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The Case for Managerial Ruthlessness 1
Author(s) -
Rieple Alison,
Vyakarnam Shailendra
Publication year - 1996
Publication title -
british journal of management
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.407
H-Index - 108
eISSN - 1467-8551
pISSN - 1045-3172
DOI - 10.1111/j.1467-8551.1996.tb00103.x
Subject(s) - dismissal , undo , criticism , subject (documents) , set (abstract data type) , phenomenon , marketing , psychology , public relations , business , computer science , political science , epistemology , library science , law , programming language , operating system , philosophy
This paper summarizes relevant literature and reports on a study which has examined the behaviour and attributes of managers in British mid‐sized companies in which growth is a strategic objective. The study used a grounded, interpretive methodology, which allowed the development of theoretical propositions which have not been subject to previous empirical examination. This paper deals with one aspect of the findings, namely ruthlessness on the part of managers in dismissing or otherwise dealing with poorly performing members of staff. This aspect of management was an important factor in the subject organizations' ability to achieve their chosen strategy, and is a phenomenon which does not appear to have been developed in any previous models of effective managerial behaviour. Managerial ruthlessness influences strategic implementation in a number of ways – it affects control of the organization, team building and the ability to respond to changes in the environment or undo mistakes in appointments. This paper also outlines attributes and characteristics of both the individual manager and the organization which allows ruthlessness to be developed and used effectively, for example self‐confidence; the ability to ensure that criticism or dismissal is not seen as personal; the separation of work and social life; and the ability to focus on objectives rather than the person. Organizational support and training in such behaviour also appeared to be helpful contributors to the development of such behaviour.