7th International Conference on Organizational Discourse:
Identity, Ideology and Idiosyncrasy

Amsterdam, Wednesday 26th July-Friday 28th July, 2006

M.C. Escher's "Bond of Union" C 2005 The M.C. Escher Company-Holland. All rights reserved. www.mcescher.com

Conference Programme [Download PDF for details]

The Conference
As with previous conferences, the primary aim of the 7th Conference is to develop further insights into the field of organizational discourse. It is envisaged that the Conference will provide a forum in which academics with contrasting epistemological and ontological perspectives on both organization and discourse can engage in dialogue.

Following the success of the last event, the Conference will again be hosted by the Department of Culture, Organisation and Management at the Vrije Universiteit (Free University), Amsterdam and organized under the auspices of the International Centre for Research in Organizational Discourse, Strategy and Change (ICRODSC). This international research centre links researchers from leading international management schools who share an interest in developing and applying discourse methods in the study of organizations. The Centre acts as umbrella for a number of discourse-related research activities and initiatives.


International Advisory Network
Eric Abrahamson, Columbia University, USA.
Mats Alvesson, Lund University, Sweden.
David Boje, New Mexico State University, USA.
Gerrit Broekstra, Nyenrode University, The Netherlands.
Gibson Burrell, University of Leicester, UK.
Didier Cazal, Groupe ESC Marseille, France.
Francois Cooren, University of Montreal, Canada.
Stan Deetz, University of Colorado, USA.
Richard Dunford, Macquarie University, Australia.
Norman Fairclough, University of Lancaster, UK.
David Grant, University of Sydney, Australia.
Cynthia Hardy, University of Melbourne, Australia.
Steve Maguire, McGill Univeristy, Canada.
Robert Marshak, The American University, USA.
Gareth Morgan, York University, Canada.
Ian Palmer, University of Technology, Sydney, Australia.
Martin Parker, University of Leicester, UK.
Linda Putnam, Texas A&M University, USA.
David Sims, City University, UK.
Hari Tsoukas, Athens Laboratory for Business Administration, Greece.
Anne Wallamacq, Namur University, Belgium.
Karl Weick, University of Michigan, USA.


Conference Organisers
Cliff Oswick, University of Leicester UK.
Tom Keenoy, King's College London UK.
Ida Sabelis, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam.
Sierk Ybema, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam.
Marcel Veenswijk, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam.
Nick Ellis, University of Leicester UK.


Conference Co-sponsors
The Management Centre, King's College, University of London, UK.
The Management Centre, University of Leicester, UK.
Culture, Organization and Management, Vrije Universiteit, The Netherlands.


Conference Secretariat:
Elles Bandringa, Vrije Universiteit, Amsterdam.


Conference Assistant:
Armin Beverungen, University of Leicester, UK.


Conference Theme
In keeping with past conferences, the theme for the 7th Conference is framed in broad terms with a focus on aspects of identity and identity formation in and around organizing. More fundamentally it is about the social processes involved in naming, fixing and transforming the social aspects of organization and the social actors engaging in organizing and/or being organised. On this basis, the subthemes of the conference should be read as indicative rather than exhaustive insofar as they are intended to highlight a range of contemporary issues pertinent to the discursive analysis of organizations and organizing. While the three concepts are fluid and inter-penetrating, they could be deployed separately. Identity can be viewed as a socially constructed phenomenon and, as such, aspects of the formation and the maintenance of individual, group and organizational identity are central to the conference themes. Beyond this, identity work might also be more specifically construed as being about a discursive process of identification involving the naming, labelling, classifying and associating of both artefacts and social actors. Ideology has almost self-evident discursive connotations. It may be concerned with doctrinal discourses and the creation of shared beliefs through language, but it is also inextricably linked to power in terms of issues of legitimacy and processes of meaning-making. The inclusion of idiosyncrasy is designed to draw attention to alternative or frame-breaking constructions of identities and the less obvious aspects of organizing. In particular, it invites consideration of aspects beyond dominant discourses and taken-for-granted assumptions and a concern with the possibilities of novel and unorthodox readings of social phenomena and identities.

When viewed at the macro-level, these three main themes serve to illustrate ways in which we might undertake forms of discursive engagement and critical reflection. Although identity is now associated with notions of fragmentation, ambiguity and the possibility of multiple selves, conventionally, it has often been understood as a process of stabilising and fixing and implies a movement toward coherence and continuity; such a view carries distinctly univocal resonances. In contrast, ideology evokes the possibility of contestation refracting a hegemonic struggle between perspectives and thus has dialogical overtones - such as the tensions between privileged and marginalized positions. Finally, idiosyncrasy highlights the potential for multiple, contested, alternative and co-existing readings and, in doing so, promotes a focus on plurivocality. What all this suggests is that a focus on the complexities of constructing 'identity' raises fundamental issues about and within the process of organizing and the structuring of organizations.

Aspects of Identity, Berlin, 2005.

Given the Conference theme deliberately constitutes a broad discursive canvas, we expect the precise conference streams to emerge from the papers themselves. However, we also anticipate papers that will organize themselves within the following topics:

Papers are invited on talk and text which address issues of social representation, social construction and social interaction in relation to any aspect of organization or organizing in relation to these themes. Contributions may adopt any epistemological perspective but we are concerned to achieve a balance between empirical studies and conceptual/theoretical contributions.


Publications
The conference proceedings will be published (with an ISBN) and available to participants at the Conference. The proceedings will contain the abstracts of the papers presented and the full versions of the papers will be provided on a CD as part of the conference pack.

The six previous Organizational Discourse conferences have led to the publication of several edited books:

Organization Development: Metaphorical Explorations (1995);
Metaphor and Organizations (1996);
Discourse and Organization (1998);
and, under the auspices of ICRODSC, Sage Handbook of Organizational Discourse (2004).

The conferences have also resulted in the publication of a number of special issues and themed sections of journals, including:

Organization (Vol. 4, No. 2, 1997);
Journal of Applied Management Studies (Vol. 6, No. 2, 1997);
Human Relations (Vol. 53, No. 9, 2000);
Journal of Applied Behavioral Science (Vol. 36, No. 2, 2000);
Organization (Vol.7, No.3, 2000);
Journal of Organisational Change Management (Vol. 14, No. 3, 2001);
International Studies in Management and Organization (Vol. 31: No.3, 2001);
Time and Society (Vol. 14 No 2-3, 2005)
and Organization Management Journal (Forthcoming, December, 2005).

It is anticipated that the 7th Conference will result in further publication(s) containing selected contributions from the conference.


Guidelines for Submission
All submissions and conference communications will be conducted by email. Prospective contributors interested in presenting a paper should send an abstract of approx. 1,000 words to the conference organisers by 13th January 2006. Notification of acceptance of papers will be given by 3rd March 2006 and full papers are required by 2nd June 2006.

Abstracts should be typed using double spacing and include:

• the title of the paper,
  
• the name(s), and affiliation(s) of the author(s),
  
• an author contact address, e-mail and telephone/fax number.
  

Copies of submissions should be sent as an email attachment (saved as a Word document or a text file) to Cliff Oswick at: Discourse2006@le.ac.uk

Sound advice on Identity in Amsterdam?

The Location: the Vrije Universiteit (Free University) [Download Map Here - PDF]
The Vrije Universiteit was established in 1880 in Amsterdam, the capital of the Netherlands, which has been a renowned cultural, scientific and commercial centre for many centuries. The free University or - as it is known locally - 'the VU', is a thriving international institution comprised of twelve faculties - Arts, Earth and Life Sciences, Dentistry, Human Movement Sciences, Economics and Business Administration, Law, Medicine, Philosophy, Psychology and Education, Sciences, Social-Cultural Sciences and Theology. It has around 15,000 students and offers over fifty undergraduate and almost a hundred postgraduate programmes. The university campus and university hospital are situated in the south-western part of Amsterdam, one of the most dynamic and fast-growing business districts in the Netherlands. It is within easy reach of both Amsterdam-Schiphol airport and all the various attractions of central Amsterdam.


The Department
The Department of Cultuur, Organisatie en Management (Culture, Organization and Management), which is co-hosting the Conference, is part of the Faculty of Social Sciences . The Faculty has about 2800 students and 140 members of staff and is one of the VU's larger faculties. The Department is relatively new and the focus of both the teaching programme and research activity is organisational anthropology which involves a pre-eminent concern with the cultural dimensions of management and organization. Current research projects include work on cultural change in organisational networks; processes of identity formation under globalisation; diversity-management; the temporal aspects of management and organizational intervention strategies. The teaching programme includes both undergraduate and postgraduate course in organisational anthropology as well as a thriving doctoral programme. There are 25 staff including five professors and researchers.

Death in the Aquarium, Berlin, 2005.

Travel and Accommodation
Amsterdam is one of the great European capital cities. Built around a series of concentric canals, it is justly famed for its architecture, museums, art galleries, public parks, markets and restaurants. On the streets, the bicycle is king, and the city is renown for being a deeply relaxing place with a liberal attitude to drugs, sex and international conferences.

Both international and local travel are easy. Schiphol-Amsterdam airport is a major International hub airport with excellent bus and rail connections to central Amsterdam. Amsterdam boasts one of the best public transport systems in any European city: there are trams, buses, a metro and trains all of which are relatively cheap, extremely easy to use and run with remarkable frequency. Taxis are easily available but not cheap and it is sometimes easier to get around the city by public transport.


Travel:
Schiphol to Central Amsterdam
Apart from a taxi (costing about 40 Euros), by far the best way to get into central Amsterdam from Schiphol Airport is to go by train to Amsterdam Central Station. Schiphol Station is in the airport (under 'Schiphol Plaza') and the train goes from Platform 3. Trains depart every 10 minutes and the trip takes about 15 minutes.

Schiphol to the VU (The Conference Venue)
To travel direct to the VU from Schiphol Airport, take a train from Schiphol station to Zuid/World Trade Center station. Trains depart from platform 1 or 2 (under 'Schiphol Plaza') and run every 15 minutes. From there, it is a 10 minute walk to the VU. Alternatively, take the metro train No. 51 in the direction of 'Amstelveen/ Westwijk ' or tram 5 in the direction of 'Amstelveen/ Binnenhof' It is just one stop to the VU (2 minutes).

Central Amsterdam to the VU (The Conference Venue)
The VU is in the south-east quadrant of Amsterdam. The main address is:
Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam
De Boelelaan 1105
1081 HV Amsterdam
The Netherlands


There are frequent metro trains and trams to the VU from the Central Station. Metro 51 or tram 5 go direct to the VU. Finding it is easy because the VU has its own tram-stop: 'Boelelaan/VU'. The trip takes about 15 minutes (by metro) or 25 minutes (by tram). During the day there are trams and metros every 5 to 10 minutes. In the evenings there are fewer connections (every 15 minutes approximately).


Accommodation in Amsterdam:
PLEASE NOTE: There is no suitable conference accommodation at the VU and all accommodation must be booked directly by conference participants themselves.

As a major tourist destination, alongside the usual range of branded international hotels, there are hundreds of small and medium-sized hotels throughout Amsterdam and the surrounding area. And there should be something to suit everyone's budget. There are numerous web-sites (some are listed below) providing information and leading to on-line booking facilities. Once you have decided on a possible hotel, before booking, it is advisable to check prices on the hotel's own web-site. Some agencies charge a premium and booking direct with the hotel can sometimes be cheaper. Since the conference is being held during the tourist season, early booking is advisable.

Some places to start:
• Dutch Tourist Board Web-Page

• The Dutch Reservations Centre
This is a central marketing organisation which will find hotel rooms across the full range. It also takes options on some hotel rooms and can provide discounted room prices.

• Trip Advisor: Amsterdam Hotels

• Online Hotel Reservations

• Last Minute and all year discounted accommodation by Cheaperthanhotels UK

Other Useful Web Pages (all in English):
• Amsterdam City Web-Page

• Tourist Guide to Amsterdam

Public Transport in Amsterdam:
• GVB Transport

• Simply Amsterdam

or

• The Vrije Universiteit
This site also contains some useful information about Amsterdam.


Plenary Speakers

[Download PDF for details]


Accepted Papers

[Download PDF for details]


Conference Registration
The full conference fee will be €560 euros. This covers registration, all conference materials, refreshments, lunches, conference dinner and other social events.
Download Registration Form - (PDF)


ICRODSC
The International Centre for Research in Organizational Discourse, Strategy and Change (ICRODSC) was launched in 2001. It is supported by leading international management schools at the University of Melbourne, the University of Sydney, McGill University, King's College, the University of London, the Judge Institute of Management, University of Cambridge, the University of Leicester, Lund University and Texas A&M University. The Centre links international researchers who share an interest in developing and applying discourse methods in the study of organizations. It brings together researchers from different disciplinary backgrounds, provides a critical mass in research expertise, facilitates cross-disciplinary research, provides a banner for new research initiatives, provides contacts and support for doctoral students, and provides resources for workshops, studies, and other activities.

For further details see: http://www.management.unimelb.edu.au/icrodsc/

Amsterdam