Rethinking the Role of Organizational Identities: Identity Work and Regulation in a Merger Integration Process

This study explores group dynamics in identity work following a corporate merger, examining how employees navigate their historical corporate identities alongside the new organizational identity proposed by management. Focusing on Telecompany-X, a telecommunications firm in Austria that began implementing its merger one year prior, the study analyzes how employees relate to their former identities and how managerial efforts to impose a unified brand and identity shape their sensemaking. While management sought to foster cohesion through identity regulation, employees’ pre-existing identities and everyday work practices significantly influenced their adaptation. Using a practice-theoretical framework, this interpretative case study investigates both employee narratives and the everyday work practices that shape responses to the merger. The findings challenge the assumption that corporate identity can be fully managed from the top down, instead highlighting the enduring influence of historical identities. The research contributes to merger and identity studies by demonstrating how identity work unfolds in response to managerial regulation, emphasizing the integrative potential of former corporate identities as shared reference points. In doing so, the study offers valuable insights into managing distinct group identities in post-merger organizations.