George Cairns

Aesthetics, Morality and Power: Design as Espoused Freedom and Implicit Control

This article is intended to contribute to debate on the arguments that are propounded both in support and in condemnation of new forms of workplace aesthetic. I draw upon experience in organizational intervention and on literature from the arenas of physical and social workplace design to support a multi-contextual debate on the new workplace aesthetic and on interpretations that are placed upon it within different contexts of study. While an essential tension of freedom and control is identified in the literature, I offer no conclusion in support or in condemnation of any particular viewpoint. Rather, I argue for a multi-perspective analysis of workplace aesthetic in order to surface meaning for different groups of actors within their own context of thinking/acting. From this, general theories for analysis of other situations may be derived rather than particular models or recipes for application.

The Psychology of why organisations can be slow to adapt and change

This article discusses what can be done about bias in human decision making to make organizations adapt to change. In conclusion, individuals follow cognitive habits, seeing challenging situations through a singular frame of reference that makes assumptions about the nature of problems or opportunities that arise. Additionally, we feel that our judgment is good. Furthermore, this perception is reinforced by both the confirmation bias and the hindsight bias that underpin an inappropriate confidence in our judgment. Such over-confidence will lead to inappropriate best-guess thinking about the future--as illustrated in our earlier case studies of strategic inertia or business-as-usual thinking. Our analysis illustrated that the risks were perceived to be serious if the company did not change its current failing strategy and, also, that the risks were seen to be serious if the company did change the strategy. There was strong evidence that the senior management team attempted to shift responsibility for its adherence to the current strategy to the top level board of directors--that is, buck passing. Additionally, the management team also evidenced delay and procrastination--whilst bolstering the current failing strategy

Seeking a facilities management philosophy for the changing workplace

Promotes the notion that the emergent field of facility/facilities management (FM) requires a philosophical basis, where philosophy refers not to esoteric, academic abstraction, but to the basic theory and general principles of knowledge that underpin everyday activity. Argues specifically for generation of a philosophy of “the workplace”; the separate but related social, physical, technological and organizational contexts of work; the centre stage of FM activity, in order to: first, provide a knowledge base that critically engages with the complexities and ambiguities of these diverse but interconnected contexts of work; second, engage with some of the failings of FM knowledge to date, where idealistic best practice is presented as if it were theory, and simplistic research presents universal solutions based upon limited engagement with a single context; and third, provide a knowledge base that can stand up to critical analysis from other fields of knowledge, some of which overlap with that of FM.

Flexible working: organisational liberation or individual strait‐jacket?

This paper addresses the practice‐derived concept of “flexible working” in order to challenge the lack of critical thinking in such facilities management (FM) research and writing. Through comparison of the field of FM with literature from other management fields, it proposes that much FM “research” is concerned with the validation of practice‐based concepts, which have been derived and implemented in small sections of specific organisations with self‐interest in their success and promotion. In so doing, it supports previous critical reflection on the lack of theoretical research in the FM field.

User involvement in organisational decision making

Aims to make critical comment on the role of expert consultants and the contribution of communication in organisational decision making, through reference to theory and case studies. The three case studies analyse factors in decision making processes at different stages and relating to different aspects of facilities management, including re‐planning, relocation and development in IT use. Although there are clear differences in the organisations and the foci of the projects, the issues of expert intervention and the nature of communication cross cut the different cases. Through reflection on three iterations of expert intervention, the basic model of power/knowledge/communications is criticised and developed in such a way as to redistribute responsibilities and power, and hence to encourage knowledge‐focused communication. The emergent model is not one which will be comfortably accepted by all the parties, since it challenges the mystique of the expert as provider of knowledge inputs, the role of the manager as holder of power, and the user as being devoid of responsibility.

Exploring Narratives and Antenarratives of Graffiti Artists: Beyond Dichotomies of Commitment and Detachment

In this article, we propose engagement in critical analysis of social phenomena—here, that of ‘commitment’—through consideration of narratives of and about graffiti artists (‘graffers’). We discuss ways in which graffers are viewed as demonstrating conformance with or rebellion against prevailing social mores. We address representations of them through their own work, as well as in the media and in academic literature. We find that graffers are generally portrayed in simplistic terms, being either vilified and seen as detached from norms of society or justified through incorporation into the discourse of modern art. In our analysis, we employ Boje’s concept of ‘antenarrative’ to challenge the dichotomous depictions of graffers, particularly in relation to the notion of commitment. We posit that the antenarrative approach can also enable analysis of less extreme groups, helping us to explore relevant concepts and phenomena.

Economic inequality of the badli workers of Bangladesh: Contested entitlements and a ‘perpetually temporary’ life-world

This article discusses the experience of economic inequality of badli workers in the state-owned jute mills of the postcolonial state of Bangladesh, and how this inequality is constituted and perpetuated. Nominally appointed to fill posts during the temporary absence of permanent workers, the reality of badli workers’ employment is very different. They define themselves as ‘a different category of workers’, with limited economic entitlements. We undertake content analysis of the badli workers’ narratives to identify elements that they themselves consider constitute these economic entitlements. We consider their perceptions of discrimination and exclusion and explain how, in response to these feelings, they construct their survival strategy. From this, through the writings of Armatya Sen, we discuss the badli workers’ contextual experience and understanding of economic inequality in relation to extant theoretical understandings, seeking to contribute to the field and to empirical studies in the subaltern context.

Towards a Critical Pedagogy of International Business: The Application of Phronēsis

In this article, we contribute to debate on the possibilities and role of critical pedagogy in management education, with particular reference to the field of international business (IB). We engage with what we see as a focus on reproducing extant models of IB practice in the canon of IB textbooks. In these texts, we identify a concentration upon multinational enterprises (MNEs) and MNE managers as the key actors in IB, with a prioritization of their interests and marginalization of those of other involved and affected parties. In seeking to critically engage with these texts in the classroom context, we propose the need for a constructive critical pedagogy and posit the possibilities for this through application of contemporary interpretation of the concept of phronēsis.

Chasing the mirage: managing facilities in a virtual world

This paper is a consolidation of the keynote address given to the BIFM Annual Conference and Research Forum held at the University of Warwick in September 1999 in which the authors sought to identify the underlying forces influencing FM’s global development. They argue that radical movements in demand side organisational structures are bringing about fundamental change in the relationship between businesses and their supporting infrastructure and that, if FM is to generate an ability to enhance business performance via the effective application of infrastructure resources, then it will have to be able to respond positively to this new landscape. This will involve re‐evaluation of the structure that supports FM development, including the system for producing FM knowledge, and implies new models that integrate research and practice.

Reflections on seven years of critical perspectives on international business: An extended editorial

Purpose - The purpose of this extended editorial is to reflect on the journey of critical perspectives on international business over the past seven years and to look forward to future issues and potential concerns of the journal. In addition, the contents of the current issue are introduced. Design/methodology/approach - Using the form of a conversation between the journals co-editors, the development of the journal and features of its content over the last seven years are discussed, and related to the ever changing external context. The current trends and concerns emerging in the field of international business are used to speculate on the future direction of the journal and its prospective content. Findings - By tracing key points and features of the development of the journal over the past seven years, this paper identifies a growing need for critique of international business in all its various forms, and, especially from inter, multi and trans-disciplinary perspectives. Originality/value - This is the first attempt to evaluate critical perspectives on international business. As such, it offers a foundation from which to speculate on the future development of both the journal and the field of critical studies on international business.