Looking In or Looking Out? Top-down Change and Operational Capability
Strategic intentions reflect the aspirations of an organization. They can also be translated into targets for the rest of the organization and structures, procedures, measures and associated rules introduced to meet them. Drawing upon insight from social systems theory, and case study evidence from...
| Main Authors: | , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | deu |
| Published: |
FQS
2010-09-01
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| Series: | Forum: Qualitative Social Research |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://www.qualitative-research.net/index.php/fqs/article/view/1550 |
| _version_ | 1818474571133616128 |
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| author | Mark Lemon Matthew Cook John Craig |
| author_facet | Mark Lemon Matthew Cook John Craig |
| author_sort | Mark Lemon |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Strategic intentions reflect the aspirations of an organization. They can also be translated into targets for the rest of the organization and structures, procedures, measures and associated rules introduced to meet them. Drawing upon insight from social systems theory, and case study evidence from the telecommunications industry, this conceptual paper suggests that the ensuing implementation processes can conflict with the principles and objectives of actors at operational levels and lead to behaviors that can hinder the pursuit of those high level goals. This misalignment, or pathological autopoiesis, is manifest through a restructuring in which the organization becomes the environment for operational actors who in turn focus upon the "translation" of imposed conditions into their own psychic and social needs. In effect the organization turns in on itself and away from the need to acquire information about, and respond to, its own environment, a condition that is fundamental to the resilience and survival of any system.
URN: urn:nbn:de:0114-fqs1003272 |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-14T04:37:50Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-5720b67237754efb8fc810e63c614618 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1438-5627 |
| language | deu |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-14T04:37:50Z |
| publishDate | 2010-09-01 |
| publisher | FQS |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Forum: Qualitative Social Research |
| spelling | doaj.art-5720b67237754efb8fc810e63c6146182022-12-22T02:11:46ZdeuFQSForum: Qualitative Social Research1438-56272010-09-011131350Looking In or Looking Out? Top-down Change and Operational CapabilityMark Lemon0Matthew Cook1John Craig2De Montfort UniversityThe Open UniversityGIRAC Ltd and AssociatesStrategic intentions reflect the aspirations of an organization. They can also be translated into targets for the rest of the organization and structures, procedures, measures and associated rules introduced to meet them. Drawing upon insight from social systems theory, and case study evidence from the telecommunications industry, this conceptual paper suggests that the ensuing implementation processes can conflict with the principles and objectives of actors at operational levels and lead to behaviors that can hinder the pursuit of those high level goals. This misalignment, or pathological autopoiesis, is manifest through a restructuring in which the organization becomes the environment for operational actors who in turn focus upon the "translation" of imposed conditions into their own psychic and social needs. In effect the organization turns in on itself and away from the need to acquire information about, and respond to, its own environment, a condition that is fundamental to the resilience and survival of any system. URN: urn:nbn:de:0114-fqs1003272http://www.qualitative-research.net/index.php/fqs/article/view/1550rules and measurestrustautopoiesis |
| spellingShingle | Mark Lemon Matthew Cook John Craig Looking In or Looking Out? Top-down Change and Operational Capability Forum: Qualitative Social Research rules and measures trust autopoiesis |
| title | Looking In or Looking Out? Top-down Change and Operational Capability |
| title_full | Looking In or Looking Out? Top-down Change and Operational Capability |
| title_fullStr | Looking In or Looking Out? Top-down Change and Operational Capability |
| title_full_unstemmed | Looking In or Looking Out? Top-down Change and Operational Capability |
| title_short | Looking In or Looking Out? Top-down Change and Operational Capability |
| title_sort | looking in or looking out top down change and operational capability |
| topic | rules and measures trust autopoiesis |
| url | http://www.qualitative-research.net/index.php/fqs/article/view/1550 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT marklemon lookinginorlookingouttopdownchangeandoperationalcapability AT matthewcook lookinginorlookingouttopdownchangeandoperationalcapability AT johncraig lookinginorlookingouttopdownchangeandoperationalcapability |