The purpose of this study is to reveal, through the use of case study methodology, how
faculty collaboration may foster the development of intellectual capital and how organizational
reward systems mediate this process. Collaboration has been chosen as the unit of analysis due to
the collaborative nature of innovation. Innovation often produces a sustainable competitive
advantage for organizations. The key in leveraging organizations' innovative capacity is through
the development of intellectual capital. Human resource development is a viable method of
fostering organizational resources such as intellectual capital. Due to economic, political, and
organizational constraints upon traditional human resource development activities, intellectual
capital may be best fostered via non-traditional methods. Organizational reward systems, as in
the case of performance-based tenure and promotion, have been shown to both promote and
hinder collaborative activities. A qualitative case study approach has been chosen due to
contextual factors influencing collaboration. Semi-structured interviews, document and archival
analysis served as the primary means of data collection. Faculty collaboration occurring at a
large Texas university was examined via three main data sources: the college-level strategic plan,
network analysis of interdepartmental collaboration, and targeted, semi-structured interviews.
Data analysis revealed collaboration at the university often occurs via relationships, networks,
and is fostered via resource allocation. Tenure and promotion as well as available resources seem to have a mediating effect on the decisions faculty made relating to research collaborations. Data
supported the theoretical variables derived from the Theory of the Learning Organization.
Recommendations for fostering collaboration center upon administering rewards in close
proximity of collaboration behaviors. Further research must be performed to better understand
the outcomes of successful collaboration as well as the different context in which fostering
collaboration may be beneficial to organizational outcomes.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:tamu.edu/oai:repository.tamu.edu:1969.1/ETD-TAMU-2009-08-7111 |
| Date | 2009 August 1900 |
| Creators | Bartek, Cara Beth. |
| Contributors | Dooley, Larry M. |
| Source Sets | Texas A and M University |
| Language | en_US |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Book, Thesis, Electronic Dissertation, text |
| Format | application/pdf |
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