| Mergers often contribute to organizational instability; therefore, such changes may induce members to revise how they view the organization and their identification with it. The purpose of this research was to investigate how individuals constructed their perceived organization identity, and how it was reflected in a collective, shared identity. This research examined links between the merger and identity, members' future organizational images, and the construction of identification. This study was conducted using qualitative, case study methods with data collected through interviews, observations, documents, and artifacts. It was an in-depth examination of one organization's response to these issues during a time of change. The findings suggest that the organization's purpose and philosophy constitute organizational identity. Surrounding this core are application attributes--priorities, practices, and projections--where those closer to the core are more enduring; those further from the core fluctuate with the needs of the organization in its attempts to be competitive. If a significant component of organizational identity is altered, then the organization will be a new organization because that identity constitutes the essence from which other organizational attributes emerge. The findings of this research indicate that the construction of organizational identity is influenced by its founders and leaders, hiring, previous employment, size, training, systems, celebrations, and personal experiences. Personal experiences can be affected by construed internal and external images. Members have multiple future organizational images--expected, ideal, feared--plus perceptions of what others inside and outside the organization see as the organization's future. These perceptions can influence a member's perceived future images. Uncertainty during a merger can be managed through face-to-face meetings, information sharing, and clarification of employment status, organizational identity, application attributes, and vision. Multiple factors support construction of organizational identification. These include a sense of ownership, a family philosophy, a positive sense of self, personality and background, and a crisis. This research provides an expansion of the identity language and suggestions for human resource development professionals in planning and implementing change and managing the levers of communication, organizational identity, vision, and alignment. These anchors enhance an organization's capacity to thrive in a changing environment. |