Tunneling Toward Transformation: Exploring Organizational Attention and Sensemaking in Change Initiation

ABSTRACT This study develops a grounded theory of how organizations initiate transformational change under conditions of uncertainty. Although extant research has largely emphasized how firms respond to disruption or adapt once problems become visible, less is known about how they build momentum for change before issues are formalized or opportunities fully materialize. Drawing on a longitudinal multiple‐case study of European manufacturing firms, including interviews with senior leaders and archival data, the study introduces the concept of tunneling , a dynamic and recursive process through which distributed attention and collective sensemaking are progressively channeled into coherent strategic direction. Tunneling unfolds through the interplay of three interrelated processes—organizational alignment, exploration, and attentional focus—which together enable actors to detect, interpret, and act upon weak or ambiguous signals. Rather than relying primarily on top‐down vision or discrete triggering events, proactive transformation emerges from ongoing cross‐level interpretation, experimentation, and the gradual stabilization of shared meaning. By explicating this pre‐recognitive phase of change initiation, the study bridges attention‐based and sensemaking perspectives, extends process views of dynamic capabilities, and contributes to the underdeveloped literature on strategic change initiation. The findings also offer practical guidance for designing organizational structures and routines that enhance early sensing, distributed interpretation, and coordinated action to build transformation readiness in volatile environments.