Recipient of the '2013 Top Edited Book Award', by the Organizational Communication Division of the National Communication Association (USA) This timely collection addresses central issues in organizational communication theory on the nature of organizing and organization. The unique strength of this volume is its contribution to the conception of materiality, agency, and discourse in current theorizing and research on the constitution of organizations. It addresses such questions as: To what extent should the materiality of texts and artifacts be accounted for in a process view of organization? What part does materiality play in the process by which organizations achieve continuity in time and space? In what sense do artifacts perform a role in human communication and interaction and in the constitution of organization? What are the voices and entities participating in the emergence and stabilization of organizational reality? The work represents scholarship going on in various parts of the world, and features contributions that overcome traditional conceptions of the nature of organizing by addressing in specific ways the difficult issues of the performative character of agency; materiality as the basis of the iterability of communication and continuity of organizations; and discourse as both textuality and interaction. The contributions laid out in this book also pay tribute to the work of the organizational communication theorist James R. Taylor, who developed a view of organization as deeply rooted in communication and language. Contributors extend and challenge Taylor’s communicative view by tackling issues and assumptions left implicit in his work.

This work provides an exceptional case study, shedding light onto the functioning of an actual corporate board of directors. It presents analysis of a series of corporate management meetings shown in the 1974 documentary film, Corporation: After Mr. Sam. The film chronicles the discussion and communication processes as a company considers how to replace its president, and it serves as a unique opportunity for analysis of real-world organizational discourse.  With an impressive list of prominent contributors, Interacting and Organizing: Analyses of a Management Meeting employs the dual perspectives of organizational communication and language and social interaction (LSI) to examine the film. It is arranged around specific topics, analyzed separately by organizational communication and LSI scholars. Editor François Cooren provides an introduction for each topic, and a comparison and synthesis conclude each part. Readers will appreciate the information presented, as it is an arena typically off-limits to outside eyes. The transcript of the film is included as an appendix to the volume. This volume is appropriate for use in advanced courses and seminars in organizational communication, LSI, management, and organizational behavior. With its distinctive approach to studying the film's content, it will be invaluable to scholars, researchers, and graduate students in organizational communication, LSI, and management.

(view table of contents)