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Strategic Management and Organisational Dynamics
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Strategic Management
and Organisational
Dynamics
The Challenge of Complexity
to Ways of Thinking about
Organisations
Seventh edition
Ralph D. Stacey and Chris Mowles
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First published under the Pitman Publishing imprint 1993 (print)
Second edition published 1996 (print)
Third edition published 2000 (print)
Fourth edition published 2003 (print)
Fifth edition published 2007 (print)
Sixth edition published 2011 (print and electronic)
Seventh edition published 2016 (print and electronic)
© Ralph D. Stacey 1993, 1996, 2000, 2003, 2007 (print)
© Ralph D. Stacey 2011, 2016 (print and electronic)
The rights of Professor Ralph D. Stacey and Professor Chris Mowles to be identified as au-
thors of this work have been asserted by them in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and
Patents Act 1988.
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ISBN: XXXXXXXXXX (print)
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British Li
ary Cataloguing-in-Publication Data
A catalogue record for the print edition is available from the British Li
ary
Li
ary of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Stacey, Ralph D., author.
Strategic management and organisational dynamics : the challenge of complexity to ways of
thinking about organisations / Ralph D. Stacey and Chris Mowles. — Seventh edition.
pages cm
ISBN XXXXXXXXXX
1. Strategic planning. 2. Organizational behavior. I. Mowles, Chris, author. II. Title.
HD30.28.S XXXXXXXXXX
658.4’012—dc23
XXXXXXXXXX
XXXXXXXXXX XXXXXXXXXX
XXXXXXXXXX
Print edition typeset in 10/12.5 Sabon LT Pro by 76
Printed in Slovakia by Neografia
NOTE THAT ANY PAGE CROSS REFERENCES REFER TO THE PRINT EDITION
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Brief contents
List of boxes xiii
List of tables xiv
Preface xv
1 Strategic management in perspective: a step in the professionalisation
of management 2
2 Thinking about strategy and organisational change: the implicit
assumptions distinguishing one theory from another 28
Part 1 Systemic ways of thinking about strategy and organisational
dynamics
3 The origins of systems thinking in the Age of Reason 48
4 Thinking in terms of strategic choice: cybernetic systems, cognitivist
and humanistic psychology 66
5 Thinking in terms of organisational learning and knowledge creation:
systems dynamics, cognitivist, humanistic and constructivist psychology 100
6 Thinking in terms of organisational psychodynamics: open systems
and psychoanalytic perspectives 128
7 Thinking about strategy process from a systemic perspective: using a
process to control a process 150
8 A review of systemic ways of thinking about strategy and organisational
dynamics: key challenges for alternative ways of thinking 176
9 Extending and challenging the dominant discourse on organisations:
thinking about participation and practice 202
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vi Brief contents
Part 2 The challenge of complexity to ways of thinking
10 The complexity sciences: the sciences of uncertainty 238
11 Systemic applications of complexity sciences to organisations: restating
the dominant discourse 266
Part 3 Complex responsive processes as a way of thinking about
strategy and organisational dynamics
12 Responsive processes thinking: the interplay of intentions 302
13 The emergence of organisational strategy in local communicative
interaction: complex responsive processes of conversation 338
14 The link between the local communicative interaction of strategising
and the population-wide patterns of strategy 362
15 The emergence of organisational strategy in local communicative
interaction: complex responsive processes of ideology and power relating 388
16 Different modes of articulating patterns of interaction emerging across
organisations: strategy na
atives and strategy models 416
17 Complex responsive processes of strategising: acting locally on the
asis of global goals, visions, expectations and intentions for the
‘whole’ organisation over the ‘long-term future’ 456
18 Complex responsive processes: implications for thinking about
organisational dynamics and strategy 486
References 519
Index 545
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Contents
List of boxes xiii
List of tables xiv
Preface xv
1 Strategic management in perspective: a step in the professionalisation
of management 2
1.1 Introduction 2
1.2 The origins of modern concepts of strategic management:
the new role of leader 6
1.3 Ways of thinking: stable global structures and fluid local interactions 15
1.4 Outline of the book 21
Further reading 26
Questions to aid further reflection 26
2 Thinking about strategy and organisational change: the implicit
assumptions distinguishing one theory from another 28
2.1 Introduction 28
2.2 The phenomena of interest: dynamic human organisations 29
2.3 Making sense of the phenomena: realism, relativism and idealism 33
2.4 Four questions to ask in comparing theories of organisational strategy
and change 39
Further reading 41
Questions to aid further reflection 41
Part 1 Systemic ways of thinking about strategy and
organisational dynamics
3 The origins of systems thinking in the Age of Reason 48
3.1 Introduction 49
3.2 The Scientific Revolution and rational objectivity 51
3.3 The eighteenth-century German philosopher Immanuel Kant:
natural systems and autonomous individuals 52
3.4 Systems thinking in the twentieth century: the notion of human systems 57
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viii Contents
3.5 Thinking about organisations and their management: science
and systems thinking 59
3.6 How systems thinking deals with the four questions 63
3.7 Summary 64
Further reading 64
Questions to aid further reflection 64
4 Thinking in terms of strategic choice: cybernetic systems,
cognitivist and humanistic psychology 66
4.1 Introduction 67
4.2 Cybernetic systems: importing the engineer’s idea of self-
egulation and control into understanding human activity 68
4.3 Formulating and implementing long-term strategic plans 74
4.4 Cognitivist and humanistic psychology: the rational and the
emotional individual 82
4.5 Leadership and the role of groups 86
4.6 Key debates 87
4.7 How strategic choice theory deals with the four key questions 91
4.8 Summary 96
Further reading 98
Questions to aid further reflection 98
5 Thinking in terms of organisational learning and knowledge creation:
systems dynamics, cognitivist, humanistic and constructivist psychology 100
5.1 Introduction 101
5.2 Systems dynamics: nonlinearity and positive feedback 102
5.3 Personal mastery and mental models: cognitivist psychology 105
5.4 Building a shared vision and team learning: humanistic psychology 111
5.5 The impact of vested interests on organisational learning 116
5.6 Knowledge management: cognitivist and constructivist psychology 117
5.7 Key debates 120
5.8 How learning organisation theory deals with the four key questions 122
5.9 Summary 125
Further reading 126
Questions to aid further reflection 126
6 Thinking in terms of organisational psychodynamics: open systems and
psychoanalytic perspectives 128
6.1 Introduction 129
6.2 Open systems theory 129
6.3 Psychoanalysis and unconscious processes 132
6.4 Open systems and unconscious processes 137
6.5 Leaders and groups 140
6.6 How open systems/psychoanalytic perspectives deal with the
four key questions 143
6.7 Summary 147
Further reading 148
Questions to aid further reflection 148
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Contents ix
7 Thinking about strategy process from a systemic perspective:
using a process to control a process 150
7.1 Introduction 151
7.2 Rational process and its critics: bounded rationality 151
7.3 Rational process and its critics: trial-and-e
or action 154
7.4 A contingency view of process 158
7.5 Institutions, routines and cognitive frames 159
7.6 Process and time 161
7.7 Strategy process: a review 163
7.8 The activity-based view 165
7.9 The systemic way of thinking about process and practice 170
7.10 Summary 174
Further reading 174
Questions to aid further reflection 175
8 A review of systemic ways of thinking about strategy and
organisational dynamics: key challenges for alternative ways of thinking 176
8.1 Introduction 177
8.2 The claim that there is a science of organisation