This research is a study of how practices emerge and become established within an organisation. Institutional studies present different process models, however few have considered how they emerge and become established, other than by means of legitimacy and diffusion. Tolbert and Zucker (1996) defined institutionalisation as a sequential model of three processes, each had its own focus and was described within the context of certain institutional dimensions and outcomes. They indicated that similar processes could be played out between as well as within organisations. Based on this assumption the research aimed to extend this framework and develop a processual analysis of the institutionalisation of a practice at the intra-organisational level. To gain an understanding of these changes, the research positioned the study within the context of a practice. This was defined as knowledge management, a phenomenon which represented a set of practices which have been adopted by organisations over recent years. The methodology required a structured approach. This led to the development of the reference framework, which defined the inter-relationship between processes, practice, the intraorganisational context and time. It also provided the means to explore certain institutional dimensions and outcomes based on: theorisation, diffusion, formulisation and internalisation. Based on a sample of organisations across different industries, the research design consisted of three phases. The first was exploratory, the second was based on a mixed methods approach; the final explored the processual outcomes in terms of institutional dimensions and the different levels of change. The second and third phases were used to frame the intra-organisational processes of institutionalisation of a practice. The results showed that through studying practice within the intra-organisational context, this had generated important insights into the processes of institutionalisation. The research found that theorisation activity lay very much at the hands of the leader and their knowledge and willingness to champion the practices. Examples were found of the different pressures upon organisations to adopt the practices. Variations in formalisation related not only to the different stages of change but also to the many different approaches of implementation. It was found that internalisation was affected by people understanding the value of the practices not the concept of knowledge management. Finally, the process analysis defined expands the narrow focus on intra-organisational dynamics, as well as providing a bridge between practice and institutionalisation.

This research is a study of how practices emerge and become established within an organisation. Institutional studies present different process models, however few have considered how they emerge and become established, other than by means of legitimacy and diffusion. Tolbert and Zucker (1996) defined institutionalisation as a sequential model of three processes, each had its own focus and was described within the context of certain institutional dimensions and outcomes. They indicated that similar processes could be played out between as well as within organisations. Based on this assumption the research aimed to extend this framework and develop a processual analysis of the institutionalisation of a practice at the intra-organisational level. To gain an understanding of these changes, the research positioned the study within the context of a practice. This was defined as knowledge management, a phenomenon which represented a set of practices which have been adopted by organisations over recent years. The methodology required a structured approach. This led to the development of the reference framework, which defined the inter-relationship between processes, practice, the intraorganisational context and time. It also provided the means to explore certain institutional dimensions and outcomes based on: theorisation, diffusion, formulisation and internalisation. Based on a sample of organisations across different industries, the research design consisted of three phases. The first was exploratory, the second was based on a mixed methods approach; the final explored the processual outcomes in terms of institutional dimensions and the different levels of change. The second and third phases were used to frame the intra-organisational processes of institutionalisation of a practice. The results showed that through studying practice within the intra-organisational context, this had generated important insights into the processes of institutionalisation. The research found that theorisation activity lay very much at the hands of the leader and their knowledge and willingness to champion the practices. Examples were found of the different pressures upon organisations to adopt the practices. Variations in formalisation related not only to the different stages of change but also to the many different approaches of implementation. It was found that internalisation was affected by people understanding the value of the practices not the concept of knowledge management. Finally, the process analysis defined expands the narrow focus on intra-organisational dynamics, as well as providing a bridge between practice and institutionalisation.

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Lean has during the past two decades grown to become a worldwide management concept. The purpose of lean is mainly to create value for customers and reduce the downtime for organizations. It origins from the automotive industry and was firstly introduced by Toyota. The concept eventually caught on and spread to other industries, service businesses and most recently to the public sector. A few years ago municipalities in Sweden introduced lean in their organizations and used it as a solution to many of their operational challenges. However, research suggests that the knowledge within the field of lean in the context of municipalities is limited. The study was designed as a single case study of the municipality Södertälje which was one of the first municipalities to adopt the concept of lean. Data was collected through semi-structured interviews with key individuals in Södertälje municipality who had been a part of the introduction of lean or in some way influenced the process. In addition, interviews were held with middle managers who were currently working with lean. Furthermore, text documents such as decisions, objectives and budget documents provided by Södertälje municipality were also analyzed. To get a better understanding of how lean can be used in the context of municipalities the aim of this study was to examine how Södertälje municipality introduced lean, how it was applied and which forms the concept has taken. More specific the study has used institutional and translational theory to investigate how lean has been transferred and translated from the private- to the public context. The empirical data was analyzed through two phases. The first phase was decontextualization which was used to understand how lean was differentiated from the private context by the municipality. The second phase was contextualization which has been used to see how Södertälje municipality introduced lean in their organization and how they interpreted the concept. The findings suggest that the municipality had a problem-oriented approach where lean was considered a possible solution. To transfer lean, Södertälje municipality first recruited Robert Kusén, an executive from Scania, to “carry out” his knowledge and experience from working with lean. Second, the management of the municipality visited Scania and the social district in Copenhagen to “bring in” knowledge about the lean concept. Therefore, the municipality partly used organizational arenas in the same sector and partly organizational arenas in a different and more distant sector than the municipality. The study conclude that the contexts included in the transfer of a concept affects the translation. To translate the concept of lean, Södertälje municipality applied “the translation hierarchical chain” with few exceptions. Further, the municipality developed their lean philosophy and what they thought about lean by what they call “Växthuset”. By doing this and by interlocking lean with their existing vision and values, enrollment rules were used to establish lean in the local context. Using pilot projects also helped creating local references to the idea. Furthermore the municipality used specific rules for translating and reshaping lean. The mainly emphasized instrument was imitation, but there have also been indicators of addition and subtraction. This was expressed through the political context which narrowed the use of long-sightedness and instead resulted in a focus on democratic aspects. The municipality’s use of lean was from the beginning intended to include the entire organization but had instead mainly been practiced by the social welfare department. The poor adaption was largely caused by a lack of interest from the personnel and because key stakeholder had left the organization or had been replaced.

This study aims to describe and analyse the actions of the school coaches at the National sport upper secondary schools in light of the conditions that govern and shape the activities at those schools. The theoretical standpoints are based on Lave and Wengers' (1991) theoretical concept community of practice, and as an explanatory theoretical framework Scott's (2008) interpretation of new institutional theory is used. In the analysis of the coaches’ space for actions given the current conditions, Berg's (2014) free space theory is used. The study has a qualitative approach and the design is based on four case studies, where interviews and document analyses have been used to produce the data. The main findings can be summarized in that the cultural-cognitive conditions are very strong, whereas the regulatory and normative conditions play a less significant role. The coaches belong to a community of practice, where the sport’s inherent culture becomes the reference point for how the practice will be run, even though they are part of the school.

This thesis investigates governance in large Scottish charities. In particular, the focus is on internal aspects of governance, predominantly the functioning of the board. The influence of business on charities is also investigated through considering the impact of individuals with business expertise on the boards of charities. Charity governance in the Scottish context has been under-research, this thesis attempts to fill this research gap. A multi-method approach was employed, encompassing both quantitative and qualitative research. The study utilised a survey in the form of a selfcompletion questionnaire, and three case studies to examine governance in Scottish charities. Social construction provides the framework of the analysis. This thesis provides an insight into the functioning of the boards of Scottish charities, in-line with previous research in other countries, governance issues are apparent. However, in relation to the impact of business expertise in charities, there is evidence that business members of charitable boards make contributions to the governance of these organisations, and charities can gain considerable value from having outside specialists on the board.

Several theorists have argued that organisations can increase performance through formalised cooperation with other important organisations (Baum & Oliver 1991). This notion of “institutional linkages” is appealing as it uses linkages as a proxy for legitimacy awarded to organisations for adherence to exogenous expectations. However, this operationalization also has its limitations. For what is the role of institutional linkages in groups of organisations where a majority of them – or all – are linked? Baum & Oliver (1991) provide meagre advice for what is to expect beyond the point of organisations being legitimate (linked) or not. But if organisations that hold (at least) one institutional linkage perform better than unlinked organisations, should not organisations that have multiple linkages also perform better than those who have but a single one? Intuitively, this seems reasonable. But considering that institutional linkages are associated with costs in terms of additional administration, audit and fees, it is not obvious that organisations desire ‘as many linkages as possible’. Using data for 339 aid organisations in Sweden, this study suggests developing the theoretical concept of institutional linkages, arguing that the number of institutional linkages serves as a prediction of organisational performance. Although further inquiry is needed to determine whether this effect persists as the number of linkages continues to increase, the findings suggest that organisations will strive towards having more institutional linkages than competing organisations.

Universities are seen as an opportunity for economic growth and increased employment and university spin-offs, operating with new and emerging technologies, are considered as means of return on academic research. However, some problems may occur related to the large number amount of stakeholders and their goals. The government is one important player and it can act as a policy maker, provider of financial support, or even as an owner. Governments regularly provide the innovation market with co-working hubs, incubators and science parks.  The purpose of this thesis is to analyze the possibility of knowledge- transfer from the Swedish system to the Russian regarding the support from the government to the entrepreneurial ventures through the science parks and incubators, and what and why would prevent Russia to adopt this model.

Despite growing interest in sustainable operations and supply management (SOSM) from both academics and practitioners, literature examining the area remains fragmented. This thesis presents the findings of a study investigating the influence of exogenous pressures and endogenous capability-building, independently and interactively, on sustainable operations and supply management practice adoption. Exogenous pressures, such as regulation and consumer demands, may influence the decision to adopt specific SOSM practices. For example, within the fashion industry, media exposés have heightened consumer awareness of unethical practices creating pressure for fashion retailers to address these concerns within their supply chains more fully. Endogenous pressures, in this case relating to capability-building, may also influence the SOSM practices that organisations choose to adopt, such as the implementation of recycling strategies or energy efficiency initiatives which can reduce both the cost and environmental impact of the focal organisation.

This thesis employs a new institutional sociology perspective to investigate factors influencing accounting education practices in Libyan universities. For this purpose, two pieces of empirical work, a case study and an analysis of accounting textbooks used in Libyan universities, were conducted. The case study was undertaken at one Libyan university and included interviews of accounting academics, document analysis and observations. The findings of the case study informed the second part of the empirical work of this thesis analysing the accounting textbooks used in Libyan universities through interviews with accounting academics and a content analysis of accounting textbooks. The main findings of this thesis indicate that accounting education practices in Libyan universities are largely shaped by coercive pressure emanating from the Libyan political context and political regime and a lack of funding that has fundamentally transcended normative or mimetic isomorphism from international accounting education practices. The influence of this coercive pressure also has led to embedded institutional logic of having a second job and not conducting research as the dominant logic of Libyan accounting academics. Hence, there is a lack of a systematic development and update of the accounting curriculum, syllabus and textbooks in Libyan universities leading to an outdated syllabus that is irrelevant to the needs of Libyan accounting students or to the profession. In addition, the teaching methods adopted to deliver the accounting syllabus are traditional methods such as lectures and tutorials that are led by teachers with little interaction with students which limits the skills development of Libyan accounting students.