The role of rankings in codifying a business school template: classifications, diffusion and mediated isomorphism in organizational fields

Abstract

AbstractHow are business school rankings shaping the international management education field? This paper investigates the role of classification mechanisms such as rankings in forming organizational fields, and asks to what extent rankings are influencing organizations to become more alike. Using a qualitative study of European business schools and their responses to international rankings, I show how the rankings are shaping and codifying an organizational template on which business schools form identities and identification with the field. The rankings codify this template by defining belongingness to a group, specifying measures for competition and comparison, and by promoting role models. Through the template, isomorphic pressures are mediated by the use of both specific and ambiguous criteria for performance, and in the way the template guides and channels imitation processes. This way, the template secures similarity and recognition of ‘belonging together’ in the field while allowing for considerable variation in organizational practices and identities.