Organizational learning from crisis

• The chapter explores the concepts of crisis, leadership and learning. It takes a critical glance at research, opinion and advice from the interdisciplinary field of crisis management studies. Analysts using literature from the nascent field of crisis management studies as a point of departure, tend to look at a crisis as a series of interconnected challenges presented to leaders of firms, agencies or organizational units. Under conditions of uncertainty, complexity, time pressure, and threats to core values, leaders are expected to make sense of unfolding events, make and implement strategic decisions, clarify complex issues of accountability and mandates, and convey meaning to these processes in internal and external communication. When management of the crisis is approaching termination, leaders find themselves playing an important role in the return to normalcy. Apart from managing the present crisis, leaders are also expected to prevent crisis repetition. Amidst hazardous, uncertain and stressful conditions then, leaders need to notice and reflect upon lessons enabling them to prevent future crises, and at a later stage make sure that these lessons are implemented throughout their organizations. Learning from crisis experience thus becomes a core task and demanding challenge for any leader. So far the important issue of crisis-induced learning has only attracted limited attention from scholars. There are only a few studies on the topic and even fewer relate to the strategic management and leadership perspective. This chapter takes stock of this budding knowledge on the crossroads of crisis management, organizational learning and leadership. Moreover, it suggests some implications for practice and points out potential trajectories for future research. 

Ämnesord

SAMHÄLLSVETENSKAP  -- Statsvetenskap (hsv//swe)

SOCIAL SCIENCES  -- Political Science (hsv//eng)

Nyckelord

business and management

organisational behaviour

politics and public policy

leadership

Statsvetenskap med inriktning mot krishantering och internationell samverkan

Statsvetenskap med inriktning mot krishantering och internationell samverkan

Publikations- och innehållstyp

ref (ämneskategori)

kap (ämneskategori)