Whereas organizational ambidexterity is increasingly gaining ground in organizational theory, key issues regarding how ambidexterity is conceptualized, achieved and sustained offer partial insights or remain unexplored. Current approaches to ambidexterity so far have followed rather static and single level approaches to ambidexterity, without further exploring the underlying mechanisms of how ambidexterity is pursued in practice and through which mechanism and processes tensions are managed. In order to address this gap, this research adopts a holistic approach to the study of ambidexterity exploring tensions at different organizational levels. Based on a case study research in two organizations in pursuit of ambidexterity this research brings forward a view of ambidexterity that is complex and dynamic, as it involves the co-existence of different tensions and modes of balancing within different organizational groups. Research findings contribute to the study of ambidexterity at two main levels: tension manifestation (which tensions arise at each organizational group) and tension management (the mode of balance pursued in each case). Following a micro-level approach to the research of ambidexterity, findings bring forward the role of organizational actors in the management of tensions: based on how individuals perceived tensions (as complementary, conflicting, or interrelated), their organizational level and their strategic orientation different modes of balancing were pursued. As a result this research contributes to the theory of ambidexterity by identifying a path dependent process of managing tensions based on how individuals perceive the nature of the tensions. As literature on ambidexterity is shifting towards the importance of agency, gaining this understanding is a crucial step towards how ambidexterity is achieved.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:bl.uk/oai:ethos.bl.uk:582469 |
| Date | January 2013 |
| Creators | Papachroni, Angeliki |
| Publisher | University of Warwick |
| Source Sets | Ethos UK |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Electronic Thesis or Dissertation |
| Source | http://wrap.warwick.ac.uk/57923/ |
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