David John Hickson (20 April 1931 – 22 June 2016) was a British organizational theorist and Emeritus Professor of International Management and Organization at the

Bradford University School of Management University of Bradford School of Management is an international business school located in Bradford, West Yorkshire, England. It was established in 1963 and is one of the oldest business schools in the UK. The school is triple-crown accredi ...

, known for his work in the field of

organisational development Organization development (OD) is the study and implementation of practices, systems, and techniques that affect organizational change, the goal of which is to modify an organization's performance and/or culture. The organizational changes are ...

(OD).

Life and work

Hickson obtained his MA at the University of Manchester Institute of Science and Technology, after he had started working. There he was spotted by the academic professor Reg Revans, who recognized his potential as researcher.Honorary Member 1998: David Hickson
European Group for Organizational Studies, EGOS. Accessed 27.01.2015. Later in his career he received an Honorary Ph.D. from the

University of Umea A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. ''University'' is derived from the Latin phrase ''universitas magistrorum et scholarium'', which rou ...

Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is the Kingdom of SwedenUNGEGN World Geographical Names, Sweden./ref> is a Nordic country located on ...

. In the 1950s, Hickson had started his career in financial administration, and had become Assistant Secretary of the Bristol Stock Exchange. After graduation in the late 1950s, he became research assistant at the then Birmingham College of Advanced Technology, later the Aston University. in the 1960s, he joined the

Aston Group Aston Group is the designation of a group of organizational researchers who pursued their research between 1961 and 1970 under the leadership of Derek S. Pugh. The official name was ''Industrial Administration Research Unit of the Birmingham College ...

, a group of organizational researchers under the leadership of Derek S. Pugh. In collaboration with Canadian scientists they developed the

contingency approach Contingency or Contingent may refer to: * Contingency (philosophy), in philosophy and logic * Contingency plan, in planning * Contingency table In statistics, a contingency table (also known as a cross tabulation or crosstab) is a type of tab ...

. In the 1970s, Hickson was co-founder of the

European Group for Organizational Studies European, or Europeans, or Europeneans, may refer to: In general * ''European'', an adjective referring to something of, from, or related to Europe ** Ethnic groups in Europe ** Demographics of Europe ** European cuisine European cuisine co ...

(EGOS). He became Professor of International Management and Organization at Bradford School of Management, England. He was served as a Visiting professor in Canada, the United States, and the Netherlands. And he was founding Editor-in-Chief of '' Organization Studies,'' an international research journal.

Work

Hickson's research interests "are how societal culture affects managerial decision making in different nations and what influences the success of major decisions. His previous research has included processes of managerial decision making, power in organizations, and bureaucratization."David J. Hickson
profile at ''sagepub.com.'' Accessed 27/01/2015

Selected publications

* Hickson, David J., and

Derek Salman Pugh Derek Salman Pugh (31 August 1930 – 29 January 2015) was a British psychologist, business theorist and Emeritus Professor of International Management at the Open University, known for his work in the field of organisational development (OD), an ...

. ''Management worldwide: The impact of societal culture on organizations around the globe.'' London: Penguin Books, 1995. ;Articles, a selection *

Pugh, D. S. Derek Salman Pugh (31 August 1930 – 29 January 2015) was a British psychologist, business theorist and Emeritus Professor of International Management at the Open University, known for his work in the field of organisational development (OD), an ...

, Hickson, D. J., Hinings, C. R., Macdonald, K. M., Turner, C., & Lupton, T. (1963). "A conceptual scheme for organizational analysis." ''Administrative Science Quarterly,'' 289-315. *

, Hickson, D. J., Hinings, C. R., & Turner, C. (1968).
Dimensions of organization structure
" ''Administrative science quarterly,'' 65-105. *

, Hickson, D. J., Hinings, C. R., & Turner, C. (1969). "The context of organization structures." ''Administrative Science Quarterly,'' 91-114. * Hickson, D. J., Hinings, C. R., Lee, C. A., Schneck, R. E., & Pennings, J. M. (1971).
A strategic contingencies' theory of intraorganizational power
" ''Administrative Science Quarterly,'' 216-229.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hickson, David J. 1931 births 2016 deaths British business theorists Alumni of the University of Edinburgh Alumni of Aston University Academics of the University of Birmingham Academics of the University of Bradford