The role of physical space in collaborative workplaces hosting entrepreneurs: the case of The Beehive in Paris, France

Publication by Julie Fabbri & Florence Charue-Duboc , ,
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Abstract in English:

In the knowledge economy, workers are less and less tied to a specific business
location. This growing phenomenon entails a re-examination of the role and the benefits
of the work space. In line with the ‘spatial turn’ trend (van Marrejick and Yanow,
2010), we attempt to better understand the materiality of the work space and how it can
be leveraged as a management tool to support innovation processes (Allen and Henn,
2007). We chose to concentrate on a set of micro-enterprises occupying a shared work
space at ‘The Beehive’ (France) to study whether and how spatial design can support
interactions between several independent organisations. Through an empirical and
interpretative qualitative research design combining interviews and ethnography, we
show how the work space can – in its physical and social components – induce new
forms of collaboration across organisational boundaries to foster innovativeness.

Editor(s) Full Names François-Xavier de Vaujany, Nathalie Mitev

Open Access? No

Book Title Materiality and Space. Organizations, Artefacts and Practices
Publication Year 2013

Publisher Palgrave Macmillan

English | Discipline Organization Studies