Interorganizational complexity and organizational accident risk: A literature review

Abstract

Due to increased outsourcing in many industries, organizations are becoming larger and more interorganizationally complex and numerous operations now require cooperation among employees from different organizations. This paper presents a review of empirical literature addressing safety issues in complex interorganizational systems wherein the potential for major organizational accidents is present. Thematic analysis of the literature resulted in four main themes: economic pressures, disorganization, dilution of competence and organizational differences. The themes were viewed in light of different theoretical perspectives on organizational accident risk. The findings suggest that issues due to interorganizational complexity can hinder efficient safety management and thereby elevate the risk of organizational accidents. It is emphasized that further research is needed to better understand the implications of interorganizational complexity on safety management.

A Framework Based on a Systems Approach to Developing Safety Indicators in Fish Farming

“…Subcontractors are often part of the most hazardous operations. The indicators in this paper support some of the safety challenges found in previous research about the use of subcontractors [11]. For example, the Safe Job Analysis (SJA) may be viewed as a counter measure of disorganization and confusion of roles and responsibilities.…”

“…A concern with this development is how to ensure safety in operations with the increasing use of subcontractors. Milch and Laumann [11] reviewed inter-organizational complexity with regards to accident risk and found that four main themes are treated in research: economic pressures, disorganization, a dilution of competence, and organizational differences. The study found that inter-organizational complexity can hinder efficient safety management and thus elevate the risk.…”

Sustaining safety across organizational boundaries: a qualitative study exploring how interorganizational complexity is managed on a petroleum-producing installation

“…Hence, such details are relevant in order for the reader to evaluate the work. Interview guides were developed based on previous findings from review of the literature on interorganizational complexity and safety (Milch and Laumann 2016). Additionally, since our point of departure concerned organizational safety and major accidents, the theoretical perspectives of Reason (1997) and HRO Sutcliffe 2007, 2015;Weick et al 2008) were also used as a source of inspiration in developing questions.…”

“…In a recent paper, Milch and Laumann (2016) reviewed extant empirical literature addressing interorganizational safety issues in safety-critical industries. Safety issues identified were found to stem from economic pressures among companies, problems with organizing and coordinating operational activity across organizational interfaces, lack of competence and experience in personnel, and organizational differences between companies.…”

“…These examples clearly illustrate that the involvement of multiple companies places greater demands on the communication and management of interfaces between organizations in operations. Milch and Laumann (2016) conducted a study where empirical literature addressing interorganizational safety issues in safety-critical contexts was examined. Safety issues fell into four categories: issues arising from economic pressures among organizations; issues associated with problems concerning organizing and coordinating operational activity across organizational interfaces; issues associated with lack of competence and experience among employees from different organizations; and issues associated with organizational differences among companies.…”