Prof. Laura Colombo (University of Exeter, UK)

Date: Wednesday, April 22nd, 2026
Time: 12 noon - 1:00 pm
Location: Ludwigstr. 28, VG, Room 211b
Title: Scaling in a post-growth era: Learning from Social Agricultural Cooperatives
Abstract: It has become normative in organization and management studies literature to consider scaling as a synonym for organizational growth. Scaling is typically understood as scaling-up. In this talk, I will argue that, in the context of post-growth organizations, scaling involves a more complex set of dynamics. Directing scholarly attention to scaling in the context of Italian Social Agricultural Cooperatives, the research presented in this talk contributes to the literature on scaling the impact of post-growth organizations by identifying nine different scaling routes: organizational growth (vertical and horizontal); organizational downscaling; impact on policies; multiplication; impact on organizational culture; impact on societal culture; aggregation; and diffusion. I will argue that post-growth scaling: (1) requires the synergistic interaction of different strategies; (2) focuses on impacting societal culture; (3) does not necessarily require organizational growth; and (4) is a relational process, embedded in social-ecological systems.