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Graduate business education has been criticized for its inattention to integration of the curriculum and the development of specific skills in interpersonal relations, leadership, written and verbal communications, and in decision making under conditions of uncertainty. This article outlines a model for an MBA-level course in small business consulting with the potential for effectively addressing these shortcomings. The advantages and limitations of this model are discussed.

Previous research is inconclusive regarding the effects of team building on task performance. Two reasons for these findings are that team building has not been clearly defined and team building research has been inadequate from a methodologicaL standpoint. This article provides a conceptual definition of team building and proposes a preliminary theoretical model describing its relation to performance. Methodological issues are discussed and suggestions are made for improving the quality of team building research.

AbstractThere is a rapidly growing interest in the topic of sustainability as it relates to long‐term business performance that optimizes the "triple bottom line": economic, environmental, and social outcomes. This article articulates a multilevel conceptual model for executing a business strategy for sustainability primarily through the design and implementation of human resource management practices. The model builds on open systems theory, the resource based view of the firm, and the concept of line of sight to identify certain key organizational capabilities, group competencies, and individual abilities and other characteristics that combine to drive organizational performance when pursuing a sustainability strategy. The article concludes with a discussion of implications of the model for theory, research, and practice.

A survey of randomly selected employees from a large county government organization was taken to evaluate the extent to which a new performance appraisal system had been institutionalized, that is, had been accepted and was being used by the organization's members. A total of 477 out of 1,034 employees from six county departments completed the survey, for a 46% response rate. The results showed that employees perceived a moderate degree of institutionalization, with a significant difference between departments. Further, the new system was perceived to have had less than a moderate impact on performance. Four factors were found to contribute significantly to the perceived level of institutionalization, and five factors were found to have a significant effect on the perceived performance impact of the new system. It is suggested that improvements in one or more of these factors may enhance the level of institutionalization and the perceived performance impact.