1st Edition
Organisational Resilience Navigating Paradoxical Tensions
This book provides a guide to navigating the paradoxical tensions of organisational resilience and presents a framework to aid individuals and businesses to become more open-minded, flexible, and mindful in managing the unexpected.
The book offers the reader pragmatic and insightful means to achieve a ‘state’ of organisational resilience, making use of current research data that shows how managers anticipate and respond to actual and near-miss incidents. Grounded in the day-to-day reality of managers, the goal of this book is to offer a unique theoretical framework as a platform for practical application for the improvement of organisational outcomes. It provides insights into ten key capabilities that enable the reader to set up a successful program of organisational resilience, taking a cross-cutting approach and focusing on implementation while having solid foundations in theory.
This is an ideal book for advanced students and executive education courses in risk management, crisis management, and business continuity, as well as thoughtful practitioners.
Table of Contents:
1. Towards a paradox mindset
In pursuit of reliable performance
Reliable performance through mindful organising
Exploring paradoxes
The high reliability professional as a paradox navigator
Navigating paradoxes
References
2. Clarifying Aims, Objectives or Outcomes; Engaging with Stakeholders
The challenge
Centripetal wisdom
Centrifugal wisdom
Clarifying and Engaging – Revisiting the development of the Bell-Boeing V-22 Osprey
Towards a paradox mindset
References
3. Heeding Warnings or Risks
The challenge
Centripetal wisdom
Centrifugal wisdom
Heeding – Revisiting the demise of Kodak
Towards a paradox mindset
References
4. Simplifying Problems, Solutions or Responses
The challenge
Centripetal wisdom
Centrifugal wisdom
Simplifying - Revisiting the Space Shuttle Columbia disaster
Towards a paradox mindset
References
5. Following Procedures, Processes or Policies
The challenge
Centripetal wisdom
Centrifugal wisdom
Following - Revisiting the Chernobyl disaster
Towards a paradox mindset
References
6. Influencing Responses, Actions or Solutions
The challenge
Centripetal wisdom
Centrifugal wisdom
Influencing - Revisiting the Airbus A380 development
Towards a paradox mindset
References
7. Aligning Responses
The challenge
Centripetal wisdom
Centrifugal wisdom
Aligning - Revisiting the Volkswagen emission scandal
Towards a paradox mindset
References
8. Communicating with Others
The challenge
Centripetal wisdom
Centrifugal wisdom
Communicating - Revisiting the Bhopal gas tragedy
Towards a paradox mindset
References
9. Deferring to Others
The challenge
Centripetal wisdom
Centrifugal wisdom
Deferring - Revisiting the Black Death
Towards a paradox mindset
References
10. Accessing Resources
The challenge
Centripetal wisdom
Centrifugal wisdom
Accessing - Revisiting the Afghanistan war
Towards a paradox mindset
References
11. Mindful organising through paradoxical thinking
Navigating the roads to resilience
The lure of Just-this-way and Just-for-now leadership
The need for Just-in-case and Just-in-time leadership
Just-in-time reconstruction of managing near-misses and accidents
Establishing a culture of mindful, paradoxical organising
We, as high reliability professionals
References
Biography
Dr Elmar Kutsch is Associate Professor in Risk Management at Cranfield University, School of Management, UK.
