Social interaction in management group meetings: a case study of Finnish hospital

Abstract

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to understand the role of management group meetings (MGMs) in hospital organization by examining the social interaction in these meetings. Design/methodology/approach - This case study approaches social interaction from a structuration point of view. Social network analysis and qualitative content analysis are applied. Findings - The findings show that MGMs are mainly forums for information sharing. Meetings are not held for problem solving or decision making, and operational coordinating is limited. Meeting interaction is very much focused on the chair, and most of the discussion takes place between the chair and one other member, not between members. The organizational structures are maintained and reproduced in the meeting interaction, and they appear to limit discussion. Meetings appear to fulfil their goals as a part of the organization's information structure and to some extent as an instrument for management. The significance of the relational side of MGMs was recognized. Research limitations/implications - The results of this study provide a basis for future research on hospital MGMs with wider datasets and other methodologies. Especially the relational role of MGMs needs more attention. Practical implications - The goals of MGMs should be reviewed and MG members should be made aware of meeting interaction structures. Originality/value - The paper provides new knowledge about interaction networks in hospital MGMs, and describes the complexity of the importance of MGMs for hospitals.

Modeling Temporal Interaction Dynamics in Organizational Settings

“…Unitizing according to turns of talk can be the method of choice for many research questions. For example, researchers have studied behavioral turns of talk when examining the way in which meeting attendees react to one another and shape the social network (Laapotti & Mikkola, 2016 ; Sauer & Kauffeld, 2013 ).…”

Frontline meetings as support for cross-boundary coordination in hospitals

“…Foundational to this ambition is the observation that meetings act not only as a mechanism to coordinate efforts at the middle-and top-management level in hospitals (Laapotti & Mikkola, 2016;Kochan et al, 2008;Peck et al, 2004), but that meetings also represent means to create proximity and institutionalized dialogue at the frontline of care delivery across occupational and organisational silos (Adler & Heckscher, 2013).…”

Organisaation merkityksentäminen sairaalajohtoryhmäkokouksissa

“…Suomessa sairaalajohtoryhmäkokoukset ovat tärkeitä tiedonjakamisen solmukohtia (Viitanen ym. 2011; Laapotti & Mikkola 2016). Tiedonjakamisen suurin merkitys on todettu olevan osallistujille "ison kuvan muodostamisessa" eli sairaalaorganisaation kokonaisuuden hahmottamisessa (Laapotti & Mikkola 2016).…”

“…2011; Laapotti & Mikkola 2016). Tiedonjakamisen suurin merkitys on todettu olevan osallistujille "ison kuvan muodostamisessa" eli sairaalaorganisaation kokonaisuuden hahmottamisessa (Laapotti & Mikkola 2016). Sairaalajohtoryhmillä ei useinkaan ole varsinaisia strategisia vastuita, vaan ne toimivat ensisijaisesti yksiköiden johtamisen tukieliminä, joiden tehtävät liittyvät lähinnä tiedonvälitykseen ja koordinointiin (Viitanen ym.…”

“…Sairaalajohtoryhmäkokouksiin osallistujat ovat todenneet näiden kokousten olevan merkittäviä hei-dän oman työnsä kannalta (Viitanen ym. 2011;Laapotti & Mikkola 2016). Sairaaloiden organisaatiorakenteessa johtoryhmiä on useimmiten monella organisaatiotasolla.…”