This thesis documents an investigation into the role that tacit knowledge takes in the mental life of senior managers. The research resulted from the author???s work in New South Wales in facilitating assessment and development centres over a five year period, carried out in collaboration with senior managers from several organizations. A frequent comment made by senior managers was that there seemed to be a gulf between the data obtained objectively from behaviourally measured managerial competencies and the senior managers??? own perceptions of their managerial behaviour. Having earlier researched the role of thought processes out of awareness, the author developed the overall aim of the present study ??? to develop some form of training procedures for senior managers that would enhance the use of tacit processes in their managerial behaviours. The present dissertation begins with a literature review related to the development of understanding of the role of tacit processes in the mental life of senior managers. First a review is presented of investigations of organisational behaviour reported in the literature on tacit knowledge, including issues such as learning, teams, leadership, distributed cognition and culture. Study of the role of tacit knowledge was found to be present in the study of management behaviours and during the process of the present research, related publications increased in frequency. Finally a review is presented of psychological research into the nature of tacit knowledge. This focuses on a range of historical and current views and on the author???s own earlier study of implicit learning carried out in the early 1990???s. Study One is focused on examination of the process of coding tacit assumptions. This begins with documentation of the ontology, epistemology and methodology underpinning this research. Grounded theory, a well-recognised method of qualitative analysis, was selected as most appropriate for this study and its philosophy, rationale and methods are presented. The aim of Study One was to examine the effect of repeated interviews on the codifying of tacit assumptions of senior managers. The initial research was with 13 senior managers, who were interviewed either once or on multiple occasions. The initial interviews of two of these senior managers were analysed as pilot studies, and these analyses are presented in the present dissertation. The main body of this research comprises multiple interviews (five each) carried out with two of the original thirteen senior managers. The results confirmed the importance of the method of investigation but failed to provide any depth of understanding. Apart from consolidating cognitive closure on a set of managerial competencies, attempting to render tacit knowledge explicit (making the tacit conscious) provided no other significant benefit to the senior managers. The extension of some of these previously tacit assumptions into current cognitive functioning, when coded, assisted in the retention of organisational knowledge but offered no real benefit to the senior managers themselves, no depth of self-knowledge. Study Two arose from a more realistic understanding of tacit processes. The aim of Study Two was to find a way of harnessing the influences of tacit assumptions without trying to surface them ??? to make them ???conscious.??? This is consistent with the writings of such researchers as Nonaka (1991), Baumard (1999) and Spender (2005). By adapting an existing method focusing on subtle mental processes (developed by Norm Kagan in the context of teaching counselling skills and developed further for research first by Diment, Walker and Hammer and then by Sheehan and McConkey ), the author has further developed a technique (The Explicit/Tacit Interface Technique ??? ET~IT) that accesses the tacit processes in the service of the senior manager???s aims. A multiperspective analysis was applied to the feedback interviews of six subjects. This generated a set of characteristics of the ET~IT that hold promise for it to become a useful management development tool. Cohen and Levinthal???s (1990) concept of ???absorptive capacity??? is discussed as a possible starting point for indicating individual differences in successful interfacing with tacit processes. Finally recommendations for further improvement, consideration of constraints and their minimization and methods for evaluating future research into the tacit assumptions of senior managers are presented. Study Two concludes with discussion of how the results can be used as part of senior management development.

This dissertation presents an examination of the trading behaviour of active Australian fund managers. The thesis begins with an analysis of how fund manager trades relate to stock returns in the past, the present, and the future. The dissertation next proceeds to investigating how fund size affects fund performance, trading and portfolio construction. Finally, using earnings announcements as the locus for trading sequences, we analyse the nature of the information used by fund managers to predict stock returns. This research is presented in the form of three essays. The first essay investigates how active fund manager trades relate to stock returns. Using a unique database of daily transactions from Australian equity managers, we document that our sample of institutional investors exhibit statistically and economically significant predictive power in forecasting future stock returns over the ten days following their trades. Furthermore, detailed analysis indicates that manager style is important in understanding the link between institutional trading and stock returns. The essay finds growth-oriented managers are momentum traders, while style-neutral and value managers are contrarian. Further, the contemporaneous relation between institutional trading and returns depends on trade size, broker use, and investment style. Finally, the study documents that trades and returns are inversely related for value/contrarian managers and directly related for style-neutral and growth managers. The second essay presents an analysis of how fund size affects investment performance. Recent studies find evidence that small funds outperform large funds. This fund size effect is commonly hypothesized to be caused by transaction costs. Due to the lack of transactions data, prior studies have investigated the transaction costs theory only indirectly. This study however, analyses the daily transactions of active Australian equity managers and finds aggregate market impact costs incurred by large managers are significantly greater than that Finally, the third essay examines the nature of price-sensitive earnings information used by package formation and portfolio characteristics consistent with transaction cost intimidation. An analysis of the interaction between transaction cost intimidation and the fund size effect documents that large managers pursue a highly active trading strategy, and accordingly suffer more from the fund size effect than is the case for large funds following a less active trading strategy. This suggests the fund size effect is related to transaction costs as trading activity is a good proxy for expected market impact. Finally, the third essay examines the nature of price-sensitive earnings information used by fund managers to trade. While a number of recent mutual fund performance studies find data, prior studies have investigated the transaction costs theory only indirectly. This study however, analyses the daily transactions of active Australian equity managers and finds aggregate market impact costs incurred by large managers are significantly greater than that Finally, the third essay examines the nature of price-sensitive earnings information used by package formation and portfolio characteristics consistent with transaction cost intimidation. An analysis of the interaction between transaction cost intimidation and the fund size effect documents that large managers pursue a highly active trading strategy, and accordingly suffer more from the fund size effect than is the case for large funds following a less active trading strategy. This suggests the fund size effect is related to transaction costs as trading activity is incurred by small managers. Furthermore, large managers exhibit preferences for trade evidence of outperformance relative to suitably constructed benchmarks, limited research exists as to whether such outperformance is due to privately collected information, or merely expedient interpretation of publicly released information. In this essay an examination of the trade sequences of fund managers around earnings announcements is performed, and evidence is presented revealing an increased Occurrence of buy-sell trade sequences around good announcements and vice versa for bad announcements. The results also show an increase in the frequency of fund managers not trading before announcements, only to subsequently purchase during good announcements. Taken together, this evidence suggests managers are reliant on private information before earnings announcements, as well as them engaging in 'interpretation' of earnings announcements when they do not receive a private signal.

This dissertation presents an examination of the trading behaviour of active Australian fund managers. The thesis begins with an analysis of how fund manager trades relate to stock returns in the past, the present, and the future. The dissertation next proceeds to investigating how fund size affects fund performance, trading and portfolio construction. Finally, using earnings announcements as the locus for trading sequences, we analyse the nature of the information used by fund managers to predict stock returns. This research is presented in the form of three essays. The first essay investigates how active fund manager trades relate to stock returns. Using a unique database of daily transactions from Australian equity managers, we document that our sample of institutional investors exhibit statistically and economically significant predictive power in forecasting future stock returns over the ten days following their trades. Furthermore, detailed analysis indicates that manager style is important in understanding the link between institutional trading and stock returns. The essay finds growth-oriented managers are momentum traders, while style-neutral and value managers are contrarian. Further, the contemporaneous relation between institutional trading and returns depends on trade size, broker use, and investment style. Finally, the study documents that trades and returns are inversely related for value/contrarian managers and directly related for style-neutral and growth managers. The second essay presents an analysis of how fund size affects investment performance. Recent studies find evidence that small funds outperform large funds. This fund size effect is commonly hypothesized to be caused by transaction costs. Due to the lack of transactions data, prior studies have investigated the transaction costs theory only indirectly. This study however, analyses the daily transactions of active Australian equity managers and finds aggregate market impact costs incurred by large managers are significantly greater than that Finally, the third essay examines the nature of price-sensitive earnings information used by package formation and portfolio characteristics consistent with transaction cost intimidation. An analysis of the interaction between transaction cost intimidation and the fund size effect documents that large managers pursue a highly active trading strategy, and accordingly suffer more from the fund size effect than is the case for large funds following a less active trading strategy. This suggests the fund size effect is related to transaction costs as trading activity is a good proxy for expected market impact. Finally, the third essay examines the nature of price-sensitive earnings information used by fund managers to trade. While a number of recent mutual fund performance studies find data, prior studies have investigated the transaction costs theory only indirectly. This study however, analyses the daily transactions of active Australian equity managers and finds aggregate market impact costs incurred by large managers are significantly greater than that Finally, the third essay examines the nature of price-sensitive earnings information used by package formation and portfolio characteristics consistent with transaction cost intimidation. An analysis of the interaction between transaction cost intimidation and the fund size effect documents that large managers pursue a highly active trading strategy, and accordingly suffer more from the fund size effect than is the case for large funds following a less active trading strategy. This suggests the fund size effect is related to transaction costs as trading activity is incurred by small managers. Furthermore, large managers exhibit preferences for trade evidence of outperformance relative to suitably constructed benchmarks, limited research exists as to whether such outperformance is due to privately collected information, or merely expedient interpretation of publicly released information. In this essay an examination of the trade sequences of fund managers around earnings announcements is performed, and evidence is presented revealing an increased Occurrence of buy-sell trade sequences around good announcements and vice versa for bad announcements. The results also show an increase in the frequency of fund managers not trading before announcements, only to subsequently purchase during good announcements. Taken together, this evidence suggests managers are reliant on private information before earnings announcements, as well as them engaging in 'interpretation' of earnings announcements when they do not receive a private signal.

This dissertation presents an examination of the trading behaviour of active Australian fund managers. The thesis begins with an analysis of how fund manager trades relate to stock returns in the past, the present, and the future. The dissertation next proceeds to investigating how fund size affects fund performance, trading and portfolio construction. Finally, using earnings announcements as the locus for trading sequences, we analyse the nature of the information used by fund managers to predict stock returns. This research is presented in the form of three essays. The first essay investigates how active fund manager trades relate to stock returns. Using a unique database of daily transactions from Australian equity managers, we document that our sample of institutional investors exhibit statistically and economically significant predictive power in forecasting future stock returns over the ten days following their trades. Furthermore, detailed analysis indicates that manager style is important in understanding the link between institutional trading and stock returns. The essay finds growth-oriented managers are momentum traders, while style-neutral and value managers are contrarian. Further, the contemporaneous relation between institutional trading and returns depends on trade size, broker use, and investment style. Finally, the study documents that trades and returns are inversely related for value/contrarian managers and directly related for style-neutral and growth managers. The second essay presents an analysis of how fund size affects investment performance. Recent studies find evidence that small funds outperform large funds. This fund size effect is commonly hypothesized to be caused by transaction costs. Due to the lack of transactions data, prior studies have investigated the transaction costs theory only indirectly. This study however, analyses the daily transactions of active Australian equity managers and finds aggregate market impact costs incurred by large managers are significantly greater than that Finally, the third essay examines the nature of price-sensitive earnings information used by package formation and portfolio characteristics consistent with transaction cost intimidation. An analysis of the interaction between transaction cost intimidation and the fund size effect documents that large managers pursue a highly active trading strategy, and accordingly suffer more from the fund size effect than is the case for large funds following a less active trading strategy. This suggests the fund size effect is related to transaction costs as trading activity is a good proxy for expected market impact. Finally, the third essay examines the nature of price-sensitive earnings information used by fund managers to trade. While a number of recent mutual fund performance studies find data, prior studies have investigated the transaction costs theory only indirectly. This study however, analyses the daily transactions of active Australian equity managers and finds aggregate market impact costs incurred by large managers are significantly greater than that Finally, the third essay examines the nature of price-sensitive earnings information used by package formation and portfolio characteristics consistent with transaction cost intimidation. An analysis of the interaction between transaction cost intimidation and the fund size effect documents that large managers pursue a highly active trading strategy, and accordingly suffer more from the fund size effect than is the case for large funds following a less active trading strategy. This suggests the fund size effect is related to transaction costs as trading activity is incurred by small managers. Furthermore, large managers exhibit preferences for trade evidence of outperformance relative to suitably constructed benchmarks, limited research exists as to whether such outperformance is due to privately collected information, or merely expedient interpretation of publicly released information. In this essay an examination of the trade sequences of fund managers around earnings announcements is performed, and evidence is presented revealing an increased Occurrence of buy-sell trade sequences around good announcements and vice versa for bad announcements. The results also show an increase in the frequency of fund managers not trading before announcements, only to subsequently purchase during good announcements. Taken together, this evidence suggests managers are reliant on private information before earnings announcements, as well as them engaging in 'interpretation' of earnings announcements when they do not receive a private signal.

La littérature en knowledge management a connu une croissance exponentielle depuis quelques années, elle aborde une grande variété de sujets. Néanmoins, les travaux de recherche sur les gestionnaires en charge de mettre en place et de gérer la démarche de knowledge management sont très peu nombreux. Dans le tournant pratique (practice turn) apparu dans la théorie sociale et récemment mobilisé dans la littérature en gestion, la notion d'intentionnalité de l'acteur occupe une place dominante, alors que les pratiques pourraient être lus comme la résultante accidentelle de conditions et transformations de pratiques et discours antérieurs. Afin de contribuer à combler ces manques dans la littérature, mon travail de thèse porte sur la vie des knowledge managers dans une entreprise multinationale. Il s'agit de comprendre la nature de l'action que ces knowledge managers déploient pour parvenir à accomplir leurs missions dans un contexte organisationnel à la fois contraignant et facilitant où le KM doit se construire une place au sein des préoccupations quotidiennes multiples des dirigeants et des salariés. Cette recherche s'inspire du pragmatisme de Dewey. La méthode de recherche, construite à partir des travaux de Benner (1994) et van Manen (1990) qui sont ancrés dans la méthodologie de la phénoménologie interprétative, s'appuie sur des entretiens de type récits de pratique. Les participants à notre recherche sont sept knowledge managers dans un multinational. Ils sont localisés dans de différent pays, en France, en Autriche, au Canada, et en Chine. Avec chaque participant, nous avons fait deux entretiens approfondis de deux heures. L'analyse se fait en deux temps. Dans un premier temps, une analyse thématique permet d'identifier les points communs dans les expériences vécues par les knowledge managers. Elle nous conduit à proposer une image qui sert de fil rouge à notre analyse. Dans un deuxième temps, chaque expérience est analysée comme un paradigme c'est-à-dire une « façon d'être » un knowledge manager. La principale particularité du knowledge management est le fait que c'est une nouvelle fonction, qui n'a pas une place déjà marquée dans la vie de l'entreprise. Cette absence de territoire est une des principales réalités affrontées par les knowledge managers, qui doivent « faire avec » cette absence de territoire et tenter de trouver une place pour la fonction knowledge management. Cette particularité nous conduit à envisager les knowledge managers comme des « rafteurs », pratiquant le canoë-kayak en eaux vives. La rivière, ses obstacles et son puissant courant, renvoie au contexte organisationnel difficile pour les knowledge managers. Les knowledge managers tels des rafteurs, sont emportés par le courant qui les fait avancer et menacés par les obstacles. Ils se battent pour empêcher le bateau d'être renversé. Ils agissent pour éviter les obstacles et tirer le meilleur parti du courant. Les actions des knowledge managers peuvent être classées en trois catégories : intentionnelles, émergentes et contraintes. La dimension intentionnelle correspond à des actions de marketing interne. La dimension émergente peut être envisagée comme la recherche d'îlots de stabilité au milieu de la rivière. La fonction knowledge management cherche ainsi à trouver sa place en s'intégrant à des processus déjà existants au sein de l'organisation. La dimension contrainte est la nécessaire recherche de soutien que les knowledge managers doivent trouver pour mener à bien leur travail. De plus, nous avons identifié trois catégories de knowledge managers en fonction de leur capacité à faire avec l'absence de territoire de la fonction knowledge management. Parmi les sept knowledge managers, un a décidé de renoncer au poste du fait des difficultés, quatre sont toujours en train de se battre avec les obstacles et le puissant courrant pour obtenir une place dans la vie de l'organisation, et deux ont obtenu un certains succès.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Texas at Austin, 1999. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 135-147). Available also in a digital version from Dissertation Abstracts.

Thesis (doctoral)--Handelshögskolan vid Göteborgs universitet, 1997. / Extra t.p. with thesis statement and English abstract inserted. Includes bibliographical references (p. 259-270) and index.

No description available.

Background to the problem - Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) has become an attractive attribute in companies, due to pressure to work with the phenomenon (Candy, 2013) and also because of the pressure of competitiveness (Militaru & Ionescu, 2007). CSR has become a strategic issue (Morgan, Ryu & Mirvis, 2009) and some researchers believe CSR efforts could lead to competitive advantage (Filho, Wanderley, Gómez & Farache, 2010; Militaru & Ionescu, 2007; Porter & Kremer, 2006). Managers’ perceptions could influence actions,  organizational behavior and performance within a company (Abbas, 2009; Pedersen, 2010). It is important, for CSR to be exerted in an organization, that managers' perceptions are  supportive (Abbas, 2009; Pedersen, 2010). Managers’ perceptions about the connection  between CSR and competitive advantage has however not been extensively studied in the industry, in which accounting firms are active.   Research problem - What are managers’ perceptions of the connection between CSR efforts and competitive advantage in large accounting firms?   Purpose - Based on managers' perceptions, describe and explore the connection between CSR efforts and competitive advantage in large accounting firms in Sweden. The purpose is also to expand research in the field of how accounting firms themselves are working with CSR.   Method - This study is based upon a qualitative research with an abductive methodologically. In this thesis, five large accounting firms and their managers have been interviewed, both in the local offices and the head offices located in Sweden.    Conclusions - The study shows that managers perceive competitive advantage to not derive from CSR efforts. This because, to work with CSR is perceived as taken for granted and obligatory for the accounting firms to exert. To not work with CSR is perceived by companies to face a huge risk of lagging behind their competitors. It is however suggested to be an  advantage to work with CSR, due to positive outcomes, such as increased image and  reputation and also for attracting and retaining desirable employees.   Implications - By studying how large accounting firms work with CSR themselves and  managers’ perceptions about the connection between their CSR efforts and competitive  advantage, this study contributes to expand previous research, done in the field of accounting firms.    Keywords: CSR and Competitive Advantage; CSR and Accounting firms, Managers’  Perceptions and CSR, Linkage between Competitive Advantage and CSR. / Bakgrund till problemet - Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) har med åren blivit ett  attraktivt verktyg för företag att arbeta med (Candy, 2013) eftersom att pressen på företag att arbeta med fenomenet ökat (Candy, 2013) och även för att trycket på konkurrenskraft ökat (Militaru & Ionescu, 2007). CSR har blivit en strategisk fråga (Morgan, Ryu & Mirvis, 2009) och vissa forskare anser att CSR åtgärder kan leda till konkurrensfördelar (Filho, Wanderley, Gómez & Farache, 2010; Militaru & Ionescu, 2007; Porter & Kremer, 2006). Chefers upp- fattningar kan påverka handlingar, beteende och prestation i en organisation (Abbas, 2009; Pedersen, 2010). För att CSR ska kunna verka i en organisation, är det viktigt att chefers  uppfattningar stödjer CSR aktiviteter (ibid.). Chefers uppfattningar om huruvida CSR och konkurrensfördelar är kopplade till varandra har dock inte blivit studerat i stor utsträckning i den industri där revisionsföretag är aktiva.   Problemformulering - Vad är chefers uppfattningar om kopplingen mellan CSR åtgärder och konkurrensfördelar i stora revisionsföretag?  Syfte -  Beskriva och undersöka kopplingen mellan CSR åtgärder och konkurrensfördelar i fem stora revisionsföretag i Sverige baserat på chefers uppfattningar. Syftet är också att ut- vidga forskning inom området för hur revisionsföretag arbetar med CSR på egen hand.   Metod - Denna studie är baserad på en kvalitativ ansats med en abduktiv metodologi. I denna uppsats, har chefer i fem stora revisionsföretag blivit intervjuade, både på de lokala kontoren och huvudkontoren i Sverige.   Slutsatser - Baserat på revisionsföretagen och chefernas uppfattningar, visar studien att  konkurrensfördelar inte härleds från CSR-arbete. Detta eftersom CSR-arbetet uppfattas vara en självklarhet att utöva samt obligatoriskt. Enligt respondenternas finns det en stor risk för att halka efter sina konkurrenter om företag inte arbetar med CSR.  Det är en fördel att arbeta med CSR, detta på grund av de positiva resultat som förväntas uppstå, såsom ökad/ökat image och rykte, samt att attrahera och behålla värdefull personal.    Bidrag till forskning – Den här studien bidrar till att utvidga tidigare forskning inom  revisionsbranschen. Hur stora revisionsbyråer arbetar på egen hand med CSR och chefernas uppfattningar om kopplingen mellan CSR-arbete och konkurrensfördelar har studerats.     Nyckelord: CSR och Konkurrensfördelar; CSR och Revisionsbyråer, Chefers Uppfattningar och CSR, Kopplingen mellan Konkurrensfördelar och CSR.

This study aims to look at female executives’ view of their leadership in the male-dominated construction industry. The study is  qualitative and focuses on the respondents' subjective perceptions. We have conducted six interviews with women in different companies whose positions within each company varied. Using theories of subjectivity, emotions, impression management and organizational structures, to support the analysis conducted, this study shows that there are obstacles for women in the industry, but it also shows that it  seems to be facing a brighter future. Women experience obstacles in their careers because of perceptions claiming that men are better suited to work in the construction industry. Women in our study believe that these perceptions are changing and that women are beginning to become a natural part of the organisations.