Beyond Compliance?: Implementing DORA Across Organizational Boundaries

Abstract

Regulations require the implementation process to be interconnected across organizational and technological settings. However, the implementation of regulations is frequently perceived as a compliance procedure that is straightforward. This leaves limited attention to how various actors are shaping their expertise, authority and responsibilities. This study utilizes DORA’s implementation as an empirical case in Swedish context to further explore how these dynamics are constructed within regulatory environments. It employs boundary work as its theoretical framework and utilized a qualitative multiple case approach, conducting nine semi-structured interviews with financial institutions, consultants, and system providers engaged in DORA implementation in Sweden. The findings add to the literature on regulatory implementation and boundary work by demonstrating that DORA implementation involves more than mere compliance but entails continuous negotiation across organizational and technological boundaries. Consequently, the process of implementing DORA itself generates boundary work. As DORA implementation continues to evolve, there is a necessity for future research on how these dynamics will develop over time.