Managerial Jacobinism and performance in the private sector: Evidence from the Turkish shipyards for a vertical frame

Abstract

Long-lasting euphoria of the private sector managerialism has begun to be questioned even by its ardent advocators in recent years. Substantiating a distinct concern, this paper sheds light on what one might call ‘managerial Jacobinism’ through unstructured interviews conducted in Turkey's shipyards. As its most defining characteristics, the undervaluation of managerial work by the companies and the punitive treatment of good practices by the mediocre superiors provoke ill-concealed defensive reactions among the managers to their insecurity at work while undermining both employees' productivity and the firms' performance in the midst of regulatory deficiencies. Managerial Jacobinism also spirals around a vertical frame by being more apparent and survival-driven in the case of immediate managers whereas more ambition-driven and detrimental when it comes to top managers resonating with their higher influence. Empirical findings further indicate that results are officiated by the intersecting variations in age, gender, ethnicity, occupations, administrative divisions and establishment size.