دانلود رایگان مقاله پاسخ سازمانی به عدم قطعیت در صنعت خط هوایی

abstract

Changing environmental conditions introduce uncertainty into organizational operations, and airlines respond in various ways. Scholars traditionally explore responses to environmental uncertainty by drawing upon theories of communication networks, coordination, organizational resilience, and high reliability organizing. Yet, the research has competing communication predictions, which makes planning and designing organizational responses challenging, as the level and type of uncertainty changes over time. Research also does not address variations in responses across different groups of employees. Using longitudinal network data from the United Airlines operations tower in Newark Airport (USA), this research examines communication for the purpose of relational coordination in a dynamically adaptive organizational network. Results reveal different patterns of organizational communication as different employee groups (frontline, cross-functional boundary spanners, and managers) face varying conditions of uncertainty. This paper concludes with theoretical contributions and practical recommendations for managing complex communication networks to respond to dynamic conditions of uncertainty in the airline operations settings.

6. Discussion

This paper departs from current research on organizational response to uncertainty, which is marked by competing theories and outcomes. Current research on coordination and communication networks occurring in HROs in the face of uncertainty, suggest either a threat/rigidity response through formal hierarchical lines (Staw et al., 1981) or a dynamic response following a flat horizontal structuree as relational coordination theories suggest (Gittell, 2016; Weick et al., 1999). Part of reconciling these competing views, may be resolved by accounting for different types of uncertainty, as well as differing responses by different groups of employees. Our findings from the NOCC follows relational coordination theory, and show that communication networks for coordination respond dynamically to changes in uncertainties, due to more complex coordination and information needs and increased time pressure. The findings are consistent with the theoretical expectation that HROs’ organizational networks do indeed change in response to changes in uncertainty. The fact that communication networks varied so sharply with the environmental contingencies suggests that these variations are indeed varying responses to uncertainty.