Leaders as ventriloquists. Leader identity and influencing the communicative construction of the organisation

Leadership ◽  
2015 ◽  
Vol 13 (3) ◽  
pp. 301-319 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jonathan Clifton
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Network Theory ◽  
Actor Network Theory ◽  
Leadership Studies ◽  
Time And Space ◽  
Leader Identity ◽  
Social Actors ◽  
Hybrid Production ◽  
Naturally Occurring ◽  
Physical Presence

Traditionally leadership studies have focussed on psychological and quantitative approaches that have offered limited insights into the achievement of leader identity as an interactional accomplishment. Taking a discursive approach to leadership in which leaders emerge as those who have most influence in communicatively constructing the organisation, and using transcripts of naturally occurring decision-making talk, the purpose of this paper is to make visible the seen but unnoticed discursive resources by which leader identity emerges in talk. More specifically, using actor network theory as a methodology, this paper focusses on how the director of an organisation ventriloquises (i.e. makes another actor speak through the production of a given utterance) other entities to do leadership. Findings indicate that leadership is achieved by making relevant to the interaction hybrid presences of actants that allow certain organisational players to influence the communicative construction of the organisation and so manage the meaning of organisational reality. In this way, social actors talk into being a ‘leader identity’, which is not necessarily a purely human physical presence, but can also be a hybrid presence of human and nonhuman actants, which are dislocated across time and space. The hybrid production of presence(s) also allows leaders to enact authority as a way of influencing others to accept their version of organisational reality.

How Artefacts Do Leadership: A Ventriloquial Analysis

2021 ◽  
pp. 089331892199807
Author(s):  
Jonathan Clifton ◽  
Fernando Fachin ◽  
François Cooren
Keyword(s):  
Organizational Communication ◽  
Recent Work ◽  
Distributed Leadership ◽  
Network Theory ◽  
Actor Network Theory ◽  
Fine Grained ◽  
Naturally Occurring ◽  
Human Actors

To date there has been little work that uses fine-grained interactional analyses of the in situ doing of leadership to make visible the role of non-human as well as human actants in this process. Using transcripts of naturally-occurring interaction as data, this study seeks to show how leadership is co-achieved by artefacts as an in-situ accomplishment. To do this we situate this study within recent work on distributed leadership and argue that it is not only distributed across human actors, but also across networks that include both human and non-human actors. Taking a discursive approach to leadership, we draw on Actor Network Theory and adopt a ventriloquial approach to sociomateriality as inspired by the Montreal School of organizational communication. Findings indicate that artefacts “do” leadership when a hybrid presence is made relevant to the interaction and when this presence provides authoritative grounds for influencing others to achieve the group’s goals.

scholarly journals (Trans)Formative Trajectories of Decisions: An Analysis from The Translation Perspective

2020 ◽  
Vol 17 (3) ◽  
pp. 361-391
Author(s):  
Eduardo Guedes Villar ◽  
Karina De Deá Róglio ◽  
Natália Rese
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Narrative Analysis ◽  
Network Theory ◽  
Social Enterprise ◽  
Actor Network Theory ◽  
Ethnographic Study ◽  
Relational Ontology ◽  
Organizational Decision Making ◽  
The Status ◽  
Process Perspective

Motivated by an agenda for empirical research on decisions, we seek to understand how an issue or idea is labelled as a "decision". Based on the relational ontology, we used the Actor-Network Theory as a theoretical frame, and particularly the translation perspective. In order to understand the "process of formation and stabilization of decisions" focused on what makes actors act, we conducted an ethnographic study in a social enterprise for 30 months. Through narrative analysis, we propose the (trans)formative trajectories of decisions in which we describe the trajectory of these hybrid entities achieving the status of relative fixity labelled as "the decision". We understand the trajectory as an ongoing translation journey; thus, we tracked decisions in their trajectories of translation, packaging and legitimation. The elements of the organizational decision-making are re-signified as performative texts, which enter the network of relations. Therefore, decisions are (trans)formed on a journey of mediation among multiple actants. When objectified as crystallized texts, the decisions become performative, because they start to organize and participate in the constitution of the ongoing reality. This theoretical framework allowed us to extend the processual understanding of decision-making aligned with the relational ontology and the time-process perspective.

Service Innovation Using Actor Network Theory

2011 ◽  
pp. 20-40 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lorna Uden ◽  
Janet Francis
Keyword(s):  
Economic Development ◽  
Network Theory ◽  
Network Formation ◽  
Service Innovation ◽  
Actor Network Theory ◽  
Service Performance ◽  
Service Systems ◽  
Actor Network ◽  
Social Actors ◽  
Service Oriented

Our economy is becoming more and more service-oriented, with distinctions between services and non-services making less and less sense. In today’s society, innovations are no longer luxury items. Instead, they are necessities and a means of economic development and competitiveness. The introduction of innovative new services is a priority for most companies. Innovation now holds the key to service performance. Currently there is a lack of understanding of the science underlying the design and operation of service systems. New conceptual understanding and theoretical underpinnings are required to systematically describe the nature and behaviour of service systems. We believe that Actor Network Theory (ANT) can be used as a theoretical lens to study the development and adoption of service innovation. ANT is a heterogeneous amalgamation of conceptual, textual and social actors. It is well suited to explain and help with the design of service systems. The development and adoption of service innovation requires the integration of multiple elements including people, technologies and networks across organisations. Technologies and interests of actors need to be aligned and coordinated for successful service innovation. In this paper we show how ANT is adopted as a theoretical framework for understanding the relationships among the actors and show how these actors have their needs shaped by the network formation during the development and adoption of service innovation for a university.

scholarly journals Trajectory and exhibition of a time-based media work. ‘The drawing of the girl running away from her support’ (2014), by Ana Vieira (1940-2016)

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sofia Gomes ◽  
Rita Macedo
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Contemporary Art ◽  
Network Theory ◽  
Necessary Conditions ◽  
Actor Network Theory ◽  
Video Installation ◽  
Actor Network ◽  
Running Away ◽  
Media Work

Ana Vieira (1940-2016) left a set of installations without systematised documentation or set guidelines. In an attempt to preserve her legacy, heirs have promoted exhibitions as a way to document the tangible and intangible characteristics of these complex works. In 2017, there was an attempt to reinstall the video installation The drawing of the girl running away from her support at the Graça Morais Contemporary Art Centre, but without success. However, in 2019, the necessary conditions were met for its reinstallation at the Museum of Art, Architecture and Technology. Through this case study and based on Latour's Actor-Network-Theory, it was demonstrated that the exhibition is a crucial moment in the trajectory of the work and in the analysis of a network of agents, human and non-human, giving rise to documentation that is essential to inform future decision-making.

scholarly journals Trajectory and exhibition of a time-based media work. ‘The drawing of the girl running away from her support’ (2014), by Ana Vieira (1940-2016)

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sofia Gomes ◽  
Rita Macedo
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Contemporary Art ◽  
Network Theory ◽  
Necessary Conditions ◽  
Actor Network Theory ◽  
Video Installation ◽  
Actor Network ◽  
Running Away ◽  
Media Work

Ana Vieira (1940-2016) left a set of installations without systematised documentation or set guidelines. In an attempt to preserve her legacy, heirs have promoted exhibitions as a way to document the tangible and intangible characteristics of these complex works. In 2017, there was an attempt to reinstall the video installation The drawing of the girl running away from her support at the Graça Morais Contemporary Art Centre, but without success. However, in 2019, the necessary conditions were met for its reinstallation at the Museum of Art, Architecture and Technology. Through this case study and based on Latour's Actor-Network-Theory, it was demonstrated that the exhibition is a crucial moment in the trajectory of the work and in the analysis of a network of agents, human and non-human, giving rise to documentation that is essential to inform future decision-making.

scholarly journals Using actor-network theory to reveal strategy processes in design firms

2019 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Alison RIEPLE ◽  
Antonius VAN DEN BROEK
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Network Theory ◽  
Methodological Approach ◽  
Actor Network Theory ◽  
Digital Design ◽  
Strategy Development ◽  
Actor Network ◽  
The Rich ◽  
Actor Networks ◽  
Design Firms

In this paper we illustrate the utility of actor-network theory (ANT) as a methodological approach to understand the effect of the eclectic characteristics of design firms on their strategy development processes. The need for creativity, expertise knowledge and the constant need to innovate suggest that the mainstream strategy or decision-making theories provide unsatisfying insights into how strategy of the design firm emerges. These culture laden organisations often operate with limited formality, therefore require attention to the social side of decision-making. To address this rich complex social-fabric of decision-making, we suggest to study strategy development as the result of the formation of actor-networks. By illustration of data collected from 13 interviews with design firms in mainly Europe and a longitudinal study of a global digital design firm, we illustrate how an ANT-based approach allows theorists to analyse the rich cultural complexity of design firms’ decision-making in a focused and coherent manner.

Competitive Intelligence in the Enterprise

2013 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
pp. 50-64
Author(s):  
Relebohile Moloi ◽  
Tiko Iyamu
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Competitive Advantage ◽  
Network Theory ◽  
Case Study Research ◽  
Actor Network Theory ◽  
Competitive Intelligence ◽  
Study Research ◽  
Implementation Processes ◽  
Sociotechnical Theory

Due to increasing challenges, as well as competitiveness, many organisations have sought advantaging and beneficiary techniques and options. One of those options is through Competitive Intelligence (CI) products, which some organisations have come to rely upon for sustainability and competitive advantage. Unfortunately, and to some degree, fortunately, there are different CI products which organisations could choose from. The products are supposed to be selected and deployed based on organizational requirements from both technical and business perspectives. Some organisations deploy more than one competitive intelligence product. Others are not guided, and do not understand the essence of the deployment, regarding achieving the organisational objectives. The fortunate and unfortunate situations which occur in the deployment of CI products in organisations are drawn from relationships amongst stakeholders in the selection and implementation processes. The relationships are manifested from control of sources which use the power for decision making. The relationships emanate from the fact that there are no proper comparisons of the products, driven by requirements. As a result, the organisations are faced and challenged with duplication and waste of resources. They struggle to determine their competitive advantage. This situation further manifests the complexity of technical and business artefacts. Case study research was conducted to understand how CI products are deployed in the organisation. A sociotechnical theory, actor-network theory was employed in the analysis of the data, primarily to examine and understand how control of resources for power defined and shaped relationships.

scholarly journals The decision making process leading to curriculum innovation in medium sized New Zealand secondary schools since the introduction of NCEA

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  
Lee Gowan Austin
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
New Zealand ◽  
Secondary Schools ◽  
Case Studies ◽  
Design Process ◽  
Network Theory ◽  
Course Design ◽  
Actor Network Theory ◽  
Decision Making Process ◽  
Actor Network

<p>The introduction of the current New Zealand Curriculum and National Certificate in Educational Achievement (NCEA) system provides New Zealand secondary schools with the opportunity to design unique courses that meet the particular needs of their students and the context of the school. Due to the recent implementation of this qualification (introduced in stages from 2002), there has been limited research that explores innovation in school based senior curriculum that contribute towards NCEA. This thesis investigates five innovative courses: Agribusiness, Fitness for Living, Viticulture, Sea Sports and Pasifika Studies. The research focuses on the decision making process which led to the schools implementing these innovations with an aim to identify who made these decisions and what influenced them. In order to investigate this focus, an Actor-Network theory (ANT), framework was utilised. ANT allows for the progress of an idea (the course design), to be followed and objectively views the influences (actors), on this process. The objectivity of ANT comes through the principle of symmetry which does not distinguish between social and material factors nor hold any expectations of positional power. This case studies examined were situated in medium sized secondary schools which face a limited range of resources when designing and delivering curriculum than their larger counterparts. Data collected through interviews with key actors in the course design process enabled the dynamic mapping of the network influencing the design of the course. This process determined a wide range of actors both social and material; each combination unique to the context of the school. There were a range of positional levels within each school identified as the key decision makers (the Executive); the group which had the final say on the design of the course. When the Executive deviated from senior management positions, they did so in an environment of high relational trust. Senior managers maintained a good understanding of decisions being made around the course design without interfering with the process. This research identified the influence policy and qualification criteria had on course design for the five case studies including any regulations that distorted the course design process. The level of consideration of these regulations varied across the studies. Each course network is hypothesised to be held together by a key motivator; when the motivator fails the significant actors are expected to disengage from the network. This thesis contributes insight into how innovative course design has been developed in senior secondary school and how actor network theory can be applied to educational research.</p>

scholarly journals HOW COMPLAINING CUSTOMERS MAKE COMPANIES LISTEN AND INFLUENCE PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT

2016 ◽  
Vol 20 (01) ◽  
pp. 1650001 ◽  
Author(s):  
JOHN K. CHRISTIANSEN ◽  
MARTA GASPARIN ◽  
CLAUS VARNES ◽  
INA AUGUSTIN
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Product Development ◽  
Network Theory ◽  
Process Analysis ◽  
Actor Network Theory ◽  
Heterogeneous Group ◽  
Multinational Company ◽  
Actor Network ◽  
Lead User ◽  
Critical Phase

The analysis in this paper shows how complaining customers can make companies listen to them by spurring the mobilisation of various actors into a hybrid collective strong enough to influence companies’ product development. Customers as sources of innovation have been analysed previously in the literature, whereas the process of how complaining users mobilise support to influence companies has received less attention and is not well understood. This study uncovers the processes that made it possible for a 17-year-old Norwegian to become pivotal in constructing a problematisation, which emerged to become so strong as to alter the Norwegian Coca-Cola Company’s earlier decision to cease production of a product in a certain size. The analysis uses constructs from actor–network theory (ANT) and shows how a single dissatisfied individual was able to become a spokesperson who, through different processes, mobilised a heterogeneous group of consumers into a loosely connected hybrid collective. The spokesperson acted on behalf of the hybrid collective and put growing pressure on a multinational company, influencing its decision making. In this case, the complaining customer did not exit, nor did he become a lead user, but rather became a hybrid customer who actively tried to mobile others in his desire for a product. The study reports on a process analysis of the means by which the company was induced to reinstate a discontinued product. The analysis is divided into three episodes, each marking a critical phase for the collective. This opens up the way for an examination of the processes of mobilisation, interessement, enrolment and mobilisation, revealing the margins of manoeuvre and how these are negotiated and delimited in the process.

Understanding the Deployment of Competitive Intelligence Through Moments of Translation

2013 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. 33-45 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tiko Iyamu ◽  
Relebohile Moloi
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Network Theory ◽  
Qualitative Case Study ◽  
Case Study Research ◽  
Actor Network Theory ◽  
Competitive Intelligence ◽  
Primary Motivation ◽  
The Social ◽  
Goals And Objectives

Organisations employ different strategic tools such as Competitive Intelligence (CI) to enable and support their goals and objectives, periodically. Unfortunately, the tools do not seem to resolve the challenges that they were deployed for. This could be attributed to the fact that there is too much focus on the tools, and less attention on the social interaction which occurs in the process. The CI is deployed by many organisations primarily to collect and analyse relevant data for decision making, and competitive advantage. However, CI products are deployed in various ways, and in different contexts. CI products differ in many ways such as in terms of compatibility and functionalities that they offer. These are some of the factors that are driven and shaped by non-technical interplay. How organisations deploy CI products has been a challenge, and it is difficult to understand. Some organisations did acquire CI products, unfortunately, they could not make use of it as intended. This is attributed to compatibility challenges which they encountered during the implementation of the product. This is the primary motivation for this article. A qualitative case study research was conducted in order to examine how CI products are deployed in organisations. Analysis of the data was done, using the Moments of Translation from the perspective of actor network theory to understand how the interaction and interplay amongst actors, shapes and deployment of CI in the organisation that deploys it.

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