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This paper aims to explore the various sociotechnical dimensions of building information modelling (BIM)-induced changes associated with stakeholder management of projects.

This paper relies on grounded theory and data collection from two case studies – one in the public sector and one in the private sector – and is underpinned by Leavitt’s (1964) sociotechnical model.

Findings reveal four new dimensions of stakeholder management as being affected through BIM-induced changes: commitment; transparency; learning and experience; and stakeholder satisfaction, with these extending beyond the dimensions recognised in the existing literature. Another novelty lies in bringing to light the highly context-specific nature of BIM-induced changes pertinent to stakeholder management, with the two case studies demonstrating differences in these changes. Furthermore, a theoretical model of the causal impacts of various identified dimensions is presented, in which the sequence of changes and the causal associations between the identified dimensions are conceptualised.

Through Leavitt’s (1964) Diamond lens, the procedure of change and its evolutionary procedure for various components of the sociotechnical system of stakeholder management are theorised. The tentative conceptualisations presented offer a springboard from which to further investigate the episode of change pertinent to various dimensions of stakeholder management in BIM-enabled projects.

Decentralisation attempts that aim to increase job autonomy do not always succeed. This paper aims to study to what extent the tendency to maintain existing operational task divisions is an important explanation for this lack of success.

In total, 456 employees in 25 organisations participated in a cross-sectional intervention study. Each employee filled out a questionnaire on job autonomy both before and after the decentralisation process, in which all organisations shifted regulatory, preparatory and supportive tasks to the lowest organisational level.

This study found small, but significant, effects of decentralisation attempts on job autonomy. The size of the effects, however, depended on the way the way in which the operational tasks were divided. Simultaneously, larger effects were found for organisations which decentralised tasks and changed the way operational tasks were divided. Both findings reached the conclusion that although decentralisation attempts seemed important for increasing job autonomy, the way in which the operational tasks were divided and even changed, was at least as important for a successful decentralisation process.

After decades of research on modern sociotechnical theory, this study is the first to show that decentralisation attempts do not merely increase job autonomy. The effect of such attempts depends on the way in which operational tasks are divided in organisations.

The Dutch version of sociotechnical systems design called “modern sociotechnology” stresses that the quality of working life is dependent on the choice for a certain “production structure”, i.e. the physical layout of operations. Two propositions about this relationship are derived from modern sociotechnology, and tested on a sample of Dutch textile companies. No empirical support is found for the propositions. The implications of these findings are discussed.

An increased level of self‐organization, particularly in autonomous work teams, is widely believed to be a necessary part of a successful firm and a factor in many modern restructuring initiatives. This article investigates the limitations of self‐organized groups and surveys these limitations from two important perspectives: (1) limits that are inherent to the production structure and equipment, and (2) limits that relate to the firm’s workforce. With respect to the first issue, the predictability of markets and the standardization of production situations provide strong reasons for limiting the opportunities for self‐organization. In terms of a firm’s workforce, problems such as learning capability, motivation, identity, ambition, and prestige must be taken into account before introducing self‐organizational practices. Additionally, the delegation of authority, the resulting redundancy of middle managers and the relevant compensation for the workers concerned must also be considered. In conclusion, self‐organizing teams relate to many constraints, all of which should be considered before putting these teams into practice.

In response to the growing need for organizations to enhance their digital capabilities and the widespread adoption of enterprise social media (ESM) in the workplace, researchers have extensively studied the effects of ESM on various organizational outcomes. Nonetheless, a notable theoretical gap exists regarding the influence of ESM on the development of organizational digital maturity. This paper aims to bridge this gap by conducting a comprehensive literature review to investigate how the utilization of ESM can facilitate the transformation of organizational value-creation processes, thereby contributing to the overall enhancement of digital maturity.

Using the information technology (IT) value-creation framework developed by Mooney et al. (1996) and applying a template analysis methodology as outlined by King (2012), the authors conducted a systematic literature review (Okoli and Schabram, 2010), to investigate the influence of ESM on value creation within the digital business environment.

The study’s outcomes are structured around a theoretical framework that combines the contingency theory and the sociotechnical perspective to provide a comprehensive understanding of digital maturity. This paper also delves into how ESM facilitates the transformation of organizational value-creation processes, ultimately contributing to the overall progress of their digital maturity.

This study adapts existing theoretical models to fit the context of ESM and integrates multiple perspectives to provide a comprehensive understanding of its impact. It identifies a convergence in the definition of ESM and offers insights into its various dimensions and effects on value creation. Hence, scholars can use the identified theoretical frameworks and conceptual convergence to guide future investigations into the impact of ESM on value creation, fostering theoretical development and empirical research. Practitioners can benefit from the insights to develop effective strategies for implementing ESM within their organizations, aligning with broader organizational objectives to enhance performance, streamline operations and drive structural changes. Furthermore, both scholars and practitioners can use the identified limitations of the study to identify areas for further improvement and exploration, thus contributing to the advancement of knowledge and practice in ESM and value creation. Limitations of this research include the exclusion of gray literature, a relatively small sample size of analyzed articles, and the restriction to specific databases as per systematic review guidelines, potentially overlooking valuable contributions from alternative sources.

This paper provides a comprehensive exploration of how ESM can support value-creation processes within organizations. It offers valuable insights to help managers incorporate ESM into their digital strategies and to understand its value-creation effects.

Adopting a value-creation perspective and integrating the contingency theory and the sociotechnical perspective to build a comprehensive framework, this research introduces an original approach by showcasing how ESM can facilitate shifts in value-creation processes of organizations, paving the way to contribute to the development of their digital maturity.

The key issue of continuous improvement (CI) seems to be the problem of combining extensive employee involvement with market orientation and continuation of CI. In this article we review some existing organisational designs for CI on these three essential characteristics of CI. As an alternative to the shortcomings of current organisational designs for CI we present the mini‐company concept, related to the sociotechnical concept of the self‐managing team. The mini‐company concept incorporates the three key issues: it has a self‐propelling capacity for CI, involving everyone on the shop floor. A constant and market‐oriented source for improvement is found in the clients and suppliers of the mini‐company. Results of an in‐depth case‐study are presented, showing some strong effects of the mini‐company concept.

This study examines how a school progressively built its social capital for agile adaptation to provide inclusive and effective fully online learning provisions through intentionally enhancing its architecture for learning.

The authors conducted a case study to examine how school A was able to respond rapidly and progressively to the demand for quality online learning provisions in the face of unanticipated school closure with an uncertain end date. Video recordings of online school sharing sessions, interviews and documents provided by the school constituted data sources for this study.

In creating a collective new norm for the implementation of online learning, a school needs to enhance both structural and cognitive aspects of its social capital. School A achieved this through intentional changes to its architecture for learning (i.e. organizational structure, interaction mechanisms, mediating artifacts and technology) when deliberating measures to deliver the changes under periods of serious social stress.

Adaptive capacity is a core demand on the social capital of schools and organizations under the “new normal” when the future is unpredictable. This paper uncovers the connection between a school's architecture for learning and its adaptive capacity.

The chapter pays specific attention to the organizing and reorganizing process of the embedding of new technology. The aim is to increase the understanding of how a focal technology is incrementally aligned into a customer’s different business settings. Embedding becomes subject to intense organizing efforts. It becomes a struggle with activating different features of the focal technology by forging and modifying the resource interfaces between the focal technology and customer resources.

The organizing efforts are about seeking, in an explorative mood, for resource interfaces between the focal technology and the customer resources. This organizing process enables the identification of new adaptation opportunities for technology embedding processes, whereby the focal technology obtains certain feature and values.

A systematically developed knowledge of resource interfaces is a key for activating different features of the focal technology and thereby facilitating its embedding into the customer’s various business settings. This is described in a single case study in the chapter. This case and the analysis show how a supplier and a customer struggle with developing resource interface knowledge to activate the different features of the focal technology, thereby facilitating its embedding process. The first part of the chapter establishes a theoretical framework, followed in the second part by the case study and analysis. The concluding discussion emphasizes the importance of understanding and managing various interfaces as part of the organizing processes.

The purpose of this study is to offer a roadmap for work on the ethical and societal implications of algorithms and AI. Based on an analysis of the social, technical and regulatory challenges posed by algorithmic systems in Korea, this work conducts socioecological evaluations of the governance of algorithmic transparency and accountability.

This paper analyzes algorithm design and development from critical socioecological angles: social, technological, cultural and industrial phenomena that represent the strategic interaction among people, technology and society, touching on sensitive issues of a legal, a cultural and an ethical nature.

Algorithm technologies are a part of a social ecosystem, and its development should be based on user interests and rights within a social and cultural milieu. An algorithm represents an interrelated, multilayered ecosystem of networks, protocols, applications, services, practices and users.

Value-sensitive algorithm design is proposed as a novel approach for designing algorithms. As algorithms have become a constitutive technology that shapes human life, it is essential to be aware of the value-ladenness of algorithm development. Human values and social issues can be reflected in an algorithm design.

The arguments in this study help ensure the legitimacy and effectiveness of algorithms. This study provides insight into the challenges and opportunities of algorithms through the lens of a socioecological analysis: political discourse, social dynamics and technological choices inherent in the development of algorithm-based ecology.

The purpose of this paper is to expand on emergent data activism literature to draw distinctions between different types of data management practices undertaken by groups of data activists.

The authors offer three case studies that illuminate the data management strategies of these groups. Each group discussed in the case studies is devoted to representing a contentious political issue through data, but their data management practices differ in meaningful ways. The project Making Sense produces their own data on pollution in Kosovo. Fatal Encounters collects “missing data” on police homicides in the USA. The Environmental Data Governance Initiative hopes to keep vulnerable US data on climate change and environmental injustices in the public domain.

In analysing the three case studies, the authors surface how temporal dimensions, geographic scale and sociotechnical politics influence their differing data management strategies.

The authors build upon extant literature on data management infrastructure, which primarily discusses how these practices manifest in scientific and institutional research settings, to analyse how data management infrastructure is often crucial to social movements that rely on data to surface political issues.