Sensory Templates: Solving Unsolvable Managerial Problems

Abstract

This chapter contains descriptions of nine real life cases taken from research carried out at Cranfield School of Management. The cases illustrate how changing the sensory templates managers use to understand everyday situations can change a situation from a severe and seemingly unsolvable organizational problem to a relatively simple situation the manager can easily deal with. Each case represents a commonly known managerial challenge and as such is easy for managers to relate to. This chapter also challenges the value of increased clarity if this is not accompanied by change of sensory templates, since such clarity may only result in managers getting more stuck in perspectives, which do not serve them.