Middle Managers in Europe (Routledge Advances in Management and Business Studies, 1)

Based on research on the European Human Capital and Mobility Programme, this book provides an overview of the evolution of middle management in Europe, including: \* comparative analysis of their changing role \* analysis of the evolution of managerial practices \* a study of the consequences of Quality Management on middle managers. BOOK COVER......Page 1 HALF-TITLE......Page 2 TITLE......Page 4 COPYRIGHT......Page 5 CONTENTS......Page 6 FIGURES......Page 8 TABLES......Page 9 NOTES ON CONTRIBUTORS......Page 10 FOREWORD......Page 12 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS......Page 14 ABBREVIATIONS......Page 15 1 INTRODUCTION......Page 16 MIDDLE MANAGERS: A FIRST DEFINITION......Page 18 CHANGES IN MIDDLE MANAGEMENT: AN OVERVIEW OF THE LITERATURE......Page 20 Quantitative reduction......Page 21 Reduction/change due to information technology......Page 22 Increased commitment to quality improvement and cost reduction......Page 23 Less supervisory responsibility due to increased autonomy and self-direction of work groups......Page 24 Shift in balance of work from professional to managerial......Page 25 New set of roles......Page 26 Development of new attitudes and competencies......Page 27 Pressure and stress......Page 28 PRESENTATION OF THIS BOOK......Page 29 REFERENCES......Page 34 TOWARDS AN INTERNATIONAL DEFINITION OF THE NOTION OF ‘MANAGER’?......Page 40 DIFFERENCES WITHIN EUROPE......Page 44 CONCLUSION......Page 50 NOTES......Page 51 REFERENCES......Page 52 INTRODUCTION......Page 54 MIDDLE MANAGEMENT DEFINED......Page 57 MIDDLE MANAGEMENT AND COMMUNICATION......Page 58 MIDDLE MANAGEMENT FROM A SOCIAL CONSTRUCTIONIST PERSPECTIVE......Page 62 REFERENCES......Page 65 THE RESEARCH APPROACH......Page 68 THE RESEARCH RESULTS......Page 72 Increased commitment (and the nature of the opposite, resistance, alienation)......Page 73 Reduction/change due to information technology......Page 74 Less tightly specified role, more self-determination......Page 75 Quantitative reduction......Page 76 Less supervisory responsibility due to increased autonomy and self-direction of work groups......Page 77 New set of roles—teacher, coach, facilitator, etc.......Page 78 Involvement in strategy......Page 79 Development of new attitudes and competencies: people-oriented skills......Page 80 Key players in moving from ‘old’ to the ‘new’......Page 81 Shift in balance from professional to more managerial work......Page 82 Patterns in the observations......Page 83 CONCLUSIONS......Page 84 IMPLICATIONS FOR RESEARCH, THEORY AND PRACTICE......Page 89 NOTES......Page 90 REFERENCES......Page 91 5 MIDDLE MANAGEMENT IN CRISIS: WHO SHOULD BE BLAMED?......Page 92 LISTENING TO THE MIDDLE MANAGERS......Page 94 Looking for an exit door......Page 95 The upper management view......Page 97 The new generation......Page 99 DOES THE ORGANIZATION REALLY SUPPORT MIDDLE MANAGERS?......Page 100 Does the managerial model always fit the middle managers’ work reality?......Page 101 Decentralization and local management......Page 102 A need for a better insertion......Page 103 CONCLUSION: MIDDLE MANAGERS’ DISCOMFORT AS A SYMPTOM......Page 104 REFERENCES......Page 105 INTRODUCTION......Page 106 METHODOLOGY......Page 107 Middle managers’ activities and authority......Page 108 Changes reported in middle managers’ role and work......Page 110 REFERENCES......Page 113 INTRODUCTION......Page 116 THE ROLE OF THE MIDDLE MANAGER IN KNOWLEDGE ORGANIZATIONS......Page 117 The integrative role......Page 118 Cultural flexibility......Page 119 Experiential learning......Page 121 Human resource management responsibility......Page 123 The management development programme......Page 125 Discussion......Page 130 ‘Think the unthinkable’......Page 133 Discussion......Page 135 Semi-autonomous groups......Page 137 Back to middle managers......Page 138 Discussion......Page 139 CONCLUSION......Page 142 REFERENCES......Page 143 8 THE NEW FOREMEN ARE HERE!1......Page 146 DEFINITION OF THE OBJECT OF STUDY......Page 147 A few recent transformations of socio-productive systems......Page 149 The evolution of employment structures and of the work-force......Page 150 Line management: change and stability......Page 151 BROADENING THE NEO—CLASSICAL THEORY OF SEGMENTATION: FROM ‘MARKET’ TO ‘SOCIAL REGULATION’......Page 154 The invisible ‘specific qualifications’ linked to line management in the French context......Page 156 The market of supervisory jobs does not function like a ‘market’......Page 157 ACTORS’ STRATEGIES AND RESTRUCTURING OF SUPERVISORY STAFF......Page 158 CONCLUSIONS......Page 160 NOTES......Page 162 REFERENCES......Page 163 INTRODUCTION......Page 164 Definition of total quality management......Page 165 Levels or stages of total quality management......Page 168 Quality improvement and middle management roles......Page 169 Evidence of a specialist and separate function......Page 172 Organization-wide special initiatives......Page 173 Quality is integrated into organizational processes......Page 174 Core organizing principle: total quality management......Page 175 Qualitative observations of the levels or stages of quality management and their effect on middle management roles......Page 176 CONCLUSIONS......Page 178 REFERENCES......Page 179 INTRODUCTION......Page 182 RESEARCH BASE......Page 183 CHANGES TO MIDDLE MANAGERS’ CONTRACTS......Page 184 Knowledge contract......Page 186 Motivation contract......Page 188 Goals and means contract......Page 189 Ethics contract......Page 190 MIDDLE MANAGEMENT CAREERS......Page 191 Networking......Page 192 Exit......Page 193 MIDDLE MANAGERS’ REACTIONS......Page 194 Contrary......Page 196 Double-bind......Page 197 ORGANIZATIONAL RESPONSES TO MIDDLE MANAGERS......Page 198 DISCUSSION......Page 199 REFERENCES......Page 200 SOCIO-PROFESSIONAL DIVERSITY AND IDENTITY......Page 202 PRESENT UNCERTAINTY......Page 203 Strengthening the European Union......Page 205 Promoting a model of European management......Page 206 Recognizing qualifications and diplomas......Page 207 NOTES......Page 209 12 CONCLUSIONS......Page 212 THE RATE OF CHANGE MAY BE SLOWER THAN FREQUENTLY ASSUMED......Page 213 THERE IS A STRONG CONVERGENCE IN THE MIDDLE MANAGER’S ORGANIZATIONAL SITUATION......Page 214 INDEX......Page 218 What Role Is There For Middle Managers In Europe Today? Based On Research From The European Human Capital And Mobility Programme And Focusing Specifically On The Role Of Middle Managers And The Management Of Change Within Different Types Of Companies, This Book Provides An Overview Of The Evolution Of Middle Management In Europe And Includes A Comparative Analysis Using Empirical Evidence To Show How Their Role Has Changed; An Analysis Of The Evolution Of Managerial Practices And The Attitudes Of Middle Managers To Them In The Uk, France, Denmark And Greece; And An Exploratory Study Of The Consequences Of Quality Management On Middle Managers. This Research Contains The Findings And Views From Members Of Fifteen Organizations From Five European Countries - Greece, France, Portugal, The Netherlands And The Uk. 1. Introduction: Middle Managers In Management Thinking: Crucial ... And Absent / Yves-frederic Livian -- 2. Managers, 'cadres', 'leitende Angestellte': Some Landmarks About Managerial Group Titles And Definitions / Frank Bournois And Yves-frederic Livian -- 3. Middle Management, Communication And Organization Change / Maarten Rudolf Van Gils -- 4. Trends In European Middle Management: Evidence From Five Countries / Fotis Vouzas, John G. Burgoyne And Yves-frederic Livian -- 5. Middle Management In Crisis: Who Should Be Blamed? The French Situation / Jean-pierre Segal -- 6. The Nature Of Middle Managers' Work In The Civil Service: The Case Of Greece / Stella Kufidu, Eugenia Petridu And Dimitrios M. Mihail. Edited By Yves Frédéric Livian And John G. Burgoyne. Includes Bibliographical References And Index.