A Strategic Approach to Crisis Management and Organizational Resilience

The paper adopts a strategic view on organizational survival and argues that preparedness, responsiveness, adaptability and learning abilities constitute organizational drivers of resilience and a new direction on crisis management. As a conceptual and literature exploration, the methodological focus is to combine various concepts within a unified model for resilience. The proposed conceptual model highlights the need for strategic reconfigurations toward the construction of a resilience culture and the development of a supporting social capital in organizations. It also portrays organizational survival and sustainability as dependent on strategic characteristics rather than the managerial ability to handle situations and manage crisis. Implications, methodological concerns in the study of resilience and further research directions are also presented. The paper approaches a new way of thinking about crises and provides a set of cultural and organisational characteristics that would increase resilience and crisis management abilities. While organisations are nowadays more than even affected by disruptions and crises, their inherent ability and strategies to protect their sustainability have been under theorized. This paper aims at contributing to a growing and fruitful discussion

Acoustic and mechanical properties of luffa fiber-reinforced biocomposites

This chapter presents an overview of acoustic and mechanical behaviors of luffa fiber reinforced biocomposites. A growing number of studies are examining the composites of biodegradable fibers such as flax, hemp, kenaf and luffa due to the adverse effects of chemical materials on nature. The low cost and superior acoustic and acceptable mechanical properties of biocomposites make them very attractive for practical applications such as sound and vibration isolation. However, the acoustic and mechanical characteristics of biocomposites and their dynamic behaviors should be fully determined before considering them for practical applications. In this chapter, acoustic properties, such as sound absorption and transmission loss, and mechanical properties, such as damping and elasticity of luffa fiber reinforced composites, are presented. The variations in acoustic and mechanical properties due to different samples and manufacturing process are explored.WOS:000532438200017Scopus - Affiliation ID: 60105072Book Citation Index- ScienceArticle; Book ChapterOcak2019YÖK - 2018-1

Narratives of organizational crises in the mass media: the VIOXX case

In this paper, we appreciate the role of the mass media in the projection of organizational images as structured narrative spaces where socio-mnemonic operations and mimetic processes influence the production of the crisis in a public setting. Mediated narratives of organizational events are in dialogical relation with pre-existing texts, genres and narrative forms that challenge the power relations among social actors. The case of Vioxx is used as an indicative example where media dynamics can be studied and conceptualised

Leading Voluntary Organisations: an investigation of patterns, narratives and the value of authenticity

The voluntary sector and non-profit organisations has always been at a crossroad. Voluntary sector theories and practice may either choose to implement mainstream management theory into a different not for profit context (Agart, 2011; Beck et al., 2008); or they depend on a relatively small set of knowledge that embraces the particularities of the sector (for example Classens, 2015; Richards & Hall, 2016). Research on Leadership of voluntary organisations has been stratified into an exploration of leadership styles (Bang, 2011; Northouse, 2009) and the development of conceptual considerations based on the member-exchange theory. In our paper we reverse the order and argue that mainstream leadership theory would benefit from an investigation of leading processes and realities in non-profit organisations. Leaders in the voluntary sector have to operate in a volatile, resource-constrained context while engaging employees and donors around a specific cause. We draw on Bourdieu’s “Distinction” and the notion of Symbolic Capital to conceptualise leaders as symbolic capital mechanisms. An empirical investigation of the three largest NGOs in Greece reveals three key patterns of ‘successful’ non-profit leaders: the personalisation of the organisation, a strong influence of the mass media and the narrative rationalisation of internal challenges and resources scarcity. On a deeper level, interviews with members of the researched organisations reveal the role of perceived authenticity and ‘applied wisdom’ in constructing influence and stability within an otherwise volatile organisational setting. Although we are reluctant to specify methods of good leadership, we argue that there are findings and lessons that could inform leadership research which has been examining the concepts of wisdom (see Nonaka & Takeuchi, 2011)

Reputation performance: a portfolio selection approach

This paper introduces a normative view on corporate reputation strategic management. Reputation performance is conceptualised as the outcome of complex processes and social interactions and the lack of a holistic reputation performance management framework is identified. In an attempt to fill this gap, a portfolio-based approach is put forward. Drawing on the foundations of modern portfolio theory we create a portfolio-based reputation management algorithmic model where reputation components and priorities are weighted by decision makers and shape organisational change in an attempt to formulate a corporate reputation strategy. The rationale of this paper is based on the foundational consideration of organisations as choosing he optimal strategy by seeking to maximise their reputation performance while maintaining organisational stability and minimising organisational risk

Supply chain resilience: definition of concept and its formative elements

The objective of this paper is to conceptualize Supply Chain Resilience (SCRes) and identify which supply chain capabilities can support the containment of disruptions and how these capabilities affect SCRes. Through a systematic and structured review of literature, this paper provides insights into the conceptualization and research methodological background of the SCM field. A total of one hundred and thirty four carefully selected refereed journal articles were systematically analyzed leading to the introduction of a novel definition for SCRes, which the authors view as the as “the ability to proactively plan and design the Supply Chain network for anticipating unexpected disruptive (negative) events, respond adaptively to disruptions while maintaining control over structure and function and transcending to a post-event robust state of operations, if possible, more favorable than the one prior to the event, thus gaining competitive advantage”. Finally, a critical examination of existing conceptual frameworks for understanding the relationships between the SCRes concept and its identified formative elements, is taking plac

Introducing corporate reputation continuity to support organizational resilience against crises

As Corporate Reputation (CR) evolves into an important asset for organizations, crises, disasters and other supply chain disruptive events, stand as threats to the preservation of the reputation capital since they usually result to negative projections to their audiences and to problematic evaluations by their stakeholders. Viewing CR as the accumulated trust and positive evaluations of the stakeholders, this paper proposes a conceptual and normative framework for Reputation Continuity, which enhances the ability of organizations to preserve their reputation, instead of working for its recovery in the post-crisis period. In our approach, we propose a process of maintaining trusted links, instead of restoring them and establishing a reputation resilient organization, instead of one struggling to recover from reputation losses, after the crisis has emerged. Working closely with stakeholders during the crisis, injecting a sense of normality continuity through effective leadership and mitigating image problems are seen as critical concerns, alongside a set of managerial practices to be followed. Ultimately, it is argued that, the value-based and strategically integrated view of Business Continuity must be enhanced and supported by Reputation Continuity activities

Disaster Supply Chain Management: Responsive Inter-organizational Networks Under Pressure

Supply Chains are often required to absorb unexpected pressure, turbulent changes in demand and disruptions across their structural components. In this paper, we acknowledge both the inter-organizational and collaborative nature of supply chains and explore how established logistics structures respond to conditions of crises as a result of unforeseen natural events and disasters. After a brief review of existing practices in the area of Disaster Supply Chain Management (DCSM) we focus on identifying and presenting the sharing 'realities' of inter-organizational networks through a short case study showcasing the situational, complex and temporal nature of responsive networks under pressure