Paradox and Power in Interorganizational Relationships: A study of social sustainability tensions in a global value chain

Our multi-sited ethnographic study of a global value chain examines how power dynamics shape actors’ experience of and response to interorganizational sustainability paradoxes, i.e. persistent tensions between interdependent social and financial objectives. We distinguish between power manifesting as power-over (when it is used to control others) and as power-with (a collective empowerment based on the recognition of interdependence). Our findings reveal that oppressive power-over relationships lead to fragmented experiences of paradox, constraining actors’ collective capacity to productively respond to sustainability paradoxes. However, we also discover that power can act as a generative force for paradox management. When power-over is more balanced, mechanisms of power-with (such as strategic allying, transparent structuring and expanding structures) can emerge, leading to more collective paradox experiences and responses, which allow interorganizational actors to harness the potential of paradox as a source of collective sustainability. We generalize our findings in a process model that highlights how, in interorganizational settings, balancing power-over is not enough for proactive paradox handling. In addition, it needs to be followed up by mechanisms of power-with across levels. Our paper contributes to paradox theory and global value chain theory by developing a more nuanced understanding of the interrelationship between paradox and power, unpacking the role of power-with mechanisms for the process of recognizing interdependence and collaboratively addressing interorganizational paradoxes in global value chains.