The Handbook of Research on Top Management Teams

Citation

Brigid M. Milner (2013), "The Handbook of Research on Top Management Teams", European Journal of Training and Development, Vol. 37 No. 2, pp. 239-241. https://doi.org/10.1108/03090591311301725

Book synopsis

The text provides an in-depth depiction of the diverse but related issues and current and emerging veins of research around top management teams (TMT). The primary audience for this text is likely to be academics and researchers in the broad fields of strategy, leadership and strategic human resource management but it may also be of significant interest to those in practitioner roles in organisations.

The book captures the work of a range of researchers in the field of TMTs whose contributions are organised into 15 chapters and these are, in turn, grouped into five parts. Part l aims to provide a detailed treatment of a number of key issues relating to the definition of top management teams and also their configuration. It also seeks to explore both the composition of the CEO ' s “inner circle” and how this is formed, and also issues of organisational demography and how these relate to TMT research.

Part II moves to examine the personalities and profiles of top executives, both in a US and Chinese context. The relationships between TMT psychological characteristics, leadership and business unit performance are also explored. Finally, research on the confidence of the top management team itself is presented and discussed. Part III addresses TMT experience and strategy and in particular, how prior the experience of TMT members shapes strategy and also within a Chinese context, how previous experience influences choices made within the TMT regarding corporate governance reform.

Part IV of the text deals with how executive actions affect strategy, rivalry, and entrepreneurship. A diverse range of subject matter is presented including practice theory research on managerial capabilities and the multi-business team; top management team heterogeneity and competitive behaviour on stock market returns and risk, and interconnectedness of strategic leadership and entrepreneurship.

The final section of the Handbook explores the context surrounding changes in the executive suite. This includes an examination of the CEO career as encapsulated in five stages (from appointment to post-departure); issues around CEO compensation and finally, the role of the governance context in relation to CEO dismissal.

Evaluation

The Handbook succeeds in providing a comprehensive and detailed account of the various facets of top management teams and some of the current and emerging research in the area. The text is particularly useful in that it sets out, in the first instance in Part I, the various perspectives and definitions of TMTs which is acknowledged to be a broad “dominant coalition” (p. 15) which goes beyond “the top table” with reference to strategic decision-making. Equally, it also acknowledges the formation and critical role of the CEO ' s informal “inner circle”. As such, Part I provides the essential foundation for the reader as they progress to subsequent chapters and also serves as a useful summary of the key research in the area for those who may be new to the field.

Having presented the underpinning definitions, the text subsequently takes the reader logically from the internal characteristics of the TMT (for example, the personalities and profiles of the top executives and also their previous individual experiences) to external and context specific issues surrounding top management teams and their CEOs ' .

The range and diversity of the empirical research presented within the text is both qualitative and quantitative in nature and is reflective of the field of study on TMTs and as such, is particularly useful given the target audience for the text and any particular research and methodological preferences that they may have. Equally, the Handbook has sought to incorporate the international dimension to TMTs by including contributions positioned in both US and Chinese contexts.

A particular strength of the text is that is has not shied away from addressing the topical and often contentious issues of CEO compensation and dismissal. The individual chapters provide an interesting insight and research perspectives into two areas that are often not well understood.

Overall, the book delivers on the basic premise of the “handbook” by providing a critical reference for those interested in the broad area of top management teams and as such, is highly recommended.

In the author's own words

“… the emphasis of TMT research has shifted from questions about if managers matter, to questions about under what conditions they matter […] The primary motivation for the Handbook is to articulate and stake out new research directions about the upper echelon – executives, TMTs, and their boards. The guiding premise of this area of research is that organizations are a reflection of their executives, TMTs, and boards of directors which collectively comprises their strategic leadership” (p. 1).

About the reviewer

Dr Brigid Milner, BA (Hons), MBS, Dip. in Executive Coaching, PhD, Chartered FCIPD, M. MII, has over 20 years experience in lecturing and specialist HR consulting. She has advised at the most senior levels (including top teams) and has worked with an extensive range of organisations and senior HR practitioners in the private, public and semi-state sectors. Her research interest is focused on strategic HRM in the public sector (in particular healthcare organisations) and commercial state-owned companies. Brigid Milner can be contacted at: bmilner@wit.ie