Characterization of cross-functional integration level: A multi case study in Agribusiness Organizations

Abstract

A point that has generated discussion in the literature is the level of integration required for the coordination of activities between areas. However, there is a lack of theoretical definitions and field studies that explain this phenomenon in depth. Thus, this study aims to characterize the level of cross-integration, the factors that generate it and the impacts on organizational performance. For this, interviews with managers of Operations, R&D and Marketing/Commercial areas, from two multinational companies based in Minas Gerais were performed. The results indicate that the level of integration can be analyzed as a combination of three factors: 1) absence of overlapping of perceptions about integration factors over the processes, balance between formality and informality, and absence of manifest conflicts of interest. This is a setting that provides a deeper definition than those obtained in the studied literature, which basically present integration mechanisms, without detailing how these should be applied in order to generate higher levels of integration. DOI:10.12660/joscmv8n2p36-51URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.12660/joscmv8n2p36-51