De-development as a way to change contemporary organizations

The literature on downturn management has concentrated on reductions in size, ignoring how an organization de-develops by moving to a lower order of complexity. This paper discusses the dangers of unmanaged de-development in which an organization experience unwanted losses of core competencies. The paper shows how a de-developed organization can preserve core competencies found in its customers, products, markets, channels, revenue sources, alliances, skilled people, ways to organize, and image. A managed letting go of some unwanted complexity is carried out to produce a soft-landing in which core competencies are preserved. Conditions under which de-development can be desirable are discussed and a devolutionary process that suggests how to reduce organized complexity and realize a soft landing that retains core competencies is offered. Ways to study de-development are also considered.