Organising under uncertainty: how startup investors construct value through sensemaking

Purpose This study examines how early-stage investors construct startup value under conditions of uncertainty. Drawing on a sensemaking perspective, it explores how investors interpret and integrate resource, leadership and contextual cues into coherent valuation judgements of venture potential. Design/methodology/approach Utilising a semi-structured interview approach, qualitative data were generated from seven startup investors in Malaysia, capturing experiential reflections and evaluative reasoning. An iterative interpretive analysis was conducted, with computational text analysis used for supplementary pattern-checking and visualisation. The themes are presented as interconnected dimensions of investors' valuation narratives. Findings The findings illustrate that valuation is constructed through a dynamic sensemaking process in which investors integrate five interrelated dimensions: operational discipline, customer and market focus, technological capability, product–market viability and team and leadership. Investors complement available financial information with interpretive narratives that connect internal capabilities, leadership and external conditions into coherent assessments of venture potential. Leadership emerges as the central integrative mechanism, while early customer validation anchors credibility. Valuation therefore emerges as an ongoing negotiation between uncertainty and conviction. Originality/value The study extends startup valuation research by explaining how investors complement available financial indicators with interpretive sensemaking when constructing valuation judgements under uncertainty. It further shows how resources, leadership and ecosystem conditions are integrated into coherent valuation narratives.