Linking for change: Network action as collective, focused and energetic behaviour

Abstract

Change processes in an organisation can be undertaken by individual employees or by collective action. This study contributes to research on collective action in organisations by investigating network action in change processes. Based on qualitative data from Lufthansa, Germany, and theoretical insights the study explores how network action unfolds. A quantitative study at Swisscom, Switzerland, supports eight out of nine hypotheses of a model for the emergence of network action. Managerial implications are twofold: to stimulate collective action, managers could themselves drive collective action by initiating joint activities in networks, or they could act as enablers of collective activities by creating action-inducing conditions. © 2005 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.