Managing Change in Extreme Contexts

Big mistakes, misconduct, serious accidents and other disasters are normally followed by investigations which explore what went wrong. However, in many cases the recommendations are very rarely acted upon. This book shows how the conventional ‘rules’ of change management do not always apply in extreme contexts. It explores other perspectives and approaches, as well as the challenges of implementing change in the aftermath of extreme events.

Extreme events such as accidents, crises and disasters occur in organizations of all types. Sometimes these hit the headlines, but they also occur regularly beyond the public gaze. What follows is normally an investigation in which ‘lessons will be learned’ and the event ‘must never happen again’. These produce recommendations to limit the damage from a future event, or to prevent it altogether. In many cases, this doesn’t happen, and the changes are not implemented. Why should this be the case?

Containing a unique collection of cross-sector and international case studies, this book investigates the conditions and processes that encourage or inhibit change after an extreme event. There are nine research-based cases including: a re-examination of change in Haringey Social Services in the aftermath of the deaths of Victoria Climbié and ‘Baby P’; a leak at Sellafield Nuclear reprocessing plant; an explosion on an offshore gas platform operated by Centrica Storage, and the multi-agency response to bush fires in Australia.

In providing a comprehensive analysis of organizational change and crisis management, the book identifies a common event sequence and recurrent issues, themes and mechanisms. The cross-case analysis provides both unique insights into organizational change following extreme events and realistic guidance for improving change implementation. The result is a resource that will be vital reading for advanced students, researchers and managers involved with organizational studies and crisis management.