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McAllum, Kirstie. "Volunteers as Boundary Workers: Negotiating Tensions Between Volunteerism and Professionalism in Nonprofit Organizations." Management Communication Quarterly 32, no. 4 (August 5, 2018): 534–64. http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/0893318918792094.
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This article employs a boundary work framework to analyze how volunteers from two nonprofit human services organizations navigated the tensions between volunteerism and professionalism. Based on interview data and analysis of organizational documents, the study found that volunteers at the first organization, fundraisers for child health promotion and parent education, dichotomized volunteerism and professionalism as incompatible social systems with divergent objectives, practices, and tools. Volunteers at the second organization, which provides emergency ambulance services, engaged in constant boundary crossing, oscillating between a volunteer and professional approach to tasks and relationships depending on the context. In both cases, paid staff and members of the public affected participants’ ability to engage in boundary work. The study offers insights for nonprofit organizations wishing to professionalize their volunteer workforce by specifying how volunteer job types, organizational structure, and interactional partners’ feedback impact volunteers’ ability to engage in boundary crossing, passing, and boundary spanning.
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Humberd, Beth K., Judith A. Clair, and Stephanie J. Creary. "In our own backyard: when a less inclusive community challenges organizational inclusion." Equality, Diversity and Inclusion: An International Journal 34, no. 5 (June 15, 2015): 395–421. http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/edi-11-2013-0105.
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Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to build insight into how the local community impacts an organization’s ability to develop an inclusive culture. The paper introduces the concept of inclusion disconnects as incongruent experiences of inclusion between an organization and its community. Then, using the case of teaching hospitals, the paper empirically demonstrates how individuals and organizations experience and deal with inclusion disconnects across the boundaries of organization and community. Design/methodology/approach – A multi-method qualitative study was conducted in hospitals located in the same city. Focus groups were conducted with 11 medical trainees from underrepresented backgrounds and semi-structured interviews were conducted with ten leaders involved with diversity efforts at two hospitals. Data analysis followed an iterative approach built from Miles and Huberman (1994). Findings – The findings demonstrate how boundary conflicts arise from disconnected experiences of organizational and community inclusiveness. Such disconnects create challenges for leaders in retaining and supporting minority individuals, and for trainees in feeling like they could build a life within, and outside of, their organizations. Based on findings from the data, the paper offers insights into how organizations can build their capacity to address these challenges by engaging in boundary work across organizational and community domains. Research limitations/implications – Future research should build upon this work by further examining how inclusion disconnects between communities and organizations impact individuals and organizations. Practical implications – The paper includes in-depth insight into how organizations can build their capacity to address such a deep-rooted challenge that comes from a less inclusive community. Originality/value – This paper contributes to an understanding of how forces from the community outside an organization can shape internal efforts toward fostering inclusion and individuals’ experiences of inclusion.
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Foster, Carrie Louise. "Managing the flow of talent through organizations – a boundary-less model." Development and Learning in Organizations: An International Journal 29, no. 1 (January 5, 2015): 15–19. http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/dlo-06-2014-0045.
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Purpose – This paper aims to identify overlooked and unrecognized domains of talent management by existing academic and practitioner literature and provide a challenge to current boundaries around the area. Design/methodology/approach – This paper is an exploratory viewpoint based on the extant literature and the conceptual model of Boundary-less Talent Model (BTM) and its potential for practical application. Findings – This paper aims to expand on theoretical or conceptual understandings of talent management which have been surprising under-developed, as well as address the lack of attention in the practitioner community to addressing the talent potential of the wider employee population. The paper introduces the BTM, challenges the current boundaries and discusses how the model can be applied within an organization. Research limitations/implications – This paper is written from a Western organizational perspective. Practical implications – In principle, anyone should be able to recognize talent, and anyone can be recognized as having talent, but in practice subjectivity and perception in relation to the assessment, judgement and management of talent, creating a problem of unidentified and/or underutilized talent. The result is that either at an organizational or an individual level, talent becomes an untapped resource, which when ignored may have a negative impact on organizational performance. Social implications – The identification, recruitment and retention of the right knowledge and skills for the organization’s needs will always outpace traditional talent management methodologies. Adaptability in the Information Age is necessary for organizations to respond to the social structural shifts and the emergence of the boundary-less organization. Originality/value – This paper provides an examination of the proposed BTM and the encouragement for academics and practitioners to re-think the ways in which various forms of talent are managed.
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Schwartz, Mildred A. "Boundary problems in political organizations." Journal of Organizational Change Management 9, no. 4 (August 1996): 43–55. http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/09534819610124052.
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Schotter, Andreas P. J., Ram Mudambi, Yves L. Doz, and Ajai Gaur. "Boundary Spanning in Global Organizations." Journal of Management Studies 54, no. 4 (January 16, 2017): 403–21. http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/joms.12256.
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Du, Juana, and Rong Wang. "Knowledge transfer and boundary conditions." New England Journal of Entrepreneurship 22, no. 1 (May 13, 2019): 31–57. http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/neje-04-2019-0021.
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Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine innovative practices and emphasize the mechanism of knowledge transfer across knowledge boundaries. By comparing and discussing the emerging boundary issues in knowledge transfer among small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) registered in the incubation centers in China, this paper identified the main knowledge transfer approach and several contextual and organizational factors impacting knowledge transfer. Design/methodology/approach The authors conduct 39 semi-structured in-depth interviews with employees working within business incubation centers in China. The study uses thematic analysis for data analysis. Findings Our results contribute to the literature of knowledge transfer and in particular to our understanding of boundary conditions and knowledge transfer approaches in emerging economies. The results also highlight several contextual and organizational factors which impact knowledge transformation across the pragmatic boundary in the context of China. Practical implications First, organizations need to establish an effective process with tools to accommodate novelty; second, organizations should be aware of the impact of entrepreneurial orientation on innovative performance; and third, it will help organizations if they adopt and integrate information-rich media in managing innovative practices. Originality/value This research highlights the impact of contextual and organizational factors of SMEs on knowledge transfer in emerging markets and chooses incubation centers as study subjects, which is an organizational context that has not been thoroughly studied due to its unique nature and emerging complexity.
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Stadtler, Lea, and Ozgu Karakulak. "Twisting between Multiple Boundaries: An Organizational Perspective on Boundary Organizations." Academy of Management Proceedings 2017, no. 1 (August 2017): 12464. http://dx.doi.org/10.5465/ambpp.2017.12464abstract.
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Miller, David, and Jen Nelles. "Order out of Chaos: The Case for a New Conceptualization of the Cross-Boundary Instruments of American Regionalism." Urban Affairs Review 56, no. 1 (May 21, 2018): 325–59. http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/1078087418773905.
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In the absence of consensus about which organizations matter or are the “right” manifestations of American regional intergovernmentalism scholarship has had to develop an imprecisely defined and tacitly circulated perception of regions and the cross-boundary organizations that embody them. Even where effort has been made to establish a broad and consistent definition for regional cross-boundary organizations these standards have been applied loosely and with notable exceptions. We argue that the lack of conceptual precision and consensus, to date, makes large-scale comparative research difficult and prone to potential blind spots. We offer a framework within which we can unify these different pieces. Rather than focusing on organization type, or geographical scales, we propose a system of identifying and studying regional organizations by five core attributes. We submit these regional intergovernmental organizations (RIGOs) as a conceptual lingua franca that transcends organizational nomenclature and statistical constructs and enables broad, methodologically rigorous, comparative research.
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Weibo, Zheng, Hao Dingding, and Zheng Lu. "Psychological Boundary Management, the Most Essential Source for Org-Improvement." International Journal of Information Systems in the Service Sector 12, no. 1 (January 2020): 67–74. http://dx.doi.org/10.4018/ijisss.2020010105.
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As globalization and IT application facilitate organizations to develop without boundary in the era of the Industrial Revolution, innovations and changes have become the new normal of organizations. In this background, psychological boundaries can help employees enhance their sense of identity and sense of belonging to the organization, which is an effective way to improve the organizational effectiveness and the most essential source for org-improvement. This paper teases out the domestic and foreign research results pertaining to the connotation, measurement, and influencing factors of psychological boundaries. The perspective of the psychological boundaries provides new ideas for the managers in the era of the Industrial Revolution to establish a long-term “Heart-Central” management mechanism which reveals the essence of management problems and leads management back to its origin.
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Kalkman, Jori Pascal. "Boundary spanners in crisis management." International Journal of Emergency Services 9, no. 2 (March 12, 2020): 233–44. http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/ijes-08-2019-0042.
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PurposeCrisis management increasingly requires coordination and collaboration between multiple organizations. This means that inter-organizational boundaries have to be spanned by dedicated organizational members (i.e. boundary spanners). This paper aims to describe which features facilitate the work of boundary spanners in crisis management.Design/methodology/approachA case study, consisting of 26 interviews, has been conducted in the Netherlands to explore how civilian and military representatives effectively spanned inter-organizational boundaries.FindingsFive features are identified that enable boundary spanners to improve crisis management coordination and collaboration. Boundary spanners are likely to be successful when they (1) serve long terms, (2) are sensitive to partners' concerns, (3) have considerable discretion, (4) are politically skilled and (5) prove influential in their own organization.Practical implicationsCrisis organizations can extend boundary spanners' term length, broaden their discretionary space and give them more influence to facilitate their work. Additionally, in the selection process, it would be well to choose organizational members who display a sensitivity to the interests of crisis partners and possess political skill.Originality/valueMultiple studies have reiterated the key role of boundary spanners in enabling crisis management coordination and collaboration. Yet, this study is the first to provide a systematic analysis of key features that help boundary spanners to reach this goal.
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Lemos, Maria Carmen, Christine J. Kirchhoff, Scott E. Kalafatis, Donald Scavia, and Richard B. Rood. "Moving Climate Information off the Shelf: Boundary Chains and the Role of RISAs as Adaptive Organizations." Weather, Climate, and Society 6, no. 2 (April 1, 2014): 273–85. http://dx.doi.org/10.1175/wcas-d-13-00044.1.
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Abstract While research focusing on how boundary organizations influence the use of climate information has expanded substantially in the past few decades, there has been relatively less attention to how these organizations innovate and adapt to different environments and users. This paper investigates how one boundary organization, the Great Lakes Integrated Sciences and Assessments Center (GLISA), has adapted by creating “boundary chains” to diversify its client base while minimizing transaction costs, increasing scientific knowledge usability, and better meeting client climate information needs. In this approach, boundary organizations connect like links in a chain and together these links span the range between the production of knowledge and its use. Three main chain configurations are identified. In the key chain approach, GLISA has partnered with other organizations in a number of separate projects simultaneously, diversifying its client base without sacrificing customization. In the linked chain approach, GLISA is one of several linked boundary organizations that successively deepen the level of customization to meet particular users’ needs. Finally, by partnering with multiple organizations and stakeholder groups in both configurations, GLISA may be laying the groundwork for enhancing their partners’ own capacity to make climate-related decisions through a networked chain approach that facilitates cooperation among organizations and groups. Each of these approaches represents an adaptive strategy that both enhances the efficiency and effectiveness of participating boundary organizations’ work and improves the provision of climate information that meets users’ needs.
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David, Fred R., and Daniel S. Cochran. "Characteristics of Boundary Spanning Communicators." Journal of Technical Writing and Communication 17, no. 2 (April 1987): 165–77. http://dx.doi.org/10.2190/gfhu-5tvl-axm4-6wpw.
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This article presents the results and implications of an empirical study designed to explore the descriptive characteristics of boundary spanning individuals. Boundary spanners are individuals in an organization who facilitate and filter the flow of information internally and externally. Demographic profiles of boundary spanners (stars, isolates, and liaisons) are developed. Conclusions of this study provide information that could enable organizations to more effectively manage the boundary spanning process.
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Yström, Anna, Marine Agogué, and Romain Rampa. "Preparing an Organization for Sustainability Transitions—The Making of Boundary Spanners through Design Training." Sustainability 13, no. 14 (July 20, 2021): 8073. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/su13148073.
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Organizations today need to adapt their operations for a more sustainable future, and the transition management literature has highlighted the need for individuals who can collaborate with others to find new paths forward. Essentially, these individuals are boundary spanners with specific skills and competences to bridge diverging perspectives and facilitate knowledge dissemination and integration. Such individuals become critical change agents in organizations and essential in preparing the organization for sustainability transitions. The purpose of this study is to explore how organizations can enable and encourage individuals to take on this role and develop the skills and competences needed to become boundary spanners. Based on a case study set in a large Canadian energy corporation striving to shift towards more sustainable operations, our paper explores the emergence of boundary spanners, focusing on the effects of a design training program in supporting such roles in the organization. Our findings outline essential characteristics of boundary spanners; through illustrative career trajectories of four individuals participating in the training program, we show how the training program contributed to the emergence of boundary spanners.
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Colavito, Melanie M., Sarah F. Trainor, Nathan P. Kettle, and Alison York. "Making the Transition from Science Delivery to Knowledge Coproduction in Boundary Spanning: A Case Study of the Alaska Fire Science Consortium." Weather, Climate, and Society 11, no. 4 (October 1, 2019): 917–34. http://dx.doi.org/10.1175/wcas-d-19-0009.1.
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Abstract Boundary organizations facilitate two-way, sustained interaction and communication between research and practitioner spheres, deliver existing science, and develop new, actionable scientific information to address emerging social–ecological questions applicable to decision-making. There is an increasing emphasis on the role of boundary organizations in facilitating knowledge coproduction, which is collaborative research with end users to develop actionable scientific information for decision-making. However, a deeper understanding of how boundary organizations and knowledge coproduction work in practice is needed. This paper examines the Alaska Fire Science Consortium (AFSC), a boundary organization focused on fire science and management in Alaska that is working to address climate impacts on wildfire. A case study approach was used to assess AFSC activities over time. AFSC’s boundary spanning involves a continuum of outputs and activities, but their overall trajectory has involved a deliberate transition from an emphasis on science delivery to knowledge coproduction. Key factors that facilitated this transition included a receptive and engaged audience, built-in evaluation and learning, subject matter expertise and complementarity, and embeddedness in the target audience communities. Recommendations for boundary organizations wishing to develop knowledge coproduction capacity include knowing your audience, employing trusted experts in boundary spanning, and engaging in frequent self-evaluation to inform change over time.
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Pakarinen, Mikko, and Petri Juhani Virtanen. "Matrix organizations and cross-functional teams in the public sector: a systematic review." International Journal of Public Sector Management 30, no. 3 (April 10, 2017): 210–26. http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/ijpsm-04-2016-0065.
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Purpose The purpose of this paper is to review the empirical research on matrix organizations and cross-functional teams (CFTs) in the public sector, focussing on typical application areas and settings and on motivation for deployment and evidence of utility. Design/methodology/approach This is a systematic literature review compiled from several electronic databases. Data cover the period from 1990 to 2015 and are confined to academic articles written in English. Findings Applications of the matrix approach in public sector organizations are found in human resource management and performance management, service development and public procurement, and creation of new organizations or organization reform and network organizations. While the proven utility of matrix organization is often unclear, especially CFTs are linked to better organizational performance, improved coordination, internal collaboration and development of cross-boundary tasks. Research limitations/implications Methodological limitations relate to excluded data due to non-accessible articles. Practical implications The findings have practical implications for public sector organizations in adapting to a changing environment. Originality/value This is the first systematic literature review of matrix management in public sector organizations.
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Kirchhoff, Christine J., Rebecca Esselman, and Daniel Brown. "Boundary organizations to boundary chains: Prospects for advancing climate science application." Climate Risk Management 9 (2015): 20–29. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.crm.2015.04.001.
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Seravalli, Anna, and Luca Simeone. "Performing hackathons as a way of positioning boundary organizations." Journal of Organizational Change Management 29, no. 3 (May 9, 2016): 326–43. http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/jocm-04-2013-0060.
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Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to compare two boundary organizations situated in Malmö (Sweden) and oriented toward opening production. Particularly, it looks at how the two organizations tried to establish and communicate their boundaries during their official opening events, which were structured according to the format of hackathon. Design/methodology/approach – The authors adopted an ethnographic approach and followed the two events, observing and interacting with organizers and participants. The findings reported here draw upon data collected through direct observation, the authors’ experience as participants, unstructured conversations, e-mail exchanges. Findings – This paper analyzes the two events in order to show how different cultures of opening production lead to different ways of performing hackathons and, consequently, how these events affect the process of establishing and communicating the organizational boundaries. Originality/value – The paper looks at the potential of events structured according to the format of hackathon as a way for boundary organizations to position themselves.
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O'Mahony, Siobhán, and Beth A. Bechky. "Boundary Organizations: Enabling Collaboration among Unexpected Allies." Administrative Science Quarterly 53, no. 3 (September 2008): 422–59. http://dx.doi.org/10.2189/asqu.53.3.422.
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Kilpatrick, Sue, and Bruce Wilson. "Boundary crossing organizations in regional innovation systems." Regional Science Policy & Practice 5, no. 1 (March 2013): 67–82. http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1757-7802.2012.01087.x.
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Franklin, Aimee L., Athena Grossman, Jennifer Le, and Mark Shafer. "Creating Broader Research Impacts through Boundary Organizations." Public Administration Review 79, no. 2 (September 4, 2018): 215–24. http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/puar.12985.
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Doz, Yves, Felipe Monteiro, Ram Mudambi, and Andreas P. J. Schotter. "Global Strategy: Boundary Spanning in Global Organizations." Academy of Management Proceedings 2014, no. 1 (January 2014): 12310. http://dx.doi.org/10.5465/ambpp.2014.12310symposium.
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Kossek, Ellen Ernst, and Brenda A. Lautsch. "Work–family boundary management styles in organizations." Organizational Psychology Review 2, no. 2 (April 25, 2012): 152–71. http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/2041386611436264.
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Keshet, Yael. "Organizational diversity and inclusive boundary-work: the case of Israeli hospitals." Equality, Diversity and Inclusion: An International Journal 39, no. 4 (April 21, 2020): 447–62. http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/edi-08-2019-0231.
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PurposeThe theoretical conceptualization of boundaries is proposed as a useful approach to study diversity in organizations.Design/methodology/approachTwo types of diversity in health-care organizations – functional diversity and social category diversity – are compared, drawing on two extensive studies of Israeli hospitals. One study addresses the boundary between the medical professions and complementary medicine and the other examines the boundary between Israel's Jewish ethnic majority and the Arab minority.FindingsWith regard to functional diversity, boundary-work is used to draw, redraw, and maintain the boundary between biomedicine professionals and complementary medicine practitioners. With respect to social category diversity, boundary-work is employed to blur the boundary between Jewish and Arab professionals working within the organization and the ideal of professionalism is used as a boundary object to blur this ethno-national boundary.Originality/valueThis typology is offered in the hope of providing greater theoretical insight into the study of organizational diversity in the context of power relations.
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Impedovo, Maria Antonietta, and Amelia Manuti. "Boundary objects as connectors between communities of practices in the organizational context." Development and Learning in Organizations: An International Journal 30, no. 2 (March 7, 2016): 7–10. http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/dlo-07-2015-0065.
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Purpose This paper aims to argue the beneficial effects of communities of practices for organizations. More specifically, given their intrinsic features, communities of practices support individuals and organizations in developing and diffusing the organizational culture, in making sense and guiding individual and collective actions, in defining identities and finally in coping with change and transitions. Design/methodology/approach Moving from a constructionist view of organizations, the paper reported the lessons learnt through literature about communities of practices, reviewing the most recent empirical evidences on the topic. Findings Boundary objects and boundary interactions are the concrete tools that allow individuals to exchange knowledge and to develop practices, thus becoming a community. This exchange of skills and expertise concretely shapes the practices that give sense to individual and organizational actions. Nonetheless, organizations and communities are open spaces constantly in interaction, both inside and outside the organizational borders. Thus, through contamination, namely, through the encounter with different actors and contexts, practices could be expanded and reformulated as long as they might suit to specific demands. Originality/value The paper argued that communities of practices in times of change could become a space for learning and development as long as they allow people to redefine mental models and practices and thus to make sense and to cope with a new cultural scenario.
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Randhawa, Krithika, Emmanuel Josserand, Jochen Schweitzer, and Danielle Logue. "Knowledge collaboration between organizations and online communities: the role of open innovation intermediaries." Journal of Knowledge Management 21, no. 6 (October 9, 2017): 1293–318. http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/jkm-09-2016-0423.
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Purpose This research paper aims to examine how open innovation (OI) intermediaries facilitate knowledge collaboration between organizations and online user communities. Drawing on a Community of Practice (CoP) perspective on knowledge, the study lays out a framework of the knowledge boundary management mechanisms (and associated practices) that intermediaries deploy in enabling client organizations to engage in online community-based OI. Design/methodology/approach This research is based on an exploratory case study of an OI intermediary and 18 client organizations that engage with online user communities on the intermediary’s platform. Results incorporate both the intermediary and clients’ perspective, based on analysis of intermediary and client interviews, clients’ online community projects and other archival data. Findings Results reveal that OI intermediaries deploy three knowledge boundary management mechanisms – syntactic, semantic and pragmatic – each underpinned by a set of practices. Together, these mechanisms enable knowledge transfer, translation and transformation, respectively, and thus lead to cumulatively richer knowledge collaboration outcomes at the organization–community boundary. The findings show that the pragmatic mechanism reinforces both semantic and syntactic mechanisms, and is hence the most critical to achieving effective knowledge collaboration in community-based OI settings. Practical implications The findings suggest that OI intermediaries have to implement all three boundary management mechanisms to successfully enable knowledge collaboration for community-based OI. More specifically, intermediaries need to expand their focus beyond the development of digital platforms, to include nuanced efforts at building organizational commitment to community engagement. Originality/value Drawing on the CoP view, this study integrates the knowledge management literature into the OI literature to conceptualize the role of OI intermediaries in shaping knowledge collaboration between organizations and communities. In engaging with the interactive nature of knowledge exchange in such multi-actor settings, this research extends the firm-centric theorization of knowledge that currently dominates the existing OI research.
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Luvison, Dave, and Jeffrey L. Cummings. "Decisions at the Boundary." Group & Organization Management 42, no. 2 (March 21, 2017): 279–309. http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/1059601117696620.
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Individuals in a firm tend to operate within a unifying set of organizational role expectations, but this is rarely the case in strategic alliances where different organizations’ interests and expectations are involved. In this conceptual article, we consider how alliance managers (AMs), the boundary spanners responsible for alliance success, navigate receiving firm-sent role expectations while also receiving legitimate partner-sent expectations. Role theory is incomplete regarding how AMs cope with this increasingly common, mixed-motive context and how the pull of the focal firm on AMs is affected. We address this theory gap by conceptualizing how the limiting nature of firm-sent expectations is affected by AMs’ receipt of legitimate partner-sent roles, and is moderated by AMs’ entrepreneurism and the structure of the interfirm collaborative environment.
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Brugger, Julie, and Michael Crimmins. "Designing Institutions to Support Local-Level Climate Change Adaptation: Insights from a Case Study of the U.S. Cooperative Extension System." Weather, Climate, and Society 7, no. 1 (January 1, 2015): 18–38. http://dx.doi.org/10.1175/wcas-d-13-00036.1.
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Abstract In light of global climate change, adaptation will be necessary at all levels of social organization. However, the adaptation literature emphasizes that because the impacts of climate change and vulnerability are locally specific, adaptation is inevitably local. In this paper, in order to inform the design of institutions that can encourage and support effective local-level adaptation, the authors derive principles for their design theoretically and use a case study to explore how these principles could be practically implemented. Ten design principles are synthesized from principles derived from reviews of the literatures on local-level adaptation, usable science, and boundary organizations. Bringing these three literatures together highlights the characteristics of boundary organizations that make them particularly valuable for addressing the challenges of local-level adaptation. The case study then illustrates how an existing boundary organization, The University of Arizona Cooperative Extension, of the U.S. Cooperative Extension System (CES), implements these principles in its organizational structure and in the daily practice of Extension professionals. It also highlights the significance of the CES’s existing social networks and social capital for facilitating their implementation. From the case study it is concluded that the CES is uniquely positioned to serve an important role in a national adaptation strategy for the United States in supporting local-level adaptation in urban and rural communities across the country.
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Woo, DaJung, and Karen K. Myers. "Organizational Membership Negotiation of Boundary Spanners: Becoming a Competent Jack of All Trades and Master of . . . Interactional Expertise." Management Communication Quarterly 34, no. 1 (November 6, 2019): 85–120. http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/0893318919887371.
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Organizations hire in-house communication professionals to maximize efficiency in managing information and stakeholder relationships across various internal and external boundaries. The boundary-spanning aspect of in-house communication professionals’ job has the potential to shape their membership negotiation (MN, that is, ongoing communication processes through which individuals develop meanings of their organizational participation) in important ways that differ from the experiences of those who become integrated into a workgroup or domain with a well-defined boundary. Drawing on 30 in-depth interviews with communication professionals employed at public sector organizations, this study explores key characteristics and challenges of their boundary-spanning roles and how they negotiated meanings of their membership as they navigated the challenges. Based on the findings, the authors propose a novel conceptual model of boundary spanners’ MN, future research directions, and pragmatic implications for employers of boundary-spanning members.
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Daniel, Elizabeth, Elizabeth Hartnett, and Maureen Meadows. "Don’t throw rocks from the side-lines." Information Technology & People 30, no. 3 (August 7, 2017): 542–61. http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/itp-02-2015-0036.
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Purpose Social media such as blogs are being widely used in organizations in order to undertake internal communication and share knowledge, rendering them important boundary objects. A root metaphor of the boundary object domain is the notion of relatively static and inert objects spanning similarly static boundaries. A strong sociomaterial perspective allows the immisciblity of object and boundary to be challenged, since a key tenet of this perspective is the ongoing and mutually constituted performance of the material and social. The paper aims to discuss these issues. Design/methodology/approach The aim of the research is to draw upon sociomateriality to explore the operation of social media platforms as intra-organizational boundary objects. Given the novel perspective of this study and its social constructivist ontology, the authors adopt an exploratory, interpretivist research design. This is operationalized as a case study of the use of an organizational blog by a major UK Government department over an extended period. A novel aspect of the study is the use of data released under a Freedom of Information request. Findings The authors present three exemplar instances of how the blog and organizational boundaries were performed in the situated practice of the case study organization. The authors draw on the literature on boundary objects, blogs and sociomateriality in order to provide a theoretical explication of the mutually constituted performance of the blog and organizational boundaries. The authors also invoke the notion of “extended chains of intra-action” to theorize changes in the wider organization. Originality/value Adoption of a sociomaterial lens provides a highly novel perspective of boundary objects and organizational boundaries. The study highlights the indeterminate and dynamic nature of boundary objects and boundaries, with both being in an intra-active state of becoming challenging conventional conceptions. The study demonstrates that specific material-discursive practices arising from the situated practice of the blog at the respective boundaries were performative, reconfiguring the blog and boundaries and being generative of further changes in the organization.
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Collin, Sven-Olof. "Financial intermediation through markets and organizations: An information-boundary argument for financial organizations." Scandinavian Journal of Management 13, no. 2 (June 1997): 175–89. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/s0956-5221(96)00045-0.
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Becker, Karen. "Organizational unlearning: time to expand our horizons?" Learning Organization 25, no. 3 (April 9, 2018): 180–89. http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/tlo-10-2017-0095.
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Purpose Interest in the topic of unlearning has grown in recent years, fueled by rapid changes in the business environment and resultant organizational change. This change challenges individuals and organizations to unlearn past knowledge and practice to embrace new organizational realities. However, much of the unlearning literature focuses on either individual or organizational factors that enable or hinder unlearning. This paper aims to look beyond the organizational boundary to question whether there are tensions between professionals and the organizations in which they work that influence organizational unlearning. Design/methodology/approach This is a conceptual paper analyzing how professions are established to identify the implications for organizational unlearning. The critical elements of a profession are explored to identify the potential impact that professionals within the organization may have on organizational learning and unlearning. Findings The paper argues that to facilitate unlearning, organizations must recognize not only internal factors but also external pressures on individuals and groups. In particular, professions with a strong identity may represent a significant force that can either engender or resist attempts to learn and unlearn by the organization. Originality/value Within the existing unlearning literature, individual and organizational factors that facilitate or hinder unlearning have been widely canvased. However, little attention has been given to the factors beyond organizational boundaries that may also impact unlearning, particularly for individuals and groups with strong professional identities. This paper offers some unique insights into this potential factor for consideration by those seeking to enhance organizational unlearning.
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Oldenhof, Lieke, Annemiek Stoopendaal, and Kim Putters. "From boundaries to boundary work: middle managers creating inter-organizational change." Journal of Health Organization and Management 30, no. 8 (November 21, 2016): 1204–20. http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/jhom-03-2016-0041.
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Purpose In healthcare, organizational boundaries are often viewed as barriers to change. The purpose of this paper is to show how middle managers create inter-organizational change by doing boundary work: the dual act of redrawing boundaries and coordinating work in new ways. Design/methodology/approach Theoretically, the paper draws on the concept of boundary work from Science and Technology Studies. Empirically, the paper is based on an ethnographic investigation of middle managers that participate in a Dutch reform program across health, social care, and housing. Findings The findings show how middle managers create a sense of urgency for inter-organizational change by emphasizing “fragmented” service provision due to professional, sectoral, financial, and geographical boundaries. Rather than eradicating these boundaries, middle managers change the status quo gradually by redrawing composite boundaries. They use boundary objects and a boundary-transcending vocabulary emphasizing the need for societal gains that go beyond production targets of individual organizations. As a result, work is coordinated in new ways in neighborhood teams and professional expertise is being reconfigured. Research limitations/implications Since boundary workers create incremental change, it is necessary to follow their work for a longer period to assess whether boundary work contributes to paradigm change. Practical implications Organizations should pay attention to conditions for boundary work, such as legitimacy of boundary workers and the availability of boundary spaces that function as communities of practice. Originality/value By shifting the focus from boundaries to boundary work, this paper gives valuable insights into “how” boundaries are redrawn and embodied in objects and language.
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Roussy, Véronique, Therese Riley, and Charles Livingstone. "Together stronger: boundary work within an Australian systems-based prevention initiative." Health Promotion International 35, no. 4 (June 30, 2019): 671–81. http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/heapro/daz065.
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Abstract Complexity and systems science are increasingly used to devise interventions to address health and social problems. Boundaries are important in systems thinking, as they bring attention to the power dynamics that guide decision-making around the framing of a situation, and how it is subsequently tackled. Using complexity theory as an analytical frame, this qualitative exploratory study examined boundary interactions between local government and community health organizations during the operationalization of a systems-based initiative to prevent obesity and chronic diseases (Healthy Together Communities—HTCs) in Victoria, Australia. Across two HTC sites, data was generated through semi-structured interviews with 20 key informants, in mid-2015. Template analysis based on properties of complex systems was applied to the data. The dynamics of boundary work are explored using three case illustrations: alignment, boundary spanning and boundary permeability. Alignment was both a process and an outcome of boundary work, and occurred at strategic, operational and individual levels. Boundary spanning was an important mechanism to develop a unified collaborative approach, and ensure that mainstream initiatives reached disadvantaged groups. Finally, some boundaries exhibited different levels of permeability for local government and community health organizations. This influenced how each organization could contribute to HTC interventions in unique, yet complementary ways. The study of boundary work offers potential for understanding the mechanisms that contribute to the nonlinear behaviour of complex systems. The complementarity of partnering organizations, and boundary dynamics should be considered when designing and operationalizing multilevel, complex systems-informed prevention initiatives.
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Chang, Kirk, Chien-Chih Kuo, Man Su, and Julie Taylor. "Dis-identification in Organizations and Its Role in the Workplace." Articles 68, no. 3 (September 24, 2013): 479–506. http://dx.doi.org/10.7202/1018437ar.
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Considerable theory and research has revealed that organizational identification (OID) benefits individuals and groups and that OID facilitates the development of long-term commitment and support towards an organization. Prior studies have highlighted the importance of an identification mechanism in the workplace, i.e., how employees define their self-concepts vis-à-vis their connections with their organizations. In contrast to previous research, we explore the process by which employees divorce their identity from that of their organization, i.e., defining who they are by what they are not. Interestingly, how individuals dis-identify themselves from the organization still remains unclear, and the concept of dis-identification in organization (DiO) has not drawn much academic attention. The paucity of research in this area leaves theories under-developed; thus, our research seeks to shed new light on the concept of DiO and understand its importance at work. An anonymous questionnaire survey was conducted, recruiting 304 employees across eight organizations in Taiwan. Different from prior studies, this research stated that OID and DiO were neither heterogeneous nor independent constructs. Statistical evidence affirmed this statement further and explained that OID and DiO were inter-related constructs. Moreover, two DiO antecedents were discovered, including: person-organization fit and abusive supervision. Unlike in previous studies, DiO was not correlated with poor employee performance; rather, it was correlated with workplace deviance, an intention of quitting the job, and voice-extra-role-behaviour. Organizations are complex entities by their very nature. Whether an organization can continue, function and succeed may depend upon a series of organizational characteristics. An organization is like a social arrangement that pursues collective goals, controls its own performance, and has a boundary separating it from its environment. One such organizational characteristic is identification. With a better understanding of OID/DiO, managers and HR practitioners can better observe the influence of OID/DiO and develop policies to increase employees’ identification and decrease dis-identification. Ultimately, employers, employees and society will enjoy the benefits of better organizations, e.g., higher working morale, more performance output, stronger membership/cohesion, and lower turnover.
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Mustafa, Fahrina, and Riad Mustafa. "CROSSING ORGANIZATIONAL BOUNDARY’S EFFECT ON PARADIGMATIC SHIFT AND THE IMPLICATION TO MARKETING STRATEGY OF AN ORGANIZATION." Hasanuddin Economics and Business Review 1, no. 3 (February 2, 2018): 184. http://dx.doi.org/10.26487/hebr.v1i3.1294.
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This paper studies the paradigmatic shift as the effect on the crossing organizational boundaries activities. Boundary crossing as part of specific function of organizations is common to organization theories. Nevertheless, the increasing and strong rate of occurrence of the crossing boundary activities is considered important today as the consequence of the technological revolution in information and communication technology coupled with the future technologies. Crossing boundaries influence the people involved and the institutional sets. The relationships within the boundaries are increasingly dynamic. Hence, this, in turn, may lead to paradigmatic shift. From the perspective of organization and innovation studies these processes are to a great extent attractive since they may create different conditions the existing literatures on organization as well as innovation, and consequently, on marketing. Therefore, this paper aims at studying the marketing strategy response of an organization by identifying states that emerge or condition that may be created as the paradigms shifted.
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Rottner, Renee. "Working at the boundary: Making space for innovation in a NASA megaproject." Social Studies of Science 49, no. 3 (June 2019): 403–31. http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/0306312719851557.
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This study shows how occupational, organizational and institutional boundaries can be reworked to enable innovation. Based on an historical case study of NASA’s Spitzer Space Telescope, which spanned three decades and two dozen organizations, I show how megaproject members made boundaries a target of strategic action. Megaprojects, in particular, require us to think about boundaries at multiple levels as they commonly draw on expertise and resources from different disciplines, organizations, and institutional domains. This case reveals several mechanisms by which boundaries can be modified to coordinate diverse innovation partners, from reconfiguring the ways members relate to one another (splicing, fitting and channeling) to reshaping the environment they work in (softening, fusing and corralling). Overall, this study contributes to our understanding of how actors make room for new ideas and cause institutional change as part of innovation processes. By treating boundaries as malleable and multiplex, I extend organizational theory, which tends to view boundaries as given and things to be spanned. I extend the STS literature that takes boundaries as fluid, identifying several mechanisms of making and unmaking them. A more dynamic treatment of boundaries is called for in both innovation research and practice, and this study opens a path for research that looks not only at boundary objects but also boundary actions, and moves from boundary organizations to boundary organizing.
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Ethiraj, Sendil K., and Daniel Levinthal. "Bounded Rationality and the Search for Organizational Architecture: An Evolutionary Perspective on the Design of Organizations and Their Evolvability." Administrative Science Quarterly 49, no. 3 (September 2004): 404–37. http://dx.doi.org/10.2307/4131441.
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We employ a computational model of organizational adaptation to answer three research questions: (1) How does the architecture or structure of complexity affect the feasibility and usefulness of boundedly rational design efforts? (2) Do efforts to adapt organizational forms complicate or complement the effectiveness of first-order change efforts? and (3) To what extent does the rate of environmental change nullify the usefulness of design efforts? We employ a computational model of organizational adaptation to examine these questions. Our results, in identifying the boundary conditions around successful design efforts, suggest that the underlying architecture of complexity of organizations, particularly the presence of hierarchy, is a critical determinant of the feasibility and effectiveness of design efforts. We also find that design efforts are generally complementary to efforts at local performance improvement and identify specific contingencies that determine the extent of complementarity. We discuss the implications of our findings for organization theory and design and the literature on modularity in products and organizations.
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Booz, Robert J., and Laurie K. Lewis. "Facilitating technology transfer among organizations: An applied communication strategy concept for organizational boundary spanners." Journal of Technology Transfer 22, no. 1 (March 1997): 35–46. http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/bf02509152.
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Taneja, Sonia, Scott S. Sewell, and Randall Y. Odom. "A culture of employee engagement: a strategic perspective for global managers." Journal of Business Strategy 36, no. 3 (May 18, 2015): 46–56. http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/jbs-06-2014-0062.
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Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to develop a model that identifies the strategies that have the ability to create a culture of employee engagement for global managers in making the tactical adaptations necessary to develop and implement global strategy in an increasingly complex and dynamic marketplace. Design/methodology/approach – The authors focused on the global managers charged with the responsibilities of developing and creating a culture of employee engagement as an important strategy for the competitive advantage of organizations. Findings – Employee engagement should be viewed as a long-term commitment between the employees and the organization, each supporting the other in an era of increasing international operations. In fact, employee engagement is an important strategy for long-term organizational sustainability in international markets. Practical implications – Employee engagement is critical to the management and retention of talented employees in the organization. It can be achieved by managing global mobility in increasingly complex global workplaces; talent so that it enhances business results; training and development; rewards, recognitions and engagement; manager/employee communication and interaction; and leadership and development. Originality/value – In today’s global society, it is critical for organizational leaders to focus on creating a culture of employee engagement to attract and retain quality employees in an increasingly competitive market. Engaged employees are more committed to their work and feel connected to the success of their organization. In addition, they are more likely to believe in their organization’s values, mission and vision. The increasing utilization of boundary less organizations poses a challenge for leaders who strive to create and maintain employee engagement within an organization.
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Gatrell, Caroline. "Boundary Creatures? Employed, Breastfeeding Mothers and ‘Abjection as Practice’." Organization Studies 40, no. 3 (December 4, 2017): 421–42. http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/0170840617736932.
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This paper contributes to theory on maternity, embodiment and organizations through advancing a contemporary theory of ‘abjection as practice’ in relation to breastfeeding and employment. Drawing upon the work of Margaret Shildrick and Julia Kristeva, it analyses a qualitative study of netnographic (internet) discussions among employed breastfeeding mothers, observing how lactating bodies are treated as abject within organizations. It proposes that hostile behaviour towards breastfeeding women could be seen as a form of ‘abjection as practice’, displaying a purposeful intent to exclude breast milk production from workplace contexts. In exploring the position of breastfeeding workers, the paper observes how breastfeeding women occupy an uncomfortable space on the borders between health ideals of ‘proper’ mothering and organizational notions of ‘good’ worker. The situation of breastfeeding employees is rendered ambiguous and such uncertainties invoke co-worker antipathy. Co-worker hostility towards breastfeeding colleagues appears validated at work because minimal action is taken to address deliberate utilization of ‘abjection as practice’ towards breastfeeding workers.
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Ulfsdotter Eriksson, Ylva. "Global HRM standards as boundary objects: a device to enhance legitimacy and status." Personnel Review 46, no. 6 (September 4, 2017): 1089–103. http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/pr-01-2016-0013.
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Purpose In 2016, the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) introduced new standards for human resource management (HRM). The purpose of this paper is to describe and explain the significance that human resource (HR) professionals attribute to global HRM standards, what outcomes they envisage for the profession and organizations, and what influences engagement in the standardization project. Design/methodology/approach The analyses interpret the relationship between standards, professions, and organizations by combining theories of professions with concepts from institutional theory. The study is ethnographic and consists of observations of meetings and interviews with eight participants from the Swedish committee participating in the ISO project. Findings HR professionals consider HRM standards positive for the profession’s legitimacy, status, and development, which are also considered beneficial for organizations. However, difficulties in recruiting participants and organizations to the standardization project may prevent positive exchanges for the profession, and point to a weak interest in HRM issues from the HR professionals themselves. Research limitations/implications The generalizability of the results is somewhat limited due to the small sample size. Nevertheless, the study provides insights into how HR professionals reason about their profession and professionalization. Practical implications Gaining insights into the forthcoming global standards for HRM is important for HR professionals. These standards may be implemented in organizations worldwide and affect how HRM is conducted, and therefore also have a profound effect on the profession. Originality/value The ISO’s targeting of a specific occupation is unique. The paper contributes with the knowledge on how professionals relates to standardization of the given field.
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Stjerne, Iben Sandal, and Silviya Svejenova. "Connecting Temporary and Permanent Organizing: Tensions and Boundary Work in Sequential Film Projects." Organization Studies 37, no. 12 (September 25, 2016): 1771–92. http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/0170840616655492.
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This paper investigates the relationship between a permanent organization and a series of temporary organizations. It draws on an in-depth study of the process through which a Danish film production company, seeking to balance innovation and persistence in a troubled industry, struggles to realize a novel children’s film and its sequels. The study reveals tensions at different levels as well as boundary work and boundary roles that address them, bringing in shadows of past and future projects. The study extends the understanding of the dialectic between temporary and permanent organizing by emphasizing how ongoing work at different boundaries affects the permanent and temporary organizing’s connectedness and outcomes. It also challenges the overly bracketed view of temporary organizations, suggesting a temporality perspective on temporariness.
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Lindbeck, Assar, and Solveig Wikström. "E‐exchange and the Boundary between Households and Organizations." Kyklos 56, no. 3 (August 2003): 315–40. http://dx.doi.org/10.1046/j.0023-5962.2003.00223.x.
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Guston, David H. "Boundary Organizations in Environmental Policy and Science: An Introduction." Science, Technology, & Human Values 26, no. 4 (October 2001): 399–408. http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/016224390102600401.
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Jammulamadaka, Nimruji. "Goal-boundary Typology of Non-profit Organizations: A proposal." Academy of Management Proceedings 2012, no. 1 (July 2012): 13604. http://dx.doi.org/10.5465/ambpp.2012.13604abstract.
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Schneider, Benjamin, and David E. Bowen. "Perspectives on the Organizational Context of Frontlines: A Commentary." Journal of Service Research 22, no. 1 (December 6, 2018): 3–7. http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/1094670518816160.
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This commentary heartily endorses the organizational frontlines (OF) construct proposed in the special issue of Journal of Service Research. The central goal of the commentary is to facilitate the interdisciplinary focus of the OF construct so appropriately emphasized in the special issue by focusing in on the role of people throughout a service organization. We emphasize in particular how people are involved in every facet of the service organization that eventually impacts the OF including, via the sociotechnical systems construct, the development and implementation of technology used at the frontlines. A three-tier view of service organizations is summarized that includes customers, employees, and management (coordination) tiers—and their interactions especially vis-à-vis the boundary tier (frontlines) of service organizations. In addition, we summarize three contextual human facets of service organizations that impact what happens at the frontlines that were relatively underemphasized in the special issue: service climate, internal service, and the strength of human resource management systems. Finally, we note the importance of attending, through research and practice, to the changes in the roles of people as technology plays an increasing role in many service delivery systems.
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Schoeneborn, Dennis. "Organization as Communication." Management Communication Quarterly 25, no. 4 (May 19, 2011): 663–89. http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/0893318911405622.
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This article introduces Luhmann’s theory of social systems as a prominent example of communication as constitutive of organization (CCO) thinking and argues that Luhmann’s perspective contributes to current conceptual debates on how communication constitutes organization. The theory of social systems highlights that organizations are fundamentally grounded in paradox because they are built on communicative events that are contingent by nature. Consequently, organizations are driven by the continuous need to deparadoxify their inherent contingency. In that respect, Luhmann’s approach fruitfully combines a processual, communicative conceptualization of organization with the notion of boundary and self-referentiality. Notwithstanding the merits of Luhmann’s approach, its accessibility tends to be limited due to the hermetic terminology that it employs and the fact that it neglects the role of material agency in the communicative construction of organizations.
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Buizer, James, Katharine Jacobs, and David Cash. "Making short-term climate forecasts useful: Linking science and action." Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 113, no. 17 (January 28, 2010): 4597–602. http://dx.doi.org/10.1073/pnas.0900518107.
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This paper discusses the evolution of scientific and social understanding that has led to the development of knowledge systems supporting the application of El Niño-Southern Oscillation (ENSO) forecasts, including the development of successful efforts to connect climate predictions with sectoral applications and actions “on the ground”. The evolution of “boundary-spanning” activities to connect science and decisionmaking is then discussed, setting the stage for a report of outcomes from an international workshop comprised of producers, translators, and users of climate predictions. The workshop, which focused on identifying critical boundary-spanning features of successful boundary organizations, included participants from Australia, Hawaii, and the Pacific Islands, the US Pacific Northwest, and the state of Ceará in northwestern Brazil. Workshop participants agreed that boundary organizations have multiple roles including those of information broker, convenor of forums for engagement, translator of scientific information, arbiter of access to knowledge, and exemplar of adaptive behavior. Through these roles, boundary organizations will ensure the stability of the knowledge system in a changing political, economic, and climatic context. The international examples reviewed in this workshop demonstrated an interesting case of convergent evolution, where organizations that were very different in origin evolved toward similar structures and individuals engaged in them had similar experiences to share. These examples provide evidence that boundary organizations and boundary-spanners fill some social/institutional roles that are independent of culture.
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Antoni, Anne, Juliane Reinecke, and Marianna Fotaki. "Caring or Not Caring for Coworkers? An Empirical Exploration of the Dilemma of Care Allocation in the Workplace." Business Ethics Quarterly 30, no. 4 (May 6, 2020): 447–85. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/beq.2020.1.
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ABSTRACTOrganization and management researchers praise the value of care in the workplace. However, they overlook the conflict between caring for work and for coworkers, which resonates with the dilemma of care allocation highlighted by ethicists of care. Through an in-depth qualitative study of two organizations, we examine how this dilemma is confronted in everyday organizational life. We draw on the concept of boundary work to explain how employees negotiate the boundary of their caring responsibilities in ways that grants or denies care to coworkers. We argue that the possibility of an ethics of care for coworkers requires boundary work that suspends the separation of personal and professional selves and constitutes the worker as a whole person. We contribute to research on care in organizations by showing how care for coworkers may be enabled or undermined by maintaining or suppressing the care allocation dilemma.
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Engesbak, Vetle, and Jonas A. Ingvaldsen. "“Please use our ideas”: making parallel organizations work." Team Performance Management: An International Journal 26, no. 3/4 (March 6, 2019): 183–95. http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/tpm-01-2018-0007.
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Purpose Parallel organizations (POs) perform tasks that operating organizations (OOs) are not equipped or organized to perform well. However, POs rely on OOs’ goodwill for implementation of their ideas and recommendations. Little is known about how POs achieve impact in OOs; this paper aims to examine this important topic. Design/methodology/approach Through the analytical lens of boundary spanning, the paper analyzes the PO–OO relationship in a manufacturing organization. Data were collected through 31 semi-structured in-depth interviews with OO managers, PO team leaders and PO team members. Findings Primary PO–OO boundary dimensions were favoritism toward local practice in the OO, specialized knowledge across PO–OO contexts and power asymmetry favoring the OO. The main boundary-spanning activities were translating, which targets specialized knowledge, and anchoring, which targets favoritism towards local practice and power asymmetry. Research limitations/implications The findings on PO–OO collaboration, especially PO–OO power relations, complement conventional topics in PO literature, such as POs’ purpose, structural configuration and staffing. Practical implications POs should be staffed with team members, especially team leaders, who can translate effectively between the PO’s and the OO’s frames of reference, and facilitate complicated knowledge processes across these contexts. Additionally, senior managers should understand their role in anchoring the PO initiative and its results within the OO. Originality/value This is the first study to view the PO–OO relationship via boundary spanning, and thus to identify power asymmetry as a key challenge not previously described in PO literature, and describe how this asymmetry is overcome through anchoring.