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A Model of Obsolescence of Organizational Rules

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  • Martin Schulz

    (University of Washington)

Abstract

The phenomenon of obsolescence has found little attention in past research on organizational change. Most research on organizational change has instead been concerned with the opposite of obsolescence, that is, with mechanisms which render organizational structures increasingly persistent. However, everyday experience teaches that organizational structures become outdated as surrounding conditions shift. This article explores obsolescence by means of mathematical modeling and empirical analysis. Obsolescence is conceptualized as a result of flows of conditions in, out, and between two states: consistent conditions and inconsistent conditions. The model predicts that the obsoleteness curve rises with decreasing increments over time. This is tested with empirical data on organizational rule change. The results confirm the obsolescence model.

Suggested Citation

  • Martin Schulz, 1998. "A Model of Obsolescence of Organizational Rules," Computational and Mathematical Organization Theory, Springer, vol. 4(3), pages 241-266, October.
    • Handle: RePEc:spr:comaot:v:4:y:1998:i:3:d:10.1023_a:1009628528090
    DOI: 10.1023/A:1009628528090
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Robert A. Burgelman, 1991. "Intraorganizational Ecology of Strategy Making and Organizational Adaptation: Theory and Field Research," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 2(3), pages 239-262, August.
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    Cited by:

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    2. Brian W. Kulik & Timothy Baker, 2008. "Putting the organization back into computational organization theory: a complex Perrowian model of organizational action," Computational and Mathematical Organization Theory, Springer, vol. 14(2), pages 84-119, June.

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