Claims that existing literature on concepts such as lean production, just‐in‐time, and total quality management theory fails to address adequately critical aspects of the organizational realities of such innovations. Presents a new concept called “new wave manufacturing” in order to...

There has been, and continues to be, a heated debate about the take‐up and significance of human resource management (HRM) across the economy. Much of that debate has proceeded at the conceptual and ormative levels with very little recourse to empirical data. Reports on findings from two...

This article reports on a study of shopfloor `coping' behaviour in an engineering company which had launched a major `World Class Manufacturing' (WCM) initiative. The article unpacks the meaning of WCM and shows how its impact varied markedly between different manufacturing cells. More...

Local Authorities, like many other large organisations in Britain, are currently experimenting with new approaches to the way in which they manage themselves. As with other public sector employers this process has involved an importation of ideas drawn from the private sector, and, most...

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine critically the concept of “leadership transmission”, considering what theoretical and practical value this metaphor brings to the healthcare modernization agenda. Design/methodology/approach – The paper develops understanding of the...

Purpose – The purpose of this article is to advance critical debate in relation to a very critical issue in current healthcare management – namely “patient safety”. This is currently a very high profile issue. In its various guises such as clinical governance, integrated governance and...

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to explore the various ways in which clinical executive directors and non‐clinical executive directors are interpreting and responding to the extensive reforms and restructuring in the UK health service. Design/methodology/approach – The paper draws...

Purpose – This paper aims to explore the theoretical and practical management implications of a case involving the falsification of hospital patient waiting lists for elective orthopaedic surgery. Design/methodology/approach – This case study is based on qualitative schedule‐structured...

Purpose – The article seeks to explore the practical and theoretical implications of the ways in which senior figures in the National Health Service (NHS) interpret the role of the centre in relation to the delivery units of the health service. This is important in the light of recent plans...