Strategies in Failure Management (eBook)

Sebastian Kunert is a Managing Partner at the consultancy 'artop – Institute' at Humboldt-University Berlin, Germany. Furthermore, he is Professor for Human Resources and Organizational Studies at Business and Information Technology School, Berlin. He graduated in Psychology and received his doctoral degree from Humboldt-University Berlin. His main research interests focus on innovation management ecosystems, organizational culture, leadership, project management, and evaluation.

Editorial 7
Reference 8
Contents 9
About the Authors 11
Introduction 29
The Spectre of Failure 29
Increase Versus Decrease 29
Systemic Versus Personalized 31
For the Worse Versus for the Better 31
Conclusion 33
References 33
Part I: Failure Inside Companies 35
Failure in Organizational Change 36
Change in Organizations 36
Failure at the Structural Level 38
The Modular Inventory for Organizational Research (modul_or) 39
Case Study 40
Failure at the Process Level 42
Unfreezing 42
Moving 43
Re-Freezing 44
Case Study 45
Dealing with Failure 46
Is Failure Good? 46
Which Failures Are Good? 47
Who Deals with Failure in Organizational Change? 47
Resistance to Organizational Change: Failure Risk or Opportunity? 48
Lessons from Failure 49
References 50
Online Resources 52
Failure in Innovation: Is There Such a Thing? 53
Setting the Scene 53
Want to Succeed in the Twenty-First Century? Innovate! 55
A Word on Fear 58
Failure? But Not As We Know It! 61
Failure to Provide Direction 61
Case Study 62
Failure to Establish a Shared Definition 62
Failure to Ensure Required Resources Are Available 63
Failure to Experiment and Push Beyond the Immediately Obvious 63
Failure to Capture Learning 63
Failure to Invite Everyone 64
Case Study 64
Failure to Ensure Diversity 65
Failure to Mitigate Risk 65
Tips and Tools for Minimising Failure 66
Consider Context 66
Collaborate 66
Case Study 67
Embrace the Concept of `Sunk Cost´ 67
Staged Commitment 68
Case Study 68
Prototype 68
Celebrate Failure 69
Closing Thoughts 69
References 69
Online Resources 71
Failure in Projects 72
Failure Rates and Factors in Projects 72
Purpose of Projects 75
Failure in Initiating a Project 76
Failure in Planning a Project 78
Failure in Conducting a Project 80
Ill Defined Tasks 80
Time 81
Team 81
Leadership 82
Motivation 82
Emotion 83
Failure in Transferring a Project 83
Project Information 84
Organizational Resonance and Decision 85
Dealing with Failure in Projects 85
Failure in Learning from Failure 86
Case study 87
Conclusion 88
References 88
Online Resources 91
Failure in Teams: Why Successful Teams Do Not Fail (So Often) 92
Introduction 92
Requirements for Successful Teamwork: What Makes a Successful Team Different? 93
Factors of Successful Teamwork 94
Factors of Successful Team Processes 94
Case Study 94
Routine Processes: The Enemy of Innovation 96
Case Study 96
Action Regulation of Teams in Critical Situations 97
Case Study 97
Information Search, Analysis and Transfer 97
Case Study 98
Planning and Decision Making 99
Case Study 99
Reflection and Learning 99
Can Successful Teams be Formed from Unsuccessful Teams? 101
References 102
Online Resources 103
Failure of Leadership 104
Introduction 104
Defining Leadership and Management 105
Fail to Develop a Clear Vision and Mission Statement 106
Fail to Develop a Results-Driven Organization 107
Fail to Recruit and Develop Competent Workers 107
Fail to Build a Collaborative Climate 108
Case Study 108
Fail to Define the Operational Concepts 109
Fail to Recognize that Gravity Wins 109
Fail to Recognize that Strategies Die 110
Fail to Recognize that Virtues Matter 110
Fail to be Flexible 111
Fail to Assume Responsibility 111
Fail to Recognize the Human Nature of the Organizations 112
Fail to Create a Culture of Fun 113
Case Study 114
Fail to Trust Your People 114
Conclusions: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly 115
References 116
Online Resources 119
Failure in Innovation Decision Making 120
Introduction 120
Failure in Managerial Decision Making 121
Innovations as (Cognitive) Psychological Processes 121
Innovation Processes as Cognitively Challenging Fields of Action 122
Novelty 122
Uncertainty 122
Complexity 122
Conflicts 123
Volatility 123
Bounded Rationality in Innovation Decision Making 124
Failure Due to Wishful Thinking 124
Case Study 124
Failure Due to Overconfidence 125
Failure Due to the ``Not-Invented-Here´´ Phenomenon 125
Failure Due to Inappropriate Project Models 126
Failure Due to the Confirmation Bias 126
Failure Due to the ``Sunk Cost Fallacy´´ 126
Case Study 126
Ways to Deal with Biases 127
Conclusion 128
References 129
Online Resources 131
Failure in Personnel Development 132
Introduction 132
The Transfer-Problem: Literature Review 133
Diagnostics 134
Interventions 136
Case Study 140
Conclusion 142
References 142
Online Resources 144
Failure in Startup Companies: Why Failure Is a Part of Founding 145
Introduction 145
Why Do Foundations Fail? 147
EXIST Study 147
Study of CB Insights 149
Study of the Startup Genome Project 149
Study of the DIHK 150
Internal and External Reasons for the Failure of Company Foundations 151
Internal Reasons 151
Individual Reasons and Reasons Within the Team 152
Development ``Past the Market´´, Presented by the Example of Why-Own-It 154
``Bad Marketing´´, Presented by the Example of Segway 155
External Reasons 155
``Lacking Capital´´, Presented by the Example of Webvan 156
``Incorrect Time for the Product´´, Presented by the Example of boo.com 156
``Overtaken by the Competition´´ Using the Example of studiVZ 157
The Different Culture of Failure 158
What Do We Learn from It? 162
References 162
Online Resources 164
Failure in Public Relations: Non-profit Organizations Facing Growing Challenges 165
Case Study 165
Legitimacy 166
The Special PR Risks NPOs Face 166
Crucial Conflicts 168
How NPOs Can Respond to PR Crises 168
Risks: Discrepancies and Trust 169
Discrepancy Risks 169
Trust Risks 170
Public Trust: License to Operate 171
Scandals and Frames: Forms of Failure 172
Framing 173
Short Skill Set for Public Relations in Times of Trouble 174
Worst Frame Scenario 175
De-framing/Re-framing 175
Story 175
Protagonists 176
Timing 176
Case Study 176
References 177
Online Resources 178
Failure in Intercultural Cooperation 179
References 182
Part II: Failure Beyond Companies 183
Failure in Consulting: Consultation Cannot Fail! 184
In Lieu of an Introduction: Anticipation of the Bottom Line 184
Case Study 185
Customers and/or Clients: The Inversion of Dependency 187
Success and/or Failure: Who Decides the Outcome? 188
Methodology and Flow: Structuring Laissez-Faire 188
Methodological Handles 188
The Order of Space and Time 189
Free-Floating 189
Distance and Closeness: The Affection Trap 190
Too Much Distance 191
Too Much Closeness 191
Primary Frustration and Secondary Satisfaction 191
How Much Longer? How Much Consulting Can One Take? 192
Knowledge and Ignorance: Searching for Information 193
Searching for Information: The Curiosity Drive 193
Variety of Consultation and/or Exclusive Consultation: Consultation Failing Because of Consultation 195
Case Study 195
Case Study 196
Can Consultation Fail? 196
References 197
Online Resources 197
Failure in Coaching: Between Professional Craft and the Art of Creating a Relationship 198
Introduction 198
Professional Coaching in Organizations 198
Relationships, Multiple Perspectives, and Context in Coaching 201
Clarify, Clarify, Clarify 205
Do I Feel Safe? 206
Do I Feel Secure When Communicating with the Other Person? 206
Does our Relationship Have a Quality of Its Own? 206
Are We Compatible with Regard to Emotional, Content-Related, and Temporal Factors? 208
Do We Work Together in a Focused, Attentive Manner? 208
Can My Needs be Addressed and the Other´s Too? 208
Has a Distribution of Roles Arisen that Corresponds to the Context? 208
Do We Show Each Other How We Are Amazed, Thoughtful, or Empathetic? 209
Is Our Relationship Developing? 209
Do We Both Benefit from the Encounter? 209
Can We Talk About Our Communication? 209
Outlook 210
References 210
Online Resources 212
Failure of Networks and Network Management 213
Introduction 213
A Network Concept Far Too Broad 214
The Specific Network Concept 215
Case study 216
Network Pillar 1: Negotiation Through Mediation and Moderation 217
Network Pillar 2: Trust Based on Common Culture 218
Network Pillar 3: Flexibility Through Change and Innovation 219
From Network to Network Management and Its Failure 221
Failure 1: The Mindset of Classical Management 221
Failure 2: External Network Management 222
Failure 3: Network as a Formal Structure 223
Failure 4: Retreat to the Back Office 224
Failure 5: Latent Conflicts, No Negotiation 224
Failure 6: No De-personalization 225
Failure 7: Only Trust and No Distrust 226
Summary 228
References 228
Failure in Volunteer Work: A Call for Strategic Volunteer Management 232
Introduction 232
Theoretical Background: Volunteering and Human Motivation 234
Ways to Fail in the Non-profit Sector: Three Levels of Analysis 236
Task-Related Characteristics 236
Role Ambiguity 236
Case Study 1 237
Unmet Role Expectations 237
Case Study 2 238
Case Study 3 238
Psychological Contracts and Illegitimate Tasks 238
Case Study 4 239
Lack of Matching Between Volunteers´ Skills and Job Tasks 239
Case Study 5 240
Social Characteristics 240
Lack of Recognition 240
Case Study 6 241
Lack of Social Support 241
Structural Characteristics 242
Lack of Vision and Goal-Setting 242
Lack of Strategic Planning in Terms of Diversity and Changing Work Environment 243
Recommendations 244
Conclusion 247
References 247
Online Resources 250
Failure in Public Institutions: Characteristics of Organizational Culture in the Military 251
Failure and Success: Logic of the Military 251
Hot Failure 252
Failure in War 253
Failure in Seizing Power 253
Failure as Process of Disintegration 254
Cold Failure 255
Failure in Management 255
Failure in Group Cohesion 256
Failure as a Lack of Identity 257
Breakfast in the Culture Club 257
Conclusion 258
References 258
Online Resources 259
Failure in Health: Burnout as an Intuitive Competence for Setting Health-Conducive Personal Boundaries 260
Words and Other Focussing Measures Produce Reality 260
Concepts Shape Relationships with Experience 261
Favourably Shaping a Relationship with Experience 262
Why Burnout? 263
Burnout as a Contribution to Overcoming the Effects of the ``Failure´´ Construct 264
Burnout as a Competence? 265
Burnout: The Intuitive Competence of Setting Health-Conducive and Meaningful Personal Boundaries 265
Hypnosystemic Strategies for Optimal Self-Regulation 266
Meta-Balance as an Ambivalence Competence 266
Harmonious Unhappiness 266
Building Empathetic Regulation Positions 267
Utilising Symptoms as Competent ``Ambassadors of Valuable Needs´´ 268
Focus on Inner Harmony 268
``Squash Point´´ Strategy 269
``Problem Solution Exercise or Problem Solution Tai Chi´´ with Utilisation of Stress Triggers and Stress Reactions 270
Development of Meaning and Decision-Making Strategies for Life Balance in These Double Bind Situations 271
Agreements in Solidarity with Our Own ``Future Ego´´ 272
Inner ``Parliamentary Democracy´´ 273
Journey into the Solution Times for the Development of Meaning 274
Relationship-Forming Effect of a Different Attitude to One´s Self 276
Analysing the Effects of Changed Behaviour with Respect to the Context of the Causes 276
Case Study 277
Failure: Is Not the End 284
References 285
Online Resources 285
Failure in Design 286
Failure in Design: Definition 286
Failure in the Design Development Process 288
Problems in Interdisciplinary Cooperation 288
Recommendation 289
Failure Due to Lack of Adherence to Process 290
Recommendation 290
Case Study 291
Failure in Design: New Ideas Are Based on Design Failures 291
Recommendation 291
Further Creativity Tools 292
Failure in Design: Listen to Your Customers? 293
Recommendation 295
Case Study 295
Recommendation 296
Failure of Design Recognition 296
Failure of Communication on the Level of Perception 296
Failure of Communication on the Level of Meaning 297
Recommendation 298
Design Failure as a Value 298
Planned Failure of Design: Obsolescence 299
Case Study 299
Case Study 300
Conclusion 300
One Last Remark on the Development of the Discipline of Design 302
References 303
Online Resources 304
Failure in Use of Technology 305
Introduction 305
What Means Failure of Technology? 307
Human-Related Factors in Failure of Technology 308
Task-Related Factors in Failure of Using Technology 308
Organization-Related Factors in Failure of Technology 312
Technology-Related Factors in Failure of Technology 313
Users, Tasks, Context and Technology Do Not Match 313
Levels of Action Regulation 314
Failure at All Levels 315
Failure at the Level of Automated Skills 316
Failure on the Knowledge-Based Level 317
Desired Failure 317
Barriers Let Mistakes Fail 318
The Misconception Not to Fail 319
Failure Due to Inappropriate Trust in Technology 321
Summary 322
References 323
Online Resources 324
Failure in Sports 325
Introduction 325
Success in Sports Is all About FAILURE! 325
Case Study 326
Failure as a Short-Term Experience 328
Short-Term Experience as a Time Interval 329
Umbrella Organizations 330
Clubs 331
Sponsors 332
Short-Term Experience as a Simple Defeat 332
Failure and the Development of Personalities 333
Failure and Emotion 334
Case Study 335
Failure and Core Competencies 336
Sport and Society 336
Sports and Social Media 337
What It Takes to Be the Number One 340
Final Statement 341
References 342
Online Resources 342
Failure on Stage 343