An organizational structure consists of activities such as task allocation, coordination and supervision, which are directed towards the achievement of organizational aims.[1] It can also be considered as the viewing glass or perspective through which individuals see their organization and its environment.[2] Organizations are a variant of clustered entities.[citation needed] An organization can be structured in many different ways, depending on their objectives. The structure of an organization will determine the modes in which it operates and performs. Organizational structure allows the expressed allocation of responsibilities for different functions and processes to different entities such as the branch, department, workgroup and individual. Organizational structure affects organizational action in two big ways. First, it provides the foundation on which standard operating procedures and routines rest. Second, it determines which individuals get to participate in which decision-making processes, and thus to what extent their views shape the organizations actions.[2] the strategies and behavior of the management and the workers as constrained by the power distribution between them, and influenced by their environment and the outcome.[4]

[edit] Organizational structure types] Functional structure Employees within the functional divisions of an organization tend to perform a specialized set of tasks, for instance the engineering department would be staffed only with software engineers. This leads to operational efficiencies within that group. However it could also lead to a lack of communication between the functional groups within an organization, making the organization slow and inflexible. As a whole, a functional organization is best suited as a producer of standardized goods and services at large volume and low cost. Coordination and specialization of tasks are centralized in a functional structure, which makes producing a limited amount of products or services efficient and predictable. Moreover, efficiencies can further be realized as functional organizations integrate their activities vertically so that products are sold and distributed quickly and at low cost.[11] For instance, a small business could make components used in production of its products instead of buying them. This benefits the organization and employees faiths. ] Divisional structure Also called a "product structure", the divisional structure groups each organizational function into a division. Each division within a divisional structure contains all the necessary resources and functions within it. Divisions can be categorized from different points of view. One might make distinctions on a geographical basis (a US division and an EU division, for example) or on product/service basis (different products for different customers: households or companies). In

another example, an automobile company with a divisional structure might have one division for SUVs, another division for subcompact cars, and another division for sedans. Each division may have its own sales, engineering and marketing departments. Matrix structure The matrix structure groups employees by both function and product. This structure can combine the best of both separate structures. A matrix organization frequently uses teams of employees to accomplish work, in order to take advantage of the strengths, as well as make up for the weaknesses, of functional and decentralized forms. An example would be a company that produces two products, "product a" and "product b". Using the matrix structure, this company would organize functions within the company as follows: "product a" sales department, "product a" customer service department, "product a" accounting, "product b" sales department, "product b" customer service department, "product b" accounting department. Matrix structure is amongst the purest of organizational structures, a simple lattice emulating order and regularity demonstrated in nature.

Weak/Functional Matrix: A project manager with only limited authority is assigned to oversee the cross- functional aspects of the project. The functional managers maintain control over their resources and project areas. Balanced/Functional Matrix: A project manager is assigned to oversee the project. Power is shared equally between the project manager and the functional managers. It brings the best aspects of functional and projectized organizations. However, this is the most difficult system to maintain as the sharing power is delicate proposition. Strong/Project Matrix: A project manager is primarily responsible for the project. Functional managers provide technical expertise and assign resources as needed.

[edit] Organizational circle: moving back to flatThe flat structure is common in small companies (enterprenerial start-ups, university spin offs). As the company grows it becomes more complex and hierarchical, which leads to an expanded structure, with more levels and departments. Often, it would result in bureaucracy, the most prevalent structure in the past. It is still, however, relevant in former Soviet Republics, China, and most governmental organizations all over the world. Shell Group used to represent the typical bureaucracy: top-heavy and hierarchical. It featured multiple levels of command and duplicate service companies existing in different regions. All this made Shell apprehensive to market changes,[12] leading to its incapacity to grow and develop further. The failure of this structure became the main reason for the company restructuring into a matrix. Starbucks is one of the numerous large organizations that successfully developed the matrix structure supporting their focused strategy. Its design combines functional and product based divisions, with employees reporting to two heads.[13] Creating a team spirit, the company

empowers employees to make their own decisions and train them to develop both hard and soft skills. That makes Starbucks one of the best at customer service. Some experts also mention the multinational design,[14] common in global companies, such as Procter & Gamble, Toyota and Unilever. This structure can be seen as a complex form of the matrix, as it maintains coordination among products, functions and geographic areas. In general, over the last decade, it has become increasingly clear that through the forces of globalization, competition and more demanding customers, the structure of many companies has become flatter, less hierarchical, more fluid and even virtual.[15]

[edit] TeamOne of the newest organizational structures developed in the 20th century is team. In small businesses, the team structure can define the entire organization.[14] Teams can be both horizontal and vertical.[16] While an organization is constituted as a set of people who synergize individual competencies to achieve newer dimensions, the quality of organizational structure revolves around the competencies of teams in totality.[17] For example, every one of the Whole Foods Market stores, the largest natural-foods grocer in the US developing a focused strategy, is an autonomous profit centre composed of an average of 10 self-managed teams, while team leaders in each store and each region are also a team. Larger bureaucratic organizations can benefit from the flexibility of teams as well. Xerox, Motorola, and DaimlerChrysler are all among the companies that actively use teams to perform tasks.

[edit] NetworkAnother modern structure is network. While business giants risk becoming too clumsy to proact (such as), act and react efficiently,[18] the new network organizations contract out any business function, that can be done better or more cheaply. In essence, managers in network structures spend most of their time coordinating and controlling external relations, usually by electronic means. H&M is outsourcing its clothing to a network of 700 suppliers, more than two-thirds of which are based in low-cost Asian countries. Not owning any factories, H&M can be more flexible than many other retailers in lowering its costs, which aligns with its low-cost strategy.[19] The potential management opportunities offered by recent advances in complex networks theory have been demonstrated [20] including applications to product design and development,[21] and innovation problem in markets and industries.[22] [edit] Virtual A special form of boundaryless organization is virtual. Hedberg, Dahlgren, Hansson, and Olve (1999) consider the virtual organization as not physically existing as such, but enabled by software to exist.[23] The virtual organization exists within a network of alliances, using the Internet. This means while the core of the organization can be small but still the company can operate globally be a market leader in its niche. According to Anderson, because of the unlimited shelf space of the Web, the cost of reaching niche goods is falling dramatically. Although none

sell in huge numbers, there are so many niche products that collectively they make a significant profit, and that is what made highly innovative Amazon.com so successful.[24]

[edit] Hierarchy-Community Phenotype Model of Organizational Structure

Hierarchy-Community Phenotype Model of Organizational Structure In the 21st century, even though most, if not all, organizations are not of a pure hierarchical structure, many managers are still blind-sided to the existence of the flat community structure within their organizations.[25] The business firm is no longer just a place where people come to work. For most of the employees, the firm confers on them that sense of belonging and identity- the firm has become their village, their community.[26] The business firm of the 21st century is not just a hierarchy which ensures maximum efficiency and profit; it is also the community where people belong to and grow together- where their affective and innovative needs are met.[4] Lim, Griffiths, and Sambrook (2010) developed the Hierarchy-Community Phenotype Model of Organizational Structure borrowing from the concept of Phenotype from genetics. "A phenotype refers to the observable characteristics of an organism. It results from the expression of an organisms genes and the influence of the environment. The expression of an organisms genes is usually determined by pairs of alleles. Alleles are different forms of a gene. In our model, each employees formal, hierarchical participation and informal, community participation within the organization, as influenced by his or her environment, contributes to the overall observable characteristics (phenotype) of the organization. In other words, just as all the pair of alleles within the genetic material of an organism determines the physical characteristics of the organism, the combined expressions of all the employees formal hierarchical and informal community participation within an organization give rise to the organizational structure. Due to the vast potentially different combination of the employees formal hierarchical and informal community participation, each organization is therefore a unique phenotype along a spectrum between a pure hierarchy and a pure community (flat) organizational structure."[4]P

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Articles How To Establish an Organizational Culture that Supports Projects

How to Establish an Organizational Culture that Supports Projectsby Michael Stanleigh

ment Tools

The Problem

Projects are becoming a critical part of corporate success yet research tells us that most projects d fully succeed. According to the 2004 PriceWaterhouseCoopers Survey of 10,640 projects valued a billion, across a broad range of industries, large and small, only 2.5% of global businesses achieve project success and over 50% of global business projects fail. The Chaos Survey by The Standish reports similar findings. They say that 71% of all projects are either challenged (due to late deli being over-budget, or delivering less than required features), or failed and are cancelled prior to completion or the product developed is never used. Their statistics have not effectively changed s 1994.

Organizations have implemented tools, templates and methodologies, but performance does not change According to our own research of over 750 global companies, the missing element is a culture where wor effectively on projects is accepted as just part of what we do.

What Our Research Tells Us

Business Improvement Architects project management research of over 750 organizations world-wide sh that 60% of Project Management Offices (PMO) say that the organizational culture is not supportive of th The major reason for project failure is that most organizations do not ensure that all projects they implem align with their organizations corporate strategy. Furthermore, findings show that performance managem systems do not take into account new reporting structures such as Matrix Management. The result is tha employees identify time spent on projects as an intrusion to their daily job. Moreover, few organizations define and consistently use project success measures from one project to another and usually fail to capt retain project knowledge. The bottom-line is that most organizations today are operating with a diversity organizational cultures that change from one project to the next, from one department to the next. The a is for organizations to embed the best practices that make or break their projects into the very framewor support systems of the organization. We call this a Project Culture Initiative.

Organizational Culture and Organizational 'Project' Culture Organization culture is like pornography; it is hard to define, but you know when you see it.

- Ellen

Organizational culture is made up of the attitudes, values, beliefs and behaviors of its employees. It reflec demonstrated values and principles of the workplace, permeating everything an organization does. Essen can make or break your organization.

he ideal organizational culture is one in which projects are considered in strategic planning and are imple to support an organizations corporate strategy and corporate objectives. In this way, they receive the ne attention and support of senior management and the organizations resources to allow them to succeed.

organization will have its own ideal organizational culture, support systems and internal and external re to achieve this.

What are the Benefits of Implementing an Organizational Culture that Supports Projects?

Having the right organizational culture that incorporates project management provides your organization number of benefits:

Projects will be aligned with corporate strategies, ensuring that business objectives are met. Projects come in on time, so your time to market is improved. Projects come in on budget, potentially saving millions each year. Projects meet customer expectations so customer satisfaction levels increase. Project teams are more effective and efficient, leading to high morale and more dedicated staff.

What Will a Project Culture Initiative (PCI) Involve? A Project Culture Initiative (PCI) is about:

Having the right reporting structures for projects. Having project prioritization systems to align projects with corporate strategies and business obje Developing the right Performance Management to recognize work performed on projects. Integrating Project Management best practices for all projects.

A Project Culture Initiative (PCI) is not about: tools, techniques, methodologies, Matrix Management, management processes or training. Creating an Organizational Project Culture

Creating an organizational project culture requires organizations to:1. 2. 3. 4. Understand what makes up their ideal organizational culture to incorporate projects. Measure where they stand today against the ideal organizational project culture. Determine the goal and strategy to close the gap. Develop and implement the plan. 5. Measure progress.

The Project Culture Initiative (PCI)

The Project Culture Initiative (PCI) is a proprietary change management process to help assess, identif close the gaps between existing organizational culture and ideal organizational project culture. The proc been designed from learning acquired through the research and experience we have conducted with

organizations globally and applies our organizations extensive knowledge capital and expertise.

The PCI process creates positive changes in the organizational culture that are sustainable and brought by all staff. All staff is engaged in the process to ensure their voices are heard, their contribution is counte to gain commitment and buy-in. The process will also ensure that the changing customer requirements a continually met and the strategic plan is successfully executed. There are four steps in the Project Culture Initiative (PCI): 1. Create a Project Culture Initiative(PCI) Steering Committee 2. Communicate the PCI to the organization. 3. Measure the organizations current culture against the ideal project culture. 4. Develop strategies to close the gap between the current and ideal project culture.

Step 1: Create a Steering Committee

A cross-functional steering committee that consists of a mix of management and staff will lead the projec guiding the approach for the organization. This committee will report directly to their Sponsor, the CEO/President of the organization. It will be important for the Steering Committee to define their purpos and responsibilities as well as their communication strategy and expected outcomes. They will develop su committees of staff who will help to manage the on-going project change requirements.

Step 2: Communicate the PCI to the organization.

Once the Steering Committee has undertaken the first step, they will communicate the initiative to rest of the organizationexplaining why it is important and how it will benefit staff.

Step 3: Measure the current organizational culture against the ideal organizational proje culture.

To measure the base point for the current organizational culture in relation to the ideal organiza project culture, staff of all levels will be asked to complete a survey. These individuals might sp lot of time on projects or very little time. They may be a project leader or a project team member. may be working on a small project on their own or be part of a very large project. They might pro resources to a project but not actually be involved in any project directly. All these individuals sho included to provide a 360-degree feedback view of the current organizational culture with regard project management. The survey will identify the gaps and where they exist and will also gauge th organizations readiness for change. Analysis of the results will help the organization to identify t organizational forces likely to drive or impede change and what changes are necessary to close th between existing and ideal organizational project culture.

Step 4: Develop strategies to close the gap between current and "ideal" project culture.

It's management's responsibility to determine how to close the gap between the current and "ideal project culture for their organization.Conclusion At the end of the day, the beneficial outcomes of the Project Culture Initiative (PCI) will be to:

Guide your organization through a process to define and create a healthy Project Management environment. Identify the organizational changes that may be necessary to facilitate your ideal organizational p culture. Outline a plan to achieve your ideal organizational project culture.

Our research tells us that this process will help your organization improve its project management perfor and business success by ensuring that project management becomes a competency embedded into every role. About the Author

As CEO of Business Improvement Architects, Michael works with executives and senior managers around world to help them improve operational effectiveness through strategic planning, leadership developmen project management and quality management. He has been instrumental in helping his clients reduce wa increase efficiencies and profits with his clear processes and quality approach. For more information about this article, please contact bia at info@bia.ca.

Michael Stanleigh is author of the global report: 2010 PMO Global Study: How a Project Management O Improve Organizational Effectiveness. For more information about this article or the report, please cont bia at info@bia.ca. Business Improvement Architects

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Managing inter-organizational relationshipsShow full item record

Title: Managing inter-organizational relationships Using the force of partner attraction Author: Hald, Kim Sundtoft Abstract: Company performance is increasingly affected by a range of external factors embedded in a complex network of action controlled by other companies in its environment. A well managed company, its argued, is one that is aware of these external factors, and one who in response seeks to implement tactics maximizing own influence and control over them. Information gathering and model building are tactics normally used in this effort. However, in this article we discuss a third tactic, the tactic of attraction in dyadic relationships. Founded on the theory of social exchange and based on literature reviews on long-term-orientation in relationships and relationship value we develop a conceptual model highlighting the components of attraction in business to business relationships. First we demonstrate how the force of attraction can be understood as partners expected relationship value and how expected relationship value in turn is strengthened or weakened by partner- comfortability and dependability. Then we show how partners perceived attraction towards an industrial company can be managed using a combination of structural- and behavioral adjustments. Key words: Inter-organizational relationships; Relationship Management; Relationship-value; Attraction. URI: http://hdl.handle.net/10398/6293

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AuteursTyrone S. Pitsis du mme auteurUniversity of Technology, Sydney Faculty of Business eMail : Senior Research Associate and Lecturer in the Innovative Collaborations, Alliances and Networks Research Centre in the Faculty of Business at the University of Technology, Sydney.tyrone.pitsis@uts.edu.au et al.

INTRODUCTION

We write this paper from a specific institutional spaceICANa key research centre of the University of Technology, Sydney, that focuses on Innovative Collaborations, Alliances and Networkshence ICAN Research, for short. Over the past six years we have built a portfolio of research into innovative organizational collaborations, networks and alliances, details of which may be found at www.ican.uts.edu.au. 2 The definition of collaboration that we work with is taken from the influential work of Barbara Gray. Interorganizational collaboration [may be defined as a] process through which parties who see different aspects of a problem can constructively explore their differences and search for solutions that go beyond their own limited vision of what is possible (Gray, 1989: 5). Synthesis between two or more organizations occurs when interorganizational collaborations are effective. While not all interorganizational collaborations are syntheses the best usually are something new and different is created from the combination of the two parts. Thus, the term interorganizational synthesis describes effective interorganizational collaboration because it: 1/implies inter-relations between two or more organizations; and 2/emphasises that what is critical is the degree of synthesis that is achieved between the different organizations. While synthesis is critical, it is surprising that much of the theorising and research into interorganizational collaboration has tended to gloss over the importance of it in such relations. Huxham (1996) defines such collaboration as a process through which organizations exchange information, change activities, share their resources and enhance capacity for mutual benefit and a common purpose by sharing risks, rewards and responsibilities. 3 While there are many definitions of interorganizational collaboration, there is a distinct lack of emphasis on the importance that synthesis plays, both as a process and an outcome, in any collaborative relation. By process we refer to strategic practice involved in achieving synthesis in the relationship while by outcome we refer to the observable manifestations of those processes both intentional and unintentional. For example, establishing open, transparent and shared media of communication that pool information and knowledge will result in a high level of interorganizational and organizational level learning. In this sense when different parties join together, synthesis between many aspects of their relations is critical. Thus in this paper we present what we call the building blocks of interorganizational synthesis. These building blocks are the most critical aspects to interorganizational synthesis and are based upon the last five years of in-depth research we have conducted into interorganizational collaboration (see Pitsis, Clegg, Rura-Polley and Marosszeky, 2001; Clegg, Pitsis, Rura-Polley, and Marosszeky, 2002; Pitsis, Clegg, Marosszeky and Rura-Polley, 2003) across a number of projects in the construction, meetings, and events industries.

OPERATIONALISING INTERORGANIZATIONAL SYNTHESIS4 Over the past fifteen years, interorganizational collaboration has become a dominant theme for organizational researchers, theorists and practitioners. The complexity, risk and uncertainty that characterize the environment in which contemporary organizations exist require a major change

in the way organizations do strategyspecifically, through interorganizational collaboration (Westley and Vredenburg, 1991; Clegg et al, 2002). Interorganizational collaboration (IOC) goes by many names such as strategic alliances, joint ventures, networks and partnerships. In this paper we restrict ourselves to one form of interorganizational collaborationthat of project based alliancing where two or more organizations come together to form a separate but temporary entity to complete a specified project, which we refer to as an alliance (Clegg et al 2002). 5 It is only relatively recently that academics have attempted to theorise about the ontological and epistemological basis of IOC; see, for instance, the two special issues on collaboration that appeared in the Journal of Applied Behavioral Science in 1991 (vol. 27, nos. 1 and 2). This was the first systematic attempt to collate, review and discuss contemporary theorising in IOC, yet despite the innovativeness of the articles published in that special issue, the theoretical development of the nature of relationships in IOCs has remained quite static (see also Parkhe, 1993). We seek to advance the discussion through this article.

CULTURE AND INTERORGANIZATIONAL COLLABORATION6 At the outset, we should emphasise that we do not argue that synthesis necessarily requires harmony, as many functionalists and integrationists might argue. Rather, a whole can be made up of fragmented parts. We can see this most clearly through the concept of culture. Often, a strong, integrationist and harmonious culture is presumed to be a sine qua non of effective relational synthesis, where both synthesis and culture are regarded as nouns that describe a state of existence. Following Chan (2003), we can suggest that both culture and synthesis should be thought of as verbs rather than nouns, as a way of accounting for what has been done in and around an organization, as a way of making sense of what has been experienced. Thought of in this way, a synthetic culture is far harder to engineer than one might presume. Loosely negotiated, tacit ways of making sense are embedded in specific situations in the organization rather than an all-enveloping structure that somehow contains all who are members. Moreover, empirical coherence need not be a feature of membership as empirical case studies of divided mangers have shown (Knights and Murray 1994). Every person regulates his or her own position within the cultural spaces created for and around them. Because culture is overwhelmingly situational, culture usually will be quite fragmentary, forming around certain emergent issues and then dissolving. Often, managers will take different sides on these issues and thus be as divided between themselves on some issues as they are united on others. What is important is the extent to which these divisions and unity can be constituted within a negotiated cultural order. 7 These views are known as the fragmentation perspective and share little with integrationist theorists who argue for the benefits of a strong culture. According to the fragmentation view, few cultures are either clearly consistent or clearly contested. The picture is more likely to be one that represents contradictory and confusing cultures battling for the soul of the organization as well as those of its employees. Individuals in interorganizational relations are more likely to exist in a state of competing cultural interpellationswhere they are constantly under competing pressures to identify themselves and their organization with rival conceptions of what is an appropriate cultural identity. In such a situation, consensus is transient and issue-specific, producing short-

lived affinities among individuals that are quickly replaced by a different pattern of affinities, as a different issue draws the attention of cultural members (Martin and Frost 1996: 609, citing the work of Kreiner and Schultz [1993] on emergent culture in R&D networks as an example). Culture does not make us free, only but confused. Culture is not about a clear, sharp image of corporate and individual identity but deals in the ambiguity of everyday existence in a world of complex and often only partially shared meaning. Culture, in the organizational theory sense, is an artefact of the methods used to investigate it and the assumptions that make such an investigation possible. Realistically, if you cant define culture clearly, and the people whose culture it is supposed to be dont know what it is, then it can hardly be the cure for corporate ills. 8 Fragmentation studies report a world in which ambiguity provides a protective shroud from the meaninglessness of everyday organizational life. Meyerson (1991) discovered in her study of researched social workers that ambiguity pervaded an occupation whose practitioners had to operate in a world where the objectives of social work were unclear, the means to these goals were not specified, and sometimes it wasnt even clear when an intervention had been successful or even what success in this context might have meant (Martin and Frost 1996: 609). Cynics might say, well, social work: that this is not this surprising, given that the example is social work, an area that is usually under-resourced, in which people have to deal with the many complex problems of often severely dysfunctional clients. However, there are other studies of other cultural contexts, which that are certainly not resource poor, and that have a premium on clarity and detail, but ones in which fragmentary cultures were normal. In one example, the case of the air-traffic controllers Weick (1991) discusses, normal fragmentation produced tragic effects. The air traffic controllers were working at Tenerife airport one foggy night as two jumbo jets manoeuvred in their air space. Pilots, controllers, and cockpit crews struggled to share meaning but failed. The barriers of status and task assignment, not to mention the more general problems of languages spoken, created an organization culture that was mired in fatal ambiguity. The two jets collided, and hundreds of lives were lost not only in the atmospheric but also the cultural fog. 9 What we take to be crucial from this example is the following: IOCs must design a projectculture that enables differences to be articulated and recognized as well as processed appropriately into action. Briefly put, IOCs will usually be arenas characterised by multiple and conflicting modes of professional rationality, policed by complex systems of surveillance, subject to potential litigation and arbitration, because they are usually contractually framed, and in accomplishing any project, several parties to the contract have to interpret the contractual documents. It is rare that they would do so from anything other than different positions of interest, hence the need for surveillance, arbitration and litigation intended to achieve goodness of fit between design conception and project execution (architecturally, the governance model tends to be large-scale Taylorism in the assumption of its conception/execution dynamics). The contemporary shift is to a coherence model being agreed governmentally between the parties to the design (McHugh, 1971). 10 Governmentality poses an alternative to policing, litigation and arbitration, especially in situations of multiple actors and interests, through the design of a more collective and coherent practical consciousness within which to make sense. Literally, it seeks to make conflicting modes of rationality redundant by delivering economies in authoritative surveillance through

building a collaborative commitment and transparency into the moral fibre of a project. It seeks to constitute each self-interested actor, both individually and organizationally, in such a way that they have something to gain from greater collaboration within the project. It does so by tying individual and organizational bonuses to performance on transparent indicators in such a way as to seek to ensure that no trade-off between the different performance indicators takes place; for instance, getting speedy results through dangerous processes. Indeed, performance becomes translated into performativityan awareness of always being on view, on stage, on show, in not only what one does but also how one does it. Constituting performativity is the function of transparency, because the more transparent one can make the actual performance of different experts knowledge and actors the fewer opportunities can arise for them to exert professional prerogative in power games around the detailed interpretation of contracts.

RATIONALITY AND INTERORGANIZATIONAL COLLABORATION11 Synthesis is what happens between parties, the processes that connect them, the practices that divide them and the routines that lock them together. Put simply, synthesis is more complex than contractual theories or economic models suggest. 12 IOC is often viewed as a rational, linear process (Cummings and Worley, 1997) and tend to overlook the dynamic, complex and problematic details inherent within a relationship. Huxham and Vangen (2000), who look at the complexity and dynamics of collaborative relationships and the critical issues in designing collaboration, provide an exception, in their review of literature relating to interorganizational dynamics. However, what is evident in almost all papers on IOC is the lack of adequate consideration of ambiguity, uncertainty and non-linear complexity in the environment within which collaborations operate. 13 That most IOC papers neglect non-linearity and complexity is hardly surprising. For early modern management theorists such as Fayol (1949: 181), the soundness and good working order of the body corporate depend on a certain number of conditions termed indiscriminately, principles, laws, rules . Such principles relate to the unity of direction and command centrally exercised by (top) management. Management develops the vision that tells the organization where to go, the strategic intent that gives organization its direction, and, although the world has moved on a great deal since Monsieur Fayols time, many managers still hold an essentially master and commander view of the world. 14 Decision-making expresses this concept of rationality most precisely. Decision-making is understood as managements task par excellence the bureaucratic cogito (the thinking brain) whose decisions the corporate body should follow. Management makes decisions on strategic directions; action plans to implement them, and forms of control to evaluate their effect. Usually, the model of decision-making is described as a perfectly well organized, rational, and logical process. First, the problem is defined. Second, all the relevant information that leads to an optimal solution is collected. Third, reviewing the data, management (perhaps with the help of technocratic experts) develops several possible solutions. Fourth, evaluating the possible solutions carefully, management makes a decision regarding the optimal solution. Fifth, this solution is implemented in a top-down approach and evaluated constantly by management.

15 Such constant processes of rational decision making, supported by the latest information technology equipment and an army of analysts and consultants, are meant constantly and incrementally to refine and improve interorganizational processes and products. The problem of recalcitrant organs is solved by turning them into disciplined and reflexive extensions of the corporate body, able to exercise discretion, but in corporately prescribed ways. Although still in powerful circulation in todays organizations, the model of managerial decision-making discussed above has been challenged by various contributions in management and organization theory. Almost half a century ago, James March and Herbert Simon (1958) doubted whether decision makers really look for optimal solutions. They suggested that they look for satisficing solutions. Because of the limited capacity of human information processing, no one could really consider all solutions and then decide which one was the best onenot even a top manager. But top managers, because of their wide experiences, have a raft of comparable cases to draw on for most decision situations, and on the basis of that limited search are able to be rational within the bounds of their own experiences. However, having more experience, these bounds are less constraining than would be the case were lower-order members to do the deciding. In organizational life, a careful analysis of all available information would be impossibly timeconsuming, given that time (and motivation for such use of time) is a scarce resource. It is for this reason that satisfactory decisions will be made rather than optimal ones. Simon and March saw people as having bounded rationality. By this they meant to establish a distinction with the conception of economic rationalism that was inherent to the orthodox views of economics. The economic view of rationality assumed that the person would make rational decisions based on perfect knowledge about the nature of the phenomenon. This perfect knowledge would be contained in what economists call price signals, because all that you would need to know about broadly similar goods in perfectly competitive markets is how much they cost. A rational person would always buy the cheapest product, all other things being constant. This would be the optimal decision. But in complex organizations, Simon and March argued, decision makers work under constraints that make optimal decisions impossible. They have imperfect knowledge because there is insufficient time to collect all the data they need, their information processing capacities are subject to cognitive limitations, they are not sure what they need to know, and so on. The result is that rationality is bounded and decision makers cannot optimize but must satisficemake the best decisions that they canthose that are most satisfactory, based on the information available there and then. 16 Cohen, March, and Olsen (1972) pushed March and Simons critique one step further, announcing that the decision-making process in organizations is organized according to the logic of what they call the garbage can. As they argue provocatively, decisions are made when solutions, problems, participants, and choices flow around and coincide at a certain point. Like garbage in a can, these adjacencies are often purely random. Yesterdays papers end up stuck to todays dirty diapers just as downsizing attaches itself to profit forecasts. William Starbuck (1983), to mention a third critical spirit, turned this logic completely upside down and argued that organizations are not so much problem solvers as action generators. Instead of analyzing and deciding rationally how to solve problems, organizations spend most of their time generating problems to which they already have the solutions. Its much more economical that way. They know how to do what they will do so all they have to do is work out why they will do it. Just think of any consulting businessits solutions to whatever problems occur will be what it offers. Products such as Total Quality Management, Business Process Reengineering, and so on are

solutions to almost every problem, and thus it is not so much the problem that drives the solution but the solution already at hand that is waiting to be applied to a variety of different issues.

LANGUAGE AND INTERORGANIZATIONAL COLLABORATION17 It is exactly this criticism that is nicely packaged and successfully branded under the label of postmodernism. As Martin Parker (1992: 3) argues, modernism is essentially the belief in rationality: Modernism is described as having elevated a faith in reason to a level at which it becomes equated with progress. The world is seen as a system, one that comes increasingly under human control as our knowledge of it increases. The common terms for this kind of belief system are positivism, empiricism and science. All share a faith in the power of the mind to understand nature; that which is out there. [ At the core of versions of modernism] is a rationalism that is unchallengeable and a faith that it is ultimately possible to communicate the results of enquiry to other rational beings. In contrast, the postmodernist suggests that this is a form of intellectual imperialism that ignores the fundamental uncontrollability of meaning. The out there is constructed by our discursive conceptions of it and these conceptions are collectively sustained and continually renegotiated in the process of making sense . Put simply, modernism is the belief in progress through the rigorous application of rationality to different arenas of liferegardless of whether it is mathematics, organization of people, or decisionmaking that shapes the future of collaboration. The belief in progress is the essence of early management theory, even up to much theory today. However, criticisms by Simon, March, Cohen, Olsen, and Weick prepared the ground for postmodernism with its central idea of substituting the concept of rationalities for that of a singular rationality. 18 What a group of French philosophers and writers, who have been labelled as postmodernists, show is that commonly accepted concepts of rationality are, in fact, just one possible concept, and that there are many other forms of rationality lurking underneath the smooth surface of textbook knowledge and scientific jargon. Different rationalities are enacted in different languages games that constitute realities (Kornberger, Carter and Clegg, Forthcoming). For instance, Jean-Franois Lyotard (1979) emphasized that we make sense of the world through the use of narratives. In modern times, the dominant narrative was the narrative of science. As we saw above, Taylor and the engineering movement around 1900 was an expression of this belief. However, as Lyotard argues, through this one dominant story we forget and actively repress other potential narratives. As each of these narratives is constituted through different rationalities, we too easily find ourselves in a unified, homogenous universe. The paradox is that trying to achieve synthesis in terms of one strong narrative or culture we can actually end up under-utilizing the separate strengths and narratives that we wanted to bring together in the first place. Using the polyphony that constitutes organizations would mean capitalizing on the fact that outsiders, newcomers, as well as other normally marginalized voices, might be able to offer fresh solutions to old problems (Hamel, 1996). Cultures that embrace rather than repel such strangers and outsiders are a necessary feature of effective collaboration and alliances. In a good organizational culture it is not the strength of uniformity of views that is important but the diversity and innovativeness of such views. There may be a solidaristic view that unity is strength but we think Vive la diffrence a better and more revolutionary slogan.

19 Learning from these bodies of literature in contemporary management theory shows the complexity at work in IOCs. However, complexity and ambiguity might be a part of the solution rather than the problem. One could argue that IOC is useless if there is no complexity. Onedimensional tasks do not need multi-dimensional problem solving approaches. Indeed, ambiguity can lead to some major innovations in problem solving if a person perceives something in a number of possible ways and is not certain how it should be perceived. Rarely do innovations come from certain, unambiguous environments (March, 1988; Christensen, 1997). 20 What is important in the design of the interorganizational collaboration is that organizations are able to respond to, rather than control, environmental uncertainty (Clegg et al., 2002; Huxham and Vangen, 2000).

THE BUILDING BLOCKS OF ORGANIZATIONAL SYNTHESIS21 We want to use the last section of this paper to offer some guidance to management in terms of key issues in the design and leadership of interorganizational synthesis. While any group of organizations can form an interorganizational collaboration, interorganizational synthesis is much more difficult to achieve and manage. Figure 1 represents the building block for interorganizational synthesis. We discuss each of the blocks as well as some of their limitations. The blocks are in no specific order because each is critical to successful interorganizational synthesisall need to be accounted for in the design and management of interorganizational relationships. It is how these are articulated in terms of different and shared discursive rationalities and the forms of power/knowledge that these exhibit, that shape the degree of interorganizational collaborationhence the model articulates around a dynamic and tension filled core. DISCURSIVE RATIONALITIES AND POWER/KNOWLEDGE 22 Power is inherent in the structure of alliances in terms of the level of investment and risk each partner commits to the relationship, but some are more centrally involved than others. Centrality has a critical role in synthesis and is inherent in the structure of the relationship, in which partners can have high or low centrality. Centrality is related to power in the sense that it refers to the amount of influence in decision-making and problem solving, as well as right to access rewards and serve out punishment (Hickson, Butler, Cray, Mallory and Wilson, 1986). Identifying and acknowledging the level of power each partner has in the relationship, and the perceived fairness in terms of risk or input from each partner, is critical for interorganizational synthesis. When the partner with the least inputs holds greater power in the relationship it can lead to the minority holding power over the majority. Similarly when the majority misuses its power over the minority, synthesis is non-existentthe parts are no longer representative of the whole.

The Building Blocks of Interorganizational Synthesis

The Building Blocks of Interorganizational Synthesis 23 To ensure synthesis, much work has to be done at the front end of the collaborative relationship, for instance, how to share inputs in terms of risk and resources and so matching them to outcomes. Moreover, each partner has to be held accountable, and responsible to outcomes. Providing stakeholders with voice, but no responsibility or accountability is counter productive for they will have access to aspects of the project and the collaboration but are not accountable or responsible to the outcomes. The result is either alienation from the project or worse, the opportunity to undermine the project with no risk of punishment. 24 Power must always be conceived in terms of knowledge: it is the taken-for-granted veracity of specific knowledges, ranging from various forms of highly classified and framed technical knowledge, to looser forms, within which various power plays are made. These take the form of distinct language games, with their discursive rationalities, which are embedded in specific disciplinary frames. The disciplinary frames may be as explicitly shaped communities of practice such as engineering or accounting, or they be much more tacit and shaped by the peculiar practices of a specific organization. One thinks, for example, of cases such as the particular performance indicators, targets and bonus arrangements that are organization specific, which can cut across the more explicitly framed rationalities and structure how they are expressed, despite their purely local rather than cosmopolitan provenance. It is how well the synthesis of these forms of power/ knowledge and their discursive rationalities is achieved in any specific interorganizational collaboration that will determine its success. GOVERNMENTALITY 25 The concept of governmentality derives from Foucaults (1979) reciprocal constitution of power techniques and forms of knowledge, as power/knowledge. Conceiving of governing through power and knowledge indicates that it is not possible to study the technologies of power without an analysis of the political rationalities underpinning them. There are two sides to governmentality. Government, above all, concerns the definition and maintenance of borders, as well as the construction of arguments and justification for the forms of rule enacted within these. Government enables a definition of something as a problem and offers certain strategies for addressing the problem. In this way, it also structures specific forms of intervention. To achieve liberal forms of governmentality, one first has to abolish more authoritative governance structures premised on correspondence and substitute ones premised on a more synthetic coherence models. 26 Governmentality seeks to create conditions in which organizational subjects actively produce their own forms of self-regarding discipline; they produce rationalities that they then enforce consensually on each other. Such rationality is not pure, neutral knowledge that simply represents a governing reality but constitutes the realities being addressed. It includes agencies, procedures, institutions, legal forms etc., that are intended to enable us to govern the objects and subjects of rationality. Neo-liberal forms of governance are premised on the active consent and subjugation of subjects, rather than their oppression, domination or external control (Clegg et al., 2002). Their governmentality ensures commitment and followership and fosters inclusiveness, organizational identity, and binds actors to an agreed vision and mission. It is created through the

provision of accountability, responsibility and buy-in for all stakeholders. Governmentality is a form of power where management influences behaviour through empowering individuals within a frame of agreed upon norms held to be rational for shaping action. If management is not authentic in this empowering of stakeholders, then it will always be at risk of revolt from those who feel they have been hoaxed into a hollow relationship, although, of course, there are those who would object to and reject any notion of empowerment as other than a minor form of choice as to ones oppression. However, this seems to us to be too individualistic and under-socialized a view of the possibilities for collective and positive action in organizations. Governmentality shapes the expression of forms of being; there are no such forms that can exist outside of governmental frames because, for a social animal, there is no such place to be. One must always live with others in interorganizational collaboration and the key issue is the degree of synthesis one achieves between the otherness of ones own ways of organizational being and those of the others that one relates to. CENTRALITY 27 Centrality is a structural attribute of nodes in a network or more accurately an actors structural position in a network. Centrality is a measure of the contribution of network position to the importance, influence, prominence of an actor in a network. Centralization refers to the extent to which a network revolves around a single actor node. More specifically, it will be measured as the share of all centrality possessed by the most central node. In a star network, the central point has complete centrality, and all other points have minimum centrality: the star is a maximally centralized graph. The most common studies of centralization have been those associated with the Aston School (Pugh and Hickson, 1976) but there is a need to develop tools for thinking about the degree of centralization of IOCs as well as organizations. In the area of virtual organizations, a start has been made by Ahuja and Carley (1998). TRUST 28 Trust is to have confidence or faith in someone that is based on a probabilistic expectation that they will act in certain ways, and that these ways will be in conformance with a mutually shared interest, rather than be self-interested in a way that does not take account of the expectations, needs and desires of these others. To trust is to have confidence in how one will be dealt with by the other. It can only be established through experience. Trust can determine the choice of partner or the decision to continue with the partnership. Trust is integral to synthesis. Hence, there should be pre-established agreement upon the boundaries of the scope of the relationship. For example, a person might trust fellow co-workers with issues pertaining to work, but not with issues pertaining to other issues. Similarly relationships in interorganizational collaboration might be synergistic if each organization trusts the otherhowever, trust is more important in relationships involving new entrants as often trust is established over time, through experience. Trust also has a strong affective component and so is bounded to the expectations of the relationshiphence more reason to establish the expectations early in the project and in detail. Of course, it should be remembered that too much trust could lead to non-questioning of partners and members actions and behaviours. It can lead people to accept things because of implied trust. Some level of suspicion, in reality, is necessaryespecially in first time relationships, or once the psychological contract of trust has been broken. According to

Robinson and Rousseau (1994), a psychological contract is defined as ones own belief in the reciprocal nature of the exchange relationship between oneself and a third party, based on the promises made or implied in their interactions. Much of Rousseaus work has shown that once a psychological contract is broken, re-building the relationship is extremely difficult. 29 Trust, therefore, is the essence of an effective and synthetic interorganizational culture. It simply cannot be created on the basis of an absence of trust; no amount of clever legal contracts between two or more fundamentally non-trusting partners will establish trust. As Durkheim (1933) was well aware, what he called the non-contractual element of the contract, the nonrational conditions for rational negotiation, assumes a dominant role in shaping commercial life. More contemporary writers have differentiated between trust as a partners ability to perform according to the intentions and expectations of a relation (competence trust), or their intentions not to defect willingly (behavioural trust) (see, for instance, Nooteboom, 1995). TECHNOLOGY AND EXPERTISE 30 Depending on what the collaboration is meant to producebe it a technological innovation, construction of a building, or to provide a servicetechnology and available expertise are critical. Experts are able to adapt and respond to uncertainty because they can use their knowledge and skills to overcome almost any problem. However, the technology they have available is also critical because expertise is embedded also in systems, things and material practices. Collaboration should not be entered into because, as some literature suggests, it is a cheaper way of doing business, but because there is a desire to achieve excellence at all levels of the project. Collaboration is by no means a cheap way of doing business. Indeed, the interplay between experts and technology can be much more expensive then one might initially think. Experts often transform and innovate the existing technology to resolve problems, in real time, in highly uncertain environments. 31 In our experience, the best projects employ the best people, and are able to keep these people throughout the lifecycle of the project. Often what occurs in collaborations is the movement of staff from one partner organization to another. One would expect this to occur in synergistic relationships. However, this can often be detrimental because the key staff member will leave a parent organization for a partner organization when she or he perceives the parent organization is not providing a suitable working environment to match his or her skills, abilities, needs and wants. This tends to happen in relationships where the parent organization has little experience in working in collaborative projects and has no interest and/or resources for capturing, transferring and utilising knowledge learned from the collaboration into the parent organization. Hence systems must be implemented within the parent organizations that ensure its people feel that their knowledge is valued because their parent organization values, facilitates and fosters the transfer and utilisation of collaborative knowledge. In our experience, strategic human resource management is behind on this issue and we would like to see more research and discussion in this area. ALLIANCE CULTURE

32 As we have seen above, there are almost as many definitions of culture as there are papers on culture. An alliance culture is of critical importance to synthesis, indeed, it is what synthesis is all about. Often alliancing involves the creation of a temporary unified organization made up of disparate partners bound in an explicit framework for disagreement and agreement. It is not a question of creating a unitary or coherent culture but one that can accommodate differences productively. Each organization has its own culture and some theorists have argued that collaborations should select partners based upon a cultural match. We agree with Phillips, Hardy and Lawrence (1998) that simply reconstituting organizational culture into a new arena (like collaborations) really adds little value. Interorganizational collaboration is a prime arena enabling one to design an alliance culture free of the constraints of the existing culture (Clegg et al., 2003)hence, selecting partners on the basis of culture match may not be as an important endeavour as many might think. 33 There are professional consultancies that facilitate culture design. There are also certain initiatives organizations can use to build an alliance culture for synthesis. This can include the set up of vision and mission statements, and the design of innovative key performance indicators or key resource areas (KRAs), and enculturation programs like intensive workshops where stakeholders and employees are trained on KRAs and the interorganizational collaboration vision and mission. However, as pointed out, there is a risk of having too strong a culture. A designer culture can take on cult-like properties where members blindly follow the vision and mission without questioning problems or errors as they occur (see Pitsis et al., 2001). An advantage of any interorganizational culture is that it can be more mechanical than organic in its solidarity, whereas individual organization cultures, carrying the deeply sedimented baggage of their own traditions and histories, are always more organic than mechanic. LEADERSHIP 34 Style of leadership is an important factor for synthesis. Emotional intelligence (EQ) is critical in managing complex human relations (Frost, Dutton, Worline, and Wilson, 2000). Emotional intelligence involves the capacity to perceive emotion, integrate it in thought, to understand it and to manage it (Mayer, 1999). Interorganizational synthesis comes about through high EQ leadership. The high EQ leader is able to read the context, as well as the stakeholders needs, wants and expectations, which are necessary for successful collaborative relations. Usually multiple leaders are needed where relatedness issues and task issues must be managed. Synthesis is best achieved through a leadership team with a representation of leaders high on EQ, relatedness and also task structure. In collaborative arrangements there is a tendency to overemphasise getting along (relatedness) at the expense of getting it done (task). Synthesis is not about everyone getting along happily ever after, all the time; it is about getting the sociotechnical mix right. The task issues are critical and some style of autocratic or task related leadership is critical to ensure essential tasks are completed on time, and to specification. 35 Another critical concept to synthesis is the ability for leadership to think about how they contribute, through their organizations, to the economic, social and ecological sustainability of the environment within which they exist (Dunphy and Pitsis, 2003). This goes beyond thinking about the bottom line, to a more spiritual approach to leadership. As such leadership must believe in the principles of the alliancing culture, vision and mission and be able to integrate

those with their social responsibility to all stakeholders, directly and indirectly, involved in the interorganizational collaboration. KEY RESOURCE AREAS 36 It cannot be overemphasised how critical is the good design of KRAs. KRAs refer to the core aspects of a project upon which success will be measured. These can include the traditional Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) such as budget and schedule. However, more recently, as projects have become more politicised and open to public scrutiny, and there has been a shift towards more sustainable practices, the KPIs might also include community, ecology, and sustainability. Obviously the design, operationalization and measurement of KRAs is an area requiring greater research at the academic and practitioner levels, and also greater intellectual investment by management in all organizational forms, not just interorganizational collaborations. The selection, operationalization, implementation, measurement and assessment of KRAs and the associated KPIs are analogous to the design of complex surveys and inventories in the social sciences. Such surveys take years of piloting, with a sample of thousands and are tested for reliability and validity with a range of statistical techniques such as Cronbach Alpha and so on. 37 Thus, KRAs require great effort in their definition, their operationalization, measurement and analysis. We go as far to argue that KRA design should be a specialist management function, rather than a function of general management as often poorly designed KRAs ultimately can only lead to failure. Of course, the greater the number of KRAs, the greater the demands will be upon management and other staff. Thus, the optimal level of KRAs is a ripe area for future research, however, one might hypothesise that too many KRAs will spread management function too thin and will ultimately lead management to managing the processes of managing KRAs rather than actually managing the KRAs. COLLABORATIVE COGNITION 38 We use the term collaborative cognition to refer to a number of interrelated concepts relevant to organizational synthesis. In effect it refers to how learning occurs in collaboration, how information is perceived, processed, and stored and retrieved in organizational memory, such as routines, practices and forms (for an excellent discussion on organizational cognition and memory, see Walsh, 1988; Walsh and Ungson, 1991; Walsh, 1995). Collaborative cognition includes collaborative learning, collaborative knowledge management, knowledge transfer, collaborative memory and collaborative communication.COLLABORATIVE LEARNING

39 Collaborative learning refers to the mutual organizational and interorganizational level learning occurring within the alliance. Learning assumes a change occurs in the level of knowledge before and after the learning event occurs (i.e., the project). As such, organizations must enter the relationship with the thirst for new knowledge and be committed to the mutual growth of all parent organizations. Learning must be fostered, encouraged and supported through knowledge management systems.

COLLABORATIVE KNOWLEDGE MANAGEMENT

40 Sterndale-Bennett (2001: 26-27) define knowledge management as a conscious decision on the part of an organisation to bring its staff together to help transform well-structured information into an intellectual asset . Collaborative knowledge management involves bringing organizations together to transform collaborative learning into intellectual assets by capturing, storing, retrieving and disseminating knowledge that adds value. Collaborative knowledge management requires appropriate information technologies that foster collaborative relations. It also requires management systems in place that promote and foster the notion of collaborative learning.KNOWLEDGE TRANSFER

41 Integral to the success of the collaboration and to synthesis is the ability for the collaborative partners to transfer knowledge. First they must be able to transfer the knowledge within each parent organization across the project, and second the parent organizations must be able to transfer the knowledge gained at the interorganizational project level back into the organization. In this sense there has to be specifically designed processes for capturing knowledge and sharing knowledge in addition to the knowledge management tools outlined above. There must be a commitment to knowledge transfer and clear procedures in place in terms of what knowledge is to be captured and transferred and what knowledge is not important. Moreover, all employees, irrespective of seniority or role must be able to see that the parent organization promotes interorganizational level learning, and values that learning by integrating it into the organizations memory.COLLABORATIVE MEMORY

42 Aside from the individual organizational memory, it is critical that collaborative learning and knowledge is captured and stored in such a way that is easily accessible. Memory in humans serves a critical function for survival. Through trial and error we memorise events that are important for our functioningwhat to do, and what not to do, who to trust, who not to trust and so on. Memory in the form of knowledge must then be retrieved and utilised to benefit the current and future collaborative projects. Memory, however, requires attention and thought so the individual members of the interorganizational collaboration are the senses of the alliance the people are the eyes, ears, nose, skin and mouth, they are all the senses necessary for attention and information processing. Information technologies assist, but ultimately it is how humans remember, perceive and interpret this information that is critical.COLLABORATIVE COMMUNICATION

43 Finally collaborative communication refers to all formal and informal communication that occurs in the alliance. This includes how communication channels and media are structured within and across the alliance, to and from the alliance and the parent organization, as well as outside the alliance to the broader community. It comes through the form of all verbal and nonverbal communication and is critical to what Karl Weick (2001) calls sensemaking because it is important that synthesis exists in terms of understandingfor example a mutual understanding

of what each KRAs means, mutual understanding of the expectations of the relationship, a mutual understanding between all stakeholders and so on. 44 Careful attention must be paid to what information is and is not communicated. Consider, for instance, the notion that collaboration will instil trust by making all communication transparent, open and honest. There are implications and unintended consequences of such a strategy. Consider a project where work is highly dependent upon union involvement, what might occur if the alliance leadership team are honest and open up the books, revealing profit or budgetwill the union seek wage increases and bonuses for its members as a result, and what possible justification could management have for not increasing workers entitlements? There are many possible scenarios for management in interorganizational relationships. Clearly, achieving synthesis is quite a complex endeavour. It certainly does not involve shared sensemaking so much as forms of sensemaking that can be articulated, one to another, that connect rather more than they divide, and make it feasible that collaboration can go on, can continue, rather than break down. Synthesis through non-shared sense is entirely feasible. VISION AND MISSION 45 Vision is the grand picture of where the collaboration wants to end up at some point in the future. The mission is an identifying statement of the collaborations stated objectives and intentions of how it will get to where it wants to go. Vision and mission is critical in the alignment of relationships in the collaboration. First, together the parent organizations must agree on some common vision and mission in order to make the collaboration feasible; second, the collaboration must be aligned to the parent organizations objectives; and third the individuals within the collaboration must be aligned to the collaborations objectives. So it is important that vision and mission are explicitly stated, and driven throughout the collaboration in order to ensure synthesis. 46 The vision and mission, aligned with the KRAs and the interorganizational culture will help in unifying and concentrating action towards the established goals of the alliance. A problem with vision and mission is they are more about rhetoric than reality, hence the importance of designing KRAs and KPIs that have basic elements of vision and mission embedded within themas with any form of goal setting the vision and mission should be specific, measurable, achievable, realistic, and timely. In this way the strategic direction of the parent organizations and the strategic direction of the alliance will be aligned thus making the chances of success in both outcomes and future collaborations much more likely. 47 A warning on collaborative cognition, however, as we stated earlier the notion of synthesis should not mean one, unified, strong culture and an unquestioned level of shared sense making. We have discussed such challenges elsewhere (Pitsis et al., 2001; Clegg, Kornberger and Pitsis, 2005: Chapters 8-11) but suffice to say that during times of uncertainty, complexity and ambiguity, human beings have a tendency to seek out meaning. They are at risk of attaching too much meaning and reliance upon information that make them feel more comfortable with ambiguitymaybe why astrology is so popular. As such any collaborative cognition should have a level of paranoia built into ita person, persons or system in the collaboration that questions,

plays devils advocate, and challenges assumptions. Many collaborations attempt to silence such people, but these people should be encouraged and valued. Contract 48 The final building block is the contract, which is roughly defined as the binding agreement between two or more parties often enforceable by law. Typically, contracts are predicated on a climate of mistrust: anticipating that agents will transact with guile, contractors wrote contracts as watertight as possible with contracts often spanning several hundred pages and requiring legal experts to make sense (Williamson, 1979; Clegg et al., 2002). The best alliances have simple contracts, often much less than one hundred pages long. Contract is based more on mutual understanding, trust and a commitment to the vision, mission and objectives of the alliance and identity with the interorganizational culture. This is not to say that peoples words are taken at face value, however, the contract is less cumbersome and easier to understand and identify with. As a result, enforcement, therefore, comes through governmentality rather than through overt surveillance and monitoring.

CONCLUSION49 Uncertainty, ambiguity and complexity are the reasons why interorganizational collaborations exist in the first place. Thus, organizations must learn to capitalize on them rather than trying to exclude them. But only through interorganizational synthesis can organizations survive, succeed and innovate in such complex and uncertain conditions. Interorganizational synthesis is comprised of the essential building blocks described above. Once these are put in place, or the effort is made to put them in place, then the flow-ons can be quite significant in intraorganizational terms as well. We do not believe that an interorganizational collaboration can really flourish on the basis of intraorganizational divisions, secrecy and hypocrisy. 50 Together these are the fundamental building blocks to designing interorganizational collaboration and ensuring interorganizational synthesis in complex, uncertain and ambiguous conditions. Many of the blocks are highly dependent upon each other, but all can be used as a basis upon which management can frame the design of interorganizational synthesis. Irrespective of the forms of interorganizational collaboration, if they do not adequately account for each of these building blocks they are, in our view, not synthetic relations and will in all likelihood fail. Designing interorganizational collaboration for success is predicated on achieving synthesis. Anyone can establish an interorganizational relationship, but synthesis requires specialised management skills and knowledge in each of the building blocks. 51 Future research might want to investigate what other critical building blocks exist. For example, we have not directly spoken of issues of planning, or strategy, because these are implied in the KRAs, KPIs, vision and mission, and interorganizational cognition. However, there might be attributes we have not identified in our research. Future research might also want to examine the role of these building blocks in the relationship. Additionally, there is also the perishability of interorganizational collaboration: what are the factors that lead to its decline or dysfunction? Because, just as there are critical factors that enable one to build such

collaborations there are also those factors that tear them apartbut this is another story, one that must await some other occasion.

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A project team is a team whose members usually belong to different groups, functions and are assigned to activities for the same project. A team can be divided into sub-teams according to

need. Usually project teams are only used for a defined period of time. They are disbanded after the project is deemed complete. Due to the nature of the specific formation and disbandment, project teams are usually in organizations. A team is defined as an interdependent collection of individuals who work together towards a common goal and who share responsibility for specific outcomes of their organisations.[1] An additional requirement to the original definition is that the team is identified as such by those within and outside of the team.[2] As project teams work on specific projects, the first requirement is usually met. In the early stages of a project, the project team may not be recognised as a team, leading to some confusion within the organisation. The central characteristic of project teams in modern organisations is the autonomy and flexibility availed in the process or method undertaken to meet their goals. Most project teams require involvement from more than one department, therefore most project teams can be classified as cross functional team. The project team usually consists of a variety of members often works under the direction of a project manager or a senior member of the organisation. Projects that may not receive strong support initially often have the backing of a project champion. Individual team members can either be involved on a part time, or full time basis. Their time commitment can change throughout the project depending on the project development stage. Project teams need to have the right combination of skills, abilities and personality types to achieve collaborative tension. Teams can be formulated in a variety of ways. The most common method is at the discretion of a senior member of the organisation.

[Build effective project teamsApplies to: Microsoft Office Project 2003Print

By Jane Suchan, PMP

A project team is a group that works together to execute the tasks necessary to meet customer requirements. Before a project team meets for the first time, before they start "forming, storming, norming, or performing," or maybe even before they know they will be working together, the project manager begins laying the foundation for effective teamwork.

Create a high-level resource plan

The first step in building an effective project team is to create a resource plan. A resource plan requires you to understand and identify the work to be done and the human resources necessary to complete it. An initial resource plan is often a high-level outline and will be refined as you break down into parts the whole of your work. At the start of a project, the resource plan can merely identify the departments and stakeholder groups that will need to commit resources, and the approximate number of individuals and man-hours that are required.

Get the right people on the teamTo develop an effective team, you have to start by choosing the best people for the job. This sounds obvious, but determining the best candidates isn't always straightforward. Many factors concerning potential members have to be considered, including factors such as:

The skills required of them to complete project tasks Their level of influence in the organization Their access to a network of other resources Their capacity to participate effectively Their ability to work well in a team environment

Pulling together a group of strong, results-oriented individuals for your project team is part science, part art. It is important to make sound decisions about who will perform well on your project team and who might be better suited to other opportunities. Project managers must rely on their own and their sponsor's networks and organizational knowledge to make sound choices for the project. Sometimes, project managers don't have the luxury of choosing team members. Resources may be assigned to the project team. If this is your situation, it is vital that you take extra care to establish a relationship with your team members before the team begins to m