Organizational blindness and paralysis in the face of disruption: A Sensemaking perspective

This paper builds on research that examines the sensemaking dynamics behind a phenomenon where some incumbents fail to respond to visible disruption despite having access to abundant resources and early warning signals. Drawing on data collected during a multi-year project, the study uses Weick's sensemaking theory as a conceptual framework, and adopts a methodology inspired by Grounded Theory to investigate two types of management failures: organizational blindness (failing to perceive disruption threats) and organizational paralysis (failing to act on perceived disruption threats). The research scope is global by nature due to the specific nature of technological businesses such as telecom and cloud operations, which necessitate an international management perspective. The findings reveal and connect a number of recurring organizational dynamics that inhibit appropriate response. A four-state model of interpretive/enactment failure is developed to explain how visibility of disruption does not guarantee organizational action. This study contributes to innovation literature by extending sensemaking theory to account for internal misalignments in structure, identity, and corporate dynamics.