Unexpected Events and Routine Dynamics

In this chapter, we examine the contribution of routine dynamics studies toward the management of unexpected events. In particular, we explore how routine dynamics studies have extended our insights into flexible coordination in the face of the unexpected and how such a perspective generates novel insights into the way people make sense of unexpected events, how they mindfully operate during the occurrence of unexpected events, and how improvisation is enacted as routine performance. In this review, we connect routine dynamics studies with research on crisis management and discuss how a routine dynamics perspective expands the research agenda for the management of unexpected events and crises.