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Yesterday the first PDW (Professional Development Workshop) on Evidence-Based Management as a new way to teaching the practice of management was held at the annual Academy of Management. Judging from the amount of people who showed up (almost 50) and the novelty of the topic, we think it was a huge success. In the audience we [...]
Check out the six basic steps to practicing EBMgt. [...]
 At the end of November of 2009, I received mail from Stanford. Jeffrey Pfeffer had returned after some extensive traveling and found the time to answer my four key questions. Here you can read his take on the current state of affairs of evidence based management. I’m always grateful if people take time out of in their busy schedules to help me out. Continue reading Jeffrey Pfeffer on the state of affairs of evidence-based management
Miguel Olivas Lujan take on evidence based management [...]
Last year, I had pleasant email exchanges with Dennis Tourish (University of Kent) and Mark Learmonth (University of Nottingham). Dennis will join in the EBM debate later and Mark still defends his arguments against the emerging evidence based management movement. He also sent me a few articles. Since he published his short paper in ORGANIZATION, he [...]
 In my exploratory search for the state of the art of the evidence based management movement, I stumbled on this short paper by dr. Mark Learmonth, Associate Professor in Organization Theory at the University of Nottingham. This is a must read for all the evidence based management enthusiasts. Maybe not always what you want to hear or read, but definitely food for thought on the freedom of conducting research and the politics which are involved in securing research grants and the pursuit of a academic career. Although, criticizing the EBM proponents by challenging their intellectual credibility does not make his case stronger.
Continue reading Food for thought: Mark Learmonth’s view on evidence-based management
 In an earlier post I pointed out that the science (or art) of management is still in the middle ages, where the alchemists still tell us they can change lead into gold. The underlying problem is that management is (not yet) perceived as a profession. But what is the definition of a profession? This morning I was searching for papers on this subject and found an interesting publication dealing with the same question (Khurana, Nohria, and Penrice; 2005). In order to establish if management is a profession and compare it to professions like law and medicine, these authors choose four criteria.
- a common body of knowledge resting on a well-developed, widely accepted theoretical base;
- a system for certifying that individuals possess such knowledge before being licensed or otherwise allowed to practice;
- a commitment to use specialized knowledge for the public good, and a renunciation of the goal of profit maximization, in return for professional autonomy and monopoly power;
- a code of ethics, with provisions for monitoring individual compliance with the code and a system of sanctions for enforcing it.
Continue reading Is business management a profession?
 In October 2009, I got in touch with Denise Rousseau, professor of Organizational Behaviour the Carnegie Mellon University and one of the figureheads of the emerging ‘Evidence Based Management’ school of thought. She was visiting colleagues in Ireland, but took the time to answer a few of my questions. Jeffrey Pfeffer also replied, but was swamped in his work and preparing to leave the country for an extensive trip abroad. He’ll probably give his point of view later. Bob Sutton hasn’t been in touch yet. Recently I got in touch with another leading thinker in this field. His name is Rob Briner, professor of Organizational Psychology from Birkbeck College, University of London, who already collaborates with Denise on the Evidence Based Management Collaborative. But, back to Denise.
Continue reading Denise Rousseau’s take on evidence-based management
 Immediately after my post on well being of the evidence based management movement, Tracy Altman responded on her blog EvidenceSoup. She also thinks that without a collaborative effort, evidence based management is heading for failure. Her blog focuses on the large variety (like law, medicine, dentistry, business, education, etc.) of evidence based practices. The Evidence Soup Guide to keeping the Evidence-Based Movement Alive. She recently started an new venture called Explanation Science. More about that later.
Continue reading A response from Evidence Soup
 When you go to see a doctor, you would like him or her to make medical decisions based on scientific evidence and research. Not stick the first needle or pill in you, because he or she heard rumours that it just might work. However, in management we are still in the middle ages of science, where the alchemists still try to make gold from lead. And by alchemists I mean all types of managers (managers, consultants, coaches, interim-managers, project managers, etc.). One of the reasons why managers still make decisions based on anecdotal evidence, gut feeling or a whim is the fact that management is not a profession. Well, perhaps it is, but we lack a body of knowledge and skills. Everybody with decent credentials (i.e. endorsement, seniority, etc.) can become a manager in contrast with doctors, lawyers or engineers. Management is still treated as a ’skill’ and if you have a better story than the next guy, you just found yourself a new career.
Continue reading Is the evidence based movement dead?
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