sorry for cross-postings
We are delighted to issue the announcement for the 8th EIASM colloquium on the subject of Organizational Change and Development (OCD) with the topic
'INSPIRATION DESPERATELY NEEDED! TACKLING THE HIDDEN ASSUMPTIONS OF CHANGE'
“Nothing is more stable today, than change.“ This collocation is not only a common expression for a rather passive acceptance of dynamism, but arguably is a fatal description of the discourse of organisational change management. For while the conditions of organising have changed dramatically throughout the last 50 years (rising intransparancy and instability, acceleration, new forms of work and organisational design, reduced use of hierarchy, etc.) and still breathe the spirit of the pioneers of management, an increasingly loud voice of criticism expresses these sentiments as a diagnosis for the state of research and practice in the field of organisational change. The theoretical foundations of the field seem, to some, to be rather weak and unclear while the variety of perspectives applied to the subject is rather low despite the burgeoning number of related academic publications designed to shed light on both theory and practice. In essence, if it were a country, organisational change would be seen by many as a failing State. Yet, what if the high ratio of failed change efforts is less grounded on weakly skilled employees but rather on flaws in the hidden assumptions surrounding organisational change? In the myriad of academic publications and organisational change interventions, what is being overlooked and ignored? Which cognitive and pragmatic tools should we abandon before we exert even more harm on organisations, employees and the wider society?
The 8th colloquium of organizational change and development strives to open up the Pandora’s box of organisational change. We aim to explore what assumptions about organisational change need to be challenged, revised and even abandoned. We are therefore looking for contributions, which challenge mainstream ways of thinking about the theory and practice of organisational change and ideally offer insights into alternative directions.
Since its original conception eight years ago, the Chairs of this colloquium have sought to garner a wide range of views about the theory and practice of organisational change, that is, a broad access to the topic of organizational change has always been an important and highly appreciated tradition of the colloquium. Thus, while placing this year’s focus upon exposing the hidden assumptions of organisational change, the event is open to all contributions discussing current trends and specific challenges in organisational change theory and practice. As a guide only, papers are invited primarily, but not exclusively, on the following topics:
- constraints of current thinking of organisational change
- new approaches to observing and to managing change
- societal change and organisational development
- lessons learned from organisational change in public and non-business organisations
- new organisational forms and challenges to organizational change
- theoretical and philosophical foundations of management and organizational change
- organisational change in a time of austerity
- the enabling and restricting role of management development in change management
- the contribution of the HRM function to change management interventions
- arts and aesthetics as sources for inspiration and improvement in organisational change
- innovation and the process of change management
- the role of norms, values and ethical aspects on change management
- entrepreneurship and change management
- the management of organisational change with reference to product development and marketing
- influence of spirituality on change management
- diversity and organizational change and development
- the role of communication in change management projects
- the psychology underpinning organizational change and development
- the impact of organizational change on employees
- functions and benefits of resistance to organizational change
Due to the chosen focus, we are very open to contributions which even can vary in style of presenting an intriguing argument.
Submission of abstract : 15 April 2013 via the website http://www.eiasm.org/frontoffice/event_announcement.asp?event_id=963, Author notification: as of 6 May 2013
the venue takes place at Vlerick Business School (Ghent Campus), Reep 1, 9000 Gent - Belgium.
The conference organization is in the hands of Ms. Cristina Setyar - EIASM Conference Manager
EIASM - PLACE DE BROUCKÈRE-PLEIN - 31 - 1000 BRUSSELS - BELGIUM
Tel: +32 2 226 66 69 - Fax: +32 2 512 19 29
Email: cristina.setyar@eiasm.be
We are looking forward to receiving your abstracts and proposals!
best regards,
Prof. Dr. Ralf Wetzel
Associate Professor for Organization and Management
Vlerick Business School
Vlamingenstraat 83
BE-3000 Leuven
Phone: +32.16.24.88.38
Fax: +32.16.24.88.00
ralf.wetzel@vlerick.com