Propositions on the interaction of organizational culture with other factors in the context of BPM adoption

The paper investigates differences in the success of business process management (BPM) initiatives and their connection with organizational culture. The purpose of this paper is to identify propositions on characteristics of BPM initiative that are favorable for its success according to dominant organizational culture. Therefore, the authors’ aim was to identify connections of organizational commitment to BPM and dimensions of business process orientation (BPO) with dominant organizational culture.

As a research design, the authors used a questionnaire to collect data on the BPM adoption practices of organizations in Austria, Croatia and Slovenia with more than 50 employees. BPM adoption was measured with BPO and organizational culture with Competing Values Framework (CVF). Non-parametric tests have been applied for the analysis. On this survey data, the authors conducted statistical tests to identify those factors that discriminate successful from unsuccessful BPM initiatives.

The study revealed empirical insights about characteristics of successful BPM initiatives in different organizational cultures. There are several statistically significant differences with respect to the success of BPM adoption. The chance of success appears to be higher: when the BPM initiative is rolled out in the entire organization if the organization has Clan, Market or Hierarchy culture; when the BPM is run on a continuous basis in Hierarchy culture and repeatedly in Adhocracy culture; when a top-down approach is used in organizations with Market or Hierarchy dominant culture; when the BPM initiative has a strategic role and formal responsibilities are defined in Clan and Hierarchy cultures.

The authors’ empirical findings provide the basis for the formulation of detailed propositions on the interaction of various factors and their impact on BPM adoption in connection to organizational culture. In this way, the authors’ contribution is situated in the inductive research cycle and informs theory building for BPM adoption.