Selling the need for change: How insider activists make their case

Abstract

Change processes can be initiated by various actors. Issue selling focusses on how actors without formal power create strategic relevance for their change initiatives. Often the advice is to frame one’s issue in the logic of a business plan and to present one’s concerns as aligned with those of the organisation. However, discontent can also serve as a vehicle for change. The talk will illustrate a relational model of issue selling as organisational repertoire of dealing with change initiatives based on an ethnographic study of product development teams. The concept also has potential to understand how actors address social issues and link to larger narratives in social movements. Here the talk will explore how insider activists attempt to change organisational practices towards sustainability and seek to connect beyond their own organisation for field-level change.