Contemporary Organization Theory Research Articles

Taxonomy of market-level space organizations

Academic and industry experts build their careers on accurate and precise definitions and meanings of domain-specific terminology, whereas novice practitioners and lay-persons often conflate similar or similar-sounding terms to describe concepts in the same domain of interest. This is common in the space sector when individuals of different academic or practitioner backgrounds discuss “commercial” topics. In English, as in other languages, the word “space” is often followed by words such as “industry,” “industry segment,” “industrial base,” “market,” “ecosystem” and others. The practice of casually using words with ambiguous meanings may often be appropriate for informal discussion if it facilitates the communication and exchange of ideas and all parties generally understand the implications of the casual usage. This practice, however, is problematic for detailed and analytical applications requiring precision and order of thought. Grounded in contemporary organization theory and economic practice, this paper provides background discussions of different levels of analysis that characterize embedded hierarchical social systems of organizations as they pertain to space. This paper then recommends a hierarchical taxonomy for defining specific terms that describe organizations and activities within the space domain for use by practitioners, analysts and academics requiring more precise language to communicate their market analysis ideas. This taxonomy places specific terms within each level of analysis discussed and provides definitions of each, with the intention of stimulating critical discussion and potential modifications or improvements.

REINSTATING FUNCTIONALISM IN THE FIGURATIONAL APPROACH TO ORGANIZATIONS

Over the past two decades, there have been attempts to apply ideas from figurational sociology founded by Norbert Elias in research of different aspects of organizational life. The central contributions are derived from his theory of the civilizing process and the principles of process sociology. While this research mostly is relevant for contemporary organization theory, many contributions tend to emphasize Elias’s relational approach to the neglect of his functionalism, which underlies the whole corpus of Elias’s works. Rediscovery of Elias’s functionalism opens up the way for a fruitful reinterpretation of the central concept of his sociology, figuration, and enables to find new ways of combining figurational sociology with more familiar approaches to organization theory, in particular, with contingency theory. This helps to identify the factor of technology in the theory of the civilizing process and place it in the context of the concepts of figurational sociology such as interdependence, power and subjectivity, which enhances the analytical strength of figurational approach to organizations. The paper discusses some applications of figurational sociology to date and points to new directions in the study of organizations with the use of the conceptual tools of figurational approach.

Organization and Management Past to Present

This article examined the historical evolution of organization and management theories and their applicability to practice in modern enterprise. Management and organizational theories each add something to the awareness of what managers ought to do. The contemporary approaches of management and organization theory draw upon the historical ideals of classical management and organization theories. Managers must, therefore, value the true concepts of contemporary organizational and management theories that frame the construct and decision-making processes of their particular organizations. Without a doubt, managers who make considerable efforts to transform these theories (classical and contemporary) into reality and practicality could increase productivity more than those who choose to ignore the value of these theories.

Contemporary organizational theory: The demographic, relational, and cultural perspectives

AbstractWe review three perspectives—demographic, relational, and cultural—that have dominated sociological research on organizations during the past four decades. These perspectives arose in reaction to the atomistic and rationalist–adaptationist assumptions of earlier perspectives on organizations. These perspectives have different conceptions of social structure and thus different conceptions of what creates opportunities for and constraints on action. The demographic perspective holds that social structure is constituted by distributions of social actors along salient dimensions of social and physical space; the relational perspective, by webs of social relationships; and the cultural perspective, by widely shared and patterned understandings of reality and possibility. These perspectives also have different conceptions of identity and therefore motivations for action. For demographers, identity derives from position, absolute or relative, along salient dimensions of social life; for relational scholars, from ties among individuals, groups, and organizations; and for cultural scholars, from social interaction. All three perspectives have been applied to explain behavior at five different levels of analysis: the individual, group or organizational subunit, organization, industry or organizational population, and field. Up to the 1990s, these perspectives were generally applied separately, but over the past two decades, studies have increasingly used multiple perspectives.

Theory and Organization Studies: The Need for Contestation

In this piece of provocation we focus on the words of people who we view as increasingly powerful institutional actors in the field of organization theory and what they signify about ‘what needs to be done’ and ‘how it needs to be done’ in order to rectify the many failings they identify. We suggest that their actions reflect a desire for an integrated, general theory of organizations and the conception of organization studies as a nomothetic science to which they (and perforce we) are philosophically and ideologically committed. These are seen to be intellectual and ideological forces at work on both sides of the Atlantic. We provide a critique of this emerging orthodoxy within contemporary organization theory, briefly drawing on Swift’s metaphor of Lilliputian ‘big enders’ and ‘little enders’ but also offer contemplation of the architectural metaphors of ‘cathedral’, ‘mystery house’ and ‘the tower of Babel’ (conceived of as ruination) to consider the alternative imaginary edifices that may influence the structure of our studies. Finally, we specify an alternative research agenda for organization theory which focuses upon ‘the organization of destruction’ rather than ‘the organization of production’ or ‘the organization of consumption’. Rather than seeing any contestation of intellectual traditions, analytical frameworks and methodological strategies as mental manacles and shackles which we need to ‘throw off’ to rediscover our true vocation as organization scientists, we contend that organization theory needs to reignite a fierce dialogue over ‘organization’ and its relation to order and disorder that has stretched over, at least, two millennia and still speaks to our lives today and tomorrow.

The social capital concept in management and organizational literature

PurposeSocial capital (SC) is a contemporary management and organizational concept that has yet to reach definitional agreement. In response, and to fully grasp the meaning of SC in its management and organizational context, this paper aims to review its intellectual antecedents and then synthesize the causal factors for the concept’s recent prominence. The paper will further explicate the meaning of the concept by proposing two categories of benefits for classifying the economic returns of SC. First in terms of “bonding capital’s” role in facilitating knowledge management and, second, in terms of “bridging capital’s” role in facilitating reputation management.Design/methodology/approachA narrative literature review of the SC concept in the management and organizational context.FindingsSC is a conservative concept that is largely uncritical of contemporary management and organizational theory, other than in the sense of trying to render it more rational and efficient. Thus, the SC discourse, does not, “[…] question the economic theory that dominates the World Bank or, indeed, much contemporary economics” (Bebbington et al., 2004, 36). Furthermore, SC is a “wonderfully elastic term” (Lappe and Du Bois, 1997, p. 119), which falls within the parameters of Burkean conservatism, with a stress on allegiance to the status quo and social harmony. SC as it is relevant for management, and organisational analysis is therefore supportive of the socio-economic status-quo and belongs to the “sociology of regulation”, concerned with emphasizing unity and cohesiveness (Burrel and Morgan, 1979, pp. 10-20).Research limitations/implicationsA number of recommendations for further SC research, within the management and organizational context are recommended.Originality/valueThis paper presents a comprehensive review of the meaning and application of SC in the context of management and organizational analysis.

Relationship networks as strategic issues management: An issue-stage framework of social movement organization network strategies

Social movement organizations (SMO) are important actors in affecting issue-related policy changes. To successfully manage an issue to achieve favorable policy resolutions, SMOs, like many kinds of organizations, not only use traditional public relations techniques, but also build networks to accomplish their objectives. Yet, an examination of the relationship between issue development and SMO networks is absent from the literature. This article therefore concentrates on the question: what types of networks should SMOs seek to build at different stages of an issue’s development? Informed by public relations research on issues management as well as contemporary social movement scholarship and organizational network theories, the article proposes a framework of SMO network strategies that examines the kinds of relationship networks SMOs should maintain as they attempt to manage an issue through the stages of its life cycle.

Public–Private Partnership (PPP) as an Interdependent Form (I-Form) Organization

ABSTRACTAs “public–private partnership” (PPP) is becoming a popular model among states, the debate concerning how to make it more successful is accelerating. Based on insights from contemporary organization theory (OT), the present article suggests that instead of taking PPP as “partnership” between private and public sector partners, it is rather more beneficial to construe it as inter-dependent form (I-Form) organization. Subsequently, it identifies three types of interdependencies, faced by PPP-based I-Form organizations, and furnishes a model—comprising of initial and external conditions, and interplay of internal factors—that could enable smooth functioning and performance of I-Form organization.

Prophetic Organization Theory: A Brief Historical and Organizational Discourse of Early Islamic Civilization

This paper examines the management style practiced by Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) during the early period of Islamic Civilization. This management style is labeled as Prophetic Organization Theory (POT). POT is compared with two discourses preva-lent in the contemporary Organization Theory which are briefly introduced. The com-parison of POT with these discourses is undertaken through employing some facets of contemporary Organization Theory such as ethics, organizational epistemology and ontological states, organizational metaphorical forms, leadership and management styles and, organizational culture. Discussion section summarizes the findings of the comparison.

Communication

Much has been written about the nature of leadership communication; however, the linkage often is limited to a view of communication as a strategic mechanism—or technique—to be employed by leaders in efforts to achieve specific purposes. This limited conceptualization of leadership communication does not fully capture the pervasive role of communication, and it fails to provide a nuanced view of the role communication plays in organizational dynamics, and in business settings, in particular. This article begins with an overview of various dichotomies raised in the leadership literature that have tended to impede rather than advance our understanding. We then discuss the evolution of thinking about communication and conclude with a discussion of several principles that can enhance contemporary organizational and business communication theory and practice.

David farmerʼs body of work: A retrospective and prospective view

David Farmerʼs work is too often misunderstood, perhaps because of the truly imaginative metaphors that he employs for expressing it, and the seemingly paradoxical prescriptions that it leads to at the level of practical action. This problem is helped by elaborating the grounding in which his work is at least implicitly set (namely, Traditionalism in American public administration) and by considering its congruence and compatibilities with the best of such contemporary organization theory as Demingʼs approach to organizational and management practice. With such clarified understanding, it becomes obvious that his work opens the way to a truly new 21st century model of public administration both in theory and in application.

On the prevailing comprehension of culture in the organization theory

Elements of the prevailing comprehension of culture in the organization theory have been presented in the paper. This conception has been explained by the features of the organization theory itself - as a scientific discipline and a profession, and more accurately by its dominantly applied character. Economic globalization and internationalization of business operations had been key motives for the development of this discipline over the last decades. The perception of organization as an open system has introduced the concept of culture in theory and in research, enabling the development of actions and practices for creating more effective and efficient organizations (mainly economic). The non-scientific impetus for the development of this discipline has also been the main reason for somewhat simplified and insufficiently deliberated comprehension and research operationalization of the notion of culture in contemporary organization theory.

A taste for otherness: Anthropophagy and the embodied self in organizations

Summary The current paper contributes to organizational thinking about cultural mixture as an embodied, sensory process, by examining the concept of organizational anthropophagy as a metaphor for a particular mode of organizational understanding. An emerging Brazilian literature on anthropophagic thinking combines a focus on the body, the passions and ideas of physical desire and aggression with cultural notions of hybridity and mixture, making the notion ripe for debates in contemporary organization theory. To develop these connections, I give a background to the anthropophagic movement, an artistic and cultural vanguard movement, discussing how this movement provided a unique angle on embodied forms of knowledge that can be applied to understanding dynamics of self-and otherness in organizations. Next, I examine how the body can be understood anthropophagically, linking issues of selfhood, authenticity and relationality to the bodily emphasis in anthropophagy. Finally, I discuss directions and limitations of anthropophagic thinking, suggesting that metaphorical and local movements like the anthropophagic movements can have ramifications for the literal and general in organizational theory.

What is health promotion capacity? A relational perspective.

In organizational health promotion research, health promotion capacity is a central concept that is used to describe the abilities of individuals, organizations, and communities to promote health. The purpose of this paper is to discuss the theoretical underpinnings of the literature on health promotion capacity building and, further, to suggest an alternative theoretical perspective which draws on recent developments in organizational theory. The paper begins by a critical discussion of the capacity building literature, which is juxtaposed with the relational perspective of contemporary organizational theory. The theoretical argument is developed in reference to the case of Danish municipal health promotion agencies, drawing on secondary sources as well as ethnographic fieldwork among public health officers. The capacity building literature tends to reify the concept of capacity. In contrast, this paper argues that health promotion capacity is constantly defined and redefined through processes of organizing. The case study suggests that, faced with limited resources and limited knowledge, health promotion officials attain a sense of capacity through an ongoing reworking of organizational forms. Organizational health promotion research should look for the organizational forms that are conducive to health promotion practices under shifting social circumstances. This paper makes explicit an inherent theoretical tension in the capacity building literature and suggests a novel theoretical framework for understanding organizational capacity.

Leadership In Times Of Uncertainty: Recent Findings, Debates, And Potential Future Research Directions

AbstractThis paper reviews current debates and findings surrounding leadership in times of uncertainty as framed by the social identity theory of leadership. The past decade has witnessed reinvigorated social psychological research on leadership by focusing on the identity function of leadership, as well as group‐based and prototype‐based influences. This line of research overwhelmingly confirms that group prototypical leaders are preferred over less prototypical leaders. Integrating uncertainty‐identity theory, recent evidence illustrates self‐conceptual uncertainty can strengthen or weaken/negate the prototypical leader advantage. This novel line of research also demonstrates how and when uncertainty can alter perceptions of and preferences for different, and sometimes ‘nasty’ leaders—contradicting contemporary organizational behavior and leadership theories, which argue that people (almost always) prefer transformational, charismatic, or authentic leaders.

Project organizing as a problem in information

One of the most influential perspectives in business and management has been the Carnegie School, represented by such luminaries as James March, Hebert Simon, Oliver Williamson and Zur Shapira. The perspective underpins much of contemporary organization theory and organizational economics. Yet there have only been limited attempts to apply it to the domain of construction economics and management. An important exception to this statement is the application of Williamson’s transaction cost economics to the governance of inter-firm relations in construction, but the opportunity is presently being missed for a more thorough-going application. The aim, therefore, is to suggest what such an application might look like and why it might be useful in stimulating new lines of research enquiry. The principal tenets of the Carnegie School are examined, as well as the central role of uncertainty and bounded rationality in those tenets. The contributions to organization theory of the Carnegie School are drawn upon to conceptualize project organizing as a problem in information, and suggest a new perspective on the microfoundations for that theory.

Organizational Metaphors as Lenses for Analyzing the Roles of Middleware in Practice

The ability to provide integration between business functions supported across multiple applications is a critical need for modern organizations. Middleware connects people, processes, systems, and technologies to ensure that the right person and processes get the right information at the right time to ensure optimal performance. However, problems often emerge from inadequate plan for integrating different legacy systems or otherwise. The purpose of this paper is to analyze middleware based on contemporary organizational theory for better understanding of this technology in organizational context. The paper attempts to identify the possible socially constructed metaphoric roles middleware plays in an organization, created by its users who are influenced and affected by its use. The newly conceptualized metaphors for middleware are used to analyze four case studies. The findings enhance the understanding of middleware in the context of its users and organizations and call for research directions that encompass a broader view of middleware.

Toward an Ethical Theory of Organizing

Current organizations are underpinned by utilitarian ethics of Modernity. Pure economic motive driven organizations detach themselves from larger societal interest. Rising number of corporate scandals and intraorganizational income inequalities are breeding similar trends in society at large. Current organizations base their competitive advantage on resources and capabilities which boils down to economic supremacy at all cost whether it is named I/O or RBV of the firm. This theoretical article posits Ethics-based Trust as the main competency and capability for attaining sustained competitive advantage. It in no way condemns utility view of the firms but treats it as a natural yet secondary outcome of genuine ethicality of the firm. Cultivating an ethical culture in the firm through identifying antecedents, organizational practices, and the outcomes where profitability is an automatic but secondary outcome under the supremacy of ethics is detailed in the multilevel model presented in this article. The main call of this article is to posit ethics and morality over and above short-term profits so that organizations fulfill their trustee role for society through enacting socio-humanistic theories within organizations. A brief analysis of the proposed ethical theory of firm is undertaken in light of the “schooling” notion in the contemporary organization theory literature.

When Invisible Becomes Visible: Exploring The Diversity-Performance Relationship In The Context of R&D Team and Task Force team

This study explores how diversity is related to performance at work. Although more organizations are integrating workforce diversity as part of their business strategy, diversity is often portrayed as a “double-edged sword” in contemporary organizational theory. However, in spite of numerous research endeavors, the impact of team diversity on team outcomes is not clearly understood. Moreover, it is still not clear when and where to apply diversity. Considering that the studies on diversity- performance relationship have been focused on whether diversity is beneficial or detrimental to team performance, the need to figure out in which team settings the diversity plays a critical role on performance emerges. Taking a social network theory as a mechanism linking diversity and performance, I investigate in which team types the initially “invisible” diversity becomes so “visible”, thereby playing a critical role in determining team performance.

From the Old Paradigm to the Complexity Paradigm: The Evolution of Organization Theory

Organization theory offer services to organization practice, the development of productivity promotes the evolution of organization theory. Under the old paradigm, the evolution of organization theory can be divided into three stages: classical organization theory, neoclassical organization theory and modern organization theory according to the different methodological approaches: the perspective of human-machine relationship, the perspective of human-human relationship, and the perspective of human-environment relationship, With the increasing complex of the organizational environments, the new complexity paradigm with nonlinear behaviors has replaced the old one, and is becoming the main current paradigm of contemporary organization theory. On paradigm and methodology, the two different layers of organization science, we can more clearly understand the evolution of organization theory and the outlook for the future development trend.