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Strategy Texts as Auto-Communication: How narrative, language, and visual symbolism exercise discursive control

Reissner, Stefanie and Falkheimer, Jesper LU (2025) In International Journal of Strategic Communication 19(1). p.86-104
Abstract
Strategy texts are an important way of communicating a strategy to a range of different stakeholders, including internal audiences as the organization communicates with itself (auto-communication). In this article, we analyze two related strategy texts that were produced for auto-communicative purposes as part of a strategic change initiative in a UK organization that employed a storytelling approach to strategic communication. Our multimodal analysis shows how narrative, visual symbolism and directive lexical choices and grammatical forms used in the two strategy texts exercise discursive control using three main mechanisms: (1) encouraging action through future-focused narrative structure; (2) strengthening emotional attachment with the... (More)
Strategy texts are an important way of communicating a strategy to a range of different stakeholders, including internal audiences as the organization communicates with itself (auto-communication). In this article, we analyze two related strategy texts that were produced for auto-communicative purposes as part of a strategic change initiative in a UK organization that employed a storytelling approach to strategic communication. Our multimodal analysis shows how narrative, visual symbolism and directive lexical choices and grammatical forms used in the two strategy texts exercise discursive control using three main mechanisms: (1) encouraging action through future-focused narrative structure; (2) strengthening emotional attachment with the organization through purposeful selection of anecdotes from a shared stock of stories; and (3) defining desired actions and behaviours through visual symbolism and directive lexical choices and grammatical forms. Moreover, the article contributes to current debates of the nature of strategic communication by demonstrating the tension between linear and dialogic communication in practice, while also providing rare empirical insights on the use of auto-communication in contemporary strategic communication. (Less)
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author
and
organization
publishing date
type
Contribution to journal
publication status
published
subject
keywords
strategy as discourse, auto-communication, corporate communication
in
International Journal of Strategic Communication
volume
19
issue
1
pages
86 - 104
publisher
Taylor & Francis
external identifiers
  • scopus:85201095244
ISSN
1553-1198
DOI
10.1080/1553118X.2024.2388087
language
English
LU publication?
yes
id
c550611e-271f-4299-b3bf-5f2c412d67df
date added to LUP
2024-07-31 14:38:27
date last changed
2025-04-04 14:37:53
@article{c550611e-271f-4299-b3bf-5f2c412d67df,
  abstract     = {{Strategy texts are an important way of communicating a strategy to a range of different stakeholders, including internal audiences as the organization communicates with itself (auto-communication). In this article, we analyze two related strategy texts that were produced for auto-communicative purposes as part of a strategic change initiative in a UK organization that employed a storytelling approach to strategic communication. Our multimodal analysis shows how narrative, visual symbolism and directive lexical choices and grammatical forms used in the two strategy texts exercise discursive control using three main mechanisms: (1) encouraging action through future-focused narrative structure; (2) strengthening emotional attachment with the organization through purposeful selection of anecdotes from a shared stock of stories; and (3) defining desired actions and behaviours through visual symbolism and directive lexical choices and grammatical forms. Moreover, the article contributes to current debates of the nature of strategic communication by demonstrating the tension between linear and dialogic communication in practice, while also providing rare empirical insights on the use of auto-communication in contemporary strategic communication.}},
  author       = {{Reissner, Stefanie and Falkheimer, Jesper}},
  issn         = {{1553-1198}},
  keywords     = {{strategy as discourse; auto-communication; corporate communication}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  number       = {{1}},
  pages        = {{86--104}},
  publisher    = {{Taylor & Francis}},
  series       = {{International Journal of Strategic Communication}},
  title        = {{Strategy Texts as Auto-Communication: How narrative, language, and visual symbolism exercise discursive control}},
  url          = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/1553118X.2024.2388087}},
  doi          = {{10.1080/1553118X.2024.2388087}},
  volume       = {{19}},
  year         = {{2025}},
}