Rouleau & Balogun (2011), Journal of Management Studies

Middle Managers, Strategic Sensemaking, and Discursive Competence

Drawing on field vignettes, the authors show middle managers moved strategic change by pairing the right words with the right setting, using familiar verbal, symbolic and cultural cues to pull in people from other levels.

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Questions this study helps answer

What the research saysWhat do middle managers actually do during change?What the research saysHow can middle managers get ideas heard by senior leaders?

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