The Power of Words in Tension: Enterprise/Strategy as a Dilemma in Neoliberalism’s Persistence.

Brendan O'Rourke

doi:10.21427/d7979t

The Power of Words in Tension: Enterprise/Strategy as a Dilemma in Neoliberalism’s Persistence.

Brendan O'Rourke

Research output: Contribution to conference › Paper › peer-review

Abstract

We address how enterprise is related to, another important discourse, strategy. From a discourse analysis of the talk of small firm owner-managers, emerges a view of strategy and enterprise as a single, integrated entity, bound together by some commonalities but more importantly by paired opposites reminiscent of ideological dilemmas (Billig, Condor, Edwards, Gane, Middleton & Radley, 1988). This dilemmatic nature of enterprise/strategy discourse adds to explanations for the persistence of the neoliberal form of enterprise, with the entrepreneur as the heroic saviour of all, based on the entrepreneur as an empty signifier (Jones & Spicer, 2009; Kenny & Scriver, 2012) or as a spectre (Marttila, 2012).

Original language	English
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.21427/d7979t
Publication status	Published - 2014
Externally published	Yes
Event	74th Annual Meeting of the Academy of Management - Philadelphia, United States Duration: 1 Aug 2014 → 5 Aug 2014

Conference

Conference	74th Annual Meeting of the Academy of Management
Country/Territory	United States
City	Philadelphia
Period	1/08/14 → 5/08/14

Keywords

enterprise
strategy
discourse analysis
small firm owner-managers
ideological dilemmas
neoliberalism
entrepreneur

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10.21427/d7979tLicence: CC BY-NC-SA

Cite this

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title = "The Power of Words in Tension: Enterprise/Strategy as a Dilemma in Neoliberalism{\textquoteright}s Persistence.",

abstract = "We address how enterprise is related to, another important discourse, strategy. From a discourse analysis of the talk of small firm owner-managers, emerges a view of strategy and enterprise as a single, integrated entity, bound together by some commonalities but more importantly by paired opposites reminiscent of ideological dilemmas (Billig, Condor, Edwards, Gane, Middleton & Radley, 1988). This dilemmatic nature of enterprise/strategy discourse adds to explanations for the persistence of the neoliberal form of enterprise, with the entrepreneur as the heroic saviour of all, based on the entrepreneur as an empty signifier (Jones & Spicer, 2009; Kenny & Scriver, 2012) or as a spectre (Marttila, 2012).",

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author = "Brendan O'Rourke",

year = "2014",

doi = "10.21427/d7979t",

language = "English",

note = "74th Annual Meeting of the Academy of Management ; Conference date: 01-08-2014 Through 05-08-2014",

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T1 - The Power of Words in Tension: Enterprise/Strategy as a Dilemma in Neoliberalism’s Persistence.

AU - O'Rourke, Brendan

PY - 2014

Y1 - 2014

N2 - We address how enterprise is related to, another important discourse, strategy. From a discourse analysis of the talk of small firm owner-managers, emerges a view of strategy and enterprise as a single, integrated entity, bound together by some commonalities but more importantly by paired opposites reminiscent of ideological dilemmas (Billig, Condor, Edwards, Gane, Middleton & Radley, 1988). This dilemmatic nature of enterprise/strategy discourse adds to explanations for the persistence of the neoliberal form of enterprise, with the entrepreneur as the heroic saviour of all, based on the entrepreneur as an empty signifier (Jones & Spicer, 2009; Kenny & Scriver, 2012) or as a spectre (Marttila, 2012).

AB - We address how enterprise is related to, another important discourse, strategy. From a discourse analysis of the talk of small firm owner-managers, emerges a view of strategy and enterprise as a single, integrated entity, bound together by some commonalities but more importantly by paired opposites reminiscent of ideological dilemmas (Billig, Condor, Edwards, Gane, Middleton & Radley, 1988). This dilemmatic nature of enterprise/strategy discourse adds to explanations for the persistence of the neoliberal form of enterprise, with the entrepreneur as the heroic saviour of all, based on the entrepreneur as an empty signifier (Jones & Spicer, 2009; Kenny & Scriver, 2012) or as a spectre (Marttila, 2012).

KW - enterprise

KW - strategy

KW - discourse analysis

KW - small firm owner-managers

KW - ideological dilemmas

KW - neoliberalism

KW - entrepreneur

U2 - 10.21427/d7979t

DO - 10.21427/d7979t

M3 - Paper

T2 - 74th Annual Meeting of the Academy of Management

Y2 - 1 August 2014 through 5 August 2014

ER -

The Power of Words in Tension: Enterprise/Strategy as a Dilemma in Neoliberalism’s Persistence.

Abstract

Conference

Keywords

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Cite this