Organizational Change

Misyurov D.A. Dialectical formulas based on the binary notation as the development formulas // Credo New. 2012. №2

by Dmitry Misyurov

The article suggests dialectical formulas based on the binary notation as the development formulas: formula with... more The article suggests dialectical formulas based on the binary notation as the development formulas: formula with dominant and the non-dominant elements; universal formula; formula with symbolic weight of elements; tautological formula. For example, it suggests an opportunity to use the dialectical formulas for modeling and artificial intelligence creation, etc.

Why your TeamSTEPPS program may not be working

by Timothy Clapper

Clapper, T. C., & Ng, G. M. (2012, in press). Why your TeamSTEPPS program may not be working. Clinical Simulation in Nursing. doi:10.1016/j.ecns.2012.03.007

Co-authored with Grace Ng

Team Strategies and Tools to Enhance Performance and Patient Safety ® (TeamSTEPPS) is a patient safety tool developed... more Team Strategies and Tools to Enhance Performance and Patient Safety ® (TeamSTEPPS) is a patient safety tool developed by the defense industry and based on four competencies: leadership, communication, situational monitoring, and mutual support. Unfortunately, there are barriers that prevent TeamSTEPPS from reaching its full potential, including: (a) lack of administrative support and resources, (b) lack of training focus to address hierarchal differences and incivility at all levels of health care practice and administration, (c) inadequate TeamSTEPPS instruction and simulation practices, and (d) educators’ resistance to change from crew resource management concepts. Suggestions for improvement include providing command and health care agency emphasis for the TeamSTEPPS program, providing adequate material and personnel resources, designing training that is geared to trainer implementation at the departmental level, prioritizing and saturating training, and striving toward a just culture.

Organizational culture in the adoption of the Bologna Process: A study of academic staff at a Ukrainian university.

by Marta Shaw

Co-authored with David W. Chapman and Nataliya Rumyantseva

Studies in Higher Education 39(1)

The growing influence of the Bologna Process on higher education around the world has raised concerns about the... more The growing influence of the Bologna Process on higher education around the world has raised concerns about the applicability of this set of reforms in diverse cultural contexts. Ukraine provides an instructive case study highlighting the dynamics occurring at the convergence of the new framework with a state-centered model of higher education. The goal of this study was to examine the professional identity of faculty at one Ukrainian university and their perceptions regarding the implementation of Bologna at their institution. We found that
instructional and institutional innovations were successfully implemented only to the extent that they were integrated with the existing pattern of values and beliefs held by faculty. These findings provide insight for how other countries may approach Bologna compatibility in the presence of social and cultural forces divergent from those in which the Bologna process originated.

The impact of the Bologna process on academic staff in Ukraine

by Marta Shaw

Co-authored with David W. Chapman and Nataliya L. Rumyantseva

Academic staff in Ukraine face a convergence of institutional and professional pressures precipitated by a national... more Academic staff in Ukraine face a convergence of institutional and professional pressures precipitated by a national economic crisis, projected declines in enrolment and dramatic changes to institutional procedures as institutions implement the Bologna Process. This article examines the extent to which these pressures are reshaping the way academic staff engage in their day-to-day work, their careers and their role in their university. Findings indicate that faculty are caught in a confluence of conflicting demands that elicits adaptive coping strategies and threatens to undermine national efforts to modernise Ukraine’s higher education system.

Between knowledge and power: epistemic communities and the emergence of security sector reform in the EU security architecture

by Giovanni Faleg

published in European Security (Routledge), 2012

This article provides a theoretically informed analysis to understand why and how security sector reform (SSR) norms... more This article provides a theoretically informed analysis to understand why and how security sector reform (SSR) norms have been integrated into the European Union (EU) security architecture. It investigates the role of epistemic communities in advancing the security-development/good governance agenda underpinning SSR and in fostering institutional learning. Shared knowledge and expertise have driven policy and institutional change, since they yielded a new policy consensus that transformed the EU's approach to security in the post-cold war international system. Empirical findings, based on content analysis and on 25+ semi-structured interviews, suggest that transnational expertise-based networks did play a leading role in shaping SSR conceptual development. However, they also show that cleavages between epistemic communities across the security/development dividing line are ultimately responsible for the EU's failure to achieve a coherent SSR policy implementation. Moreover, the article concludes that the institutionalisation of SSR in the EU did not originate in a single norm setter, nor in sheer ideational stimulus. Change occurred through the complex interplay between ideas and interests, that is between knowledge and power, leading specific norms to be visualised as consensual and dominant.

A Framework for Conceptualising the Impact of Technology on Teaching and Learning

by Martin Oliver

Price, S. & Oliver, M. (2007) A Framework for Conceptualising the Impact of Technology on Teaching and Learning. Educational Technology & Society, 10 (1), 16-27. Available online: http://www.ifets.info/journals/10_1/3.pdf

Although there is great interest, and considerable investment, in adopting technology within Higher Education, it is... more Although there is great interest, and considerable investment, in adopting technology within Higher Education, it is less clear what this change means to the people who implement or experience it. Presently, there is no consistent framework used to study and explain this phenomenon. In this paper, we propose a framework that can structure and guide work in the area. Work carried out as part of a Kaleidoscope-funded project (see Price et al, 2005) to explore the impact of technology, providing an overview of current research in this area is described, outlining a framework of approaches to researching this topic, and providing an example of empirical work that fits within this methodological framework. Findings from the case study reported here focus on the role that models of teaching and learning play in the process of technology adoption and will be used to elaborate on the themes emerging from the review of existing research. The paper will conclude by considering the framework’s role as a foundation for further work in this area.

La gestion prévisionnelle des effectifs au CEA : un processus évolutif de construction de sens

by Alain Klarsfeld

Article paru en 2009 dans la revue Gestion 2000 volume 26/2, p. 19-42
Co-écrit avec Olivier Musseau et Florance van den Boom

Notre propos se situe à l’articulation entre gestion des ressources humaines et management stratégique : même dans un... more Notre propos se situe à l’articulation entre gestion des ressources humaines et management stratégique : même dans un environnement prévisible, dans lequel on peut dire qu’il existe une « stratégie » et même une programmation des activités, on ne peut parler de « déclinaison » des objectifs d’un niveau vers les objectifs de niveau n-1 et donc de « besoins » découlant de ces objectifs et encore moins de « mesure » d’un écart entre ressources et besoins, concepts pourtant centraux dans la notion de gestion prévisionnelle des effectifs. Les objectifs des unités et leurs besoins en personnel ne « découlent » pas de la stratégie de l’organisation dans son ensemble et même des programmes spécifiques qu’elle poursuit. De même il n’existe pas de représentation allant de soi quant aux activités réalisées par l’organisation. Activités et objectifs sont interprétés par les acteurs à différents niveaux, et les choix finalement réalisés résultent d’une interaction complexe, parfois conflictuelle, entre ces différents niveaux et ces différents acteurs.

Rethinking Self-development Practices at Work in an Increasingly Insecure and Ever-changing Environment: A Case Study to Explore some Theoretical and Practical Contributions of a Post-modern Approach to Adult Education

by Michel Alhadeff-Jones

Alhadeff, M. (2001). Rethinking Self-development Practices at Work in an Increasingly Insecure and Ever-changing Environment: A Case Study to Explore some Theoretical and Practical Contributions of a Post-modern Approach to Adult Education. In E. Lourenço (Ed.) Wider Benefits of Learning: Understanding and Monitoring the Consequences of Adult Learning (pp. 204-213). Lisbon (Portugual): ESREA & Universidade Lusófona de Humanidades e Tecnologias.

The main purpose of this paper is to explore some theoretical and practical contributions of a post-modern approach to... more The main purpose of this paper is to explore some theoretical and practical contributions of a post-modern approach to Adult Education. To put forward the relevance of such a theoretical framework to think wider benefits of Adult Learning, our analysis will be based on a case study which is representative of contemporary work environment. This study will focus on the main stakes of a self-development training offered to employees to cope with insecurity and uncertainty featuring an organizational restructuration.

First, I will introduce the assumptions of a post-modern position. Then, the main stakes of a self-development training will be shortly introduced. The third part of this paper will bring to light some of the main limits of such an educational practice, looked upon as a prototypical 'modern' practice. The fourth part will draw some practical and theoretical considerations, inspired by a post-modern view, to rethink this kind of training. Finally, this paper will introduce some wider benefits and some limits inherent to a post-modern view in Adult Education.

In Search of Subtlety: Discursive Devices and Rhetorical Competence

by Andrea Whittle

Learning the Hard Way

by STAMATIA KREMMYDA

published in 'Insight, Edinburgh University Economics Magazine', page 30

An approach for e-learning/b-learning dissemination in a higher education institution using pivot faculty

by Gonçalo Cruz Matos

Cruz, G., Maia, A., Pessoa, T., Barroso, J. & Morgado, L. (2011). An approach for e-learning/b-learning dissemination in a higher education institution using pivot faculty. In T. Bastiaens & M. Ebner (Eds.), Proceedings of World Conference on Educational Multimedia, Hypermedia and Telecommunications 2011 (pp. 714-719). Chesapeake, VA: AACE.

This paper presents a preliminary approach for implementing e-learning/b-learning pedagogical practices at the... more This paper presents a preliminary approach for implementing e-learning/b-learning pedagogical practices at the University of Trás-os-Montes e Alto Douro (UTAD), North-eastern Portugal. It is a low-resource, middle-out approach, based on the creation of “pivot” teachers at each UTAD subunit, supported by consultancy services. It was initiated in September 2010 and scheduled for one year, with the ambition to serve as a basis to extend e-learning and b-learning practices to the overall organization.

Turning Practically: Broadening the Horizon

by Olav Eikeland

Introduction by Olav Eikeland and Davide Nicolini to Special Issue of Journal of Organizational Change Management,pp. 164-174, Vol.24, No. 2, 2011, on Changing Practice Through Reflection

Abstract

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to introduce the special issue, positioning the articles... more Abstract

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to introduce the special issue, positioning the articles in relation to the current “turn to practice” within organisation and management studies.

Design/methodology/approach – The paper introduces a schematic classification of ways of putting practice at the centre of the concern of social scientists depending on the interest of the researcher and his/her position with regard to the object of the research.

Findings – The paper finds that turning to practice does not necessarily, or simply, equate with becoming more engaged, or with making social science relevant, or with moving social science closer to the practical concerns of separate practitioners. It is argued that the effort should be concentrated on developing a type of theory that helps practitioners articulate what they already do, and therefore somehow know. The model for this way of theorising would therefore be not physics or astronomy but rather grammar – a discipline that although just as old, has been based traditionally on a very different relationship between knower and known.

Practical implications – The paper argues that when conceived after a grammatical model, “theory” may become a resource to be used in action and for action to produce emancipatory awareness and trigger change through critical reflection.

Originality/value – The papers in this special issue constitute an initial contribution in this direction as they indicate different ways in which theory, when developed “with” and “amid” and not “for” or even “about” practitioners, may become a powerful trigger of change and transformation.

Exploring culture and collective identity with the Radio Ballads

by Stephen Linstead

Ch. 14 In Pullen, A. Beech, N. And Sims, D. (2007) Exploring Identity: Concepts and Methods London: Palgrave Macmillan pp 251-73.

The understanding of culture depends on the dynamic understanding of cultural processes, not on their abstraction and... more The understanding of culture depends on the dynamic understanding of cultural processes, not on their abstraction and rationalization – on those things that, precisely because they are intuitive, unconscious and taken for granted, respondents cannot always readily make available for discussion. In this chapter I explore how one form of performance ethnography – and the methods it used - can be applied to hold up a mirror to organization as a means of facilitating more sensitive understandings of culture, identity and change. I introduce the Radio-Ballads as a dramatic form that draws upon ethnographic research and presents ethnographic data in a powerful and compelling way. Drawing on writings by Ewan MacColl and Charles Parker that discuss their methods, and on some transcriptions from the programmes, I will discuss five of the most salient aspects of this work for the study of collective identity – recording the background culture; listening to language (rather than discourse); intermittent interrogative methods; collective identity and narrative myth; collective self-discovery and catalytic interviewing. I will conclude by addressing some potential criticisms of the approach.

Work, authority and participation: the scenario of circular organizing

by Georges Romme

Published in: Journal of Organizational Change Management, 1997

Explores a scenario for how work can be organized in a circular manner. Outlines two tendencies in work relations: a... more Explores a scenario for how work can be organized in a circular manner. Outlines two tendencies in work relations: a return to authoritarian governance of the workplace, and at the same time, the inevitable and necessary shift towards more participation. Subsequently, explores the possibility of a synthesis of traditional and participative work relationships by organizing work in a circular manner. Circularity implies that, although authority may continue to play an important role in the workplace, an ultimate authority is absent, and each member can participate directly or through representation in decision processes which are organized in circles.

L'OTAN est-elle encore l'OTAN?

by Niels Lachmann

Co-written with Bastien Irondelle, published in Critique internationale 53, October-December 2011, 67-81.

Is NATO Still NATO ? NATO’s survival following the end of the Cold War contradicts the postulate of realists,... more Is NATO Still NATO ? NATO’s survival following the end of the Cold War contradicts the postulate of realists, according to whom military alliances are destined to collapse with the disappearance of the threat they are intended to counter. The Organization has even made a fundamental value out of its ability to transform itself, an ability that seems to have been demonstrated by its unprecedented humanitarian and military operations and its enlargement to include new members. The central dynamic at work here is the transformation of an alliance defending Europe and North America into a crisis management organization that above all intervenes outside of its territory. Yet what permits NATO to survive is the institutionalization of certain arrangements favoring stability : a permanent bureaucracy and command structure, the relative homogeneity of its members (which are now all democracies) and a decision-making process marked by the preeminence of the United States and respect for sovereignty by the principle of unanimity. The Organization’s transformation is nevertheless limited by divergences within its ever-growing and more diverse membership and by the inertia of the organizational apparatus. Studying change within NATO shows that the various types of change that can affect an international organization – its structure, membership and normative and cognitive dimensions – do not necessarily go without saying.

Book Review: M.Kristiansen, J.Bloch-Poulsen (2005), Midwifery and Dialogue in Organizations – Emergent Mutual Involvement in Action Research

by Olav Eikeland

Rainer Hampp Verlag, München & Mering 2005, 297 pp., € 29.80
ISBN 3879889937

Cómo hacer organización sin palabras: Performatividad y Silencio

by Benoit Cordelier

Resumen:

La teoría de los actos de habla ha sido muy influyente en la comunicación organizacional y ha... more Resumen:

La teoría de los actos de habla ha sido muy influyente en la comunicación organizacional y ha facilitado el desarrollo de teorías originales, a raíz de las diferentes ramas que posee. Pese a ello, no siempre los actores de la organización pueden expresar sus voluntades, y sus silencios pueden surtir efecto. Por lo tanto, estudiar el silencio como acto performativo, permite evidenciar los aspectos que se callan en la estrategia de un actor. Aquello, obviamente, plantea ciertas dificultades conceptuales y metodológicas que este artículo se propone explorar. Así, con base en un caso de cambio organizacional, se estudiarán los elementos contextuales y teóricos, así como las condiciones de felicidad necesarias para que se realice la performatividad del acto de silencio.

Palabras clave:
Acto de habla, acto de silencio, cambio organizacional, estrategia, temporalidad.

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Abstract:

Speech act theory has been very influential in organizational communication and made possible the appearance of original theories that evolved from its many developments. Nonetheless, organizational actors are not always able to express their will and their silences may have an effect. Therefore, studying silence as a performative act allows to highlighting the unspoken aspects of an actor’s strategy. This arises obviously some conceptual and methodological difficulties that we are going to explore in this article. With an organizational change case as a field, we study the needed contextual and theoretical elements, felicity conditions for the performativity of a silence act to be possible.

Key concepts:
Speech act, act of silence, organizational change, strategy, temporality.

Mehr Vertrauen?-Skepsis als Bindeglied zwischen Organisation und Gesellschaft

by Ralf Wetzel

Kommunikationsflüsse im Bild. Dynamische Netzwerkvisualisierung in der internen Organisationskommunikation anhand des Fallbeispiels eines Universitätsinstituts

by Lukas Zenk

Zenk, L., Windhager, F., Ettl-Huber, S. & Smuc, M. (2011). Kommunikationsflüsse im Bild. Medien Journal, 35/2, 50-61. (Preprint Version)

Die Stärken der Sozialen Netzwerkanalyse in der Darstellung tatsächlicher Kommunikationsflüsse und informeller Muster... more Die Stärken der Sozialen Netzwerkanalyse in der Darstellung tatsächlicher Kommunikationsflüsse und informeller Muster der Zusammenarbeit in Gruppen und Organisationen wurden bereits weitgehend diskutiert. Verschiedene Kombinationen von Methoden und Algorithmen stehen zu Verfügung, um kommunikative Beziehungsmuster zu erheben und als statische Netzwerke zu visualisieren. Die laufende Veränderung dieser Netzwerke über die Zeit bringt jedoch die Frage mit sich, wie diese Dynamiken sichtbar gemacht werden können. Im vorliegenden Artikel werden vier Methoden der dynamischen Netzwerkvisualisierung vorgestellt, um die Veränderung von sozialen Netzwerken visuell zu analysieren. Anhand des Fallbeispiels eines Universitätsinstituts wird deren Anwendung demonstriert und aufgezeigt, wie dadurch kommunikationswissenschaftliche Forschung in Organisationen unterstützt werden kann.

Bringing Change in Government Organizations: Evolution Towards Post-Bureaucracy with Web-Based IT Projects

by Maria Christina Binz-Scharf

Co-authored with Emmanuelle Vaast, published in ICIS Proceedings 2008, p. 213

This paper examines the following question: How do government organizations become more “post-bureaucratic” with... more This paper examines the following question: How do government organizations become more “post-bureaucratic” with web-based IT projects? It draws on evolutionary thinking to conceptualize processes of change in government organizations as involving sequences of variation, selection, and retention as well as to identify various sources of change: internal ones (e.g. administrators), as well as external ones (e.g. technological innovations and institutional pressures). The paper relates findings from four in-depth qualitative case studies of web-based IT projects in different government organizations. The interpretation of these findings helps expand the evolutionary conceptualization by suggesting how different sources of change interact in the change process and variously affect different stages of the evolution.