Talking About Organizations Podcast

Please join us as we begin discussing C. Fred Alford’s extraordinary book Whistleblowers: Broken Lives and Organizational Power. The book presents the troubling experiences of whistleblowers whose efforts to stand up for what was right, only to have the organizations turn on them – taking away both their professional and social lives. In this opener, our guest Prof Marianna Fotaki tells the story behind the book and we provide our initial reactions and thoughts!

We wrap up our discussion of Oliver E. Williamson's famous 1981 article, "The Economics of Organization: The Transaction Cost Approach" with an exploration of related works and on-going research. Included is a review of Tom Malone et al.'s predictive look at "Electronic Markets and Electronic Hierarchies," written in 1987 when the promises of information technology were becoming reality. How well did their predictions hold up 30 years later?

Please join us as continue our discussion of Oliver E. Williamson's famous 1981 article, "The Economics of Organization: The Transaction Cost Approach." Williamson proposed several important constructs in the article such as the 'efficient boundary' and how asset specificity shapes organizational behaviors. What did we think of these ideas?

Following on a theme from the previous episode, we explore an important reading that bridges organization theory with economics. This was the explicit aim of Oliver E. Williamson’s famous article, “The Economics of Organization: The Transaction Cost Approach,” published in the American Journal of Sociology in 1981. The article begins with a statement that the assumption of firms operating on a profit motive has not helped organization theorists understand and explain the behaviors of firms, and that economists were also finding themselves similarly limited. He thus set out on a different path and argued that transactions, not the products or services the firm provides, is a better unit of analysis.In the discussion, we wrestle with Williamson’s central arguments and proposals, such as the construct of the efficient organizational boundary, human asset specificity and the difference types of governance structures related to it, and how markets and hierarchies represent different choices for organizing. We also explored a related article presenting early thoughts about the growing impact of rapid advances in information technology on firm and market structures. Written in 1987, Tom Malone et al.’s “Electronic Markets and Electronic Hierarchies” presages the modern online economic environment and its many virtual interactions between seller and buyers. This fascinating extension of Williamson’s ideas made a number of predictions. How many came true 30 years later?

Explore the virtues of centralization vs. de-centralization in organizations. Examine the evolving definition of efficiency as an organizational goal. Learn about the efficiency movement during industrialization and its impact on companies. Understand the concept of overhead costs and challenges of measuring their benefits. Delve into the concept of allocative efficiency and the tensions it brings. Discover the hidden costs of pursuing efficiency and the impact of the BYOD policy.

The hosts discuss the centralization-decentralization debate and their own perspectives. They explore the synthesis between centralization and decentralization in organizations. They examine the evolution of national identity in the United States and compare it to Europe. They also discuss the challenges of centralization and technology's impact on conformity and diversity. Lastly, they explore the challenges of reconciling worker autonomy with centralized views and the role of technology in shaping work.

The debate continues with question N2: "Why do organizations oscillate between centralization and decentralization, and is there a golden mean?". Join in as we shift the context to more contemporary matters. What are the benefits and risks of centralizing or de-centralizing organizations in modern times?

How exciting! The podcasters engaging in debate over whether centralizing is better or should organizations de-centralize? Learn about how this tension shaped the early days of the United States while Ralph and Pedro face off against Dmitrijs and Tom! A special Thank You also goes out to Todd Bridgman and Stephen Cummings who set the tone and questions for this very first TAOP debate!

Episode 42 concludes as the podcasters discuss unlearning, present their takeaways and budding research questions based on Levitt & March's review of "Organizational Learning," our fifth episode in the Carnegie-Mellon series. What would it take for organizations to learn 'better'? How might we find out? Where does collective intelligence come in?Also see: Episode 4 on Organizational Routines, Episode 19 on Organizational Learning, Episode 29 on Business School Design, Episode 39 on Organizational Choice, and our Series Introduction.

Episode 42 continues as we debate the gaps and lingering questions in Levitt & March's review of "Organizational Learning," our fifth episode in the Carnegie-Mellon series. What did we think about the author's views on organizational memory? What about the levels of analysis used in the text? Find out our take on these and other questions.