Institutional logics and organizational change: the role of place and time

This paper investigates the case of a hybrid organization located in Northern Italy with the aim of providing an understanding of the role of the context, defined in terms of ‘place’ and ‘time’, in shaping organizational changes. A dynamic institutional approach focused on both ‘place’ and ‘time’ as key explanatory factors can provide a valuable framework to understand both the changing institutional demands on the firm and the rationalities behind the changes that occur at organizational, strategic and governance level. Consequently, this paper aims to contribute to the institutional logics literature by describing how these two contextual elements can be used to interpret institutional logic pressures on the organization under investigation as well as govern changes at micro level. The results indicate that the changes were produced by dynamics that are exogenous and endogenous to the organization in the case study and strongly influenced by the context in which it operates. The paper also highlights how changes in terms of service provision, accountability and organizational setting are the results of the ‘place’ and ‘time’ in which these events occur.