Paradoxical Tensions as a Double-Edged Sword: Analysing the Development of Platform Cooperatives in the European Gig Economy

Damion J. Bunders; Tine De Moor

doi:10.1177/10564926231202422

Paradoxical Tensions as a Double-Edged Sword: Analysing the Development of Platform Cooperatives in the European Gig Economy

Damion J. Bunders, Tine De Moor

Erasmus University Rotterdam

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › Academic › peer-review

Abstract

Platform cooperatives promise to provide an alternative organizational model of worker ownership and governance to heavily criticized investor-owned gig platforms, but have until now remained relatively rare. This study examines the development of platform co-ops to gain insight into the reasons and mechanisms behind their slow but steady growth in Europe. Using desk research on 48 platform co-ops and 16 in-depth interviews with founders of platform co-ops, we build on paradox theorizing to analyze how founders of platform co-ops manage competing demands during the start-up phase. Extending recent studies on interorganizational paradoxes, we show how systemic tensions in the gig economy motivate the creation of platform co-ops as a way of coping and that interactions between tensions on different levels during actual development can result in failed market entry. Hence, this study also addresses the counter-intuitiveness to the establishment of organizations permeated with paradoxical tensions.

Original language	English
Pages (from-to)	366-382
Number of pages	17
Journal	Journal of Management Inquiry
Volume	33
Issue number	4
Early online date	28 Sept 2023
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1177/10564926231202422
Publication status	Published - Oct 2024
Externally published	Yes

Bibliographical note

Funding Information:
The authors received financial support for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article: This study is part of the research program Sustainable Cooperation – Roadmaps to Resilient Societies (SCOOP). The authors are grateful to the Netherlands Organization for Scientific Research (NWO) and the Dutch Ministry of Education, Culture and Science (OCW) for generously funding this research in the context of its 2017 Gravitation Program (grant number 024.003.025).

Publisher Copyright:
© The Author(s) 2023.

Funding

The authors thank Joshua Keller, in his role as editor, for his insightful comments and encouragement. Informal conversations of the first author with Daan Peeters have also helped to shape this article. Moreover, the authors are grateful for all support and suggestions received while presenting this research at the 7th International Workshop on the Sharing Economy. The authors received financial support for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article: This study is part of the research program Sustainable Cooperation \u2013 Roadmaps to Resilient Societies (SCOOP). The authors are grateful to the Netherlands Organization for Scientific Research (NWO) and the Dutch Ministry of Education, Culture and Science (OCW) for generously funding this research in the context of its 2017 Gravitation Program (grant number 024.003.025). The authors received financial support for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article: This study is part of the research program Sustainable Cooperation \u2013 Roadmaps to Resilient Societies (SCOOP). The authors are grateful to the Netherlands Organization for Scientific Research (NWO) and the Dutch Ministry of Education, Culture and Science (OCW) for generously funding this research in the context of its 2017 Gravitation Program (grant number 024.003.025).

Keywords

innovation
multilevel analysis or framework
organizational development
paradox
tensions

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10.1177/10564926231202422Licence: CC BY

Cite this

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abstract = "Platform cooperatives promise to provide an alternative organizational model of worker ownership and governance to heavily criticized investor-owned gig platforms, but have until now remained relatively rare. This study examines the development of platform co-ops to gain insight into the reasons and mechanisms behind their slow but steady growth in Europe. Using desk research on 48 platform co-ops and 16 in-depth interviews with founders of platform co-ops, we build on paradox theorizing to analyze how founders of platform co-ops manage competing demands during the start-up phase. Extending recent studies on interorganizational paradoxes, we show how systemic tensions in the gig economy motivate the creation of platform co-ops as a way of coping and that interactions between tensions on different levels during actual development can result in failed market entry. Hence, this study also addresses the counter-intuitiveness to the establishment of organizations permeated with paradoxical tensions.",

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Paradoxical Tensions as a Double-Edged Sword: Analysing the Development of Platform Cooperatives in the European Gig Economy

Abstract

Bibliographical note

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Keywords

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