Pamela Buckle Henning

Re‐situating expert project managers' praxis within multiple logics of practice

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to consider how multiple logic systems employed by project managers lead to manifold understandings of two foundational project management constructs (“project” and “planning”) that in turn influence both the practice of project management and project outcomes.Design/methodology/approach – Largely conceptual in nature, this paper focuses on the language project managers use to make sense of projects and plans, seeking to get beyond the surface recitation of discourse to the underlying logic systems that influence practice. The discussion is illustrated with stories of practice, collected through interpretive phenomenological interviews with project managers perceived by their peers to demonstrate special skill or knowledge in successfully delivering projects, and reference to project management doctrine embedded in professional standards.Findings – Expert project managers use multiple thinking styles to adapt their practice to emergent project issues. While instrumen...

Organizational Sustainability and Systemic Boundary Processes

Abstract Every day, managers work to sustain the organizations wherein they work. In this article, the authors examine certain systemic boundary processes that are intrinsic to organizations and their sustainability. For readers of this journal, whose name points to the inherent connection between organizations and society, the authors present an argument that organizational boundary processes and their influence on organizational sustainability are important considerations for those of us interested in a viable future for our society. The importance of these processes for managers also is indicated.

A stakeholder approach to student learning assessment

Stakeholder theory has focused on the stakeholders of the organisation. That approach to stakeholder analysis may not address important processes in the organisation. This paper develops and discusses a two-level model of stakeholder analysis. This model determines the stakeholders and their salience for both the organisation and a process within the organisation. These two are then compared to ensure that stakeholder interests are addressed within important organisational processes. Student learning assessment is an important process in higher education; as such it is examined here from the perspective of the two-level model.

Unconscious Regulatory Processes in the Organizational Psyche

Jung and many of his followers distrusted organizations. As a result, Jungians are only recently beginning to explore the parallels among the dynamics of individual psychology and the dynamics of organizational psychology. Jung wrote at length about the self-regulation of the individual psyche. This article examines how the self—Jungs concept for the archetype of psychic wholeness—regulates the organizational psyche in much the same way as it regulates the individual psyche. We extend his nine manifestations of self-regulation of the individual psyche into their manifestations within in the organizational psyche. Recent news coverage of Toyota Motor Corporation, the worlds largest automobile manufacturer, and BP global (British Petroleum), the worlds largest private-sector petroleum company, are graphic reminders of the influence that organizations have on our lives.

Detecting self-organised behavioural patterns in workplace settings: Towards a lay epistemic theory

Abstract Several theorists have called for people who work in organisations to become more proficient at discerning the subtle, self-organised patterns that emerge in their organisations. Such theorists argue that the capacity to detect such patterns can enable managers to understand what drives organisational behaviour, and what stands in the way of organisational transformation. This paper presents findings of a study on how some organisational practitioners detect and understand self-organised behavioural patterns that emerge in the workplace. It seeks, therefore, to integrate processes used by successful practitioners with a theoretical foundation grounded in systems and organisational research.

A Guide to Systems Research

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Competencies Necessary for Systems Research

price are net prices, subject to local VAT. Prices indicated with * include VAT for books; the €(D) includes 7% for Germany, the €(A) includes 10% for Austria. Prices indicated with ** include VAT for electronic products; 19% for Germany, 20% for Austria. All prices exclusive of carriage charges. Prices and other details are subject to change without notice. All errors and omissions excepted. M.C. Edson, P. Buckle Henning, S. Sankaran (Eds.) A Guide to Systems Research

Systems Thinking: Common Ground or Untapped Territory?

Conducting systems research requires both knowledge and competence. This chapter outlines key perceptual competencies demanded of systems researchers. We begin with the ability to perceive the presence of systemic wholes and parts. Next, we consider competencies involved in perceiving key characteristics of complex systems (order, change, relationships, and information). Scholars are often called to generalize their findings to other settings; the search for similarity among different contexts involves analogical reasoning, an important perceptual competency for skillful systems research. We address challenges of engaging with the uncertainties of systemic inquiries, along with a call for systems researchers to be reflexive of the ways they become personally affected by the phenomena they investigate.