ORGANIZATIONAL FORMS: KNOWLEDGE, MOTIVATIONAL AND POWER DYNAMICS

Year 2015, Volume: 2 Issue: 4, 27 - 42, 26.12.2015

Ayşe Saime Döner

Abstract

There are various forms of organizations acting as platforms for economic activities. While the existing theoretical studies in economics analyze organizations in relation to “the firm” and mostly focus on distinguishing between firms and markets, they don’t propose the sufficient variety that can explain the observed organizational forms. This paper attempts to re-conceptualize the organizational forms in business by studying the necessary coordination mechanisms related to knowledge and motivational dynamics of intra-organizational relationships. Acknowledging also the role of power distribution among the actors, organizational forms are specified as different combinations of these mechanisms. Business organizations are essentially loci for interactions between economic actors during economic activities. In view of the fact that today knowledge is the critical resource in the production of all goods and services, economic activities are mainly viewed as knowledge activities i.e. sharing, integrating and creating knowledge. Since these activities need to be regulated for efficiency, interacting actors should coordinate their actions with each other. More precisely, they need to adjust their collaboration degree according to the needs of knowledge activities given the characteristics of actors –absorption capacity–and the characteristics of “transacted” knowledge –codifiability, observability, teachability, complexity, systemic dependency, and newness–. Another dimension to consider is the fact that the economic actors involved in these interactions may behave in an opportunistic way and have potentially conflicting interests which would hinder the performance of their collective activities. If the actors have intrinsically aligned interests, they are already motivated to coordinate their productive efforts without questioning the intentions of the others. In this case the control mechanisms are fairly informal, and the interactions occur on equal ground. However, if the individual interests are conflicting, actors need some coordination mechanisms to solve these conflicts and to continue on with their interactions. Finally, the process of reaching agreement gives rise to power plays. As a result of power distribution, the institutions are put in place in order to extrinsically align actors’ interests. Hence, interactions during knowledge activities occur both in a technical division of labor referring to knowledge governance and in a social division of labor related to management of social conflicts and rivalries. Thus, coordination mechanisms in a business organization have to take into consideration the knowledge, motivational and power dynamics. In this sense, we attempt to define organizational forms based on these three dimensions.

Keywords

Organizational form, Knowledge-based economy, Cognitive coordination, Motivational coordination, Power distribution

ORGANİZASYON FORMLARI: BİLGİ, MOTİVASYON VE GÜÇ DİNAMİKLERİ

Abstract

Ekonomik faaliyetler farklı organizasyon formları dahilinde yürütülmektedir. Sanayi ekonomisi literatüründe varolan teorik çalışmalar, bu organizasyonları çoğunlukla “firma” ile ilişkilendirerek ve firma-piyasa ayrımına odaklanarak incelerken, gözlemlenen organizasyon formlarının çeşitliliğini açıklayan tek bir çerçeve sunmamaktadır. Bu çalışma, organizasyon içindeki farklı dinamiklerin yarattığı koordinasyon gerekliliklerini öne çıkararak gözlemlenen bu çeşitliliğe kavramsal bir çerçeve sunma amacındadır. Organizasyon içi dinamiklere dair üç boyut incelenmektedir: (1) bilgi yaratımı ve transferi, (2) birimler arası çıkar çatışmaları, ve (3) birimler arası güç dağılımı. Günümüzde bilgi, ekonomik faaliyetlerde kullanılan kaynakların en önemlisi olarak kabul edilmektedir. Dolayısıyla ekonomik faaliyetler de temelinde bilgi faaliyetleri olarak ele alınmalıdır. Farklı ekonomik birimlerin kontrolünde olan bilgilerin paylaşımını, transferini ve yeni bilgilerin yaratımını içeren bilgi faaliyetleri etkinlik açısından düzenlenmelidir. Aktörler bu faaliyetler sırasında şekillenen ortak çalışmalarını, hem kendi özelliklerine göre –dışardan gelen bilgiyi emme kapasiteleri- hem de paylaşılan bilginin özelliklerine göre –kodlanmışlık, gözlemlenebilirlik, öğretilebilirlik, karmaşıklık, sisteme bağımlılık ve yenilik- eşgüdümlemelidir. Bu çalışmada, bilgiye dayalı ekonomi literatürü takip edilerek, bilgi yaratımı ve transferinin koordinasyonu, ortaya çıkan organizasyon formunun birinci ve en önemli bileşeni olarak ele alınmaktadır. Ancak bilişsel düzeydeki bu koordinasyon tek başına yeterli değildir. Zira ortak bir bilgi faaliyetinde çalışan ekonomik aktörler fırsatçı davranabilir ya da çıkar çatışması içerisine girebilirler. Eğer aktörlerin çıkarları kendiliğinden birbirleriyle çatışmıyorsa, bu aktörler birbirlerinin niyetlerini sorgulamadan ekonomik faaliyetler içindeki görevlerini eşgüdümlemeye hazır olurlar. Bu durumda ilişkilerin koordinasyonu güven esaslı gayri resmi kontrol mekanizmalarıyla sağlanabilir. Öte yandan, çıkarların çatışması durumunda, aktörler ekonomik faaliyetler içindeki görevlerini yerine getirmeden önce kendi haklarını korumak isteyeceklerdir. Bu da, ortak çalışmaya başlamadan önce bir anlaşmaya varmalarını ve aralarındaki ilişkileri resmî kural ve kanunlarla düzenlemelerini gerektirmektedir. Sonuç olarak, ekonomik faaliyetler sırasında ortaya çıkan organizasyonların şekillenmesinde, resmi ya da gayri resmi kurumlarla ekonomik aktörlerin çıkarlarının korunmasına yönelik koordinasyon mekanizmaları ikinci bir bileşen olarak karşımıza çıkmaktadır. En son bileşen de ekonomik birimler arası güç dağılımıyla ilişkilidir. Her ne zaman iki ya da daha fazla taraf arasında sözleşme ihtiyacı ortaya çıkarsa, güç oyunları da kendini gösterecektir. Her aktör kendi çıkarlarını koruyacak şekilde anlaşmayı düzenlemek isteyeceğinden, aktörler arasındaki güç dağılımı, ortaya çıkan koordinasyon mekanizmasının şekillenmesinde önemli bir rol oynamaktadır. Özetlenecek olursa, temelinde bilgi faaliyetleri olan bütün ekonomik faaliyetler üç boyutlu bir dinamik çerçevesinde sürdürülmektedir ve buna bağlı olarak ortaya çıkan organizasyonların formları da bu üçlü dinamiğe uygun olarak ortaya çıkmaktadır. Bu çalışmada da, farklı organizasyon formları, bu dinamiklerin gerektirdiği koordinasyon mekanizmalarının farklı bileşimleri olarak önerilmektedir.

Keywords

Organizasyon formları, Bilgiye dayalı ekonomi, Bilişsel koordinasyon, Motivasyonların koordinasyonu, Güç dağılımı

References

• AGHION, Philippe, and Richard HOLDEN. Incomplete Contracts and the Theory of the Firm: What Have We Learned over the Past 25 Years? The Journal of Economic Perspectives 25 (2): 181–197, 2011.
• ALCHIAN, Armen A., and Harold DEMSETZ. Production, Information Costs, and Economic Organization. The American Economic Review 62 (5): 777–795. 1972.
• BACHMANN, Reinhard, and Andrew C. INKPEN. Understanding Institutional-Based Trust Building Processes in Inter-Organizational Relationships. Organization Studies 32 (2): 281–301. 2011.
• BARNARD, Chester Irving. The Functions of the Executive. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press. 1938.
• BECKER, Markus C. 2004. Organizational Routines: A Review of the Literature. Industrial and Corporate Change 13 (4): 643–678.
• BECKER, Markus C., Nathalie Lazaric, Richard R. Nelson, and Sidney G. Winter. Applying Organizational Routines in Understanding Organizational Change. Industrial and Corporate Change 14 (5): 775–791. 2005.
• BIRKINSHAW, Julian, Robert NOBEL, and Jonas RIDDERSTRAALE.. Knowledge as a Contingency Variable: Do the Characteristics of Knowledge Predict Organization Structure? Organization Science 13 (3): 274–289. 2002
• BROWN, John Seely, and Paul DUGUID. Organizational Learning and Communities-of-Practice: Toward a Unified View of Working, Learning, and Innovation. Organization Science 2 (1): 40–57. 1991.
• BURT, Ronald S. The Network Structure of Social Capital. Research in Organizational Behavior 22: 345–423. 2000.
• COASE, Ronald H. The Nature of the Firm. Economica 4 (16): 386–405. 1937.
• COHENDET, Patrick, Olivier DUPOUËT, and Frédéric CREPLET. La Gestion Des Connaissances: Firmes et Commmunautés de Savoir. Paris: Editions Economica. 2006.
• COHENDET, Patrick, and Patrick LLERENA. Routines and Incentives: The Role of Communities in the Firm. Industrial and Corporate Change 12 (2): 271–297. 2003.
• COHEN, Wesley M., and Daniel A. LEVINTHAL. Absorptive Capacity: A New Perspective on Learning and Innovation. Administrative Science Quarterly 35 (1): 128–152. 1990.
• CONTRACTOR, Farok J., and Wonchan RA. How Knowledge Attributes Influence Alliance Governance Choices: A Theory Development Note. Journal of International Management 8 (1): 11–27. 2002.
• CORIAT, Benjamin, and Giovanni DOSI. Learning How to Govern and Learning How to Solve Problems: On the Co-Evolution of Competences, Conflicts and Organizational Routines. In The Dynamic Firm: The Role of Technology, Strategy, Organization and Regions, edited by Alfred Dupont Chandler, Peter Hagstrom, and Örjan Solvell, 103–133. New York: Oxford University Press. 1998.
• COWAN, Robin, Paul A. DAVID, and Dominique FORAY. The Explicit Economics of Knowledge Codification and Tacitness. Industrial and Corporate Change 9 (2): 211–253. 2000.
• CYERT, Richard M., and James G. MARCH. A Behavioral Theory of the Firm. Vol. 2. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall. 1963.
• DAS, Tushar Kanti, and Bing-Sheng TENG. Trust, Control, and Risk in Strategic Alliances: An Integrated Framework. Organization Studies 22 (2): 251–283. 2001.
• DEKKER, Henri C. Control of Inter-Organizational Relationships: Evidence on Appropriation Concerns and Coordination Requirements. Accounting, Organizations and
• Society 29 (1): 27–49. 2004.
• DOSI, Giovanni, and Luigi MARENGO. Perspective—On the Evolutionary and Behavioral Theories of Organizations: A Tentative Roadmap. Organization Science 18 (3): 491–502. 2007.
• FAVEREAU, Olivier. Trois Thèses de Jean-Daniel Reynaud Sur L’économie Des Règles. In Variations Autour de La Régulation Sociale. Hommage À Jean-Daniel Reynaud, 173–182. Paris: Presses de l’Ecole Normale Supérieure. 1994.
• FOSS, Nicolai J. Theories of the Firm: Contractual and Competence Perspectives. Journal of Evolutionary Economics 3 (2): 127–144. 1993.
• FOSS, Nicolai J. More Critical Comments on Knowledge-Based Theories of the Firm. Organization Science 7 (5): 519–523. 1996.
• FOSS, Nicolai J., Kenneth HUSTED, and Snejina MICHAILOVA. Governing Knowledge Sharing in Organizations: Levels of Analysis, Governance Mechanisms, and Research Directions. Journal of Management Studies 47 (3): 455–482. 2010.
• FOSS, Nicolai J., and Joseph T. MAHONEY. Exploring Knowledge Governance. International Journal of Strategic Change Management 2 (2): 93–101. 2010.
• FRENCH, John R. P., and Bertram RAVEN. The Bases of Social Power. In Studies in Social Power, edited by Dorwin Cartwright, 150–167. Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press. 1959.
• GRANDORI, Anna. Neither Hierarchy nor Identity: Knowledge-Governance Mechanisms and the Theory of the Firm. Journal of Management and Governance 5 (3-4): 381–399. 2001.
• GRANT, Robert M. Toward a Knowledge-Based Theory of the Firm. Strategic Management Journal 17 (S2): 109–122. 1996.
• GROSSMAN, Sanford J., and Oliver D. HART. The Costs and Benefits of Ownership: A Theory of Vertical and Lateral Integration. The Journal of Political Economy 94 (4): 691–719. 1986.
• HART, Oliver, and Bengt HOLMSTROM. A Theory of Firm Scope. The Quarterly Journal of Economics 125 (2): 483–513. 2010.
• IBARRA, Herminia. Network Centrality, Power, and Innovation Involvement: Determinants of Technical and Administrative Roles. Academy of Management Journal 36 (3): 471–501. 1993.
• INKPEN, Andrew C., and Steven C. CURRALL. The Coevolution of Trust, Control, and Learning in Joint Ventures. Organization Science 15 (5): 586–599. 2004.
• JENSEN, Michael C., and William H. MECKLING. Theory of the Firm: Managerial Behavior, Agency Costs and Ownership Structure. Journal of Financial Economics 3 (4): 305–360. 1976.
• KOGUT, Bruce, and Udo ZANDER. What Firms Do? Coordination, Identity, and Learning. Organization Science 7 (5): 502–518. 1996.
• MARCH, James G., and Herbert Alexander Simon. Organizations. New York: Wiley. 1958.
• NELSON, R. R., and S. G. WINTER. An Evolutionary Theory of Economic Change. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press. 1982.
• NONAKA, Ikujiro. A Dynamic Theory of Organizational Knowledge Creation. Organization Science 5 (1): 14–37. 1994.
• NOOTEBOOM, Bart. Learning by Interaction: Absorptive Capacity, Cognitive Distance and Governance. Journal of Management and Governance 4 (1-2): 69–92. 2000.
• NOOTEBOOM, Bart, Wim Van HAVERBEKE, Geert DUYSTERS, Victor GILSING, and Ad Van DEN OORD. Optimal Cognitive Distance and Absorptive Capacity. Research Policy 36 (7): 1016–1034. 2007.
• NORTH, Douglas C. Institutions, Institutional Change and Economic Performance. Cambridge, England: Cambridge University Press. 1990.
• OSTERLOH, Margit, and Bruno S. FREY. Motivation, Knowledge Transfer, and Organizational Forms. Organization Science 11 (5): 538–550. 2000.
• OUCHI, William G. A Conceptual Framework for the Design of Organizational Control Mechanisms. Management Science 25 (9): 833–848. 1979.
• PFEFFER, Jeffrey, and Gerald R. SALANCIK. Organization Design: The Case for a Coalitional Model of Organizations. Organizational Dynamics 6 (2): 15–29. 1977.
• POITOU, Jean-Pierre. Sciences Cognitives et Forces Productives. La Pensée, no. 282: 55–67. 1991.
• POLANYI, Michael. Personal Knowledge: Towards a Post-Critical Philosophy. London: Routledge & Kegan Paul Ltd. 1958.
• SALANCIK, G. R., and J. PFEFFER. Who Gets Power–and How They Hold on to It: A Strategic-Contingency Model of Power. Organizational Dynamics 5 (3): 2–21. 1977.
• SIMON, Herbert A. Administrative Behavior: A Study of Decision-Making Processes in Administrative Organizations. New York: Free Press. 1947.
• SIMONIN, Bernard L. Ambiguity and the Process of Knowledge Transfer in Strategic Alliances. Strategic Management Journal 20 (7): 595–623. 1999.
• TEECE, David J. The Market for Know-How and the Efficient International Transfer of Technology. The Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science 458 (1): 81–96. 1981.
• VLAAR, Paul WL, Frans AJ Van DEN BOSCH, and Henk W. VOLBERDA. On the Evolution of Trust, Distrust, and Formal Coordination and Control in Interorganizational Relationships toward an Integrative Framework. Group & Organization Management 32 (4): 407–428. 2007.
• VON HIPPEL, Eric. ‘Sticky Information’ and the Locus of Problem Solving: Implications for Innovation. Management Science 40 (4): 429–439. 1994.
• WILLIAMSON, Oliver E. Markets and Hierarchies: Analysis and Antitrust Implications. New York: Free Press. 1975.
• WINTER, Sidney G.. Knowledge and Competence as Strategic Assets. In The Competitive Challenge Strategies for Industrial Innovation and Renewal, 159–184. Cambridge, MA: Ballinger Publishing Company. 1987
• ZANDER, Udo, and Bruce KOGUT. Knowledge and the Speed of the Transfer and Imitation of Organizational Capabilities: An Empirical Test. Organization Science 6 (1): 76–92. 1995.