This is the first chapter in a story about a company I once worked with.
Both the company name and all characters names have been changed.
In this piece I am experimenting with Gareth Morgan’s ‘Images of Organisations’ approach.
I will describe the organisation in detail and attempt to bring its character to life.
Then I will develop a metaphor for the organisation as a way of understanding it and possibly designing an intervention.
This is a case study. Feel free to comment and suggest emerging metaphors you see as I post parts of the story…

Corner Publishing

As far as I know, Corner Publishing was established around 1984 by two young entrepreneurs, Red and Mike to publish the broadsheet AcornNews, a newspaper dedicated to the then new and exciting Acorn technology. They started with a staff of two or three enthusiasts working out of very cramped conditions. The company acquired two new titles over the next six years and established Books magazine. By 1990, Corner had moved to its present premises and was employing about 20 people.

In the early days of my business I advertised in AcornNews but I didn