Market Ventures, Moral Logics, and Ambiguity: Crafting a New Organizational Form in Post-Socialist China

Abstract

How do institutional entrepreneurs craft new organizational forms under unstable conditions, especially when all of the relevant organizational models have serious liabilities in terms of legitimacy? Previous literature argues that emergent organizational models must adopt existing organizational elements in order to solve three problems: (1) gaining access to resources, (2) exploiting previous competencies, and (3) demonstrating legitimacy to salient audiences. Yet, these three distinct needs often require very different organizational elements associated with diverse, contradictory moral logics. This article, which examines the case of for-profit ventures started by Chinese state organizations in the 1990s, reveals one strategy that entrepreneurs can use to solve this problem—to deliberately increase ambiguity about the organization's central characteristics and its underlying moral logic. This strategy makes it possible for new organizations to solve the problems of resources, competency, and legitimacy by simultaneously adopting (and adapting) contradictory organizational elements.

NOTES

Notes

¹ The university, Haerbin Gongye Daxue in Chinese, is also translated into English as Harbin Polytechnic University and Harbin Industrial University. Harbin, the capital of the northeastern province of Heilongjiang, is a city of 3 million people.

² This language is not unique to Harbin, but is common in other Chinese cities (Lu and Perry 1997:172; Pearson 1997:11).

³ All quotes were from interviewees who worked at the HIT Technology Park/Group, unless otherwise indicated.

⁴ Xia gang is technically different from a straightforward layoff. Work units are supposed to find new jobs for their xia gang workers, a difficult prospect at best. Also, if the enterprise should become profitable in the future, it is under some obligation to hire xia gang workers back again. However, in reality, xia gang employees know better than to hope for this.

⁵ See “Sun Weiben Inspects High-tech Park in Harbin” (text). Harbin Heilongjiang People's Radio Network in Mandarin (10:00 p.m., Greenwich Mean Time; February 2, 1993). FBIS Daily Report—China; February 3, 1993 (PrEx 7.10: FBIS—CHI-93–020).

⁶ “China to Substitute Copper Alloy for Silver Alloy in Industrial Sectors” (FBIS transcribed text). Beijing Xinhua in English (January 17, 2001). FBIS Daily Report—China; January 17, 2001 (PrEx 7.10: FBIS—CHI-2001–0117).