The roles within: Building energy conservation in the United States through alliance networks and other voluntary strategies

Humans are consuming more energy from fossil fuels today than ever before. Energy conservation, particularly in the commercial building sector, offers an immense energy resource for the U.S. economy. Researchers have long tussled with the challenge that, despite the wide range of technically, financially, and often politically viable energy efficiency strategies in the United States, conservation still remains a largely underutilized energy resource. This dissertation employs both quantitative and qualitative methods to address this long-standing challenge to policymakers, businesses, organizational theorists, and citizens. The research embodied in this dissertation begins with an analysis of voluntary programs for energy conservation. The research is then narrowed to understand the ways in which a variety of roles develop within voluntary energy alliance networks and the relationships between organizational roles and the diffusion of knowledge as one means to promote energy savings in commercial buildings. In chapter 1, I introduce an observed problem from practice and outline the framework for this dissertation. In chapter 2, I draw upon the existing literature on barriers to the adoption of energy conservation measures in commercial building development. Using interview, survey, and archival data, I distill a complex system of energy efficiency programs into a single framework. I classify the strategic drivers leading to the emergence of each program form and assess the shortcomings of each voluntary program form when considered singularly. Finally, in this chapter I find that to achieve greater adoption of energy conservation in commercial building development, a comprehensive portfolio of voluntary and mandated programs must be applied. Next, chapters 3 and 4 present the results of research that employed analytic induction coupled with social network analysis to analyze the United States Department of Energy Commercial Building Energy Alliances (CBEAs)—a cross-sectoral alliance network committed to greater adoption of energy conservation in the commercial building sector. In chapter 3, I explore voluntary energy alliances as a governance form for addressing energy conservation in commercial buildings. I unpack structural and interactionist role theories to present a new framework that explains the emergence of interorganizational roles in a network setting. I identify four forms of knowledge created and shared in the CBEAs. My findings show that each interorganizational role had implications on the diffusion and access to each form of knowledge shared in the network. Finally, my findings here show that a (mis)alignment of role aspiration, focal perception of role, or attribution by other organizations could be related to a number of role processes: consensus, conflict, dissonance, and ambiguity, each with implications for alliance success and stability. In chapter 4, I identify the relationships between governance strategy, governmental organization roles, and the diffusion of data, information, and knowledge within the CBEAs. I empirically assess the roles government entities may take in balancing the creation and diffusion of both public and private goods inside and outside of the alliance network context. I show that the network governance form is an opportunity for government entities to engage with the private sector in a more collaborative and balanced approach for promoting both public and private goods than either market-oriented or hierarchical strategies alone allow. The research reported in this dissertation thereby contributes to a better practical and theoretical understanding of government-led alliance networks, energy conservation, policy, and management in the built environment.