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The end of alternative organising (just as we were getting to know it)?: a conjunctural analysis of the prefiguration terrain.

Matt Wilson Orcid Logo

Culture and Organization

Swansea University Author: Matt Wilson Orcid Logo

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DOI (Published version): 10.1080/14759551.2026.2619436

Abstract

The last fifteen years has seen a significant rise of interest in alternative forms of organising within CMS. Although this work covers a diverse world of organisational forms, this academic interest is commonly connected to the prefigurative turn in social movements which helped shift the radical i...

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Published in: Culture and Organization
Published: Taylor and Francis
URI: https://cronfa.swan.ac.uk/Record/cronfa71501
first_indexed 2026-02-26T11:14:23Z
last_indexed 2026-02-27T05:33:15Z
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spelling 2026-02-26T12:17:51.4431731 v2 71501 2026-02-26 The end of alternative organising (just as we were getting to know it)?: a conjunctural analysis of the prefiguration terrain. 2f52fc48733d840a44ba122da34337a7 0000-0002-6351-7723 Matt Wilson Matt Wilson true false 2026-02-26 CBAE The last fifteen years has seen a significant rise of interest in alternative forms of organising within CMS. Although this work covers a diverse world of organisational forms, this academic interest is commonly connected to the prefigurative turn in social movements which helped shift the radical imaginary away from electoral politics and towards strategies aimed at building a new world from the bottom-up. Yet the momentum of such movements has stalled in recent years, and a growing number of academics and activists are forcibly rejecting prefiguration. This shift in the radical imaginary is of huge importance for the future of alternative organising, and research into it, but CMS scholars appear to have overlooked it. In the following article, I argue that CMS research has too often followed a case-study approach, and that as a discipline it needs to pay closer attention to, and actively engage in, the wider landscape of radical theory and practice. Drawing on the work of Stuart Hall, I show why his use of conjunctural analysis is useful for understanding alternative organisations and their possible futures. I offer my own conjunctural perspective on the current state of prefiguration and its often fractious relationship with more vertical forms of left politics, and conclude by suggesting some ways in which we might develop work which can help inform not only the micro-practices of alternative organisations but also wider debates about the future direction of radical politics. Journal Article Culture and Organization Taylor and Francis 0 0 0 0001-01-01 10.1080/14759551.2026.2619436 COLLEGE NANME Management School COLLEGE CODE CBAE Swansea University SU Library paid the OA fee (TA Institutional Deal) 2026-02-26T12:17:51.4431731 2026-02-26T11:10:06.2172334 Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences School of Management - Business Management Matt Wilson 0000-0002-6351-7723 1
title The end of alternative organising (just as we were getting to know it)?: a conjunctural analysis of the prefiguration terrain.
spellingShingle The end of alternative organising (just as we were getting to know it)?: a conjunctural analysis of the prefiguration terrain.
Matt Wilson
title_short The end of alternative organising (just as we were getting to know it)?: a conjunctural analysis of the prefiguration terrain.
title_full The end of alternative organising (just as we were getting to know it)?: a conjunctural analysis of the prefiguration terrain.
title_fullStr The end of alternative organising (just as we were getting to know it)?: a conjunctural analysis of the prefiguration terrain.
title_full_unstemmed The end of alternative organising (just as we were getting to know it)?: a conjunctural analysis of the prefiguration terrain.
title_sort The end of alternative organising (just as we were getting to know it)?: a conjunctural analysis of the prefiguration terrain.
author_id_str_mv 2f52fc48733d840a44ba122da34337a7
author_id_fullname_str_mv 2f52fc48733d840a44ba122da34337a7_***_Matt Wilson
author Matt Wilson
author2 Matt Wilson
format Journal article
container_title Culture and Organization
institution Swansea University
doi_str_mv 10.1080/14759551.2026.2619436
publisher Taylor and Francis
college_str Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences
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hierarchy_top_id facultyofhumanitiesandsocialsciences
hierarchy_top_title Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences
hierarchy_parent_id facultyofhumanitiesandsocialsciences
hierarchy_parent_title Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences
department_str School of Management - Business Management{{{_:::_}}}Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences{{{_:::_}}}School of Management - Business Management
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description The last fifteen years has seen a significant rise of interest in alternative forms of organising within CMS. Although this work covers a diverse world of organisational forms, this academic interest is commonly connected to the prefigurative turn in social movements which helped shift the radical imaginary away from electoral politics and towards strategies aimed at building a new world from the bottom-up. Yet the momentum of such movements has stalled in recent years, and a growing number of academics and activists are forcibly rejecting prefiguration. This shift in the radical imaginary is of huge importance for the future of alternative organising, and research into it, but CMS scholars appear to have overlooked it. In the following article, I argue that CMS research has too often followed a case-study approach, and that as a discipline it needs to pay closer attention to, and actively engage in, the wider landscape of radical theory and practice. Drawing on the work of Stuart Hall, I show why his use of conjunctural analysis is useful for understanding alternative organisations and their possible futures. I offer my own conjunctural perspective on the current state of prefiguration and its often fractious relationship with more vertical forms of left politics, and conclude by suggesting some ways in which we might develop work which can help inform not only the micro-practices of alternative organisations but also wider debates about the future direction of radical politics.
published_date 0001-01-01T05:35:00Z
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