Pursuit of change versus organizational inertia: a study on strategic renewal in the Finnish broadcasting company

This doctoral dissertation explores the intra-organizational dynamics of a strategic renewal process. The main research question is how the pursuit of change and organizational inertia co-exist, intertwine, and collide in organizational cognition and capabilities during the strategic renewal. It is a comprehensive study on how organizational capabilities, organizational cognition, and structure enhance and inhibit change. Theoretically, the study is positioned in the modern tradition of strategy research, using the dynamic capability view and the organizational and managerial cognition research tradition as the main theoretical frames. Empirically, the study is a longitudinal case study of the Finnish Broadcasting Company (Yle), following the organizational changes during the years of 2011-1014. The analysis is based on both quantitative and qualitative data, which was collected during the research process using surveys, interviews, and archives. The main theoretical contribution is the application of the two theoretical approaches in one study. Empirically, the study contributes to operationalization of the concepts related to the dynamic capability view and organizational cognition, in a media context that is going through drastic changes due to digitalization. Furthermore, the case of a public broadcasting company extends the application of the theoretical concepts to the context of public management. The results suggest that renewal is a complex process, in which an organization’s perceptions intertwine with the strategic actions and decision-making. The change evolves pathdependently: the past experiences, routines, and organizational structures tend to dictate the future visions, desires, and actions. The study also reveals how the public nature of an organization adds to the tensions between change and organizational inertia, and hampers the decision-making. The doctoral dissertation consists of six research papers, each of which explores the phenomenon under study from a different perspective.

Strategic HRM through the cultural looking glass:mapping the cognition of British and Indian managers

This study examines the issues of `integration' of human resource management (HRM) into the corporate strategy, `devolvement' of HRM to line managers and the perceived influence of national culture on HRM in a cross-national comparative context. In order to achieve this, the cognition of personnel specialists from a matched sample of 48 Indian and British firms in the manufacturing sector using the `Visual Cards Sorting' and `CMAP2' methodologies are analyzed. The findings show that even where there is an apparent convergence of strategy — e.g., the desire of both Indian and British personnel managers to increase integration between HRM and business strategy, and to increase the level of devolvement to line managers, the two sets of specialists clearly follow a different logic of action, which is subject to a different set of cross-cultural influences. The implications of pursuing apparently similar HRM solutions in different cross-national contexts are considered. The analysis shows that HRM strategies, when considered in a cross-national context, vary a lot. Different logic leads to the adoption of similar HR strategies, and similar strategies in turn are perceived as producing different outcomes. This variance centres around the existence and perceived influence of several contextual variables such as industrial relations systems, operation of labour markets, and changes in business systems. Specific cross-cultural influences, along with different aspects of competitive business environment associated with the generic HR strategies of integration and devolvement in the two countries are highlighted. This research contributes to the fields of cross-cultural management research, international HRM and managerial and organizational cognition. It also has important messages for policy makers.

Cognição em organizações: complexidade cognitiva e seus impactos no desempenho organizacional

Esta pesquisa assenta-se num campo emergente dos estudos organizacionais e de estratégia: Cognição Gerencial & Organizacional (Managerial e Organizational Cognition, daqui em diante, MOC). Avanços teóricos e metodológicos no campo da Ciência Cognitiva têm viabilizado o acesso, mapeamento e análise de como indivíduos produzem sentido e agem de modo inteligente. A aplicação desse ferramental tem permitido a mensuração do que se convencionou chamar “complexidade cognitiva situacional”, ou seja, o grau de diferenciação e integração com que uma pessoa percebe determinada situação, problema, objeto ou fenômeno. Tem havido, no entanto, controvérsias sobre a relação entre essa variável e, em ultima análise, o desempenho do indivíduo na realização de uma atividade e no alcance de resultados. Enquanto alguns estudos têm encontrado apenas relações residuais, grande parte das pesquisas têm encontrado relações positivas, na forma de “U invertido” ou, até mesmo, negativas entre complexidade cognitiva e desempenho. Nosso objetivo principal aqui é identificar como se deu essa relação na indústria siderúrgica no Brasil no período de 2001 a 2003. Para atingir esse objetivo estruturamos esta pesquisa como segue: no primeiro capítulo identificamos as principais bases teóricas e conceituais do campo. Advinda predominantemente da Filosofia, Sociologia e Ciência Cognitiva, essa base fornece os alicerces sobre os quais a Teoria de MOC, de um modo geral e esta pesquisa, em particular, se fundamentam. No capítulo seguinte apresentamos o campo de MOC em si, com especial ênfase sobre suas origens, processos cognitivos estudados, métodos de pesquisa e as principais relações causais exploradas. Em seguida apresentamos um estudo empírico realizado com dois experts e com os CFOs de três das principais companhias siderúrgicas no Brasil. Buscamos, primordialmente, identificar dois tipos de fenômenos nos dados obtidos: diferenças de complexidade cognitiva entre os experts e os executivos, e o tipo de relação existente entre a complexidade cognitiva dos executivos e o desempenho organizacional. Nesse capítulo apresentamos o problema de pesquisa, os objetivos da investigação, as hipóteses, a metodologia utilizada, os resultados e as análises. Finalmente, concluímos com alguns apontamentos em relação ao campo de MOC e à pesquisa empírica, avaliando algumas forças e fraquezas deste trabalho e sugerindo direções futuras de pesquisa nesse campo.

Strategy as a matter of beliefs: the recorded music industry reinventing itself by rethinking itself

Managerial and organizational cognition studies the ways cognitions of managers in groups, organizations and industries shape their strategies and actions. Cognitions refer to simplified representations of managers’ internal and external environments, necessary to cope with the rich, ambiguous information requirements that characterize strategy making. Despite the important achievements in the field, many unresolved puzzles remain as to this process, particular as to the cognitive factors that condition actors in framing a response to a discontinuity, how actors can change their models in the face of a discontinuity, and the reciprocal relation between cognition and action. I leverage on the recent case of the recorded music industry in the face of the digital technology to study these issues, through a strategy-oriented study of the way early response to the discontinuity was constructed and of the subsequent evolution of this response. Through a longitudinal historical and cognitive analysis of actions and cognitions at both the industry and firm-level during the period in which the response took place (1999-2010), I gain important insights on the way historical beliefs in the industry shaped early response to the digital disruption, on the role of outsiders in promoting change through renewed vision about important issues, and on the reciprocal relationship between cognitive and strategic change.

La construcción de sentido (‘sensemaking’) de un entorno estratégico turbulento por parte de los altos directivos: un estudio en una multinacional automotriz

Este artículo presenta los resultados de una investigación realizada al interior de dos contextos. Por un lado, el teórico, en el marco de uno de los discursos más relevantes en los campos de la estrategia organizacional, de la managerial and organizational cognition (MOC) y, en general, de los estudios organizacionales (organization studies): la construcción de sentido (sensemaking). Por el otro, el empírico, en una de las grandes compañías multinacionales del sector automotriz con presencia global. Esta corporación enfrenta una permanente tensión entre lo que dicta la casa matriz, en relación con el cumplimiento de metas y estándares específicos, considerando el mundo entero, y los retos que, teniendo en cuenta lo regional y lo local, experimentan los altos directivos encargados de hacer prosperar la empresa en estos lugares. La aproximación implementada fue cualitativa. Esto en atención a la naturaleza de la problemática abordada y la tradición del campo. Los resultados permiten ampliar el actual nivel de comprensión acerca de los procesos de sensemaking de los altos directivos al enfrentar un entorno estratégico turbulento.

Organizational effects of fetal testosterone on human corpus callosum size and asymmetry

Previous theory and research in animals has identified the critical role that fetal testosterone (FT) plays in organizing sexually dimorphic brain development. However, to date there are no studies in humans directly testing the organizational effects of FT on structural brain development. In the current study we investigated the effects of FT on corpus callosum size and asymmetry. High-resolution structural magnetic resonance images (MRI) of the brain were obtained on 28 8-11-year-old boys whose exposure to FT had been previously measured in utero via amniocentesis conducted during the second trimester. Although there was no relationship between FT and midsaggital corpus callosum size, increasing FT was significantly related to increasing rightward asymmetry (e.g., Right>Left) of a posterior subsection of the callosum, the isthmus, that projects mainly to parietal and superior temporal areas. This potential organizational effect of FT on rightward callosal asymmetry may be working through enhancing the neuroprotective effects of FT and result in an asymmetric distribution of callosal axons. We suggest that this possible organizational effect of FT on callosal asymmetry may also play a role in shaping sexual dimorphism in functional and structural brain development, cognition, and behavior.

Knowledge Exchange in Intra-Organizational Innovation Communities: The Role of Cognitive and Affective States

Many aspects in the area of designing platforms for intra-organizational innovation communities are not well understood. In this article, we examine the impact of technologically induced psychological factors on knowledge exchange in such communities. Using two experimental pretest-posttest experiments, we find that the implementation of (i) technologically induced self-efficacy (expressed by a ‘hurray’ message) and (ii) technologically induced positive affect (expressed by playing some 30 seconds of rock-‘n’-roll music) in the design of the platform results in an influential increase of knowledge exchange. Importantly, the studies suggest that the integration of technologically induced self-efficacy leads to a higher extent of knowledge exchange than technologically induced positive affect. The implications of these results for future research and practice as well as for the design of a platform for such communities are discussed.

Social cognition in leader–follower relationship:applying insights from relationship science to understanding relationship-based approaches to leadership

Relationship-based approaches to leadership (e.g., Leader–Member Exchange theory) currently represent one of the most popular approaches to understanding workplace leadership. Although the concept of “relationship” is central to these approaches, generally this has not been well articulated and is often conceptualized simply in terms of relationship quality between the leader and the follower. In contrast, research in the wider relationship science domain provides a more detailed exposition of relationships and how they form and develop. We propose that research and methodology developed in relationship science (i.e., close relationships) can enhance understanding of the leader–follower relationship and therefore advance theory in this area. To address this issue, we organize our review in two areas. First, we examine how a social cognitive approach to close relationships can benefit an understanding of the leader–follower relationship (in terms of structure, content, and processes). Second, we show how the research designs and methodologies that have been developed in relationship science can be applied to understand better the leader–follower relationship. The cross-fertilization of research from the close relationships literature to understanding the leader–follower relationship provides new insights into leadership processes and potential avenues for further research. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

How do servant leaders ignite absorptive capacity?: the role of epistemic motivation and organizational support

This study examines the role of servant leadership in absorptive capacity. Data from manufacturing and service sector organizations found that: a) there was moderation of servant leadership influence on knowledge identification through POS by high need for cognition, b) there was moderation of servant leadership influence on knowledge application through POS by low time pressure, and c) POS mediated relationship between servant leadership and knowledge dissemination. The findings illustrate and support the importance of a comprehensive model integrating servant leadership, POS, and epistemic motivation in determining absorptive capacity.

Structural Connectivity Of The Default Mode Network And Cognition In Alzheimer׳s Disease.

Disconnectivity between the Default Mode Network (DMN) nodes can cause clinical symptoms and cognitive deficits in Alzheimer׳s disease (AD). We aimed to examine the structural connectivity between DMN nodes, to verify the extent in which white matter disconnection affects cognitive performance. MRI data of 76 subjects (25 mild AD, 21 amnestic Mild Cognitive Impairment subjects and 30 controls) were acquired on a 3.0T scanner. ExploreDTI software (fractional Anisotropy threshold=0.25 and the angular threshold=60°) calculated axial, radial, and mean diffusivities, fractional anisotropy and streamline count. AD patients showed lower fractional anisotropy (P=0.01) and streamline count (P=0.029), and higher radial diffusivity (P=0.014) than controls in the cingulum. After correction for white matter atrophy, only fractional anisotropy and radial diffusivity remained significantly lower in AD compared to controls (P=0.003 and P=0.05). In the parahippocampal bundle, AD patients had lower mean and radial diffusivities (P=0.048 and P=0.013) compared to controls, from which only radial diffusivity survived for white matter adjustment (P=0.05). Regression models revealed that cognitive performance is also accounted for by white matter microstructural values. Structural connectivity within the DMN is important to the execution of high-complexity tasks, probably due to its relevant role in the integration of the network.

On Building a Memory Evolutive System for Application to Learning and Cognition Modeling

We address here aspects of the implementation of a memory evolutive system (MES), based on the model proposed by A. Ehresmann and J. Vanbremeersch (2007), by means of a simulated network of spiking neurons with time dependent plasticity. We point out the advantages and challenges of applying category theory for the representation of cognition, by using the MES architecture. Then we discuss the issues concerning the minimum requirements that an artificial neural network (ANN) should fulfill in order that it would be capable of expressing the categories and mappings between them, underlying the MES. We conclude that a pulsed ANN based on Izhikevich`s formal neuron with STDP (spike time-dependent plasticity) has sufficient dynamical properties to achieve these requirements, provided it can cope with the topological requirements. Finally, we present some perspectives of future research concerning the proposed ANN topology.