Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

‘If I Should Fall From Grace…’: Stories of Change and Organizational Ethics

  • Published:
Journal of Business Ethics Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Although studies in organizational storytelling have dealt extensively with the relationship between narrative, power and organizational change, little attention has been paid to the implications of this for ethics within organizations. This article addresses this by presenting an analysis of narrative and ethics as it relates to the practice of organizational downsizing. Drawing on Paul Ricoeur’s theories of narrative and ethics, we analyze stories of organizational change reported by employees and managers in an organization that had undergone persistent downsizing. Our analysis maintains that the presence of a dominant story that seeks to legitimate organizational change also serves to normalize it, and that this, in turn, diminishes the capacity for organizations to scrutinize the ethics of their actions. We argue that when organizational change narratives become singularized through dominant forms of emplotment, ethical deliberation and responsibility in organizations are diminished. More generally, we contend that the narrative closure achieved by the presence of a dominant narrative amongst employees undergoing organizational change is antithetical to the openness required for ethical questioning.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Abbott, P.A. 2002. The Cambridge Introduction to Narrative, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Agger, B. 1989, Fast Capitalism: A Critical Theory of Surveillance, Urbana: University of Illinois Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Agger, B. 2004, Speeding Up Fast Capitalism: Cultures, Jobs, Families, Schools, Bodies, Boulder: Paradigm.

    Google Scholar 

  • Barry, D., & Elmes, M. (1997). Strategy Retold: Towards a Narrative View of Strategic Discourse. Academy of Management Review, 22, 429–452. doi:10.2307/259329

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bauman, Z. 1993, Postmodern Ethics. Oxford: Blackwell

    Google Scholar 

  • Boje, D.M. (1991). Consulting and Change in the Storytelling Organization. Journal of Organizational Change Management, 4(3), 7–17. doi:10.1108/EUM0000000001193

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Boje, D.M. (1995). Stories of The Storytelling Organization: A Postmodern Analysis of Disney as ‘Tamara-Land’. Academy of Management Journal, 38, 997–1035. doi:10.2307/256618

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Boje, D.M. 2001, Narrative Methods for Organizational and Communication Research. London: Sage.

    Google Scholar 

  • Boyce, M. (1995). Collective Centering And Collective Sense-Making In The Stories and Storytelling of One Organization. Organization Studies, 16(1), 107–137. doi:10.1177/017084069501600106

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Brockner, J., Konovsky, M., Cooper-Schneider, R., Folger, R., Martin, C., & Bies, R.J. (1994). Interactive Effects of Procedural Justice and Outcome Negativity on Victims and Survivors of Job Loss. Academy of Management Journal, 37(2), 397–409. doi:10.2307/256835

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Brown, A. (1998). Narrative, Politics and Legitimacy in an IT Implementation. Journal of Management Studies, 35(1), 35–58. doi:10.1111/1467-6486.00083

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Brown, A.D., & Humphreys, M. (2003). Epic and Tragic Tales: Making Sense of Change. The Journal of Applied Behavioral Science, 39(2), 121–144. doi:10.1177/0021886303255557

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Budros, A. (1997). The New Capitalism and Organizational Rationality: The Adoption of Downsizing Programs, 1979-1994. Social Forces, 76(1), 229–249. doi:10.2307/2580324

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Byers, D., & Rhodes, C. (2007). Ethics, Alterity and Organizational Justice, Business Ethics. European Review Chichester, England, 16(3), 239–250.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cameron, K.S. (1994a). Investigating Organizational Downsizing – Fundamental Issues. Human Resource Management, 33(2), 183–188. doi:10.1002/hrm.3930330203

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cameron, K.S. (1994b). Strategies for Successful Organizational Downsizing. Human Resource Management, 33(2), 189–211. doi:10.1002/hrm.3930330204

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Carroll, N. (2007). Narrative Closure. Philosophical Studies, 135(1), 1–15. doi:10.1007/s11098-007-9097-9

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Childs, J. M. Jr.: 1997, `Business in an Age of Downsizing', Business Ethics Quarterly 7(2), 123–131

    Google Scholar 

  • Christensen, S.L., & Kohl, J. (2003). Ethical Decision Making in Times of Organizational Crisis: A Framework for Analysis. Business & Society, 42(3), 328–358. doi:10.1177/0007650303255855

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Clegg, S.R. 1993, Narrative, Power and Social Theory. In: D.K. Mumby (Ed.), Narrative and social control: Critical perspectives. Newbury Park: Sage, 16-45

    Google Scholar 

  • Clegg, S.R., & Rhodes, C. 2006, Management Ethics-Contemporary Contexts. London: Routledge.

    Google Scholar 

  • Clegg, S.R., Kornberger, M., & Rhodes, C. (2007a). Business Ethics as Practice. British Journal of Management, 18, 107–122. doi:10.1111/j.1467-8551.2006.00493.x

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Clegg, S.R., Kornberger, M., & Rhodes, C. (2007b). Organizational Ethics, Decision Making and Undecidability. The Sociological Review, 55(2), 393–409. doi:10.1111/j.1467-954X.2007.00711.x

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Collier, J. (1998). Theorizing the Ethical Organization. Business Ethics Quarterly, 8(4), 621–654. doi:10.2307/3857544

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cunliffe, A.L., Luhman, J.T., & Boje, D.M. (2004). Narrative Temporality: Implications for Organizational Research. Organization Studies, 25(2), 261–286. doi:10.1177/0170840604040038

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Czarniawska, B. 1997, Narrating the Organization: Dramas of Institutional Identity. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Czarniawska, B. 2004, Narratives in Social Science Research, London: Sage.

    Google Scholar 

  • Czarniawska, B., & Rhodes, C. 2006, Strong Plots: The Relationship Between Popular Culture and Management Theory and Practice, in P. Gagliardi and B. Czarniawska (Eds.), Management and Humanities. pp. 195-218. Edward Elgar: London.

    Google Scholar 

  • De Graaf, G. (2001). Discourse Theory and Business Ethics. Journal of Business Ethics, 31, 299–319. doi:10.1023/A:1010772910497

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Doolin, B. (2003). Narratives of Change: Discourse, Technology and Organization. Organization, 10(4), 751–770. doi:10.1177/13505084030104002

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ellis, C., & Flaherty, F. (Eds.). 1992, Investigating Subjectivity: Research on Lived Experience. London: Sage

    Google Scholar 

  • Ellos, W.J. 1994, Narrative Ethics. Aldershot: Avebury

    Google Scholar 

  • Feldman, S.P. (1990). Stories as Cultural Creativity: On The Relationship Between Symbolism and Politics in Organizational Change. Journal of Applied Communication Research, 13, 45–58.

    Google Scholar 

  • Fortin, M., & Fellenz, M.R. (2008). Hypocrisies of Fairness: Towards a More Reflexive Ethical Base in Organizational Justice Research and Practice. Journal of Business Ethics, 78, 415–433. doi:10.1007/s10551-006-9330-z

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Fournier, V., & Grey, C. (2000). At The Critical Moment: Conditions and Prospects for Critical Management Studies. Human Relations, 53(1), 7–32. doi:10.1177/0018726700531002

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gabriel, Y. (1999). Beyond Happy Families: A Critical Reevaluation of The Control-Resistance-Identity Triangle. Human Relations, 52, 179–203.

    Google Scholar 

  • Gabriel, Y.: 2000, Storytelling in Organizations: Facts, Fictions and Fantasies (Oxford University Press, London)

  • Garfinkel, E. 1967, Studies in Ethnomethodology, Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall.

    Google Scholar 

  • Gowler, D., & Legge, K. 1983, The Meaning of Management and the Management of Meaning: A View From Social Anthropology. In: M. Earl (Ed.), Perspectives on Management: A Multidisciplinary Analysis. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hopkins, W.E., & Hopkins, S.A. (1999). The Ethics of Downsizing: Perception of Rights and Responsibilities. Journal of Business Ethics, 18, 145–156. doi:10.1023/A:1005908411641

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Humphreys, M., & Brown, A. (2002). Narratives of Organizational Identity and Identification: a Case Study of Hegemony and Resistance. Organization Studies, 23, 421–447. doi:10.1177/0170840602233005

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Humphreys, M., & Brown, A. (2008). An Analysis of Corporate Social Responsibility at Credit Line: A Narrative Approach. Journal of Business Ethics, 80(3), 403–418. doi:10.1007/s10551-007-9426-0

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hutchinson, S., & Wilson, H. 1995, Research and Therapeutic Interviews: A Poststructuralist Perspective. in: J. Morse (Ed.), Critical Issues in Qualitative Research Methods. California: Sage, Thousand Oaks, CA), pp. 300–315

    Google Scholar 

  • Jackall, R. 1988, Moral Mazes: The World of Corporate Managers. New York: Oxford University Press

    Google Scholar 

  • Jones, C. 2003, As If Business Ethics Were Possible, ‘Within Such Limits’…. Organization, 10(2): 223.248.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Jones, C., Parker, M., & ten Bos, R. 2005, For Business Ethics. London: Routledge.

    Google Scholar 

  • Keenoy, T., Oswick, C., & Grant, D. (1997). Organizational Discourses: Text and Context. Organization, 4, 147–158. doi:10.1177/135050849742001

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kornberger, M., & Brown, A. (2007). ‘Ethics’ as Discursive Resource for Identity Work. Human Relations, 60(3), 497–518. doi:10.1177/0018726707076692

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kornberger, M., Clegg, S.R., & Carter, C. (2006). Rethinking The Polyphonic Organization: Managing as Discursive Practice. Scandinavian Journal of Management, 22, 3–30. doi:10.1016/j.scaman.2005.05.004

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kvale, S.: 1995, The Social Construction of Validity. Qualitative Inquiry, 191: 19-40.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lämsä, A.-M. (1999). Organizational Downsizing – An Ethical Versus Managerial Viewpoint. Leadership and Organization Development Journal, 20(7), 345–353. doi:10.1108/01437739910302506

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lämsä, A.-M., & Takala, T. (2000). Downsizing and the Ethics of Personnel Dismissals – The Case of Finnish Managers. Journal of Business Ethics, 23, 389–399. doi:10.1023/A:1006134617764

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Langellier, K.M. (1989). Personal Narratives: Perspectives on Theory and Research. Text and Performance Quarterly, 9(4), 243–276.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Letiche, H. 1998, Business ethics: (In-)justice and (anti-)law – Reflections On Derrida, Bauman and Lipovetsky, in M. Parker (Ed.), Ethics and Organization, pp.122–149, London: Sage.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lincoln, Y., & Guba, E. 1985, Naturalistic Inquiry. Beverly Hills: Sage.

    Google Scholar 

  • McKinley, A., Mone, M.A., & Barker, V.L. (1998). Some ideological foundations of organizational downsizing. Journal of Management Inquiry, 7(3), 198–213. doi:10.1177/105649269873002

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • McKinley, A., Zhao, J., & Rust, K.G. (2000). A Sociocognitive Interpretation of Organizational Downsizing. Academy of Management Review, 25(1), 227–241. doi:10.2307/259272

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mishler, E.G. 1986, Research Interviewing: Context and Narrative. Cambridge MA: Harvard University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Mullen, E., & Skitka, L.J. (2006). Exploring the Psychological Underpinnings of the Moral Mandate Effect: Motivated Reasoning, Group Differentiation or Anger? Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 90(4), 629–643. doi:10.1037/0022-3514.90.4.629

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mumby, D.K. (1987). The Political Function of Narrative in Organizations. Communication Monographs, 54, 113–127.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Munro, R. 1998, Ethics and Accounting: The Dual Technologies of Self, In: M. Parker (ed.), Ethics and Organization. London: Sage, pp. 197-220

    Google Scholar 

  • Orlando, J. (1999). The Fourth Wave: The Ethics of Corporate Downsizing. Business Ethics Quarterly, 9(2), 295–314. doi:10.2307/3857476

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Palmer, I., Kabanoff, B., & Dunford, I. (1997). Managerial Accounts of Downsizing. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 18(S1), 623–639.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Parker, M. (Ed.). 1998, Ethics and Organizations. London: Sage.

    Google Scholar 

  • Parker, M. 2002, Against Management. Cambridge: Polity.

    Google Scholar 

  • Randels, G.D. (1998). The Contingency of Business: Narrative, Metaphor and Ethics. Journal of Business Ethics, 17, 1288–1310.

    Google Scholar 

  • Rhodes, C., & Brown, A. (2005a). Narrative, Organizations and Research. International Journal of Management Reviews, 7(3), 167–188. doi:10.1111/j.1468-2370.2005.00112.x

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rhodes, C., & Brown, A. (2005b). Writing Responsibly: Narrative Fiction and Organization Studies. Organization, 12(4), 505–529. doi:10.1177/1350508405052757

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rhodes, C., Clegg, S.R., & Anandakumar, A. (2008). Ethical Vitality: Identity, Responsibility and Change in an Australian Hospital. International Journal of Public Administration, 31(9), 1037–1057. doi:10.1080/01900690801924215

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rhodes, C., & Pullen, A. 2009, Narrative and Stories in Organizational Research: An Exploration of Gendered Politics in Research Methodology. In: D. Buchanan and A. Bryman (Eds.), Handbook of Organizational Research Methods. London: Sage, Pp. 583-601

    Google Scholar 

  • Ricoeur, P. (1980). Narrative Time. Critical Inquiry, 7(1), 169–190. doi:10.1086/448093

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ricoeur, P. 1984, Time and Narrative Vol. 1, trans K McLaughlin and D Pellauer. Chicago: University of Chicago Press

  • Ricoeur, P. (1991). Narrative Identity. Philosophy Today, 35(1), 73–81.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ricoeur, P.: 1992, Oneself as Another, trans K. Blamey (University of Chicago Press, Chicago).

  • Riessman, C.K. 2002, Narrative Analysis. in A.M. Huberman, and M.B. Miles, (Eds.), The Qualitative Researcher’s Companion. pp. 217-270. Thousand Oaks: Sage

    Google Scholar 

  • Roberts, J. (2003). The Manufacture of Corporate Social Responsibility: Constructing Corporate Sensibility. Organization, 10(2), 249–265. doi:10.1177/1350508403010002004

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Scott, C.E. 1990, The Question of Ethics: Nietzsche, Foucault, Heidegger, Bloomington: Indiana University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Simms, K. 2003, Paul Ricoeur, London: Routledge.

    Google Scholar 

  • Skoldberg, K. (1994). Tales of Change: Public Administration, Reform and Narrative Mode. Organization Science, 5, 219–238. doi:10.1287/orsc.5.2.219

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Smith, F.L., & Keyton, J. (2001). Organizational Storytelling: Metaphors for Relational Power and Identity Struggles, Management. Communication Quarterly, 15, 149–182. doi:10.1177/0893318901152001

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Stevenson, W.B., & Greenberg, D.N. (1998). The Formal Analysis of Narratives of Organizational Change. Journal of Management, 24, 741–762. doi:10.1016/S0149-2063(99)80082-8

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Tempest, S., & Starkey, K. (2004). The Effects of Liminality on Individual and Organizational Learning. Organization Studies, 25(4), 507–527. doi:10.1177/0170840604040674

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Watson, G.W., Shepard, J.M., Stephens, C.U., & Christman, J.C. (1999). Ideology and the Economic Social Contract in a Downsizing Environment. Business Ethics Quarterly, 9(4), 659–672. doi:10.2307/3857942

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Weick, K. 1995, Sensemaking in Organizations, Thousand Oaks, CA, Sage.

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Centre for Management and Organization Studies, University of Technology, Sydney, Sydney, Australia

    Carl Rhodes, Alison Pullen & Stewart R. Clegg

Authors
  1. Carl Rhodes
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Alison Pullen
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Stewart R. Clegg
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Carl Rhodes.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Rhodes, C., Pullen, A. & Clegg, S.R. ‘If I Should Fall From Grace…’: Stories of Change and Organizational Ethics. J Bus Ethics 91, 535–551 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-009-0116-y

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-009-0116-y

Keywords

Search

Navigation