Blue versus Gray: A Metaphor Constraining Sensemaking Around a Restructuring

Greenberg, Danna

doi:10.1177/1059601195202007

Cited by 33 publications

(41 citation statements)

References 33 publications

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“…In this way, metaphors are also used in particular in organizational life to make sense of complexities and multiple meanings (see e.g. Greenberg 1995;Vaara, Tienari, and Säntti 2003). Death as a metaphor in the context of closures thus makes it possible to construct or project both 'death' and 'organization'-related viewpoints and underlying assumptions.…”

Section: Metaphors and Organizational Deathmentioning

confidence: 98%

Death metaphors and factory closure

Arman

2013

Culture and Organization

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This article seeks to further our understanding of the role of death metaphors in the context of factory closure. A closure is an example of what has been called an organizational death. This refers to a literal ending, but there is also a metaphorical meaning. In this case study, three root-metaphors of different kinds of death explain the actors' accounts of the enactments of the closure, changing over time. Firstly, employees have mainly described managers as responsible and the decision as illegitimate and deliberate (murder). However, managers and others have described the decision as strategic and inevitable (sacrificial killing). The beginning of the closure process was mostly described by employees as irresponsible. Later on, accounts were better explained using a palliative death metaphor. The metaphor analysis offered a contextualized, process-oriented, and agentic understanding of the closure which is relevant to other contexts where the types of death metaphors may vary.

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Section: Metaphors and Organizational Deathmentioning

confidence: 98%

Death metaphors and factory closure

Arman

2013

Culture and Organization

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“…However, the job-related perceptions of organizational members are likely to be in¯uenced by various social cues and dynamics there (Grif®n, 1987) and organizational members (especially managers) often interpret experiences for each other (e.g. Greenberg, 1995). In particular, anticipation of radical change often generates an atmosphere in which organization members actively and collectively make sense of threatening environments or events and take action accordingly (e.g., Buono and Bowditch, 1989;Knights and McCabe, 1998).…”

Section: Local Dynamics Associated With a Construct Like Job Insecuritymentioning

confidence: 99%

Qualitative research can add new meanings to quantitative research

Bartunek

Seo

2001

J Organ Behavior

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“…Our extensive literature search on this topic identified four different research streams: (a) sensemaking and individuals' responses to change (e.g., Balogun, Bartunek, & Do, 2015;Chreim, 2006;Greenberg, 1995;Riesenmy, 2010;Stensaker & Falkenberg, 2007;Stensaker et al, 2008); (b) sensegiving and change implementation (e. g., Gioia & Chittipeddi, 1991;Gioia, Thomas, Clark, & Chittipeddi, 1994;Hensmans, 2015); (c) middle managers as sensegivers during change (e.g., Balogun, 2006;Dutton, Ashford, O'Neill, & Lawrence, 2001;Rouleau & Balogun, 2011); narrative when sensemaking about change (e.g., Brown & Humphreys, 2003;Dunford & Jones, 2000;Heracleous & Barrett, 2001;Sonenshein, 2010).…”

Section: Sensemaking About Organizational Changementioning

confidence: 99%

Making sense of organizational change: Is hindsight really 20/20?

Gover

Duxbury

2017

J Organ Behavior

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This qualitative study explores the conceptual links between 2 different approaches to managerial cognition, sensemaking and cognitive bias, in the context of organizational change. A longitudinal case study utilizing both real-time assessments and retrospective sensemaking data from interviews with 26 hospital employees at 3 points in time was undertaken. Patterns related to individuals' retrospective accounts and real-time assessments were identified and used to construct 4 prototypical narratives. Data analysis revealed that organizational change was not a markedly negative experience for most informants, which is contrary to the prevailing theme in the literature. This and other findings are discussed in terms of sensemaking and cognitive bias. This study makes 2 contributions to our understanding of how individual's experience and make sense of organizational change over time as (a) little is known about how the process of change unfolds over time at the individual level and (b) extant research has not investigated the extent to which individuals' retrospective sensemaking about organizational change reflects or diverges from their real-time assessments over the course of the change. More broadly, the study provides insights and focused advice for management researchers regarding the use of retrospective data to understand individuals' perceptions of situations that have already occurred.

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Blue versus Gray: A Metaphor Constraining Sensemaking Around a Restructuring

Cited by 33 publications

References 33 publications

Death metaphors and factory closure

Death metaphors and factory closure

Qualitative research can add new meanings to quantitative research

Making sense of organizational change: Is hindsight really 20/20?

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