The Valley of Uncertainty - Scaling the Chasm Between Entrepreneurial and Operations Management Logics

Sammanfattning

This thesis explores how scalable organizational structures and processes develop in practice as an SME pursues scaling ambitions. While scaling research recognizes scaling as an internal transformation, limited attention has been given to how this unfolds through everyday organizing. To address this gap, the study adopts a qualitative, interpretive single-case design based on 22 semi- structured interviews across hierarchical levels and functions. Drawing on institutional logics, entrepreneurship, and operations management literature, the thesis conceptualizes two analytical constructs: entrepreneurial logic and operations management logic. These form the basis for the valley of uncertainty, a framework capturing the transitional phase in which organizations attempt to translate existing ways of working into scalable structures and processes without sufficient understanding of the actions needed to produce desired outcomes. The findings show that entrepreneurial ways of working enabled historical growth but also created challenges related to person-dependence, uneven execution, and limited knowledge transfer. In response, the case company is introducing operations management- oriented structures, including standardized routines, performance measurement, and formalized processes. Increasing scalability depends on both process knowledge - an understanding of which activities drive value and how they can be standardized - and successful negotiation between the two logics. In the valley of uncertainty, limited process knowledge constrains the translation of tacit knowledge into scalable routines without undermining value creation, while negotiation between logics shapes whether such knowledge can be developed. The study contributes to theory and practice by showing how scalable organizing is shaped by actors' attempts to interpret, negotiate, and enact structural change under uncertainty.