essential-guide-to-qualitative-in-organizational-research

366 –––––––––– QUALITATIVE METHODS IN ORGANIZATION STUDIES ––––––––––––––––––include co-researchers from all levels of the organization. We argue our ‘elite’ approach isjustified for the research questions we are trying to address. There are a number of reasons forusing those in senior or strategic roles (incidentally, not just managers but also councillors andpolicy staff). In part, this is because our co-research extends throughout the whole researchenterprise, as opposed to participatory or emancipatory research (Smith and O’Flynn, 2000;Oliver, 1997), where participant researchers are traditionally engaged for part of the researchprocess (often data collection) and not the whole process. Involvement in conceptualizing theresearch and in writing it up requires a high level of skill and confidence. Even highly educatedco-researchers can feel daunted – by the writing-up in particular. For example, ‘Claire’worked as a host officer and a co-interviewer for the leadership research, and although shewas a third tier manager in an education department, she admitted to feeling unsure of herselfwhen it came to academic writing. Second, the focus on organizational strategy and culturalchange means that it is helpful to have an overview and understanding of strategic andcorporate issues, not just a particular departmental view (we do, of course, include stakeholdersfrom all levels in the organization as informants). Finally, it helps that the co-researchers havedifferent skills but are broadly equivalent in status to the academics, creating a team which canengage in dialectical enquiry, rather than the practitioner feeling overpowered by the languageand practices of the academics.The co-research team not only prepares the research focus and questions but also trains forthe fieldwork. A day is spent by the academics with the co-researchers and host officers as agroup, in interviewing purposes and skills, including interview analysis. Co-researchers aregenerally already experienced interviewers in their own professions (for example, personnelofficer, head of policy) but interviewing for an academic research project requires workingwithin a research framework. The academics also help the research team prepare by producinga case study pack, containing background data on the case study organization. (Someinformation is provided by the host officer and includes documentary material on the location,size, strategic priorities, workforce, organization structure, and so on). The pack also containsthe interview schedule, background reading on carrying out and analysing research interviews,the draft report headings, advice on writing and editing, and the timetable for completing theresearch. In the preparation period, we also reiterate the importance of research confidentiality.We explore and gain agreement to the principle that discussions in the team are based on the‘Chatham House Rule’. This is a widely recognized code of conduct in UK government andpolicy circles for confidentiality in attributing sensitive information. Other safeguards ofconfidentiality used in case study research are used.Fieldwork and ‘sense-making’Interviews are arranged so that co-researchers who are new to the team will work with anacademic for the first few interviews in order to ensure comparability and consistency.Interviews are done in pairs where feasible but each member of the research team may needto work alone where the availability of informants demands this.The research team meets up at the end of the first day to share information and compareobservations and impressions of the organization so far. Sharing in this way (and in lateranalysis meetings) is an important part of the work. As well as sharing information gainedthrough fieldwork, the researchers are engaged in ‘surprise and sense-making’ (Louis, 1980).In particular, a key feature of the co-research approach is tapping the surprise factor involved