Veranstaltungsprogramm der VHB Jahrestagung

How gender inequalities are disrupted or (re)produced in Scrum teams is the main question we tackle with in this paper. Drawing upon the concept of gendered organization by Acker (1990) and using qualitative data from 14 interviews we aim to better understand the limitations and potentials of agile work structures, i.e. the Scrum method, with respect to gender equality. The findings reveal an ambivalent picture, where Scrum values and practices turn out to possess emancipatory potential. However, numerous gendered organizational practices could be identified too. Consistent with Acker's (1990) concept of gendered organization, our interviews show how a gendered culture (i.e., gendered images of Scrum Master and Product Owner), gendered interaction (i.e. the self-organized nature of Scrum teams), gendered organizational practices and structures (i.e., the limited compatibility of Scrum with part-time work), and a gendered organizational logic (i.e., the negation of gender inequality) are (re)produced in Scrum teams.

While research on open strategy emphasizes the potentials of increasing transparency and involving employees in strategy-making, its relation to codetermination and other traditional forms of workplace democracy is neither investigated nor theorized. In this essay, we discuss various potential reasons for this omission, followed by an identification of issues for open strategy research and practice that are affected by this. We then derive and assess concerns for management as well as elected worker representatives, before ending with suggestions for future research on open strategy and workplace democracy.