Trapped in the MNE matrix: liminal identity at the local–corporate–global nexus
研究美国生命科学跨国公司的经理人，在地方子公司与全球总部之间承担双重职责时，如何经历并应对“阈限身份”的模糊与不稳定，并提醒企业注意避免员工陷入身份困境。
Abstract Managers’ identities in large matrixed MNE structures are complex and pliable. While research has examined the identities of individual actors located in headquarters (HQ) or local subsidiaries, the unique identity challenges faced by those operating outside these conventional units are less predictable. Our study explores how managers experience and manage a ‘liminal identity’—feeling ‘betwixt and between’ multiple identity positions. Focusing on US MNEs in the life sciences sector, we interviewed managers who assumed global responsibilities from corporate HQ while remaining situated in their local (Irish) subsidiary. We find that operating between corporate HQ, a global network, and the local subsidiary forged a liminal identity. Straddling this local–corporate–global nexus was a profoundly ambiguous, precarious, and destabilizing experience. Yet, individuals also sought to leverage their liminal identity by adopting multiple identities, depending on the audience. This involved ‘switching’ between renouncing a local identity, assimilating a corporate identity and co-constructing a global identity. However, this produced an intense identity struggle, eroding a clear sense of self and belonging. Our study cautions firms to be attentive when supporting managers in these ‘in-between’ spaces to avoid the trap of ‘identity limbo’, where individuals risk becoming disconnected and isolated.