
Mats Alvesson
Professor

De-Essentializing the Knowledge Intensive Firm: Reflections on Sceptical Research Going against the Mainstream
Author
Summary, in English
This paper provides an updated summary and discussion of my 1993 JMS paper 'Organization as rhetoric: knowledge-intensive firms and the struggle with rhetoric', and relate this to my own and others' later work in the area explored in the paper: knowledge-intensive work and discourse. A key aspect of knowledge work is the ambiguity of what it stands for, what people working with 'knowledge' are doing, and what they accomplish. This fuels identity uncertainties, which is also addressed and reflected upon in the paper. As part of my broader reflections, I also provide a brief overview of some methodological ideas on how to do problematization: a key theme in the original piece but which is more generally a research approach that may lead to contributions that generate interest.
Department/s
- Department of Business Administration
Publishing year
2011
Language
English
Pages
1640-1661
Publication/Series
Journal of Management Studies
Volume
48
Issue
7
Links
Document type
Journal article
Publisher
Wiley-Blackwell
Topic
- Business Administration
Status
Published
ISBN/ISSN/Other
- ISSN: 1467-6486