Ph.D., Antioch University, 2014, Leadership and Change

Organizational storytelling was used within Tri Fit, a Canadian health promotion and fitness company, to explore relational leadership practices. Through 27 confidential one-on-one interviews and an interview of the four-person leadership team, the research attempted to examine how relational agility, a new leadership construct, exists, how it is defined, and to describe its organizational impacts. Two hundred and forty unique stories were shared through this process, out of which nine storylines emerged. The distillation of these revealed three cultural themes: a culture of relational connection; a culture of nice and a culture that values positivity. Demonstrations of transformational leadership, authentic leadership, aesthetic leadership, emotional and social intelligence, servant leadership and stewardship were frequent amongst many of its members. Four leaders were described by their colleagues as being relationally agile, as demonstrated through the application of a unique collection of relational qualities. This research has also established evidence that relational agility can be learned, and when present, confers positive benefits to the organization including enhanced loyalty, commitment and productivity. Developing relationally agile leaders will therefore likely serve organizations as they navigate change. Furthermore, this may be the first empirical description of relational leadership as a triadic experience where the relationship is personified as a unique product of leader and follower co-development that ultimately serves the higher purposes of the organization. The electronic version of this dissertation is at OhioLink ETD Center, www.ohiolink.edu/etd . This dissertation is accompanied by two mp4 video files

Committee: Elizabeth Holloway PhD (Committee Chair); Laurien Alexandre PhD (Committee Member); Ardra Cole EdD (Committee Member); Soosan Latham PhD (Other) Subjects: Business Administration; Business Education; Organization Theory; Organizational Behavior; Psychology

Ph.D., Antioch University, 2007, Leadership and Change

Stories abound in the business world. They may be called "success stories," "best practices sharing," or even simply "stories," but however they are referred to, these tales not only become part of the organizational culture, but they also help define it. This study examines storytelling among for-profit organizations to demonstrate how stories are selected, told, and related to employees for the purposes of either changing the organizational culture or helping to maintain the existing one. Four companies have been chosen to capture the nature of storytelling as it relates to the sharing of cultural information within these firms. Using the qualitative research methodology known as portraiture, four portraits have been be crafted and emergent themes concerning the relationship of storytelling and culture are identified: organizational culture is not easily defined, culture emanates from the top, stories about culture are numerous, histories of organizations are stories, maintaining or changing culture is difficult, and stories about culture are real. The purpose of this study is to deepen our understanding about how and why stories function in for-profit cultures. The electronic version of the dissertation is accessible at the OhioLINK ETD center http://www.ohiolink.edu/etd/.

Committee: Carolyn Kenny (Advisor) Subjects:

PHD, Kent State University, 2024, College of Communication and Information

Music venues are meaningful cultural spaces where people come together to experience culture (Williams, 2011). The most communally interconnected (Bennett & Rogers, 2016) of these venues are independent music venues (IMVs), which notably operate without corporate control or sponsorship (Whiting, 2021). While these spaces are important hubs for fan and musician stories as well as community connections (Straw, 1991), disruptions over the past several years, like the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic (Mims, 2022), threaten their continued existence. The purpose of this dissertation is to examine extra-organizational storytelling from an emic, insider perspective to trace how IMVs in the Midwestern U.S. promote and perceive of their stories, and place that communication within a larger context of societal norms and expectations. This dissertation used two lenses to guide an exploration of IMV promotional narrative: extra-organizational storytelling and master narrative. Extra-organizational storytelling is a hybrid conceptual framework which draws from organizational, advertising, public relations, and semiotics literature to situate and investigate how IMVs conceptualized and constructed their promotional communication. Master narrative provided a macro-level theoretical framework to understand how IMV promotional personnel co-create and tap into shared society-wide narratives which influence their work. I conducted and analyzed 28 in-depth informant interviews (Lindlof & Taylor, 2019) with promotional personnel from 26 different IMVs from across the Midwest. I found that organizational structures provided powerful context which shaped how participants communicated about and perceived of their venue's story. Storytelling and promotion were complex concepts participants connected to differently, with unique tensions associated with independence and extra-organizational storytelling. When considering their IMV stories, participants alternately highlighted characters, setti (open full item for complete abstract)

Committee: Cristin Compton (Advisor); Cheryl Ann Lambert (Committee Member); Téwodros Workneh (Committee Member); Mary Gallagher (Committee Member) Subjects: Communication

Ed.D., Antioch University, 2023, Education

My research inquiry is centered on the larger project of building a transformational, empowerment model of worker voice in workplaces. The purpose of my research is to explore/illuminate the question, “How can I use workers' stories to center and advance collaborative worker voice on the job through peer-driven training initiatives?” I frame this general research inquiry around two key questions: (a) How do I create authentic spaces for workers' stories to emerge from the heart? (b) How do I use workers' stories to create the environment needed for workers to become peer teachers/leaders of their own training initiatives? This study's intended audience is any practitioner who seeks to center workers' experiences/stories as the fulcrum for transformational workplace change. My research method is Scholarly Personal Narrative (SPN). SPN is a sustained exploration of one's own narrative experiences of dealing with a particular question, problem, or dynamic that has broader social significance. It entails analyzing that experience through the lens of relevant research and theory. I have chosen a hybrid video/written format for my SPN, to create a first-person storytelling experience for the viewer/reader that replicates my methodology with workers at their worksites. The video segments of this dissertation can be found at http://debmoy.weebly.com/. My findings document the key elements needed to be an effective change agent supporting organic leadership in organizations through workers' stories. My dissertation can influence the effectiveness of California Transit Works (CTW), the statewide consortium bringing my approach to scale nationally. My dissertation can bring academic recognition to key roles that third-party neutrals, or “intermediaries,” can play in building worker voice empowerment within labor/management partnerships. Finally, I hope this dissertation inspires and guides workers and change agents to take an holistic view of what it means to have our own voic (open full item for complete abstract)

Committee: Stephen Brookfield Ph.D. (Committee Chair); Michael Raffanti Ed.D. (Committee Member); Laura Dresser Ph.D. (Committee Member) Subjects: Adult Education; Labor Relations; Organizational Behavior; Transportation; Vocational Education

Ph.D., Antioch University, 2017, Leadership and Change

The purpose of this theoretical case study was to explore the lived experiences of members within an inter-professional team about how they learn and adapt while dedicating their lives toward the well-being of students residing in and attending a rehabilitation home school. Although there is broad literature that addresses legacy learning theories and frameworks, as well as complex-adaptive organizations, very little shows how the application of rhizome philosophy principles address learning and adapting within an organizational context. This study is a step toward addressing that gap. Using interviews, thematic analysis, and storyline networking, the study explored in depth the lived experiences of 16 administrative, therapy, and educational staff who worked at the school. By using organizational storytelling as a means to unearth and analyze the team members' 194 stories, a rich web of connection and awareness emerged. Their stories demonstrated new ways of being, learning, and adapting both within and outside the school, and revealed alignment with rhizome philosophy principles of connection, multiplicity, heterogeneity, a signifying rupture(s), and cartography, as well as alignment with legacy and traditional learning theories and frameworks, thereby offering a new lens of learning within organizations called, Rhizomatic Learning in Organizations (RLO). This study is an opportunity to expand and enhance ways of considering learning and adapting within organizations by introducing and supporting rhizomatic behaviors and principles within collectives as they work together. This dissertation is available in open access at AURA: Antioch University Repository and Archive, http://aura.antioch.edu/ and Ohiolink ETD Center, https://etd.ohiolink.edu/

Committee: Elizabeth Holloway Ph.D. (Committee Chair); Laura Morgan Roberts Ph.D. (Committee Member); Mary Ann Reilly Ed.D. (Committee Member) Subjects: Educational Theory; Organization Theory

Master of Science (MS), Wright State University, 2011, Educational Leadership

The purpose of this study was to develop and pilot an instrument to measure leaders' attitudes concerning the use of story in communicating organizational vision. Although story can be an effective communication tool, an instrument that measures leaders' attitudes could not be found. In this research, an instrument to measure leaders' attitudes regarding the use of story to communicate organizational vision was developed and piloted. The instrument was administered to a pilot group of for-profit and non-profit leaders in the final phase of this research. The results indicated that leaders perceive it is favorable to use story to communicate organizational vision.

Committee: Suzanne Franco EdD (Committee Chair); Nancy Mack PhD (Committee Member); Mindy McNutt PhD (Committee Member) Subjects: Business Administration; Business Education; Communication; Education; Educational Leadership; Management; Organization Theory