The purpose of this paper is to explore how strategic alignment of the corporations’ real estate with the organisational strategy may be used to facilitate change within an…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to explore how strategic alignment of the corporations’ real estate with the organisational strategy may be used to facilitate change within an organisation’s collaborative culture. The focus is on the interconnectedness between spatial and behavioural artefacts in the transition process to a new workplace concept.
Design/methodology/approach
The discussion builds on observational studies and semi-structured interviews with 65 employees in a Norwegian organisation.
Findings
The findings indicate that the physical change, when supported by behavioural artefacts as change management actions, paved way for a cultural change towards increased collaboration between employees and across hierarchical levels. However, misalignments between the new workplace concept and existing behavioural artefacts and cultural constructs also restricted the organisation in fully achieving the intended ends.
Research limitations/implications
Applying a socio-material perspective with explicit focus on issues such as management and culture in workplace studies is important to develop better models for strategic use of a corporations’ real estate.
Originality/value
When new workplace concepts are implemented with the aim of effecting organisational change they require support of a focused change management process where both spatial and behavioural artefacts are designed to support employee adaptation to the new concept. By conducting the change as a continuous iterative process, extending beyond the moving process itself, the corporate real estate management (CREM) may add to the success by guiding and steering the organisation in the right direction.
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The study aims to provide insight on the relationship between a newly implemented workplace concept, its intentions, the actual use and ultimately its ability to function as a…
Abstract
Purpose
The study aims to provide insight on the relationship between a newly implemented workplace concept, its intentions, the actual use and ultimately its ability to function as a strategic tool. By addressing the intended and unintended consequences of planned spatial arrangements, the interest lies in studying underlying factors affecting the concepts’ ability to function as a strategic tool.
Design/methodology/approach
The case study builds on semi-structured interviews and observational studies from a larger Norwegian organisation that recently implemented an activity-based workplace concept. Concept descriptions and architectural drawings have also been important sources to study how the concept was interpreted and used by different groups.
Findings
Taking a socio-material perspective, the findings illustrate that spatial aspects and different concept structures, together with issues such as employee mobility and time spent in the office, different work processes, management style and departmental cultures influenced the way the activity-based workplace concept was perceived and taken into use.
Originality/value
The findings indicate that social and cultural aspects may play a more significant role in the adaptation process than previously emphasised. The article further provides knowledge on how organisations, in planning and implementation of such concepts, may address the right issues to overcome challenges and achieve the higher strategic ends.
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Mari Anna Chatarina Skogland and Geir Karsten Hansen
The purpose of the paper is to explore the use of, and challenges associated with, spatial change management strategies. This is done through a discussion on how spatial…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of the paper is to explore the use of, and challenges associated with, spatial change management strategies. This is done through a discussion on how spatial environments may be utilised to effect organisational change. The intention is to provoke new thinking on physical change initiatives and to challenge the often highly deterministic view on the effects of contemporary workspace concepts.
Design/methodology/approach
The paper is structured as a case study-based literature review, drawing on literature from the fields of environmental psychology, organisational branding, corporate real estate and facility management, as well as organisational change management.
Findings
The study indicates that space management strategies may fail because of the lack of understanding of how organisational events and other contextually specific aspects correlate with the physical change initiative. Succeeding with the spatial strategy requires a strong focus on socio-material relationships and the employee meaning-making process during the spatial change process.
Originality/value
Contrary to the traditional and rational focus on functional space management strategies, the paper takes a socio-material approach suggesting that there is a need for more empirically based research into the employee meaning-making process and the role of human and organisational practices in the development of new workplace concepts. Focusing on how organisational members understand and “make use of” spatial environments may substantially improve organisations and building consultants’ abilities to strategically manage the physical change initiative and achieve the intended ends.