The New Management Imperatives: Culture, Connectedness, Performance, Leadership Sensemaking, Organizational Trust, And Employee Voice: A Qualitative Study

Abstract

This qualitative study explores the new management imperatives shaping contemporary organizations by examining the interrelationships among organizational culture, connectedness, performance, leadership sensemaking, organizational trust, and employee voice. Data were collected through in-depth, semi-structured interviews with 14 participants, including managers and employees across diverse organizational roles. Using thematic analysis, the study identified four central themes: leadership sensemaking as a catalyst for cultural coherence, connectedness as a foundation for organizational trust, trust-enabled employee voice as a driver of engagement and learning, and the alignment of culture and voice with perceived performance outcomes. The findings reveal that leadership sensemaking plays a pivotal role in interpreting organizational values and fostering meaningful connections, while trust emerges as a critical enabler of open communication and employee participation. Employee voice was found to function both as an expression of trust and as a mechanism for continuous improvement and adaptive performance. This study advances qualitative management research by foregrounding the lived experiences of organisational actors to formulate a unified explanation of how relational and interpretive processes influence organisational performance in contemporary contexts. The findings provide practical insights for leaders seeking to cultivate trust-based cultures that encourage connectedness, amplify employee voice, and support sustainable performance.