Information Cues and Processes Shaping Middle Managers' Change Readiness Sentiments

Abstract

Much has been written about managing change in the workplace, including how to develop change readiness in the organization. However, little is known about how middle managers form their change readiness sentiments. Drawing on an inductive analysis of interview responses of 80 American and Indian middle managers, we explored the cues and processes they use to inform their change readiness sentiments. Identification of these key cues and processes provides insight for both academics and practitioners regarding the shaping of readiness in middle managers. Building off the data, we develop a temporal model of the change readiness sensemaking that depicts sensemaking occurring in two stages, anticipatory and confirmatory, and depending on multiple tacit and explicit cues.