An Evolutionary Perspective on the Management of Stability and Change

In this paper, we argue that the trade off between stability and change in social and cultural systems can be linked to systemic theories of ecology and evolutionary change. The growing uncertainty in our globalizing environment requires increased organizational flexibility and the ability to adapt. We argue that economics and business can learn from ecology and evolutionary theories in this domain. To do so, we briefly introduce some essential perspectives from biological evolution, sociology and social psychology, innovation and globalization with respect to management issues. Subsequently, we discuss the implications for management and derive suggestions for the strategic management of international businesses in the area of cultural systems and innovation. We argue that managers need to consider the trade-off between homogenization aiming at the realization of economies of scale and scope and differentiation and various needs for integration by different sets of customers. As a result, we sketch a framework of thought that increases their ability to steer their companies through global social change.