Russian Managers under Storm: Explicit Reality and Implicit Leadership Theories (A Pilot Exploration)

This paper reports the results of a exploratory study on leadership and strategies in Russian companies under the present conditions of economic turmoil. The study revealed three clusters on inter-dependencies between external variables (company performance) and implicit variables (mental models and patterns): There are three main clusters of inter-dependencies: 1.The intensity of critique on boss and subordinates is related to dissatisfaction with a manager's own qualities and abilities. This signifies that as a manager improves his abilities (or at least asserts himself in self-improvement) he will be less willing to tolerate both incapable boss and incapable subordinates. 2.The positive performance dynamics weakens the critique on subordinates, but has no direct impact on the critique of boss. The critique of a boss doesn't depend on economic position, competitiveness level or even the current possibilities of the top management to retrace changes in a volatile economic environment. It means that we deal here in a deeper level of implicit leadership theory. 3.The main impetus for managerial re-training is not the dissatisfaction by managers of their own abilities or their boss' weaknesses, but rather the dissatisfaction by subordinates and awareness of negative performance dynamics of their own company. This signifies that the drift of "would-be-managers" towards the highest responsibility areas is limited. We discuss these findings and identify the promising next directions of research.

Russian Managers under Storm: Explicit Reality and Implicit Leadership Theories (A Pilot Exploration)

This paper reports the results of a exploratory study on leadership and strategies in Russian companies under the present conditions of economic turmoil. The study revealed three clusters on inter-dependencies between external variables (company performance) and implicit variables (mental models and patterns): There are three main clusters of inter-dependencies: 1.The intensity of critique on boss and subordinates is related to dissatisfaction with a manager's own qualities and abilities. This signifies that as a manager improves his abilities (or at least asserts himself in self-improvement) he will be less willing to tolerate both incapable boss and incapable subordinates. 2.The positive performance dynamics weakens the critique on subordinates, but has no direct impact on the critique of boss. The critique of a boss doesn't depend on economic position, competitiveness level or even the current possibilities of the top management to retrace changes in a volatile economic environment. It means that we deal here in a deeper level of implicit leadership theory. 3.The main impetus for managerial re-training is not the dissatisfaction by managers of their own abilities or their boss' weaknesses, but rather the dissatisfaction by subordinates and awareness of negative performance dynamics of their own company. This signifies that the drift of "would-be-managers" towards the highest responsibility areas is limited. We discuss these findings and identify the promising next directions of research.http://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/39459/3/wp69.pd

Organizational Changes in Russian Industrial Enterprises: Mutation of Decision-Making Structures and Transformation of Ownership

The paper summarizes the results of 20 case studies in Russian domestically oriented industrial companies. Through interviews with corporate executives and surveys of employees we revealed the changes in decision-making authority and transformations in control structures. Five major types of control, currently prevailing in Russian industrial companies are identified, and their strengths and weakness for building consistent corporate strategies are outlined. The possession by top executives of blocking interests (25-30% of the stock) in their companies is considered to be a necessary pre-requisite for building a consistent adaptation strategy.http://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/39584/3/wp197.pd

Distribution of PEG-coated hollow polyelectrolyte microcapsules after introduction into the circulatory system and muscles of zebrafish

The use of polyelectrolyte multilayer microcapsules as carriers for fluorescent molecular probes is a prospective technique for monitoring the physiological characteristics of animal vasculature and interstitial environment in vivo. Polyelectrolyte microcapsules have many features that favor their use as implantable carriers of optical sensors, but little information is available on their interactions with complex living tissues, distribution or residence time following different routes of administration in the body of vertebrates. Using the common fish model, the zebrafish Danio rerio, we studied in vivo the distribution of non-biodegradable microcapsules covered with polyethylene glycol (PEG) over time in the adults and evaluated potential side effects of their delivery into the fish bloodstream and muscles. Fluorescent microcapsules administered into the bloodstream and interstitially (in concentrations that were sufficient for visualization and spectral signal recording) both showed negligible acute toxicity to the fishes during three weeks of observation. The distribution pattern of microcapsules delivered into the bloodstream was stable for at least one week, with microcapsules prevalent in capillaries-rich organs. However, after intramuscular injection, the phagocytosis of the microcapsules by immune cells was manifested, indicating considerable immunogenicity of the microcapsules despite PEG coverage. The long-term negative effects of chronic inflammation were also investigated in fish muscles by histological analysis

Microencapsulated fluorescent pH probe as implantable sensor for monitoring the physiological state of fish embryos

In vivo physiological measurement is a major challenge in modern science and technology, as is environment conservation at the global scale. Proper toxicological testing of widely produced mixtures of chemicals is a necessary step in the development of new products, allowing us to minimize the human impact on aquatic ecosystems. However, currently available bioassay-based techniques utilizing small aquatic organisms such as fish embryos for toxicity testing do not allow assessing in time the changes in physiological parameters in the same individual. In this study, we introduce microencapsulated fluorescent probes as a promising tool for in vivo monitoring of internal pH variation in zebrafish embryos. The pH alteration identified under stress conditions demonstrates the applicability of the microencapsulated fluorescent probes for the repeated analysis of the embryo’s physiological state. The proposed approach has strong potential to simultaneously measure a range of physiological characteristics using a set of specific fluorescent probes and to finally bring toxicological bioassays and related research fields to a new level of effectiveness and sensitivity

Parallel in vivo monitoring of pH in gill capillaries and muscles of fishes using microencapsulated biomarkers

Tracking physiological parameters in different organs within the same organism simultaneously and in real time can provide an outstanding representation of the organism's physiological status. The state-ofthe-Art technique of using encapsulated fluorescent molecular probes (microencapsulated biomarkers) is a unique tool that can serve as a platform for the development of new methods to obtain in vivo physiological measurements and is applicable to a broad range of organisms. Here, we describe a novel technique to monitor the pH of blood inside the gill capillaries and interstitial fluid of muscles by using microencapsulated biomarkers in a zebrafish model. The functionality of the proposed technique is shown by the identification of acidification under anesthesia-induced coma and after death. The pH in muscles reacts to hypoxia faster than that in the gill bloodstream, which makes both parameters applicable as markers of either local or bodily reactions

Application of PEG-Covered Non-Biodegradable Polyelectrolyte Microcapsules in the Crustacean Circulatory System on the Example of the Amphipod Eulimnogammarus verrucosus

Layer-by-layer assembled microcapsules are promising carriers for the delivery of various pharmaceutical and sensing substances into specific organs of different animals, but their utility in vivo inside such an important group as crustaceans remains poorly explored. In the current study, we analyzed several significant aspects of the application of fluorescent microcapsules covered by polyethylene glycol (PEG) inside the crustacean circulatory system, using the example of the amphipod Eulimnogammarus verrucosus. In particular, we explored the distribution dynamics of visible microcapsules after injection into the main hemolymph vessel; analyzed the most significant features of E. verrucosus autofluorescence; monitored amphipod mortality and biochemical markers of stress response after microcapsule injection, as well as the healing of the injection wound; and finally, we studied the immune response to the microcapsules. The visibility of microcapsules decreased with time, however, the central hemolymph vessel was confirmed to be the most promising organ for detecting the spectral signal of implanted microencapsulated fluorescent probes. One million injected microcapsules (sufficient for detecting stable fluorescence during the first hours after injection) showed no toxicity for six weeks, but in vitro amphipod immune cells recognize the PEG-coated microcapsules as foreign bodies and try to isolate them by 12 h after contact