Understanding Organizational Change in a Post-Conflict Society: A Sensemaking Approach to Northern Ireland’s Government Re-Organization

• In Event: So Far, So Good, Part 1: Organizational Communication Research Escalator

Abstract

Traditionally, systematic investigations into communication issues during organizational change have involved comparatively reviewing an organization before and after the change has occurred by way of an internal communication audit. Such an audit focuses on the organization’s communicative structures and systems, but there is a growing need to shift this focus onto examining how people make sense of organizational change. Sensemaking offers insights into the process of communication during organizational change, the identities that are maintained, altered, developed or constrained during change. A review of literature in the field reveals few studies have been conducted examining how organizational communication and sensemaking are linked (Mills, 2009), particularly within a public sector context such as local government. This study helps redress the extant dearth of investigations in this area, by examining the emerging communication issues and the role of power within a local government authority in the developing post-conflict context of Northern Ireland.

Author

• Ashley Alice McConnell, University of Ulster