Purpose – This paper aims to look at the role of the top and middle management of the Philips organization during the transition from one type of organizational change to another in the 1990s and the role the history of the organisation played in this process. Design/methodology/approach –...

This article states that the distinctiveness of business history and its convincingness can be improved by the concept of invented tradition and narrative. After a theoretical overview it suggests that the narrative approach explains the way leaders operate in practice. It argues that with a...

Ever since the coordination and control of production processes became a central issue in industrial capitalism, authors have tried to demonstrate in their writings ways in which science can support this need to control on the part of entrepreneurs and managers. Foucault has put much emphasis on...

Purpose – To explore how an increasing attention which is being paid to language and culture in organisations can help people to understand the impact of particular management concepts in business practices. Design/methodology/approach – A range of publications has been selected to indicate...

Purpose – This paper aims to provide an alternative explanation for the rise of modern management schools at the turn of the twentieth century. It is to be argued that these schools were not just responses of the higher education system to the demand of industrializing companies for a new...

Purpose – This paper aims to provide insights into the evolution of the concept of interdisciplinarity in management science and management education. Design/methodology/approach – A range of recently published (1993‐2002) works, which aim to provide practical advice rather than...

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to claim that Habermas's pragmatic speech act theory helps us to extend our understanding of how management concepts are actually applied. First, the relevant features of management concepts are examined, to indicate how the diffusion of knowledge about...

Purpose – This article seeks to examine the challenges and prospects of human resource management (HRM) in a developing‐country context. It focuses on contextual factors and employee involvement in analysing HRM to provide theoretical insights. Design/methodology/approach – To explore the...