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Exploring Holacracy’s Influence on Social Sustainability Through the Lens of Adaptive Capacity

The organizational structure of Holacracy has been gaining popularity in recent years, but a lack of academic research on Holacracy called for a systematic approach to assessing its merits and shortcomings. The need Holacracy fills, is that of organizations dealing with a complex world and rapidly evolving technology. While Holacracy is not tailored to address sustainability issues, there are many components that made it a candidate for the researchers to examine it through a social sustainability lens. This study examines the effect of specific components of Holacracy with elements of adaptive capacity – a theory from which the research definition of social sustainability was built. With the goal of determining the effect of Holacracy on social sustainability, a questionnaire directed at employees and practitioners of holacratic organizations was utilized. The findings implied that Holacracy does positively influence the experience of the elements of adaptive capacity; with the relationship to the adaptive capacity element of self-organization being a standout. The importance of trust is also identified. The link to the Framework for Strategic Sustainable Development can be elucidated through adaptive capacity’s influence to the social sustainability principles. Because of the importance of social sustainability and social capital to organizational performance and longevity, this research is of value to any business using, or considering using Holacracy.

Identiferoai:union.ndltd.org:UPSALLA1/oai:DiVA.org:bth-12656
Date January 2016
CreatorsArcher, Isaiah, Muirhead, Lewis, Forrester-Wilson, Sarah
PublisherBlekinge Tekniska Högskola, Institutionen för strategisk hållbar utveckling, Blekinge Tekniska Högskola, Institutionen för strategisk hållbar utveckling, Blekinge Tekniska Högskola, Institutionen för strategisk hållbar utveckling
Source SetsDiVA Archive at Upsalla University
LanguageEnglish
Detected LanguageEnglish
TypeStudent thesis, info:eu-repo/semantics/bachelorThesis, text
Formatapplication/pdf
Rightsinfo:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess

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