Purpose – The purpose of this research is to make evident the inadequateness of concepts and language based on industrial knowledge still used in current practices by managers to cope with problems of the post‐industrial societies characterised by non‐linear process of emergence and...

Purpose – This article aims to outline the scope of this Special Issue and of the six papers. Design/methodology/approach – The paper outlines the concepts and approaches within the knowledge domain which are the focus of the present issue and themes of the papers. Findings – The paper...

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to describe fundamental concepts and theoretical challenges with regard to systems, and to build on these in proposing new theoretical frameworks relevant to learning, for example in so‐called learning organizations. Design/methodology/approach – The...

Purpose – The aim of this contribution is to describe a new complexity‐science‐based approach for improving safety, quality and efficiency and the way it was implemented by TenarisDalmine. Design/methodology/approach – This methodology is called “a safety‐building community”. It...

Purpose – The aim of this contribution is to describe a new methodology for designing strategic plans and how it was implemented by ATM, a public transportation agency based in Milan, Italy. Design/methodology/approach – This methodology is founded on a new system theory, called “quantum...

Purpose – Management practices and education are presently in a stage of reappraisal and a growing number of scholars and experts are suggesting that managers should be taught and adopt the approach and methodologies of designers. The purpose of this paper is to imagine the impact of this move...

Purpose – In the stream of works studying complexity from an organizational viewpoint, literature is focused mainly on describing new organizational forms (holonic organization, circular organization, virtual corporation, …) and on conceptual works identifying new managerial principles to...

Purpose – The purpose of this article is to expound the view that knowledge of a special kind, which the author terms open knowledge, has a central place in the conduct of human activities at the global level. Design/methodology/approach – The author advances the concept of open knowledge in...