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Organizational professionalism in globalizing law firms

Author

Listed:
  • James Faulconbridge

    (Lancaster University, j.faulconbridge@lancaster.ac.uk)

  • Daniel Muzio

    (Leeds University Business School, d.muzio@lubs.leeds.ac.uk)

Abstract

Are the challenges of globalization, technology and competition exercising a dramatic impact on professional practice while, in the process, compromising traditional notions of professionalism, autonomy and discretion? This article engages with these debates and uses original, qualitative empirical data to highlight the vast areas of continuity that exist even in the largest globalizing law firms. While it is undoubted that growth in the size of firms and their globalization bring new challenges, these are resolved in ways that are sensitive to professional values and interests. In particular, a commitment to professional autonomy and discretion still characterizes the way in which these firms operate and organize themselves. This situation is explained in terms of the development of an organizational model of professionalism, whereby the large organization is increasingly emerging as a primary locus of professionalization and whereby professional priorities and objectives are increasingly supported by organizational logics, systems and initiatives.

Suggested Citation

  • James Faulconbridge & Daniel Muzio, 2008. "Organizational professionalism in globalizing law firms," Work, Employment & Society, British Sociological Association, vol. 22(1), pages 7-25, March.
    • Handle: RePEc:sae:woemps:v:22:y:2008:i:1:p:7-25
    DOI: 10.1177/0950017007087413
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Morris, Timothy & Empson, Laura, 1998. "Organisation and expertise: An exploration of knowledge bases and the management of accounting and consulting firms," Accounting, Organizations and Society, Elsevier, vol. 23(5-6), pages 609-624.
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    3. J V Beaverstock & P J Taylor & R G Smith, 1999. "The Long Arm of the Law: London's Law Firms in a Globalising World Economy," Environment and Planning A, , vol. 31(10), pages 1857-1876, October.
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    Cited by:

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    2. Leo McCann & Edward Granter & Paula Hyde & John Hassard, 2013. "Still Blue-Collar after all these Years? An Ethnography of the Professionalization of Emergency Ambulance Work," Journal of Management Studies, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 50(5), pages 750-776, July.
    3. Daniel Muzio & David M. Brock & Roy Suddaby, 2013. "Professions and Institutional Change: Towards an Institutionalist Sociology of the Professions," Journal of Management Studies, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 50(5), pages 699-721, July.
    4. Christine Benna Skytt-Larsen & Lars Winther, 2015. "Knowledge Production, Urban Locations and the Importance of Local Networks," European Planning Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 23(9), pages 1895-1917, September.
    5. Jagdip Singh & Rama K. Jayanti, 2013. "When Institutional Work Backfires: Organizational Control of Professional Work in the Pharmaceutical Industry," Journal of Management Studies, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 50(5), pages 900-929, July.
    6. Bertrand Malsch & Yves Gendron, 2013. "Re-Theorizing Change: Institutional Experimentation and the Struggle for Domination in the Field of Public Accounting," Journal of Management Studies, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 50(5), pages 870-899, July.
    7. Matthias Kipping & Ian Kirkpatrick, 2013. "Alternative Pathways of Change in Professional Services Firms: The Case of Management Consulting," Journal of Management Studies, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 50(5), pages 777-807, July.
    8. Laura Empson & Imogen Cleaver & Jeremy Allen, 2013. "Managing Partners and Management Professionals: Institutional Work Dyads in Professional Partnerships," Journal of Management Studies, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 50(5), pages 808-844, July.
    9. Paul Higgins & Man-fung Lo, 2018. "The strategic and cultural legitimacy of HR professionalization in Hong Kong," Asia Pacific Journal of Management, Springer, vol. 35(4), pages 1139-1160, December.
    10. David Risi & Christopher Wickert, 2017. "Reconsidering the ‘Symmetry’ Between Institutionalization and Professionalization: The Case of Corporate Social Responsibility Managers," Journal of Management Studies, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 54(5), pages 613-646, July.

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