Raymond Saner and Lichia Yiu discuss a large system transformation project they designed and implemented in Slovenia at the start of its independence in the early 1990s. Post-mortem insights are useful for practitioners who embark on similarly broad transformation processes. Design issues are discussed such as structuring the pre-contracting phase to guarantee inclusive stakeholder representation and participation throughout the transformation process and how intervention design needs to allow for experimentation and multi-stakeholder alliance building. Application of action research and action learning in a risk-averse environment typical of central governments helped create a sense of ownership, control, and collective accountability in the partner country.
Yiu, Lichia; Saner, Raymond : (2006-2007), “ WITKIN’S COGNITIVE STYLES AND FIELD THEORY APPLIED TO THE STUDY OF GLOBAL MANAGERS AND OD PRACTIONERS”
There has been an upsurge of publications based on Hermann Witkin’s ground breaking work on cognitive styles and human perception differentiated into field dependent and field independent styles (Winerman, 2006, Nisbett et all, 2005, Nisbett, 2003). This paper builds on current and past research of Witkin et al., and applies his concepts to the study of global managers and OD practitioners. The goal is to describe core aspects of culture related challenges which global mangers and OD practitioners have to overcome, and ends with proposing future research on possibilities of training global managers and OD practitioners in order to develop Integrated Perceptual-Cognitive Ability (IPCA). Such an IPCA competence would allow them to master both field-dependent and field-independent perceptual-cognitive skills.
Raymond Saner and Lichia Yiu, 2017, Matlin S. & Kickbusch, I. (eds.) “Pathways to Global Health: Case Studies in Global Health Diplomacy (Volume 2)”, Global Health Diplomacy, vol. 5, p.171-210.
The goal of this chapter is to describe and analyse the multi-stakeholder negotiation process which unfolded during the negotiation of the World Health Organization’s (WHO) Framework Convention on Tobacco (FCTC), including the influencing and negotiation behaviour of the different stakeholder groups and how their disputes resulted in the completion of the FCTC, the initiation of negotiations and agreement on a protocol for FCTC Article 15 (the illicit trade in tobacco products), and the unfinished negotiations towards a protocol for FCTC Article 13 (tobacco advertising, promotion, and sponsorship).
Saner, R.;“Organisational Consulting- What a Gestalt Approach Can learn from Off-Off-Broadway Theater”. Gestalt Review, Vol.3(1): 6-21, 1999.
Saner, R., Strehl, F., Yiu, L.; “La Formation Continue Comme un Instrument Pour Le Changement Dans L’Administration Publique“. (English and French). International Institute of Administrative Sciences, 1997.
Saner, R., Yiu, L.;"European and Asian Resistance to the Use of the American Case Method in Management Training: Possible Cultural and Systematic Incongruencies". The International Journal of Human Resource Management, 5 (4): 953-976, 1994.
Raymond Saner organised a panel on « Autonomy and Control : Basic Issues for Public Enterprises in a Competitive Environment » during the annual conference of the International Institute of Administrative Sciences (IIAS) in Vienna in 1992. Delegates presented cases showing how their public enterprises face the competitive pressures in their respective economy be this from private sector or other public sector enterprises. 18 delegates came from 15 countries and two delegates from international organisations (ILO, ARADO) presented their case analyses and subsequently engaged in lively discussions. This article served as a background paper for the subsequent presentations and discussions.
Raymond Saner and Lichia Yiu, (2014) “Learning to Grow: A Human Capital-focused Development Strategy, with Lessons from Singapore”.The authors argue that a key challenge for middle-income countries is to avoid ‘the middle-income trap’. In this situation, economic growth has come to a halt and a country is unable to transition to the next level in part due to inadequacies in high-level human capital. Taking the example of Singapore as a country that has avoided the middle-income trap, the authors call for ‘a much closer alignment of policies for human capital and economic development’ and a ‘human capital focussed development strategy’.(2014). This paper including a response by S. Gopinathan and others is also available at: http://poldev.revues.org/1803; to be cited as: Raymond Saner and Lichia Yiu, “Learning to Grow: A Human Capital-focused Development Strategy, with Lessons from Singapore, in “Policy Debate | Learning to Grow Beyond the Middle-Income Trap - Singapore as an Export Model?” by Raymond Saner, Lichia Yiu and S. Gopinathan, International Development Policy, Graduate Institute, Nr. 1803, University of Geneva
Studying cross-border regions requires an interdisciplinary approach consisting of among others micro-economics (competitive firm behaviour, local labour markets), spatial economics (rural and urban planning and architecture), policy analysis (regulatory function of government), urban geography (migration patterns), institutional sociology (administrative culture), social psychology (social cohesion) and cultural anthropology (comparative religion and values).
Scholars from different academic disciplines have studied conflict and negotiations over the past centuries going back to ancient times2. This holds not only for Western societies but for the world at large. Whether highly developed with codified norms and written rules or nomadic and based on narrative culture, societies tried to make sense of conflict and attempted to develop conflict resolution methods.