From error to adaptation: error management culture as a Dynamic Capability
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.71112/c89j7610Keywords:
dynamic capabilities, organizational innovation, psychological safety, error management culture, organizational learningAbstract
This essay examines error management culture as a higher-order dynamic capability that fosters organizational learning, innovation, psychological safety, and strategic renewal. Drawing upon the rationalist deductive method of René Descartes and Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz, a rationalist paradigm, and an objectivist critical realist perspective, it argues that error should not be understood as an accidental deviation from organizational functioning, but rather as a constitutive mechanism of knowledge creation, adaptation, and the evolution of social systems. The discussion integrates contributions from the philosophy of error, Maturana and Varela’s theory of autopoiesis, organizational learning, complex theory, psychological safety, and dynamic capabilities. The findings suggest that the most adaptive organizations are not those that eliminate errors, but those that develop capabilities to recognize, interpret, and transform them into strategic knowledge. Furthermore, the essay concludes that error management culture strengthens innovation, facilitates open communication, promotes organizational well-being, and contributes to the development of dynamic capabilities that support sustainable adaptation in complex and uncertain environments.
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