Reimagining organizational storytelling research as archeological story analysis

2019 ◽  
Vol 14 (1) ◽  
pp. 43-54 ◽  
Author(s):  
John Teta Luhman
Keyword(s):  
Design Methodology ◽  
Step Method ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Organizational Settings ◽  
Organizational Storytelling ◽  
Time Space ◽  
Organizational Stories ◽  
Spatial Attributes ◽  
The Moment ◽  
Story Analysis

PurposeWe should understand stories told in organizational settings in relation to the time, space and process of their telling. This, however, is problematic since many researchers, as a matter of habit, take organizational stories out of their context and process because they tend to collect their stories through interviews. The paper aims to discuss these issues.Design/methodology/approachIn order to accept organizational stories taken out of context and process, the author looks toward archeology and its method of interpretation of artifacts as a metaphor to guide future storytelling analysis. The author argues that storytelling researchers need the analogy of archeological interpretation of artifacts to be more convincing in their quest to discover meaning.FindingsIf one sees stories as artifacts from past utterances that are lost to the moment in which they were uttered, which the metaphor of archeology allows one to do, then the goal is to reason out a coherent narrative out of the stories collected by describing their formal attributes, their spatial attributes and their chronological inference. After which, one might fit the collected stories within the broader cultural contexts of the organization under study.Originality/valueThe author offers the idea of “archeological story analysis” as a three-step method of story analysis, which allows organizational storytelling researchers to more convincingly analyze stories collected out of their context and process. The first two steps are in the interpretation of the formal attributes and spatial attributes of the stories, while the third step (chronological inference) is an attempt to analyze storytelling intent and impact on the life of the organization.

Sensor e-textiles: person centered co-design for people with late stage dementia

2016 ◽  
Vol 20 (2) ◽  
pp. 76-85 ◽  
Author(s):  
Cathy Treadaway ◽  
Gail Kenning
Keyword(s):  
Design Process ◽  
Late Stage ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Design Research ◽  
Family Members ◽  
Sensory Properties ◽  
Content Type ◽  
People With Dementia ◽  
Grounded Practical Theory ◽  
The Moment

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to present design research investigating the development of sensory textiles with embedded electronics to support the wellbeing of people with late stage dementia in residential care. Design/methodology/approach – The research presented is qualitative and uses a mixed method approach informed by grounded practical theory and positive design methodologies. It uses an inclusive and participatory co-design process involving people with dementia and their families with an interdisciplinary team of experts. Findings – Both the co-design process and the artefacts developed have been beneficial in supporting wellbeing. The textile artefacts have been found to soothe, distract and comfort people with dementia. They have also been shown to facilitate in the moment conversational bridges between family members and carers with persons with dementia. Research limitations/implications – The findings are based on a small cohort of participants, observational reports and descriptive accounts from family members and carers. Practical implications – The paper proposes ways in which simple hand-crafted textiles can be used beneficially to support the wellbeing of people with late stage dementia. It provides examples of how technology can be used to personalise and extend the sensory properties of the artefacts created. Social implications – It promotes an inclusive co-design methodology involving care professionals, carers and people with dementia with designers and technologists. Originality/value – The paper describes new ways of extending sensory properties of textiles through the integration of technology.

Identification of asset life cycle stage: case study in heavy-duty truck fleet

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Oscar Daniel Rivera Baena ◽  
Maria Valentina Clavijo Mesa ◽  
Carmen Elena Patino Rodriguez ◽  
Fernando Jesus Guevara Carazas
Keyword(s):  
Life Cycle ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Life Cycle Stage ◽  
Waste Collection ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Heavy Duty Truck ◽  
Maintenance Work ◽  
Operational Decision Making ◽  
The Moment

PurposeThis paper aims to determine the stage of the life cycle where the trucks of a waste collection fleet from a Colombian city are located through a reliability approach. The reliability analysis and the evaluation of curve of operational costs allow to know the moment in which it is necessary to make decisions regarding an asset, its maintenance or possible replacement.Design/methodology/approachFor a dataset presented as maintenance work orders, the time to failures (TTFs) for each vehicle in the fleet were calculated. Then, a probability density function for those TTFs was fitted to locate each vehicle in a region of the bathtub curve and to calculate the reliability of the whole fleet. A general functional analysis was also developed to understand the function of the vehicles.FindingsIt was possible to determine that the largest proportion of the fleet was in the final stage of the life cycle, in this sense, the entire fleet represent critical assets which in most of cases could be worth replacement or overhaul.Originality/valueIn this study, an address is exposed for the identification of critical equipment by reliability and statistical analysis. This analysis is also integrated with the maintenance management process. This is a broadly interested topic since it allows to support the maintenance and operational decision-making process, indicating the focus of resource allocation all over the entire asset life cycle.

Reimagining leadership – and its relationship with management – for the public sector

2016 ◽  
Vol 12 (2) ◽  
pp. 94-111
Author(s):  
Don Dunoon
Keyword(s):  
Public Sector ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Distinct Form ◽  
Dominant Form ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Public ◽  
The Moment ◽  
Practical Implications

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to review and critique three conventional assumptions about leadership and put forward an alternative framing, with leadership presented as a distinct form of intervention in particular moments to management. The paper also presents a structure for supporting leadership action by individuals and groups as an alternate to management action, which is seen as the dominant form. Design/methodology/approach Reflects an elaboration and distillation of concepts developed by the author since an earlier paper on essentially the same topic, drawing on his 20-plus years’ experience as a leadership developer. Findings Although not an empirical account, the paper seeks to demonstrate how, when conventional but infrequently challenged assumptions about leadership are “peeled back”, a new way of understanding leadership, especially in connection with management, is revealed. Research limitations/implications Suggestions are offered as to how the concepts and tools presented here could be evaluated, including in comparison with established leadership frameworks. Practical implications Outlines three practices for supporting leadership action in public sector organisations. These practices are working from observation, attributing reasonableness (allowing that others are reasonable) and speaking with authenticity. Collectively, these are known as the OBREAU Tripod (with “OBREAU” comprised of the first two letters in each of the pivotal words, observation, reasonableness and authenticity). Originality/value Conceiving of leadership as a different form of in-the-moment action to management in a public sector context is a distinctive contribution to the literature.

Six Sigma to distinguish patterns in COVID-19 approaches

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Willem Salentijn ◽  
Jiju Antony ◽  
Jacqueline Douglas
Keyword(s):  
Six Sigma ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Similar Data ◽  
National Data ◽  
Common Cause ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Data Registration ◽  
The Moment ◽  
Special Causes ◽  
Cross National

PurposeCOVID-19 has changed life as we know. Data are scarce and necessary for making decisions on fighting COVID-19. The purpose of this paper is to apply Six Sigma techniques on the current COVID-19 pandemic to distinguish between special cause and common cause variation. In the DMAIC structure, different approaches applied in three countries are compared.Design/methodology/approachFor three countries the mortality is compared to the population to distinguish between special cause variation and common cause variation. This variation and the patterns in it are assessed to the countries' different approaches to COVID-19.FindingsIn the DMAIC problem-solving approach, patterns in the data are distinguished. The special cause variation is assessed to the special causes and approaches. The moment on which measures were taken has been essential, as well as policies on testing and distancing.Research limitations/implicationsCross-national data comparisons are a challenge as countries have different moments on which they register data on their population. Furthermore, different intervals are taken, varying from registering weekly to registering yearly. For the research, three countries with similar data registration and different approaches in fighting COVID-19 were taken.Originality/valueThis is the first study with Master Black Belts from different countries on the application of Six Sigma techniques and the DMAIC from the viewpoint of special cause variation on COVID-19.

Causality in qualitative market and social research

2019 ◽  
Vol 22 (3) ◽  
pp. 405-413
Author(s):  
Clive Roland Boddy
Keyword(s):  
Qualitative Research ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Social Research ◽  
Pragmatic Approach ◽  
Social Phenomena ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Past ◽  
The Moment ◽  
Practical Implications

Purpose Academic qualitative researchers have been criticized for rejecting the idea that their research can establish causality while market and social researchers, with their realist and pragmatic approach to research, take for granted that it can. This paper aims to explore the ability of qualitative research to determine cause and effect in terms of market and social phenomena. Design/methodology/approach The literature on causality in qualitative research is reviewed and discussed. The discussion is further informed by the author’s own experience of undertaking commercial and academic market and social qualitative research over the past 33 years. Findings In qualitative market and social research, the determination of causality is often needed but rarely discussed. This paper explores this occurrence and brings to the fore, via discussion and the use of example, the ways in which causality can be determined by qualitative research. Practical implications A determination of what events bring about predictable changes in social and market environments can be established via qualitative research particularly at a probabilistic level of causality. This implies that policymakers should give a greater emphasis to qualitative findings than then sometimes do at the moment. Originality/value Causality in market and social research is rarely discussed by practitioners but is nevertheless a premise of much of the qualitative research that is undertaken. This paper is therefore distinctive in that it examines whether this premise is justifiable.

Bounded becoming: insights from understanding projects in situation

2012 ◽  
Vol 5 (3) ◽  
pp. 345-363 ◽  
Author(s):  
Viviane Sergi
Keyword(s):  
Project Management ◽  
Software Development ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Development Project ◽  
Process Ontology ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Software Development Project ◽  
Specific Practice ◽  
The Moment ◽  
Over Time

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to suggest a situated conception of projects, in order develop finer understanding of how these endeavors emerge and unfold over time. The author proposes that these understandings should be rooted in a process ontology, conceive action as situated and focus on actual practices as they are performed by all project actors. Taken together, these dimensions can renew how one views and approaches projects and their management.Design/methodology/approachThe paper is illustrated with examples taken out of a study of a software development project, conducted in the ethnographic tradition.FindingsThe examples expose how a specific practice, planning, was accomplished differently depending on the moment and was affected by different circumstances and constraints. The paper also discusses how preferring a processual worldview is especially befitting projects. As endeavors instigated to create or to make something happen, projects are perpetually changing and in movement; it is therefore relevant that their conceptualization takes fully into consideration their intimate nature.Originality/valueThe originality and value of the paper lie in the combination of perspectives, which can be both useful in theorizing projects differently, and in enhancing practitioners' reflexivity. This combination, it is argued, can address a wide array of issues in the context of projects, can favor localized reflection on project management prescriptions and tools, and can help practitioners to sharpen their sensitivity to their own practice.

Why I think shadowing is the best field technique in management and organization studies

2014 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
pp. 90-93 ◽  
Author(s):  
Barbara Czarniawska
Keyword(s):  
Design Methodology ◽  
Organization Studies ◽  
Extensive Experience ◽  
Organizational Research ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Organizational Settings ◽  
Field Technique

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to explore the value of shadowing as a field technique. Design/methodology/approach – This piece takes the form of a viewpoint. Findings – Barbara Czarniawska describes the methodological journey that led her to the adoption of shadowing approaches in her organizational research. Originality/value – This invited commentary is informed by extensive experience of using shadowing to gather data in organizational settings.

scholarly journals Idea work online: shelters and crutches in remote collaborative autoethnography

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Anna Dziuba ◽  
Janne Tienari ◽  
Liisa Välikangas
Keyword(s):  
Lived Experiences ◽  
Power Relations ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Cultural Experience ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Time Space

PurposeThe three authors of this paper are intrigued by ideas and how they are created. The purpose of this paper is to explore idea creation and work by means of remote collaborative autoethnography.Design/methodology/approachDuring the COVID-19 lockdown in 2020, the authors sent texts to each other, followed up on each other's thoughts and discussed them in online meetings. They shared, analyzed and eventually theorized their lived experiences in order to understand creating ideas as social and cultural experience.FindingsThe authors develop the notions of “shelter” and “crutch” to make sense of the complexity of creating ideas together; theorize how emotions and identities are entangled in idea work; and discuss how time, space and power relations condition it.Originality/valueThe authors contribute to understanding idea work in a remote collaborative autoethnography by highlighting its emotional, identity-related and power-laden nature.

The role of storytelling in a nonhostile takeover

2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Joseph Cleary
Keyword(s):  
Grounded Theory ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Research Question ◽  
Ethnographic Study ◽  
Workplace Culture ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Organizational Storytelling ◽  
Hospital Executives ◽  
Hospital Doctors

PurposeWhy did a powerful department of hospital doctors support a merger with a rival hospital that they knew would ruin their beloved workplace?Design/methodology/approachThis ethnographic study draws on 12 months of fieldwork consisting of 24 one-on-one interviews as well as 26 h of observations, informal conversations and archival records research to answer its research question. Grounded theory and the discourse analysis were employed to analyze all data.FindingsData reveal how participants' belief in a “merge or go bankrupt” narrative contributed to widespread support for a merger that seemed unthinkable on the surface. Although each doctor believes the merger will jeopardize or ruin their workplace culture, none resisted the merger nor did any ask hospital executives to provide evidence in support of their claims regarding the benefits of the merger (namely, that it would save their organization from inevitable bankruptcy).Research limitations/implicationsThe author relied on a family relative to introduce the author to and gain entry into this workplace. One potential consequence is biased interpretations of data. To address this, the author constantly revisited the data and compared the author’s interpretations with interviewees' words (i.e. “grounded” theory).Originality/valueThis study provides empirical and theoretical contributions to organizational storytelling scholarship.

scholarly journals Creating relational capital through socialization in project alliances

2018 ◽  
Vol 38 (6) ◽  
pp. 1387-1421 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kirsi Aaltonen ◽  
Virpi Turkulainen
Keyword(s):  
Design Methodology ◽  
Relational Capital ◽  
Development Phase ◽  
Supplier Relationships ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Organizational Settings ◽  
Northern European ◽  
Complex Projects ◽  
Empirical Context ◽  
Insight Into

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to elaborate the understanding of socialization in the context of temporary operations and organizational settings, using project alliance – the most contemporary approach to the management of large and complex projects – as an example. In particular, the paper also assesses how informal and formal socialization mechanisms are used to facilitate relational capital in such a setting.Design/methodology/approachData were collected by two case studies of complex infrastructure projects in a Northern European city. The analysis focuses on how socialization is managed across organizational interfaces within the alliance organization during the project tendering and development phase to create relational capital.FindingsThe findings indicate that significant emphasis is put on socialization in project alliances. However, while in the tendering phase both informal and formal socialization mechanisms are used to create relational capital; in the development phase informal socialization mechanisms are associated with higher levels of relational capital and formal socialization mechanisms are used to maintain the level of relational capital.Originality/valueWhile operations and supply chain management research argues that socialization is critical to manage organizational interfaces and to create relational capital in buyer-supplier relationships, research has mainly focused on ongoing operations. This study complements the prior research by developing further insight into socialization in the context of temporary operations and organizational settings; such settings create a unique empirical context, posing different managerial challenges as the results also indicate.

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