Time matters: rethinking the role of time in the philosophical, conceptual and methodological domains of international business

The purpose of this editorial, and the special issue, is to initiate a dialogue about the role of time in international business (IB) scholarship. While time is inherent in IB phenomena, it has, to date, received limited attention in IB research and theorizing. When IB scholars do account for time, they generally adhere to assumptions representing time as linear and objective. We discuss the importance of time in the philosophical, conceptual, and methodological domains of IB, defining each of these three interconnected domains, problematizing their dominant assumptions about time, and suggesting potential avenues for rethinking time in IB

Evidence-based management in practice:opening up the decision process, decision-maker and context

Evidence-based management (EBM) has been subject to a number of persuasive critiques in recent years. Concerns have been raised that: EBM over-privileges rationality as a basis for decision-making; 'scientific' evidence is insufficient and incomplete as a basis for management practice; understanding of how EBM actually plays out in practice is limited; and, although ideas were originally taken from evidence-based medicine, individual-situated expertise has been forgotten in the transfer. To address these concerns, the authors adopted an approach of 'opening up' the decision process, the decision-maker and the context (Langley et al.). 'Opening up decision making: the view from the black stool', Organization Science, 6, pp. 260-279). The empirical investigation focuses on an EBM decision process involving an operations management problem in a hospital emergency department in Australia. Based on interview and archival research, it describes how an EBM decision process was enacted by a physician manager. It identifies the role of 'fit' between the decision-maker and the organizational context in enabling an evidence-based process and develops insights for EBM theory and practice

Evidence-based management in practice:opening up the decision process, decision-maker and context

Evidence-based management (EBM) has been subject to a number of persuasive critiques in recent years. Concerns have been raised that: EBM over-privileges rationality as a basis for decision-making; 'scientific' evidence is insufficient and incomplete as a basis for management practice; understanding of how EBM actually plays out in practice is limited; and, although ideas were originally taken from evidence-based medicine, individual-situated expertise has been forgotten in the transfer. To address these concerns, the authors adopted an approach of 'opening up' the decision process, the decision-maker and the context (Langley et al.). 'Opening up decision making: the view from the black stool', Organization Science, 6, pp. 260-279). The empirical investigation focuses on an EBM decision process involving an operations management problem in a hospital emergency department in Australia. Based on interview and archival research, it describes how an EBM decision process was enacted by a physician manager. It identifies the role of 'fit' between the decision-maker and the organizational context in enabling an evidence-based process and develops insights for EBM theory and practice

Migration and innovation at the bottom end: understanding the role of migrant managers in small hotels in the global city

The paper examines the role of international migration and innovation in small hotels through a comparative study of migrant and non-migrant owners and managers in London hotels. The findings show the dependence of the sector on international managers whose contribution to innovation is understood in relation to the global environment of London, sectoral particularities and complex processes of mobility amongst both migrant and non-migrant managers. Although there is only limited evidence of differences in the levels or types of innovation, international migration is significant in the transfer and dispersion of knowledge, and plays a key role in the incremental innovation processes which are essential to innovation performance in the sector