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Uses of the Past

The concepts of “rhetorical history” and “uses of the past” have become central themes at the intersection of organizational theory and business history. Rather than treating history as a static record of events, this perspective focuses on how the past is actively constructed, mobilized, and contested within organizations. It draws from a growing body of scholarship that explores how historical narratives shape and are shaped by organizational identity, strategy, legitimacy, and power.

This research agenda treats history as constitutive rather than representational. History is performed. Organizations use the past to justify present decisions, to project futures, and to construct a sense of continuity or rupture. In this sense, history becomes a strategic and performative resource, enabling actors to make and unmake organizational orders.

Scholars in this tradition have explored the socially embedded nature of historical sensemaking, highlighting how history is shaped by material artifacts, narrative forms, intertextual references, competing interpretations, and the audiences that receive them. This approach emphasizes that history is always situated, not only temporally, but also politically, culturally, and materially.

This lens provides valuable insights into how entrepreneurial and organizational actors engage in historical reasoning, navigate legacy and tradition, and mobilize memory to shape change. It also opens space for critical reflection on whose past is remembered, how it is told, and to what ends.

Key References

Suddaby, R., Foster, W. M., Trank, C. 2010. Rhetorical History as a Source of Competitive Advantage. In Baum, J. A. C., Lampel, J. (Eds.), The Globalization of Strategy Research: 147–173. Series: Advances in Strategic Management (vol. 27). Bingley, UK: Emerald Group Publishing Limited.Introduces the concept of “rhetorical history” as a strategic resource. The authors argue that firms can gain competitive advantage by skillfully constructing and deploying historical narratives that align with their strategic positioning.
Wadhwani, R. D., Suddaby, R., Mordhorst, M., & Popp, A. 2018. History as Organizing: Uses of the Past in Organization Studies. Organization Studies, 39(12): 1663-1683.Offers a comprehensive framework for studying how organizations use the past as a resource for action. Emphasizes history’s role in organizing processes, such as identity formation, legitimation, and strategic change.
Foster, W. M., Coraiola, D. M., Suddaby, R., Kroezen, J., & Chandler, D. 2017. The Strategic Use of Historical Narratives: A Theoretical Framework. Business History, 59(8): 1176-1200.Proposes a typology for how historical narratives are strategically employed by organizations. Differentiates between conserving, reforming, and transforming uses of the past, with a focus on narrative construction.
Lubinski, C., & Gartner, W. B. 2023. Talking About (My) Generation: The Use of Generation as Rhetorical History in Family Business. Family Business Review, 36(1): 119-142.Examines how family businesses use generational narratives as rhetorical history to frame identity, succession, and change. Highlights the strategic role of the concept “generation” in family business storytelling.
Anteby, M., & Molnár, V. 2012. Collective Memory Meets Organizational Identity: Remembering to Forget in a Firm's Rhetorical History. Academy of Management Journal, 55(3): 515-540.Examines how firms selectively remember and forget aspects of their past to manage organizational identity. Highlights the constructed and political nature of organizational memory.
Rowlinson, M., & Hassard, J. 1993. The Invention of Corporate Culture: A History of the Histories of Cadbury. Human Relations, 46(3): 299-326.A critical historiography of corporate culture at Cadbury. Demonstrates how histories are constructed and repurposed to serve evolving organizational needs, questioning assumptions about historical objectivity.
Koselleck, R. 2004. Futures Past: On the Semantics of Historical Time. New York: Columbia University Press.A philosophical exploration of historical temporality. Koselleck’s concepts of horizon of expectation and space of experience underpin many organizational theories on how the past is interpreted and used to shape the future.
Basque, J., & Langley, A. 2018. Invoking Alphonse: The Founder Figure as a Historical Resource for Organizational Identity Work. Organization Studies, 39(12): 1685-1708.Explores how founder figures are used as symbolic and rhetorical resources to negotiate contemporary identity tensions. A compelling case of how personal history becomes collective strategy.
Cailluet, L., Gorge, H., & Özçaglar-Toulouse, N. 2018. ‘Do Not Expect Me to Stay Quiet’: Challenges in Managing a Historical Strategic Resource. Organization Studies, 39(12): 1811–1835.Investigates the tensions that arise when historical narratives, once seen as assets, become liabilities. Highlights the dynamic and sometimes contested nature of historical resources.
Lubinski, C. 2018. From ‘History as Told’ to ‘History as Experienced’: Contextualizing the Uses of the Past. Organization Studies, 39(12): 1785-1809.Argues for a more phenomenological and situated understanding of history in organizations. Emphasizes how actors experience and interpret the past in lived, material, and embodied ways.
Sinha, P. N., Jaskiewicz, P., Gibb, J., & Combs, J. G. Forthcoming. Managing History: How New Zealand's Gallagher Group Used Rhetorical Narratives to Reprioritize and Modify Imprinted Strategic Guideposts. Strategic Management Journal. Shows how a firm used strategic storytelling to reinterpret its historical legacy. Offers insight into how narratives can revise path dependencies and reshape organizational direction.

Summary

The past is made, mobilized, and contested. This section focuses on how entrepreneurial and organizational actors use history strategically: to construct identity, justify action, and shape legitimacy. Drawing from rhetorical history and memory studies, these works illuminate how history functions as a dynamic resource for navigating present and future challenges.