“Less-hierarchical”, “self-managing”, “agile”: Organisations across sectors are experimenting with so-called “new organisational forms”. While some people swear by these trends, others find organizing without bureaucratic rules and hierarchical structures to be impossible. With his doctoral thesis, Constantin Bremer invites to understand and design “new organisational forms” in more nuanced, imaginative, and practically relevant ways.
What challenges do you focus on in your research?
“In today’s world, many people feel that work could be organized in more effective ways than through bureaucratic rules and hierarchical structures. Despite the growing excitement about new organisational forms, most organisations to this day stick with more traditional forms. Even those experimenting with new forms often return to more traditional ones over time.”
“In my thesis, I identify three main challenges holding new organisational forms back: First, the discussion about new forms is stuck between idealizations and whataboutisms (‘Organisations should be free of hierarchy!’ – ‘Isn’t there always hierarchy?’).”
“Second, the discussion is often more focused on what new forms are moving away from (less-hierarchical, post-bureaucratic, de-centralized) and less on what they might be moving towards. Finally, amidst the many trends and buzzwords it is difficult to find practical guidance for how to organize in the absence of bureaucratic rules and hierarchical structures. In short, we currently lack the tools to understand, imagine, and design the organisations around us in different yet effective ways.”
How do you address the problem?
“In my research, I closely studied the journey of Zenseact, a company from Gothenburg developing software for autonomous cars, and how their ambition of organizing in a ‘less-hierarchical’, ‘self-managing’, and ‘agile’ way played out over time. I did so through interviewing several employees as well as observing their meetings, events, and internal communications.”
“Next to this case study, I also systematically reviewed the research literature on new organisational forms and studied how practitioners talk about new organisational forms in books, podcasts, newsletters, online communities, and at conferences. Building on insights from all three studies, I propose an alternative perspective on new organisational forms in my thesis.”
What are the main findings?
“Generally speaking, my research finds that new organisational forms are often less “new” or revolutionary than they are said to be. Particularly, claims of new forms being totally free from any hierarchy or structure are exaggerated. That said, there are effective alternatives to the traditional managerial hierarchy. Rather than just removing managers and declaring full autonomy for everyone however, work still needs to be actively coordinated - in different, other-than-structural ways.”
“In terms of how to coordinate work differently yet effectively, I highlight three aspects about new organisational forms: First, they draw on alternative sensemaking devices - that is, linguistic and practical tools which help people interpret and handle complex social situations in the absence of managerial hierarchy. Second, they build on people-positive assumptions about human beings (so called Menschenbild) – that means, people within the organisation trust each other to solve problems locally through collaboration (rather than through hierarchical structures and controls). Third, they spend the time and effort to develop organisational purposes, principles, and practices that emerge from the local context (rather than adopting pre-defined models and templates). An example here is Zenseact’s motto of “People at heart”: Rooted in a people-positive Menschenbild, it acts as a sensemaking device in the company’s local context, acting as a guiding post for employees when facing complex challenges and decisions.”
What do you hope your research will lead to?
“With my research, I hope to raise awareness for a broader range of possibilities and intricacies in terms of how we can organize collective effort. I particularly want to point at the importance of the assumptions we hold about human beings and how they shape the (organisational) world around us. Does my research make you think about organisation(s) differently? Does it help you imagine how we could organize in people-positive ways? Or does it even inspire you to put such organisation(s) into practice? Anytime someone answers any of these questions with a “yes” counts as a success to me.”
Read the thesis: People-positive organizing: Proposing an alternative perspective on "new organizational forms"
Public defence: 12 December 2025 at 13.15
- Doctoral Student, Innovation and R&D Management, Technology Management and Economics
- Deputy President, Chalmers University of Technology