Comments on: Managing in Complexity

By: Rob Paterson

Rob Paterson — Thu, 30 Sep 2010 15:29:39 +0000

Bang on H – Isn’t this the central issue of our time – our most challenging problems are complex and chaotic and we revert to using the POV of Simple in most cases? Is this why we cannot get traction on so many issues? Is the a core problem of media today – it’s all simple to them so they set a false context

By: Harold Jarche » Ten reasons

Harold Jarche » Ten reasons — Thu, 05 Aug 2010 19:00:21 +0000

[...] It’s about controlling the message. Networks, the new organizational model, mean giving up control and our hierarchical work models are no longer effective nor [...]

By: Harold Jarche » Knowledge sharing, one at a time

Harold Jarche » Knowledge sharing, one at a time — Wed, 21 Jul 2010 13:54:58 +0000

[...] any existing IT infrastructure (yet); but we need to enable a parallel system that can handle the distributed nature of work in addressing complex problems, namely weaker central control and better distributed communications [...]

By: Harold Jarche

Harold Jarche — Wed, 14 Jul 2010 16:32:19 +0000

John Tropea recently commented on the need for ambient awareness as we become more connected:

Whether it’s real-time or not; connection, context and ambient awareness is what the concept of KM was about (or should have been about), but it failed as it took a library science approach; it lacked behavioural characteristics that encourage engagement; it lacked these new social tools back in the day; and it was all managed by a centralised, incentivised and predictable “plan and outcome” management approach … more connection and less collection.

Most 1.0 organizations do not have sufficient ambient awareness of their complex environments, hence the dominance of illegal networks.

By: Kare Anderson

Kare Anderson — Wed, 14 Jul 2010 15:27:37 +0000

In this less knowable world where organizations are better served by weaker central control it would seem that they need to support learning and practicing self-organizing work – individually and in groups (aka different kinds of collaboration).

As we stumble towards understanding and sharing insights on the behaviors, pitfalls, steps etc. that work for fruitful collaboration we may, in fact, learn faster because of the increasingly interconnected world that requires we learn how.

Years ago, Moises Naim wrote a book about where such collaboration in flattened “organizations is happening – the illegal work – trafficking in guns, humans, drugs etc. – and the increasing connections between those “groups.” The book is Illicit

By: Paul Angileri

Paul Angileri — Tue, 13 Jul 2010 14:54:28 +0000

Thanks for posting this. Kurtz’s diagram gave me the idea of applying the concept of the personal political compass (http://www.politicalcompass.org/index) as a self-check assessment for leaders to take at specific cadences over the course of a project, or for regular organizational reviews. Kurtz’s diagram doesn’t account for spatial variances within each cell, but perhaps the model could be modified to integrate that functional element.