Professor John M. (Jack) Ivancevich was recognized in 2003 as the Gold Hall of Fame Member in the Academy of Management’s Journals Hall of Fame and the Number One Ranked Academy of Management Journals Fellow.

A prolific business-management author, he attributes his 78 books and 156 articles to a passion and approach to writing he’s developed over his lifetime. His approach incorporates self-discipline, the camaraderie of professional colleagues who are often co-authors, a loyal support staff, and creativity that flows from constantly connecting to other professionals. He sums it up as if it’s obvious and easy:

I write about 1,200 words a day. Most of it is gobbledy-gook, but some of it sticks.

1. write everyday if possible
2. write 300 days a year.
3. always keep a notebook of projects with you
4. co-author with people who have a strong work ethic
5. develop a support team
6. network

“Be in the literature every day of the week,” he advises. “I always carry research or a book project,” he says, pulling out a spiral notebook. “I’m doing revisions on drafts almost every workday. I write about 1,200 words a day. Most of it is gobbledy-gook, but some of it sticks. The ‘system’ is you work at it constantly – you interact with people that are stimulating and hard working. Since I am a management professor, I communicate every day with managers on the phone, email, or in person. I probably interact with a thousand managers a year. I want to see what they’re doing, how they’re doing it, try out ideas on them, and gain entrée into their organizations to conduct research.

“We carved out a way of presenting organizational behavior that has met the test of time,” he said, ...“Junior colleges all the way up to MBA classes at Stanford and the University of Pennsylvania chose it.”

“I love reading, writing, studying, and teaching,” he says. “I enjoy knowledge. I enjoy creating it and disseminating it. You put all that together and research projects, teaching material, and books just follow.”

Of his seventy-plus books, he’s proudest of the textbook, Organizations: Behavior, Structure, Processes, published in 1973 and now in its 12th edition. “We carved out a way of presenting organizational behavior that has met the test of time,” he said, speaking of friends and co-authors James L. Gibson, James H. Donnelly, Jr., and Robert Konopaske. “When the first list of 1972-1974 adoptions came in, we were pleased. Junior colleges all the way up to MBA classes at Stanford and the University of Pennsylvania chose it. The book had a wide market appeal.”

He is currently rotating his time among three book projects, giving the one closest to publication daily attention. Guidelines for Excellence in Management, due for release in July 2004 by Southwestern/Thomson - Cincinnati and London, researches the gap between organizational science and the approximately 17-million managers in the United States who, in practice, make most decisions by the seat of their pants and do not rely on or consult empirical findings presented in refereed journal articles.

“Guidelines puts research in the hands of managers in a way that’s useful,” he notes. “We want to professionalize management across all layers - from foremen to CEOs – distilling management standards into accurate, supportable guidelines anchored to research accompanied by action statements followed by a brief rationale. Our vision is to advance the stature and the impact on the field of management practice by using guidelines.

“There is no central repository of data on [white collar crime] in the United States; whereas, the Department of Justice keeps meticulous records on blue-collar crimes...”

“There are various camps or philosophies in management research,” says Ivancevich. “One says keep generating the same kinds of knowledge banks for organizational science research and its refinement. This group of scholars contends, ‘It’s not my job to be a translator for managers.’ As a teacher, educator, researcher, and communicator, I disagree with this “elitist” philosophy.”

This segues into Ivancevich’s second current project - organizational deviant behavior at the managerial level with attention to white-collar crime. This stream of research discusses the lack of governmental concern with corporate crime evidenced by the fact that there is no central repository of data on it in the United States; whereas, the Department of Justice keeps meticulous records on blue-collar crimes, such as theft, drugs, and murder. White-collar criminals typically do not suffer the harsh penalties that blue-collar criminals do. The project starts with a history of white-collar crime such as Ponzi schemes, Billy Sol Estes, and Michael Milken and then fast-forwards to today’s messy corporate landscape.

The third project, still in the development stage, involves business travel and the effects of terrorism and homeland security on global travel. In a global economy, people are becoming reluctant to travel or to do a tour of duty in a foreign country. This work studies how organizations can support business travel and the relocation needed to maintain business relationships that develop only from face-to-face meetings. “So far, we don’t have the answers,” says Ivancevich.

A recently published book, Always Think Big, profiles entrepreneur Jim “Mattress Mack” McIngvale, founder of the biggest single retail store in the America. “This book grew out of an informal student survey given every semester -four total- asking students whom they believed was a manager or leader of interest in Houston. For four semesters, ‘Mattress Mack’ came out number one. Students were fascinated by the success of his hokey commercials. He’s an intuitive genius,” notes Ivancevich. “Co-author Thomas Duening and I took ‘Mack Speak’ from months of interviews and boiled it into seven winning strategies for managers to consider.”

Ivancevich claims he’s not a professional administrator but was drafted into spending fifteen years of his career in administration. “I’ve held every position on this campus academically, except president,” he observes. “I’ve been professor, department chair, associate dean, dean, and provost.

“I’m an egghead and idealist who values information, experience, and people. I loved working with others in the management positions I was privileged to fill. Those years of ‘deaning’ and ‘provosting’ helped my research and provided a chance to do the best I could with the circumstances I inherited. For a management professor the issue is ‘Can you manage?’ You can talk about it, write about it, research it, but can you do it? The test of that is the kind of legacy you leave and the kind of experiences you have while you’re managing.

“To me the most important position I’ve had at the University of Houston is Cullen research professor. I was fortunate to be selected to receive the Cullen position in 1979 when endowed chairs at UH were relatively scarce. It is an interdisciplinary position cutting across functional areas in the university. I’ve worked with and closely observed many individuals in different departments across the university. Some are currently in the top echelons of universities in Texas, Oklahoma, and Louisiana - James McFarland, Dean of Freeman’s School of Business at Tulane University; Bob Lawless, President of the University of Tulsa; and Benton Cocanougher, Chancellor and Dean Emeritus at Texas A&M.”

“My belief is that managers don’t know enough about scientific management research findings. If they did, they’d manage differently.”

What does a renowned research writer do for fun? “Read, spoil grandchildren, try to hit golf balls straight, travel, and enjoy friends,” he says. “A recent fun project involves forming a panel for making a presentation at the National Academy of Management meetings in New Orleans. We want to discuss the Guidelines for Excellence projects we are assembling and developing. The organizational scientist audience will tax our logic, strategy, and intentions. This will be intellectually stimulating and help us refine, scrub, and polish the Guidelines strategy.

“My belief is that managers don’t know enough about scientific management research findings. If they did, they’d manage differently. They’re responsible and accountable and are the key to improving the management of human and capital assets.”

RELATED LINKS
Prof. Jack Ivancevich
Department of Management
Research at Bauer