Coopetition in a headwind: The interplay of sensemaking, sensegiving, and middle managerial emotional response in coopetitive strategic change development

Coopetition in networks implies the existence of simultaneous cooperation and competition between the same actors. As a paradoxical relationship and strategy, coopetition is assumed to entail tensions for individuals. To date, few studies have approached processes at the individual level underlying coopetitive relational and strategy development. In this paper, we apply a sensemaking lens to coopetition in order to unravel how middle managers deal with implementing coopetition, in particular focusing on coping with emotional tensions, and the subsequent effects on strategy and relational development. Based on a case study of coopetition as a strategic change, we offer insights into how managers differently make sense of cooperation, i.e. create a network picture, which emerges in a strategic group. We contribute to network and coopetition research by presenting a framework for understanding changes in coopetitive dynamics as stemming from interrelated cognition, action, and outcomes, at top and middle managerial levels across intra- as well as inter-organizational levels.