All Edge: Understanding the New Workplace Networks
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Transcript of All Edge: Understanding the New Workplace Networks
Clay Spinuzzi, University of Texas at Austin
[email protected]: @spinuzzi
All Edge: Understanding
the New Workplace Networks
About me…
The way we work is changing
A shift in the “3 Cs”
Communication, coordination, and collaboration
Example: An ad agency
•1970s: Bureaucracies
•1990s: Adhocracies
•2010s: All-edge adhocracies
1970’s bureaucracies
1990’s institutional adhocracies
2010’s all-edge adhocracies
All-edge adhocraciesCharacteristics
•Project-oriented
•Agile
•Innovative
•Allied
•Decentralized
•Autonomous
Good for
•Swarming complex projects (not the long grind)
•Tactical maneuvers (not strategic direction)
•Innovation (not repeated, reliable outcomes with tight tolerances)
Three case studies of all-edge adhocracies
All-edge adhocracies•Nonemployer firms, who pull
together subcontractor networks to swarm projects.
•Coworking spaces, where all-edge adhocracies can form and recombine.
•Workplace adhocracies in high-tech industries such as SEO, which often extend beyond the bounds of the workplace.
All-edge adhocracies require
networking•Associative links, not hierarchical links
•Cross-specialization (for capacity)
•Trust
•Coordination
•Flexibility
These aims are not currently well supported in offices—at work or at home.
Coworking•“Coworking is the social gathering of a group of people, who are still working independently, but who share values and who are interested in the synergy that can happen from working with talented people in the same space.” (Wikipedia)
The “Good Neighbors”
Configuration
The “Good Partners”
Configuration
Spaces represented a
mix
Search Engine Optimization
“Search engine optimization (SEO) is the process of improving the volume or
quality of traffic to a web site or a web page (such as a blog) from search
engines via ‘natural’ or un-paid (‘organic ’ or ‘algorithmic’) search results ...”
(Wikipedia)
Flexibility through Constant Customization
“Innovation is the primordial function” (Castells 2003, p.100)
“The Internet is the essential tool to ensure customization in a context of high-volume production and distribution” (Castells 2003, p.77)
“[Projects are] all very different” (Stacy, Account Manager)
Project teams
Apprenticeship teams
Project teams
Support teams
Project teams
Functional teams
Project teams
Values teams
Project teams
Taco club
Project teams
Aggregate networks
Extending the network
“I ’ve got friends in med school.” (Daria, Senior Search Specialist)
All-edge adhocracies are organizational
networks•Flat structure
•Changing composition
•Flexibility
•Adaptability
How do we support all-edge adhocracies?
Supporting strengths•Workplace structure
•Physical infrastructure
•Service infrastructure
•Collaborative infrastructure
•Benefits infrastructure
•Self-structure
Shoring up weaknesses•Collaborative project management
•Stage management
•Team management
Realizing the potential•The right projects
•The right people
•The right combinations
Questions?