How satisfactory is Goffman’s theory of impression management in understanding and explaining interactions in analyst pitches? Is there a better theory than Goffman’s to understand analyst pitches?

1. Is Goffman’s the best framework for
understanding pitches to industry analysts?
Christian Hampel, Johannes Gutenberg University of Mainz
Duncan Chapple, University of Edinburgh Business School

2. Why Goffman?
Duncan Erving Christian
• Graduate student in University of Edinburgh
Entrepreneurship and Innovation group
• Researching the influence, and influencing, of
IT and telecoms industry analysts
Work in progress Christian Hampel & Duncan Chapple
• The 6th most cited author in the humanities
and social sciences
• “Presentation of Self in Everyday Life” 1959
• “Frame analysis” 1974
• “Forms of talk” 1981
• Graduate psychology student at Johannes
Gutenberg University of Mainz
• Thesis at the department of Business,
Organisational and Industrial Psychology

3. Work in progress Christian Hampel & Duncan Chapple
Research Process
and what are analyst pitches?
01 Research question
• How satisfactory is Goffman’s theory of
impression management in understanding
and explaining interactions in analyst
pitches?
• Definition: formal oral presentations,
both online and offline, by vendors of
ICT solutions to industry analysts
• Is there a better theory than Goffman’s
to understand analyst pitches?
02 Literature review
Theories of impression management
• Goffman‘s stage analogy
• Later development
• Karin Knorr Cetina, 2009
• Trevor Pinch, 2010
• Liam Bullingham &
Ana Vasconcelos, 2013
03 Method
• March: 12+ interviews with analysts
• April: 12+ interviews with vendors
• Quirkos: Qualitative analysis

4. Work in progress Christian Hampel & Duncan Chapple
Research Process
04 Questionnaire
Topics:
• Status
• Acceptance/ challenge of definitions
• Biographies
• Self-Promotion
• Namedropping
• Bragging
• Compliments
• The stage
• Artifacts
• Body language
05 Results
90 quotes fit Goffman’s framework
5 quotes extend Goffman’s framework
11 quotes do not fit Goffman’s framework
06 Discussion
• Are there things we should change in our questionnaire when
talking to industry analysts / AR professionals?
• Are there theoretical frameworks that are more appropriate in
understanding pitches?

5. 05 Results
Some findings fit Goffman‘s framework, others do not
Work progress Christian Hampel & Duncan Chapple

6. Distribution and examples of quotes by framework
Goffman “Goffman plus” Not Goffman
Compliments:
Yes, they will do that quite likely. They
will say we have read such and such that
you wrote or we like this peace or thank
you for doing that. Yes, maybe they
would do that.
Name-dropping:
Well, it varies. In the worst case
scenarios you have people who try to
establish all of their credibility by
namedropping.
Favour-doing:
the smart vendors figure out what the bonus
plan is for the analysts at large analyst firms
and they act accordingly. And so they know
that if an analyst is compensated on the
amount of research they produce well then
they will help provide them with material that
makes it very easy to produce the report.
Intimidation:
the threat of lawsuit is always out there , the
threat of I’m going to get you fired, the threat
of I’m going to call other vendors and tell
them not to spend Any money with you guys
you know that all happens.
Sociology of expectation?
…only staying on their single version of things
that that becomes a weakness because
ultimately the environment changes. If you’re not
open to new ideas and new ways of Thinking
that’s not going to serve you well”
Coaching?
…he literally blew up at the interviewer and
walked out. You know when something like that
happens... there’s a lot of people that get paid a
lot to coach someone like that on what to say
and what to do and when they blow up… that’s a
sign right there, it told me this company is going
to implode. That one single event told me.
90
Work in progress Christian Hampel & Duncan Chapple
5 11

7. Work in progress Christian Hampel & Duncan Chapple
Research Process
04 Questionnaire
Topics:
• Status
• Acceptance/ challenge of definitions
• Biographies
• Self-Promotion
• Namedropping
• Bragging
• Compliments
• The stage
• Artifacts
• Body language
05 Results
90 quotes fit Goffman’s framework
5 quotes extend Goffman’s framework
11 quotes do not fit Goffman’s framework
06 Discussion
• Are there things we should change in our questionnaire when
talking to industry analysts / AR professionals?
• Are there theoretical frameworks that are more appropriate in
understanding pitches?

8. Questions?
Christian Hampel, Johannes Gutenberg University of Mainz
Duncan Chapple, University of Edinburgh Business School