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Chapter 9 Systemic Risks and Organizational Challenges in Transformative Processes: ‘Cybersecurity’ in the Food Field

  • Leonie Dendler , Manuel Nicklich , Sabine Pfeiffer and Annett Schulze
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The Handbook of Organizing Economic, Ecological and Societal Transformation
This chapter is in the book The Handbook of Organizing Economic, Ecological and Societal Transformation

Abstract

This contribution shows how ‘grand transformations’ - often framed as (technical) solutions to ‘grand challenges’ - can cause (follow-up) systemic risks, using digital transformation causing cybersecurity risks in the food field as an example. Drawing upon reviews of organization, risk, labor, science and technology and communication literature, it discusses how organizations can shape and cope with the complexity, uncertainty, ambiguity and rippling effects of systemic risks and overall transformations. In particular, it illustrates how problem solving extends to several levels - technical-organizational structures, socio-technical interactions as well as all actors and their communication with each other need to be considered. Thus, not only questions about interfaces and inter-organizational structures but also the process level - and hence the ‘risk work’ at the frontline - are central to the challenge of cybersecurity and other systemic risks. Developing a multi-disciplinary perspective on the complex relationship between risk, communication and organizing, the contribution calls to move beyond purely technical problem-solving towards more participatory architectures and distributed experimentation.

Abstract

This contribution shows how ‘grand transformations’ - often framed as (technical) solutions to ‘grand challenges’ - can cause (follow-up) systemic risks, using digital transformation causing cybersecurity risks in the food field as an example. Drawing upon reviews of organization, risk, labor, science and technology and communication literature, it discusses how organizations can shape and cope with the complexity, uncertainty, ambiguity and rippling effects of systemic risks and overall transformations. In particular, it illustrates how problem solving extends to several levels - technical-organizational structures, socio-technical interactions as well as all actors and their communication with each other need to be considered. Thus, not only questions about interfaces and inter-organizational structures but also the process level - and hence the ‘risk work’ at the frontline - are central to the challenge of cybersecurity and other systemic risks. Developing a multi-disciplinary perspective on the complex relationship between risk, communication and organizing, the contribution calls to move beyond purely technical problem-solving towards more participatory architectures and distributed experimentation.

Chapters in this book

  1. Frontmatter I
  2. Contents V
  3. List of Contributors IX
  4. Part One: By Way of Introduction
  5. Chapter 1 Organizing Economic, Environmental and Societal Transformation: An Introduction 1
  6. Chapter 2 Transformation: For Whom, By Whom, Where, Why and When? 27
  7. Part Two: Opening Up Futures
  8. Chapter 3 Post-anthropocentric Transformations of Consumption in the Anthropocene: Beyond the Nature-Culture Divide 49
  9. Chapter 4 ‘Organising Social Impact’ Master’s Programme as ‘Critical Praxis’ to Transform the University and Society 69
  10. Chapter 5 Futures: Necessity, Experiment and the School for Organizing 87
  11. Part Three: Techno-economic Transformations at Work
  12. Chapter 6 The Social Construction of Digital Technologies: The Politics behind Technology-centered Transformations 103
  13. Chapter 7 The Transformation of Work in the Digital Age: Coworking Spaces as Community-Based Models of Work Organization 125
  14. Chapter 8 Organizing Around Affect: Control and Potentiality in Contemporary Capitalism 145
  15. Part Four: Sustainable Environmental Transformation
  16. Chapter 9 Systemic Risks and Organizational Challenges in Transformative Processes: ‘Cybersecurity’ in the Food Field 165
  17. Chapter 10 Uniting the Means and Ends of Degrowth Transformation 189
  18. Chapter 11 Economic Organizations and the Transformation Towards Degrowth 209
  19. Part Five: Radical Democratic Futures
  20. Chapter 12 Organizing for Social Transformation from Below: Prefigurative Organizing and Civic Action 235
  21. Chapter 13 From Stakeholders to Communities of Care 257
  22. Chapter 14 The Possibilities of Radical Democratic Management 275
  23. Chapter 15 Searching for Transformative Potential: Comparing Conceptualizations of Open, Inclusive and Alternative Organizations 295
  24. Index 315
https://doi.org/10.1515/9783110986945-009

Chapters in this book

  1. Frontmatter I
  2. Contents V
  3. List of Contributors IX
  4. Part One: By Way of Introduction
  5. Chapter 1 Organizing Economic, Environmental and Societal Transformation: An Introduction 1
  6. Chapter 2 Transformation: For Whom, By Whom, Where, Why and When? 27
  7. Part Two: Opening Up Futures
  8. Chapter 3 Post-anthropocentric Transformations of Consumption in the Anthropocene: Beyond the Nature-Culture Divide 49
  9. Chapter 4 ‘Organising Social Impact’ Master’s Programme as ‘Critical Praxis’ to Transform the University and Society 69
  10. Chapter 5 Futures: Necessity, Experiment and the School for Organizing 87
  11. Part Three: Techno-economic Transformations at Work
  12. Chapter 6 The Social Construction of Digital Technologies: The Politics behind Technology-centered Transformations 103
  13. Chapter 7 The Transformation of Work in the Digital Age: Coworking Spaces as Community-Based Models of Work Organization 125
  14. Chapter 8 Organizing Around Affect: Control and Potentiality in Contemporary Capitalism 145
  15. Part Four: Sustainable Environmental Transformation
  16. Chapter 9 Systemic Risks and Organizational Challenges in Transformative Processes: ‘Cybersecurity’ in the Food Field 165
  17. Chapter 10 Uniting the Means and Ends of Degrowth Transformation 189
  18. Chapter 11 Economic Organizations and the Transformation Towards Degrowth 209
  19. Part Five: Radical Democratic Futures
  20. Chapter 12 Organizing for Social Transformation from Below: Prefigurative Organizing and Civic Action 235
  21. Chapter 13 From Stakeholders to Communities of Care 257
  22. Chapter 14 The Possibilities of Radical Democratic Management 275
  23. Chapter 15 Searching for Transformative Potential: Comparing Conceptualizations of Open, Inclusive and Alternative Organizations 295
  24. Index 315
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