Jonas Hedegaard defends his PhD thesis
Jonas Hedegaard defends the PhD thesis: "Paradoxical tensions in a volunteer-driven organization. Leadership and management at Roskilde Festival"
You can participate at Roskilde University or online via Zoom: https://ruc-dk.zoom.us/j/69264399279?pwd=yH4tnXxEPVl0iHbNaUu1FVwtGAUreF.1
The defence is public, and everybody is welcome; the defence is scheduled for a maximum of three hours and will be held in English.
Department of People and Technology will host a small reception afterwards.
Supervisors and assessment
Assessment commitee:
- Julie Borup Jensen, tt备用网址, Aalborg University
- Katia Dupret, Associate tt备用网址, Roskilde University
- Marco Berti, tt备用网址, Management and Organizations, Nova School of Business & Economics, Portugal
Supervisor:
- Linda Lundgaard Andersen, tt备用网址, Roskilde University
Abstract
This PhD thesis addresses two key gaps in the current literature: first, the need for a more nuanced and complex understanding of volunteer management and governance, beyond a narrow ‘best practice’ approach. Second, it contributes to paradox theory by offering a deeper understanding of how interwoven paradoxes manifest and are managed. Using Roskilde Festival – one of Northern Europe’s largest music festivals, which operates with over 30,000 volunteers – as a case study, the thesis explores how the complexities of the organisation’s hybrid structure give rise to paradoxical tensions. As a non-profit hybrid organisation operating under market conditions, Roskilde Festival faces unique challenges, particularly in handling tensions arising from its diverse values, multiple strategic ambitions, and hybrid workforce. Central to these tensions is the contradiction be-tween the festival’s need for professional standards and its reliance on a primarily volunteer workforce. These complexities result in paradoxical tensions, which must be effectively managed to prevent organisational inertia and inefficiency, as well as individual anxiety, burn-out and stress. When successfully navigated, however, the tensions may pro-mote both innovation and organisational cohesion.
The research is guided by the question: What paradoxes arise when Roskilde Festival transforms its organisational values and strategic ambitions into management, how do these paradoxes interweave, and how do the organisation and the volunteer managers deal with said paradoxes? To answer this question, the thesis employs a qualitative methodology grounded in action research, sup-ported by interviews and participant observation. Using the concept of ‘Insider Action Research’ the author engages the festival’s top management and a group of middle managers, including them as participants in the project and as co-creators of the empirical analysis. The empirical data is analysed through the lens of paradox theory with a focus on the processual and interwoven nature of these tensions. The analytical findings are then discussed in relation to research on organisations, management, and volunteers.
The thesis is structured around two key papers and an overarching analysis. The first paper explores how the leadership at Roskilde Festival transforms purpose, values, and strategy into everyday management practices, highlighting how managers navigate paradoxical tensions arising from the hybrid organisation’s conflicting values and goals, and its diverse workforce composition. The second paper investigates the central paradoxical tension between professionalism and volunteerism, illustrating how Roskilde Festival, as a world-class event driven primarily by volunteers, creates a context of ‘professional volunteerism’. This serves as a locus of interwoven tensions, where paradoxes and management responses are interconnected, offering a more complex understanding of organisational paradox. The analysis is structured by following the paradox framework of W. K. Smith & Lewis (2011) of paradoxes of performing, organising, belonging, and learning. In total, 12 aradoxical tensions are identified and examined in detail, including how they interweave, and the management responses employed to address them.
The analysis is followed by a discussion that highlights four key paradoxical tensions: 1) alignment and autonomy, 2) fellowship and ownership, 3) commitment and empowerment, and 4) professionalism and volunteerism. The first three tensions are explored through the development of three matrix models that integrate the empirical findings of the thesis with organisational theory and volunteer research, illustrating potential out-comes when managing these contradictory tensions. The final tension, between professionalism and volunteerism, is linked to the response of 'serious playfulness, which is identified as crucial in the managing of contradictions. As this tension interweaves with many of the other tensions, serious playfulness emerges as a key response for managing interwoven paradoxes within the festival organisation.
The thesis concludes by outlining several contributions to theory and practice. The findings demonstrate that hybrid organisations, such as Roskilde Festival, require dynamic governance and management strategies to navigate paradoxical tensions that extend be-yond simple balance. At Roskilde Festival, tensions between professionalism and volunteerism emerge as a central locus for interwoven tensions, and the response of "serious playfulness" is identified as a critical approach to managing these tensions. The thesis provides new insights into how these dynamics enhance volunteer engagement, and organisational cohesion and performance. New avenues for future research are suggested, and practical insights are offered to empower volunteer managers in navigating the complexities of paradoxical tensions more effectively.
Directions
Directions to Roskilde University