Technology & Structure

Question 1

Mintzberg (1979)

Answer 1

definition of structure:
“The structure of an organization can be defined as the sum of the total ways in which it divides its labor into distinct tasks and then achieves coordination among them.”

Mintzberg also differentiates between emergent and planned strategies

Question 2

Woodward (1958)

Answer 2

CONCLUSION: Technological Complexity —-> Structure
Method: Empirical method to distinguish between
batch production - one or several products at a time (orgnc)
mass production - assembly line (mechanistic)
continuous process - minimal manual involvement (eg. oil refinery - organic structure with minimal levels)

Question 3

Galbraith (1974)

Answer 3

Uncertainty --+--> Info Processing Need --+--> Alter structure to handle the information
a few ways they can do this:
H 1) Use hierarchy
T 2) Specify target goals
V 3) Create vertical/lateral relationships
4) S create SOPs for re-occuring tasks
5) S Create slack resources
6) S Create Self-Contained tasks

Question 4

Barley (1986)

Answer 4

METHOD: Studied new radiology equip at 2 hospitals. Observed “scripts” of interactions between techs & doctors.
FINDING: Same technology can led to similar dynamics but different org structures.
RELATED TO: Woodard: Technology allows for re-evaluation/shaping of structure.

brings “Structuration Theory” to MNGM from Sociology (Giddens, ‘76) explains how social systems develop based on structure and behaviors

Question 5

Orlikowski (2008)

Answer 5

Reviews 2027 articles on Technology in Organizations and divides into 3 camps:

1) Independent Viewpoint: Contingency theorists regard human behavior and technology as discrete/independent impact on the other
2) Interdependent Viewpoint: Structuration Theorists believe that social systems human behavior are entangled (they impact each other/interactions)
3) Sociomateriality Viewpoint- The social and material are inextricably linked (incapable of being disentangled). Introduced here

Question 6

Leonardi (2011)

Answer 6

Contradicts Sociomateriality perspective (Orlikowski, 2008) to say human behavior and materials are distinct phenonomena which interact with each other (imbrication=an overlapping of edges but distinct).
- Qualitative study in engineering setting.

Question 7

Markus (2014)

Answer 7

• Review of IT & Structure work.
• the “dual effects” hypothesis is prevalent in the lit (i.e., interdependent viewpoint (Orlikowski, 2008)
• Some say this “dual effects” mean IT is irrelavant for structure (e.g. Orlikowski, 2008) while others like Markus say it matters (Leonardi, 2011)