Pioneering genomics innovation : using dynamic work design to implement a system of organizational boundary objects

• Main Author: Linville-Engler, Benjamin
• Other Authors: Nelson Repenning.
• Format: Others
• Language: English
• Published: Massachusetts Institute of Technology 2018
• Subjects: Engineering and Management Program.; Integrated Design and Management Program.
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/118540

Thesis: S.M. in Engineering and Management, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, System Design and Management Program, 2018. === Cataloged from PDF version of thesis. === Includes bibliographical references (pages 67-69). === In the past decade, the cost associated with processing the human genome has decreased at a rate that is outpacing Moore's Law. The first human genome was sequenced in 2001, the culmination of a ten-year effort at a program cost of $2.7 billion. This has increased the accessibility of genomics research and enabled rapid development of adjacent biotechnologies and new genetic treatments. The Broad Institute, responsible for analyzing the first human genome, has remained at the center of this rapidly growing industry. Broad Genomics, a 200+ person division of the Broad Institute, is focused on the high-quality delivery of genomic data and data science. Over the past five years, Broad Genomics has been the largest producer of human genomic information in the world. Processing more than 1.5 million samples from over 50 countries. While conducting research for this thesis, Broad Genomics sequenced its 100,000th human genome. Shortly after the division's inception in 2012, Broad Genomics implemented the Dynamic Work Design and Visual Management method developed by Nelson Repenning, the MIT Sloan School of Management Distinguished Professor of System Dynamics and Organization Studies and Associate Dean of Leadership. This method offers a new approach to designing work that is both effective and engaging, while ensuring daily operational work is directly linked to the high-level strategic goals of the Broad Genomics organization. Positive operational results of this intervention for whole genome and exome sequencing were published in a case study in 2017. In the interim, continued iteration on this implementation has resulted in an integrated system of three primary levels of Visual Management boards within the organization. The goal of this research was to assess the continued alignment with the principles of Dynamic Work Design and to assess their effectiveness through an integrated system of boundary objects architected through multiple functional levels of the Broad Genomics organization. Additionally, the research evaluates the harmonization of Dynamic Work Design with principles and frameworks of knowledge boundaries and boundary objects as well as recent team dynamics and people analytics research. === by Benjamin Linville-Engler. === S.M. in Engineering and Management