Spelling out consequences: Conditional constructions as a means to resist proposals in organisational planning process

Abstract

Organisational planning processes often materialise as a series of meetings, where the future of the organisation is jointly discussed and negotiated as a part of local decision making sequences. Using conversation and discourse analytical approaches, this article investigates how proposals concerning the future can also be resisted by employing a specific device, a conditional construction (if X, then Y). The data for the study originate from a city organisation, whose customer services are being developed. The results show how the conditional constructions work in two interrelated ways. Firstly, by introducing a problematic hypothetical situation, they outline the undesirable consequences of the proposed idea in real work life. Secondly, by highlighting the experience of the customer, they present the organisation as benefitting from the potential rejection of the idea. The article discusses the implications of the results for the study of proposal and decision making sequences in longitudinal, multisemiotic discursive processes.

Negotiating joint commitment in collaborative work project: Focus on text-based requests and news deliveries in atypical work

“…Although the future phases of the project are still non-existent, they can be projected on the level of discourse and oriented to as 'finalised' to various degrees. This is why the displays of commitment are crucial for the materialisation of the project: they not only connect the participants to the shared goals and tasks but also serve as a bridge between the here-and-now world and the anticipated future (see also Nissi, 2016).…”

“…The final paragraph (lines 33-38) returns to the activity of pursuing a response by using a conditional construction ('if-then') to accomplish a plea (cf. Nissi, 2016): the artist cannot write the application without the collaborators' permission and binding commitment to the project. Response relevance is further heightened by appealing to the imminent deadline of the funding call.…”

“…In the second paragraph (lines 9‒17), the news is elaborated on by informing the collaborators of the next steps. The conditional ‘if‒then’ format (see Nissi, 2016) is used consecutively to consider alternative trajectories and, thus, to depict applying for grants as a continuous and routine-like process (e.g. ‘ If this three-year proposal is granted a full funding, [‘then’] [.…”

Persuading consumers: The use of conditional constructions in British hotel websites

“…The hotelier is granted the status of the ‘epistemic authority concerning the matter under discussion’ (cf. Nissi, 2016: 314) from which obligations, prohibitions and permissions stem (Huddleston and Pullum, 2002: 178). Needless to say that actual consumers may challenge such an authority based on their own knowledge, any information or evaluation gathered from the reviews provided by former customers (cf.…”

Policing language in the world of new work: the commodification of workplace communication in organizational consulting

“…Here, he uses conditional constructions (lines 5-6, 10-11) that establish a causal relation between two matters: the first clause introduces a condition for the state of affairs disclosed in the latter clause, where they are presented as probable if the condition mentioned in the first clause is actualized (cf. Nissi 2016). Shortly, if one has a desire to develop, then one must embrace new ways of talking.…”