Aog feb 06-03-2012 v.2.0

AOG FEB – Jan Devos - 06/03/2012Faculteit Ingenieurswetenschappen en Architectuur – Campus West

Using Bricolage to Facilitate Emergent Collectives in an Entrepreneurial Setting(work in progress)

Jan Devos

ECIME 2012 Conference Cork Irl.

pag. 1

Outline of the presentation- Emergent Collectives- Bricolage- Research Question- Research Methodology - Findings- Conclusion


pag. 2

Emergent CollectivePetrie (2010) introduced the concept of “Emergent Collectives”

- A network of information/function nodes that has minimal central control, and that’s largely controlled by a protocol specification.

- In which it’s easy for people to add nodes to the network- And where there are social incentives that motivate people

to act collectively.

www.emergent-collectives.be


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Capacity to scale the network

Value for the user

Broadband access to

the network

Access to the network

The user is in control of the content

No single controlling entity

Consumerization of IT and BYOD

Emergent Collectives

• FLOSS (OpenERP and Magento)

• Twitter

• Cloud Computing

• On-line repositories (Wiki’s)


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Trinidadian Steel drums (pans)

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Bricolage - French anthropologist Lévi-Strauss, ‘La pensée sauvage’ (1962)

“doing things with whatever is at hand”

Bricolage relates with (Duymedjian & Rüling, 2010)

organizational resilience

improvisation

sensemaking

entrepreneurship

utilization of technical systems and artefacts

the bricoleur versus the engineer


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Bricoleur Engineer

Everything matters A priori hierarchical order

Complex, interconnected system Reduction/decomposition

Closed universe Openness, transcending boundaries

Cyclical time Linear time

Intimate knowledge, familiarity Distant knowledge, representation

Knowledge about relationships implying a low functional fixedness bias

Knowledge about structural characteristic entities

Versatility implying resilience Specialization

Collection through unplanned encounters Search for the adequate, project-oriented means

Unclear outcomes Projects and designs

Dialogue with elements in stock (resources) Respect of prior specifications

Assemblage, substitution, …’it’s working’ Evaluation through expected level of performance and quality

Creation and use cannot be dissociated Separation of creation and use

Outcomes look unlike anything else Outcomes respond to field norms

Literature on Bricolage- Seminal work in anthropology (Strauss-Levi 1962)- Entrepreneurship (Baker et al. 2003; Garud et al. 2003; Phillips

et al. 2007)- Innovation research (Banerjee et al. 2009; Essen 2009;

Fuglsang et al. 2011)- Organization theory (Duymedjian et al. 2010; Weick 1998)- Information Technology (Ciborra 2002; DesAutels 2011;

Ferneley et al. 2006; Johri 2011)


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Research Question

How can the use of Bricolage facilitate

the adoption of Emergent Collectives in

an Entrepreneurial Setting?


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Research Methodology- Action Research (Design Science)

- Case Endoxa (drop shipping)

- Interpretive epistemology (Walsham, 2004)


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Interpretive epistemology-Our knowledge of reality is a social construction by

human actors-Growing body of research stream in IS research-Fundamental basis of an interpretive study is fieldwork -Involved (participant, action) researcher versus outside

researcher-Neutral observer (not necessarily unbiased)-No consultancy-Data collection: interviews and participant notes and

reports


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Interpretive epistemology-Role of theory

-Choice of theory = subjective !-Use of theory as a final product of the research or as a

guide for design and data collection-Contribution and how to generalize from interpretive

studies? (Klein & Myers, 1999)-Ways of reflecting on the existing literature and identifying

gaps-Framing material for particular audiences


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Action Research (Design Science)(Baskerville 1999, Baskerville et al 2004)

- Two cycles of five phases (baseline, implementation) (Street et al. 2004)

- Axial coding (Corbin et al 2008)

- Pattern mapping (Yin, 2004)


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Client-System InfrastructureCase Endoxa

E-business / Drop shipping / E-Supply chain

Minimal organization (Weick, 1993)

1) direct supervision,

2) strategy planned at the top,

3) little formalized behavior,

4) organic structure and

5) CEO tending to formulate plans intuitively (plans are an direct extensions of his own personality)

Research team (PWO-project)


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Endoxa


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Is Bricolage a theory? • Levi-Strauss 1962

Bricolage is an analogy to shed light on the processes underlying mythical thinking

• Constructs of Bricolage (Duymedjian & Rüling 2010)

Repertoire (stock)

= material and immaterial resources that are collected independently of any particular project or utilization.

Dialogue

= the activity of assembling objects

Outcome

= refers both to the process and its results (circular dynamic)


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Is Bricolage a theory? Seven oxymoron’s as propositions (Ciborra, 2002)

• Value bricolage strategically (VBS)• Design tinkering (DT)• Establish systematic serendipity (ESS)• Thrive on gradual breakthroughs (TGB)• Unskilled Learning (UL) • Strive for failure (SFF)• Achieve collaborative inimitability (ACI)


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Diagnosing Action Planning Action Taking Evaluating Specifying Learning

VBS Mission statement

BRIDEE Negative Too complex

DT

ESS Twitter Hashtags Hashtags Positive

TGB Web services

PUL Wiki’s

SFF

ACI Open ‘model’

Diagnosing Action Planning Action Taking Evaluating Specifying Learning

VBS Mission statement

Network Orchestrator

DT

ESS

TGB E-commerceFront-endERPBack-end

Magento

OpenERP

ModulesApps

PUL Lynda.com

SFF

ACI

Findings• Bricolage repertoire does exist

•OpenERP•Magento•Remark: no limits on repertoire

• Dialogue (action research / design science)• Outcome: serving customers (making money)


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Findings• Value bricolage strategically (VBS)

CEO sees drop shipping as an E-Supply Ecosystem

mission statement of Endoxa -“Alignment clicks with bricks & mortar”-“Network Orchestrator of the complete cross e-supply chain”

• Establish systematic serendipity (ESS)•IceCat•Magento•e-Air Waybill (e-AWB) •Keep on Tweeting


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Findings• Thrive on gradual breakthroughs (TGB)

Magento

• Unskilled Learning (UL) Training modules with Lynda.com

• Strive for failure (SFF)• Achieve collaborative inimitability (ACI)

The process of bricolage leads to an inimitable outcome, although the model is open

Drop shipping ecosystem


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Conclusions- RQ: Yes

-OpenERP & Magento is bricolage-Twitter ‘faster than e-mail’-Cloud Computing: no real impact-Wiki’s: repertoire is not limited

- Bricolage as a theory is more developed - The ‘alternative’ way of thinking of IS in

organizations iso control thinking is gaining more validity


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Questions?