Working Across Boundaries: Advantages and Disadvantages

Working Across Boundaries Advantages and DisadvantagesThis paper examines the perspective of flexing crosswise boundaries from the lens of Hunan imaginativeness Management. The paper is split into four main parts. The first appearance which provides the background to pass watering crosswise boundaries as it applies in HRM today. A explanation constituent that examines the antithetic aspects of cypher crosswise boundaries i.e. br a nonher(prenominal)ly, tangible, fellowship and mental. Further trial of some theoretical perspectives including the work of Heracleous. The reason that modern organisations motive to work across boundaries in concert with consideration of strategy and leveraging capabilities. A section that looks at the advantages and disadvantages of working across boundaries with a focus on the populace firmament including healthc be organisations and local g everywherenment. The conclusions summarise the key points.DEFINING operative ACROSS BOUNDARIES During the last decade, the concept of working across boundaries has become a popular concept. The basic premise is that individuals and organisation conduct to traverse boundaries if they be to achieve their goals. Essentially earlier concepts of fixed organisational demarcation lines no daylong apply in modern day communication channel concepts. Within the organisational material the concept of boundaries push aside become a reasonably complicated issue. thither still dwells an mobile debate as to whether the definitions of boundaries are trulyistic, aim or imagined. The concept has become more complex with the use of out(p)sourcing and universe/Private unions in terms of lines of demarcation and authority. (Bishop, 2003)The concept of boundaries deep down organisations takes on dissimilar shapes and physical bodys. Much of this has to do with social and acquaintance boundaries. The explosion in technological and communication advances has simplified the concept of working across boundaries. disdain the fact that organizations still are challenged to collaborate and share information, nevertheless individuals search much more liberated in this regard with advancement in social media. Russ Linden is one author who has investigated this, with point focus on cosmos sector organisations. (Linden, 2003).The old fashioned concept of organizational normal was the creation of silos or departments where righteousnesss, roles and responsibilities would be clearly outlined inside the scope of a hierarchical matrix. For example Sales, Finance, Production would each be collected social units within the organisation and clearly defined lines of demarcation within the bloodline. The Heads of these Departments would be Senior Managers and expected to collaborate with one a nonher still not trespass into the other domains. The holistic backup strategy relied upon each unit to fulfil its role within the overall strategic plan. As organisations t ortuous in size and complexity this mystify posed serious shortcomings and clean thought processes were required. This required improved leading thinking and more quislingism across boundaries. (Stevens, 2006).Working across boundaries remains an main(prenominal) part of Public field relationships and impose significant challenges to business operations but they do distinctive value sets and improved goals in the business relationships (Sullivan, 2007)Concepts of working across boundariesIn management terms boundaries are practically classified as lines of demarcation that often impose constraints. Those items that determine managerial nitty-grittyiveness. For example how a business works within the confines of a specific milieu the concept of specific lead styles and the modulate on organizational behaviour. It was Heracleous1who pointed out in 2004 that some(prenominal) organisations and the environments they function in are inter-related. They create structures and s ocial gives that assist in the definition of the business and its purpose. (Heracleous, 2008)Understanding social boundariesThis fundamentally relates to the relationships that are formed between groups of individuals within an organization. Heracleous maintained that boundaries get remained primal to the thinking of social scientists in the establishment of social boundaries between groups and individuals. concomitant reference made to that of transactions represents and how modern technology handle sophisticated communications and the internet make up had a profound uphold here. It has directed whether the boundaries suffer either diminished or en peachyheartedd and the effect on production cost has influenced important ratiocinations identical that of outsourcing or internalisation of specific tasks. (Heracleous, 2004). Understanding social flip-flop can be analyze by the get hitched withion of Lewins Forecefield analysis. There are numerous models that you can ad opt to examine the impact of Change to the Organization. One common method come is that of Lewins Forecefield Analysis. Fig 1 provides an example of the model.Figure Force field Analysis exampleThis modifys you to examine both the driving and restraining forces that emerge as a consequent of the proposed changes. The model is particularly good for identifying forces that are considered to be polarized i.e. a change in one condition creates an equal and opposite effect in the other. The model was designed by Lewin to assist the Process Analyst to hunt down people through the unfreeze, move and refreeze stages of business process analysis. It is also an fantabulous means of demonstrating the dynamics that are in play. So by fulfilment of the Force field Model you have acquired the data in ordain to complete Lewins Three Step Model. In the Unfreeze you examine the spot quo and those driving forces for change. You can decrease the resisting forces against change. The move element involves taking actions and moving people. The freeze means make the changes permanent and establish new slip commission of doing things. Introduce concept of rewards for achieving the desired outcomes.Understanding friendship boundariesThe share-out of knowledge has both an internal and external boundary. For example in the internal model it is desirous for information to be share between the Sales and merchandise departments. This empowers both department to do a better job. Externally, in that respect is the sharing and collaboration of knowledge and information between allies. For example a UK found comp any(prenominal) and its overseas subsidiary.In regulate for an organization to be flourishing it must manage its four pillars of knowledge. These be Leadership, Organization, engineering and Learning. study applied science (Pillar 3) has achieved an amazing impact in the promotion and dissemination of knowledge in the business environment. Unfortunately Technology has had a greater influence on guiding the strategic planning of organizations, as opposed to the other way round. One example being that of Enterprise Planning Systems like mug and J.D. Edwards One World system. Organizations have re-engineered their knowledge base and business processes in station to meet the integrated demands of the software application. (Bixler, 2002)Knowledge Managers need to attend that despite the galore(postnominal) advantages information Technology (IT) has to offer the piece of work it is not a magic utopian panacea. Equally any Information Technology application that undervalues Knowledge Management will equally fracture in the business place. (Mohammed). If Knowledge Management is to be considered efficient with IT in business it must be treated as its equal partner. Knowledge Managers have criticised IT as being lacking in areas like tacit knowledge. consequently there is a need to incorporate items of behavioural consideration and cognitive f unction. (Bixler, 2002)There is an increasing demand and challenge being placed upon the CIOs of business organizations and as such Managers need to become more vocal well-nigh their expectations and use the four pillars as a framework in order to further improve the integration of knowledge in the organization.Understanding physical boundariesThe concepts of boundaries are important because it is these that represent challenges which organisations must overcome. Although organisations are basically construed as open systems and these providing a continued interface with their environment. Many academics still debate that it is management that defines the physical boundaries and how you differentiate between internal and external items. (Schnieder, 1987). In reality it is difficult for management to define these boundaries as organisations have fivefold stakeholders such only by the integration of the combined needs can you truly obtain an understanding of the organisational iden tity. AS such those members of the organisation are of a precarious nature and there are many different ways in which they may be depicted as being inside or outside of the organisational composition. (Lane, 2000).Understanding Mental boundariesMental boundaries essentially relate to individual perception of what is considered to be internal or external to the organisation. This being what is considered to be acceptable and that which goes beyond this to the realm of external lead. It is this form of cognitive schema that helps individuals to create and understand the different social boundaries within an organisation. These differentiations often create perceptions of attitudes related to us and them and the formation of symbolic boundaries that enable distinctions to be drawn. (Heracleous, 2004).The need to work across boundariesEssentially the need to work across boundaries relates to that of collaboration with other entities in order to help the victimization and growth of the organisation. This may range from that of strategic business alliances, creation of partnership arrangements, developing business networks and other forms of collaboration and communication in order to benefit the business. Further, the concept of business conversion and organisational change can embolden the need to work across boundaries. Hence regardless of the barricades created, being real or imaginary, we are almost compelled to work across them.Advantages and Disadvantages of working across boundariesAdvantages of working across boundariesThere are numerous advantages to working across boundaries, particularly within the Public Sector environment. Briefly, these may be enumerated as followsIncrease in working collaborationIntegration of partnerships with the Private SectorReduction of costs and process improvementsExpanding networks and building knowledgeResponse to complex public policiesLeveraging strategy and operational capabilitiesAligning organisations and culturesI mprovement of leadershiphip capabilities balancing risk and reward (Blackman, 2010).Increase in working collaborationHistorically the concept of collaborative working was rarely recognized as having any strategic importance. Silos were created in both Public and Private sector organisations and many of these departments functioned self-autonomously. In modern day context this has all changed and it is substantiated that collaborative working both inter and intra the organization has significant benefits. In particular the organisation is better equipped forDealing with business transformation and changeAbility to provide better service directs and customer verifyOptimization of resources and cost reduction strategiesAbility to innovate and create by improved knowledge acquisitionEasier to transition to new change requirements change magnitude flexibility and aptitude to share successes and failuresThe concept of collaboration is an enabling function that allows you to bring people together with different views and opinions. This concept of diversity enriches the decision making process and improve the dynamics in business working relationships. This has been successfully introduced in the Health Sector in Wales. Here different local authorities were required to formulate med-long term strategic plans. bring collaboration between the authorities enabled the sharing of knowledge and ideas which facilitated rationalization and a more improved overarching holistic result. (Sullivan, 2007).Another example of collaboration is the ability to bring key stakeholders together in a collaborative environment. This has been effective in both local and central government projects. Bringing the stakeholders together creates greater synergy and improved indemnity performance with the organisational setting. Collaboration has totaln into areas of joint policy making, as opposed to just sharing information. Geoff Delamare from Surrey County Council states there ar e some distinct learning points from collaborative working i.e. Creating the level of trust between partners, ensuring transparency in communications and sharing knowledge admitting mistakes, creating a collaborative environment and not imposing a persuasion regime. (McCann, 2012).Integration of partnerships with the mystical sectorPartnership approaches have increased in popularity over the last decade. In the public sector they have obtained wide semipolitical support. This has been seen as a means of making process improvements whilst optimizing cost expenditures in order to provide improved value for money. The UK Audit missionary post is an example of where they have crossed boundaries to embrace working relationships with counterparts in the European Union (EU). This has been effective in collaboration to help improve inter-governmental policy implementation. (McQuaid, 2000).Reduction of costs and process improvementsIn these difficult financial time both Central Governm ent public sector bodies and local authorities have been faced with managing tight budgetary programmes and reducing costs. The latter sum resource and cost optimization in order to show the better returns on investment for monies expended. This has focused attention on streamlining processes in order to create improved efficiencies and eliminate redundancies. In addition, concepts of outsourcing to reduce resource costs and capital expenditure. topical anesthetic Authorities in the UK have been very active in this area. Barnet Council is implementing an outsourcing plan in order to save 120m . Others like Cornwall Council have been examining strategic partnerships to outsource both front and back office functions. IT departments remain particularly vulnerable because they are capital intensive and expensive to both operate and maintain. (Terry, 2013).Expanding networks and building knowledgeIn order for an organization to be successful it must manage its four pillars of knowledg e. These being Leadership, Organization, Technology and Learning. Information Technology (Pillar 3) has achieved an amazing impact in the promotion and dissemination of knowledge in the business environment. Unfortunately Technology has had a greater influence on guiding the strategic planning of organizations, as opposed to the other way round. One example being that of Enterprise Planning Systems like SAP and J.D. Edwards One World system. Organizations have re-engineered their knowledge base and business processes in order to meet the integrated demands of the software application.Knowledge Managers need to understand that despite the many advantages Information Technology (IT) has to offer the workplace it is not a magic utopian panacea. Equally any Information Technology application that undervalues Knowledge Management will equally fail in the business place. If Knowledge Management is to be considered effective with IT in business it must be treated as its equal partner.Disad vantages of working across boundariesThe main disadvantages of working across boundaries are enumerated as follows complexity and CommonalityPeople, Culture and LeadershipPower and PoliticsPerformance business and BudgetsComplexity and commonalityThe success to working across boundaries is where sufficient empathy exists to recognise shared goals and values in order to predicate a desired outcome. Where there is a lack of sufficient commonality this can be a serious barrier towards attaining a successful outcome. The importance of shared or common goals is therefore of paramount importance in any collaborative venture. Trying to force collaboration in the wrong environmental setting will most likely incur resistance and finally force of costs and resource effort providing little return on investment.One particular example in the Public sector relates to the large failure of IT projects that have often lacked sufficient commonality. In 2003 in the UK a poll stated that only one thi rd of all IT projects were successful. near 70% of all projects being severely challenged or failing in their entirety. (Post Report 200, 2003).People culture and leadershipThe people issue is exceedingly important when working across boundaries as it requires a structured but flexible work group that are able to collaborate over both hard and soft structure. In the public sector the mental faculty need to develop cross-boundary skills in order to facilitate inter say-so co-operation. These however can be highly influenced by both policy and political agenda. It has been argued that within the public sector the influence of Human Resource Management (HRM) groups have created significant barriers to cross-party working relationships.Lack of good leadership skills in the public sector provided the inability for many senior leaders to work across boundaries and manage complex business transformation programmes. This prevented best leveraging of resources between different organisa tions. Good leaders are important enablers as they are important for leveraging resources, motivating people and ensuring that the work gets done. As such poor leadership constitutes a serious barrier in order to enable working across boundaries. This results in what has often been referred to as silo management style, the inability to progress beyond your own defined domain.Power and PoliticsThe concept of working across boundaries may have a serious influence on the reshaping of power and politics within an organisation. This can be particularly potent where an area is perceived to be under threat. In this sense both politics and power are intertwined and political endorsements have the ability to create tremendous barriers. Ministers set the signals for polite servants to work across boundaries but this is often towards the attainment of specific political agendas. These can be very fickle and subject to change, hence the polite service has to be articulate in how this is both managed and interpreted.Performance in accountability and budgetsImproved performance targets have been very popular in recent years. This has meant working across boundaries to optimise business processes and resource effort. tribulation in the reconfiguration of performance systems can create significant barriers and a great deal of disruption in provision of remedial action. Budget attainment has equally been criticised in terms of holding Managers responsible for achieving budget figures, despite the fact that cross border relationships have provided them with only limited control and influence over the finances. (Parton, 1998).CONCLUSIONThe concept of working across boundaries is not a new concept but one that has been with us for many decades. Technology has created more enablers in terms of making this more operationally efficient and the ability to share information and knowledge. The reality of globalisation, struggling financial markets, the need for cost cutting and aus terity measures have increased the need for more collaborative working. The use of sharing information in a collaborative environment often results in better outcomes and an improved managed risk portfolio.Leadership skills have become of paramount importance and in particular the skills required to motivate and influence others in a collaborative teamwork environment. Local authorities have been particularly successful in working with private sector relationships in order to enhance service provision, increased efficiencies and implementation of cost reduction programmes.