Bjarne Espedal - Academia.edu (original) (raw)

Papers by Bjarne Espedal

The paper explores two logics of global leadership; the logic of instrumentality and the logic of... more The paper explores two logics of global leadership; the logic of instrumentality and the logic of appropriateness. These two logics and their relation to multinational enterprises are traced in organizational theory and in global leadership theory and the consequences of the two logics for the design of global leadership development programs are explored . It is argued that applying a logic of instrumentality uncritically to global leadership in multinational enterprises is potentially frau ght with great risk given the d iversity and complexity of MNEs and their environments. It is suggested that a logic of appropriateness in global leadership and in global leadership development programs constitutes a viable, suitable and complementary alternative. What is referred to as a mixed service logic of global leadership development programs involves exploration and reflection concerning the particular contexts in which global leadership processes and exemplifies a logic of appropriatenes...

Taking as its starting point the significance of social networks for knowledge sharing in multina... more Taking as its starting point the significance of social networks for knowledge sharing in multinational enterprises, this paper has a particular focus on the role global leadership development programs may have on both social networks and knowledge sharing in multinational enterprises. The concept of social networks is developed using social capital theory. Our data is derived from Norfert, a Scandinavian multinational enterprise, which in 2007 introduced its first such program, “LEAD”. In order to examine the impact of LEAD we deploy a mixed-methods approach. Contrary to our theoretically driven assumption the longitudinal quantitative data suggest that participation in LEAD had a no positive effect on knowledge sharing. We therefore employed qualitative data in order to explain this finding which we did in terms of the particular cultural and organizational context in which LEAD was created.

A large portion of contemporary research on organizational change envisions change as the result ... more A large portion of contemporary research on organizational change envisions change as the result of the intentions and actions of leaders. Leaders’ influence in leading organizational change, however, requires capacity to act freely and to exercise power. This article explores and examines the question of how and under what conditions leaders, as change agents, can balance or combine autonomy and power in leading change.

Paper presented at the FINT workshop on trust within and between organizations, Singapore, Novemb... more Paper presented at the FINT workshop on trust within and between organizations, Singapore, November 2013

Trust, Organizations and Social Interaction

Journal of Leadership & Organizational Studies, 2009

The leadership literature reveals that the top executives of organizations need room to maneuver ... more The leadership literature reveals that the top executives of organizations need room to maneuver in order to affect organizational performance and adaptiveness. This article examines the basis for this conventional wisdom. The approach is first and foremost theoretical; however, illustrative data from a case study are also included. The discussion shows that maneuvering room for leaders is comprised of structural, social, and cognitive factors that provide guidelines and set constraints for leadership action. At the same time, leaders can be learning agents that influence and shape these aspects. Thus, guidelines and constraints represent both the conditions and the objects for leadership decision making and action.

Human Resource Development Review, 2005

This article defines management as a source of organizational competitive advantage and from the ... more This article defines management as a source of organizational competitive advantage and from the view that managers are some of the employees most vital to a firm. According to influential theories in the field of strategic management, such human assets should be protected, governed, and developed internally. In contrast to the traditional view of core competence, this article suggests that firms have to use external as well as internal resources to develop employees with unique and valuable capabilities and skills. The article makes the argument that a mix of internal and external developmental resources might be an important mechanism in the creation of management development as a dynamic capability or as a means to develop human assets that are one of the main sources of competitive advantage.

European J. of International Management, 2013

This paper explores two models of leadership in the globalised context, one rooted in instrumenta... more This paper explores two models of leadership in the globalised context, one rooted in instrumentality and the other in appropriateness. While the logic of instrumentality assumes that leadership practices are universal across national and institutional borders, the logic of appropriateness is sensitive to cross-national cultural and institutional differences. These two standpoints and their relation to multinational enterprises (MNEs) are traced in organisational global leadership theory. Ultimately, the consequences of implementing either of these two thought processes while designing leadership development programs are identified. We argue that applying the logic of instrumentality uncritically to leadership in the globalised context of multinational enterprises is fraught with great risk because this logic tends to ignore the diversity and complexity of MNEs and their environments. It is suggested that the logic of appropriateness in leadership constitutes a viable, suitable and complementary alternative.

INSTITUTE FOR RESEARCH IN ECONOMICS AND BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION Bergen, September 2010 ISSN 1503-... more INSTITUTE FOR RESEARCH IN ECONOMICS AND BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION Bergen, September 2010 ISSN 1503-2140 © Dette eksemplar er fremstilt etter avtale med KOPINOR, Stenergate 1, 0050 Oslo. Ytterligere eksemplarfremstilling uten avtale og i strid med ...

Advances in Developing Human Resources, 2004

The problem and the solution. The majority of contemporary theories about management and leadersh... more The problem and the solution. The majority of contemporary theories about management and leadership development suggest techniques and best practices for improving management and leadership to optimize organizational performance. Despite the abundance of advice and the manifestly instrumental intention, most organizations struggle to achieve this connection between management development (MD) and improved performance. This article switches attention from the actual MD methods employed to the stories that managers tell about their experience of development. Drawing on 10 case studies in Norway, the focus is on how managers talk about management and leadership development and the degree to which this matches how such development actually happens in their organizations. In doing so, the article presents a better understanding of why some MD activities achieve little, why some succeed, and why some change shape beyond recognition.

Journal of Change Management, 2005

This paper investigates the relationships between organizational change and trust in management. ... more This paper investigates the relationships between organizational change and trust in management. It is argued that organizational change represents a critical episode for the production and destruction of trust in management. Although trust in management is seen as a semi stable psychological state, changes in organizations make trust issues salient and organizational members attend to and process trust relevant information resulting in a reassessment of their trust in management. The direction and magnitude of change in trust is dependent on a set of change dimensions that reflect trust relevant experiences and information. We distinguish between dimensions related to trust relevant consequences of the change and trust relevant aspects of how the change process is performed. Empirical results indicate that increases in post change emotional stress and the use of referential accounts for justifying change are both negatively related to post change trust in management. The use of ideological accounts and participation were found to be positively related to post change trust in management, so was perceived decision quality. Findings also indicate that the effects of change on trust are negatively moderated by tenure.

Management of Innovation eJournal, 2015

The purpose of this study was to explore how and under what conditions two different leadership r... more The purpose of this study was to explore how and under what conditions two different leadership roles are able to facilitate an organizational climate that supports creativity. The study was conducted in a leading professional service firm. The introduced hypotheses were tested by means of a structural equation model. Findings indicate that the leadership roles are conceptually different and that organizational structure is important for leaders’ ability to create a climate that supports creativity. The results also indicate that relational and change leadership behaviors are vital for leaders when creating a climate that supports creativity. Furthermore, both job autonomy and intrinsic motivation are found to be important dimensions for enhancing the creative climate.

The paper explores two logics of global leadership; the logic of instrumentality and the logic of... more The paper explores two logics of global leadership; the logic of instrumentality and the logic of appropriateness. These two logics and their relation to multinational enterprises are traced in organizational theory and in global leadership theory and the consequences of the two logics for the design of global leadership development programs are explored . It is argued that applying a logic of instrumentality uncritically to global leadership in multinational enterprises is potentially frau ght with great risk given the d iversity and complexity of MNEs and their environments. It is suggested that a logic of appropriateness in global leadership and in global leadership development programs constitutes a viable, suitable and complementary alternative. What is referred to as a mixed service logic of global leadership development programs involves exploration and reflection concerning the particular contexts in which global leadership processes and exemplifies a logic of appropriatenes...

Taking as its starting point the significance of social networks for knowledge sharing in multina... more Taking as its starting point the significance of social networks for knowledge sharing in multinational enterprises, this paper has a particular focus on the role global leadership development programs may have on both social networks and knowledge sharing in multinational enterprises. The concept of social networks is developed using social capital theory. Our data is derived from Norfert, a Scandinavian multinational enterprise, which in 2007 introduced its first such program, “LEAD”. In order to examine the impact of LEAD we deploy a mixed-methods approach. Contrary to our theoretically driven assumption the longitudinal quantitative data suggest that participation in LEAD had a no positive effect on knowledge sharing. We therefore employed qualitative data in order to explain this finding which we did in terms of the particular cultural and organizational context in which LEAD was created.

A large portion of contemporary research on organizational change envisions change as the result ... more A large portion of contemporary research on organizational change envisions change as the result of the intentions and actions of leaders. Leaders’ influence in leading organizational change, however, requires capacity to act freely and to exercise power. This article explores and examines the question of how and under what conditions leaders, as change agents, can balance or combine autonomy and power in leading change.

Paper presented at the FINT workshop on trust within and between organizations, Singapore, Novemb... more Paper presented at the FINT workshop on trust within and between organizations, Singapore, November 2013

Trust, Organizations and Social Interaction

Journal of Leadership & Organizational Studies, 2009

The leadership literature reveals that the top executives of organizations need room to maneuver ... more The leadership literature reveals that the top executives of organizations need room to maneuver in order to affect organizational performance and adaptiveness. This article examines the basis for this conventional wisdom. The approach is first and foremost theoretical; however, illustrative data from a case study are also included. The discussion shows that maneuvering room for leaders is comprised of structural, social, and cognitive factors that provide guidelines and set constraints for leadership action. At the same time, leaders can be learning agents that influence and shape these aspects. Thus, guidelines and constraints represent both the conditions and the objects for leadership decision making and action.

Human Resource Development Review, 2005

This article defines management as a source of organizational competitive advantage and from the ... more This article defines management as a source of organizational competitive advantage and from the view that managers are some of the employees most vital to a firm. According to influential theories in the field of strategic management, such human assets should be protected, governed, and developed internally. In contrast to the traditional view of core competence, this article suggests that firms have to use external as well as internal resources to develop employees with unique and valuable capabilities and skills. The article makes the argument that a mix of internal and external developmental resources might be an important mechanism in the creation of management development as a dynamic capability or as a means to develop human assets that are one of the main sources of competitive advantage.

European J. of International Management, 2013

This paper explores two models of leadership in the globalised context, one rooted in instrumenta... more This paper explores two models of leadership in the globalised context, one rooted in instrumentality and the other in appropriateness. While the logic of instrumentality assumes that leadership practices are universal across national and institutional borders, the logic of appropriateness is sensitive to cross-national cultural and institutional differences. These two standpoints and their relation to multinational enterprises (MNEs) are traced in organisational global leadership theory. Ultimately, the consequences of implementing either of these two thought processes while designing leadership development programs are identified. We argue that applying the logic of instrumentality uncritically to leadership in the globalised context of multinational enterprises is fraught with great risk because this logic tends to ignore the diversity and complexity of MNEs and their environments. It is suggested that the logic of appropriateness in leadership constitutes a viable, suitable and complementary alternative.

INSTITUTE FOR RESEARCH IN ECONOMICS AND BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION Bergen, September 2010 ISSN 1503-... more INSTITUTE FOR RESEARCH IN ECONOMICS AND BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION Bergen, September 2010 ISSN 1503-2140 © Dette eksemplar er fremstilt etter avtale med KOPINOR, Stenergate 1, 0050 Oslo. Ytterligere eksemplarfremstilling uten avtale og i strid med ...

Advances in Developing Human Resources, 2004

The problem and the solution. The majority of contemporary theories about management and leadersh... more The problem and the solution. The majority of contemporary theories about management and leadership development suggest techniques and best practices for improving management and leadership to optimize organizational performance. Despite the abundance of advice and the manifestly instrumental intention, most organizations struggle to achieve this connection between management development (MD) and improved performance. This article switches attention from the actual MD methods employed to the stories that managers tell about their experience of development. Drawing on 10 case studies in Norway, the focus is on how managers talk about management and leadership development and the degree to which this matches how such development actually happens in their organizations. In doing so, the article presents a better understanding of why some MD activities achieve little, why some succeed, and why some change shape beyond recognition.

Journal of Change Management, 2005

This paper investigates the relationships between organizational change and trust in management. ... more This paper investigates the relationships between organizational change and trust in management. It is argued that organizational change represents a critical episode for the production and destruction of trust in management. Although trust in management is seen as a semi stable psychological state, changes in organizations make trust issues salient and organizational members attend to and process trust relevant information resulting in a reassessment of their trust in management. The direction and magnitude of change in trust is dependent on a set of change dimensions that reflect trust relevant experiences and information. We distinguish between dimensions related to trust relevant consequences of the change and trust relevant aspects of how the change process is performed. Empirical results indicate that increases in post change emotional stress and the use of referential accounts for justifying change are both negatively related to post change trust in management. The use of ideological accounts and participation were found to be positively related to post change trust in management, so was perceived decision quality. Findings also indicate that the effects of change on trust are negatively moderated by tenure.

Management of Innovation eJournal, 2015

The purpose of this study was to explore how and under what conditions two different leadership r... more The purpose of this study was to explore how and under what conditions two different leadership roles are able to facilitate an organizational climate that supports creativity. The study was conducted in a leading professional service firm. The introduced hypotheses were tested by means of a structural equation model. Findings indicate that the leadership roles are conceptually different and that organizational structure is important for leaders’ ability to create a climate that supports creativity. The results also indicate that relational and change leadership behaviors are vital for leaders when creating a climate that supports creativity. Furthermore, both job autonomy and intrinsic motivation are found to be important dimensions for enhancing the creative climate.