Complexity Course for Business, Government and Academics

Atrium Glamorgan University, Cardiff, Cardiff, Wales, UK
Joint LSE & DNA Wales Event

Complexity Course for Business, Government and Academics
27-31 October 2008 at Cardiff, Wales


An understanding of Complexity Theory can make a considerable difference to the effectiveness, sustainability and longevity of organisations. It can also help to address apparently intractable problems, which consistently resist resolution. If they can be addressed correctly, then profitability, competitiveness and effectiveness in both private and public sector organisations, can be improved.

The 5-day course will introduce participants to the theory and show how it can be applied in practice. The following outline programme illustrates both the breadth and depth of the course. It will cover, an introduction to complexity theory and its application to  leadership, post-merger integration, IT and business alignment, and other challenges through the creation of appropriate enabling environments. It will introduce modelling, simulation and networks and discuss their practical use. The course will also include an introduction to the psychology tool called Landscape of the Mind, which looks at inner complexity and how it may be used to increase the effectiveness of teams and of individuals. Time has also been included for participants to discuss their own challenges.

TUTORS: Prof. Eve Mitleton-Kelly, Dr Ugur Bilge, Kate Hopkinson, Dr Paul Stevens, Dr Paul Thomas.  Bios and photos are attached.

Details of the programme for each day, follow the outline.

OUTLINE PROGRAMME                                          TUTOR

27 Oct: Introduction to Complexity Theory                               EMK
      Participant challenges, exploration & learning

28 Oct: Agent Based Modelling, simulation and social networks            UB
      How to use them and apply them
      Practical exercise on modelling and simulation  

29 Oct: Addressing Apparently Intractable Problems                         EMK
     Two different environments in two NHS Hospitals
     Leading Complex Organisations

    Developing a Sustainable and Engaged Workforce – The Welsh Way!     PT
    Cases & participant challenges, exploration & learning

     DINNER WITH ALL TUTORS & PARTICIPANTS

30 Oct: Inner Complexity: introduction to the tool ‘Landscape of the Mind’        KH
       and the use of individual and group preference profiles

31 Oct: A recent case at GlaxoSmithKline – reporting on a                       EMK, PS, KH
       12-month    project with 50 IT professionals; developing their
       networking and relationship skills to support alignment

Contact: To reserve a place please contact Complexitygroup@lse.ac.uk . Places are  strictly limited and early registration is advisable.
 
Deadline: Tuesday 30 September 2008

Details: Updates on the programme, venue, hotels, etc will be available on                             www.lse.ac.uk/conplexity

 

Fee: £3,500 p.p. or £2,500 for public sector organisations and academics. Fees  include materials, refreshments, lunch everyday and dinner on Wednesday evening only, but do not include accommodation. If 2 or more participants attend from the same organisation, they will be eligible for a 10% discount.


 
PROGRAMME CONTENT


 Monday 27 October 2008                           Prof. Eve Mitleton-Kelly
    
 09.30        Welcome & Introductions

10.00      Introduction to complexity theory & small group work
Participants will be introduced to complexity theory in the context of complex human organizations,  using the principles of complexity developed by the LSE Complexity Research Group over a 14-year period working collaboratively with research partners in the private and public sectors to test and apply the theory to real-world problems. The theoretical sessions will alternate with small group work to apply the principles.

References
Mitleton-Kelly E. 2003 “Ten Principles of Complexity & Enabling Infrastructures" in “Complex Systems & Evolutionary Perspectives of Organisations: The Application of Complexity Theory to Organisations”, Ed by Mitleton-Kelly, Elsevier, ISBN 0-08-043957-8

Mitleton-Kelly E., 2007 ‘The Emergence of Final Cause’ in Aaltonen, M. The Third Lens. Multi-Ontology Sense-Making and Strategic Decision-Making. Ashgate Publishing Limited. Aldershot, ISBN 0 7546 4798 6

12.30      Lunch

13.30      Continuation of introduction and small group work

15.30      Tea

15.50    Briefing on Cases
        Participants will be briefed on presenting their challenges
        Participant challenges, exploration & learning

17.30         Finish


Tuesday 28 October 2008                                             Dr Ugur Bilge

Agent Based Modelling (ABM) is a relatively recent computer paradigm [1, 2, 3]. As opposed to classic computer simulations, the ABM approach is a “bottom-up” modelling technique, sometimes resulting in unexpected, so-called “emergent” behaviour.  ABM applications model a medium to high number of independent agents such as shoppers in a supermarket [4] or workers in an organisation [5] for the investigation of overall system behaviour.

Today ABM in the social context is often used together with Network Analysis techniques [6, 7] and network animation tools for visualising and simulating social agents in organisations. EPSRC ICoSS Project [5], with LSE, used the ABM approach to visualise social networks in an organisation, to investigate connectivity patterns and informal networks, to identify hubs and lynchpins as well as communications bottlenecks.

It will be assumed that students have no prior knowledge of ABM. The objectives of this component of the course are to:
•    introduce and demonstrate ABM simulation environments
•    show real world examples of ABM
•    present social network analysis and simulation concepts
•    propose ABM solutions to your own problems

09.30        ABM Simulation Environments
     
11.00         Coffee

11.20         ABM in the real world
        Examples of real models and simulations will be demonstrated: SimStore, Container         World, COPD Simulator, Oil World.

13.00         Lunch

14.00         Social Network Analysis and Simulation                    

15.30         Tea

15.50        Group Work:  Prepare your own ABM application and present

17.30        Finish

References
1.    Stuart Kauffman, At home in the Universe, Penguin Books, 1995
2.    Joshua M. Epstein and Robert Axtell, Growing Artificial Societies – Social Science from the bottom up, 1996
3.    John L. Casti, Would-be Worlds, John Wiley & Sons, 1997
4.    John L. Casti, Firm Forecast, New Scientist, 24 April 1999, p42-46
5.    Ugur Bilge, Modelling Connectivity in the Work Place, ICoSS Project Report, LSE, March 2005
6.    Albert Laszlo Barabasi, Linked – The new science of Networks, Perseus Publishing, 2002
7.    Mark Buchanan, Small World: Uncovering nature’s hidden networks, Weidenfeld & Nicolson, 2002






Wednesday 29 October 2008                                  
                                           Prof. Eve Mitleton-Kelly

09.30      Addressing Apparently Intractable Problems
 Many real-world problems appear intractable and are difficult to resolve. Part of the difficulty arises when only single causes are sought, when such problems arise from the interaction of multiple, underlying, inter-related causes. Similarly when an example of ‘good practice’ is found, there is a mistaken assumption that simple copying of what was done and how it was done, is adequate. But the results are often disappointing. Complexity theory would explain that, since the conditions are different when ‘best practice’ is transferred, it is unlikely to work in the same way. A different approach would be to understand the multiple, underlying, inter-related principles (or causes) of why something worked well and what would have prevented it from working well. These underlying principles may then be used as insights to guide the adaptation of the successful experiment in a different context, by making it specific to the new organisational context. Examples will be used, from Complexity Group projects.

References
Mitleton-Kelly E. & Puszczynski LR 2006 “An Integrated Methodology to Facilitate The Emergence of New Ways of Organising” ” in Unifying Themes in Complex Systems, Vol. V,  Proceedings of the Fifth International Conference on Complex Systems, eds Y. Bar-Yam and A. Minai, Springer 2006, http://necsi.org/events/iccs/2004proceedings.html, paper #659

10.30        Two different environments in two NHS Hospitals
A longitudinal study in two NHS Hospitals, both with significant deficits which were reduced within a year, identified two totally different environments. Hospital X was open, collaborative and creative “we will address this challenge together and provide a better service at the same time”; the atmosphere in Hospital Y was fearful, secretive and adversarial. Yet 18 months later Y had changed for the better, out of all recognition. The environments which two new CEs had helped to create will be described, together with the change in Y, and analysed using complexity theory.

11.30        Coffee

11.50        Leading Complex Organisations
In early 2007, fifteen FTSE 100 CEOs and Senior Civil Servants were interviewed on the challenges they faced as leaders, in the 21st Century. What emerged was not just identification of some key challenges, but also some deep insights on how to be a better leader.
 
13.0        Lunch
                                             Dr Paul Thomas
        
14.00         Developing a Sustainable and Engaged Workforce – The Welsh Way!
As well as introducing practitioners to new perspectives of practice, understanding and working, senior leaders will learn more about the skills and language needed to develop an engaged workforce through the use of Complex Evolving Systems (CES) thinking.

DNA Wales is already working with the following organisations: A British Government Department; Alstom TSR; Excel Assemblies; and Blaenau Gwent County Borough Council. The DNA Wales approach makes a real difference to employee empowerment and wellbeing, reduces senior leader stress and improves the agility of the organisation as a whole.

Dr Paul Thomas will present an overview of the research and case study evidence to explore the following, and will highlight ways in which employees and leadership can be improved through the use of CES thinking:

:
•    The ‘real’ context and structures of organisational life and human interaction.
•    The limitations that the rational perspective has on organisational innovation, development and health in light of new developments.
•    A messy but sustainable approach to reducing absenteeism, sickness, stress and disputes to improve worker welfare.
•    An understanding of the basic tenets and applications of ‘ownership’ and trust in any organisational context.
•    The impact of targets and measures.
•    The impact of hierarchy, control and managerialism on sustainable change.

15.30        Tea

15.50        Participant challenges, exploration & learning

17.30         Finish

19.30          DINNER WITH ALL TUTORS & PARTICIPANTS


Thursday 30 October 2008                                                                    Kate Hopkinson

9.30            Making sense of inner complexity: Introduction to Landscape of the         Mind (LoM)
Many tools for understanding and working with inner complexity fail to capture exactly those aspects of a human being, which add the most value (as well as sometimes causing the most aggravation), when we try to work together. The aim of this session is to provide an opportunity to test drive an alternative way of approaching these issues. Since this tool was used in the GSK project case study, this session will also prepare participants for Day 5.

11.15        Coffee

11.35          Applications and case study examples

13.0        Lunch

14.0            Participative session: making connections and exploring the inner             complexity of your own challenges

15.30        Tea

15.50            Change, co-evolution and facilitating emergence

17.30        Finish


Friday 31 October 2008            Eve Mitleton-Kelly, Paul Stevens, Kate Hopkinson

09.30        The Challenge of Alignment between the IT Department                  EMK
        and the rest of the business – setting the scene in terms of
        the challenge for all organisations  
                        
10.15        Setting the context in GSK IT Department                PS
        Strategic need to strengthen relationships

11.0                 Coffee

11.20    LoM: Choosing and using a vehicle for enabling relationships    KH
        This session will examine the choice of tool, getting engagement,
        and highlights from the group results.                    

12.30    Lunch

13.30         LoM and a participative exercise                        KH
        This session will cover individual results, their impact
        on participants, and the inner learning journey they catalysed.            

14.30    What Difference Did It Make in GSK?                    PS

15.0    Tea

15.15        Overview of Project from Complexity Theory Perspective          EMK
        A bringing together of the different aspects and contributions to the GSK case study,         using complexity theory to explain both the process and the outcomes.

15.45    Panel Session & Participant Challenges                        PS, KH, EMK

16.30    Finish