Reimagining Sustainable Future and Managing Change

Introduction

Many unprecedented developments over the past few years, such as geopolitical shocks, social upheavals, uncertainty over new technologies like AI, recurring natural disasters, and sustained uncertainty about climate change, have forced a rethink of a sustainable future. While parameters of change and transformations are themselves undergoing drastic changes in ways that were never expected, day-to-day survival strategies take precedence. As a result, there is growing concern about whether societies, organisations, communities and individuals can continue with the existing notions of a sustainable future.

New debates and discourses have kindled the need for reimagining ideas and perspectives of a sustainable future world. These discussions span a large domain of ideas, including organisational strategy formulation, stakeholder management, supply chain reconfiguration, organisational development, etc. Emerging literature signposts tough decisions, organisational anxieties, change management barriers, and possible solutions as organisations confront difficult and unprecedented organisational transformations. For instance, Lahuerta et al. (2026) explored job insecurity and reskilling challenges in the context of AI-based organisational transformation, while Ledesma et al. (2026) present the risk factors for adopting AI innovation in SMEs. Similarly, recent articles have considered geopolitical risks and change management (eg, Anwar et al., 2026; Huang et al., 2026; Yu et al., 2025). Gregory et al. (2026), in their study, focus on the change management strategies adopted by top management in the face of technological disruption and geopolitical change.

The special issue aims to position organisational change management as an important component of this rethink and to map the emerging set of ideas through a change management perspective, including new models of change management, innovation, stakeholder engagement, and emerging perspectives on sustainability. In line with the existing literature, there has been renewed interest in organisational change management aimed at developing a sustainable future amid emerging disruptive technologies and geopolitical developments while acknowledging that significant changes in the macro environment have led to almost paradigmatic shifts in thinking and strategizing, which threaten the concept of a sustainable future. This special issue attempts to provide a platform for ongoing studies that look at organisational change management in the context of the unprecedented changes in an organisation’s external environment, whether in the spheres of technology, socio-demographic or geopolitical, and to understand the practice and theory of sustainable management.

List of Topic Areas

1. Different perspectives on change management as an imperative for a sustainable future
2. Sustainable, Responsible and Regenerative Business Model Innovation
3. Organisational change strategy for a sustainable future in unprecedented macro environmental changes: risk, resilience and adaptation
4. Challenges and issues of sustainable AI transformation
5. Ecosystems, Cross-Sector Collaboration and Policy for Sustainable innovation and growth
6. Supply chain expansion and organisational change for a sustainable future
7. Developing Sustainable Marketing for Responsible Consumption and Production
8. The role of organisations in supporting Social Dimensions of Sustainability
9. The role of management education in fostering sustainable and responsible leadership practices
10. The role of middle management and bottom-up initiatives in creating everyday sustainability
11. Case studies in organisational change management for a sustainable future

The special issue would invite studies that use a range of methodologies, including qualitative and quantitative methods, such as survey-based methodologies, case studies, and interpretative, critical, or conceptual papers.

Submissions Information

Submissions are made using ScholarOne Manuscripts. Registration and access are available at: https://mc.manuscriptcentral.com/jocm

Author guidelines must be strictly followed. Please see: https://www.emeraldgrouppublishing.com/journal/jocm

Authors should select (from the drop-down menu) the special issue title at the appropriate step in the submission process, i.e. in response to “Please select the issue you are submitting to”.

Submitted articles must not have been previously published, nor should they be under consideration for publication anywhere else, while under review for this journal.

Key Deadlines

Opening date for manuscripts submissions: 28/05/2026

Closing date for manuscripts submission: 31/01/2027