Are PSMs Relevant in a Digital Age? Towards an Ethical Dimension

The aim of the paper is to explore the relevance of Problems Structuring Methods (PSMs) in the digital era. Today digital transformation , arising from the proliferation of digital technologies [71] is both affecting and altering organizations [82]. In tracing the progress of PSMs practice and theorizing, we argue that their place in this new world can hardly be denied, but there are some obvious consequences. In everyday organizational practices, it is questionable whether concerns for implementation, strategizing and planning, the sorts of issues PSMs were originally developed for, need PSMs. Even though these methods were developed with “wicked problems” in mind. Are the problems faced by stakeholders more amplified as a result of the digital transformation of organizational life? Does the promise of digital transformation bring an existential threat to PSMs? Primarily we ask: Is the concept of PSM still relevant in a world accelerating with digital technology and innovation, where digital transformation is affecting and challenging organizational stakeholders? This chapter takes a firm and justified position on their relevance: PSMs are still important but the challenging contextual conditions may have altered the way they are to be used and the purpose for which they are applied. We make our case for the relevance of PSMs by first, arguing why the nature of the current organizational challenges still justifies the use of PSMs. Then, we examine further what is particularly special about PSM use, highlighting the need to shift from an emphasis on design to one on deliberation. Finally, we explore a new type of concern, an ethical one that heightens the relevance of PSMs We conclude with practical implications.