A study of the intra-organisational processes of institutionalisation : establishing the practices of knowledge management
- Publication Type:
- Thesis
- Issue Date:
- 2010
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This research is a study of how practices emerge and become established within an
organisation. Institutional studies present different process models, however few have
considered how they emerge and become established, other than by means of legitimacy and
diffusion. Tolbert and Zucker (1996) defined institutionalisation as a sequential model of three
processes, each had its own focus and was described within the context of certain institutional
dimensions and outcomes. They indicated that similar processes could be played out between
as well as within organisations. Based on this assumption the research aimed to extend this
framework and develop a processual analysis of the institutionalisation of a practice at the
intra-organisational level.
To gain an understanding of these changes, the research positioned the study within the
context of a practice. This was defined as knowledge management, a phenomenon which
represented a set of practices which have been adopted by organisations over recent years.
The methodology required a structured approach. This led to the development of the reference
framework, which defined the inter-relationship between processes, practice, the intraorganisational
context and time. It also provided the means to explore certain institutional
dimensions and outcomes based on: theorisation, diffusion, formulisation and internalisation.
Based on a sample of organisations across different industries, the research design consisted of
three phases. The first was exploratory, the second was based on a mixed methods approach;
the final explored the processual outcomes in terms of institutional dimensions and the
different levels of change. The second and third phases were used to frame the intra-organisational
processes of institutionalisation of a practice.
The results showed that through studying practice within the intra-organisational context, this
had generated important insights into the processes of institutionalisation. The research found
that theorisation activity lay very much at the hands of the leader and their knowledge and
willingness to champion the practices. Examples were found of the different pressures upon
organisations to adopt the practices. Variations in formalisation related not only to the
different stages of change but also to the many different approaches of implementation. It was
found that internalisation was affected by people understanding the value of the practices not
the concept of knowledge management. Finally, the process analysis defined expands the
narrow focus on intra-organisational dynamics, as well as providing a bridge between practice
and institutionalisation.
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