Inter-organizational Level Research Articles

Co-exploitation (or co-exploration) vs go it alone? The role of alliance learning capability on firm performance

PurposeThis study aims to analyze the moderating role of a firm’s alliance learning capability. The aim is to investigate the comparative performance of developing exploitation (or exploration) activities in collaboration with others vs adopting a go-it-alone posture.Design/methodology/approachThe authors compare high levels of co-exploitation (or co-exploration) that represent the collaboration stance vs low levels of co-exploitation (or co-exploration) that characterize the go-it-alone posture. Data were collected using a sample of 262 manufacturing firms that developed exploitation-based innovations and 239 exploration-based innovations. Regression models were used to test the hypotheses.FindingsEmpirical results suggest that the best performance is reached by firms that exploit or explore collaborating with others at high levels of alliance learning capability. In contrast, firms perform better by going alone in exploitation activities at low levels of alliance learning capability.Practical implicationsFirms may complement internal efforts of exploitation or exploration by co-developing knowledge with other organizations for higher performance. However, collaborating with others is not free of drawbacks, and, under certain circumstances, the go-it-alone strategy is more convenient.Originality/valueThis paper provides evidence of the role of a firm’s alliance learning capability in determining the differential performance of carrying on exploitation or exploration activities in collaboration with others vs adopting a go-it-alone stance. Thus, it offers an alternative perspective in the literature on organizational learning and innovation management, in contrast with the exploitation and exploration balanced perspective of ambidexterity, by explaining how alliance learning capability fosters firm performance combining exploitation or exploration at organizational and inter-organizational levels.

Diversity and autonomy in the structuration of a multilevel organizational social network in a technology park

In organizational settings, along with their formal rules, informal norms and social preferences drive the formation of interpersonal networks. Empirical evidence and theoretical claims maintain that individual epistemic status influences the choice of an adviser in interpersonal advice networks within an organizational environment. In the context of an industrial cluster, the interpersonal networks are affiliated with the interorganizational network of the companies. Therefore, another source of influence to be considered is the interdependency of the interorganizational level relations among the companies in which the individuals are nested. Thus, beyond the one-level perspective, which is the usual approach in organizational network studies, this article explores how the interdependency of the interorganizational level can influence the dynamic of endogenous structuration of interpersonal relations. The object of this study is a collaboration network among companies and an advice network among directors from a Brazilian knowledge-intensive technological cluster. Through the use of the multilevel exponential random graph model (MERGM), statistical interdependent dynamics were identified between the two levels guided by the social processes of tie creation that result in similarities and distinctions between both levels of analysis. The centralization based on the activity of seeking advice guides the directors' network, and among companies there are multiple transitive and hierarchical closures with some intermediation between them. However, activity-based centralization also guides companies. From a multilevel perspective, the diversity of network processes that guide each level indicates that the cross-level interdependency between the two levels does not prevent some autonomy of the individual level from the organizational one.

Mindful Unlearning in Unprecedented times: Implications for Management and Organizations

Crises trigger both learning and unlearning at both intra-organizational and inter-organizational levels. This paper stresses the need to facilitate unlearning for effective crisis management and shows how we could use mindfulness practice to enhance unlearning and transformative learning in a crisis. In this study, we propose the conceptualization of mindful unlearning in times of crisis with different mechanisms to foster unlearning in three stages of crisis (pre-crisis, during crisis, and post-crisis). These mechanisms include mindful awareness of impermanent and sensual processing (pre-crisis stage), mindful awareness of interdependence and right intention (crisis management stage), and mindful awareness of transiency and past experiences (post-crisis stage).

Offshore outsourcing of R&D to emerging markets: information systems as tools of neo-colonial control

PurposeThis paper analyzes how information systems (IS) can serve as tools of neo-colonial control in offshore outsourcing of research and development work. It draws on critical work examining business and knowledge process outsourcing.Design/methodology/approachThe paper reports an empirical study of how laboratory information management systems (LIMS) shape offshore outsourcing practices involving Western client firms and Indian contract research organizations (CROs) in the pharmaceutical industry. The study adopted a multi-actor perspective, involving interviews with representatives of Western clients, Indian CROs, system validation auditors, and software vendors. The analysis was iterative and interpretative, guided by postcolonial sensitivity to themes of power and control.FindingsThe study found that LIMS act as tools of neo-colonial control at three levels. As Western clients specify particular brands of LIMS, they create a hierarchy among local CROs and impact the development of the local LIMS industry. At inter-organizational level, LIMS shape relationships by allowing remote, real-time and retrospective surveillance of CROs’ work. At individual level, the ability of LIMS to support micro-modularizing of research leads to routinization of scientific discovery, negatively impacting scientists’ work satisfaction.Originality/valueBy examining multiple actors’ perceptions of IS, this paper looks beyond the rhetoric of system efficiency characteristic of most international business research. As it explores dynamics of power and control surrounding IS, it also questions the proposition that outsourcing of high-end work will move emerging economies upstream in the value chain.

A Research on the Cognitive and Behavioral Foundations of Strategic Management: 1995-2020

This study analyzes the theories and research topics which address the cognitive and behavioral foundations of strategic management. In the research, the citation analysis as a bibliometric technique and qualitative content analysis as a qualitative research method were used. In 1995-2007 and 2008-2020 periods, the biggest contribution was made by a behavioral theory of the firm and by social psychology/cognitive theories. When 1995-2007 and 2008-2020 periods above were evaluated together, it was deduced that the topics such as managerial cognition, cognitive schemata, sense-making, managerial human/social capital, strategic decision-making, entrepreneurship, managerial attention and emotions guided the way for research studies that conducted at individual level of analysis. The dynamic capabilities came to the forefront at organizational level of analysis whereas the competitive dynamic and behavioral strategy themes came forward in strategic phenomena. Again, when 1995-2007 and 2008-2020 periods are evaluated together, the effect of inter-organizational and contextual analysis levels between 1995-2007 is quite limited. However, between 2008-2020, social networks at the interorganizational level and the environment, institutions and market phenomena at the contextual level came to the fore.

The interplay between inter-personal and inter-organizational relationships in coordinating supply chain activities

PurposeThis paper aims to identify and explain the link between relational dynamics and the development of coordination capabilities of Fourth-Party Logistics Providers (4PL) within a supply chain (SC). We aim to demonstrate the critical role relational dynamics can play in converting trust from interpersonal to inter-organizational level and facilitate the improvement of capabilities to coordinate customer's SC activities.Design/methodology/approachUsing semi-structured interviews with 78 logistics managers operating in 45 different logistics service providers located in France, we developed a set of propositions and built a conceptual framework. Exploratory qualitative research in the form of propositional discourse analysis (PDA) is used to develop propositions in our research to contribute to theory in supply chain management (SCM).FindingsResults indicate that both interpersonal and inter-organizational trust is a convertible capital. Based on their dynamic interactions, these two levels of trust endow the supply chain partners with economic benefits that would otherwise be highly costly or even practically extremely difficult to achieve through complex socio-economic transactions (meso-social level).Research limitations/implicationsFuture research may test our conceptual model using primary and secondary data and conduct longitudinal case studies that are necessary to triangulate our results and thus strengthen our conclusions. The prospect of adding control variables to our model would be of considerable importance.Practical implicationsOur results suggest that “4PL” need to invest more in interpersonal relations to facilitate collaboration with their clients and enhance their capability to coordinate and manage customer's supply chain activities. The ability to convert interpersonal trust represents an invaluable capital contributing to the achievement of above-normal profits.Originality/valueThis work contributes to a better understanding of the coordination of supply chain activities through the development, mobilization and maintenance of social capital. While previous research explained the importance of trust in SCM, this paper explores and studies the process of converting interpersonal trust into social capital mobilized at the supply chain level. We add to the existing literature on structural and relational dimensions of social capital by offering a process-based explanation of the conversion of interpersonal trust into inter-organizational trust and its role in facilitating collaboration in logistics services.

A stochastic block model approach for the analysis of multilevel networks: An application to the sociology of organizations

A multilevel network is defined as the junction of two interaction networks, one level representing the interactions between individuals and the other the interactions between organizations. The levels are linked by an affiliation relationship, each individual belonging to a unique organization. A new Stochastic Block Model is proposed as a unified probabilistic framework tailored for multilevel networks. This model contains latent blocks accounting for heterogeneity in the patterns of connection within each level and introducing dependencies between the levels. The sought connection patterns are not specified a priori which makes this approach flexible. Variational methods are used for the model inference and an Integrated Classified Likelihood criterion is developed for choosing the number of blocks and also for deciding whether the two levels are dependent or not. A comprehensive simulation study exhibits the benefit of considering this approach, illustrates the robustness of the clustering and highlights the reliability of the criterion used for model selection. This approach is applied on a sociological dataset collected during a television program trade fair, the inter-organizational level being the economic network between companies and the inter-individual level being the informal network between their representatives. It brings a synthetic representation of the two networks unraveling their intertwined structure and confirms the coopetition at stake.

Multi-level approach to assessing the resilience of road network infrastructure

A two-step method to assess the resilience of road network infrastructures is developed to support resilience capacity building. The first step exploits the DMCI (dynamic functional modelling of vulnerability and interdependency of critical infrastructure) modelling approach for transportation network characterisation. DMCI reveals the cascading effects under disruption (due to interdependencies), and ranks the road sections according to their criticality (vital node analysis - VNA). The second step uses a quantitative coping capacity index (CCI) to assess in more detail the capacity of operators and first responders to cope with an incidental event coordinating all available resources, in order to respond and rapidly recover service operations managing all the relevant interdependencies. The combination of the two levels of analysis offers more comprehensive insights on a transportation network resilience and its intended use is to guide resilience planning within capacity building programs, at both intra- and inter-organisational levels.

Intervening in a Messy Reality: A Case of Interorganizational Collaboration in Talent Development Within the Danish Sport System

The overall aim of this paper is to share our experiences in development, implementation, and evaluation of an intervention designed for establishing interorganizational collaboration in talent development between a Danish sports club, a municipality, and a federation. Yet, despite a neat plan, we faced several challenges in what turned out to be a less successful intervention. The account is based on the first author’s field notes, informal interviews, and intervention debriefings. The professional philosophy of the research team was informed by the holistic ecological approach and an empowerment approach. We used the pyramid model for optimizing interorganizational collaboration in talent development as a framework to design and guide the 7-month intervention that included four workshops covering (a) initiation: building relationships; (b) exploration: foundation for the shared philosophy; (c) clarification: negotiating values and strategy; and (d) implementation: from talk to action. However, challenges (e.g., resignations of key stakeholders) led to program adjustments and, ultimately, termination. This paper shows the nuances of a less successful intervention, which can help practitioners plan and carry out better interventions in the future. Despite the challenges faced here, we still deem the pyramid model for optimizing interorganizational collaboration in talent development a valuable framework for practitioners working at an interorganizational level.

Learning Processes and Mechanisms for Interorganizational Projects: Insights From the Islamabad–Rawalpindi Metro Bus Project

The purpose of this article is to understand how learning is disseminated between individual, project, organizational, and interorganizational levels—A phenomenon that remains underresearched, particularly in the context of interorganizational projects. This article unpacks the learning processes and underlying learning mechanisms that disseminate learning at different levels. For this purpose, we examine the Islamabad–Rawalpindi metro bus project in Pakistan. Using an abductive research approach, data for this article are collected through interviews, archival records, and illustrative materials. The findings reveal 11 learning mechanisms: 1) learning by observing; 2) learning from past experiences; 3) learning from an expert; 4) learning from the experiences of others; 5) learning by joint problem-solving; 6) learning by working together; 7) learning from mistakes; 8) learning by observing other projects; 9) learning by building organizational memory; 10) learning from existing organizational memory; and 11) learning by coordinating and consulting. These learning mechanisms trigger learning processes of intuiting, interpreting, integrating, institutionalizing, and intertwining at the individual, team, organizational, and interorganizational levels. This article enriches the understanding of project-based learning, focusing on different levels and exploring the interplay between learning processes and mechanisms.

Knowledge sharing in an interorganizational setting: empirical evidence from the Orange Line metro train project

PurposeThis paper aims to focus on knowledge sharing process in an interorganizational setting. For this purpose, the context examined is the Orange Line metro train project in Pakistan, in which multiple organizations are involved.Design/methodology/approachThis paper adopts a single case study approach. The empirical data comprises semi-structured interviews and archival documents. Thematic analysis is used for analyzing the data.FindingsThe findings present distinct mechanisms of knowledge sharing, which include knowledge sharing tools, both formal and informal; types of knowledge, i.e. tacit and explicit knowledge; and levels of units such as individuals, teams, organizations (internal knowledge sources) and the interorganizational level (external knowledge sources). Based on the findings, the authors propose an integrative model of the interplay between knowledge sharing tools, types of knowledge and levels of units. Furthermore, the findings depict that the knowledge sharing tools and types of knowledge are important at different levels of units, but their importance may vary depending on whether they are primary or supporting for different levels of units.Originality/valueThis paper contributes to the literature on knowledge-based theory by examining knowledge sharing in an interorganizational project. The proposed model deepens our understanding of the practices and processes of interorganizational knowledge sharing.

Collective improvisation in emergency response

Emergencies are characterized by ambiguity and high stress. An emergency response typically involves a blend of public, private, and volunteer organizations. Responding to emergencies requires the capability to face unforeseen incidents and adequately adapt to them. The need for improvisation can be imperative for the success of an operation. Moreover, the interconnected nature of emergencies mandates collaboration, and collective improvisation can be a tool for handling challenges under the extreme complexity of an emergency. In this study, joint training is linked to the capability of collective improvisation in emergency response at an interorganizational level. The aim of this semi-conceptual study is to explore how joint training can improve collective improvisation capability in emergency response. To meet this aim, a literature review and pilot study are conducted. The context of this study is the management of emergency response in the Norwegian Arctic Sea region. The Arctic Sea region has a harsh climate with limited resources where involved organizations include both civil and military organizations, which makes the improvisation even more critical. This study shows that organizational memory, interorganizational trust, interorganizational communication, and information sharing are prerequisites and mediating variables that positively influence collective improvisation. Organizational structure and complex context also influence collective improvisation in emergency response.

On publicness theory and its implications for supply chain integration: The case of criminal justice supply chains

The literature has extensively discussed whether and how public organizations differ from private ones. Publicness theory argues that the degree of publicness is determined by ownership, funding, goal setting, and control structure of an organization. However, these theoretical ideas have not yet been extended to the interorganizational level. The need for further research is reflected in the sustained debate on the applicability of for‐profit management approaches in public contexts and supply chains. Starting from the premise of the dimensional publicness theory, this study focuses on theory elaboration. We focus our empirical study on the criminal justice supply chain, which encompasses the process of bringing a criminal case to court. This chain provides an interesting public case to explore how specific dimensions of publicness affect or limit supply chain integration mechanisms. The results of our series of embedded cases focusing on Dutch criminal justice supply chains show that control structures, embodied in laws and regulations, define the governance of relationships between supply chain partners. In addition to these formalized ties, extensive known for‐profit information and operational integration mechanisms can be observed, along with limited relational integration. Surprisingly, although similar integration mechanisms are used as in for‐profit contexts, integration serves a different role in several of the relationships investigated: dealing with tensions stemming from the specific goal setting and stakeholders of criminal justice chains. Although our findings specifically relate to criminal justice supply chains, they have important implications for other supply chains using contracts and laws and those being selective in applying supply chain integration in cases of contrasting objectives. Moreover, we provide a stepping‐stone for the extension of publicness theory to the interorganizational level.

Learning from abroad: An interdisciplinary exploration of knowledge transfer in the transport domain

A growing body of work conceptualizes study visits or study tours as a tool to accelerate policy transfer of, for example, best practices. Participation in study tours appears increasingly common for city management and decision makers involved in transportation policy. This paper extends current research to explore how knowledge gained from study tours transfers to an organizational or inter-organizational level. We aim to generate insights about specific characteristics of study tours that facilitate knowledge transfer. To do so, this study conceptualizes study tours as “trainings”, borrowing concepts and metrics from human resource development (HRD) literature on “learning transfer”. We employ a mixed-method approach. A survey was conducted (n = 109) with US-based city management and officials who participated in study tours on cycling policies. Results demonstrate four influential characteristics of study tours: individual learning, leadership participation, knowledge integration activities, and positive group dynamics. In-depth interviews (n = 15) suggest nuances of these mechanisms. The paper concludes with a reflection of how transportation organizations learn from study tours.

Coopetition Among Social Enterprises: A Three-Level Dynamic Motivated by Social and Economic Goals

While scholars have analyzed the emergence and characteristics of social enterprises, and their internal tensions between conflicting logics, we have little understanding of the dynamics at the interorganizational level between social enterprises. Based on an in-depth, qualitative study with work integration social enterprises in the secondhand clothes industry, we uncover the dynamics of simultaneous cooperation and competition. Our analysis shows that social enterprises simultaneously—rather than sequentially—engage in coopetitive actions at three levels of action: operational, stakeholder, and environmental interface. At each level, social enterprises engage in different coopetitive actions that do not easily fall under the commercial–social tension usually studied in the social entrepreneurship literature. Social and economic goals motivate both competition and cooperation, but we argue that this plays out differently at each level of coopetition. We conclude with implications for theory and practice.

Investigating the implementation of and accountability in PPPs: a case study in public water management

PurposeThis study analyses how the implementation of PPPs to operate rural water infrastructures and deliver water to local population has led to a new accountability archetype.Design/methodology/approachThe archetype theory is used to analyse the process of implementing PPPs as a new archetype and setting up systems and structures of accountability between contracting parties. The empirical part of the study is based on extensive document analysis in an East African country. Documents analysed are from governmental sources, UNICEF and the World Bank and cover a period from 1998 to early 2019.FindingsThe process of implementing PPPs was revolutionary at the national level and evolutionary at micro levels. The sequence of the change process moved from central to peripheral. The linearity followed a reorientation track strategy. Setting up systems and structure of accountability was evolutionary, peripheral to central following the reorientation strategy. National authorities reacted proactively to comments and suggestions from international donors and local population. However, not all districts have fully implemented PPPs in their rural water sector. The structure of accountability at the local level, however, still suffers from logistical and professional capacity constraints.Research limitations/implicationsEmpirical findings cannot be generalised to other situations, but the theoretical framework used in this study can be applied elsewhere.Practical implicationsGiving priority to hearing from end users themselves before designing and implementing policies that intend to respond to specific local needs is recommended.Originality/valueThis study explains the ways in which micro-organisational change can lead to revolutionary archetypes such as PPPs, whereas the implementation of systems and the structure of accountability at inter-organisational level remain evolutionary.

Enhancing Transparency in the Supply Chain: An Information Processing Perspective

While nowadays’ need to enhance transparency in supply chains (TSC) seems undisputable, supply chain management (SCM) scholars and practitioners lack an operationalization of the phenomenon and a clear understanding of how to enhance TSC. This study aims to address this need by applying a multiple case study design with 24 awarded or industry-wide good practice solutions to disclose how focal companies can enhance TSC. Drawing on information processing theory (IPT), this study contributes to the understanding of the phenomenon by placing TSC in context and identifying 29 TSC determinants that have to be attained in order to enhance TSC. The study reveals that although the targeted effect of enhanced TSC is mainly beneficial for the focal company, it requires all relevant supply chain partners to enhance TSC. By presenting the TSC determinants that are required on an intra-firm and inter-organizational level to enhance TSC, we elaborate IPT in the context of TSC.

Making the Impossible Possible: Paradoxical Processes of Reconstructing a Grand Challenge

Advancing the promise of paradox theory to address large-scale complex social problems, or grand challenges, necessitates focus on paradox at the interorganizational level. We contribute to this by developing an empirically-grounded framework explaining how distributed organizational actors work through multiple paradoxes to address a grand challenge. We draw on a global qualitative study of a grand challenge: how to improve the speed of low and middle-income countries’ financial response in the immediate aftermath of natural disasters. We focus specifically on initiatives that bring together government, market and development actors to ensure rapid capital flows for immediate disaster response. Three paradoxes permeate our grand challenge: whole-part; long-short; and developmental-financial. By focusing on critical incidents, we show how: (a) distributed actors work through paradoxes by situated focusing: foregrounding one pole in order to achieve the other; (b) paradoxical poles are entangled in a process of situated knotting; (c) localized actions arising from situated focusing and situated knotting contribute to an expanding repertoire of possible actions for addressing the grand challenge globally. We advance paradox theorizing on paradox salience, multiplicity, and the dynamics of shaping paradox equilibrium. We also further understanding of how grand challenges evolve within the fragmented interests of distributed actors.

Supply Chain Risk Governance: Towards a Conceptual Multi-Level Framework

The coronavirus pandemic (COVID-19) is currently putting high pressure on most countries’ critical infrastructures (not only health care), creating huge uncertainties in supply and demand, and disrupting global supply chains. The global crisis will demonstrate the extent to which different parties (countries, public authorities, private companies etc.) can work together and take holistic decisions in such situations. A core question in supply chain management asks how independent decision-makers at many levels can work together and how this joint work can be governed. Supply chain risk management (SCRM), however, has focused mostly on how focal private companies apply SCRM processes to identify, analyse and mitigate risk related to upstream and downstream flows in their supply networks. At the same time, interorganisational collaboration to handle diverse risks is always needed. A risk that hits one organisation often affects other, interconnected organisations. This study aims to develop the term supply chain risk governance with an associated conceptual framework that embraces various types of supply chains and actors. In a cross-disciplinary literature study, we dissect, compare and combine risk governance with interorganisational aspects of SCRM and find that the mechanisms suggested in the risk governance literature coincide with many of those in SCRM. We suggest a combination of these to govern risk processes at an inter-organisational level, regardless of the type of organisation included in the supply chain. This would be suitable for critical infrastructures that often contain a mixture of private and public actors. The scope of the literature employed is limited, and some articles have played a larger role in the framework development. The paper explores new territory through this cross-disciplinary study, extends existing multi-level frameworks with inter-organisational governance mechanisms and proposes new governance mechanisms to the field. This study could support the understanding of how critical infrastructures in our society are governed so as to increase their resilience to both smaller and larger disruptions. (Less)

COMO A APRENDIZAGEM INTERORGANIZACIONAL E AS CAPACIDADES GERENCIAIS DINÂMICAS PODEM MELHORAR O DESEMPENHO DE CLUSTERS?

This paper aims to discuss how inter-organizational learning and dynamic managerial capability can improve cluster performance. It proposes a theoretical framework that can contribute to the clustering process by considering a new lens for understanding the relationship between dynamic managerial capability and the mechanisms of learning hitherto not explored at an inter-organizational level. The framework proposed aiming to explain and improve the competitiveness of firms and representing a new way of viewing these theories and understanding how they can work together at an inter-organizational level of analysis.