Steve Waddell and Sandra Waddock
Climate change is upon us, and the soft landing window has almost certainly closed given the current pace of response. But climate change is only one of the huge issues facing…
Abstract
Climate change is upon us, and the soft landing window has almost certainly closed given the current pace of response. But climate change is only one of the huge issues facing humanity – indeed, the planetary boundaries model (Rockström et al., 2009; Steffen et al., 2015) ranks biodiversity loss and biochemical flows even further along the path of irreversible planet-threatening change. In the face of powerful inertia, how can we at least shape the hard landing that seems inevitable, where civilization as we know it will likely collapse to support the rising of much better ones? The SDG Transformations Forum supports development of powerful T-systems as a purposeful transformation strategy with this goal. To do so, the Forum has developed a strategy drawing from leading knowledge about how transformation happens, and creating systems change communities that are applying and advancing the strategy in the experimental, adaptive manner focused on deep learning and radical action.
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This chapter argues that corporate social responsibility (CSR) and even corporate sustainability and responsibility will be insufficient to generate the transformation needed for…
Abstract
This chapter argues that corporate social responsibility (CSR) and even corporate sustainability and responsibility will be insufficient to generate the transformation needed for businesses, economies, and societies to deal with potentially existential sustainability, climate change, and inequality crises. A new socio-economic narrative needs to be created to underpin thinking about economies, societies, and nature. After briefly looking at CSR today, the paper discusses the power that the neoliberal narrative has in shaping understanding of the roles and purposes of businesses. It then argues for a new narrative emphasizing well-being, dignity, and sustainability, an economy in service to life, as an alternative, highlighting the powerful role that memes, core units of culture, play in shaping narratives.
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Sandra Waddock, Greta M. Meszoely, Steve Waddell and Domenico Dentoni
The purpose of this paper is to extend and elaborate the notion of successful organizational change to incorporate the concept of large system change (LSC), by developing a…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to extend and elaborate the notion of successful organizational change to incorporate the concept of large system change (LSC), by developing a framework that brings together complexity and wicked problems theories to understand how individual organizations and change agents can better influence LSC.
Design/methodology/approach
This conceptual paper integrates wicked problems and complexity theories to understand and cope with large system initiatives from the perspective of change agents in organizations, and uses the case of the electricity system as an illustrative example for these concepts.
Findings
The paper provides implications for LSC and action steps for change agents in organizations, arguing that by understanding change initiatives through the lenses of complexity and wicked problems, change agents are likely to be more effective.
Research limitations/implications
The integration of complexity science and wicked problems underpins the development of a comprehensive framework for creating effective LSC solutions, however, these ideas still need to be grounded in practice and empirical research.
Practical implications
Using these ideas, change agents in organizations can enhance their influence and use the power of system dynamics to support positive action for sustainable change. This paper provides a foundation to help think through the cross-sectoral, inter-organizational, and change dynamics involved in LSC efforts needed to bring about a more sustainable, secure, and equitable world for all.
Social implications
The world greatly needs system change; however, there is limited theory on effective LSC. This paper hopes to contribute to understanding the ways in which the difficulties of such change can be harnessed to move in positive directions with minimal disruption and greatest effectiveness.
Originality/value
Theories of change management that position the organization in the context of a broader system and define its role in creating change do not yet articulate the nature of the problems at hand in relation to the large systems where they are embedded. This paper builds upon wicked problems and complexity theories to shed light on the role of change agents and organizations in effective transformational change.
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Philip H. Mirvis and Christopher G. Worley
This chapter introduces the volume’s theme by considering how the forces of globalization and complexity are leading organizations to reshape and redesign themselves, how meeting…
Abstract
Purpose
This chapter introduces the volume’s theme by considering how the forces of globalization and complexity are leading organizations to reshape and redesign themselves, how meeting the challenges of sustainable effectiveness and shared value require multiorganization networks and partnerships, and how networks and partnerships develop, function, and can produce both private benefits and public goods.
Design/methodology/approach
We apply findings from social and political evolution frameworks, partnership and collaboration research, and design for sustainability concepts to induce the likely conditions required for sustainable effectiveness from a network perspective.
Findings
Successful partnerships and collaborations in service of sustainable effectiveness will require individual organizations to change their objective function and build new and varied internal and external capabilities.
Originality/value
The chapter sets the stage for the volume’s contributions.
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The deadhead subculture – centered around the band Grateful Dead – has been active for 50+ years. Despite its longevity, academic work is sparse compared to other music…
Abstract
The deadhead subculture – centered around the band Grateful Dead – has been active for 50+ years. Despite its longevity, academic work is sparse compared to other music subcultures. Given its durability and resilience, this subculture offers an opportunity to explore subcultural development and maintenance. I employ a contemporary, symbolic interactionist approach to trace the development of deadhead subculture and subcultural identity. Although identity is a basic concept in subculture research, it is not well defined: I suggest that the co-creation and maintenance of subcultural identity can be seen as a dialectic between collective identity and symbolic interactionist conceptions of individual role-identity.