Managerial elite and market transition: the case of Slovenia
Managerial elite and market transition: the case of Slovenia

Summary/Abstract: Managers are the most critical resource of corporate restructuring. Given the scarcity of managerial talent in Eastern Europe, the managers became the bottleneck of the continuation of economic reforms and market adjustment. This article looks at the cultural, human, and social capital of the incumbent managerial elite in Slovenia to examine its managerial potential. The survey of transition managers in 160 companies showed that many of the common assumptions do not hold. Human capital of transition managers is higher than assumed. However, education is too often considered the goal by itself and not the means for getting business results. Credentialism is evident from the high priority of formal education and the neglect of management training. Cultural capital is as weak as expected. The incumbent management elite was recruited largely from lower parts of social hierarchy, which makes intergenerational skills transfer an unsuitable substitute for management training. Social capital of transition managers was to a large extent untouched by transition. Managers remained highly involved in business associations. The pattern that has its origin in the socialist system is most likely the result of attempts by managers to stay abreast of changes by networking and lobbying outside of their firms rather than by strategizing and mobilizing within them. All forms of capital contributed to the willingness of the mangers to restructure their firms. However, the attitudes of managers regarding privatization and transition issues had no effect whatsoever on their corporate strategy.

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