Jan-Erik Johanson

Formal structure and intra-organisational networks. An analysis in a combined social and health organisation in Finland

The aim of this article is to study the interplay between formal structure and social relations in a combined social and health organisation in Finland, using of social network analysis. Two features of formal structure were considered, namely hierarchy and the division of labour. The social relations were studied in three networks: collaboration, advice and friendship. The results show that formal organisation impacts powerfully on the patterns of interaction, including affective relations. Further, middle management has a restricted role as a buffer between top management and information flowing upward from the lower hierarchical levels, while the staff unit holds a peripheral position among the horizontal units. In conclusion, the approach adopted here offers a viable way to test theoretical constructs in other organisations and to trace relational problems before they become serious obstacles to the functioning of the organisation.

Internal social networks in work teams: structure, knowledge sharing and performance

Purpose - From the structural perspective of social-capital theory, this research investigates how a teams social-network relationships affect its performance. More specifically, it concerns the type of work-group-internal connectedness in instrumental and expressive networks that is associated with enhanced team performance, and whether knowledge mediates these effects. Design/methodology/approach - The research was survey based, involving 76 work teams and a total of 499 employees in 48 organisations. The work teams carried out fairly knowledge-intensive but only moderately complex tasks, some of which were routine in nature. Findings - Both dense and fragmented instrumental-network structures affect work-team performance. However, fragmentation in expressive networks has a negative impact. Furthermore, the mediation results give empirical support to the implicit understanding that only instrumental networks transfer knowledge, especially if they are dense. Research limitations/implications - The results indicate that social-network relationships affect team performance and also provide access to social capital (here knowledge). However, instrumental and expressive networks differ in terms of theoretical and practical implications. Future research could overcome the limitations of this study through increasing the sample size and focusing on much more fine-grained intervening mechanisms (here knowledge sharing). Practical implications - The recommendation to managers is to stimulate dense instrumental relationships in order to facilitate knowledge sharing and avoid overly fragmented expressive relationships. Originality/value - First, in examining the social structure of both instrumental and expressive relationships this study responds to the growing call in organisational theory for research into the social content of social networks. Second, the contribution of this research paper lies in directly testing whether team knowledge mediates the effects of advice-network structures on team performance.

The demographic antecedents and performance consequences of the social‐network structure in work teams

Purpose – Businesses are increasingly using teams as their fundamental organisational unit. This paper aims to explore the impact of demographic antecedents and the social‐network structure, measured in terms of task‐related advice‐network density, centralisation and fragmentation, on work‐team performance. The paper seeks to examine: the impact of the social‐network structure (dense, fragmented or centralised) on work‐team performance and the origins of the social structure. It also tests whether team diversity (in terms of variety with regard to gender and separation with regard to age and education) has an impact on team performance.Design/methodology/approach – A survey was conducted on 76 work teams (499 employees) representing 48 different organisations.Findings – With regard to the first question, density was positively related to team performance. The impact of advice‐network fragmentation was also positive, and this is in line with the results of other studies focusing on teams conducting standar...

Institutional work and accountability in public-private partnerships

The large-scale emergence of public–private partnerships (PPPs) has drawn attention to the mechanisms of accountability in PPPs. However, there has been little research yet on how the institutional logics of the mechanisms are instituted, and there is still little knowledge on the role of accountability in the governance of PPPs. The purpose of this article is to develop a theoretical framework for studying the institutional logics of accountability in PPPs by including institutional work projects in an analysis. The theoretical framework is applied in a single case analysis of the Finnish public–private pension system TyEL. The case study reveals accountability gaps and changes previous understanding of the role of public accountability in governance of PPPs.

Strategic Governance in Public Agencies

Building on the threefold classification to strategic design, internal scanning and strategic governance (Johanson 2009) in public agencies, this paper elaborates further the strategic governance perspective. The pivotal concept is the social network. First, the classification of types of agencies provides contexts for elaboration of relational patterns. Second, the triad composed of three actors offers a detailed enough image of the roles within networks captured by the roles of mediator, tertius gaudens, and divide et impera. Within inter-organizational arena there are three fundamentally different institutional network environments for public agencies, that is, neutral, competitive, and regulative. The suitable network structure and the agency’s role within it depends on the type of the agency and the institutional arena. In this study three roles for public agencies with their immediate social surrounding is identified; 1) the mediator 2) business partner, and 3) antitrust agent. The resulting scheme shows that the public agencies are attuned to both building and destruction of relationships within their networks.

The effect of stakeholder inclusion on public sector project innovation

The delivery of public services in collaborative agency networks has given rise to an increasing use of projects in administering policy and service delivery. Projects are assumed to provide mechanisms by which flexibility can be achieved and innovative solutions produced. The aim of the article is to advance the understanding of collaboration between stakeholders and its effect on innovation. It analyses stakeholders’ influence on the creation of project innovations in 275 European Union-funded projects by using content analyses and logistic regression analyses. The results show that projects can act as hubs where valuable information is produced but that few projects produce innovations. Project stakeholder network, knowledge dissemination and project influence, as well as sources of advice, play a role in predicting project innovations. The article concludes that the overly optimistic view of collaboration as a remedy for a lack of innovation in the public sector can be questioned. Points for practitioners The results of the article help practitioners to compose public sector development projects that foster innovation. The results suggest that it pays to include representatives of research and education facilities among project staff as their inclusion predicts the possibilities of achieving innovations. The empirical findings provide insight into project innovation and indicate which practices to avoid. It is suggested that when managed correctly, stakeholder inclusion has an effect on public sector project innovation.