You stab my back, I'll stab yours: Management experience and perceptions of organization political behaviour

This paper reports the findings of a survey of 250 British managers, exploring their experience and perceptions of organization politics. Political behaviour appeared to be common. Most managers viewed political behaviour as ethical and necessary, and aspects of organizational effectiveness, change, resourcing and reputation were attributed to political tactics, although 80% had no training in this area. Tactics experienced frequently included networking, using 'key players' to support initiatives, making friends with power brokers, bending the rules, and self-promotion. Tactics experienced as rare, but not unknown, included misinformation, spreading rumours, and keeping 'dirt files' for blackmail. A consistent pattern of responses concerning willingness to engage in politics, the need to act ruthlessly and the appropriateness of reciprocity when faced with political behaviour implies an attitude of 'you stab my back, I'll stab yours'. Findings are discussed using an 'antecedents–behaviours–consequences' framework of perceived organization politics to guide rese

Immune modulation by group B Streptococcus influences host susceptibility to urinary tract infection by uropathogenic Escherichia coli

Urinary tract infection (UTI) is most often caused by uropathogenic Escherichia coli (UPEC). UPEC inoculation into the female urinary tract (UT) can occur through physical activities that expose the UT to an inherently polymicrobial periurethral, vaginal, or gastrointestinal flora. We report that a common urogenital inhabitant and opportunistic pathogen, group B Streptococcus (GBS), when present at the time of UPEC exposure, undergoes rapid UPEC-dependent exclusion from the murine urinary tract, yet it influences acute UPEC-host interactions and alters host susceptibility to persistent outcomes of bladder and kidney infection. GBS presence results in increased UPEC titers in the bladder lumen during acute infection and reduced inflammatory responses of murine macrophages to live UPEC or purified lipopolysaccharide (LPS), phenotypes that require GBS mimicry of host sialic acid residues. Taken together, these studies suggest that despite low titers, the presence of GBS at the time of polymicrobial UT exposure may be an overlooked risk factor for chronic pyelonephritis and recurrent UTI in susceptible groups, even if it is outcompeted and thus absent by the time of diagnosis

Leadership and charisma: a desire that cannot speak its name?

Leadership has proved impossible to define, despite decades of research and a huge number of publications. This article explores managers’ accounts of leadership, and shows that they find it difficult to talk about the topic, offering brief definitions but very little narrative. That which was said/sayable provides insights into what was unsaid/ unsayable. Queer theory facilitates exploration of that which is difficult to talk about, and applying it to the managers’ talk allows articulation of their lay theory of leadership. This is that leaders evoke a homoerotic desire in followers such that followers are seduced into achieving organizational goals. The leader’s body, however, is absent from the scene of seduction, so organizational heteronormativity remains unchallenged. The article concludes by arguing that queer and critical leadership theorists together could turn leadership into a reverse discourse and towards a politics of pleasure at work

The frequency of genes encoding three putative group B streptococcal virulence factors among invasive and colonizing isolates

BACKGROUND: Group B Streptococcus (GBS) causes severe infections in very young infants and invasive disease in pregnant women and adults with underlying medical conditions. GBS pathogenicity varies between and within serotypes, with considerable variation in genetic content between strains. Three proteins, Rib encoded by rib, and alpha and beta C proteins encoded by bca and bac, respectively, have been suggested as potential vaccine candidates for GBS. It is not known, however, whether these genes occur more frequently in invasive versus colonizing GBS strains. METHODS: We screened 162 invasive and 338 colonizing GBS strains from different collections using dot blot hybridization to assess the frequency of bca, bac and rib. All strains were defined by serotyping for capsular type, and frequency differences were tested using the Chi square test. RESULTS: Genes encoding the beta C protein (bac) and Rib (rib) occurred at similar frequencies among invasive and colonizing isolates, bac (20% vs. 23%), and rib (28% vs. 20%), while the alpha (bca) C protein was more frequently found in colonizing strains (46%) vs, invasive (29%). Invasive strains were associated with specific serotype/gene combinations. CONCLUSION: Novel virulence factors must be identified to better understand GBS disease

Leadership after virtue: MacIntyre’s critique of management reconsidered

MacIntyre argues that management embodies emotivism, and thus is inherently amoral and manipulative. His claim that management is necessarily Weberian is, at best, outdated, and the notion that management aims to be neutral and value free is incorrect. However, new forms of management, and in particular the increased emphasis on leadership which emerged after MacIntyre’s critique was published, tend to support his central charge. Indeed, charismatic and transformational forms of leadership seem to embody emotivism to a greater degree than do more Weberian, bureaucratic forms of management, so MacIntyre’s central contention about our emotivistic culture seems to be well-founded. Having criticised the details but defended the essence of MacIntyre’s critique of management, this paper sketches a MacIntyrean approach to management and leadership by highlighting the affinities between MacIntyre’s political philosophy and Greenleaf’s concept of servant leadership

Profile of a narcissistic leader: coffee's for closers only

Purpose In the past, leadership scholars have tended to focus on leadership as a force for good and productivity (Ashworth, 1994; Higgs, 2009; Padilla, Hogan, & Kaiser, 2007). However, recently attention has been given to the ‘dark side’ of leadership (see Higgs, 2009; Judge, Piccolo, & Kosalka, 2009). The aim of this chapter is to explore dark leadership from the perspective of the narcissistic leader using a fictional character from a popular film. Methodology/approach Using the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 4th edition, 1994 (DSM-IV) (American Psychiatric Association, 2000) as an operational definition of narcissistic personality disorder we explore the psychology of the narcissistic leader through a fictional character study in a popular film. Findings We have created a psychological profile of a narcissistic leader which identifies specific behavioural characteristics within a toxic organizational culture. Social implications This study has implications for employees within any organizational culture. It is significant because it can illustrate how dark leadership can impact negatively within organizations. Originality/value The use of actual living persons on which to base case study material in the study of dark leadership is problematic and constrained by ethical issues. However, the use of characters in fiction, such as contemporary film and drama, represents an excellent source of case study material. Given that little empirical works exists on narcissistic leaders and leadership, the chapter adds originality and value to the field