Abstract
Among the various theories that refer to the current settings of careers, the “boundaryless career” is one that holds more credibility both in academia and in business environment. However, there is a perceived inconsistency when confronting its theoretical predictions with empirical data. The aim of this study was to analyze this inconsistency through the concept of “performativity” presented by the Actor-Network Theory (ANT). Thus, one can evaluate the “boundaryless career’ not through its correspondence with reality, but through its reputation and influence, and above all in its efficiency in assisting people in their evaluations of work related issues. The main results can be summarized as: the theoretical simplification of the context potentiate the “boundaryless career” reproduction; theory corresponds to the reality of a small portion, but highly influential professionals within the work context; there's an accordance between theory and the management discourse, leveraging performativity by flexible organizations.
Keywords
Work; Labor Market; Boundaryless Career