Failures of Complex Organizations

2021 ◽  
pp. 67-102
Author(s):  
William B. Rouse

This chapter addresses failures in the photography market (Kodak and Polaroid), computer market (Digital and Xerox), and communications market (Motorola and Nokia). Multi-level analyses are used to provide comparisons across case studies. It briefly reviews how these types of companies anticipate and manage failures. The notion of “creative destruction” is elaborated. These insights are used to foreshadow later discussions of failure management.

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Charles H. Pence

Recent arguments concerning the nature of causation in evolutionary theory, now often known as the debate between the 'causalist' and 'statisticalist' positions, have involved answers to a variety of independent questions – definitions of key evolutionary concepts like natural selection, fitness, and genetic drift; causation in multi-level systems; or the nature of evolutionary explanations, among others. This Element offers a way to disentangle one set of these questions surrounding the causal structure of natural selection. Doing so allows us to clearly reconstruct the approach that some of these major competing interpretations of evolutionary theory have to this causal structure, highlighting particular features of philosophical interest within each. Further, those features concern problems not exclusive to the philosophy of biology. Connections between them and, in two case studies, contemporary metaphysics and philosophy of physics demonstrate the potential value of broader collaboration in the understanding of evolution.


2018 ◽  
Vol 09 (03) ◽  
pp. 1850008 ◽  
Author(s):  
Renaud Vuignier

While tackling the issue of place attractiveness for companies and investments in Canada and Switzerland at large, this research focuses on federal multi-level collaboration with two case studies: Ontario and Western Switzerland. Based on empirical data gathered from semi-structured interviews ([Formula: see text]) and surveys ([Formula: see text]) as well as on secondary data, it provides an analysis of the perception of intergovernmental collaboration by economic developers and a mapping of the challenges identified in both the Canadian and the Swiss contexts. A comparative perspective, complemented by data regarding business decision-making ([Formula: see text]), allows us to draw lessons for economic developers in both countries, aiming at extending both academic and practitioners’ literatures. Findings show that the federal contexts in which attractive strategies occur cause specific challenges for economic developers. While judging that the system works well in general, the majority of Canadian economic developers interviewed mentioned different problems to solve, such as the confusion for companies generated by a federal multi-level system and the need for more business-oriented strategies away from political concerns. The majority of Swiss economic developers interviewed also acknowledged issues caused by the federal system and wished for improvements regarding coordination between federal entities and levels. In this regard, pragmatism is perceived as a crucial factor for the implementation of successful attractive strategies.


2019 ◽  
Vol 3 (1) ◽  
pp. 11-46 ◽  
Author(s):  
Beatriz Garcia ◽  
Mandy Meng Fang ◽  
Jolene Lin

Abstract Marine plastics pollution (MPP) is an alarming problem affecting many countries, particularly in the Asia-Pacific region, and generated mostly from land-based sources. Five Asian countries (i.e. China, Indonesia, the Philippines, Vietnam and Sri Lanka) have been identified as the largest sources of MPP globally. This article presents two cases studies focused on the two largest polluters: China and Indonesia. Both countries face similar challenges in dealing with plastic pollution. They have weak legal and institutional frameworks in place to deal with MPP. The two case studies also show that there have been more creative and effective measures taken at the domestic level by local governments and non-state actors, many of which involve partnerships among different stakeholders. This article argues that governance efforts to address MPP require an ‘all hands-on deck’ approach, involving multi-level and multi-actor strategies and targeted regulatory and non-regulatory measures. However, our findings also suggest that most efforts should be directed at the subnational level, from which the problem mainly originates. This article proposes a number of legal and policy recommendations, based on the lessons learned from the case studies, which can be instrumental in reducing the global MPP crisis.


1971 ◽  
Vol 11 (3) ◽  
pp. 189-191
Author(s):  
Leif Johansen
Keyword(s):  

Trials ◽  
2013 ◽  
Vol 14 (S1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Niina Kolehmainen ◽  
Graeme MacLennan ◽  
Laura Ternent ◽  
Edward AS Duncan ◽  
Eilidh M Duncan ◽  
...  

Author(s):  
Dong-Han Ham ◽  
Jeongyun Heo ◽  
Peter Fossick ◽  
William Wong ◽  
Sanghyun Park ◽  
...  

This chapter aims at developing a framework and model for identifying and organizing usability factors of mobile phones. Although some studies have been made on evaluating the factors, there is no systematic framework for identifying and categorizing them. This chapter proposes a conceptual framework which has multiple views to explain different aspects of the interaction between users and mobile phones, and which describes the world of usability factors based on these views. The multiple views include user view, product view, interaction view, dynamic view, and execution view. Furthermore, based on the conceptual framework, a multi-level hierarchical model which classified usability factors in terms of goal-means relationships was developed. Next, two case studies are described, where the usefulness of the framework and model could be confirmed. Lastly, a set of checklists which make the framework and model more practical were developed.


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