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Institute
The development of sustainable agri-food systems requires not only new academic knowledge, but also concrete social and organizational change in practice. This article reflects on the action research process that supported and explored the learning process in an emerging agri-food value chain in the Berlin-Brandenburg region in eastern Germany. The action research study involved value chain actors, academic researchers, and process facilitators in a learning network. By framing the network’s learning and problem solving processes in concepts of organizational learning, lessons were drawn for researchers and value chain developers. The results underline the importance of process facilitation in a learning value chain to create a social space, in which the actors in the value chain can interact and find a common basis for collaboration. In the learning process, facilitators used an iterative design to consistently align learning activities with the needs of practitioners to ensure practical relevance. To establish new practices and partnerships, value chain actors challenged existing routines and developed new ideas and visions, while at the same time improving established practices within their organizations and along the entire value chain.
Bio-Wertschöpfungsketten in Entwicklung: Lernende Systeme zwischen Exploration und Exploitation
(2021)
Die vorliegende Studie präsentiert den Entwicklungsprozess von Bio-Wertschöpfungsketten aus der Perspektive des organisationalen Lernens und geht der Frage nach, wie Veränderungen in Wertschöpfungsketten gestaltet werden. Die Basis bilden Daten aus einer Aktionsforschungsstudie, die den Lernprozess von Unternehmen in einer Wertschöpfungskette für Bio-Lebensmittel erforscht. Zusätzlich wurden fünf Gruppeninterviews mit sogenannten Wertschöpfungskettenentwickler:innen aus verschiedenen Regionen Deutschlands geführt. Die Ergebnisse bilden die Entwicklung von Wertschöpfungsketten in drei Lernphasen ab, vom gemeinsamen Erkunden des Problems, über eine Phase des Gestaltens, Experimentierens und Umsetzens, bis zur Verstetigung der Zusammenarbeit zwischen den Unternehmen der Wert-schöpfungskette. Der Veränderungsprozess pendelt dabei zwischen intra- und interorganisationalem sowie explorativem und exploitativem Lernen.
Wie gelingt der Aufbau von Wertschöpfungsketten? Diese Frage beschäftigt die Mitarbeitenden im EIP-Agri-Projekt „Regionales Bio-Gemüse aus Brandenburg“ seit fast fünf Jahren. Sie haben den Aufbau von Wertschöpfungsketten in der Hauptstadtregion begleitet und dabei viel über die Prozessgestaltung gelernt.
Purpose
The present study explores the development of agri-food value chains from an organizational learning perspective, using the German organic food sector as an example. We illustrate how the development of local value chains unfolds over time and outline how facilitation can support this process.
Design/methodology/approach
The study used an action research design to facilitate change in practice and to create new knowledge. Data were collected through qualitative interviews, participant observation, and documentation of workshops and other learning activities. Data analysis and conceptualization followed a grounded theory approach.
Findings
The development process of value chains occurs in three phases, from joint exploration of the problem, through a phase of experimentation and implementation, to further cultivation of established collaborations among value chain actors. The development process oscillates between intra- and inter-organizational learning as well as explorative and exploitative activities.
Practical implications
The results of this study can help to understand and to further professionalize the practice of value chain development and provide guidance for facilitators and other stakeholder working in this field.
Theoretical implications
By drawing on the theory of exploration and exploitation, the study enhances the understanding of value chains collaboration in an inter-organizational setting. The study conceptualizes the development of agri-food value chains and the role of facilitators in the process.
Originality/value
There is little research to date that considers the development of value chains as a collaborative learning process. The presented grounded theory of local value chain development may inform further research on the transition towards a more sustainable agri-food system.