Learning from Surprising Observations in Management – Longitudinal Accounts

Abstract

Accounts can be understood as “repair of problematic situations”, which, in turn, may be seen as inference to the best explanation of a surprising observation. We analyse “learning events” as told by prominent Swedish industrial leaders in two sets of interviews with 30 years between them. We find that the accounts quite often centre around surprising situations, i.e. uncertainty is maximal, where coherence is reached by combining facts and arguments into an understanding of the situation good enough to justify action. The primary function of these accounts is to generate meaning. That meaning will inform managers in the choice of relevant “levers of control” in implementation. It has been argued that “semi-confusing information” in organizations will invite questions and dialogue, and thereby help them avoid or overcome crises. We extend this line of reasoning by showing how such information feeds deliberation – construction of inference to the best explanation – by abductive reasoning toward action in “moments-of-truth”.