the forces that are resulting in fundamental change in the design of organizations.
Teams and Technology in the New Organization
In this article from 1996, Susan G. Cohen, Don Mankin, and Tora K. Bikson discuss how teams and information technology (IT) are two of the most important developments in organizations today.
The Discipline of Organization Design
S. Mohrman, A. Mohrman, Jr., and R. Tenkasi discuss how as organizations adapt to rapidly changing and increasingly demanding environments, they find themselves continually transforming themselves.
Teams and Technology: Tensions in Participatory Design
Don Mankin, Susan G. Cohen, and Tora K. Bikson address the trend that year after year, organizations increase their investment in new information and communication systems (IT) and use teams to do more and more of their work.
Early Identification of International Executives
This research by Gretchen M. Spreitzer, Morgan W. McCall, Jr., and Joan D. Mahoney extends the traditional approach to the early identification of executives by introducing the notion of ability to learn from experience.
Towards a Theory of Strategic Change: A Multi-Lens Perspective and Integrative Framework
Nandini Rajagopalan and Gretchen M. Spreitzer provide a comprehensive review of the strategic change literature from three theoretical lenses: the rational, learning, and cognitive lenses.
Competencies: The Right Foundation for the New Pay?
In this 1996 paper, E. Lawler III discusses how it is a bit premature to declare job-based pay systems obsolete. It is not too early, however, to note that they are well on their way to being replaced by person-based pay.
Adding Value in Banking: An Innovative Human Resource Strategy
Brent Keltner and David Finegold state that raising levels of human capital investment to improve the quality of service delivery can be done but it requires restructuring recruiting and training practices in light of institutional constraints.
Competencies and Competency Models: Does One Size Fit All?
Competency-based pay plans look much alike from one firm to the next. P. Zingheim, G. Ledford, Jr., and J. Schuster ask why this is happening, and whether it is desirable.
