Controlling managers' 'becoming': the practice of identity regulation

I explore here the process of controlling managers 'becoming' through the practices of identity regulation. My focus is on how identity regulation is performed through individuals' concrete actions. Through a qualitative longitudinal study on managerial training, three contributions are offered. Identity regulation discourses are performed through micro-practices showing that identity regulation is far from being a top-down process; identity regulation practices are sustained by "side" practices which secure organizational members' participation and enactment of these discourses; finally, identity work is not only an autonomous and individual process and it can be a deliberate target of identity regulation practices.