Making sense of strategic change during times of emotional turbulence
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School of Business |
Master's thesis
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Authors
Date
2018
Department
Major/Subject
Mcode
Degree programme
Corporate Communication
Language
en
Pages
58
Series
Abstract
Objective of the study Much of the existing sensemaking research focuses on the sensemaking of people in manager positions, while little attention has been drawn into the sensemaking of frontline employees. In addition, the role of emotion in the sensemaking process has remained relatively unexplored. This study aims to fill these gaps by concentrating on the sensemaking processes and experienced emotions of frontline employees. The purpose of this study is to increase understanding about the ways in which frontline employees make sense of strategic change in times of emotional turbulence. This is done through three empirical research questions: 1) How do the frontline employees retrospectively make sense of strategic change? 2) What is the role of emotion in the frontline employees’ sensemaking process, and which aspects influence those emotions? 3) How does the organization’s culture support, accept and consider emotionality during implementation of strategic change? Methodology and analytical framework The empirical data is collected through ten semi-structured interviews with frontline employees working with business customers of a service company. The ways in which the interviewees describe 1) specific events, factors and elements of the strategic change process, 2) their feelings, experiences and understandings of the change, and 3) organizational culture and strategic change implementation in general, are analyzed. The organization has recently conducted a major restructuring program in one of its business units in Finland, causing changes in most of the employees’ job design. Before the current initiative, the organization has gone through various changes, including cooperation negotiations in multiple business units, and office closures in several locations. Therefore, the situation is characterized by emotional turbulence. Findings and conclusions The findings indicate that frontline employees make sense from multiple environmental cues, and emotion seems to play a key role in the sensemaking process. The way how an individual employee feels about the previous change programs, his/her participation opportunities, changes in his/her professional identity and the future direction of the organization, seems to have a great impact on sensemaking. The findings also suggest that sensemaking is an individual process, in which each individual actor connects, not only the environmental cues shared with the other organizational actors, but their own interpretation, personal experience and emotions of those cues. Additionally, lack of emotional focus in an organization may lead to a feeling among employees that expressing emotions is forbidden or that emotions should be distanced from working context. Therefore, it seems that by appreciating emotionality, sensemaking could be enhanced in organizations. Finally, a set of four best practices is formulated, providing practitioners with tools on how to successfully implement strategic change.Description
Thesis advisor
Moisander, JohannaKeywords
sensemaking, emotion, strategic change, organizational change