Organization Theory

This shortform book presents an overview of theoretical and empirical work in the field of organization theory. In doing so, it both provides a critical analysis of the state of knowledge in the field and offers recommendations for future directions. It is about both thinking differently, and considering what is already known within Organization Theory. With coverage of the foundations of organisation studies, the importance of bureaucracy, and insights into institutional approaches, the book also makes space to consider the key role of alternatives in the development of the field. A panoply of modes of organizing the modern economy and civil society have arisen wherein it is often said that the platform has replaced the pyramid. Yet, in 2022, the pandemic underscores the state's responsibility to maintain public health through centralized and coherent organization rather than outsourcing, subcontracting and the gig economy. The book offers a new direction for research focusing upon 'organizational camouflage', where the unmasking of the large hierarchical corporation's enduring role in governing our everyday lives would become Organization Theory's revelatory task. Organization Theory: A Research Overview will be of value to researchers, scholars and students in the fields of business and management, especially those interested in the intersection of politics and organizations.

Gibson Burrell is Professor of Organization Theory at the University of Manchester, UK.

1. From the Personal to the Political, 2. What is an Organization?, 3. What is Organizing?, 4. What is Organization Theory?, 5. The Age of Camouflage, 6. Organizing Differently: Corruption, Peasants and Indigenous Organizations, 7. Beyond Conventional Organization Theory, 8. The Corporeal and the Corporate: Sites of Contested Ethics