Tearing down the facades of radical innovation

Managers construct organizational fa ades that mislead external stakeholders, organizational members, auditors, researchers, other managers, and even themselves (Nystrom & Starbuck, 1984). Very little empirical research has been conducted on how managers build these fa ades since Nystrom & Starbuck's first influential article. This paper reports on the creation of an organization innovation facade from the day of initial crafting to its final collapse. The paper proposes a theoretical model of fa ade-crafting in large organizations, and its unsuspected role in fostering radical innovation, radical change and transformative action. (C)2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.