دانلود رایگان مقاله انگلیسی پیاده سازی استراتژی و تغییر سازمانی: تاثیر سازماندهی رسمی بر شبکه حرفه ای - الزویر 2018

abstract

Strategy implementation is difficult, particularly as it often requires changes in formal organization structures. Prior research has shown that change in the formal structure may affect employee networks. Yet, we know relatively little about how such changes affect different network ties. This paper considers how formal structural change affects senior managers’ ability to maintain their intraorganizational networks. The hypotheses are tested on sample of 884 work-related relationships of 96 partners in a global professional services firm. This firm had recently implemented a new strategy, which led to a change in the product-market focus and the resulting formal structure. Our findings reveal that the characteristics of a specific network tie determine whether it is affected by formal structural change. In particular, we find that network ties that are highly embedded in the social structure are more likely to be affected by change in the formal structure. In contrast, ties that are relationally embedded are less likely to be affected by change in the formal structure. We discuss the theoretical and practical implications of these results. In particular, the findings may have consequences for the success of strategy implementation and strategic transformation efforts.

Discussion and conclusion

Translating a firm's intended strategy into the behaviors and interactions that occur between a firm's employees is critical for the success of purposive organizational change and strategy implementation (Hung, 2002; McEwen et al., 1988). Yet, we have only a limited understanding of the processes and structures that enable organizational change inside the firm (Burke, 2002; Melin, 1985; Vogel, 2005). In this paper, we contribute to this understanding by considering whether the social structure and quality of networks in the firm, affect the ability of employees to maintain their work-related relationships after a formal structural change.

Theoretical contributions

With this study, we inform work that investigates the interaction between networks, formal organizational change and strategy implementation (e.g., Battilana and Casciaro, 2012, 2013; Gargiulo and Benassi, 2000; Hung, 2002; Kleinbaum and Stuart, 2014a; McEwen et al., 1988; Mohrman et al., 2003; Soda and Zaheer, 2012; Valley and Thompson, 1998; Vogel, 2005) Extant research considers a range of change outcomes including the adoption of change (Battilana and Casciaro, 2012; McEwen et al., 1988; Valley and Thompson, 1998), the extent to which an individual adapts their network in line with change objectives (Gargiulo and Benassi, 2000; Soda and Zaheer, 2012) and how networks affect the success of strategy implementation (Hung, 2002; Vogel, 2005). We further extend this body of work by showing that the maintenance of network ties highly embedded in the social structure is affected by organizational change, while relationally embedded ties remain unaffected. This has implications for future studies of intraorganizational networks, organizational change and strategy implementation. Our study shows that we have to consider both the structural and qualitative characteristics of networks. Alternatively, we may miss important nuances in how different ties are affected by structural change.