A shared understanding of business purpose as a structure of organizing work

Abstract

This chapter covers and focuses on organizing work around collective structures and especially shared understanding of business purpose among employees. As the current business environment challenges the traditional formal structures and hierarchies of organizations, successful organizing in contemporary firms might be based on collective structures in between people that reflect how well employees together understand the purpose of the business. That is, hierarchies and formal structures might be replaced by the shared understanding of business purpose that guides attention and action in the organization. Without the joint understanding, the organization might become unguided and unsuccessful in achieving its goals. The chapter covers the concepts of collective structures and shared understanding of business purpose in particular. It also presents how shared understanding of business purpose is constructed and how it can be built in organizations that are in the process of developing it or are in danger of losing it along the history of the organization.