Editing Strategy (section)

===Complexity theory===
{{technical|section|date=December 2023}}
[[Complexity]] science, as articulated by R. D. Stacey, represents a conceptual framework capable of harmonizing emergent and deliberate strategies. Within complexity approaches the term "strategy" is intricately linked to action. Complexity theorists view programs merely as predetermined sequences effective in highly ordered and less chaotic environments. Conversely, strategy emerges from a simultaneous examination of determined conditions (order) and uncertainties (disorder) that drive action. Complexity theory posits that strategy involves execution, encompasses control and emergence, scrutinizes both internal and external organizational aspects, and can take the form of maneuvers or any other act or process.<ref name="Stacey1995">{{cite journal|last1=Stacey|first1=R. D.|title= The science of complexity: An alternative perspective for strategic change processes|year=1995|journal=Strategic Management Journal|volume=16|issue=6|pages=477–495|doi=10.1002/smj.4250160606 }}</ref><ref name="TerraPassador2016"/><ref name="Morin2005">{{cite book |last1=Morin |first1=E. |title=Introduction à la pensée complexe |publisher=Éditionsdu Seuil |year=2005 |location=Paris}}</ref>

The works of Stacey stand as pioneering efforts in applying complexity principles to the field of strategy. This author applied self-organization and chaos principles to describe strategy, organizational change dynamics, and learning. Their propositions advocate for strategy approached through choices and the evolutionary process of competitive selection. In this context, corrections of anomalies occur through actions involving negative feedback, while innovation and continuous change stem from actions guided by positive feedback.<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Stecey|first1=R. D.|title=Emerging strategies for a chaotic environment|year=1996|journal=Long Range Planning|volume=29|issue=2|pages=182–189|doi=10.1016/0024-6301(96)00006-4}}</ref><ref name="Stacey1995"/><ref>{{cite book|last1=Stacey|first1=R. D.|title=The chaos frontier: creative strategic control for business|year=2005|publisher=Redwood Press|location=Malksham}}</ref>

Dynamically, complexity in strategic management can be elucidated through the model of "Symbiotic Dynamics" by Terra and Passador.<ref name="TerraPassador2016" /><ref name="TerraPassador2019">{{cite journal|last1=Terra|first1=L. A. A.|last2=Passador|first2=J. L.|title=The nature of social organization of production: From firms to complex dynamics|year=2019|journal=Systems Research and Behavioral Science|volume=36|issue=4|pages=514–531|doi=10.1002/sres.2567 |s2cid=149946425 }}</ref> This model conceives the social organization of production as an interplay between two distinct systems existing in a symbiotic relationship while interconnected with the external environment. The organization's social network acts as a self-referential entity controlling the organization's life, while its technical structure resembles a purposeful "machine" supplying the social system by processing resources. These intertwined structures exchange disturbances and residues while interacting with the external world through their openness. Essentially, as the organization produces itself, it also hetero-produces, surviving through energy and resource flows across its subsystems.<ref name="TerraPassador2016" /><ref name="TerraPassador2019"/>

This dynamic has strategic implications, governing organizational dynamics through a set of attraction basins establishing operational and regenerative capabilities. Hence, one of the primary roles of strategists is to identify "human attractors" and assess their impacts on organizational dynamics. According to the theory of Symbiotic Dynamics, both leaders and the technical system can act as attractors, directly influencing organizational dynamics and responses to external disruptions. Terra and Passador further assert that while producing, organizations contribute to environmental entropy, potentially leading to abrupt ruptures and collapses within their subsystems, even within the organizations themselves. Given this issue, the authors conclude that organizations intervening to maintain the environment's stability within suitable parameters for survival tend to exhibit greater longevity.<ref name="TerraPassador2016" /><ref name="TerraPassador2019"/>

The theory of Symbiotic Dynamics posits that organizations must acknowledge their impact on the external environment (markets, society, and the environment) and act systematically to reduce their degradation while adapting to the demands arising from these interactions. To achieve this, organizations need to incorporate all interconnected systems into their decision-making processes, enabling the envisioning of complex socio-economic systems where they integrate in a stable and sustainable manner. This blend of proactivity and reactivity is fundamental to ensuring the survival of the organization itself.<ref name="TerraPassador2016" />