Session Summary

Session Number:844
Session ID:S541
Session Title:Looking for an Edge: Boundary Crossing and Boundary Maintenance in Pluralistic Knowledge Processes
Short Title:Boundary Crossing, Knowledge
Session Type:Division Symposium
Hotel:Hyatt West
Floor:LL2
Room:San Francisco
Time:Tuesday, August 10, 1999 2:00 PM - 3:20 PM

Sponsors

TIM  (Deborah Dougherty)doughert@business.rutgers.edu (973) 353-1664 

General People

Organizer Skilton, Paul F. Arizona State U. pskilton@asu.edu (602) - 965-4530 
Organizer O'Sullivan, Alan  McGill U. OSULLIVA@management.mcgill.ca (514) 276-0645 
Discussant Dougherty, Deborah  Rutgers U. doughert@everest.rutgers.edu (732) 873-0057 

Submissions

Mapping the Organization to the Product: Social and Technical Interdependencies in Product Design. 
Presenter O'Sullivan, Alan  McGill U. OSULLIVA@management.mcgill.ca (514) 276-0645 
Boundary Objects and Boundary Spanners: Identifying the Microsocial Processes of Knowledge Creation in Pluralistic Organizational Environments 
Presenter Obstfeld, David  U. of Michigan davido@umich.edu (734) 677-0563 
Who Learns What, and When?: Understanding the Development of Collaboration and Coordination Competence in Pluralistic Knowledge Processes. 
Presenter Skilton, Paul F. Arizona State U. pskilton@asu.edu (602) - 965-4530 
Presenter Glick, William H. Arizona State U., Main Bill.Glick@asu.edu (602) 965-7586 
Science Platforms and Technology Sourcing: Rethinking the 'Make or Buy' Trade-off.  
Presenter Lane, Peter J. Arizona State U. peter.lane@asu.edu (602)-657-0927 
Presenter Steensma, Kevin H. Pennsylvania State U., U. Park KSteensma@psu.edu 814-865-0385 
Crossing the Boundary: The Role of External Knowledge in Determining Firm Performance 
Presenter Anand, Vikas  U. of Arkansas vikan@asu.edu (602) - 965-3999 
 Manz, Charles C. U. of Massachusetts, Amherst cmanz@som.umass.edu (413)-545-5584 
Presenter Hom, Peter W.  Arizona State U. peter.hom@asu.edu 602-965-6466 

Abstract

Organizational knowledge bases are increasingly characterized by the co-existence of internal and external groups with different, legitimate, and potentially competing specialized knowledge content and associated thought worlds (Dougherty, 1992). As organizations make strategic choices about whether and how to exploit this diversity, knowledge processes in organizations have the potential to become increasingly pluralistic (Brown & Duguid, 1998). This trend presents new problems for understanding the integration of distributed organizational knowledge (Grant, 1996). This symposium brings together papers from several perspectives addressing two key processes in the integration of pluralistic knowledge bases: boundary crossing and boundary maintenance. Organizations and groups often choose to maintain boundaries through exchange, negotiation, and articulation. While maintaining boundaries can serve as a barrier to the transfer of knowledge, managing the configuration of boundaries in pluralistic processes is often a source of competitive advantage (Brown & Eisenhardt, 1998). We discuss boundary crossing through absorption of knowledge, collaboration and translation. Crossing boundaries facilitates the synthesis of shared systems of meaning out of a pluralistic base, a difficult step which has often been argued as indispensable for the production of new knowledge (Nonaka, 1994). At the same time boundary crossing helps erode pluralism as it generates shared meaning. Our goal for this symposium is to construct a more encompassing view of boundary processes within and between organizations. As the concept of the organization as consensus driven is challenged, it becomes increasingly important to know when and how boundaries should be maintained or crossed.