Karl E. Weick: Departing from Traditional Rational Models of Organizational Change

Karl E. Weick is one of management’s and organizational science’s most influential social psychologists. He, more than most theorists, is responsible for pointing to the prevailing theories of management and organizational change and asking very pragmatic questions such as: “Is this plausible? What are we missing? What if we say this?” This chapter focuses on only four concepts within his large body of work: (1) organizing as a human process; (2) collective interpretation and loose coupling; (3) sensemaking; and (4) surprise and managing the unexpected. These concepts represent major departures from traditional rational models of organizational change. They are not necessarily labeled organizational change phenomena per se; however, each of them has been and remains critical to understanding human actions in the continuous flow of social change.