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The casual ethnography of the executive suite

Author

Listed:
  • D Eleanor Westney

    (Schulich School of Business, York University, Toronto, Canada)

  • John Van Maanen

    (MIT Sloan School of Management, Cambridge, USA)

Abstract

Some of the most influential work in international business (IB) is grounded by what looks remarkably like ethnographic fieldwork, in which researchers hang out with the executives of the companies they study and incorporate into their analysis the insights they gain. Valuable as this work is, it often fails to reflect on how these sources have shaped the account, and it projects the subculture of the executive suite onto the entire organization. IB would benefit from complementary “serious” ethnography that is reflective about sources, builds on the rich ethnographic research literature, and focuses on how the managed struggle to make sense of the directives from the executive suite.

Suggested Citation

  • D Eleanor Westney & John Van Maanen, 2011. "The casual ethnography of the executive suite," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 42(5), pages 602-607, June.
    • Handle: RePEc:pal:jintbs:v:42:y:2011:i:5:p:602-607
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    Citations

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    Cited by:

    1. Jacqueline Mees-Buss & Catherine Welch & D. Eleanor Westney, 2019. "What happened to the transnational? The emergence of the neo-global corporation," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 50(9), pages 1513-1543, December.
    2. Bamber, Matthew & Tekathen, Matthäus, 2023. "Beyond the pages of the ‘how-to’ textbook: A study of the lived experiences of the accounting ethnographer," CRITICAL PERSPECTIVES ON ACCOUNTING, Elsevier, vol. 93(C).
    3. Efpraxia D. Zamani & Anastasia Griva & Kieran Conboy, 2022. "Using Business Analytics for SME Business Model Transformation under Pandemic Time Pressure," Information Systems Frontiers, Springer, vol. 24(4), pages 1145-1166, August.
    4. Juha-Antti Lamberg, 2019. "Ringtone: Exploring the rise and fall of Nokia in mobile phones," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 50(2), pages 292-294, March.
    5. Alvaro Cuervo-Cazurra & Ulf Andersson & Mary Yoko Brannen & Bo Bernhard Nielsen & A. Rebecca Reuber, 2016. "From the Editors: Can I trust your findings? Ruling out alternative explanations in international business research," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 47(8), pages 881-897, October.
    6. Sjoerd Beugelsdijk & Arjen Witteloostuijn & Klaus E. Meyer, 2020. "A new approach to data access and research transparency (DART)," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 51(6), pages 887-905, August.
    7. Alexandre Bohas & Michael J. Morley & Aseem Kinra, 2021. "Perlmutter revisited: Revealing the anomic mindset," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 52(9), pages 1695-1723, December.
    8. David S. A. Guttormsen & Fiona Moore, 2023. "‘Thinking About How We Think’: Using Bourdieu’s Epistemic Reflexivity to Reduce Bias in International Business Research," Management International Review, Springer, vol. 63(4), pages 531-559, August.

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