Virtual Organizations and Innovation Outcomes

Exposé Écrit pour un Séminaire / Cours , 2011 , 8 Pages , Note: 1,3

Gestion d'entreprise - Direction d'entreprise, Management, Organisation

The global business world experiences dramatic developments, shifts and challenges since the end of the last century. Factors such as international competition, knowledge-based production, technological changes, advances in IT, and deregulation play an increasingly important role. Hence, conventional organizational concepts and structures of the ‘old economy’ come under growing pressure due to insufficient capabilities to deal with these landslide changes. Traditional organizational structrues, most prominently the classical bureaucracy with its conventional formalized and hierarchical form, are displaced by new organizational forms. More horizontal relationships, with partners (internal or external) being only focused on core competencies, take the place of old vertically structured hierarchies. More interactive communication approaches, both vertically and horizontally, can be observed. More decentralized management concepts lead to incentive-based and increasingly autonomous project teams (Clegg, Kornberger, & Pitsis, 2005).
According to one of the most renowned management theorists Henry Mintzberg (1981), for every specific configuration of an organization’s environment and its tasks, particular organizational structures fit best. Therefore, one could expect that new organizational forms are best capable of dealing with prevailling challenges such as innovation. This essay aims to analyse the case of virtual organizations and the way they might shape, and/or derail the processes and outcomes of innovation.

Inhaltsverzeichnis

• Introduction
• Definitions
• Reasons for emergence
• Impact of organizational form on innovation outcomes
• Challenges for innovation processes
• Management tools to enhance innovation processes
• Conclusion
• Literaturverzeichnis

Zielsetzung und Themenschwerpunkte

This essay aims to analyze the case of virtual organizations and the way they might shape, and/or derail the processes and outcomes of innovation. It explores the advantages and disadvantages of virtual organizations in relation to innovation, examining how their structure and dynamics can influence innovation processes and outcomes.

• The emergence and characteristics of virtual organizations
• The impact of virtual organization structures on innovation processes
• Challenges faced by virtual organizations in fostering innovation
• Management tools and strategies for enhancing innovation in virtual organizations
• The role of communication and collaboration in innovation within virtual organizations

Zusammenfassung der Kapitel

The introduction provides an overview of the global business environment and the emergence of new organizational forms, highlighting the increasing importance of innovation. It introduces the concept of virtual organizations and their potential impact on innovation processes.

The chapter on definitions explores the various interpretations of the term "virtual organization" and clarifies the definition used in this essay. It also discusses the different terms used to describe similar organizational forms.

The chapter on reasons for emergence examines the advantages of virtual organizations, such as flexibility, adaptability, cost reduction, and access to diverse resources. It highlights how these advantages contribute to their emergence in the modern business environment.

The chapter on impact of organizational form on innovation outcomes analyzes how the structure and dynamics of virtual organizations can shape and foster innovation processes. It discusses the role of transaction costs, knowledge sharing, and communication in driving innovation within virtual organizations.

The chapter on challenges for innovation processes explores the potential threats and challenges faced by virtual organizations in fostering innovation. It discusses issues such as contractual arrangements, financial resource allocation, intellectual property rights, and communication management.

The chapter on management tools to enhance innovation processes examines different management tools and strategies that can be used to enhance innovation processes in virtual organizations. It discusses the concept of Distributed Innovation Management (DIM) and the importance of creating a Virtual Breeding Environment (VBE).

Schlüsselwörter

The keywords and focus themes of the text include virtual organizations, innovation, transaction costs, knowledge sharing, communication, collaboration, management tools, Distributed Innovation Management (DIM), Virtual Breeding Environment (VBE), and the challenges and opportunities of fostering innovation in a dynamic and networked organizational environment.

• Université: University of Auckland (Management and International Business)
• Cours: Contemporary Issues in Organizations
• Note: 1,3
• Auteur: Ronny Röwert (Auteur)
• Année de publication: 2011
• Pages: 8
• N° de catalogue: V182360
• ISBN (ebook): 9783656063629
• Langue: anglais
• mots-clé: Virtual Organizations, Innovation, VO, network organization, virtual enterprise, collaborative networked organization, new organizational forms, Mintzberg, collaboration, Breeding Environment, Virtual Breeding Environment, Distributed Innovation Management, Knowledge Management