Dissertation

Overview

Writing my dissertation provided me with a foundational insight into the fluid nature of work practices and the processes of moving knowledge through complex social structures.

My dissertation is a qualitative case study of a cluster of six Australian companies founded by academic scientists in the context of a university setting. I sought to understand how these companies – through the efforts of their founders – created knowledge and leveraged it to build their respective enterprises.

Relevant Findings

One of the interesting findings that is relevant to my current work is the extent to which nascent companies exhibit loosely coupled social structures and are organized around fluid projects (as opposed to bureaucratic and rationalized processes and routines) and the access to specialized sources of knowledge. This research revealed different ways that people organize their work around very specific projects. In my research sample, the “companies” were merely organizing mechanisms for otherwise fluid projects that provided some level of formality and legitimacy for the raising of funds to support the projects. Although these were very small organizations, this research raises some interesting implications for the role of large companies and how they can be more flexibly organized to support a variety of ways of working and knowledge sharing.

The dissertation is grounded in theories of organizations, social networks, and knowledge. I conducted my research from the level of analysis of the firm in order to develop theoretical propositions around the ways in which these companies create and transfer knowledge within their networks. The research also explores the relationship among the academic community, the company as a whole, and individual academic entrepreneurs.

Click here to access my dissertation through the University of Michigan

Committee Members:


Michael Bastedo – Associate Professor, School of Education
Janet Lawrence – Associate Professor, School of Education
Kim Cameron – Professor, Ross School of Business and School of Education
Jason Owen-Smith – Associate Professor, LSA Sociology and Organizational Studies