Financialization and the Patrimonial Firm

• In Event: 413 - Section on Organizations, Occupations and Work Refereed Roundtable Session. Table 01. Culture and Organizations
  In Refereed Roundtable 100min: Table 09. Institutions and Organizational Forms

Abstract

In a study of the U.S. hedge fund industry, I examine how racialized, patrimonial allegiances restrict access to financial rewards. The top incomes in this industry make it a relevant case for studying rising income inequality in the twenty-first century. Examining alternatives to large bureaucracies within finance uncovers a counter-movement among anti-bureaucratic firms directed towards the institutionalization of this sector. I extend theories of patrimonialism to understand industry dynamics that restrict access to opportunities, rewards, and resources. Using data from forty-four in-depth interviews, field observations, and secondary source materials, I investigate the hiring, grooming, and seeding processes within and among firms that enable elites to maintain monopolies over financial resources. I contend that the industry reveals patrimonial enterprises present despite the state’s deliberate retrenchment in the neoliberal era.

Author

• Megan Tobias Neely, University of Texas at Austin