ABSTRACT

This chapter describes the way in which the intersection of networks can be a social and informal mechanism that contributes to organizational governance. Specifically, it is about a mechanism that helps the organization deal with potentially negative effects of status competition between members. Sutton and Hargadon provided rich descriptions of "bounded" or "segregated" status auctions in design firms; the status auction they describe is confined to the brainstorming room and designated brainstorming sessions. Cooperation between members of an organization can be seen as involving routine transfers or exchanges of various kinds of resources. Structural analysis of cooperation and management of various types of social resources enhances understanding of effective participation in collective action by explores the relationship between choices of important sources of resources in a specific type of organization. This approach helps identify generic social mechanisms that can be seen as constituting a form of corporate social capital.