Most engagement strategies are built on a simple assumption: if people are involved, they’ll be committed. So organisations run surveys, workshops, town halls, and feedback sessions — and are surprised when buy-in still doesn’t follow.

The problem isn’t effort.
It’s the definition of engagement itself.

Participation and sensemaking are not the same thing.

You can attend every meeting, answer every survey, and still leave without clarity. You can give feedback without understanding how a change fits together, what it means for you, or what matters most right now.

Sensemaking is the process through which people interpret change:

• What is really happening?
• Why now?
• What does this mean for me, my role, and my future?

That process is internal and social. People don’t make sense of change alone. They test ideas in conversation, observe how leaders behave, and watch how decisions are made under pressure. Meaning is formed sideways — not downloaded from slides.

This is where many engagement approaches fall short. They focus on gathering input, not surfacing understanding. They ask for opinions without revealing how people are actually thinking and feeling in real time.

When engagement is designed to support sensemaking, different things happen:

• Questions are welcomed rather than managed.
• Differences in perspective are made visible, not smoothed over.
• Leaders adapt their approach based on what they learn, not what they planned.
  

The goal isn’t consensus.
It’s shared understanding.

Because once people understand what’s happening — and why — alignment becomes possible. Without sensemaking, engagement becomes theatre. With it, engagement becomes momentum.