Reliability-Seeking Organizations Operating under Conditions of Digitalization - Follow-up Proposal: Introducing New Technologies while Maintaining High Reliability: A Comparative Study in Hospitals

• Applicant: Professor Dr. Jörg Sydow
• Subject Area: Management and Marketing
• Term: from 2019 to 2024
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 433346374

Hospitals are “reliability-seeking organizations” (RSOs) as they aim to reach fundamental goals such as error prevention and patient safety in a reliable manner, although they do not reach the same level of reliability as classical “high-reliability organizations” (HROs). Previous research on such or-ganizations has revealed how they use stable routines and flexible cognitive processes to achieve reliability. However, we know less about how these organizations are able to maintain their reliabil-ity during planned organizational change induced by the implementation of a new technology. Us-ing practice theory and the resourcing perspective as a theoretical framework, the proposed pro-ject will investigate how RSOs at least maintain a previously achieved level of reliability during planned organizational change triggered by the introduction of a new technology. In addition, and as RSOs regularly need to introduce technologies of different kinds, the project also aims to shed light on how each RSO’s respective implementation practices are influenced by the technology in question. Towards this end, we will compare two extremely different kinds of technology and their differing impacts on reliability aspects. The research context of the proposed project is medium-sized German hospitals. Methodologically, a qualitative research approach (mainly interviews, focused ethnography, and analysis of second-ary documents) will be pursued. By developing a process model that is informed by practice and resourcing theory, the project aims to contribute to the literature on RSOs. Since reliability can be understood as a partial dimension of organizational effectiveness, the results show a generalization potential beyond the context of hospitals. In addition, practice-relevant implications for health organizations will emerge.

• DFG Programme: Research Grants
• International Connection: United Kingdom
• Cooperation Partner: Professor Dr. Davide Nicolini