Contents:
Preface by Charles Fombrum, General Introduction, Section 1. The Dynamics of Identities The five facets of collective identity Guillaume Soenen and Bertrand Moingeon The hybrid identity of law firms Stuart Albert and Edward Adams Where do we go from here? Predicting identification among dispersed employees Kevin W. Rock and Micheal G. Pratt Section 2. Identities and Action Reducing dissonance: closing the gap between projected and attributed identity Samia Chreim Manifestations in behaviour versus perceptions of identity: convergence or not? Johan van Rekom Narrative identity: navigating between 'reality' and 'fiction' Bernard Kahane and Rolland Reitter Section 3. Managing Identities Creating a new identity for France Telecom: beyond a visual exercise? Monique Brun Conversion of organizational identity research findings into actions Cees B.M. Riel and Jan-Jelle van Hasselt Corporate Brand and Organizational Identity Jean-Noel Kapferer

`[I}n this volume, contributors from the fields of both strategic management and organizational behaviour have been brought together to explore the relationship between organizational learning and competitive advantage.... In their editorial introduction, Edmonson and Moingeon trace changes within the fields of strategy and organizational development that have encouraged a more integrative approach. On the strategy side, the emergence of the "resource view of the firm" has drawn attention to the importance of firm-specific resources including knowledge and how it is acquired, as sources of competitive advantage. On the other hand, organizational development practitioners have become increasingly interested in relating their traditional tasks more firmly to strategic business issues and concerns. The topic of organizational learning can thus be seen as a bridge, which is the intention of this volume to begin constructing, between these two fields.... The papers presented in this book offer a rich variety of concepts, frameworks and provovative ideas on organizational learning and its strategic implications. In addition, the theoretical presentations are often supported by reports of the results of original research in a number of companies' - Management Learning `This book takes an important first step towards integrating theories of competitive advantage and... organizational learning, a rapprochement which can come none too soon for the management practitioner' - Peter Senge, Director of the Center for Organizational Learning, MIT Sloan School of Management, USA Organizations need to develop learning strategies to survive and develop in increasingly uncertain and changing markets. In this book, researchers from Europe and the United States explore theories of strategic management and organizational behaviour to establish a link between learning processes and competitive advantage, within a variety of organizational settings. The diverse, multidisciplinary approach takes an important step towards developing a new integrative theory of management.

This edited book is devoted to an issue of increasing importance in management theory and practice-organizational identity. The concept of organizational identity has received attention in many disciplines such as strategic management, marketing, communication and public relations and organization theory. In practice a number of consultancy firms have specialized in identity management, while a number of academic conferences with a special focus on identity has developed. As globalisation of business and of organizations of all kinds become the norm rather than the exception, issues of collective identities take on a strategic importance. There has been, however, very little integration among the various disciplines and practices, resulting in conflicting definitions, and little cumulative research. The aim of Organizational Identities is to further understanding about collective identities by bringing together contributions from various management disciplines. To this end, the editors have developed an integrative framework - the five-facet framework - that allows articulation of contributions from disciplines as diverse as strategic management, organization theory, marketing and communication. Sixteen scholars from Europe and the US have contributed nine chapters that explore various aspects of collective identities using this five-facet framework. The result is the first book to bring together contributions from various fields and integrate them into a single conceptual framework. The book will be useful both for academics and for practitioners. It includes a balance of theoretical and empirical chapters, and presents original empirical data drawn from field research in a variety of settings.

"Integrating thinking and acting is the name of the game in today's dynamic marketplace. . . . This book takes an important first step towards integrating theories of competitive advantage and . . . . organizational learning, a rapprochement which can come none too soon for the management practitioner." --Peter Senge, Director, Center for Organizational Learning, MIT Sloan School of Management "The chapters in this volume provide many important insights into how to integrate the different managerial functions and thus overcome one of the chief barriers to organizational learning." --Chris Argyris, Harvard Business School "This book unlike many others, odes not fall into the trap of simply regurgitating established ideas and theories. . . . it is rare for a group of authors to be able to unite tow paradigms: strategy and organizational learning." --Bernard Ramanantsoa, Dean of HEC-- Paris Organizations facing uncertain, changing, or ambiguous market conditions need to be able to learn. Organizational Learning and Competitive Advantage explores organizational learning as a key factor in achieving competitive advantage and links two disciplines together--strategic management and organizational behavior. In a lively transatlantic dialogue the contributors to this work forge a link between the strategic theories of management and the behaviors that affect their implementation. As the field of strategic management shifts to embrace a new emphasis on organizational capabilities and their development, organizational learning occupies an increasingly central place within the field. The diverse, multidiscplinary approaches contained in the volume are an important step toward providing and integrative theory of management. This book will appeal to a wide range of students in strategy and organizational behavior and management studies. From a learning standpoint, this volume is truly original, from a strategy standpoint, this work is visionary.