Organisational Space and Beyond

Abstract

Through the focus on organizational space, using the reception and significance of the seminal work on the subject by sociologist Henri Lefebvre, this book demonstrates why and how Lefebvre's work can be used to inform and elaborate organizational studies, especially in view of the current interest in the "socio-material" dimension of organizations.As the "spatial turn" in organizational research exposed the importance of spatial design in inducing power and cultural relations, Lefebvre's perspective has become an inspiring, theoretical framework. However, Organizational Space and Beyond explores how Lefebvre's work could be of a much wider relevance, especially given his profound theoretical engagement with diverse schools of philosophical and sociological thought, including Nietzsche, Marx, Sartre and Foucault.This book brings together a range of authors that collectively develop a broader understanding of Lefebvre's relevance to organizational studies, including areas of management concern such as strategy and diversity studies, and ultimately draw on Lefebvre's work to rethink, reimagine and reshape scholarship in organizational studies. It will be of relevance to researchers, academics, students and organizational professionals in the fields of organization studies, management studies, cultural studies, architecture and sociology.

Investigating the political economy of the territory: The contradictory responses of organisations to spatial inequality

“…By analysing how techniques are created, controlled and selectively applied by corporations, Milton Santos explained the process Lefebvre (1991) referred to as the social production of the abstract space of capitalism. By shifting the focus from the embodied social space -as is the case in many applications of Lefebvre's work in organisation studies (Dale et al, 2018) -to personal relations with the territory, Santos identified the mechanisms that explain territorial fragmentation. Modern processes of urbanisation seek to create a single 'place' -understood here as shared norms -across various territories.…”