How do design parameters of firm governance affect collaboration process dimensions in professional service firm?

Abstract

This article studies the effects of firm governance on the collaboration process dimensions in a public corporation type of professional service firm with one global integrated organization structure and a partnership type of professional service firm with network organization structure. One conceptual model is developed to structure the analysis and guide five expert interviews. This study finds that in the public corporation type of professional service firm, with one global integrated organization structure, the structural dimension of the collaboration process plays a more significant role than the agency and social capital dimension in establishing the collaboration process. On the contrary, in the partnership type of professional service firm, with a network organization structure, the social capital and the agency dimensions of the collaboration process play a more significant role than the structural dimension in establishing the collaboration process. It leads to the practical implementation in a partnership type of professional service firm, and the collaboration process would be started by building the social capital and agency dimensions. In a public corporation type of professional service firm, the collaboration process would be started by following the structural dimensions because being a public corporation forces the firm to have a defined and documented governance and administration (structural dimension).

Keywords

• Collaboration process dimension
• Firm governance
• Public corporation
• Partnership
• Professional services firms
• Professional services network firms