Xule Lin 林徐乐
I explore how humans and algorithms are writing the next chapter of organizing together.
My Journey:
- Building theory at Imperial College Business School as a PhD researcher
- Grounded my thinking through experiences at University of Notre Dame, University of Chicago, and Ernst & Young
- Now investigating the moment when algorithms step from tools to participants in organizational life
Working Theory of Organizing:
- The nature of organizing transforms as algorithms join decision-making
- Algorithms shift from tools that augment to agents that participate
- Current organizational theories struggle to capture this evolution
- Novel forms emerge from social-technical system interactions
- Understanding requires both depth and breadth
- Qualitative immersion reveals organizing’s lived reality
- Computational analysis surfaces patterns across contexts
- This methodological synthesis builds stronger theory
- Timeless principles inform digital futures
- Core coordination mechanisms transcend technological cycles
- Shared understanding enables genuine decentralization
- Traditional wisdom offers lessons for algorithmic age
Working Theory of Human-AI Knowledge Creation:
- Scientific research transforms fundamentally when AI actively shapes knowledge creation
- AI shifts roles from passive tools to active epistemic collaborators
- Traditional epistemologies struggle to account for knowledge co-created by humans and algorithms
- Novel paradigms emerge at the intersections of human cognition, computational methods, and epistemic robustness
Current Investigations:
- Navigating how human-AI collaboration reshapes scientific research
- Developing innovative qualitative approaches that honor both human agency and algorithmic capabilities
- Diagnosing the epistemic implications of AI integration in social science research
- Follow my latest thinking on Substack - Thread Counts
- Decoding DAOs as organizational laboratories
- Watching communities write new rules for coordinating
- Mapping how code and culture interweave
- Learning from traditional craft
- Studying tailors who coordinate through shared understanding
- Understanding how expertise flows without formal structure
- Finding echoes of ancient wisdom in modern challenges
Knowledge Commons:
- Curated X (Twitter) Lists for Fellow Explorers
- Management Research: A living map of our field’s conversations
- Research on DAOs: Where technology meets organizing
- AI Research: Tracking intelligence, artificial and otherwise
- Tools for Thinking
- MaCAW: Writing academic ideas in the digital age
- Research tools collection: Craft tools for scholarly work
- Shared notes on the art of research
Let’s Connect:
- Academic profile - Current projects and collaborations
- Twitter/X - Join ongoing conversations about organizing in the algorithmic age
I’m always eager to engage with fellow researchers and practitioners exploring the evolving dialogue between human wisdom and algorithmic capabilities in shaping tomorrow’s organizations.