Using Social Network Analysis to Inform Organizational Design in a Networked Improvement Community

• In Event: 51.045 - Social Organization of Networked Improvement Communities: A Conceptual Framework and Empirical Studies of Its Dimensions

Abstract

Objectives
A growing number of researchers are using social network analysis (SNA) to understand educational reform (Daly, 2010; Hatch, Hill, & Roegman, 2016; Spillane, Kim, & Frank, 2012). Because SNA can make visible the often invisible relationships undergirding an organization, it has been a highly useful tool for researchers seeking to understand dynamics in schools and districts. However, we know little about how educational leaders may use SNA for practical purposes. This paper offers a case study of how the leaders of one Networked Improvement Community (NIC) used social network analysis to understand points of weakness within their organization, make changes in its design, and assess the impact of these changes. We ask the question: How can the leaders of a networked improvement community use social network analysis to inform the design of their organization?

Theoretical framework
This paper is grounded in the emerging literature on networked improvement within organizations (Authors, 2015; Authors, 2016; Authors, 2017). It also draws on social capital theory (Lin, 1999) and concepts from organizational design (Spillane & Coldren, 2011) to understand how changes in organizational structures might influence social networks.

Methods & Data Sources
This study uses qualitative methods to document the decision making processes of NIC leaders, and quantitative methods to assess the impact of leaders’ design decisions on their organization’s social network. First, we analyze notes taken during meetings and written reflections from NIC leaders to describe decisions they made in response to social network data. Then, we use UCINET software (Borgatti, Everett, & Freeman, 2002) to assess changes in the NIC’s social network over time.

Survey data were collected in May 2017 and January 2018 from all 88 members of the NIC. Members were asked a sociocentric social network survey item in which they indicated their frequency of communication with other network members. Response rates were greater than 75%. Additional data include meeting notes from conversations with NIC leaders and their written reflections on the use of SNA.

Preliminary Results
NIC leaders were able to use SNA to identify problematic network patterns and change their organization’s design in order to remedy these patterns. SNA in time 1 indicated that the overall network was centralized and that there were few connections across schools within the network. In response, NIC leaders initiated organizational routines that encouraged network connections across sites. NIC leaders were guided in their actions by the NIC developmental framework, which asserts that social connections that cross organizational boundaries can drive learning. Survey data from time 2 indicate that network cohesion and cross-site connections increased. These network changes aligned with the design changes put in place by the NIC leaders.

Scholarly Significance
A significant body of research has used SNA to investigate how educational organizations function. However, we have few examples of how leaders can use network data to guide their decision making. This paper starts to build our understanding of how the use of SNA, when guided by a conceptual framework, can be a practical tool for improvement.

Author

• David Gilbert Sherer, The Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching