Resist or Comply: The Power Dynamics of Organizational Routines during Mergers
通过一所艺术学院与大学合并的案例，研究两个组织惯例（招生和预算）在并购中的不同反应，揭示权力动态如何导致惯例的抵制或服从，对理解组织变革中的权力关系有用。
The role of power and agency in the development of organizational routines is under‐theorized. In this paper, we draw on an in‐depth qualitative case study of a merger between two academic institutions, a college of art and a university, and examine the diverging responses of two organizational routines (admissions and budgeting) during the course of the merger to understand how power dynamics contribute to resistance/compliance of routines. Our findings suggest that the differences in routines’ responses to a merger initiative can be explained by applying Bourdieu's theory of practice and by employing the concepts of field and symbolic capital to unpack power relations in the context of organizational routines, and to disclose why some routine participants can exercise their agency while others cannot. We find that (a) the field within which a routine operates and (b) the actors’ symbolic capital and position‐taking during change implementation shape routines’ responses to organizational change initiatives.