Organizational Sensemaking Systems as a Determinant of Successful Organizational Change: A Grounded Theory Approach

Abstract

Organizational Sensemaking has been in the literature for nearly three decades – however, classical theories of organizational sensemaking have studied it as an individual or team-level phenomenon rather than at an organizational level. As a result, the multi-level implications of organizational sensemaking and its relationship to organizational change have yet to receive significant empirical attention. A greater understanding of organizational sensemaking may yield insights on how the effectiveness of organizational change interventions can be improved. A grounded theory approach is being used to examine the introduction of a training program for corrections staff in support of participatory ergonomics to improve worker health and wellbeing. Early findings are being used to construct a theoretical framework to guide the design of organizational sensemaking systems (OSS). The potential for OSS to promote organizational situational awareness, shared mental models, and organizational readiness for change is discussed along with design implications and directions for future research.