Coworkers as (strategic) communicators during a planned change: A case study in an international Knowledge-Intensive Organization
(2020) SKOM12 20201Department of Strategic Communication
- Abstract
- In post-bureaucratic organizations, coworkers have progressively acquired more importance in decision-making and strategy processes and, simultaneously, are expected to perform new communicative roles. Yet, there is a strong managerial focus in organizational communication research that has overlooked the role of coworkers as communicators, and the studies that have focused on the topic have emphasized their role as ambassadors to external publics. This qualitative case study, therefore, aims to analyze coworkers’ perceptions of their communicative roles during a planned change in a Knowledge-Intensive Organization located in Denmark. The empirical material consisted of 15 semi-structured interviews with coworkers that have recently... (More)
- In post-bureaucratic organizations, coworkers have progressively acquired more importance in decision-making and strategy processes and, simultaneously, are expected to perform new communicative roles. Yet, there is a strong managerial focus in organizational communication research that has overlooked the role of coworkers as communicators, and the studies that have focused on the topic have emphasized their role as ambassadors to external publics. This qualitative case study, therefore, aims to analyze coworkers’ perceptions of their communicative roles during a planned change in a Knowledge-Intensive Organization located in Denmark. The empirical material consisted of 15 semi-structured interviews with coworkers that have recently experienced the implementation of a new marketing strategy. When analyzing the findings using CCO (Communication Constitutes Organizing) and sensemaking as theoretical lenses, it showed that three shared meanings –commitment, identity, and expectations- can both hinder and enable communicative engagement. Coworkers tend to not reflect on their communicative roles leading to tensions and paradoxes with the main characteristics of post-bureaucratic organization. The study contributes to the Strategic Communication field by highlighting the importance that coworkers can have during a change initiative to acquire and disseminate knowledge but also deepens on how communication can sometimes be troublesome, emphasizing the complex and non-rational nature of organizational life. (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
http://lup.lub.lu.se/student-papers/record/9016095
- author
- Sugrañes Creus, Laura LU
- supervisor
-
- Mats Heide LU
- organization
- course
- SKOM12 20201
- year
- 2020
- type
- H2 - Master's Degree (Two Years)
- subject
- keywords
- communicative roles, employee communication, organizational change, sensemaking theory, CCO, strategic communication, post-bureaucractic organizations, Knowledge-Intensive Organizations
- language
- English
- id
- 9016095
- date added to LUP
- 2021-02-01 09:08:06
- date last changed
- 2021-02-01 09:08:06
@misc{9016095,
abstract = {{In post-bureaucratic organizations, coworkers have progressively acquired more importance in decision-making and strategy processes and, simultaneously, are expected to perform new communicative roles. Yet, there is a strong managerial focus in organizational communication research that has overlooked the role of coworkers as communicators, and the studies that have focused on the topic have emphasized their role as ambassadors to external publics. This qualitative case study, therefore, aims to analyze coworkers’ perceptions of their communicative roles during a planned change in a Knowledge-Intensive Organization located in Denmark. The empirical material consisted of 15 semi-structured interviews with coworkers that have recently experienced the implementation of a new marketing strategy. When analyzing the findings using CCO (Communication Constitutes Organizing) and sensemaking as theoretical lenses, it showed that three shared meanings –commitment, identity, and expectations- can both hinder and enable communicative engagement. Coworkers tend to not reflect on their communicative roles leading to tensions and paradoxes with the main characteristics of post-bureaucratic organization. The study contributes to the Strategic Communication field by highlighting the importance that coworkers can have during a change initiative to acquire and disseminate knowledge but also deepens on how communication can sometimes be troublesome, emphasizing the complex and non-rational nature of organizational life.}},
author = {{Sugrañes Creus, Laura}},
language = {{eng}},
note = {{Student Paper}},
title = {{Coworkers as (strategic) communicators during a planned change: A case study in an international Knowledge-Intensive Organization}},
year = {{2020}},
}