Making Sense of Work Through Collaborative Storytelling: Building Narratives in Organisational Change

ISBN-13: 9783030894450 / Angielski / Twarda / 2022 / 140 str.

Paulo de Tarso Fonseca Silva

Spis treści

Chapter 1: Why stories matter during organizational change

Stories connect people and allow us to make sense of our surroundings. As stories are told and materialize into different forms, they become tools to access knowledge that is not limited to body, place and time.

Such an important resource used by humans throughout history should not be taken for granted, and yet, modern, formal managerial practices sterilize the way we interact, communicate and collaborate. It is not uncommon in organizations for the use of stories to be legitimized as beneficial. In most cases, stories are introduced as a novel approach to strategy and organizational change. As stories are reintroduced into traditional work practices, there is still a need to reappropriate the use of stories to leverage exchange of experiences and opportunities to co-create practices collaboratively.

This chapter will discuss the underlying arguments of the book by exploring the concept of story in sensemaking at work. 

In this chapter, we will draw from the literature on Weick's sensemaking, sensemaking and narratives (Brown et al.) and critical sensemaking (Mills et al. 2015). We will also discuss stories in organization by drawing specifically from Yannis Gabriel's work. We intend to frame the arguments with an interpretivist and embodied perspective on stories and sensemaking.

 

Chapter 2: Bringing Storytelling into work activities

 This chapter discusses the theoretical underpinning of organizational development interventions in relation to sense making and storytelling. It considers the practitioners’ environments, tools and bodies by framing the work through the lens of Cultural Historical Activity Theory (CHAT) (Roth & Lee, 2007; Engeström, 1999).

In this chapter, we introduce our concept of  ‘story mediation’ and its relevance to enable sense making at work. As such, we discuss how stories externalized by the researcher, based on the participants’ own narratives, can highlight collective thinking during organizational change and development.

We argue that framing existing themes and metaphors (e.g. Lakoff 1993; Lakoff & Johnson, 2003; Heracleous & Jacobs 2011; Barrett & Cooperrider, 1990)  within the narratives can validate issues of importance for participants, enabling collaborative efforts. This process allows the participants to make sense of their shared activity in order to craft a future work strategy together. This chapter will draw from reflexivity methodology and storytelling in organizations, eg. Boje; Gabriel’s work .

 

Chapter 3: Aligning multiple perspectives at work: the use of Collaborative Story Craft

 

Description

 

The crafting of common stories at work requires a holistic understanding of the activity by considering the narrative of those who share work responsibilities. Using the method of Collaborative Story Craft (CSC), we expand the description regarding the story mediator’s responsibility on  analysing data and facilitating different perspectives by connecting common themes among the participants’ stories. The role of story mediation puts into context individual assumptions as part of a collective story. This chapter will draw from thematic analysis and Clarke’s Situational Analysis (2005; 2017).

 

 

Chapter 4: Mapping the future story through Collaborative Story Craft

 

This chapter concludes the book on how actors such as managers or organizational development practitioners can use story and the method of Collaborative Story Craft (CSC) as a tool for collaborative exchange during organizational change. In particular, we discuss the potential of collective sensemaking and inclusion of multiple perspectives through CSC, and outline steps for how to implement CSC effectively. This chapter will connect our concept of Metaphorical Tourism in relation to Boje’s antenarrative and living stories as well as Change Laboratory as an intervention tool to transform work (Engeström, 1987, 2007; Virkkunen & Newnham, 2013).

O autorze

Tricia Cleland Silva and Paulo de Tarso Fonseca Silva are a multicultural family who live and work in Helsinki, Finland. Tricia holds a PhD in Management and Organisation from Hanken School of Economics, and Paulo holds a Masters in Adult Education from the Center for Research on Activity, Development and Learning (CRADLE), University of Helsinki. 

The authors are Story Mediators who work with their method of Collaborative Story Craft. Their method is used in their practices through their consultancy business Metaphora International, their teaching and research within universities and other communities of practice. The theory of Collaborative Storytelling is a deeper reflection of their work, and it embodies their values and beliefs as a couple, parents, and members of many social worlds.  

 

Blurb

Collective sense making starts with individual stories. Stories influence how we construct our sense of self in relation to others and our social environment, especially within the world of work

The stories we tell ourselves at work, particularly during times of change, impact our relationships and the collaboration with those who are engaged in the same work activities. Stories that we take for granted as ‘commonsense’ may not resonate with others, leading to conflict and tensions. This book focuses on the development of collaborative practices at work, and in organisations, through stories: from sharing stories to exchanging experiences and building a common narrative collectively.  

This open access book will be of interest to academics working in the fields of organisational studies, qualitative research methods, and workplace identity.