Papers by Natalia Nikolova
Construction Management and Economics, 2019
Large-scale construction projects increasingly have powerful and knowledgeable clients as project... more Large-scale construction projects increasingly have powerful and knowledgeable clients as project owners with whom professionals, such as architects, must interact. In such contexts, clients may have a significant impact on the constitution of a coherent and stable professional identity. Based on qualitative interviews with 50 architects across four large multidisciplinary professional service firms (PSFs) located in Sydney, Australia, supplemented by ethnographic observations, this article explores how architects constitute their identity in interactions with clients. The findings led us to conceptualize professional-client interactions in terms of two overarching discursive strategies deployed by architects in attempts to manage clients that are powerful and knowledgeable: best for client and best for project. We illustrate the anxieties that architects experience and suggest that attempts to secure professional identity may result in (re)producing an enduring sense of anxiety with unintended consequences for project outcomes and organizational performance.
Journal of Professions and Organization, 2017
In this article we explore what happens in professional formation when the locus of its meaning, ... more In this article we explore what happens in professional formation when the locus of its meaning, as it has been formed, is increasingly contradicted by professional practice. Specifically, we explore the problematic nature of architects' professional identity that is constituted in terms of the primacy of design aesthetics, in contexts where practice denies this identification. We highlight the tensions between identity and practices and suggest that while architects' traditional self-identification enables perpetuation of the profession's identity, it challenges the profession's standing in its relations with other professions and occupations. We refer to this as a paradox of identity. Although much has been written about the profound changes occurring in professional practices and professional jurisdictions, scant attention has been given to the ways in which professionals shape their identities in the context of changing practices. We conducted a year-long ethnography of contemporary architects engaged in large and complex projects in order to examine both the architects' and the profession's identity. Our contributions are threefold. First, we conceptualize misalignments between professional identity and professional practice as identity paradox that has consequences for identity work among professionals. Second, we highlight how professional identity construction is organized around competing and paradoxical identification. Third, the paper contributes to sociological studies of architecture by generating insights about the identity work of architects engaged in large multi-organizational projects.
Project-based organizational forms are becoming more and more prevalent in many industries, and l... more Project-based organizational forms are becoming more and more prevalent in many industries, and leadership influences projects' success ultimately impacting the organizational performance. Two types of leadership styles have been explored: vertical and horizontal. This study aims to identify the nature and balance of vertical and horizontal leadership in projects to allow project managers to consciously apply these approaches in different situations. A case study-based approach is adopted wherein, two case studies from India and three case studies from Australia are included. A comparative study of leadership styles is performed to find the best contextual fit of leadership styles. The findings reveal that that national culture is not a major factor in influencing project leadership. Rather, organizational culture and a shared understanding on leadership practices is what influences whether vertical or horizontal leadership will be more prevalent. Senior leaders' initiatives to create and support a culture of sharing ideas and decisions, backed by project manager's approach enable effective balance between horizontal and vertical leadership. Horizontal leadership is further by regular meetings and social interactions. Prevalence of horizontal leaderships is demonstrated in technical decisions, as team members have the best expertise to address technical issues. In contrast, strategic decisions are normally discussed with the project manager and often escalated to senior leaders for decisions.
International Journal of Project Management
Abstract The primary purpose of this study is to examine the relationship between two leadership ... more Abstract The primary purpose of this study is to examine the relationship between two leadership styles (vertical and distributed), conceptualized through types of decisions made (strategic and operational/tactical), and the state of psychological contract (fulfillment/breach) at three different levels of the organizational hierarchy in project-based organizations. The explorative analysis of eight organizations from India and Australia demonstrates the prevalence of distributed leadership: operational and technical decisions are usually entrusted to the project team and project managers, while strategic decisions are made by senior management. The study suggests that three factors facilitate a specific leadership style (vertical or distributed): organizational culture, knowledge sharing and project management practices, which in turn impact the state of psychological contract (fulfillment/breach). A flexible, collaborative organizational culture supports knowledge sharing and the adoption of agile methods, enabling distributed leadership and leading to psychological contract fulfillment.
Academy of Management Proceedings
Business Strategy and the Environment
Fragmented supply networks involving a number of actors in the production and distribution of pro... more Fragmented supply networks involving a number of actors in the production and distribution of products and services are increasingly common. However, research on sustainability has so far not sufficiently addressed the question how to deliver sustainability strategies and practices across fragmented supply networks. In particular, existing research on sustainability in supply networks does rarely adopt a systemic perspective. Consequently, we know little about the ability of organisations to address the competing priorities characteristic for supply networks spanning organisational, cultural and geographical borders. This special issue contends that network dynamics can be transformative in how organisations address sustainability challenges. The series of papers in the special issue study novel approaches to sustainability adopting multi-stakeholders/multi-perspective approaches. Each of the papers presents specific examples of the issues arising in fragmented supply networks and outlines context-appropriate responses that can help overcome such fragmentation. In this introduction section, we propose a conceptual framework that integrates the key drivers or inhibitors of sustainable perspectives, practices, and metrics in supply chains. The model has implications for both theoretical research and organizational practice on sustainability in supply networks.
Academy of Management Proceedings
Trust is widely regarded as a critical success factor in client-consultant relationships. While e... more Trust is widely regarded as a critical success factor in client-consultant relationships. While existing research investigates different modes of trust, little is known about the social processes a...
Academy of Management Proceedings, 2008
Based on the investigation of seven consultancy projects within an international technical consul... more Based on the investigation of seven consultancy projects within an international technical consulting firm, we identify three major practices that characterize client-consultant interaction-shaping impressions, problem-solving, and negotiating expectations-and discuss their respective characteristics, activities, and contingencies. Our discussion of these practices provides not only a more differentiated picture of client-consultant interaction but also uncovers the critical role that clients play in these practices.
That organizations cannot be viewed as uniform and stable cultures or entities but rather as comm... more That organizations cannot be viewed as uniform and stable cultures or entities but rather as communities of “loosely constituted overlapping circles of partialled participation” (Blau, 1996: 174) is not a new insight (e.g., Bechky, 2003; Bloor and Dawson, 1994; Dougherty, 1992). To make sense of this world of competing communities, one needs to understand why these subcultures exist, how they form, how they interact—cooperatively and competitively—and how they evolve. In what follows, we address these issues by providing an integrated view of the two theoretical approaches that have built on this thinking: communities of prac-tice (CoP) and critical discourse analysis (CDA). The concept of interpretive communities (ICs), which we propose, builds upon important findings related to both CoP and CDA but overcomes their shortcomings and extends them onto a more general theoretical footing.
Scandinavian Journal of Management, 2014
Successful client-consultant relationships depend on trust, but trusting is difficult in the nonr... more Successful client-consultant relationships depend on trust, but trusting is difficult in the nonroutine, high-stake context of consulting. Based on a sample of 15 clients and 16 consultants in Australia, we develop a grounded model that explains the process of trust granting in the context of client-consultant relationships. Our model builds upon two influential research streams on trust in the literature, the ABI model generic modes of trust, and combines their insights with a process perspective on trusting as proposed by . By acknowledging the process nature of trust as a leap of faith resulting from socio-cognitive (-emotional) interactions we move away from the passive evaluation of trustworthiness. Our findings suggest that trusting is a process that involves three social practices: (1) signaling ability and integrity; (2) demonstrating benevolence; and (3) establishing an emotional connection. Our study contributes to the trust literature on consulting and to trust research more generally by advancing a process approach and emphasizing the social, not merely mental, nature of trusting as involving a leap of faith.
Where Good Ideas Come From. u.lab is the collective brainchild of energetic young UTS Staff. heal... more Where Good Ideas Come From. u.lab is the collective brainchild of energetic young UTS Staff. health technologies, social sciences, design and built environments to look at complex and pressing social problems. It provides an emergent interdisciplinary framework for entrepreneurial innovation projects at UTS. Through this it connects creative and innovative intergenerational minds across UTS, government, industry and the surrounding community. In this vibrant space, collective creativity and innovation is fostered. In their own words, u.lab is about 'u', what you bring to the mix. Together they manifest new ideas by capitalizing on their diversity. Sir George Cox says design converts creative ideas into innovation to bring about change. In u.lab you generate ideas and convert them into prototypes for future innovation thereby enhancing your entrepreneurial abilities. Play and social interchange are essential to creativity and at u.lab this is done over the aroma and hissing sounds of an espresso machine. Its humming energy beckons you to this welcoming space. It is unique at UTS for it brings staff and students from across faculties. They interact with the wider city community and attract entrepreneurial minds to collectively use the tools of the day in an environment expertly facilitated by passionate u.lab staff. They collectively take an idea and create a prototype, sometimes within the space of an hour. In this short time and space, the tools provided help them to manifest "the setting, pressing social problems can be provocatively re-thought and moved into a new dimension of entrepreneurial solutions. Indeed from the initial offerings represented in this booklet I am sure that much bigger things will grow in future years. I invite you to be part of this visionary happening at UTS in whatever way you are able.
The central thesis of this paper is that the production of knowledge in consulting teams can neit... more The central thesis of this paper is that the production of knowledge in consulting teams can neither be understood as the result of an internal interaction between clients and consultants decoupled from the wider socio-political environment nor as externally determined by socially constructed industry recipes or management fashions detached from the cognitive uniqueness of the client-consultant team. Instead, we argue that knowledge production in consulting teams is intrinsically linked to the institutional environment that not only provides resources such as funding, manpower, or legitimacy but also offers cognitive feedback through which knowledge production is influenced. By applying the theory of self-organization to the knowledge production in consulting teams, we explain how consulting teams are structured by the sociocultural environment and are structuring this environment to continue their work. The consulting team's knowledge is shaped and influenced by cognitive feedback loops that involve external collective actors such as the client organization, practice groups of consulting firms, the academic/professional community, and the general public who essentially become co-producers of consulting knowledge. Paper accepted for publication by the Scandinavian Journal of Management Acknowledgement: The authors would like to thank the editor Janne Tienari and the anonymous reviewers of the Scandinavian Journal of Management for their very helpful and constructive comments. We would also like to thank Celeste Wilderom and Tim Morris for their comments on earlier versions of this paper. The support for this research from the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (research grant 01HW0168) is also acknowledged.
Successful client-consultant relationships depend on trust, but trusting is difficult in the nonr... more Successful client-consultant relationships depend on trust, but trusting is difficult in the nonroutine, high-stake context of consulting. Based on a sample of 15 clients and 16 consultants in Australia, we develop a grounded model that explains the process of trust granting in the context of client-consultant relationships. Our model builds upon two influential research streams on trust in the literature, the ABI model generic modes of trust, and combines their insights with a process perspective on trusting as proposed by . By acknowledging the process nature of trust as a leap of faith resulting from socio-cognitive (-emotional) interactions we move away from the passive evaluation of trustworthiness. Our findings suggest that trusting is a process that involves three social practices: (1) signaling ability and integrity; (2) demonstrating benevolence; and (3) establishing an emotional connection. Our study contributes to the trust literature on consulting and to trust research more generally by advancing a process approach and emphasizing the social, not merely mental, nature of trusting as involving a leap of faith.
Page 1. Arbeitsberichte des Seminars für Allgemeine Betriebswirtschaftslehre, Unternehmensführung... more Page 1. Arbeitsberichte des Seminars für Allgemeine Betriebswirtschaftslehre, Unternehmensführung und Logistik der Universität zu Köln Herausgegeben von Prof. Dr. Dr. hc Werner Delfmann Sascha Albers, Caroline Heuermann, Benjamin Koch ...
International Encyclopedia of Organization Studies, 2008
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Papers by Natalia Nikolova