Technological Grounding Enrolling Technology as Adiscursive Resource to Justify Cultural Change in Organizations

Science, Technology & Human Values http://sth.sagepub.com/

Technological Grounding: Enrolling Technology as a Discursive Resource to Justify Cultural Change in Organizations
Paul M. Leonardi and Michele H. Jackson Science Technology Human Values 2009 34: 393 originally published online 18 February 2009 DOI: 10.1177/0162243908328771 The online version of this article can be found at: http://sth.sagepub.com/content/34/3/393

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Technological Grounding
Enrolling Technology as a Discursive Resource to Justify Cultural Change in Organizations
Paul M. Leonardi
Northwestern University

Science, Technology, & Human Values Volume 34 Number 3 May 2009 393-418 # 2009 Sage Publications 10.1177/0162243908328771 http://sth.sagepub.com hosted at http://online.sagepub.com

Michele H. Jackson
University of Colorado

In technologically grounded organizations, culture is bound tightly to the material characteristics of the technology that the organization manufactures, distributes, or services. Technological grounding helps explain why hightechnology organizations often experience cultural integration problems following a merger. Examining the recent merger of US West and Qwest, this article analyzes how powerful actors strategically used the process of

Citations: http://sth.sagepub.com/content/34/3/393.refs.html Downloaded from sth.sagepub.com at Durham University on July 31, 2013 >> Version of Record - Apr 6, 2009 OnlineFirst Version of Record - Feb 18, 2009 What is This? Downloaded from sth.sagepub.com at Durham University on July 31, 2013 O n June 30, 2000, Colorado-based US West (a regional telephone company) and Qwest Communications International (an Internet start-up) completed a US$40 billion merger, the second largest business transaction ever in the state 393 Downloaded from sth.sagepub.com at Durham University on July 31, 2013 Downloaded from sth.sagepub.com at Durham University on July 31, 2013 Leonardi, Jackson / Technological Grounding Downloaded from sth.sagepub.com at Durham University on July 31, 2013 396 Science, Technology, & Human Values Downloaded from sth.sagepub.com at Durham University on July 31, 2013 Leonardi, Jackson / Technological Grounding Data Sources For effective triangulation of the important technological and cultural elements represented in the merger, we combined data collection methods such as archives, textual analysis, and interviews (Eisenhardt 1989) Downloaded from sth.sagepub.com at Durham University on July 31, 2013 400 Science, Technology, & Human Values Downloaded from sth.sagepub.com at Durham University on July 31, 2013