BEYOND DIGITAL DETERMINISM AND TOWARD THE 4.0 JOINT, PARTICIPATORY, AGILE ORGANIZATION

The analysis of three companies that have jointly considered the technical and the social systems while designing and implementing the new digital technologies shows how and to what extent the Socio-Technical Systems (STS) principles are nowadays adopted, thereby indicating the possibility that the STS theory can (re) become central in both theory and managerial practices. Thereby we propose an ‘actualized’ sociotechnical design approach, capable in aligning an organization to the rapid and radical change that come along with the digitalization and indicate that the application of STS-informed design methods, such as Agile and Design Thinking, oriented more to action and intervention, mirroring the actual act of designing in a dynamic way, but also offer organizations the opportunity to embrace a broader stakeholder base.