Reshaping Change - Dawson, Patrick

. .

Résumé :
This book views change as an ongoing process that should not be solidified or treated as a series of linear events. In drawing on data collected from over 40 years of research, it highlights the theoretical and practical value of using a processual perspective. Illustrative examples from a range of organizations including: Micro-X, General Motors, Pirelli Cables, BHP Billiton, Royal Dutch Shell, British Rail, British Aerospace, Hewlett Packard, Laubman and Pank and the CSIRO make the approach understandable and accessible to both researchers and practitioners. In a theoretical exploration of temporal context, sociomaterial relations and power-political processes the dynamics of changing organizations is brought to the fore and the implication for reshaping change examined. On the practice of engaging in longitudinal research, study design, data collection and processual analysis, as well as the write-up and dissemination of findings, are all considered. This is an innovative and highly practical research monograph that captures the truly complex processes of changing organizations and illustrates how these are best understood from a processual perspective....

Biographie:

Patrick Dawson is Emeritus Professor at the University of Aberdeen. He holds a PhD in Industrial Sociology from the University of Southampton and during his early career, worked at the University of Surrey and the University of Edinburgh....

Sommaire:

List of Figures and Tables

Acknowledgments

1. Introduction

Introduction

The case for adopting a processual approach

The temporal dynamics of changing organizations

Grounding a processual perspective in empirical research

Main aims of the book

2. The Development of the Processual Perspective and the Process Turn in Organization Studies

Introduction

Laying the foundations: The importance of context and process

Pettigrew's contribution to the processual-contextualist approach

The process turn in organization studies

Empirically grounded processual research and process philosophy: Issues and challenges

Developing a typology of process research in fieldwork studies

Processes of narrative change: Stories, sensemaking and dialogue

Processes of temporal change: Time, temporality and practice

Conclusion

3. A Processual Framework: The Non-linear Dynamic Processes of Organizational Change

Introduction

Studying change over time: Analytical distinctions and conceptual considerations

Type of organizational change

The before, during and after of organizational change: 'Catching reality in flight' through conventional timeframes

The importance of multiple times and multiple temporalities

Doing processual research: Approach, commitment and methods

Digging in the field: The committed researcher

Longitudinal research designs in collecting processual data

The processual framework reappraised and developed

Temporal context

Beyond contextual boundaries

Culture and history

Sensemaking and sensegiving

Time and temporality

Stories and narratives for understanding change

Power-political processes

Sociomaterial relations

Assemblages and entanglement: Some early debates

The concept of sociomateriality reappraised

Conclusion

4. Miners' Stories and the Power-Political Processes of Contested Change

Introduction

The power of stories, storytellers and storying

The power-political process of contested change at Glenrothes colliery

Stories and the storying process in changing organizations

Retrospective stories and prospective storying

Temporal sensemaking and change: It's 'us' against 'them'

Attribution of blame in making sense of performance

Review and appeal: The power of stories to resist and steer change

Conclusion

5. Temporal Context and Non-linear Change at General Motors

Introduction

Context, time and temporality in the study of changing organizations

Moving context beyond business considerations dominant in mainstream change management models

Alternative conceptions of time and the concept of temporal context

Temporal context: The illustrative example of General Motors

The historical context of General Motors Holden

Data gathering and the concern with data triangulation

Stories in temporal context: Narrative in the making and processes in the shaping

Temporal context and depth of contextual knowledge

Temporal context and the sociomaterial dynamics of cell design

Temporal context and power-political process

Conclusion

6. Sociomaterial Relations in the Emergence and Growth of Micro-X

Introduction

Ongoing change and sociomateriality at Micro-X

The concept of sociomateriality and the importance of time

Micro-X: A high-tech start-up company based in Adelaide

The birth of a busines...