Abstract
The various traditions of socio-technical system design (STSD) emphasise different aspects of such systems, but the core relationship in the literature is between the use of technology and the set-up of organisations. Therefore, much attention has been paid to organisational issues, including work tasks, distributed responsibilities and processes. An organisation where tasks and responsibilities are distributed requires other forms of co-operation and clarification and, not least, that the actors trust each other. Nevertheless, trust has received little discussion in the STSD literature.This paper focuses on trust as a relational tool: the factors decisive for developing trust in a project management team established ad hoc to implement an offshore development project, how to develop trust in practice, and whether a focus on trust reduces the need for control measures. The purpose of systematic trust building is to develop team members who are, individually and as team members, able to deliver the results expected for their area and to support colleagues to do the same, thereby reducing the need for control measures. Trust building represents one way for the project manager to acquire control of the organisation, and it must therefore be better understood, starting with this question: how efficient are the various factors for the project manager in exercising power, i.e. ensuring control over project execution? The case in this paper illustrates the need to address trust and control in the set-up of a project management team, a focus which is also important for STSD in general.
Highlights
The offshore supplier industry is organised around projects, as much as other ETO supplier industries.28 When an offshore ETO contractor wins a project, a new project organisation has to be established
The concept is interpreted within an organisational framework: “it is argued that the survival of such [individual] relationships in the face of these inevitable inter-personal problems requires the establishment of inter-organizational trust
“how various trust-based and control-based elements are determined, integrated and actuated in the ongoing development of managerial attention and action” (Long and Sitkin 2006:96). They argue that trust-building and task control activities carried out by the leader affect both how the employees perform the work and the quality of the relationship between manager and employees
Summary
The offshore supplier industry is organised around projects, as much as other ETO supplier industries. When an offshore ETO contractor wins a project, a new project organisation has to be established. “it is argued that the survival of such [individual] relationships in the face of these inevitable inter-personal problems requires the establishment of inter-organizational trust Such trust is characterised by community of interest, organisational cultures receptive to external inputs and widespread and continually supplemented knowledge among employees of the status and purpose of collaboration” (Dodgson 1993:77). Long and Sitkin developed a model that identifies prominent trust control relationships and clarifies “how various trust-based and control-based elements are determined, integrated and actuated in the ongoing development of managerial attention and action” (Long and Sitkin 2006:96) They argue that trust-building and task control activities carried out by the leader affect both how the employees perform the work and the quality of the relationship between manager and employees. Trust relationships are dependent on all actors being seen and receiving attention. Maintaining a relationship of trust requires constant attention from the participating actors. A temporal phase with unique features is as efficient as a linear process of trust development
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