The Construction of Organizational Identity. Comparative Case Studies of Consulting Firms

Despite the great interest in organizational identity, empirical studies are relatively rare. As yet, there have been no major comparative case studies of this phenomenon. Single case studies have yielded in-depth understanding of the process of identity construction in specific organizations, but very little is known about how organizational identity is constructed more generally. This paper explores how organizational identity is constructed in four very different firms within the consulting industry. The study suggests four broad dimensions that organizational members refer to in constructing their organizational identity: knowledge work, management and membership, personal orientation, and external interface. We identify multiple themes within these broad dimensions of identity construction and highlight several broader identity-related issues, specifically: the extent to which shared ideas of a distinct organizational identity are present or absent in organizations, the relationship between organizational identity and the individual, and the balance of reality and fantasy in identity construction.