TY  - JOUR
AB  - Purpose– The purpose of this paper is to re‐conceptualize the relations between rhetorical strategies and material practices in the processes whereby leaders create or change organizational cultures.Design/methodology/approach– The authors compare and contrast two broad perspectives on cultural change in organizations. The first perspective is informed by modern social science, and focuses primarily on material practices. The second perspective is rooted in classical rhetoric, and concentrates on discursive strategies.Findings– It is found that both perspectives hold pertinent but partial insights. The authors propose an integrated perspective in which material practices and rhetorical strategies are seen as two analytical sides of the same ontological coin. This enables a fuller and more detailed explanation of how organizational cultures are created or changed. A brief illustration is provided of the merits of this approach by revisiting the case of Enron.Originality/value– The paper constitutes an initial exploration of how social scientific and rhetorical perspectives on organizational change may be brought closer together. It may provide the first step towards the development of a new, integrated theory.
VL  - 25
IS  - 2
SN  - 0953-4814
DO  - 10.1108/09534811211213973
UR  - https://doi.org/10.1108/09534811211213973
AU  - Mouton Nico
AU  - Nørholm Just Sine
AU  - Gabrielsen Jonas
ED  - Marja Flory
ED  - Alfonso Sauquet
PY  - 2012
Y1  - 2012/01/01
TI  - Creating organizational cultures: Re‐conceptualizing the relations between rhetorical strategies and material practices
T2  - Journal of Organizational Change Management
PB  - Emerald Group Publishing Limited
SP  - 315
EP  - 331
Y2  - 2024/05/05
ER  -