Knowledge that Transforms

his article examines whether Masters of Business Administration (MBA) programs adequately prepare human resource professionals. It also compares managers' and professors' evaluations of the competencies HR managers will need in the twenty-first century. It finds that both managers and professors view interpersonal and problem-solving competencies and integration of HR with bottom line concerns as more important than technical know-how. HR managers, however, are much more critical of what MBA programs are doing than are HR professors. HR professors may be risking complacency about their product.

Over time organizations form stable operating configurations that influence their actions in the marketplace. These configurations are shaped by interactions among variables in four areas: operating environment, business strategy, HRM practices, and senior managers' values and behaviors regarding employees. More often than not they emerge in a piecemeal rather than planned fashion. However, once established, the configurations or patterns guide employee behavior, are resistant to change, and are associated with different levels of organization effectiveness. HR managers may use these configurations to diagnose their organizations' present state and orchestrate changes to increase competitive advantage.

This article examines the utilization, underutilization, and misutilization of expatriate skills in overseas assignments. Using quantitative data from 268 expatriates from six Fortune 500 multinational corporations, the research first examines expatriates' utilization of eight distinct skills and how patterns of skill utilization influence important job attitudes. Then, using qualitative data from the expatriates, the research examines the subsidiary-level, corporate-level, and country- level factors which facilitate (or inhibit) skill utilization. The study highlights the idea that effective skill utilization depends not only on the selection and training of expatriates themselves, but also upon the level of skill and teamwork among host country nationals and the quality of support provided by the MNC as a whole.

Why do some fast-track managers derail? Why do some recover and return to the fast track? This study investigates these questions by analyzing managerial skills and self-awareness during different career stages. The results suggest that derailers have significantly lower skill profiles than do successful managers at all career stages. The study also identifies specific skills that managers need to be successful in their careers; furthermore, it reports that derailers overestimate their skills in comparison to successful managers at all career stages. The results imply that one can avoid derailment or recover from derailment by developing both self-awareness and specific managerial skills.

Business losses due to employee theft are estimated to approach $200 billion annually. Why do employees steal? Experts propose many reasons for employee theft, but provide few prevention strategies for human resource managers. In this article, the authors explore the various causes of employee theft, from employee personality characteristics, to the social environment, to flaws in the organization's control system. From this analysis, guidelines for theft prevention strategies are offered. Since strategies may involve top-down control or trust-building experiences for employees and managers, HR managers are encouraged to implement those strategies that fit their organization.

To achieve aggressive growth goals, many global companies are increasingly recognizing the importance of developing leadership talent—those individuals who demonstrate the ability to become the company's future senior executives. This article focuses on the efforts of one $8 billion consumer products company that has proven itself a leader in global leadership development. It describes how the company is developing its leaders around the world. In-depth observations were made over a period of several years, during which time the author served as both an inside participant in the decision making process and an outside observer of the company's progress.

Global leaders can be "made", but it takes a training approach that is as serious and sophisticated as the global world these individuals are being asked to lead in. Fundamentally, global leaders require training programs that will help them radically redraw their provincial mental maps into global ones. In this article, we outline the key ingredients of successful global leadership training programs.

Sexual harassment investigations are among the most sensitive and explosive of all HR activities, yet HR managers typically do not receive training in how to conduct these investigations. As a result, and despite the best efforts of the HR manager, the parties involved often believe they were not treated fairly. Our article focuses on the central question of providing fair treatment during the emotionally charged atmosphere of a sexual harassment investigation. We integrate the organizational justice literature with case law and move through five “stages” of an investigation. Lessons in each stage are highlighted, dilemmas are discussed, and guidelines are offered.