Abstract
How to make sense while in change: Leadership and sensemaking in a changeable life at Schleswig Regiment of Foot
In 2018 the Danish Defence decided to re-establish Schleswig Regiment of Foot, and old infantry regiment closed in 2001, as the country’s first Light Infantry Regiment. The portfolio of the new regiment lies between conventional infantry units and SOF. The aim is to enable collaboration with the Danish SOF and simultaneously to function as a recruitment platform for suitable candidates for the SOF. Expectations were high when the regiment received its first recruits in the Summer 2019. Instead of the hectic life expected as semi-SOF, the soldiers are instead being used to guard the Danish-German border. In addition, they missed half of their education time due to the COVID-19 pandemic. This has been a source of frustration as the soldiers does not feel they are conducting their main task. The platoon commander, who in many cases is relatively new to the role of being leader, has the difficult job to convey, explain and create meaning about the current task. This leads to the following problem statement:
How can the platoon commander, make sense of the reality that soldiers encounter after graduation, and how can you lead this process in the best way?
The project first analyses social practices in a selected case platoon working at the border through Pierre Bourdieu's theory of: “Field”, "capital", "habitus" and "symbolic violence" in order to identify managerial challenges and argue how knowledge about social practices can be used by the leader. The results from the analysis is subsequently discussed focusing on the limitations and how other theoretical perspectives can support the results. The main findings were that Bourdieu can be used to understand norms, values and the leader can direct his leadership by using strong social actors as change agent. However, to create fundamental change and sensemaking, one need also to put attention more to the individual sensemaking process rather than the group change process.
The project concludes that is possible to create an understanding of the reality that the soldiers encounter after graduation, and lead the process if the leader has a language to understand social dynamics in order to effectively lead the platoon and create sense.