A SOCIAL COGNITIVE APPROACH TO EXAMINING JOINT VENTURE GENERAL MANAGER PERFORMANCE

Joint ventures (JVs) are an important element of many firms, strategie s, but many of these ventures fail to achieve their objectives. A crit ical factor influencing venture performance is the joint venture gener al manager (JVGM), because this executive must manage the frequently d ivergent motivations and cultures of each of the partner firms, as wel l as the competitive requirements of the JV itself. Yet minimal attent ion has been devoted to skills that might help improve performance of JVGMs and their ventures. This study addresses one particularly promis ing type of skill, self-management, which is a central variable in soc ial cognitive theory. This study examines the relationship between sel f-management and JVGM performance, using both qualitative and quantita tive research methods. Based on 95 responses from a sample of 39 JVs, several significant relationships were discovered between various dime nsions of self-management practices and the performance of JVGMs and t heir JVs. The implications of these findings for theory and practice a re discussed, along with the organizational implications of using soci al cognitive theory to examine JVGM performance.