When public matters go spectacularly wrong an official inquiry often ensues. Such an inquiry, conducted by legal and professional personnel, is an opportunity for learning that carries an obligation to attribute responsibility. The post hoc fixing of responsibility may aid or hinder learning....

In contemporary western society, questions of identity concerning "who am I?" and "how should I act?" (Alvesson, 2000: 1105) are now a central concern in people's lives. Indeed, the western, liquidly modern context (Bauman 2000; 2001; 2003; 2005; Bauman & Haugaard 2008; Bauman & Tester 2001) is characterized,...

In this empirical paper, we present a model of the dynamic legitimizing processes involved in the receiving and giving of compassion. We focus on the idea of being ‘worthy of compassion’ and show how ideas on giving and receiving compassion are highly contestable. Recognition of a worthy...

Hierarchy is habitually presented as the right organizational infrastructure through which to deploy and achieve strategy. We analyze the strategy process, specifically the strategy/execution debate, from the perspective of hierarchy, and contrast the hierarchical mode – where top management...