Förändringsideer och meningsskapande : En studie av strategiskt förändringsarbete

Sammanfattning: When an organization is facing dramatic change, shared and individual beliefs and opinions are exposed to reconstruction. Different prevailing meanings are challenged. Therefore, in the thesis it is argued that it is necessary to understand subjective meanings held among the members of an organization, as well as the processes by which these meanings change, coincide and lead to concerted action, if we are to understand organizational change. Through a longitudinal study of two centers (i.e. divisions) within a large hospital organization, I have tried to create an understanding of strategic change in organizations, from a sensemaking perspective. The empirical study is carried out in a place between different hierarchical levels.This place is of special interest since actors in this context have to make sense of the changes that are put forward by top management, while at the same time they are expected to give sense to the members of the organization on lower hierarchical levels. While a first order interpretation is made as the empirical description moves ahead, the final chapters of the thesis contain second order interpretations that are more elaborated. The most important result from these further interpretations is a number of concepts that contribute to the understanding of organizational change. All together, the concepts create a coherent whole. The core of the concept formation is made up by four ideal types of meaning. Through these ideal types, different "meaning status" that can be present within a group or organization are described. In order to get a hold on the transformation from one ideal type of meaning to another, four different processes of transformation are identified and described. In addition to these results, the relationship between meaning and action are problemized. It is argued that action and/or visions are crucial during periods of change.