From boundaries to boundary work: middle managers creating inter-organizational change

Area of Science:

• Organizational Studies
• Sociology of Science and Technology

Background:

• Organizational boundaries are often perceived as obstacles to change.
• Middle managers play a crucial role in navigating and overcoming these barriers.

Purpose of the Study:

• To demonstrate how middle managers facilitate inter-organizational change through boundary work.
• To analyze the dual process of redrawing boundaries and coordinating work.

Main Methods:

• Theoretical framework drawing on Science and Technology Studies' concept of boundary work.
• Empirical data from an ethnographic investigation of middle managers in a Dutch reform program spanning health, social care, and housing.

Main Results:

• Middle managers highlight service fragmentation caused by professional, sectoral, financial, and geographical boundaries to create urgency for change.
• They gradually redraw composite boundaries using boundary objects and a shared vocabulary focused on societal gains, leading to new coordination in neighborhood teams and reconfigured professional expertise.

Conclusions:

• Boundary work by middle managers leads to incremental, rather than radical, change.
• Organizations must support boundary work by ensuring legitimacy for boundary workers and providing spaces for collaboration, such as communities of practice.