Benyamin M. Bergmann Lichtenstein

How Do "Resource Bundles" Develop and Change in New Ventures? A Dynamic Model and Longitudinal Exploration

According to recent studies applying Resource-Based Theory [RBT] to entrepreneurial firms (e.g. Chandler & Hanks, 1994; Brush & Greene, 1996), in the early stages of new venture development it is the identification and acquisition of resources—rather than deployment or allocation activities—that is crucial for the firms long-term success (Stevenson & Gumpert, 1985). This study explores that relationship longitudinally, tracking salient resources in three rapidly growing new ventures, and analyzing how these resources change over time. Our findings identify the most common types of salient resources, the primary types of changes in resource and resource bundles, and a pattern linking the type of change with short-term performance results in each firm.

Spiritual perspectives on individual, organizational and societal transformation

The article explores issues of what matters most in individual organizational and societal transformation – economic issues or spirit? Transformation is defined and literature on individual, organizational and societal transformation is presented. The article looks at the standard arguments that economics are the driving force in transformation and then postulates that spirituality may be as much – if not more – of a driving force. Evidence is provided on the growth of interest in spirituality. Then three theories of transformation are offered, one at the level of societal transformation. Each of these theories incorporates elements of spirituality in order to understand the prerequisites of transformation.

Non-Linearity and Response-Ability: Emergent Order in 21st-Century Careers:

Over the past two decades there has been a shift in the career literature from the view of a career as being a linear progression of job responsibilities within an industry, to that of a ‘boundaryless’, competency-based exploration that evolves in unexpected ways. This article argues that core constructs from ‘new science’ (non-linearity, interdependence and emergence) can provide a useful theoretical foundation for understanding the current dynamics of career behavior. The article also discusses implications of these constructs for career development practice and its contexts.

Emergence as a process of self‐organizing ‐ New assumptions and insights from the study of non‐linear dynamic systems

Complexity researchers have identified four basic assumptions underlying non‐linear dynamic systems (NDS): the assumption that change is a constant; the assumption that emergent systems are not reducible to their parts; the assumption of mutual dependence; and the assumption that complex systems behave in non‐proportional ways. In this paper I use these new assumptions as a basis for explaining why order emerges in organizations, and for uncovering a three‐stage process model of complex adaptive systems change (CASC). The insights from these NDS models are revealed through examples from two entrepreneurial firms undergoing transformative shifts in their development. These assumptions of NDS and the model of CASC may therefore be useful for understanding order creation and self‐organizing processes in work groups, project ventures, and organizations.

Relational Space and Learning Experiments: The Heart of Sustainability Collaborations

Corporations are now collaborating to meet complex global sustainability challenges, which, until recently, were considered beyond the mandate of business leaders. Multi-organizational consortia have formed, not as philanthropic efforts, but to find competitive advantage. To examine the dynamics of an early collaboration of this sort, with a view to suggesting how future inter-organizational projects might be fostered, we pursued an in-depth multi-method case study of “The Sustainability Consortium.” The Consortium has convened Fortune 50 senior managers since 1998. Our analysis uncovers the primacy of “Relational Space” – a rich context for aspirational trust and reflective learning across organizational boundaries, which is enabled by, and in turn gives rise to, collaborative projects. Within this space, an ecology of organizational leaders committed to sustainability can accomplish together what would be impossible in their individual organizations. We explain the viability of this collaboration.

Valid or Vacuous? A Definition and Assessment of New Paradigm Research in Management

As research and writing on the new paradigm expands into management, the question of whether this research is valid or vacuous becomes more crucial. In this article, a definition of the new paradigm is offered, then its premises and assumptions are carefully analyzed using current philosophy of science. Rather than taking the more common Kuhnian approach, this analysis is based on Taylors (1992) model of paradigm transitions. The analysis shows that some management research does validly generate a new paradigm. However, much of what is being written under the new paradigm banner does not satisfy criteria that are implied by the notion of a new paradigm. In the conclusion, implications for this assessment are described and a series of questions that can increase the validity and transformative power of new paradigm research in management are offered.