Unravelling Cultural Dynamics in a European Privatized State Enterprise

Abstract

In this paper, based on a case study regarding the institutional privatization of a former French public sector ferry liner, new concepts in cross-cultural research are developed and explored. We argue that the ability to influence the direction of the change process of the ferry liner organization, called “Pascal Paoli”, heavily depends on the way actors are able to insert their so-called “narratives of change” into the power arena by means of a specific group of organizational “editors”. After a short introduction to the case, we identify four basic anthropological concepts which lead in understanding and analysing the case. The paper concludes with a reflection on the usefulness of the central concepts.

Share and Cite:

M. Veenswijk and A. Marrewijk, "Unravelling Cultural Dynamics in a European Privatized State Enterprise," Journal of Service Science and Management, Vol. 5 No. 1, 2012, pp. 44-50. doi: 10.4236/jssm.2012.51006.

Conflicts of Interest

The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

References

[1] G. Dafoulas and L. Macaulay, “Investigating Cultural Dif- ferences in Virtual Software Teams,” The Electronical Jour- nal on Information Systems in Developing Countries, Vol 4, No. 7, 2001, pp. 1-14.
[2] B. Shore and B. J. Cross, “Exploring the Role of National Culture in the Management of Large-Scale International Science Projects,” International Journal of Project Management, Vol. 23, No. 2, 2005, pp. 55-64. doi:10.1016/j.ijproman.2004.05.009
[3] N. Holden, “Cross-Cultural Management. A Knowledge Management Perspective,” Prentice Hall, Essex, 2002.
[4] N. Jacob, “Cross-Cultural Investigations: Emerging Concepts,” Journal of Organisational Change Management Vol. 19, No. 5, 2005, pp. 514-528. doi:10.1108/09534810510614986
[5] D. S. Staples and L. Zhao, “The Effects of Cultural Diversity in Virtual Teams versus Face-to-Face Teams,” Group Decision and Negotiation, Vol. 15, No. 4, 2006, pp. 389- 406. doi:10.1007/s10726-006-9042-x
[6] G. Hofstede, “Culture’s Consequences: International Dif- ferences in Work-Related Values,” 2nd Edition, Sage, Thousand Oaks, London, New Dehli, 2001.
[7] F. Trompenaars, “Riding the Waves of Culture. Understanding Cultural Diversity in Business,” The Economist Books, London, 1993.
[8] A. H. van Marrewijk, M. B. Veenswijk and S. R. Clegg, “Ethnographers, Clinicians and Ethnoventionists. Organising Reflexivity in Design Oriented Change Programmes,” Journal of Organizational Change Management, Vol. 23, No. 3, 2010, pp. 212-229.
[9] A. Jackson and A. Aycan, “Editorial: From Cultural Val- ues to Cross Cultural Interfaces,” International Journal of Cross-Cultural Management, Vol. 6, No. 1, 2006, pp. 5- 13. doi:10.1177/1470595806062348
[10] A. Soderberg and N. Holden, “Rethinking Cross Cultural Management in a Globalizing Business World,” Interna- tional Journal of Cross Cultural Management, Vol. 2, No. 1, 2002, pp. 103-121.
[11] D. Boje, “Narrative Methods for Organizational & Com- munication Research,” Sage, London, 2001.
[12] SNCM, “Management des Organisations Terminale,” STG, 2005.
[13] A. van Marrewijk and M. Veenswijk, “The Culture of Pro- ject Management. Understanding Daily Life in Complex Megaproject,” FT Prentice Hall, Essex, 2006.
[14] Le Monde, “SNCM en Greve,” 2005.
[15] M. B. Veenswijk and C. M. Chisalita, “Unraveling Power Dynamics in Communities of Practice,” In: O. R. Hernáez and E. B. Campos, Eds., Handbook of Research on Commu- nities of Practice for Organizational Management and Networking: Methodologies for Competitive Advantage, IGI Global, Hershey, 2011, pp. 70-82. doi:10.4018/978-1-60566-802-4.ch005
[16] K. Sahlin-Andersson, “The Construction of Organizational Fields,” In: B. Charniawska and B. Joerges, Eds., Travels of Ideas, Walter de Gruyter, Berlin, New York, 1996.
[17] D. Grant, C. Hardy, C. Oswick and L. Putnam, Eds, “Or- ganizational Discourse,” Sage, New Dehli, Thousand Oaks, 2004.
[18] B. Charniawska and B. Joerges, “Travels of Ideas,” In: B. Charniawska and G. Sevon, Translating Organizational Change, Walter de Gruyter, Berlin, New York, 1996.
[19] S. R. Clegg, M. Kornberger and T. Pitsis, “Managing and Organizations: An Introduction to Theory and Practice,” Sage, London, 2005.
[20] S. Low, “The Cultural Shadows of Cross Cultural Research: Images of Culture,” Culture and Organization, Vol. 8, No. 1, 2002, pp. 21-34. doi:10.1080/14759550212105
[21] K. E. Weick, “Sensmaking in Organizations,” Sage, London, 1995.
[22] BBC News, “CTG Foreman: Pushed to the Limits,” 29 September 2005, Servihoo.com
[23] E. Porsia, “Dossier Exclusif Corse: Guerre Maritime Pour la Conquête de L'?le Première Partie un Gouffre Financier,” 2006.
[24] Le Militant, “French ‘Terror’ Troops Attack Striking Sailors Protests Erupt in Corsica,” The Militant, Vol. 69, No. 40, 2005, pp. 2-3.
[25] J. Bartunek, “The Importance of Contradictions in Social Intervention,” Intervention Research, Vol. 1, No. 1, 2004, pp. 103-113.
[26] S. P. Bate, “Strategies for Cultural Change,” Butterworth Heinemann, Oxford, 1994.
[27] R. Rorty, “Contingency, Irony and Solidarity,” Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 1990.
[28] E. Wenger, “Communities of Practice: Learning, Meaning, and Identity,” Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 1998.
[29] M. Bakhtin, “The Dialogic Imagination,” University of Texas Press, Austin, 2000.
[30] F. Barth, “Ethnic Groups and Boundaries: The Social Organisation of Cultural Difference,” Allenand Unwin, Lon- don, 1969.
[31] A. van Marrewijk, “Situational Construction of Dutch- Indian Cultural Differences in Global IT Projects. Scan- dinavian,” Journal of Management, Vol. 46, No. 4, 2010, pp. 368-381.

Copyright © 2024 by authors and Scientific Research Publishing Inc.

Creative Commons License

This work and the related PDF file are licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.