Tensions in organizations transforming to agility

Strode, D. E., Sharp, H., Barroca, L., Gregory, P. and Taylor, K. (2022) Tensions in organizations transforming to agility. IEEE Transactions on Engineering Management, 69(6), pp. 3572-3583. (doi: 10.1109/TEM.2022.3160415)

Abstract

Transforming into an agile organisation is challenging because it involves complex changes across the organisation including changes to strategy, structure, culture, operations, and technology. Although much has been written about organisational agility, practitioners still call for authentic accounts and concrete experiences to help them understand how to transform. This article is based on three case studies of diverse organisations transforming to agility and provides an account of each transformation. Each organisation chose a different focus for their transformation: culture change, strategic change, and operational change. Each organisation faced challenges that resulted in tensions. We present 13 tensions from three cases, which illustrate the kinds of tension that organisations face in agile transformations. We consider these 13 tensions through the lens of paradox theory and thereby produce both practical guidance and theoretical contributions. We show how questions generated from this perspective may be used to guide transformation leaders and managers in addressing the tensions they will meet. Our findings provide empirical evidence for the tension categories in paradox theory and show that tensions occur during transformations to agility and not just in fully agile organisations.

• Item Type: Articles
• Keywords: Agile organization, change management, empowerment, organizational agility, organizational flexibility, organizational transformation, paradox, tension.
• Status: Published
• Refereed: Yes
• Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID: Gregory, Dr Peggy
• Authors: Strode, D. E., Sharp, H., Barroca, L., Gregory, P., and Taylor, K.
• Subjects: T Technology > T Technology (General)
• College/School: College of Science and Engineering > School of Computing Science
• Journal Name: IEEE Transactions on Engineering Management
• Publisher: IEEE
• ISSN: 0018-9391
• ISSN (Online): 1558-0040
• Published Online: 28 April 2022
• Copyright Holders: Copyright © 2022 IEEE
• First Published: First published in IEEE Transactions on Engineering Management 69(6):3572-3583
• Publisher Policy: Reproduced in accordance with the copyright policy of the publisher