Posts related to the idea of systems thinking, which looks at the world as composed of systems and sub-systems and devises interventions based on the assumption that things are generally interdependent and interconnected.
The idea of Universal Basic Income has caught the popular imagination. Richard Branson, Mark Zuckerberg and Elon Musk, among others, have jumped on to the bandwagon to promote its potential. Equally, there are others who see the idea as a short jump to creating future generations of people dis-incentivised to work. Who is right? Well,…Continue Reading “Universal Basic Income: Panacea or Distraction?”
As we mentioned in our previous post, observation is crucial when we aim to gather the credible and unpolished data we need to take control of complex problems. Observing and receiving information without prejudice and being brutally honest about the information we gather allows us to avoid beautifying the situation and enables us to discover…Continue Reading “Complexity Cheat #02: Creating Clarity Through Visualization”
Following on from our previous post, let us start this one with another short story to illustrate the principles of our first complexity cheat: Three adventurers competed in a race through a very wild jungle to prove who is the best of them. The first brought a map and compass, the second a machete, but…Continue Reading “Complexity Cheat #01: Into the Jungle -The Art of Honest Observation”
For years the dominant view of organizations has been mechanistic; a company should run like a clockwork, the cogs just needed to be aligned to fit, run smoothly and with least possible friction. Anyone who has dared enter the murky waters of organizational behaviour will agree though that this is a gross over-simplification of a…Continue Reading “Systemic Complexity in Business: More Than the Sum of the Parts”