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Creating elite encounters: The ‘campaign’ as approach for interviewing corporate elites

Teixeira, Tiago; Bridge, Gavin

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Authors

Tiago Teixeira



Abstract

Qualitative research in economic geography recognizes the value of accessing business elite perspectives, yet identifying, approaching and interviewing elites present researchers with a set of challenges. Both practical and ethical, these challenges can be particularly acute for research involving ‘contentious’ firms and sectors – those facing increased societal scrutiny due to histories of labour exploitation, bribery and pollution and where there are often strong asymmetries in social power. This paper proposes a systematic approach for managing these challenges and successfully conducting interviews with business elites that we term an interview ‘campaign’. We propose the interview campaign as a strategic, organized and nimble approach designed to achieve a specific goal – an elite encounter. We show how instrumentalism and strategic ambiguity are central to the campaign, and how both can be harnessed to navigate an environment characterized by uncertainty, serendipity and structured relations of power. Our ‘campaign approach’ systematically breaks down a complex process into manageable parts without losing sight of the whole, via clear goals, strategic planning and critical reflection. The need for evidence-based research on corporate strategic action in relation to a wide range of contemporary economic phenomena suggests the campaign approach may have value across many areas of economic geography, business studies and beyond. The paper draws upon established social science literatures on elite interviewing and political campaigning, and on our own experience conducting interviews with senior executives in the oil and gas industry.

Citation

Teixeira, T., & Bridge, G. (2024). Creating elite encounters: The ‘campaign’ as approach for interviewing corporate elites. Environment and Planning A, 56(8), 2121-2142. https://doi.org/10.1177/0308518x241261701

Journal Article Type Article
Acceptance Date Jun 23, 2024
Online Publication Date Jul 23, 2024
Publication Date 2024-11
Deposit Date Sep 17, 2024
Publicly Available Date Sep 17, 2024
Journal Environment and Planning A: Economy and Space
Print ISSN 0308-518X
Electronic ISSN 1472-3409
Publisher SAGE Publications
Peer Reviewed Peer Reviewed
Volume 56
Issue 8
Pages 2121-2142
DOI https://doi.org/10.1177/0308518x241261701
Keywords business elites, interview, Qualitative methods, contentious firms and sectors
Public URL https://durham-repository.worktribe.com/output/2866804

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