Organising Organising: the Practice inside the Process
This paper explores the contradictory pressures for standardisation and customisation in reorganisation processes. Taking a ‘practice lens’ (Orlikowski, 2000), it examines eight on-going reorganisations, from both private and non-private sectors, using photography, observation and extensive intervie...
| Main Authors: | , |
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| Format: | Journal article |
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2005
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| _version_ | 1826306180045078528 |
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| author | Whittington, R Molloy, E |
| author_facet | Whittington, R Molloy, E |
| author_sort | Whittington, R |
| collection | OXFORD |
| description | This paper explores the contradictory pressures for standardisation and customisation in reorganisation processes. Taking a ‘practice lens’ (Orlikowski, 2000), it examines eight on-going reorganisations, from both private and non-private sectors, using photography, observation and extensive interviews. This practice lens goes both outside and inside the processes of reorganising. Outside these processes, it highlights the pervasive influence of standard, even banalised practices, from those embedded in the technologies of Microsoft to the frameworks of McKinsey & Co. Inside these processes, it emphasises the detailed improvisation around these standard practices, with customising the norm. The paper concludes by arguing for the effectiveness of the practice lens in negotiating the contradictory pressures between standardisation and customisation, and by offering provisional implications for the teaching of organisation design in business schools. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-07T06:44:02Z |
| format | Journal article |
| id | oxford-uuid:fa424219-6ed6-431a-a9de-ef0f60878692 |
| institution | University of Oxford |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-07T06:44:02Z |
| publishDate | 2005 |
| record_format | dspace |
| spelling | oxford-uuid:fa424219-6ed6-431a-a9de-ef0f608786922022-03-27T13:04:23ZOrganising Organising: the Practice inside the ProcessJournal articlehttp://purl.org/coar/resource_type/c_dcae04bcuuid:fa424219-6ed6-431a-a9de-ef0f60878692Saïd Business School - Eureka2005Whittington, RMolloy, EThis paper explores the contradictory pressures for standardisation and customisation in reorganisation processes. Taking a ‘practice lens’ (Orlikowski, 2000), it examines eight on-going reorganisations, from both private and non-private sectors, using photography, observation and extensive interviews. This practice lens goes both outside and inside the processes of reorganising. Outside these processes, it highlights the pervasive influence of standard, even banalised practices, from those embedded in the technologies of Microsoft to the frameworks of McKinsey & Co. Inside these processes, it emphasises the detailed improvisation around these standard practices, with customising the norm. The paper concludes by arguing for the effectiveness of the practice lens in negotiating the contradictory pressures between standardisation and customisation, and by offering provisional implications for the teaching of organisation design in business schools. |
| spellingShingle | Whittington, R Molloy, E Organising Organising: the Practice inside the Process |
| title | Organising Organising: the Practice inside the Process |
| title_full | Organising Organising: the Practice inside the Process |
| title_fullStr | Organising Organising: the Practice inside the Process |
| title_full_unstemmed | Organising Organising: the Practice inside the Process |
| title_short | Organising Organising: the Practice inside the Process |
| title_sort | organising organising the practice inside the process |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT whittingtonr organisingorganisingthepracticeinsidetheprocess AT molloye organisingorganisingthepracticeinsidetheprocess |