Session Summary

Session Number:184
Session ID:S45
Session Title:Making Sense of Change: Essential Stabilities in Breathless Journeys
Short Title:Weick & Waterman on Change
Session Type:Showcase Symposium
Hotel:Hyatt West
Floor:LL2
Room:Regency Ball D(N)
Time:Monday, August 09, 1999 1:00 PM - 2:10 PM

Sponsors

ODC  (Rami Shani)ashani@calpoly.edu (805) 756-1756 
OMT  (Joseph Porac)j-porac@staff.uiuc.edu (217) 244-7969 

General People

Chair Colville, Ian  U. of Bath i.d.colville@bath.ac.uk (44) 1225 826688 
Presenter Waterman, Robert W. The Waterman Group bwaterman@watermangrp.com 415-570-7770 
Presenter Weick, Karl E. U. of Michigan Karl_Weick@ccmail.bus.umich.edu (734)763-1339 

Submissions

Abstract

This symposium adopts a sensemaking perspective (Weick, 1995) and argues that while process is important in understanding(s) of change (Van de Ven & Scott Poole, 1995), it is history, memory and structure which is the natural and first attitude taken in sensemaking and that attention to process is the unnatural and second attitude. While this clearly resonates with the conference theme of change and development journeys into a pluralistic world, it cautions against an overemphasis on process and at the same time, draws attention to the inherent weakness of the journey(ing) metaphor. It does so by developing and extending a previous conversation amongst the participants in sensemaking (Colville, Waterman & Weick, 1999) and is rooted in a case illustration of the AES Corporation. The aim is to explore the relationship between the effecting of change and the communication of that change; the doing of change and the representation of change; between practice and theory; and ultimately between change and stability, in the belief that such a relationship may involve managing paradox (Peters & Waterman, 1982). All this is held together through fun, and making sense of fun.