The SAGE Handbook of Process Organization Studies
- Ann Langley - HEC Montreal, Canada
- Haridimos Tsoukas - University of Cyprus, Cyprus
Organizational Behavior
The SAGE Handbook of Process Organization Studies provides a comprehensive and timely overview of the field. This volume offers a compendium of perspectives on process thinking, process organizational theory, process research methodology and empirical applications. The emphasis is on a combination of pedagogical contributions and in-depth reviews of current thinking and research in each of the selected areas, combined with the development of agendas for future research.
The Handbook is divided into five sections:
- Part One: Process Philosophy
- Part Two: Process Theory
- Part Three: Process Methodology
- Part Four: Process Applications
- Part Five: Process Perspectives
Langley and Tsoukas have gathered together a roster of thoughtful scholars who reflect on the theories, methods and applications of process analysis. For experienced scholars, it is a useful birds-eye view for reflecting on the field as a whole and on the ‘process turn’ in organizational studies. For new scholars, this volume provides a series of hand holds for becoming effective process researchers.
The SAGE Handbook of Process Organization Studies is a remarkable collection of scholarship - a way station where scholars with an interest in process questions can pause to take stock of the field, regroup, and continue to unpack how anything organizational arises, flourishes, and expires over time. While each of the five sections in the book forms a stepping stone for navigating one aspect of contemporary process organizing, the sections collectively constitute a comprehensive roadmap for guiding the field for years to come. Editors Ann Langley and Hari Tsoukas deserve praise for imagining the volume, solidifying the process agenda, and making a major contribution to the field of process organization studies.
Chapter 41 in this compelling Handbook is titled, “Making process visible: alternatives to boxes and arrows.” That title describes the essence of all 42 of these chapters, written by a remarkable assemblage of seasoned process scholars. Fluid times demand fluid organizing and these authoritative discussions provide deep insights into ways that flows of flux and hunches are patterned. Langley and Tsoukas have created an invaluable guide that helps everyone transform the ineffable into vivid experience.
This wonderful collection of essays unpacks the field of Process Organization Studies, guiding the reader through its roots in process philosophy and relationship to core theoretical and methodological approaches, to explore the meaning of a process perspective on key topics in contemporary organizational theory. With thoughtful, richly illustrated, and often provocative contributions from an extremely distinguished, international set of process scholars, the Sage Handbook of Process Organization Studies offers both a comprehensive overview for the novice researcher, and a deep dive into this increasingly influential field for those already familiar with its core ideas.
Over the last four decades, a ‘process turn’ has gradually taken place within organization studies and the social sciences more broadly. This handbook provides an invaluable source for students and academics who want to understand what a process perspective is, and what it has to offer organization studies. Langley and Tsoukas have skillfully compiled an impressive set of chapters by leading process scholars, covering the entire spectrum of process organization studies: from process philosophy, process theory, process methodology to process applications. A rare intellectual treat indeed!
Grounded in diverse ontologies, this Handbook is the magnum opus of process work in organizational studies. Featuring an all-star cast of scholars, this volume covers the vast landscape of process issues from philosophical roots to methodological challenges to applications in such arenas as strategy, leadership, entrepreneurship, and sustainability, among others. It defines the breadth and depth of this work, distills knowledge from process studies in the field, and provides cutting-edge thinking about contemporary issues. It is a must-read volume for process researchers and an essential reference work for all organizational scholarship.
