Managing emergent and complex change: The case of Dutch agencification

An analysis is made of agencification reform in the Netherlands from the viewpoint of the management of the complex change process. We will present a processual analysis of the complex change process of agencification reform by means of organization science insights on 'emergent change' and administrative science insights on 'complex networks'. The analysis of the process of change events shows that it is not an example of centrally planned and controlled change. The reform is rather an example of 'emergent and complex change'. The reform is a complex system of different intertwined change processes with many different decentralized actors, which is 'managed' by different central 'change agents'. The 'change managers' themselves form a complex system as well.

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