A. Keegan
University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam Business School, Faculty Member
Research Interests:
Mainstream HRM journals have largely ignored critical perspectives on HRM. This is the main finding from our study examining trends in publishing on HRM through an analysis of published work in the period 1995 to 2000. Using the... more
Mainstream HRM journals have largely ignored critical perspectives on HRM. This is the main finding from our study examining trends in publishing on HRM through an analysis of published work in the period 1995 to 2000. Using the 'dissensus–consensus' dimension of a framework developed by Deetz (1996) we examine the role of academic journals in constructing HRM knowledge in what turns out to be largely consensus oriented ways. We survey HRM articles in nine journals over a six year period, and conclude that HRM is primarily constituted from a consensus perspective in the mainstream HRM journals while European based general management and organization theory journals construct HRM in both dissensus and consensus oriented ways. We propose reasons why the critical debates in HRM have largely been ignored in the mainstream journals as well as what this might mean for HRM theory and practice given the lack of critical and dissenting voices so evident in leading HRM journals.
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
Ulrich's model, described as the 'shared services model' comprises a three-legged functional design based on shared services, centres of expertise and the creation of HR business partners (CIPD Report, 2006a), supported by... more
Ulrich's model, described as the 'shared services model' comprises a three-legged functional design based on shared services, centres of expertise and the creation of HR business partners (CIPD Report, 2006a), supported by developments in information systems and ...
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
In this chapter we describe the characteristics of human resource management (HRM) in the project-oriented organization. Human resource management is a specific and strate-gically important process in the project-oriented organization. It... more
In this chapter we describe the characteristics of human resource management (HRM) in the project-oriented organization. Human resource management is a specific and strate-gically important process in the project-oriented organization. It includes recruitment, dis-position and ...
ABSTRACT As leaders, project and program managers use language as a vital tool in shaping their projects and programs. The ways in which leaders frame issues through their use of language impacts on how these issues are approached and... more
ABSTRACT As leaders, project and program managers use language as a vital tool in shaping their projects and programs. The ways in which leaders frame issues through their use of language impacts on how these issues are approached and resolved by members of the project team. In this study we explore the narratives of project and program managers in complex emergent problem resolution. We analyze interview data to show the storylines leaders construct regarding which groups are more or less important and the tensions between these groups, whether they frame the impact of outsiders as positive or negative, and how they portray the role of conflicting perspectives in problem resolution. We discuss the practical implications arising from our analysis of leadership narratives in the management of projects, the limitations of the current study and opportunities for future research.
Research Interests:
pursue new knowledge while at the same time using existing knowledge optimally (Levinthal & March, 1993). A growing number of theorists have conceptualized the dilemmas organizations face in the simultaneous pursuit of exploration and... more
pursue new knowledge while at the same time using existing knowledge optimally (Levinthal & March, 1993). A growing number of theorists have conceptualized the dilemmas organizations face in the simultaneous pursuit of exploration and exploitation under the banner of organiza-T he challenge for organizations to respond effectively to requirements to be flexible and at the same time efficient has been at the forefront of organizational theorizing for many years. Successful, sustainable organizing is held to be a function of being able to exploit current strengths as well as explore new possibilities (March, 1991) and to Sustainable success calls for contextually ambidextrous organizing. According to theory, this entails enabling simultaneous high levels of exploration and exploitation within a subsystem. The practices involved in enabling contextual ambidexterity form a major and relatively unexplored leadership challenge. Our main aim is to draw on a combination of ambidexterity and complexity theory insights to understand how contextual ambidexterity emerges in dynamic contexts. We contribute to the literature on the role of leadership in enabling con-textual ambidexterity by exploring the daily practices leaders enact to stimulate exploration and exploitation as well as to shift dynamically between them to (re)gain contextual ambidexterity. We present the results of two qualitative studies exploring leadership in project-based organizations where the pressure for contextual ambidexterity is relevant. We show that in responding adaptively to environmental stimuli, leaders shift between practices to emphasize exploitation or exploration to (re)gain the needed high levels of both, and their enactments are bounded by the conditions of keeping exploration and exploitation simultaneously high. We discuss the implications of these fi ndings for understanding contextual ambidexterity as a dynamic accomplishment that emerges in everyday interactions, the role of leaders in enabling contextual ambidexterity, and the need for HR managers to support leaders in enacting this dynamic form of leadership.
Research Interests:
Leadership is widely considered to be an important aspect of project-based organising and there are several reasons to suggest that transformational leadership is of particular relevance in this context. However, there is a dearth of both... more
Leadership is widely considered to be an important aspect of project-based organising and there are several reasons to suggest that transformational leadership is of particular relevance in this context. However, there is a dearth of both theoretical and empirical work on leadership in project-based organisations. The aim of this paper is to report the findings of an empirical study comparing the relationship between transformational leadership style and employee motivation, commitment and stress for employees reporting to either project or line managers. The results show that although project managers are not perceived as less transformational, the relationships between transformational leadership and outcomes tend to be less strong for employees reporting to project managers than for those reporting to line managers. Implications for future research on leadership in the project context are explored.
Research Interests:
Research Interests: Marketing, Psychology, Applied Psychology, Organizational Culture, Organizational Citizenship Behavior, and 14 moreEmployment, Social Identification, Helping Behavior, Humans, Business and Management, Applied, Female, Male, Attitude, Interpersonal Relations, Social Environment, Middle Aged, Questionnaires, and Interaction effect
Research Interests:
Turner, R. and Keegan, A.(2007) Managing Technology: Innovation, Learning, and Maturity, in The Wiley Guide to Managing Projects (eds PWG Morris and JK Pinto), John Wiley & Sons, Inc., Hoboken, NJ, USA. doi: 10.1002/9780470172391.... more
Turner, R. and Keegan, A.(2007) Managing Technology: Innovation, Learning, and Maturity, in The Wiley Guide to Managing Projects (eds PWG Morris and JK Pinto), John Wiley & Sons, Inc., Hoboken, NJ, USA. doi: 10.1002/9780470172391. ch24