Management of Extreme Situations From Polar Expeditions to Exploration-oriented Organizations

In response to the rise of various forms of the extreme in economies, organizations and societies (such as disruptive innovation, climate emergency, financial crisis, high-risk sport, etc.), an ambitious 21st century program sets the agenda of management sciences around the unknown, disruption, uncertainty and risk.

Management of Extreme Situations presents the research results from the conference organized at the Cerisy-la-Salle International Cultural Center, France, in 2016. It testifies to the existence of an international community that brings together, around management sciences, various disciplines studying the management concept of extreme situations.

Through the analysis of varied contexts (polar and mountain expeditions, fire rescue services, exploration projects in the military field, creative industries, etc.), this book offers an initial grammar of the extreme. It presents a heuristic for the management of these situations – particularly in terms of sensemaking, ambidexterity and knowledge expansion.

Pascal Lièvre is Professor in Management Sciences at Clermont Auvergne University, France.

Monique Aubry is Professor of Project Management at the Université du Québec à Montréal, Canada.

Gilles Garel is Professor of Innovation Management at the National Conservatory of Arts and Crafts, France.

Preface xvii

Cerisy Symposiums. Selection of Publications xxi

Introduction xxv

Part 1. Exploration and the Extreme 1

Section 1. The Logic of Exploration 3

Chapter 1. An Exemplary Exploration Story: Nansen’s Expedition to the North Pole 5
Pascal LIÈVRE

1.1. Introduction 5

1.2. A project that makes “sense” because it is consistent with an identity-based learning trajectory 7

1.3. A radical dual ambidextrous capacity 9

1.3.1. Planning 10

1.3.2. Adaptation 11

1.3.3. Exploration 12

1.3.4. Exploitation 12

1.4. A dynamic of knowledge expansion in terms of an epistemic community 13

1.4.1. The Intention 14

1.4.2. The spark 15

1.4.3. The manifesto 15

1.4.4. Various experts who formed a community around the project 15

1.4.5. A continuous increase in implementing knowledge 16

1.5. Conclusion 16

1.6. References 17

Chapter 2. Project Management in Extreme Situations: The Manhattan Case 21
Sylvain LENFLE

2.1. Introduction 21

2.2. The origins of the Manhattan project 22

2.3. Exploring the unknown 23

2.4. The Manhattan Project organization 26

2.5. Project management as sensemaking 29

2.6. The expansive legacy of the Manhattan project and the limit of the metaphor 32

2.7. References 34

Section 2. Exploration Testimonies 37

Chapter 3. Exploration, the Common Theme of a Training System on Innovation 39
Bruno STÉVENIN and Éric DÉPRAETERE

3.1. The initial context at the origin of the adventure 39

3.2. The launch and preparation of the training program characteristic of exploration 40

3.3. The heart of program design: a step-by-step exploration 42

3.4. The transition to exploitation 49

3.5. Conclusion 52

3.6. 2017, Toward future explorations 53

3.7. References 53

Chapter 4. A New Progress Technique in the Himalayas 55
Paulo GROBEL

4.1. Introduction 55

4.2. The Himalayan technique, a reference 55

4.3. The emergence of new strategies 56

4.4. But also, listening to the doctors’ recommendations... 57

4.5. “Doing it together” 57

4.6. Snail strategy, gentle progression, slow expedition, continuous progression? 58

4.6.1. Toward a name change 58

4.6.2. We have therefore named our strategy “progression douce” (gentle progression) 59

4.6.3. The gentle progression has become “the snail’s strategy” 59

4.6.4. The snail strategy has been transformed into a slow expedition 60

4.6.5. Slow expedition now becomes continuous progress 60

4.7. Not to conclude.... 60

Section 3. Toward an Extreme Ethnography 63

Chapter 5. Some Methodological Considerations in Relation to the Objects Involved 65
Mondher KILANI

Chapter 6. Ethnography of the Extreme: Epistemological and Methodological Issues of the Use of Video 75
Géraldine RIX-LIÈVRE

6.1. Introduction 75

6.2. An involved and involving ethnography 77

6.3. Interests and limitations of the use of video in the production of materials 79

6.4. Video, a modality of ethnographic writing 81

6.5. Video, for an ethnography of activity 83

6.6. References 88

Part 2. Creativity and Organizational Reliability 91

Section 4. Organizational Creativity 93

Chapter 7. Management of a Crisis Situation in a Large Video Game Studio 95
Patrick COHENDET and Laurent SIMON

7.1. Introduction 95

7.2. A creativity crisis at Ubisoft’s studio 96

7.3. Management of a major crisis 99

7.3.1. Bisociation 99

7.3.2. The recomposition of routines by a sequence of bisociations 101

7.4. Conclusion 103

7.5. References 103

Chapter 8. Organizing Innovative Design or How to Remain an Explorer: The Case of Creaholic 105
Gilles GAREL

8.1. Introduction 105

8.2. Innovative design and ambidextry 106

8.2.1. Forms of ambidexterity 107

8.2.2. Ambidextrous relationships 109

8.3. The case of Creaholic, an innovative design company 110

8.3.1. Creaholic, an IDE that produces repeated innovation 110

8.3.2. A relevant governance structure 112

8.4. Discussion and conclusion: the IDE and a return to exploitation 116

8.5. References 119

Section 5. Creativity under Constraint 121

Chapter 9. Creativity under Constraint: A Management Sciences Perspective 123
Guy PARMENTIER

9.1. Introduction 123

9.2. The different types of constraints and their actions 124

9.3. Internal design and cognitive constraints 125

9.4. Situational time and resource constraints 127

9.5. Border constraints 129

9.6. The construction of the sense of constraints 130

9.7. Organizational climate 131

9.8. Conclusion 133

9.9. References 133

Chapter 10. Creativity for Extreme Situations 139
Samira BOURGEOIS-BOUGRINE and Todd LUBART

10.1. Introduction 139

10.2. Introduction to creativity 140

10.2.1. Definition of creativity 140

10.2.2. Creative processes 141

10.3. Creativity and risk management 143

10.3.1. Creativity, insight and intuition when making decisions in extreme situations 144

10.3.2. Creativity and daily risk management 147

10.4. Creativity for anticipating extreme situations 148

10.4.1. What can we learn from fiction writers? 149

10.4.2. Co-creativity in a virtual environment 151

10.5. Conclusion 153

10.6. References 154

Section 6. Organizational Reliability 159

Chapter 11. Scope and Limits of Extreme Situations for Highly Reliable Organizations: A Pragmatic Interpretation 161
Benoît JOURNÉ

11.1. Introduction 161

11.2. The growing interest in extreme situations 161

11.3. The pragmatist approach to situations 162

11.4. HROs: keeping extreme situations under control 163

11.5. The mutual influence of situations and organization: between normality and extremity 164

11.6. Extremity traps and extreme situations 165

11.7. Conditions for a contribution of extreme situations to the knowledge of situations and organizations 166

11.8. References 167

Chapter 12. Error in Decision-Making Processes in Operational Situations: The Case of Fire Rescue Organizations 169
Anaïs GAUTIER

12.1. Introduction 169

12.2. The study of ordinary situations in codified activities for decision making 170

12.2.1. Extreme and unique contexts of at-risk organizations 170

12.2.2. Situation awareness theory to understand the cognitive process of actors 171

12.2.3. Reasoning error for a cognitive approach 171

12.3. Action-research methodology for analysing decision making in situations 172

12.4. The case of the organization of rescue operations in forest firefighting operations: the management of cross-border operations 174

12.4.1. Definition of the extreme context of the forest firefighting operation 174

12.4.2. Application of situation awareness theory to the identification of the decision-making process 175

12.5. Perception of error as a practice for learning 177

12.6. References 178

Part 3. Register of the Intelligibility of Extreme Management Situations 181

Section 7. Meaning and Sensemaking 183

Chapter 13. Going to Extreme Situations: What Meaning Should be Given to Such a Project? 185
Jean-Pierre BOUTINET

13.1. Introduction 185

13.2. Why go on a journey or an expedition? 186

13.3. The unavoidable concern of the quest for meaning 187

13.4. The project approach that generates meaning 188

13.5. The meaning of a project for its stakeholders: author and actors 190

13.6. The uncertainties linked to the project when thinking about extreme situations 192

13.7. What meaning should be given to the willingness to undertake the project? 193

13.7.1. Where can we go? 193

13.7.2. Why leave? 194

13.7.3. What significant opportunities dictate the current situation? 195

13.7.4. How does my current questioning resonate with my personal history? 196

13.7.5. Whom to carry out a project with? 197

13.8. To start a project, the art of steering a boat 198

13.9. References 200

Chapter 14. Sense, Sensitivity and Competence 201
Michel RÉCOPÉ

14.1. Introduction 201

14.2. Norms, actions and cognitive activity 202

14.3. Meaning or sense? 203

14.4. Proposal for “common sense” 204

14.5. “Sensitivity to” and practical rationality 206

14.6. “Sensitivity to” and structured activity 208

14.7. “Sensitivity to” and competence 210

14.8. What about extreme situations according to this approach? 210

14.9. References 211

Chapter 15. A Sea Kayaker’s Identity Route and Learning Experience in the Arctic 215
Pascal CROSET

15.1. Genesis 215

15.2. 2007: the initiation 216

15.3. 2008: the road to autonomy 216

15.4. 2009: fraternity 218

15.5. 2010: learning about limits, and the need for sharing 219

15.6. 2011: the discovery of a new territory 220

15.7. 2012: teaming up with a (nearly) unknown person 221

15.8. 2013: filiation (1) 222

15.9. 2014: the parallel world 223

15.10. 2015: filiation (2) 224

15.11. 2016: filiation (3) between adults 225

15.12. 2017: serenity and satisfaction 225

15.13. Knowledge and self-improvement, more than an identity journey 226

15.14. Putting everything into perspective 227

15.15. Conclusion 228

Section 8. Organizational Ambidexterity 229

Chapter 16. Organizational Ambidexterity: The Double Organic Ambidexterity 231
Monique AUBRY

16.1. Summary 231

16.2. Double ambidexterity: an essential skill of the project manager 232

16.3. From polar expedition to organizational change 232

16.4. Methodological aspects 234

16.5. Identifying mode changes: transitions 234

16.5.1. Case A 235

16.5.2. Case B 235

16.5.3. Case C 235

16.6. Organic ambidexterity as a meta-competency 236

16.7. Conclusion 237

16.8. Acknowledgments 238

16.9. Appendix: changes in mode of action in all three cases 239

16.10. References 240

Chapter 17. Radical Change in an Extreme Context: Mountaineers Conquering the Darwin Cordillera in Patagonia 243
Geneviève MUSCA

17.1 Introduction 243

17.2. The episode of radical change 244

17.3. Implementation of a radical change in an extreme context 246

17.4. Methodology 247

17.5. The implementation of radical change: from boat to bags 248

17.6. References 250

Section 9. The Expansion of Knowledge 253

Chapter 18. A Knowledge Corpus and Innovation 255
Jean-Louis ERMINE and Pierre SAULAIS

18.1. Creativity is not only based on imagination 255

18.2. The use of existing knowledge to improve creativity 258

18.3. Case study: a creative process based on knowledge in Thales Air Systems 260

18.3.1. The creative environment 260

18.3.2. The creative process based on knowledge 263

18.4. Lessons learned and conditions for success 267

18.5. Appendix 268

18.6. References 270

Chapter 19. Community of Practice, Variation of Knowledge and Change in Extreme Management Situations 273
Jean-Philippe BOOTZ and Olivier DUPOUËT

19.1. Introduction 273

19.2 Emerging change and knowledge variation through spontaneous CoPs 274

19.2.1. Change as an emerging process 274

19.2.2. CoPs as a mechanism for developing and modifying practices 275

19.3. Change leads to constellations of communities 276

19.3.1. Knowledge variation and change within communities of practice 276

19.3.2. Propagation and combinations of variations in a constellation of communities 277

19.4. Induced change, knowledge expansion and pilot communities of practice 279

19.4.1. Leading change through managed communities of practice: a tension of self-organization/control 280

19.4.2. PCoPs and knowledge expansion: exploration and exploitation 282

19.5. Conclusion 285

19.6. References 285

Chapter 20. Expanding Knowledge and Mobilizing Social Networks 289
Marc LECOUTRE

20.1. Introduction 289

20.2. Innovation, network and knowledge expansion 290

20.3. Expanding knowledge: two examples in uncertain and risky situations 290

20.3.1. An example of the acquisition of scientific knowledge during the preparation for a polar expedition 291

20.3.2. An example of experiential learning: the crossing of Spitsbergen by a team of young students with little experience 291

20.4. The contributions of the two streams of research in social network theory 292

20.4.1. The approach by distinguishing ties according to their strength (Granovetter 1973) 292

20.4.2. The structural approach 294

20.5. Feedback and questions on these approaches 295

20.5.1. First question: the nature of the tie 295

20.5.2. Second question: the nature of knowledge 296

20.5.3. Third question: the nature of the process 297

20.6. The question of the nature of ties the notion of a “potentially strong” weak tie 298

20.7. Conclusion: relational network and process of knowledge expansion 300

20.8. References 301

Chapter 21. The Crowd and the Expansion of Knowledge 305
Claude GUITTARD and Éric SCHENK

21.1. Introduction 305

21.2. The crowds and knowledge 306

21.2.1. The crowd, the company and the market 306

21.2.2. The factors of crowd irrationality 306

21.3. Crowds and the media 309

21.4. The new visions of the crowd 310

21.5. Internet: towards a wise crowd? 311

21.6. Crowds and knowledge expansion: crowdsourcing 312

21.6.1. The different types of crowdsourcing 312

21.6.2. Crowdsourcing and knowledge expansion 317

21.7. Conclusion 319

21.8. References 320

Part 4 The Variety of Extreme Situations and Disciplinary Perspectives 323

Section 10. The Variety of Extreme Situations 325

Chapter 22. The Routines of Creation: From Artistic Direction to Collective Exploration 327
David MASSÉ

22.1. Introduction 327

22.2. Three training schemes in the creative industries 328

22.2.1. Guy Laliberté and the transformation of athletes into artists at Cirque du Soleil 328

22.2.2. Serge Hascoët and game design training at Ubisoft 329

22.2.3. Bartabas and the Académie du spectacle équestre de Versailles 329

22.3. The routines of creation: from artistic direction to the collective exploration of talents 330

22.3.1. Macro-routines: the “direction” links given by the creator 331

22.3.2. Micro-routines: exploration spaces for talent 333

22.4. Conclusion 335

22.4.1. Trick 1: highlighting practice in transmission 336

22.4.2. Trick 2: fostering accommodation through the reduction of feedback 336

22.4.3. Trick 3: creating an environment conducive to uncertainty 337

22.5. References 337

Chapter 23. The Young Researcher Program for Extreme Situations 339
Christelle BARON, Emmanuel BONNET, Stéphane CELLIER-COURTIL, Nicolas LAROCHE and Isabelle MAGNE

23.1. Introduction 339

23.2. What is a power that promotes the emergence of potential action among actors in situations of uncertainty? 340

23.3. The terms of engagement and the processes for regulating collective action in the context of the liberated company: the case of Crédit Agricole Centre Loire 341

23.4. The rules of the game of an epistemic community 342

23.5. Constructing action knowledge for a wealth management advisor 343

23.6. Rethinking logistics from knowledge flows 344

23.7. Conclusion 345

23.8. References 346

Section 11. Disciplinary Perspectives 351

Chapter 24. Knowledge Transfer and Learning in Extreme Situations: The Psychologist’s Vision 353
Jean-Claude COULET

24.1. Introduction 353

24.2. Knowledge transfer: a questionable notion 354

24.2.1. The notions of knowledge 354

24.2.2. The development of knowledge 355

24.3. Learning: theoretical considerations 357

24.3.1. A modeling of skills 357

24.3.2. Forms of learning 359

24.4 Collective skills, learning and strategic management 360

24.4.1. Knowledge in practice 360

24.4.2. The hierarchy of skills 361

24.4.3. The articulation between individual and collective skills 361

24.5. Conclusion 363

24.6. References 364

Chapter 25. Expeditions as a Legitimate Object in Management Sciences 367
Linda ROULEAU

25.1. Introduction 367

25.2. Expeditions as “legitimate objects”? 368

25.3 Generalization, rigor and relevance in articles in peer-reviewed journals dealing with expeditions 370

25.4. Challenges of producing “legitimate” knowledge from the expedition as an empirical object 373

25.5. References 375

Conclusion 377
Gilles GAREL, Monique AUBRY and Pascal LIÈVRE

List of Authors 385

Index 389

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