Middle managers matter! Unpacking the deployment and adaptation of organization-level dynamic capabilities

Abstract

How do public sector organizations (PSO) adapt established dynamic capabilities (DC)? Our longitudinal study of two Norwegian municipalities reveals that public middle managers leverage their distinct dynamic managerial capabilities (DMC) to deploy and adapt organization-level DC through specific meso-level mechanisms. Our study makes two significant contributions. First, we introduce a multilevel model for the deployment and adaptation of organization-level DC in PSO. Second, we challenge the prevailing upper-echelons perspective by extending the concept of DMC to include public middle managers. We demonstrate how their DMC differ from those of top public managers and contribute to shaping and operating organization-level DC.