In this dissertation, Andreas Kirschkamp explores the largely uncharted territory of early warning behaviors among CEOs in small and medium-sized companies. He begins by validating traditional contingency theory, highlighting the strong connection between environmental uncertainty and strategic sensemaking. The core of his research focuses on the relationship between CEOs' personality traits and their strategic decision-making processes, positioning his work within an "extended contingency theory" framework. Drawing from Lewin/Stephens' 1994 model, Kirschkamp identifies eight attitudes that influence organizational design, demonstrating that six of these attitudes significantly impact design variables, while egalitarianism and moral reasoning show no explanatory power. Furthermore, his findings reveal that successful CEOs engage differently with information sources compared to their less successful counterparts. They tend to utilize internal, impersonal, and external, personal sources more effectively. Successful managers exhibit broader scanning behaviors, delegate less, and engage with a wider array of partners during interpretation. However, no notable differences were found regarding the frequency of scanning, the use of tools, or the timing of interpretation.
