Understanding the experiences of ‘not knowing’

Abstract

‘Knowing’ is respected, recognized, and rewarded. Amidst the emphasis on ‘knowing’, there is hardly any space for ‘not knowing’. Especially those occupying leadership roles are demanded and expected to be ‘knowing’. This arises from the influence of the dominant paradigm of leadership which projects leaders as larger than lives and having transformational magic wands. The study explores the experiences of employees in leadership roles in situations of ‘not knowing’. We used constructivist grounded theory methodology. Thirty two participants were interviewed in-depth. Our findings capture the essence of the experiences of ‘not knowing’ in leadership around the core theme- sense of disruption. The sense of disruption was articulated by the participants by expressing ‘feeling uneasy’ and ‘dilemma of unveiling’. Participants’ experiences were shaped by leadership notions, expectations, past experiences, relationship with others, and organizational support.