scholarly journals Digging for Change

2018 ◽  
Vol 49 (3) ◽  
pp. 34-45 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alfons van Marrewijk
Keyword(s):  
Organizational Change ◽  
Middle Managers ◽  
Change Agents ◽  
Longitudinal Case Study ◽  
Complex Process ◽  
Interorganizational Projects

Delivering organizational change through interorganizational projects is a complex process, as several organizations must collaborate. The aim of this article is to understand how change and resistance are shaped in interorganizational projects. This article discusses a longitudinal case study (2012–2016) of an interorganizational project in the utility sector. The findings of the study describe four practices that both enabled and constrained change. The contribution of the article is an extension of our understanding of change and resistance in projects with the introduction of the notion of productive resistance and the notion that employees can be change agents and middle managers can be resisters.

Understanding Transnational Diaspora Entrepreneurship and the Role of Values

2017 ◽  
pp. 45-65 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maria Elo
Keyword(s):  
Change Agents ◽  
Cultural Dimensions ◽  
Longitudinal Case Study ◽  
Value Differences ◽  
Entrepreneurial Firm ◽  
Start Up ◽  
Major Player ◽  
New Ideas

Transnational diaspora entrepreneurship and its role linking two or more countries and generating business receive increasing attention. Diaspora entrepreneurs act often as pioneers and change agents bringing new ideas, products and services with them. In the context of ethnic enclaves, ethnic entrepreneurs face a different situation than those who target the mainstream economy and need to tackle with the value differences and challenges created by such cultural dimensions. Moreover, the development path in a transnational setting sets its own dynamics on the business development, but the value employment remains unknown. Whose values are in use and how these values are implemented? This longitudinal case study focuses on one Cypriot-Finnish entrepreneurial firm, which evolves from a start-up to a major player in the Finnish food business in imports of ethnic food products. The analysis examines values and cultural dimensions and contributes to better understanding on the transnational diaspora entrepreneurship, its dynamics and adopted philosophy on values-in-use across generations.

The missing link in systems thinking

2016 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. 197-208 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jostein Langstrand
Keyword(s):  
Organizational Change ◽  
Organizational Behavior ◽  
Systems Thinking ◽  
Longitudinal Case Study ◽  
Change Initiatives ◽  
Philosophical Approach ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Organizational Infrastructure ◽  
And Behavior

Purpose Systems thinking is well established as an important perspective within the management field. However, the perspective is not always as all-encompassing as sometimes argued. This paper addresses the importance of including structural elements as a part of systems thinking in relation to organizational change. The purpose of the paper is to analyze how organizational infrastructure may influence processes and outcomes of organizational change initiatives. Design/methodology/approach The paper is based on a longitudinal case study of the introduction of lean in a large Swedish manufacturing company. The case study comprises three embedded cases, and the empirical material is based on interviews, observations and document studies. The material has been analyzed with a systems perspective, focusing on the interplay between ideas, infrastructure and behavior in the organization. Findings This paper suggests that organizational infrastructure may have a profound impact on organizational behavior. Consequently, an ambition to change organizational routines will be influenced by not only people’s sense-making and behavior but also the technology and infrastructure with which people interact. Research limitations/implications Thus, alignment between all these entities will facilitate the change process and increase the likelihood of successful organizational change. Thus, systems thinking requires stronger attention to organizational infrastructure to better understand organizational change processes, and a philosophical approach needs to be balanced against behavioral and technical aspects of change. Originality/value This paper challenges much of the received knowledge and assumptions about systems and suggests an expansion of systems thinking.

Entrepreneurship-driven organizational transformation for sustainability: a sensemaking lens

2022 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Charlott Hübel
Keyword(s):  
Organizational Change ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Middle Managers ◽  
Organizational Transformation ◽  
Dynamic Environments ◽  
Organizational Strategy ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Over Time

PurposeThis paper adopts a sensemaking lens to explore the process of entrepreneurship-driven organizational transformation for sustainability.Design/methodology/approachAnalysis is based on an in-depth case study of a large European meat company. Sensemaking by top and middle managers is analyzed over the period of 18 months.FindingsThe findings show how, over time, bidirectional sensemaking, that is, sensemaking for and of sustainability-oriented entrepreneurship, directed and accelerated organizational transformation for sustainability. The case company transformed with regard to organizational strategy, structure, operations and identity. The process revealed temporally different involvement of top and middle managers in sensemaking.Originality/valueThis paper offers unique insights into fast and emergent sustainability-oriented change in an established organization within a highly topical context. The results highlight how continuous and increasingly shared sensemaking can help top and middle managers navigate organizational change for sustainability in dynamic environments over time.

Understanding Transnational Diaspora Entrepreneurship and the Role of Values

2017 ◽  
pp. 116-136
Author(s):  
Maria Elo
Keyword(s):  
Change Agents ◽  
Cultural Dimensions ◽  
Longitudinal Case Study ◽  
Value Differences ◽  
Entrepreneurial Firm ◽  
Start Up ◽  
Major Player ◽  
New Ideas

Transnational diaspora entrepreneurship and its role linking two or more countries and generating business receive increasing attention. Diaspora entrepreneurs act often as pioneers and change agents bringing new ideas, products and services with them. In the context of ethnic enclaves, ethnic entrepreneurs face a different situation than those who target the mainstream economy and need to tackle with the value differences and challenges created by such cultural dimensions. Moreover, the development path in a transnational setting sets its own dynamics on the business development, but the value employment remains unknown. Whose values are in use and how these values are implemented? This longitudinal case study focuses on one Cypriot-Finnish entrepreneurial firm, which evolves from a start-up to a major player in the Finnish food business in imports of ethnic food products. The analysis examines values and cultural dimensions and contributes to better understanding on the transnational diaspora entrepreneurship, its dynamics and adopted philosophy on values-in-use across generations.

The road not taken: narratives of action and organizational change

2017 ◽  
Vol 30 (3) ◽  
pp. 334-343 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zahra Solouki
Keyword(s):  
Organizational Change ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Analytical Approach ◽  
Human Action ◽  
Longitudinal Case Study ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Road ◽  
And Function

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to advance the understanding of the importance and function of narratives in the context of organizational change. Design/methodology/approach Drawing on Schutz’s theory of human intentional action, the author introduces the concept of a mental plan – broadly referring to the mental rehearsal of a future act – and builds a conceptual framework that connects mental plans to narratives. Viewing actions through the lens of mental plans and narratives would prompt a combination of rigid clarity and flexible vagueness in both the action and the stories. Considering this, the author developed a longitudinal case study on organizational change in an international company amid an intense renewal process. Several narratives about the project of organizational change were studied, and these revealed some of the functions that narratives serve as well as their importance in connecting plans of human action with the actual execution of those actions. This paper identifies numerous distinct narratives, created by different actors, which focus on the process of setting and reaching a final goal. The content of these narratives reveals how different views and strategies co-exist simultaneously in the organization, even when actors are trying to achieve the same goal. Findings Traditionally, management takes an analytical approach to understand how change occurs in organizations. This paper emphasizes the importance and functions of narratives as a fundamental component of organizational change. On par with the linear plan of action, it is argued that the assortment of narratives delivered from various points of views in the organization are, indeed, the driver of change, and their dynamic interaction would determine the outcome of a change project. Originality/value The paper advances the understanding of the role of narratives in organizational change. This paper emphasizes the difficulties of using an analytical approach as a basis for understanding how action is implemented. This difficulty arises because of the variety of interpretations and meanings given to the project purpose and goal, and how these interpretations and meanings influence people’s future actions or project success.

scholarly journals Autonomy and Emotion Management. Middle managers in welfare professions during radical organizational change

2016 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
pp. 87 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hulda Mjöll Gunnarsdóttir
Keyword(s):  
Organizational Change ◽  
Emotional Labor ◽  
Change Process ◽  
Middle Managers ◽  
Functional Model ◽  
Radical Change ◽  
Emotion Management ◽  
Emotional Dissonance ◽  
Individual Interviews

This case study was conducted among middle managers during a period of radical change within the Norwegian child welfare service. Our goal was to explore how the middle managers handle and respond to emotional dissonance and constraints in autonomy during the change process. We collected data through group meetings, individual interviews, and focus groups. Prior research on middle managers has shown their importance in the implementation of organizational change. We propose that middle managers conduct emotion work, emotional labor, and emotional balancing in response to the increased complexity of organizational expectations during change processes. Further, we argue that the need for relevant emotion management reflects a threat to managers’ autonomy. Our findings indicate that middle managers feel emotional dissonance, due to their position as both recipients and executers of organizational change. This makes them vulnerable to questions of loyalty, and they feel they have no backstage where they can express themselves openly. However, their ability to plan emotion management and to balance various conflicting expectations enables them to maintain autonomy during a radical change process. Our basic arguments and findings are summarized by applying the logic of a historistic functional model.

MRI abnormalities associated with Vigabatrin treatment – a longitudinal case study and an atypical case

2010 ◽  
Vol 41 (02) ◽  
Author(s):  
T Polster ◽  
C Thiels ◽  
S Axer ◽  
G Classen ◽  
A Hofmann-Peters ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Longitudinal Case Study ◽  
Atypical Case

A Study on Employee Attitude towards Organizational Change and the impact of Change Management on Organization Commitment

2019 ◽  
Vol 118 (3) ◽  
pp. 158-169
Author(s):  
Dheera.V. R ◽  
Jayasree Krishnan
Keyword(s):  
Organizational Change ◽  
Change Management ◽  
Tamil Nadu ◽  
Change Agents ◽  
Organization Change ◽  
Sustainable Growth ◽  
Positive Approach ◽  
Organizational Goals ◽  
Organization Commitment ◽  
The Impact

Organizations that are aiming to successfully implement change needs the support and acceptance of employees who are their key stakeholder. This study analyses the influence of Employees` attitude towards organization change. The research also aims at evaluating the influence of employees’ attitude towards commitment to organization and job after the introduction of change in the organization. The study was conducted among 300 employees who belonged to executive and managerial category from different star rated hotels in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India which are currently embracing organization changes. The findings indicate that employees of the study demonstrate a positive approach towards the change management in their organization. The observations also project that a positive approach by employees towards changes, is a very good indication for organizations to know that their workforce is committed towards the organizational goals. Hence with the support of change agents, adequate communications and by creating awareness about the need for change will result in sustainable growth in the organizations.

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