Bounding and Binding: Trajectories of Community-Organization Emergence Following a Major Disruption

An important and underexamined topic in the growing literature on community-embedded organizing concerns situations in which dramatic shifts in the environment require the time-sensitive re-establishment of both communities and organizations to address urgent needs. We conduct a qualitative study of emergent community-organization trajectories in the aftermath of the 2010 Haiti earthquake and explore differences in the processes and interactions between emerging organizations and communities. Despite all organizations in our data facing the same external shock, they differed in how they interpreted the nature of crisis-induced voids, established boundaries to build and organize communities, and created connections to bind themselves to their communities. We compare and contrast these differences to reveal three trajectories of community-organization emergence, explain why these trajectories initially formed in the ways they did, and identify unique mechanisms that led to these trajectories’ divergence. Our findings contribute to the literature on community-embedded organizing by demonstrating how organizations re-establish communities while simultaneously emerging within those communities.

Blockchain Governance—A New Way of Organizing Collaborations?

The recent emergence of blockchains may be considered a critical turning point in organizing collaborations. We outline the historical background and the fundamental features of blockchains and present an analysis with a focus on their role as governance mechanisms. Specifically, we argue that blockchains offer a way to enforce agreements and achieve cooperation and coordination that is distinct from both traditional contractual and relational governance as well as from other information technology solutions. We also examine the scope of blockchains as efficient governance mechanisms and highlight the tacitness of the transaction as a key boundary condition. We then discuss how blockchain governance interacts with traditional governance mechanisms in both substitutive and complementary ways. We pay particular attention to blockchains’ social implications as well as their inherent challenges and limitations. Our analysis culminates in a research agenda that explores how blockchains may change the way to organize collaborations, including issues of what different types of blockchains may emerge, who is involved and impacted by blockchain governance, why actors may want blockchains, when and where blockchains can be more (versus less) effective, and how blockchains influence a number of important organizational outcomes.

Intergenerational workplace knowledge sharing: challenges and new directions

Purpose

Drawing on theories pertaining to knowledge sharing, ageing at work and human resource practices for ageing workers, this article explores knowledge sharing challenges arising from the interaction between an increasingly ageing workforce and younger employees.

Design/methodology/approach

Contextually, the authors focus on China, where the pace of demographic transformations offers a unique opportunity to investigate knowledge sharing practices in their socio-economic context. Empirically, the authors analyse knowledge sharing behaviours and practices of retail banking professionals in a Chinese big four bank.

Findings

The encouragement of knowledge sharing between younger and older workers should be incorporated into organisations' human resource strategies. The availability of development, maintenance, utilisation and accommodative human resource practices signals to older workers that they are valuable and are worth investing in.

Originality/value

The authors’ contribution to theory and practice is twofold: starting with the identification of perceived knowledge sharing challenges, the authors’ analysis offers important contextually grounded insights into what types of managerial practices are relevant in eliciting successful knowledge sharing within organisations faced with an ageing workforce.

Sustainable Business Models through the Lens of Organizational Design: A Systematic Literature Review

The interest in sustainable business models has grown rapidly in recent years. Although some progress has been made in identifying this concept and making the practices more sustainable, little is known about the organizational design that is most appropriate for creating new business models or implementing changes in existing ones towards a sustainability approach. This paper presents a review of sustainable business models in terms of the key factors that influence firm design based on organization theory. We retrieved 394 Journal Citation Reports papers from the WoK and Scopus databases, identifying 19 papers that have addressed the interplay between both constructs. We used the Galbraith Star Model to analyze the selected papers. We discuss three key findings for the cross-fertilization of both literatures: (i) the extension of the design elements outside the firm boundaries at the inter-organizational and ecosystem levels; (ii) the emphasis on certain design elements (strategy, process, people, structure) rather than others (rewards); and (iii) the use of the organizational design construct as a tactic tool for strategy execution of the sustainable business model. We also present theoretical and practical implications for the use and further development of this framework, as well as future avenues of research.

Examining the Role of Technology Leadership on Knowledge Sharing Behaviour

The purpose of this article is to examine the role of technology leadership in knowledge-sharing behaviour through the intervening role of internet self-efficacy and information technology support for knowledge management. The sample for the study was taken from randomly selected hotels operating in different regions of Uttarakhand, India. The findings suggest that the positive relationship between group-level technology leadership and individual level knowledge sharing behaviour. Further, the results indicated that IT support for knowledge management moderates the mediating role of internet self-efficacy such that when IT support for knowledge management is high, the effect of internet self-efficacy on knowledge sharing behaviour improves. The study adds value to knowledge management and leadership literature and provides a way to encourage knowledge sharing behaviour in the service-oriented industry.

Time-Chunking and Hyper-Refocusing in a Digitally-Enabled Workplace: Six Forms of Knowledge Workers

Until the turn of the millennium, switching tasks required moving locations or reconfiguring physical workspaces. However, contemporary digital tools and workspaces allow knowledge workers to perform an increasingly diverse set of tasks, with an increasingly extending arm of influence, all from the same physical location without any physical reconfigurations or traversing of physical space. Along with this increased ambidexterity comes an increase in the quantity and frequency of demands on the time of knowledge workers. This digitalization of work now tethers their ability to perform largely to their ability to intensely focus in small chunks, and then "hyper-jump" that focus to another task without traversing the cognitive cool downs or warm ups required to reconfigure their train of thought from one task to another. Accordingly, they must become more like the hyper-functioning tools they employ if they are to avoid becoming the bottleneck resource in the configuration of socio-technical elements comprising their work routines. In order to better understand how knowledge workers manage their time and maintain focus across multiple and interrupting tasks, we leverage current time prioritization literature to propose and theorize around two key constructs: time-chunking and hyper-refocusing. By combining the possible values for these two constructs, we hypothesize the emergence of six forms of knowledge workers and their relative expected performance. The effects of digitalization on these new worker forms are discussed. We conclude by discussing opportunities for new research questions regarding time-chunking strategies and the hyper-refocusing ability.

Functional analysis of organizational designs

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to describe an analytical approach – functional analysis – that can be used to evaluate the current design of an organization and identify alternative designs that may increase the ability to realize strategic and operational goals.

Design/methodology/approach

The approach described in this paper is based on key concepts in systems theory and axiomatic design theory (Suh, 1990, 2001). A brief case example is used to illustrate the practical application of the approach.

Findings

It is shown that functional analysis can be used to map the design of an organization and identify key design challenges (e.g. related to overlapping or conflicting functions).

Research limitations/implications

The case study that is described is considered to be a pilot application of the approach as it is based on a limited number of interviews.

Practical implications

This paper should be relevant for applied researchers, management consultants, project managers and others who are analyzing the current structure of an organization and/or are involved in re-designing an organization.

Social implications

Application of the functional approach may improve design processes and thereby enhance the effectiveness of social systems, including public and private sector organizations.

Originality/value

This paper describes how key concepts in systems theory and axiomatic design theory can provide the basis for a new framework for analyzing organization designs.

Managing Identity Tensions during Mobile Ecosystem Evolution

The idea of an ecosystem suggests a holistic framing of how heterogeneous actors relate to one another and of the dynamics of their relationships. Because of the dynamics some relationships will become uncertain, posing significant challenge to the identity of participating organizations. Unfortunately, the Information Systems (IS) literature has not examined how organizations develop and negotiate their identities during ecosystem evolution. We fill this void by exploring identity challenges that Swedish Road Administration (SRA) faced while implementing the Radio Data System – Traffic Message Channel (RDS – TMC) traffic information service. Through a longitudinal case study we follow how SRA's inherited expectations, guiding norms, and standards of sense-giving about its identity prevented it from becoming a flexible service provider within an emerging mobile ecosystem. We record a constant clash – the identity tension – between the old inherited identity of a public road administrator and the aspiring new identity of a digital service provider. To enact a successful identity change, SRA had to engage in a series of change episodes whereby it deliberately implemented new routines that forged novel relationships with actors within the ecosystem. This permitted SRA to gradually align its identity to the evolving needs of the RDS-TMC service ecosystem. Our findings suggest that deliberate attempts to implement innovative mobile services – especially those involving public-private partnerships – trigger intriguing identity ambiguities and role dilemmas, and future research should therefore focus on effective strategies to identify, manage, and resolve inherent identity tensions.

The Aesthetic Knowledge Problem of Problem-Solving With Design Thinking

In this essay, we examine how aesthetic knowledge defines design thinking and also poses a challenge for many organizational systems. Design thinking is one problem-solving approach that addresses problems where multiple and conflicting interests must be met by perceiving the holistic quality of the interconnections across such interests. However, there has not been a clear declaration of what is at the core of design thinking. The direct engagement of the bodily senses in design-thinking methods points to the importance of aesthetic knowledge for problem definition and solution generation. Organizational systems, however, often occlude the role of the body at work, and therefore of aesthetic knowledge. Drawing on structurationist theory, we make suggestions for how organizational systems might adapt to more effectively generate and use aesthetic knowledge and tackle increasingly complex problems.

Is Theory King?: Questioning the Theory Fetish in Information Systems

This paper suggests that there is too much emphasis on the requirement for theory use and theory building in qualitative research published in our leading journals. We discuss six concerns that we have that relate to this high status of theory in such papers. We argue for what we refer to as ‘theory light’ papers where theory plays no significant part in the paper and the contribution lies elsewhere, for example, new arguments, facts, patterns or relationships. Some examples of theory light papers (and research) are provided from other disciplines and one exemplar information systems paper is studied in depth. We see these papers as equally worthy as those which demonstrate the applicability and predictive qualities of theory use as well as the potential of theory building. We propose a list of 10 questions that authors and reviewers might ask themselves when writing or reviewing such theory light papers. The more demanding role of the reader is also discussed along with the requirement for editorial teams to adapt. We suggest that the requirement for a contribution to theory would be replaced with the requirement that any journal paper has a high potential for stimulating research that will impact on information systems theory and/or practice.

DESIGNING BUSINESS MODEL CHANGE

The aim of this paper is to base organisational change on the firm's business model, an approach that research has only recently start to address. This study adopts a process-based perspective on business models and insights from a variety of theories as the basis for the development of ideas on the design of business model change. This paper offers a new, process-based strategic analytical artefact for the design of business model change, consisting of three main phases. Designing business model change as suggested in this paper allows ex ante analysis of alternative scenarios of change in a structured and comprehensive way. Such a tool is useful for obtaining an overall view of the working logic of the firm and to facilitate innovation through change. The main contribution of this paper is to transform management theories into an instrument that can be helpful for companies to develop their capacity to change in a more focused and structured way.

The socio-materiality of designing organizational change

Purpose

– The purpose of this paper is to examine the managerial implications of adopting a design attitude to organizational change.

Design/methodology/approach

– Based on an ethnographic study of a merger, the paper investigates the intricate interplay between architectural design and organizational change in the context of physically relocating an organization to a new office building. Emphasis is given to the socio-materiality of this double design process.

Findings

– The data suggests that taking a design attitude toward managing organizational change can allow different actors to participate in organizational design processes, releasing management from its traditional role as the keeper of the design solution.

Research limitations/implications

– Although based on a single case, the paper provides insights into the socio-materiality of organizational change that is relevant in other settings where developing new collective understandings of change processes are needed.

Practical implications

– A design attitude allows for multiple contributions to organizational change processes that can help reduce anxiety among those involved. The approach calls for openness, experimentation and the ability to balance different concerns. It can provide new ways of attending to resistance and produce valuable inputs to shaping organizations.

Originality/value

– This study contributes to the growing research on the role of material artifacts in organizational studies by providing a detailed account of organizational change as a socio-material achievement.

Theory versus Application

This paper discusses the critical use and lessons learned from the single case model while implementing an Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system at a leading university. The researcher examined one university’s business ERP in the deployment of a new enterprise system, a complex phenomenon which took place over several stages and involved different players at each stage. The paper discusses the case system inclusive of the grounded case theory, diffusion of innovation theory, innovation-process theory and their application during the ERP system implementation.

Information System Costs of Utilizing Electronic Product Codes in Achieving Global Data Synchronization within the Pharmaceutical Supply Chain Network

Numerous benefits of implementation of global data synchronization (GDSN) in the pharmaceutical supply chain have been identified, including reduced counterfeiting, decreased medication errors, increased supply chain efficiency, and standardized regulatory evolution. For this study, a complete GDSN supply chain framework was developed as a model for the industry to achieve Global Standard (GS1) standards. Each supply chain member must have a strong enterprise resource planning (ERP) information system to accommodate the initial electronic product code information services (EPCIS). A web-based Datapool—which connects the manufacturer, distributor, and retailer—will assist in reaching the data synchronization stage. The most important step is to have an open standard of GS1 global registry to enable the Epedigree to be traced through the supply chain system. When combined with EPCIS, as well as electronic product code global (EPCglobal) standardization and GS1 Global Registry, the supply chain can achieve global data synchronization and traceability. The comprehensive GDSN framework provided in this study provides the pharmaceutical industry an estimate of the total costs of attaining a global data synchronization network.

A design‐oriented approach to organizational change: insights from a military case study

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the principles supporting organizational change management.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper develops a qualitative study from a single case which focuses on how the military (NATO) transformed their functionally integrated organizational form to gain additional flexibility and responsiveness.

Findings

The findings indicate that the transformation of military organizations has led to reshaping and aligning communication artifacts and organizational structures. In addition, it also entailed significant adaptations of the way knowledge is divided, allocated and coordinated among units, with a particular emphasis on standardization processes.

Research limitations/implications

The implications of this study for scholars and practitioners are twofold. First, it shows that the conditions for success in organizational transformation reside in the consistency of the design strategy adopted by the organization. In particular, the findings provide evidence that the alignment of the structural and cognitive designs is critical but hard to achieve. Second, organizations and managers should devote time and effort to support the codification and standardization of both component and architectural knowledge. This contribution is limited by looking at a single case. On the premise that model generalization depends upon extensive empirical data, the current paper should be considered as a preliminary/exploratory research that aims at identifying the principles supporting organizational change management.

Originality/value

The originality of this paper is to look at military organizations to elaborate on a theoretical model of organization design which links together the structural and cognitive views and discuss its main implications for organizational change management.

Research Methods for Non-Representational Approaches to Organizational Complexity: The Dialogical Mediated Inquiry

This paper explores the methodological implications of non-representational approaches to organizational complexity. Representational theories focus on the syntactic complexity of systems, whereas organizing processes are predominantly characterized by semantic and pragmatic forms of complexity. After underlining the contribution of non-representational approaches to the study of organizations, the paper warns against the risk of confining the critique of representational frameworks to paradoxical dichotomies such as intuition versus reflexive thought, or theorizing versus experimenting. To counter this difficulty, we suggest the use of a triadic theory of interpretation, and more particularly the concepts of semiotic mediation, inquiry and dialogism. Semiotic mediation dynamically links situated experience and generic classes of meanings. Inquiry articulates logical thinking, narrative thinking and experimenting. Dialogism conceptualizes the production of meaning through the situated interactions of actors. A methodological approach based on these concepts, the ‘dialogical mediated inquiry’ (DMI), is proposed and tested with a case study about work safety in the construction industry. This interpretive view requires the researcher to complicate the inquiry process rather than the mirroring models of reality. In DMI, the inquiry process is complicated by establishing pluralist communities of inquiry in which different perspectives challenge each other. The paper ends with a discussion of the specific contribution of this approach compared with other qualitative methods, and its present limitations.

Innovation in ICT-Based Health Care Provision

This paper describes a project redesigning psychiatric services for children and adolescents, introducing a new decentralized model into the ordinary structures of health care services in rural areas in Norway by using mobile phone technology. The authors apply a multilayer and dialectic perspective in the analysis of the innovation process that created the ICT solution that supports this treatment model. The salient challenges of the project were related to the contradictions between the existing, dominant power structures and the emergent structures in the different layers of the design structures. As a result of the development process, a new model emerged with a larger potential for creating a new innovation path than if it had been linked to existing structures. This paper contributes to the understanding of how user-driven innovation can break with existing power structures through focusing on different layers in the change processes.

Organizational Development Interventions: An Artifaction Perspective

Given the highly instrumental nature of the literature on organizational interventions, this article explores and defines key elements of an artifaction theory of organizational development (OD) interventions. Four dimensions of artifaction are distinguished: ascription, fabrication, displacement, and reinterpretation. This framework then serves to develop a number of propositions regarding the nature and background of OD interventions, the ability to create alternative purposes and values, the involvement of stakeholders in the intervention process, the deliberate incompleteness of the intervention approach adopted, as well as its standardization and codification. Finally, the article discusses how an artifaction perspective on OD intervention may serve to develop an OD science that is theoretically as well as practically significant.

Problems as Building Blocks for Organizational Learning: A Roadmap for Experiential Inquiry

This article explores the practice of problem-based learning (PBL) in organizational contexts and its contribution to organizational learning. It proposes a learning that is context dependent based on the collective participation of individuals through structured and spontaneous processes. A theory-elaboration approach was adopted by means of an interpretivist methodological paradigm. Rich data were collected from 10 PBL experts and 50 PBL users through convergent interviewing and a qualitative survey respectively. Findings suggest that looking within for answers is a first step to generating more questions for subsequent collaborative inquiry. The process is one of problem—question—reflection—learning—action requiring individuals to handle amplifying and restraining feedback loops for double-loop learning. PBL induces reflective practice and seeks an integrated epistemology.