Collaborating in engineering design is taking place increasingly across technical disciplines, departments and organisations. When collaborating, participants confront issues about how to share understanding and foster aligned project expectations. A review of literature suggests there is limited research about the process of collaborating in engineering design and how collaborating is influenced by context. Collaborating is distinguished as a relational concept (involving at least two parties) that is a social process occurring in both pairs and a group. Studies currently focus on group effectiveness, one or two processes (e.g. communication), and either a group (e.g. a collaboration) or pairwise relations (e.g. inter-organisational relationships). A framework of relevant concepts was adopted from literature on collaboration practice to organise empirical data. Collaborating in engineering design is explored in sixty semi-structured interviews focusing on participants’ interaction and shared understanding (as pairs and groups) in their activities. This is complemented by observations of group meetings and project documentation. Empirical data is presented from four industry-based case studies classified by design type (adaptive or original) and design setting (intra or inter-organisational). Cross-case comparisons draw attention to an increase in ambiguity and uncertainty in combining tasks, roles, expertise and participants in original design type or inter-organisational cases. Findings from cross-case analysis highlight seven new conceptual categories. Four features (Opportunity, Dependence, Results, Adjustments) are used to present a dilemma that participants face which is more acute where organisational and knowledge boundaries are crossed. Three mechanisms (Familiarising, Associating, Regulating) describe how pairwise relations influence a group and individuals in collaborating. These show that through pairwise relations individuals recognise, establish and maintain expectations of how to collaborate in engineering design. This reveals that pairwise relations both help and hinder individuals and a group in how they adjust to foster aligned expectations of collaborating.

In the context of sustainable supply networks, this research analyzes the evolution of governance mechanisms and network structure, including the interplay between network conditions, context factors, positional power and managerial actions. The study reports on a longitudinal empirical research on a multi-stakeholder sustainable sourcing network established by Nespresso, Nestlé’s specialty coffee subsidiary. The research analyzes both dyadic and multi-actor network dynamics and proposes a framework to study network evolution. Social network analysis techniques are also used to measure evolution of the network's structure and complexity as well as positional power opportunities. The research shows that in the initial start-up phase, in a context marked by uncertainty, pre-existing commercial and personal relationships were favoured in the choice of partners. These pre-existing relationships were also influential in defining the initial network structure and supporting an initial phase of exploration. Governance mechanisms initially relied mostly on informal mechanisms, while formal mechanisms were incorporated over time to enable the supply chain network to grow and to provide clarity to all actors. As the sustainability programme network expanded in size and complexity, Nespresso, the lead organization, also acted on the network's structure by introducing regional offices, thus increasing network centralization and reducing complexity. Power derived by actors occupying central or brokerage positions in multiplex networks also influenced power relationships in the sustainability network by moderating or expanding the power opportunities available to central actors. The research has implications for both the Inter-organizational Relationship and the Social Network Theory literatures. In contrast with prior literature, the research proposes that in conditions of uncertainty, the use of informal governance mechanisms can facilitate a search and experimentation process. Formalization of governance mechanisms can be used, not as a repair mechanism, but rather as an enabler for further growth and efficiency. The research also extends the concept of network complexity and proposes that network managers can reduce this complexity by introducing or managing nodes that in turn contribute to the re-centralization of relationships towards specific nodes. Lastly, the research has implications for managers and proposes mapping of existing commercial and personal relationships as a potentially valuable tool in the creation and management of networks, adapting coordination mechanisms to the objectives of the relationship and actively managing the network's structure as a mechanism to enable network growth and efficiency.

In the context of sustainable supply networks, this research analyzes the evolution of governance mechanisms and network structure, including the interplay between network conditions, context factors, positional power and managerial actions. The study reports on a longitudinal empirical research on a multi-stakeholder sustainable sourcing network established by Nespresso, Nestlé’s specialty coffee subsidiary. The research analyzes both dyadic and multi-actor network dynamics and proposes a framework to study network evolution. Social network analysis techniques are also used to measure evolution of the network’s structure and complexity as well as positional power opportunities. The research shows that in the initial start-up phase, in a context marked by uncertainty, pre-existing commercial and personal relationships were favoured in the choice of partners. These pre-existing relationships were also influential in defining the initial network structure and supporting an initial phase of exploration. Governance mechanisms initially relied mostly on informal mechanisms, while formal mechanisms were incorporated over time to enable the supply chain network to grow and to provide clarity to all actors. As the sustainability programme network expanded in size and complexity, Nespresso, the lead organization, also acted on the network’s structure by introducing regional offices, thus increasing network centralization and reducing complexity. Power derived by actors occupying central or brokerage positions in multiplex networks also influenced power relationships in the sustainability network by moderating or expanding the power opportunities available to central actors. The research has implications for both the Inter-organizational Relationship and the Social Network Theory literatures. In contrast with prior literature, the research proposes that in conditions of uncertainty, the use of informal governance mechanisms can facilitate a search and experimentation process. Formalization of governance mechanisms can be used, not as a repair mechanism, but rather as an enabler for further growth and efficiency. The research also extends the concept of network complexity and proposes that network managers can reduce this complexity by introducing or managing nodes that in turn contribute to the re-centralization of relationships towards specific nodes. Lastly, the research has implications for managers and proposes mapping of existing commercial and personal relationships as a potentially valuable tool in the creation and management of networks, adapting coordination mechanisms to the objectives of the relationship and actively managing the network’s structure as a mechanism to enable network growth and efficiency.

This dissertation is about the in/stability over time of a contract-based inter-organizational relationship (IOR) which existed mostly under conditions of government monopsony (MG). The MG consisted of the institutional arrangements between the NHS and Higher Education sectors in England for the provision of education for the NHS non-medical professional workforce. The IOR was between the NHS education buyer (the ‘GM’) and Middlesex University (MU). An agent-centred historical institutionalism was used as the overall approach in the inquiry. The main components of the approach were resource dependence theory, concepts of historical dependence, and events in the IOR and its institutional and organizational environments. A multi-dimensional concept of IOR in/stability from the standpoints of the GM and MU which was grounded in the practices of the IOR was constructed. The inquiry traced the origins and subsequent development of the MG and the in/stability of the IOR over an 18 year period, 1995 - 2013. The main findings of the inquiry were: (1) The IOR originated in, and continued to exist mostly under conditions of MG (2) The IOR became less stable over time from the standpoint of MU; reductions in IOR stability occurred in dimensions of risk relating to the future performance of the IOR (3) Instability and threatened instability in the IOR were brought about mostly by the exercise of power by the GM and by the power dependence responses of MU. The thesis developed in the dissertation is that instability and threatened instability in the IOR were due mostly to a power imbalance in the IOR, in favour of the GM, between the GM and MU. The source of that power imbalance was a combination of: • The resource dependency of MU on the IOR • The conditions of MG and bilateral monopoly under which the IOR existed. The dissertation is concluded with a critique of MG as a technique for public sector management. Recommendations are made for new NHS-HE inter-sector and IOR arrangements to be established which take account of power imbalances and relations of mutual dependence between stakeholders. Recommendations for further research are also made.

Researchers studying the alignment of business resources usually focus on business cases that inherently have a going-concern interaction built on long-term relationships at the firm level (e.g., Barney, 1991) dyadic level (e.g., Eisenhardt & Martin, 2000) or the broader network level (e.g., Dyer, 1996). Resource alignment is usually flexible in terms of the timeline for identifying and aligning resources and resource engagement. While contractual limitations can be applied to resource alignment, resource engagement holds a notion of persistent value adding relationship. However, there are multitudes of contexts where relationships are bounded by the limited life of a project and by the way where resources must be rapidly aligned and managed. Examples exist in sectors as diverse as construction, filmmaking, and oil exploration. The study examined theories and empirical studies of resource alignment ranging from resource-based views (e.g., Wernerfelt, 1984) to more complex network views of social organizational interactions (e.g., Gulati et al., 2000). The majority of these literatures treat the development of business relationships and the acquisition of resources as a phenomenon that occurs over an extended period. Time-bound transactions challenge these theoretical perspectives built around the longevity of inter-organizational relations. Thus, the key strategic management problem this research addresses is how resources and capabilities can be rapidly aligned and managed in a time-bound network to achieve sustainable competitive advantages (SCA) at the network level. The fieldwork was conducted on more than 20 construction projects in the United Arab Emirates. Using secondary source data, I mapped the projects??? networks and interviewed 45 industry experts about the resources and capabilities their firms bring to the network, and how quickly they can be aligned to achieve the objectives of the project. The interviews were conducted over 11 months between 2011 and 2012 and amounted to more than 20 hours of audio and hundreds of notes including network sketches. I also investigated the transfer of resources and capabilities that may help network members to increase their competitive advantage when bidding on future projects. The benefits of long-term relationships are evident in any business; however, firms in the project-based construction industry often cannot reap those benefits. This study built upon theories of network-based resource alignment in the extreme situation of time-bound projects. The two-phase qualitative research approach relied on intensive interviews with key decision makers. Template analysis was used as the primary method of data analysis. This research???s primary finding is that there is no evidence of the concept of sustainable competitive advantage at the network level, while it is evident at the firm level. Other findings confirm that the events of full replication and non-replication of networks after project completion do not exist nor do decision makers favour them. While these findings imply the lack of attention to the benefits of contributing to a network, the more apparent scenario is replication of parts of a network, which is a result of two factors: 1) capabilities developed at firm level, which in return develop resources, and other capabilities, 2) movement of resources across network entities. The results shed light on decision-making techniques for efficient management of resources in time-bound business transactions such as construction and other projects. However, they may also generalize to dynamic business situations such as the entry of a firm into a new market or the entrepreneurial start-up of a new company in which resources must also be quickly aligned.

Over recent years, the study of industrial districts, and inter-organizational relations has become a major theme of interest in network research. Theories characterized by an increased inter-relatedness between heterogeneous actors and knowledge fields point to a new form of inter-organizational relationship development. This is basicly based on the idea of creating trust between firms to increase their chances of success and to keep pace with the development of all relevant technologies. In this thesis, we present some data from a research project we have conducted in OSTIM industrial district, Ankara, Turkey. First, we present the theoretical perspectives which appear relevant to such investigation, and which aims at developing a better a network model of the inter-organizational relations of district firms, as well as trust, informal contracts and centrality issues, particularly as regards technological innovation and technology transfer of firms, respectively. Moreover, the evidence presented in this thesis is unequivocal in noting that long term inter-organizational relations and trust may be a necessary and a sufficent condition for a small and medium sized enterprise (SME) to take its place in the center of a complex web of inter-organizational relations as seen in an industrial district.

This is a study of inter-organizational relations, especially of control relations, applied to Swedish state enterprise.The growing interdependence between different parts of society as well as the dynamic environment of organizations bring forward a need for new patterns of interaction. Organizations of very dissimilar types have to cooperate in new areas. The state enterprises have an external environment that exhibit both political and economic characteristics. The control relation, to the owner, may involve both types.The study consists of three parts. Part one present an initial theoretical framework, used in an empirical study (part two). This shows the need for a further development. A revised and enlarged framework is presented in part three. In the initial framework the concept of control, within a systems approach, was the focus of investigation. The approach was traditional and pointed to the importance of structures and of characteristics of the decision process. Control of two levels was discussed — organizational control and control of specific situation. The model suggested was mainly developed for description of control of state enterprises.The empirical study was conducted as an interview study in nine state enterprises. The interviews were of a semi-structured type and the purpose was to gain new insights as to the conditions of control of organizations. The enterprises were selected according to mission, three types were identified: strictly political tasks, strictly economic tasks and a mixture of tasks. The findings were that organizational control differed according to task so that political task gives a more strict control: The differences in control of ongoing avtivity was less pronounced. The most striking finding was the relevance of expectations of control. The empirical study led to demands for a more actor-oriented approach.This was the starting point for the revised and enlarged framework. A review of studies of relations in the systems approach and within a more actor-oriented approach was made. The role of the actor in the organization is discussed. The importance of structural conditions and of process in control is also analyzed. This review and analysis forms the basis for a somewhat different approach to relations. A concept of complexity is developed. This concept involve the total variation in a situation. Complexity is a main factor in perceptions of uncertainty < Coping with uncertainty gives power, which is the prerequisite of control.These concepts are used to form a game approach to control. Control is considered as the result of a game of power. Two types of games are presented — for organizations as a whole and for situations of a deviant character. In both types actors and processes are of prime interest. / digitalisering@umu

Dans cette thèse, nous nous intéressons à la façon dont différentes organisations sont impliquées dans des relations inter-organisationnelles (RIO), en nous centrant sur le secteur culturel. Dans le cadre de méta-organisations cette recherche a pour but de mieux comprendre le déroulement des processus internes des groupes inter-organisationnels par l’analyse des relations entre les individus au sein de ces GIO. Nous souhaitons améliorer leurs chances de succès. Pour analyser les relations entre les individus au sein de ces GIO, nous introduisons le concept d’identification inter-organisationnelle et celui de la compétence collective. Nous considérons que ces deux concepts nous permettent de comprendre la réussite, la stagnation ou l’échec des méta-organisations. Nous allons montrer à travers cette recherche doctorale qu’il est nécessaire de développer une compétence collective, autrement dit, la compétence du collectif de travail inter-organisationnel sur le long terme, pour assurer le succès de la RIO, et que l’identification inter-organisationnelle joue un rôle déterminant dans ce processus. Ainsi, grâce à une étude de cas comparative à visée explicative, dans le secteur culturel, cette thèse propose un modèle qui permet de comprendre le lien entre l’émergence d’une identification et une compétence collective et de mettre en évidence des moyens de management qui permettent d’améliorer les relations inter-organisationnelles. / This thesis looks at the way different organizations are involved in inter-organizational relations (IOR), with a focus on the cultural sector. In the context of meta-organizations, the aim of this research is to better understand how the internal processes in inter-organizational groups take place by analysing the relationships between individuals within those groups. In so doing, we hope to improve their chances of success. To analyse these relationships, we introduce the concept of inter-organizational identification and that of collective competence. We believe that these two concepts can provide us with a better understanding of the success, stagnation or failure of meta-organizations. This doctoral research will demonstrate that it is necessary to develop collective competence, i.e. competence at the level of the inter-organizational working group in the long term, in order to ensure the success of IOR. It will also reveal that inter-organizational identification plays a crucial role in this process. Based on an explanatory comparative case study in the cultural sector, a model is proposed with which to understand the link between the emergence of identification and collective competence and to highlight the management approaches that can be used to improve inter-organizational relations.

Cette thèse porte sur le contrôle que les Etats exercent sur les ONG humanitaires. Ces dernièresconservent parfois une grande marge de manoeuvre dans la mise en oeuvre de leur mandat, alorsque, dans d'autres circonstances, elles agissent en sous-contractants de la politique étrangère deleur État d'origine. Nous cherchons à identifier les facteurs qui mènent les ONG plutôt dans unedirection que dans l’autre, ainsi que la modalité de contrôle exercée par les États – coordinationou blanchiment - La thèse explique pourquoi, au sortir de la guerre froide, les Etats ont accru leurengagement dans l’action humanitaire, de façon unilatérale d’abord et multilatérale ensuite.Sur la base de l’étude du cas de la politique humanitaire internationale entre 1989 et 2005,l’analyse révèle un processus causal constitué de cinq séquences, qui explique comment les Etatsont recours à un agent quand leurs stratégies unilatérales sont infructueuses.Nos résultats attestent du caractère stratégique du financement de l’action humanitaire pour lesEtats, conditionné par les préférences géographiques et politiques de ces derniers. Financerl’action humanitaire permet de soutenir les anciennes colonies, d’appuyer la lutte contre leterrorisme et les interventions militaires des pays donateurs. Les financements étatiquesbénéficient aux ONG les plus dépendantes de leurs Etats d’origine. Les organisations nongouvernementalesdeviennent des organisations néo-gouvernementales. Celles-ci connaissent un rejetplus fort de leur présence en zone de conflit par rapport aux ONG qui refusent de recourir auxfonds publics. Face à l’échec de leurs stratégies de contrôle unilatéral, les Etats interventionnisteseuropéens délèguent la gestion de la politique humanitaire à un agent, ECHO, dont le mandat estde rendre moins visible la tutelle étatique les ONG.Cette situation engendre des problèmesd’agences multiples : l’agent dérape en raison de sa forte perméabilité à ses sous-contractants. Enréaction, les Etats renforcent les dispositifs de contrôle sur leur agent. Au final, la politiquehumanitaire se construit sur un équilibre fragile dans lequel chaque État tend naturellement à lacontrôler tout en sachant qu'un contrôle trop visible priverait cette politique de l'efficacité qui luiest propre, et qui tient, précisément à sa neutralité. / This thesis examines how States control their humanitarian NGOs. NGOs may sometimes enjoya great room of manoeuver in the implementation of their mandate, whereas, in othercircumstances, they act as sub-contractors of their home States’ foreign policies. This researchaims to identify the factors leading them to opt for one or the other course of action, as well as themodalities of States’ control (coordination or laundering). We explain why, at the end of the ColdWar, States have increased their commitments in humanitarian action, firstly bilaterally and then,multilaterally. Drawing upon the analysis of the international humanitarian policy between 1989and 2005, we reveal a 5-phases causal process which explain why States delegate competencies toan international agent when faced with the failures of their unilateral strategies. The results showthat States fund humanitarian aid in a strategic way, aligned with their geographic and politicalpreferences. Humanitarianism enables them to support their former colonies, to contribute toanti-terrorism policies, and to back military interventions. States’ funding mostly benefit to NGOthat depend on their home States. NGO thus become neo-governmental organizations. Theseagencies experience a greater rate of rejection of their action in conflict zones that NGOs thatrefuse to rely on public funding. Faced with the failure of their unilateral control strategies,European interventionist States delegate the management of the humanitarian policy to an agent,ECHO, who mandate is to make the State control of NGOs less visible. This situation raisesmultiple-agency problems: the agent slips because of its strong permeability to its sub-contractors.The principal react by reinforcing the control of its agent. At the end of the day, the humanitarianpolicy builds on a fragile equilibrium in which each State strives to control is while knowing thata too visible control decrease the efficacy of such policy, which precisely lies on its neutrality.

Made available in DSpace on 2016-06-02T19:50:18Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 4838.pdf: 2003441 bytes, checksum: 4cf744b7e6944f412ab80683dec07735 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2012-08-20 / This survey aims to investigate the inter-organizational relationships of a company that in a same industrial plant, concentrates its activities into two distinct markets: the automotive and white goods. Therefore, its purpose is to identify and detail how different requirements of different economic sectors, characterized by unequal positions in supply chain and by physical flows and quirky information, interfere in the organizational design of a company that operates directly in two chains. To meet this goal, there was the selection of up-and downstream links, that is, suppliers and customers of the automotive and white goods market. Soon, was set a case study involving four suppliers and six central enterprise customers. The empirical clipping adopted contemplated the construction of immediate central chain company by which flow all interorganizational relations selected. The comparative research of upstream and downstream relationships occurred through questionnaires that sought to identify and translate the central company interactions with selected organizations, as well as to clarify their form of simultaneous actions in the sectors of automotive, white goods and with support of the theories of supply chain, supply chain management and networks. In summary, the results of this research showed that the company central: (1) Gets cost advantages in its operations in the automotive and white goods segment, on the basis of complementarities; (2) presents an organizational design shaped by the way in which production is performed to company C (b) 1, for the different sectors, by his training and entry into the market, by productive restructuring processes occurring in the white line and automotive markets, for its strategic options and by its placement in the automotive supply chain and white line; (3) when you join at the first level of the automotive supply chain had access to a large number of challenges and opportunities that, if properly addressed, will configure itself in a growth, characterized by structural changes that will include a new dimensioning of your strategic business units in order to remodel your current organizational design, as well as their relationships with customers and suppliers. / Esta pesquisa tem por finalidade investigar as relações interorganizacionais de uma empresa que em uma mesma planta industrial, concentra sua atuação em dois mercados distintos: o de linha branca e o automotivo. Por conseguinte, seu propósito está em identificar e pormenorizar de que forma exigências distintas de setores econômicos diferentes, caracterizadas por posicionamentos desiguais na cadeia de suprimentos e por fluxos físicos e de informação peculiares, interferem no desenho organizacional de uma empresa que atua diretamente em duas cadeias produtivas. Para cumprir este objetivo, houve a seleção de elos à montante e à jusante, isto é, fornecedores e clientes do mercado de linha branca e automotivo. Logo, foi definido um estudo de caso que envolveu quatro fornecedores e seis clientes da empresa central. O recorte empírico adotado contemplou a construção da cadeia imediata à empresa central, pela qual fluem todas as relações interorganizacionais selecionadas. A investigação comparativa das relações à montante e à jusante ocorreu por meio de questionários que visaram identificar e traduzir as interações da empresa central com as organizações selecionadas, bem como esclarecer sua forma de atuação simultânea nos setores de linha branca e automotivo, com respaldo das teorias da cadeia de suprimentos, da gestão da cadeia de suprimentos e de redes. Em síntese, os resultados dessa pesquisa apontaram que a empresa central: (1) Obtém vantagens de custo em sua atuação no segmento de linha branca e automotiva, em função das complementaridades; (2) Apresenta um desenho organizacional moldado pela forma pela qual a produção é realizada para a empresa C(b)1, para os distintos setores, por seu histórico de formação e ingresso no mercado, pelos processos de reestruturação produtiva ocorridos nos mercados de linha branca e automotivo, por suas opções estratégicas e por seu posicionamento na cadeia automotiva e de linha branca; (3) Ao ingressar no primeiro nível de fornecimento da cadeia automotiva teve acesso a um grande número de desafios e oportunidades que, se devidamente superados, configurar-se-ão em um crescimento, caracterizado por mudanças estruturais que incluirão um novo dimensionamento de suas unidades estratégicas de negócios, de modo a remodelar seu atual desenho organizacional, bem como seus relacionamentos com clientes e fornecedores.