Purpose -The purpose of this paper is to show that too often decisions concerning change are made on the basis of partial understanding, limited data and unreflective assumptions about people and organizations. In the discussion of the Socratic dialogue the aim is to uncover a useful method for ensuring more reflective decision making that involves active participation of employees on the receiving end of change. Design/methodology/approach -Although dialogue is used in management processes today, it is contended that the Socratic dialogue is particularly useful in making sense of complex change processes. Data drawn from research conducted in two UK higher education institutions are used to illustrate how lack of knowledge and understanding often pervades and constrains change, and how techniques of Socratic dialogue can be used to secure higher levels of employee involvement and commitment to change. Findings -It is argued that Socratic dialogue can be used as a practical tool to facilitate "participative" change and contend that further research is required to develop the use of this method as a qualitative research instrument for uncovering data on processes of change in organizations. Originality/value -If practised consistently by organizational members, the Socratic techniques can lead to a more concrete understanding of the complexities of changing organizations. It is a collective process of change through critical questioning and, as such, it lends itself to further exploration on the part of both change managers and qualitative researchers for its uses as a diagnostic and research instrument.

᭹ Strategic flexibility, both in its conceptual and practical form, has often fallen prey to criticism for the failure to manifest itself in terms of concrete steps of application and structured design. Constant non-linear change, toying with managerial competence and emotional intelligence skills, aggravates and makes this discussion all the more pertinent.᭹ Quantification and analysis of strategic flexibility have been cumbersome to accomplish. This paper aspires to supplement the existing literature by defining strategic flexibility as indispensable in times of turbulence and ongoing change. ᭹ A parallel drawn between organizations and living systems, and their resistance patterns to environmental shocks originating from change, will serve as a background platform to the discussion, as well as an argumentative tool towards refuting the allegation that flexibility in strategy formulation equates to lack of strategic orientation.

In this paper, we examine the under-researched Greek banking market; inadequate transparency and disclosure about exposures has led to counterparty concerns and renewed strains in bank funding markets. Greek banks, now struggling with the need to increase provisions against bad debts, asset write-offs and with problems of liquidity as a result of being frozen out of the interbank lending market are completely reliant on the European Central Bank. The study examines the impact that Basel II had on the risk disclosure practices in the Greek banking sector. The disclosure practices and their potential relationship with size, risk profile and profitability of the most actively traded Greek banks are examined. In 2010, the latest wave of outcry from investors surfaced, demanding the disclosure of information showing how Greece and Greek banks used derivatives to hide their deficits when Greek banks entered into a large number of private, off-market swaps from 2001 through 2007. There is a compelling public interest in relevant information being disclosed.The results show that inadequacies still exist despite the fact that Basel II managed to raise the risk disclosing amounts in the annual reports of the Greek banks. The informational content of the disclosures is suspect, due to that little quantitative information is disclosed; favouritism towards qualitative and past related disclosures is revealed.Furthermore, no quasi-norms between the size, profitability or risk profile of the institutions and their risk disclosing quantities is revealed.Dr. Rosemary Skordoulis Principal London School of Business Management London, WC1E 7JN UK Disclosing policies and the quantity of disclosures have evolved, throughout the examined period in the Greek banking industry; yet, transparency issues and quality problems are still present owing to the high degree of secrecy of the internal Greek market.

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