Sensemaking

What is sensemaking?

Sensemaking is the process by which individuals and organizations give meaning to their experiences, especially in complex, ambiguous or uncertain situations. It involves organizing information, identifying patterns, and developing plausible explanations to understand events and guide action.

Why is sensemaking important?

Sensemaking is important for several key reasons:

• It enables people to navigate complexity and uncertainty. In the context of leadership in business, leaders face novel, ambiguous situations that "require a response outside our existing repertoire". In this sense, sensemaking allows us to map out complex situations, identify patterns, and develop plausible explanations to guide action.

• It is a prerequisite for effective decision making. Sensemaking occurs before decision making, allowing us to gather data, consider multiple perspectives, and develop mental models before jumping to decisions. Without sensemaking, we risk making poor decisions based on incomplete information or faulty assumptions.

• It facilitates coordinated action. In organizations, sensemaking enables members to develop shared awareness and understanding from diverse perspectives. Having a shared understanding of the situation allows for aligned, coordinated responses rather than fragmented individual actions.

• It is an ongoing process essential for adaptation. Sensemaking is not a one-time event but a continuous cycle of interpreting experiences, acting, and updating interpretations based on new information. This iterative process allows individuals and organizations to evolve their understanding and adapt as situations change.

How philosophy can improve sense-making?

Philosophical practice can improve sensemaking in several key ways:

Interrogating assumptions and frames

Philosophy encourages questioning the mental models, schemas, and frames we use to make sense of situations. By examining and challenging our preconceptions, we can develop more sophisticated and adaptive sensemaking capacities.

Guiding ethical sensemaking

Having ethical guidelines on sensemaking provides normative guidance for making sense in ways that enable human flourishing. Ethical reasoning can help us take responsibility for the ethical implications of our sensemaking and enact more skilful, less harmful interpretations.

Analysing conceptual distinction

Philosophical analysis clarifies important conceptual differences. For example, clarifying between what we believe and what we know when attempting to organise information on our experiences. Making finer-grained distinctions improves the nuance and precision of our sensemaking categories.

Enable perspective-taking

Philosophical practice promotes considering situations from multiple angles and viewpoints. This expands our sensemaking beyond narrow, individual-centric frames to include other possibilities. Imagining how others might be making sense develops empathy and social intelligence.