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Papers by Wafa BEN KHALED

Research paper thumbnail of Analysis of the political and identity dynamics of a dominant mode of control: The case of business ethics control and its legalization

HAL (Le Centre pour la Communication Scientifique Directe), 2021

This research studies the political and identity dynamics involved in the formation of a dominant... more This research studies the political and identity dynamics involved in the formation of a dominant mode of business ethics control. Through analysis of the ethical tool design process at five French multinationals, this empirical study reveals how business ethics is becoming legalized. This legalization is explained by a structure of domination that favours a legalistic approach, the diffusion of tools prepared by the legalistic designers, and a socio-cognitive identity strategy applied by the dominated group, the moralist designers. The individualization of responsibility is identified as a major risk associated with excessive legalization in business ethics.

Research paper thumbnail of Une Approche Douglasienne De La Prudence Comme Origine Morale De Pratiques Organisationnelles Emergentes

RePEc: Research Papers in Economics, May 1, 2014

En 2011, 48% des risk managers prennent leurs fonctions dans le cadre d’une création de poste. La... more En 2011, 48% des risk managers prennent leurs fonctions dans le cadre d’une création de poste. La proportion de directeurs du développement durable ayant pris leurs fonctions dans le cadre d’une création de poste l’année suivante est voisine. Ces chiffres sont la quantification d’un constat : les structures de « risk management » et de « développement durable » se généralisent au sein des entreprises tout comme les pratiques managériales qui leur sont associées. Ce travail de recherche propose des facteurs explicatifs de niveau macro à cette constatation méso grâce à la mobilisation de la sociologie culturelle de Mary Douglas combinée à la notion de prudence

Research paper thumbnail of Whistleblowers or Offenders? A Judicial Approach to Whistleblowing – The LuxLeaks Case

M@n@gement, Dec 15, 2021

The aim of this article is to study the role of judges and their impact on the retaliation proces... more The aim of this article is to study the role of judges and their impact on the retaliation processes initiated by organisations against whistleblowers. More specifically, we question the normative logics used by judges to validate or invalidate such processes. To this end, we crosscheck and analyse judicial data from the LuxLeaks case (2010-2018). Our results firstly enable us to establish a relationship between, on the one hand, the interpretative power of judges and their profile and, on the other, the attitude that judges may have at the end of the retaliation process towards whistleblowers, that is, retaliatory actors or protective actors. Our results also explain the normative dynamics that permeate the judicial retaliation process. They show that judges can challenge existing legal norms, clarify and operationalise others, and create new norms regulating ethical behaviour in organisations.

Research paper thumbnail of Analysis of the political and identity dynamics of a dominant mode of control: The case of business ethics control and its legalization

Critical Perspectives on Accounting, Oct 1, 2022

This research studies the political and identity dynamics involved in the formation of a dominant... more This research studies the political and identity dynamics involved in the formation of a dominant mode of business ethics control. Through analysis of the ethical tool design process at five French multinationals, this empirical study reveals how business ethics is becoming legalized. This legalization is explained by a structure of domination that favours a legalistic approach, the diffusion of tools prepared by the legalistic designers, and a socio-cognitive identity strategy applied by the dominated group, the moralist designers. The individualization of responsibility is identified as a major risk associated with excessive legalization in business ethics.

Research paper thumbnail of Who Will Have the Last Word? Legalist and Non-Legalists in the Formalization of Business Ethics

Proceedings - Academy of Management, Aug 1, 2019

Research paper thumbnail of V. Le pilotage du capital humain par la RSE : les limites du contrôle de l’immatériel

Research paper thumbnail of How do external regulations shape the design of ethical tools in organisations? An open polity and sociology of compliance perspective

Human Relations, Mar 28, 2019

In response to the numerous hard and soft ethical regulations that have emerged in the wake of re... more In response to the numerous hard and soft ethical regulations that have emerged in the wake of recurrent corporate scandals, Multinational Corporations (MNCs) have adopted ethical tools. This move is often interpreted as a means to garner legitimacy and as loosely coupled to corporate activities. Little is known, however, about the processes by which external regulations affect the design of ethical tools. Approaching organisations as open polities and building on institutional theory and the sociology of compliance, we conducted a qualitative study of the development of twenty-three ethical tools at four MNCs. We analytically induced a three-stage model that explains how ethical tools are externally sourced (importation), then subjected to competing pressures from distinct professional groups that replicate legal features of the environment (politicisation), to become finally turned into quasi-legal procedures (legalisation). Our analysis contributes to theory by explaining how external regulations relate to the organisational production of ethical tools in a self-reinforcing manner, while specifying the role of ethics professionals in the process of ethical tool production.

Research paper thumbnail of From Neoliberal Standards of Care to Ethical Standards of Care: The Role of Numbers

Academy of Management Proceedings

Research paper thumbnail of Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) Rating as Qualculative Work

Academy of Management Proceedings

Research paper thumbnail of La prudence comme origine morale de pratiques organisationnelles émergentes

Revue française de gestion, Apr 1, 2015

En 2011, 48% des risk managers prennent leurs fonctions dans le cadre d'une création de poste. La... more En 2011, 48% des risk managers prennent leurs fonctions dans le cadre d'une création de poste. La proportion de directeurs du développement durable ayant pris leurs fonctions dans le cadre d'une création de poste l'année suivante est voisine. Ces chiffres sont la quantification d'un constat : les structures de « risk management » et de « développement durable » se généralisent au sein des entreprises tout comme les pratiques managériales qui leur sont associées. Ce travail de recherche propose des facteurs explicatifs de niveau macro à cette constatation

Research paper thumbnail of Who has the last word? Legalists and non-legalists in the regulation of ethics in business

Le Centre pour la Communication Scientifique Directe - HAL - memSIC, Jul 3, 2017

Research paper thumbnail of La perception du climat éthique des organisations par leurs salariés

Research paper thumbnail of Le contrôle par les valeurs comme approche potentielle du contrôle de l’éthique

Research paper thumbnail of Le Pilotage du capital humain par la RSE : les limites du contrôle de l’immatériel

Research Papers in Economics, 2018

Research paper thumbnail of Formalization of ethics within firms : study of the design of multinational corporations' ethical tools

Cette thèse analyse le processus de formalisation de l’éthique dans les entreprises. L’objectif e... more Cette thèse analyse le processus de formalisation de l’éthique dans les entreprises. L’objectif est de comprendre comment les entreprises transposent et matérialisent par des outils un concept aussi intangible et mal défini que celui de l’éthique des affaires. Une collecte de données qualitatives variées (entretiens, observation, données secondaires, archives) au sein de cinq firmes multinationales françaises a été réalisée et a fait l’objet d’une analyse inductive (Strauss et Corbin, 1990). Ce travail révèle alors que l’absence de définition complète et tangible d’une éthique pour les entreprises est un problème aisément contourné par une volonté de conformité. En simplifiant alors le processus en y intégrant uniquement des aspects légaux, les entreprises créent des incohérences internes telles que l’isomorphisme des outils éthiques, des luttes idéologiques et identitaires entre les designers de l’éthique mais également une gestion de l’éthique qui s’apparente à de la gestion des r...

Research paper thumbnail of Whistleblowers or Offenders? A Judicial Approach to Whistleblowing – The LuxLeaks Case

M@n@gement, 2021

The aim of this article is to study the role of judges and their impact on the retaliation proces... more The aim of this article is to study the role of judges and their impact on the retaliation processes initiated by organisations against whistleblowers. More specifically, we question the normative logics used by judges to validate or invalidate such processes. To this end, we cross-check and analyse judicial data from the LuxLeaks case (2010–2018). Our results firstly enable us to establish a relationship between, on the one hand, the interpretative power of judges and their profile and, on the other, the attitude that judges may have at the end of the retaliation process towards whistleblowers, that is, retaliatory actors or protective actors. Our results also explain the normative dynamics that permeate the judicial retaliation process. They show that judges can challenge existing legal norms, clarify and operationalise others, and create new norms regulating ethical behaviour in organisations.

Research paper thumbnail of Formalisation de l'éthique au sein des entreprises : étude du design des outils éthiques des firmes multinationales

Cette these analyse le processus de formalisation de l’ethique dans les entreprises. L’objectif e... more Cette these analyse le processus de formalisation de l’ethique dans les entreprises. L’objectif est de comprendre comment les entreprises transposent et materialisent par des outils un concept aussi intangible et mal defini que celui de l’ethique des affaires. Une collecte de donnees qualitatives variees (entretiens, observation, donnees secondaires, archives) au sein de cinq firmes multinationales francaises a ete realisee et a fait l’objet d’une analyse inductive (Strauss et Corbin, 1990). Ce travail revele alors que l’absence de definition complete et tangible d’une ethique pour les entreprises est un probleme aisement contourne par une volonte de conformite. En simplifiant alors le processus en y integrant uniquement des aspects legaux, les entreprises creent des incoherences internes telles que l’isomorphisme des outils ethiques, des luttes ideologiques et identitaires entre les designers de l’ethique mais egalement une gestion de l’ethique qui s’apparente a de la gestion des r...

Research paper thumbnail of V. Le pilotage du capital humain par la RSE : les limites du contrôle de l’immatériel

Research paper thumbnail of Analysis of the political and identity dynamics of a dominant mode of control: The case of business ethics control and its legalization

Critical Perspectives on Accounting

Abstract This research studies the political and identity dynamics involved in the formation of a... more Abstract This research studies the political and identity dynamics involved in the formation of a dominant mode of business ethics control. Through analysis of the ethical tool design process at five French multinationals, this empirical study reveals how business ethics is becoming legalized. This legalization is explained by a structure of domination that favours a legalistic approach, the diffusion of tools prepared by the legalistic designers, and a socio-cognitive identity strategy applied by the dominated group, the moralist designers. The individualization of responsibility is identified as a major risk associated with excessive legalization in business ethics.

Research paper thumbnail of Liberating Numbers? Statactivism Work for Tax Justice

Research paper thumbnail of Analysis of the political and identity dynamics of a dominant mode of control: The case of business ethics control and its legalization

HAL (Le Centre pour la Communication Scientifique Directe), 2021

This research studies the political and identity dynamics involved in the formation of a dominant... more This research studies the political and identity dynamics involved in the formation of a dominant mode of business ethics control. Through analysis of the ethical tool design process at five French multinationals, this empirical study reveals how business ethics is becoming legalized. This legalization is explained by a structure of domination that favours a legalistic approach, the diffusion of tools prepared by the legalistic designers, and a socio-cognitive identity strategy applied by the dominated group, the moralist designers. The individualization of responsibility is identified as a major risk associated with excessive legalization in business ethics.

Research paper thumbnail of Une Approche Douglasienne De La Prudence Comme Origine Morale De Pratiques Organisationnelles Emergentes

RePEc: Research Papers in Economics, May 1, 2014

En 2011, 48% des risk managers prennent leurs fonctions dans le cadre d’une création de poste. La... more En 2011, 48% des risk managers prennent leurs fonctions dans le cadre d’une création de poste. La proportion de directeurs du développement durable ayant pris leurs fonctions dans le cadre d’une création de poste l’année suivante est voisine. Ces chiffres sont la quantification d’un constat : les structures de « risk management » et de « développement durable » se généralisent au sein des entreprises tout comme les pratiques managériales qui leur sont associées. Ce travail de recherche propose des facteurs explicatifs de niveau macro à cette constatation méso grâce à la mobilisation de la sociologie culturelle de Mary Douglas combinée à la notion de prudence

Research paper thumbnail of Whistleblowers or Offenders? A Judicial Approach to Whistleblowing – The LuxLeaks Case

M@n@gement, Dec 15, 2021

The aim of this article is to study the role of judges and their impact on the retaliation proces... more The aim of this article is to study the role of judges and their impact on the retaliation processes initiated by organisations against whistleblowers. More specifically, we question the normative logics used by judges to validate or invalidate such processes. To this end, we crosscheck and analyse judicial data from the LuxLeaks case (2010-2018). Our results firstly enable us to establish a relationship between, on the one hand, the interpretative power of judges and their profile and, on the other, the attitude that judges may have at the end of the retaliation process towards whistleblowers, that is, retaliatory actors or protective actors. Our results also explain the normative dynamics that permeate the judicial retaliation process. They show that judges can challenge existing legal norms, clarify and operationalise others, and create new norms regulating ethical behaviour in organisations.

Research paper thumbnail of Analysis of the political and identity dynamics of a dominant mode of control: The case of business ethics control and its legalization

Critical Perspectives on Accounting, Oct 1, 2022

This research studies the political and identity dynamics involved in the formation of a dominant... more This research studies the political and identity dynamics involved in the formation of a dominant mode of business ethics control. Through analysis of the ethical tool design process at five French multinationals, this empirical study reveals how business ethics is becoming legalized. This legalization is explained by a structure of domination that favours a legalistic approach, the diffusion of tools prepared by the legalistic designers, and a socio-cognitive identity strategy applied by the dominated group, the moralist designers. The individualization of responsibility is identified as a major risk associated with excessive legalization in business ethics.

Research paper thumbnail of Who Will Have the Last Word? Legalist and Non-Legalists in the Formalization of Business Ethics

Proceedings - Academy of Management, Aug 1, 2019

Research paper thumbnail of V. Le pilotage du capital humain par la RSE : les limites du contrôle de l’immatériel

Research paper thumbnail of How do external regulations shape the design of ethical tools in organisations? An open polity and sociology of compliance perspective

Human Relations, Mar 28, 2019

In response to the numerous hard and soft ethical regulations that have emerged in the wake of re... more In response to the numerous hard and soft ethical regulations that have emerged in the wake of recurrent corporate scandals, Multinational Corporations (MNCs) have adopted ethical tools. This move is often interpreted as a means to garner legitimacy and as loosely coupled to corporate activities. Little is known, however, about the processes by which external regulations affect the design of ethical tools. Approaching organisations as open polities and building on institutional theory and the sociology of compliance, we conducted a qualitative study of the development of twenty-three ethical tools at four MNCs. We analytically induced a three-stage model that explains how ethical tools are externally sourced (importation), then subjected to competing pressures from distinct professional groups that replicate legal features of the environment (politicisation), to become finally turned into quasi-legal procedures (legalisation). Our analysis contributes to theory by explaining how external regulations relate to the organisational production of ethical tools in a self-reinforcing manner, while specifying the role of ethics professionals in the process of ethical tool production.

Research paper thumbnail of From Neoliberal Standards of Care to Ethical Standards of Care: The Role of Numbers

Academy of Management Proceedings

Research paper thumbnail of Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) Rating as Qualculative Work

Academy of Management Proceedings

Research paper thumbnail of La prudence comme origine morale de pratiques organisationnelles émergentes

Revue française de gestion, Apr 1, 2015

En 2011, 48% des risk managers prennent leurs fonctions dans le cadre d'une création de poste. La... more En 2011, 48% des risk managers prennent leurs fonctions dans le cadre d'une création de poste. La proportion de directeurs du développement durable ayant pris leurs fonctions dans le cadre d'une création de poste l'année suivante est voisine. Ces chiffres sont la quantification d'un constat : les structures de « risk management » et de « développement durable » se généralisent au sein des entreprises tout comme les pratiques managériales qui leur sont associées. Ce travail de recherche propose des facteurs explicatifs de niveau macro à cette constatation

Research paper thumbnail of Who has the last word? Legalists and non-legalists in the regulation of ethics in business

Le Centre pour la Communication Scientifique Directe - HAL - memSIC, Jul 3, 2017

Research paper thumbnail of La perception du climat éthique des organisations par leurs salariés

Research paper thumbnail of Le contrôle par les valeurs comme approche potentielle du contrôle de l’éthique

Research paper thumbnail of Le Pilotage du capital humain par la RSE : les limites du contrôle de l’immatériel

Research Papers in Economics, 2018

Research paper thumbnail of Formalization of ethics within firms : study of the design of multinational corporations' ethical tools

Cette thèse analyse le processus de formalisation de l’éthique dans les entreprises. L’objectif e... more Cette thèse analyse le processus de formalisation de l’éthique dans les entreprises. L’objectif est de comprendre comment les entreprises transposent et matérialisent par des outils un concept aussi intangible et mal défini que celui de l’éthique des affaires. Une collecte de données qualitatives variées (entretiens, observation, données secondaires, archives) au sein de cinq firmes multinationales françaises a été réalisée et a fait l’objet d’une analyse inductive (Strauss et Corbin, 1990). Ce travail révèle alors que l’absence de définition complète et tangible d’une éthique pour les entreprises est un problème aisément contourné par une volonté de conformité. En simplifiant alors le processus en y intégrant uniquement des aspects légaux, les entreprises créent des incohérences internes telles que l’isomorphisme des outils éthiques, des luttes idéologiques et identitaires entre les designers de l’éthique mais également une gestion de l’éthique qui s’apparente à de la gestion des r...

Research paper thumbnail of Whistleblowers or Offenders? A Judicial Approach to Whistleblowing – The LuxLeaks Case

M@n@gement, 2021

The aim of this article is to study the role of judges and their impact on the retaliation proces... more The aim of this article is to study the role of judges and their impact on the retaliation processes initiated by organisations against whistleblowers. More specifically, we question the normative logics used by judges to validate or invalidate such processes. To this end, we cross-check and analyse judicial data from the LuxLeaks case (2010–2018). Our results firstly enable us to establish a relationship between, on the one hand, the interpretative power of judges and their profile and, on the other, the attitude that judges may have at the end of the retaliation process towards whistleblowers, that is, retaliatory actors or protective actors. Our results also explain the normative dynamics that permeate the judicial retaliation process. They show that judges can challenge existing legal norms, clarify and operationalise others, and create new norms regulating ethical behaviour in organisations.

Research paper thumbnail of Formalisation de l'éthique au sein des entreprises : étude du design des outils éthiques des firmes multinationales

Cette these analyse le processus de formalisation de l’ethique dans les entreprises. L’objectif e... more Cette these analyse le processus de formalisation de l’ethique dans les entreprises. L’objectif est de comprendre comment les entreprises transposent et materialisent par des outils un concept aussi intangible et mal defini que celui de l’ethique des affaires. Une collecte de donnees qualitatives variees (entretiens, observation, donnees secondaires, archives) au sein de cinq firmes multinationales francaises a ete realisee et a fait l’objet d’une analyse inductive (Strauss et Corbin, 1990). Ce travail revele alors que l’absence de definition complete et tangible d’une ethique pour les entreprises est un probleme aisement contourne par une volonte de conformite. En simplifiant alors le processus en y integrant uniquement des aspects legaux, les entreprises creent des incoherences internes telles que l’isomorphisme des outils ethiques, des luttes ideologiques et identitaires entre les designers de l’ethique mais egalement une gestion de l’ethique qui s’apparente a de la gestion des r...

Research paper thumbnail of V. Le pilotage du capital humain par la RSE : les limites du contrôle de l’immatériel

Research paper thumbnail of Analysis of the political and identity dynamics of a dominant mode of control: The case of business ethics control and its legalization

Critical Perspectives on Accounting

Abstract This research studies the political and identity dynamics involved in the formation of a... more Abstract This research studies the political and identity dynamics involved in the formation of a dominant mode of business ethics control. Through analysis of the ethical tool design process at five French multinationals, this empirical study reveals how business ethics is becoming legalized. This legalization is explained by a structure of domination that favours a legalistic approach, the diffusion of tools prepared by the legalistic designers, and a socio-cognitive identity strategy applied by the dominated group, the moralist designers. The individualization of responsibility is identified as a major risk associated with excessive legalization in business ethics.

Research paper thumbnail of Liberating Numbers? Statactivism Work for Tax Justice