Evolving brands as agile and closed systems: Branding to organize “st(r)agility”

Abstract

Evolutionary economics attempt to explain dynamics within economy,
markets and corporations. This contribution asks what evolutionary thinking
means for traditional changemanagement when closed systems theory
becomes applied. Closed systems exclude direct interventions so
that traditional management is ruled out. Resistance groups in change,
but also brand communities are one popular example for the existence,
relevance and power of closed systems within corporations. Evolutionarymanagement
is suitable to provide alternative changemanagement
approaches. For this reason, agile branding will be characterized as an
applied alternative to traditional change, which turns out to be ineffective
in a world of closed systems. Hence, brands will be conceptualized
as meso-driven systems. Their function is to incorporate agility into corporations
if they are applied as constructive mutual learning approaches
which learn and teach contemporary values. Brands are agile as they
are steadily observing their environment to incorporate up-dated values.
Consequently, brands contribute to secure market positions by being
strategic. Contemporarily, the rising meaning of purpose-led brands
within Corona crises is one impacting example for brand agility. Paradoxically,
they stabilize corporations as social networks at the same time,
as they provide orientation and identification. Thus, branding provides
stability. It is agile and strategic: “st(r)agility”