Learning a new ecology of space and looking for new routines: Experimenting robotics in a surgical team

Résumé En

When organization members face change, they can struggle to adapt, and may create new routines. Drawing on insights from a case study of bariatric robotic surgery, we illustrate how a new ecology of space transforms the ostensive and performative aspect of a routine during the introduction of a new technological artefact. We discuss two types of spaces: the experimental, and the reflective. We show that the reflective space enables practitioners through debriefings to discuss about the new patterns of interdependent actions. Practitioners explore the different aspects of the performative struggle encountered with new artefacts and try to integrate new actions and to delineate the boundaries of this change during experimental performances. Our findings put light on the role of the reflective space added to the experimental space in routine change and suggest that socio-material ensembles can produce opportunities for reshaping routines.