The Facade of Neoliberal Merit: Empty Work and Unethical Subjects at a Business School.

In this study, we interrogate how the professional managerial class-in-making at an Indian business school reproduces neoliberal discourse of merit. Specifically, we attend to the local social and political formations of discourse of merit and examine its consequences. Empirically, this qualitative study draws on student interviews, qualitative questionnaire responses and a student's poem titled, 'A scheduled caste girl'. We found that neoliberal merit is refracted through Indian middle-class aspirations, while responsibilizing those from disadvantaged caste and class backgrounds for educational attainment, English language fluency, and access to networks. Simultaneously, discourse of merit creates a façade which shields 'empty work' and the production of unethical subjects who discriminate on the basis of caste and English language skills, and are indifferent to public interests. We introduce the concept of 'empty work' and elucidate the implications of an empty work ethic in higher educational institutions. We contribute to critical management studies on the normalization of unethical behavior in the managerial class-in-making and shed light on the caste and post-colonial contours of merit in Indian higher education. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]