Writing Management

Wihuri International Prize, Board of the Wihuri Foundation in Helsinki, Finland

Sceptical of scientific studies of the social world, the author advocates an approach that draws on narrative, literary theory, cultural studies, and anthropology, rather than positivist social science. She reviews some key organizational texts to show how the art of persuasion can be deployed.Barbara Czarniawska is one of the most original of contemporary writers on organizations. Sceptical of scientific claims and explanations of the social world, she advocates an approach that draws on narrative, literary theory, cultural studies, and anthropology, rather than positivist social science, arguing that 'the social sciences are a system of institutionalized reflection, whereas business and public organizations represent institutionalized action'. Recognizing the spread and influence of management studies and management writing, Czarniawska poses the question of what written form this 'institutionalized reflection' might take. She reviews some key organizational texts to show how the art of persuasion (as opposed to the presentation of 'facts') can be deployed. In Writing Management, Barbara Czarniawska explores a number of the related issues and reflects on the growth and claims of management studies. She writes about the relationship between facts and metaphors, stories, and data, and how these may be represented in genres ranging from 'scientific' reports to belles lettres. This provocative and engaging perspective on organizations and organization studies will be vital reading for anybody who is part of either.