Abstract
This study examines the organizational communication in the Norwegian public procurement process using two concepts from organization theory – loose coupling and sensemaking – to frame the analysis and discussion. In particular, this master thesis investigates the loosely coupled organizational communication between the three key rationalities in public procurement; namely the legal rationality, the quality rationality and the competition rationality. Each rationality pursues its own goals. For the legal rationality, it is compliance to rules and standards. For the quality rationality, the goal is a composite and unique whole – the required product. For the competition rationality, the aim is to win a tender. The second research objective derives from the organizational change that currently takes place in the Norwegian public sector. Public organizations undergo the process of digitalization, which implies changes to the organizational communication. Because the digitalization of communication may be considered as a fairly ambiguous phenomenon, public sector must engage in interpretive processes to make sense and enact new e-Tendering systems in the Norwegian public sector. According to the results of the study, e-Tendering leads to the professionalization of the procurer’s function and effectivization of the procurement process. Another finding concerns the disadvantaged position of SME due to insufficient IT knowledge. This is an unintended consequence of the digitalization of the public sector.