What are we Aligning? Implications of a Dynamic Approach to Alignment

Of the hundreds of papers written on alignment, many build on a framework established fifteen years ago, which characterises alignment as a dynamic process operating between four domains. Since then, the organisational and technological landscape has been radically transformed. This paper reviews key concepts in the alignment literature and comments on their development over time, and their ability to reflect current organisational contexts, including blurring of boundaries, and rapid and unpredictable change. It finds that there have been several new developments regarding “how” alignment occurs. However, almost all these developments are grounded in the original four domain model of “what” is being aligned. This paper suggests that some models of alignment could be strengthened by considering alternatives to this four domain model. Drawing on other work on the dynamics of human-technological interaction, some ideas are given as to how this task might be approached.