In this Viewpoint, we argue that transitions research needs to engage more firmly with the role of incumbents and various forms of incumbencies. We identify shortcomings of existing research, notably a tendency to portray incumbents as ‘villains’ wedded to resisting, slowing down or preventing transition efforts. With that in mind, the Viewpoint briefly summarises shortcomings within existing research and proposes four steps for pluralising the discussion. We call attention to more emphasis on 1) a multiplicity of incumbent actor types, 2) a variety of actor strategies within (and across) organisational populations, 3) the transient nature of strategic positioning (over time), and 4) the varied resources that incumbents may deploy to support transformative change.

在这种观点下，我们认为过渡研究需要更牢固地参与现任者和各种形式的现任者的角色。我们发现了现有研究的不足，特别是倾向于将现任者描述为“恶棍”，他们倾向于抵制，减慢或阻止过渡工作。考虑到这一点，《观点》简要总结了现有研究的不足之处，并提出了使讨论多元化的四个步骤。我们呼吁更多地关注以下方面：1）现有角色类型的多样性； 2）组织群体内（以及跨组织群体）的各种角色策略； 3）战略定位的暂时性质（随着时间的推移）；以及4）多样化的资源现有企业可以部署以支持变革。