Doing Process Research in Organizations

From an early career as a physics-trained geothermal hydrologist and environmental scientist, Barbara Simpson, a New Zealander by birth, turned to organization studies and moved to Scotland to pursue her interests in what makes organizations work. She was drawn to the practical philosophies of American Pragmatists, especially Mead, and has used these as a springboard into thinking more dynamically about organizations and their processes. Dissatisfied with the surprisingly static nature of much process theory she has, in recent years, been pursuing process ontology as a potentially rich, though undeniably challenging, way to extend her appreciation of practising in organizational contexts. She is Professor of Leadership and Organisational Dynamics at the University of Strathclyde. Line Revsbæk is Associate Professor of Organizational Processes in the Department of Culture and Learning at Aalborg University, Denmark. Building on her background as an organizational psychologist, she is concerned to innovate participatory and change-oriented research practices. Her research interests are innovation and learning dynamics in organizations. She works from process philosophy, particularly Pragmatism and the philosophy of George Herbert Mead, to suggest process ontological practices such as those offered in 'Analyzing in the Present' (co-authored with Lene Tanggaard, Qualitative Inquiry) and working from 'Resonant experience in emergent events of analysis' (Qualitative Studies).