A4 Refereed article in a conference publication
Scaling philosophies globally through open strategizing: Interdiscursive struggles, attention contests, and orchestration in the Burning Man movement
Authors: Heikkilä, J.-P., Leppälä, M., Mäkkeli, J., & Martela, F.
Conference name: 42nd EGOS online Colloquium
Publication year: 2026
Web address : https://www.egos.org/jart/prj3/egos/main.jart?rel=de&reserve-mode=active&content-id=1756645686117&subtheme_id=1733775222164
This paper examines the Burning Man movement as an unconventional multinational organisation that blends hierarchical corporate governance with a participatory, "do-ocratic" ethos. Using institutional theory, Strategy-as-Practice (SAP), and open strategy literature, we analyse how the Burning Man Project (BMP) operationalises its Ten Principles globally while navigating tensions between central control and local autonomy. Drawing on 40 semi-structured interviews with regional leaders and BMP staff, we identify how "interdiscursive struggles" and "attention contests" manifest in the strategy process. We find that while Open Strategy (OS) facilitates the scaling of countercultural philosophies, it often results in a "black hole" of decision-making where the central organisation’s need for corporate accountability reduces the polyphony of its global network. We conclude by discussing the role of storytelling as an informal accountability mechanism and the potential for new global governance models.