Purpose -The purpose of this paper is to assess the effects of scenario planning on participant mental model styles. Design/methodology/approach -The scenario planning literature is consistent with claims that scenario planning can change individual mental models. These claims are supported by anecdotal evidence and stories from the practical application of scenario planning. This research study documents the responses of 129 participants from 10 organizations using the mental model style survey as a pretest and posttest, with scenario planning as the intervention. Paired samples t-tests were performed between participant pretest and posttest, to test hypotheses on all five factors of the mental model style survey. Findings -Results provide evidence that scenario planning can change individual mental model styles. More specifically, results show that scenario planning promotes efficiency, social, and systems mental model styles, with moderate effect sizes.Research limitations/implications -The implications of this research include contribution to the growing body of quantitative studies attempting to document the impact scenario planning has on participants. Implications for future research include the use of control groups to isolate effects of the scenario planning intervention. Originality/value -The study documents one of the largest sample sizes to date in scenario planning research and makes a clear contribution in clarifying significant changes in mental model styles from pretest to posttest.

This research reports on the effects of scenario planning on participant perceptions of organizational creative climate. Participants from scenario planning projects in four different organizations were asked to contribute to the study as well as participants from four similar organizations that did not receive scenario planning. The scenario work took place over the course of 3 months and data were collected as pre-and posttests. Comparisons were made that suggest some significant changes over the course of the intervention period for the intervention group, but not for the comparison group. Results and limitations are discussed in detail and recommendations for future research are provided.

OF DISSERTATION THE ROLE OF CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICERThe purpose of this study was to address the gap between what is reported in the literature and what is known in current practice on the role of CEO. Research on the role of CEO is conflicting and outdated, and the theory deduced by Mintzberg in the 1970s has not been continually refined and updated, a necessary process for maintaining the usefulness of a theory (Lynham, 2002). A major goal of this research was to use the insights provided by CEOs to improve our general understanding of the major roles played by CEOs and how they generally allocate their time in various critical functions.CEOs are known for being a difficult population to research, yet this study has shown they are not inaccessible.This research was also intended to serve those responsible for identifying CEO candidates, recruiting CEOs, coaching CEOs, sustaining an organization's leadership system, and developing performance matrices for Boards of Directors who are ultimately responsible for making sure the CEO is effective and efficient.To investigate the role of CEO a survey instrument was developed based on 31 roles identified in the literature. The survey was sent to CEOs selected from a purchased database by e-mail. The study focused on three research questions with the purpose of

No abstract

No abstract