Managing third-order change: the case of the Public Power Corporation in Greece

The article argues that a successful change process must first disrupt the self-referentiality typical of state-political firms, and that such disruption happens mainly through externally-generated behaviour-shaping information. In the case of PPC, market liberalization (externally mandated by the EU) prompted a stock market floatation to seek fresh capital. Properly handled, such external and apparently technical mechanisms can have considerable discursive potential, helping to create momentum for change and to extend it throughout the organization. Insights from the effective management of strategic change in PPC are of relevance to other state-political firms worldwide.