Organisational Transformation in Municipal Sports Management Through a Collaborative Platform
Luís Filipe de Sousa Esteves Rodrigues, Nuno Domingos Garrido, António José Silva
Abstract
This article analyses organisational transformation in municipal sports management through the adoption of a collaborative platform, based on a doctoral thesis focused on the municipal company Tempo Livre – Guimarães. The study seeks to understand the before and after of the implementation of this digital tool, with special emphasis on internal communication, the efficiency of organisational processes, and the quality of decision-making support. In theoretical terms, the work is part of the literature on digital transformation, organisational efficiency and effectiveness, technological acceptance, and collaboration in an institutional context. Methodologically, it is based on a case study with a mixed methods approach, combining document analysis, operational data, questionnaires, and semi-structured interviews. The results show that, prior to the adoption of the platform, the organisation suffered from fragmented communication, dependence on informal channels, redundancies and reduced traceability of information. After implementation, communication became more structured, information was centralised, duplication of tasks was reduced, coordination between departments improved and decisions became more informed and transparent. It can be concluded that the collaborative platform is not only a technological innovation but also an instrument of structural organisational change, with positive effects on the modernisation of local public management and the strengthening of the responsiveness of municipal sports management.
Keywords
References
Bardin, L. (2016). Análise de conteúdo (Edição revista e atualizada). Edições 70.
Buzan, T. (2005). The ultimate book of mind maps: Unlock your creativity, boost your memory, change your life. HarperCollins.
Cândea, C., & Cândea, G. (2011). i-Portal and Factory Hub. In L. Caneta, M. Flores, & C. Redaelli (Eds.), Digital factory for human-centred production systems (pp. 271-282). Springer.
Cândea, C., Cândea, G., & Filip, F. G. (2012). iDecisionSupport – Web-based framework for decision support systems. In Proceedings of the 14th IFAC Symposium on Information Control Problems in Manufacturing (INCOM 2012) (pp. 1117-1122).
Davis, F. D. (1989). Perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use, and user acceptance of information technology. MIS Quarterly, 13(3), 319-340.
Engeström, Y. (2001). Expansive learning at work: Toward an activity theoretical reconceptualization. Journal of Education and Work, 14(1), 133-156.
Fernandes, A. R., & Rodrigues, M. (2020). Gestão da eficiência organizacional: Uma abordagem integrada. Edições Sílabo.
Forrester Research. (2023). The economic impact of collaborative technologies.
Harvard Business Review. (2023). How collaborative technologies are changing the way we work. Harvard Business Review.
Leavitt, P. (2016). Collaborative overload. Harvard Business Review, 94(1), 58-65.
Mintzberg, H. (1973). The nature of managerial work. Harper & Row.
Pinsonneault, K., & Tremblay, X. (2019). The impact of collaborative platforms on project management practices. In Proceedings of the 55th Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences (HICSS).
Porter, M. E. (1996). What is strategy? Harvard Business Review, 74(6), 61-78.
Putnam, R. D. (2000). Bowling alone: The collapse and revival of American community. Simon & Schuster.
Schmidt, K., & Biermann, P. (2021). Collaborative tools and organizational challenges: A case study of German enterprises. Journal of Business Innovation, 8(2), 22-39.
Sileyew, K. J. (2019). Research design and methodology. In Text mining: Analysis, programming and application (pp. 1-12). IntechOpen.
Silva, V. B. (2020). A importância do estudo da metodologia da investigação científica. Revista Científica Multidisciplinar Núcleo do Conhecimento, 5(6), 5-18.
Simon, H. A. (1979). The organization of work. Transaction Publishers.
United Nations. (2024). UN E-Government Survey 2024. Department of Economic and Social Affairs.
Submitted date:
01/11/2026
Accepted date:
03/15/2026
