Harnessing Productive Tensions in Hybrid Organizations: The Case of Work Integration Social Enterprises

Julie  Battilana; Metin  Sengul; Anne-Claire   Pache; Jacob  Model

Article | Academy of Management Journal | December 2015

Harnessing Productive Tensions in Hybrid Organizations: The Case of Work Integration Social Enterprises

by Julie Battilana, Metin Sengul, Anne-Claire Pache and Jacob Model

Abstract

We examine the factors that influence the social performance of hybrid organizations that pursue a social mission, and sustain their operations through commercial activities, by studying work integration social enterprises (WISEs). We argue that social imprinting and economic productivity are both important drivers of WISEs' social performance. However, there is a paradox inherent in the social imprinting of WISEs: although it directly enhances their social performance, it also indirectly weakens it by negatively affecting economic productivity. Results based on panel data of French WISEs between 2003 and 2007 are congruent with our predictions. In order to understand how socially imprinted WISEs may mitigate this negative relationship between social imprinting and economic productivity, we also conduct a comparative analysis of case studies. We find that one effective approach is to assign responsibility for social and economic activities to distinct groups while creating "spaces of negotiation"—areas of interaction that allow members of each group to discuss the trade-offs they face. We conclude by highlighting the conditions under which spaces of negotiation can effectively be used to maintain a productive tension in hybrid organizations.

Keywords: hybrid organizations; social enterprise; Social Entrepreneurship; Organizations; Performance Productivity;

Format: Print

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Citation:

Battilana, Julie, Metin Sengul, Anne-Claire Pache, and Jacob Model. "Harnessing Productive Tensions in Hybrid Organizations: The Case of Work Integration Social Enterprises." Academy of Management Journal 58, no. 6 (December 2015): 1658–1685.

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Harnessing Productive Tensions in Hybrid Organizations: The Case of Work Integration Social Enterprises

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