Publication Type

Journal Article

Version

publishedVersion

Publication Date

12-2019

Abstract

This paper demonstrates a new way of seeing and theorizing about the dynamics of organizational routines through the concept of paths – time-ordered sequences of actions or events in performing work. Empirically and conceptually, paths provide the missing link between specific actions and patterns of action. When routines are represented as a narrative network, tracing the formation and dissolution of action paths can generate new insights about the dynamic patterning of actions in routine performances. We traced action paths using longitudinal field data from a videogame development project and found that action patterns change dramatically over time based on the needs of the project. We explain these changes in terms of generic mechanisms that lead to the enactment of more (or fewer) paths in the narrative network. We propose that patterning can be seen as a new motor of routine dynamics and discuss generic mechanisms through which patterning can influence narrative network structure.

Keywords

Routine dynamics, narrative network, network paths, task complexity, process research

Discipline

Management Sciences and Quantitative Methods | Strategic Management Policy

Research Areas

Strategy and Organisation

Publication

Academy of Management Journal

Volume

62

Issue

6

First Page

1901

Last Page

1929

ISSN

0001-4273

Identifier

10.5465/amj.2018.0042

Publisher

Academy of Management

Copyright Owner and License

Authors

Additional URL

https://doi.org/10.5465/amj.2018.0042

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