Tag Archives: complex systems

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Brexit: Crisis and Opportunity for Britain and the EU – a Systems Perspective

“In a multi-layered complex system stability is achieved by having the big and/or slow processes govern through constraint the smaller, faster processes. Sudden change can take place in a complex system when agents at one level escape the constraints usually … Continue reading →

Posted in Change, General | Tagged American government, Anglo-Saxon capitalism, complex systems, crisis, David Cameron, destruction, directdemocracy, ecological perspective, Founding Fathers, Great Britain, James Madison, Jeremy Corbyn, Little England, means and ends, Nigel Farage, renewal, representative democracy, rule by experts, rule by faction, Senate, Tony Judt | Comments Off on Brexit: Crisis and Opportunity for Britain and the EU – a Systems Perspective

Bloody Ships – Bloody Systems: A Managerial Reflection on the Centenary of the Battle of Jutland

“There seems to be something wrong with our bloody ships today…” remarked Vice Admiral David Beatty to his Flag Captain. Beatty was commander of the Battle Cruiser Fleet at Jutland, and his cool comment belied the scale of the catastrophe. … Continue reading →

Posted in Change, General | Tagged battle-cruiser, Bismarck, complex systems, context, David Beatty, HMS Hood, HMS Lion, Horace Hood, Indefatigable, innovation, Invincible, Jutland, Nelson, Queen Mary, Trafalgar | Comments Off on Bloody Ships – Bloody Systems: A Managerial Reflection on the Centenary of the Battle of Jutland

Cultivating Organizations – Background to The New Ecology of Leadership

I am now publishing my blogs both here and on LinkedIn. In this case this article is already on the site (in Latest News About the Book), so just the link is here. It’s an article I wrote last year for … Continue reading →

Posted in Change, General | Tagged change, complex systems, ecocycle, ecological perspective, means and ends, The New Ecology of Leadership | Comments Off on Cultivating Organizations – Background to The New Ecology of Leadership

Changing Our Models of Change: Nothing Lasts Unless It Is Incessantly Renewed”

In a blog last year, Matthew Taylor, Chief Executive of the Royal Society of the Arts wrote “Ideas about social and economic reform are only as useful as the model of change that goes with them.” I agree completely. We … Continue reading →

Posted in Change, General | Tagged Anglo-Saxon capitalism, blueprints, change, complex systems, ecocycle, ecological perspective, efficiency, engineering, Jonathan Haidt, Kurt Lewin, Matthew Taylor, narrative, objectivity, passion, power, reason, roadmap, RSA, servants of power, shareholder value, trust, unfreeze-change-refreeze | Comments Off on Changing Our Models of Change: Nothing Lasts Unless It Is Incessantly Renewed”

Capitalism as an Ecological Process

On April 2 The Economist published a book review of Valuation: Measuring and Managing the Value of Corporations, a 700-page manual on corporate finance and shareholder value published by McKinsey & Company. The views in both the book and the … Continue reading →

Posted in Change, General | Tagged Andy Haldane, Anglo-Saxon capitalism, Bank of England, Cartesian Management, community, complex systems, context, ecocycle, ecological perspective, innovation, management principles, McKinsey, shareholder value model, Valuation | Comments Off on Capitalism as an Ecological Process

The VW Debacle: How Large Successful Organizations and Institutions Can Become “Bad Barrels” And What To Do About It

The outlines of Volkswagen’s comprehensive program to defeat national auto emissions laws are becoming clearer. According to the New York Times the company began installing software designed to cheat on emissions test in 2008, when they realized that their new … Continue reading →

Posted in Change, General, Leadership, Strategy | Tagged Alex Gorsky, Anglo-Saxon capitalism, Aristotle, change, complex systems, context, creativity, crisis, destruction, diesel emissions, ecological perspective, efficient cause, General Motors, gun control, hip joints, ignition locks, J&J, Johnson & Johnson, material cause, means and ends, Risperdal, shareholder value, Volkswagen debacle, Winterkorn | 1 Comment

To Kill a Zombie: Ending Shareholder Primacy

The theme of the Drucker Forum to be held in Vienna November 13-14 this year is “The Great Transformation: Managing Our Way to Prosperity”. In the run-up to it Simon Caulkin wrote a mainly excellent article in the Financial Times … Continue reading →

Posted in Change, General | Tagged addiction dynamic, Anglo-Saxon capitalism, change, complex systems, crisis, Drucker Forum, Financial Times, Global Drucker Forum, Lynn Stout, shareholder value, Simon Caulkin, The Great Transformation, Upton Sinclair, vampire, zombie | Comments Off on To Kill a Zombie: Ending Shareholder Primacy

Disrupting Disruption Theory [Part III]: Transforming Human Organizations

This is the third in my series of blogs triggered by Harvard history professor Jill Lepore’s criticism of HBS professor Clayton Christensen’s theory of disruptive innovation. Although her curiously jumbled assessment was wide of the mark, it presented an opportunity … Continue reading →

Posted in Change, General, Leadership | Tagged capitalism, casino capitalism, Clayton Christensen, complex systems, conscious capitalism, creative capitalism, Crisis & Renewal, destruction, disruption theory, ecocycle, ecological perspective, entrepreneurship, Holling, innovation, Jeffrey Pfeffer, Jill Lepore, panarchy, Peter Drucker, success trap | Comments Off on Disrupting Disruption Theory [Part III]: Transforming Human Organizations

A Theory and a Hammer: Managing With Incentives (Part II)

I spent the past week teaching a leadership class at the Kenneth Levene Graduate School of Business at the University of Regina. At the same time my HBR blog “Is Management Due For a Renaissance” has been attracting continuing comment … Continue reading →

Posted in Change, Leadership, Strategy | Tagged Alfie Kohn, change, complex systems, context, creativity, Jack Welch, means and ends, Peter Drucker, purpose, Sears Roebuck, Steve Denning, telos | Comments Off on A Theory and a Hammer: Managing With Incentives (Part II)

Exploring The Ecology of Leadership: the Power of Analogical Thinking

I spent the past week in California working with a senior management team from a large global corporation as part of their extensive executive development program. This was my third time with the same organization and I had worked hard … Continue reading →

Posted in Change, General, Leadership, Strategy | Tagged abduction, alignment, analogical thinking, analogy, change, choice, commitment, complex systems, creativity, crisis, direction, ecocycle, ecological perspective, executive development, image, leadership culture, Leadership Metaphor Explorer, metaphor, narrative, The New Ecology of Leadership, Visual Explorer, wicked systems | Comments Off on Exploring The Ecology of Leadership: the Power of Analogical Thinking ← Older posts Newer posts →