The concepts of social sciences, social action and organizations as texts, are no longer unfamiliar ones. The use of language in social analysis has made researchers acutely aware of the importance of language use, not only to contain and express experience but also to create second order accounts of these experiences. This way of using language to shape our knowledge and guide social action, it is urged, makes social action and organization a 'text'.
Text/Work is an innovative exploration of our understanding of the textual nature of organizational life, and considers the consequences of textual nature for organization studies. How can organizations be profitably written into textual forms? This is a bold investigation into a challenging and exciting area of study.

Stephen Linstead is Professor of Organizational Analysis at the University of Durham.