Lilla Hortoványi

Strategy Without Templates

Adaptation in Digital Environments

7.3 Path Coherence and Narrative Persistence: The Lock-In

Repeated use alone is not yet enough to explain durable structure. The next step is sequence stabilization. Temporary responses become more durable when they are linked into coherent sequences that actors can recognize, reproduce, and defend. Stabilization, therefore, operates not only at the level of individual practices, but also at the level of recurring paths of action.

Recent research on routine dynamics has introduced the concept of path coherence as a predictive mechanism for understanding which paths persist and which are abandoned (Kim et al., 2024). Path coherence refers to the continuity of situational attributes, such as who, what, when, where, and why, from one event to the next along a path. Paths with high coherence are significantly more likely to persist and form than paths with low coherence.

This matters because organizations do not operate through isolated responses. They operate through connected sequences. When a sequence of action maintains continuity in actors, tools, timing, locations, and purposes, it becomes easier to reproduce than a fragmented alternative. Coherence reduces uncertainty by making the next step more predictable. It also creates shared expectations among interdependent actors, which increases the cost of deviation.

The mechanism of path coherence operates through several channels. First, coherent paths are easier to recognize and reproduce. When actors encounter a familiar situation, they can draw on established sequences rather than improvising new responses. This reduces uncertainty and cognitive load, making coherent paths more attractive than novel alternatives. Second, coherent paths create expectations among interdependent actors. When a sequence of actions is repeated with high coherence, others learn to anticipate and coordinate with it. These expectations create network effects that reinforce the path’s persistence. Deviating from the established sequence disrupts these expectations, creating coordination costs that discourage change. Third, coherent paths become embedded in organizational narratives. They are told and retold as stories about how work is done, becoming part of the organization’s identity and culture. This narrative embedding makes the path resistant to change, as altering it would require not only changing practices but also revising shared understandings.

Empirical evidence from clinical documentation routines demonstrates the power of path coherence. Kim et al. (2024) found that coherent paths were up to 14 times more likely to persist and up to 40 times more likely to form than less coherent paths, even after a major technological disruption. This suggests that path coherence is a powerful mechanism of organizational inertia, creating lock-in that extends beyond individual routines to entire sequences of action. This path-centric view aligns with recent theoretical work showing that emerging technologies do not simply replace existing organizational arrangements but instead create new paths that coexist with and transform legacy structures (Pentland et al., 2022). Lock-in, therefore, operates not only at the level of individual routines but also at the level of path-dependent trajectories that shape how organizations respond to technological change.

For the chapter’s argument, the distinction is important. Repetition stabilizes individual responses, but coherence stabilizes sequences. Once actions form recognizable paths, they gain legitimacy, predictability, and coordination value. The sequence itself becomes more durable than any single element within it.

This marks the next step in the causal sequence. Temporary responses become repeated practices, and repeated practices become stabilized sequences that guide future action.

This is also where the analysis moves beyond isolated efficiency. Organizations may fail to adopt a better local solution if doing so would break the coherence of a larger sequence. In template-free environments, what stabilizes is often not the individually best component, but the sequence that holds together most reliably under existing conditions. Path coherence, therefore, marks the transition from repeated use to sequence stabilization.

Tartalomjegyzék

Kiadó: Akadémiai Kiadó

Online megjelenés éve: 2026

ISBN: 978 963 664 204 4

Gazdaság

What happens when understanding comes only after action has already begun?

Traditional strategy rests on the assumption that organizations can understand their environment before deciding how to act. Yet the conditions that once allowed organizations to rely on benchmarking, best practices, and proven strategic templates can no longer be taken for granted. Today, organizations increasingly face situations for which no clear roadmap exists. Established assumptions become less reliable, familiar reference points lose their clarity, and strategic decisions must be made before their consequences can be fully understood.

Strategy Without Templates explores how organizations learn, adapt, and navigate environments in which uncertainty is pervasive and established templates are absent or no longer sufficient. Instead of treating strategy as a process of prediction and planning, the book explores how strategic paths take shape through action, experimentation, adjustment, and learning.

A central insight in the book is that temporary solutions are often necessary. What begins as a practical response to an immediate challenge may gradually shape future possibilities in unexpected ways. Some solutions create new opportunities and sources of advantage. Others become constraints that are difficult to overcome.

Hivatkozás: https://mersz.hu/hortovanyi-strategy-without-templates//

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