Cultic Studies Review, Vol. 5, No. 1, 2006, Page 61
hours to their new life as Enron employees. In this regard, as has already been highlighted,
Enron certainly delivered on expectations. After the initial interview, they then attended a
second interview on one of three to five ―Super Saturdays‖ that were held at Enron‘s
Houston office. Candidates were interviewed for 50 minutes by eight different interviewers
in succession with one 10-minute break – an emotionally intense experience for all. Initially,
prospective employees staged a dramatic performance designed to convince the recruiter
that they view the company‘s vision with the mindset of True Believers, even if they felt
doubts – a normal aspect of impression management during selection interviews. However,
performance has hazards. As Goffman (1959, p.28) stressed, ―…one finds that the
performer can be fully taken in by his own act he can be sincerely convinced that the
impression of reality which he stages is the real reality.‖ The further emulation of
organisational rituals heightens the effect. For example, Kunda (1992) demonstrated, in an
ethnographic study of a hi-tech American corporation, how such rituals are developed by
leaders to inculcate the ―right beliefs‖. Employees then play along with them, rather than
reveal what might be described as a ―bad attitude.‖ But this renders them liable to
internalise the values behind the rituals – even if they have initially resisted them. In
essence, like a Method actor over preparing a part, the person internalises a role to such an
extent that they become indistinguishable from their performance. Within Enron, there was
intense pressure to participate in a whole variety of rituals – including those associated with
ostentatious consumption – and which had precisely these effects.
Conversion
It is thus likely that, within Enron, the dramaturgically focused selection process and
subsequent induction into a high performance work environment initiated a process
analogous to cultic conversion, in which prospective employees
needed overwhelming levels of intrinsic motivation to persevere
found themselves exposed to a high demand environment, in which it was made clear
that those selected would be required to display further levels of inordinate commitment
were exposed to the notion that membership of the Enron team represented a particular
privilege, but also imposed unusually high obligations
were presented with the ―vision‖ proclaimed by Enron‘s leaders, and required to
frequently express their solidarity with a dominant and centrally ordained corporate
philosophy.
All this was reinforced by various versions of love bombing – once the person was selected,
and agreed to join, the organisation. As many have noted, Enronians were frequently told,
and came to believe, that they were the brightest and best employees in the world. They
were certainly well rewarded, and were the eager recipients of a great deal of company
largesse. For example, many had access to company credit cards, on which they were
encouraged to charge their prostitution expenses (Fusaro and Miller, 2003). Providing they
performed to a high standard, they could count on an unlimited benevolent attitude from
Enron‘s leaders.
Indoctrination
What can be viewed as indoctrination, flowing from the organisation‘s leaders, then became
a normal part of life throughout the employee‘s Enron career. The further one ascended the
hierarchy, the more one was exposed to it. A typical example can be found in the company‘s
1999 management conference, as described by Swartz and Watkins (2003, p.7). They
reported that the then CEO, Jeffrey Skilling, turned the event into ―a grim tutorial on
―growing earnings‖ or, in layman‘s terms, boosting profits… the Hyatt‘s ballroom felt like a
reeducation camp, as every speaker stressed the new corporate dogma, which was that
hours to their new life as Enron employees. In this regard, as has already been highlighted,
Enron certainly delivered on expectations. After the initial interview, they then attended a
second interview on one of three to five ―Super Saturdays‖ that were held at Enron‘s
Houston office. Candidates were interviewed for 50 minutes by eight different interviewers
in succession with one 10-minute break – an emotionally intense experience for all. Initially,
prospective employees staged a dramatic performance designed to convince the recruiter
that they view the company‘s vision with the mindset of True Believers, even if they felt
doubts – a normal aspect of impression management during selection interviews. However,
performance has hazards. As Goffman (1959, p.28) stressed, ―…one finds that the
performer can be fully taken in by his own act he can be sincerely convinced that the
impression of reality which he stages is the real reality.‖ The further emulation of
organisational rituals heightens the effect. For example, Kunda (1992) demonstrated, in an
ethnographic study of a hi-tech American corporation, how such rituals are developed by
leaders to inculcate the ―right beliefs‖. Employees then play along with them, rather than
reveal what might be described as a ―bad attitude.‖ But this renders them liable to
internalise the values behind the rituals – even if they have initially resisted them. In
essence, like a Method actor over preparing a part, the person internalises a role to such an
extent that they become indistinguishable from their performance. Within Enron, there was
intense pressure to participate in a whole variety of rituals – including those associated with
ostentatious consumption – and which had precisely these effects.
Conversion
It is thus likely that, within Enron, the dramaturgically focused selection process and
subsequent induction into a high performance work environment initiated a process
analogous to cultic conversion, in which prospective employees
needed overwhelming levels of intrinsic motivation to persevere
found themselves exposed to a high demand environment, in which it was made clear
that those selected would be required to display further levels of inordinate commitment
were exposed to the notion that membership of the Enron team represented a particular
privilege, but also imposed unusually high obligations
were presented with the ―vision‖ proclaimed by Enron‘s leaders, and required to
frequently express their solidarity with a dominant and centrally ordained corporate
philosophy.
All this was reinforced by various versions of love bombing – once the person was selected,
and agreed to join, the organisation. As many have noted, Enronians were frequently told,
and came to believe, that they were the brightest and best employees in the world. They
were certainly well rewarded, and were the eager recipients of a great deal of company
largesse. For example, many had access to company credit cards, on which they were
encouraged to charge their prostitution expenses (Fusaro and Miller, 2003). Providing they
performed to a high standard, they could count on an unlimited benevolent attitude from
Enron‘s leaders.
Indoctrination
What can be viewed as indoctrination, flowing from the organisation‘s leaders, then became
a normal part of life throughout the employee‘s Enron career. The further one ascended the
hierarchy, the more one was exposed to it. A typical example can be found in the company‘s
1999 management conference, as described by Swartz and Watkins (2003, p.7). They
reported that the then CEO, Jeffrey Skilling, turned the event into ―a grim tutorial on
―growing earnings‖ or, in layman‘s terms, boosting profits… the Hyatt‘s ballroom felt like a
reeducation camp, as every speaker stressed the new corporate dogma, which was that
