David Grant

Metaphor and analogical reasoning in organization theory: beyond orthodoxy

by Cliff Oswick, Tom Keenoy, and David Grant

This note concerns the creative potential of tropes in the process of analogical reasoning. We fi... more

COLLECTIVE COGNITION OR SOCIAL CONSTRUCTION? A DIALOGIC ANALYSIS OF ORGANISATIONAL LEARNING

by Cliff Oswick, Tom Keenoy, and David Grant

Dialogue is often seen as the process by which the gap between individual and organisational lear... more Dialogue is often seen as the process by which the gap between individual and organisational learning is bridged. Here we explore how the enactment of a discursive epistemology - involving the social construction of a dramatised narrative - can be used to generate insights into organisational learning. Using extracts taken from the transcripts of 90 hours of tape-recorded dialogue, we

The Discourses of Organizing

by Cliff Oswick, Tom Keenoy, and David Grant

The Journal of Applied Behavioral Science, 2000

... Through what he calls a fantasy theme analysis, he deconstructs the text of Senge&amp;#x2... more

Japanization and new industrial relations

Knowledge Management or Management of Knowledge? Why People Interested in Knowledge Management Need to Consider Foucault and the Construct of Power

In this article we argue that, to date, the knowledge management literature has insufficiently ad... more In this article we argue that, to date, the knowledge management literature has insufficiently addressed the construct of power. The power literature is reviewed using three categories: power-as-entity, power-as-strategy and power-is-knowledge. We find that much of the knowledge management literature, while not directly addressing power, aspires to the dictum "knowledge is power", which corresponds to the power-as-entity approach. Drawing on the work of Foucault we go on to show that, while the power-as-entity approach is important, it is not sufficient. Foucault's work demonstrates how our understanding of knowledge management can be enriched by adopting a power-as-strategy approach. Further, the work of post-Foucauldian power theorists, especially Flyvbjerg (1998), shows that while knowledge is power, "power is also knowledge" - and thus the nature and context of power shapes organizational knowledge. We argue that Foucault's inseparability of knowled...

Managing enterprise resource planning systems

Strategic Change, 2005

The last decade has seen a dramatic growth in the number of organizations adopting Enterprise Res... more

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Organizational Discourse and New Organization Development Practices

British Journal of Management, 2008

A new ensemble of organization development (OD) practices have emerged that are based more on con... more A new ensemble of organization development (OD) practices have emerged that are based more on constructionist, post modern and new sciences premises than the assumptions of the early founders. These include practices associated with appreciative inquiry, large group interventions, changing mindsets and consciousness, addressing diversity and multicultural realities, and advancing new and different models of change. We propose that the emerging field of organizational discourse offers sympathetic concepts and research that could add additional insights and theoretical rigour to the New OD. In particular, studies of organizational discourse based upon social constructionist and critical perspectives offer compelling ideas and practices associated with the establishment of change concepts, the role of power and context in relation to organizational change, and specific discursive interventions designed to foster organizational change.

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Introduction: Struggles with Organizational Discourse

Organization Studies, 2004

'The study of organizational discourse, and the way it shapes our habits of thought, by legi... more

Toward a Discourse-Centered Understanding of Organizational Change

The Journal of Applied Behavioral Science, 2011

Although organizational change involves a complex set of communicative and language-based process... more Although organizational change involves a complex set of communicative and language-based processes, discourse-based approaches for understanding and managing change dynamics have been relatively underutilized by researchers and practitioners. To help address this situation, this article advances an analytic framework for explaining how discourse and organizational change are mutually implicated. Drawing on the research literature, the constructive, multilevel, conversational, political, reflexive,

Single Union/No Strike Deals at Japanese Transplants in the UK: The Implications for Trade Union Decline Based on Case Study Evidence

Management Research News, 1993

Revitalizing scholarship in identity studies

Scandinavian Journal of Management, 2012

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“Flexibility” as the rationale for organizational change: a discourse perspective

Journal of Organizational Change Management, 2013

ABSTRACT

Narrative, drama and charismatic leadership: The case of Apple's Steve Jobs

Leadership, 2011

ABSTRACT This article argues that a leader’s narrative and storytelling skills play a critical ro... more ABSTRACT This article argues that a leader’s narrative and storytelling skills play a critical role in constructing their charismatic identity. In line with Goffman’s (1959) observations, we argue that these skills are effected through ‘stage management’: a segregation between back and front ‘performing regions’ that serves to minimise potential incursions, leaks, disruptions and faux pas that may undermine the leader’s performance. Further, we suggest that Burke’s (1966) observations in relation to the importance of scene setting offer important insights into the impact of leader storytelling and narrative on followers. We revise and extend Gardner and Avolio’s (1998) dramaturgical model of the charismatic relationship in order to reflect these observations, and go on to apply this model to an analysis of three public performances by a case-study leader — Steve Jobs, co-founder and CEO of Apple Inc. We examine Jobs’ performances as discursive texts, exploring the ways in which he uses them, through stage management, to practice narrative and storytelling and explore how, through these discursive activities, he is able to define himself and his world for his followers. In doing so, we empirically demonstrate and extend the utility of the dramaturgical metaphor to the study of charismatic leadership.

Trade unions, political funds ballots and party political funding

Policy Studies, 1999

ABSTRACT

Organizational Discourse Studies

Readers beware: Provocation, problematization and ... problems

Human Relations, 2012

ABSTRACT In their recent Human Relations article and subsequent rejoinder to three commentators, ... more ABSTRACT In their recent Human Relations article and subsequent rejoinder to three commentators, Alvesson and Kärreman make a number of assertions concerning the development of organizational discourse analysis and the current state of research in this area. We believe their emphasis on provocation results in an unsatisfactory problematization of discourse-based work with the result that there are significant problems with both their analysis of the literature and their solutions to the shortcomings that they believe exist. We discuss a number of reasons why we believe that readers should be wary of what they read about organizational discourse analysis in Alvesson and Kärreman’s work. Drawing on our critique of their article and rejoinder, we propose some ideas that we believe will be more useful in developing studies of organizational discourse than those put forward by these authors.

New Style Agreements at Japanese Transplants in the UK: The Implications for Trade Union Decline

Employee Relations, 1994

HRM, rhetoric and the psychological contract: a case of 'easier said than done

The International Journal of Human Resource Management, 1999

Abstract This article argues that employee expectations play an important role in the formulation... more

DISCOURSE AND COLLABORATION: THE ROLE OF CONVERSATIONS AND COLLECTIVE IDENTITY

Academy of Management Review, 2005

We explore the relationship between discourse and interorganizational collaboration, arguing that... more We explore the relationship between discourse and interorganizational collaboration, arguing that interorganizational collaboration can be understood as the product of sets of conversations that draw on existing discourses. Specifically, we argue that effective collaboration, which we define as cooperative, interorganizational action that produces innovative, synergistic solutions and balances divergent stakeholder concerns, emerges out of a two-stage process. In this process conversations produce discursive resources that create a collective identity and translate it into effective collaboration.

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by David Grant and Cliff Oswick

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