Internal Crowd Work, Empowerment, and Agility

In a rapidly changing business environment, organizational agility has become a critical factor for companies seeking to enhance adaptability and competitiveness. This dissertation explores the untapped potential of Internal Crowd Work (ICW) as an innovative and agile form of work organization. Employing a multimethod research approach that includes case studies, a mixed-methods approach, and design science research, this work investigates the characteristics of ICW’s work organization and its impact on employees and organizations, such as its role in fostering empowerment and workforce agility. It also examines Internal Crowdfunding as a specific ICW variant aimed at boosting corporate innovativeness and employee empowerment. Furthermore, it presents a systematic process design for continuous business model improvement, enabling companies to effectively adapt to environmental changes.