ABSTRACT
Cultural identity, in an organisational setting, constitutes a powerful resource for evaluating-justifying or resisting existing structure and practices in the interests of particular group/s. Discourses of cultural difference, in any guise, are extraordinarily tenacious and provide powerful tools for self/other positioning and gatekeeping. Metacultural discourse can take the form of culturalism, a representation of the 'other' on the basis of characteristics associated with national groups. Metacultural discourse is a useful resource in claiming specific characteristics associated with ideals of 'good' or 'bad' business. In the political and ideological realm of any workplace setting, discourses of difference constitute a resource that often remains unquestioned and resistant to alternative narratives. Cultural identity, which comes with strong connotations of unity, is a powerful tool for constructing a team identity in the workplace or to explain practices that may or not be seen as appropriate from the speaker's perspective and so forth.
