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The Corporate Entrepreneurship Role of Middle-Level Managers in Organizational Strategy

Author Affiliations

  • 1Dept. of Management, B.I.T.-Durg, CSVTU, Bhilai, CG, India
  • 2Dept. of Management and Humanities, BIT, Durg CG, India

Res. J. Management Sci., Volume 5, Issue (4), Pages 12-20, April,6 (2016)

Abstract

The debate on what strategic role middle-level managers play in an organization continues to rage. The popular perception that middle-level managers do not get any opportunity to be part of organizational strategy development is not without empirical evidence. However leading management theorists and researchers have shown that middle managers actually play a more meaningful role in corporate entrepreneurship than what has been perceived or what research hitherto shows. Managers identify opportunities, develop initiatives, and renew organizational capabilities which help to create and integrate knowledge in the corporate entrepreneurship process. A just reward and recognition system, support from top management, availability of resources, a supportive organizational structure and tolerance for risk-taking and failure motivate middle managers to follow an entrepreneurial approach. Entrepreneurship is marred by poor speed as well as quality of decision-making in most organizations. The middle-level is the pivot around which to create an entrepreneurial culture in a large organization. Middle managers are most comfortable with change, fully aware of the organizational dynamics and politics, and persuasive, persistent and tactful – characteristics that make them ideal champions of entrepreneurship. The paper concludes that there is ample scope for a meaningful engagement of middle-level managers in strategy development as well as deployment in organizations.

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