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Organization Studies
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Central Agencies in the Diffusion and Design of Technology: A Comparison of the UK and Sweden

Jacky Swan

Warwick Business School, University of Warwick, Coventry, UK

Sue Newell

Nottingham Business School, Nottingham Trent University, Nottingham, UK

Maxine Robertson

Coventry Business School, Coventry University, UK

This paper compares the adoption and design of Computer-Aided Production Management (CAPM) technologies in Sweden and the UK and examines the influence of technology suppliers and Professional Associations (PAs) as central agencies in shaping this diffusion process. Members of professional operations management associations in each country were surveyed and interviews were carried out with key stakeholders. These revealed differences in diffusion patterns with earlier adoption of standardized packaged solutions in the UK and a stronger reliance on in-house customized systems in Sweden. An explanation for this is that highly codified and portable notions of `best practice' have been promoted more strongly both by technology suppliers and PAs in the UK than in Sweden. The paper suggests that objectified forms of knowledge communication and fashion setting have dominated diffusion and design processes more heavily in the UK than in Sweden. This may be problematic because objectified notions of `best practice' under-emphasize the context-sensitivity of the technology and the need for organizational redesign. It is argued that the observed differences in the patterns of diffusion require an explanation at the level of societal effects.

Key Words: innovation diffusion • societal effects • fashion-setting • networks • professional associations • technology suppliers

Organization Studies, Vol. 20, No. 6, 905-931 (1999)
DOI: 10.1177/0170840699206001
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