Corporate ideology - Meanings and contradictions for middle managers

This paper describes an investigation into corporate ideology and control a nd the responses of the 'middle managers' in a large engineering corporatio n. The paper explores the creation of meaning and values in the organizatio n through a large-scale 'corporate values' programme aimed at 1500 middle m anagers, and asks to what extent the priorities of these managers match tho se of the organization, and whether the creation of meaning through an ideo logical values programme carries risks that have not been considered by the organization adopting this approach. The findings suggest six individual r esponse types amongst the delegates on the programme: 'evangelists', 'actor s', 'sceptics', 'open cynics', 'critical thinkers' and 'untouched professio nals'. The influences upon these responses are considered, and a number of key factors identified as important in affecting perceptions of and respons e to the programme. The paper concludes that today more than ever, corporat e ideologies are becoming an increasingly dominant influence on our organiz ations, causing mixed and confused responses amongst the middle managers wh o are required to disseminate these messages.