Breaking News....

The DNA Team (over 25 people there yesterday from academia and industry) yesterday successfully achieved the impossible. An MSc in Complexity & Leadership aimed at high-level managers, CEO's, Directors. The MSc Complexity and Leadership Programme will comprise of the following awards;

o    MSc Complexity and Leadership
o    MSc Complexity and Leadership (Manufacturing)
o    MSc Complexity and Leadership (Public Service)
o    MSc Complexity and Leadership (Retail/Service)

This MSc Complexity and Leadership will introduce current practitioners to concepts and thinking concerned with the sustainable leadership of organisations in both public services, retail and manufacturing.

The speed of change and the associated complexity facing organisations in the 21st Century has meant that leaders are increasingly having to develop thinking and solutions which would have been considered unthinkable a few years before. This MSC deals with that change and indeed may even lead it....

For the challenge is to develop methods, thinking, structures, systems and cultures/climates which enable organisations to succeed in achieving (their) interpretation of organisational ‘effectiveness’ and ‘competitive advantage’.  This MSc based in the sponsoring organisation and will address current problems and use theory in practice.

Do you want to have 30 senior managers in your organisation, accompanied by world leading academics who are helping you achieve success, solve issues and suggest ways forward? Interested then contact us now....

Paul

Manchester Done.

Well having survived a night in the hotel from hell the day at the Complexity Society in Manchester was extremely delightful.

The event itself demonstrated to me if I’m honest the huge gulf in academic ‘speak’ and ‘real’ person on the street discussion.  We [academics] seem to forget that we have a language, discourse that most people fail to understand, grasp to desire. It simple is un-helpful for those wishing to change practice for themselves or the organisations they represent. I know this sounds odd as an academic, but having spent the last three years talking to ‘non-believers’, frontline workers, hairy-arsed engineers the last thing they want is academics debating why policy shapes practice in micro-elements of human systems, they want how, why and where does it start. We need to get real people engaged in the field not bored by discussion on the micro-political power struggles of Marxist complexity thinker in a post-modernist economy…… see I was listen! Its seems that even in Complexity ‘Ego’s’ get in the way of development.

No wonder, DNA Wales promised to publish research and case studies directly on the web and not wait for ‘ego’s’ to ratify, support or condone current practical, cutting edge change in companies.

We need to follow the American way and separate Academic debate from practitioners and/or warn both that both type will be present.

However what was really interesting yesterday was the large attendance of NHS representatives. Excellent. There maybe a way forward at last!

Well done Complexity Society wonderful event, great venue MBS and overall a stunning day.
Paul

I just want to remind everyone that DNA Wales at present is a Non-Profit making, cash neutral organisation. No one in DNA gains financially as a result of the work we do in company. Why? Well I suppose we do not want to be considered as consultants, only help. We also want to be able to walk away if we are unable to help. Honesty, openness, transparency, trust and passion are our core values. Its what we do, love, and enjoy. Helping managers change.

We do have costs to cover of course as well as day jobs and as such we sometimes ask for expenses and this is all we ask for in the process of helping you gain solutions to your problems/issues.

Why; well as being introduced to new perspectives of thinking, understanding and working, senior leaders DNA Wales helps 'managers' learn more about the skills and language needed to develop an engaged workforce through the use of Complex Evolving Systems (CES) thinking.

In today’s competitive environment it demands we consider new, emerging and differing perspectives on how we manage our organisation, which are in fact natural human-systems within which we live, work and learn. This is important, not only for the sustainability of private and commercial sectors, but increasingly for all organisations.

This common sense approach makes a real difference to employee empowerment and wellbeing, reduces senior leader stress and improves the agility of the organisation as a whole.

We always present....

•    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 new means to deal confidently and selectively with the most complex problems involving uncertainty and disagreement.
•    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 a in any organisational context.
•    The impact of targets and measures.
•    The impact of hierarchy, control and managerialism on sustainable change.

Just thought I would remind members we believe what we say, act the way we ask others to act.....

Cheers
paul

Extract of an email to me today;

According to Sandra Mitchell and her book "Biological Complexity and Integrative Pluralism",(Cambridge University Press, 2003), a complex system can be defined as follows:

"complex systems can be distinguished from simple objects by having multiple parts that  stand in nonsimple relations [...] There is structure or order in the way in which the whole is composed of the parts".

She argues in her book that a form of "integrative pluralism" is the best way
to describe the complex systems in the  biological sciences, which study complex
multi-component and multi-level systems that evolve dynamically over time.

In her attempt to define complexity, she distinguishes between constitutive and dynamic complexity.

Constitutive complexity: "Organisms display complexity of structure, the whole being formed of numerous parts in nonrandom organization

Dynamic complexity:
"Organisms are complex in the process by which they develop from single-celled origins to multicellular adults and by which they evolve from single-celled ancestors to multicellular descendants

Hope this helps
Paul

I keep getting asked why DNA are systems thinkers..... we are not....very simply, a system is a collection of parts and subsystems integrated to accomplish an overall goal such as system of people is an organization.

"Systems have input, processes, and outputs with ongoing feedback among these various parts. If one part of the system is removed, the nature of the system is changed." 

Systems of course range from very simple to simple to very complex. There are numerous types of systems. For example,  biological systems, mechanical systems, human 'systems' or bio-metrics, ecological systems, and social systems.

Complex systems, which DNA operates in is of course a system, a social system comprised of numerous subsystems, but quite different to the above. These subsystems are arranged in hierarchies, and integrated to accomplish the overall goal of the overall system. But this is where the simularity ends as each human, human subsystem has its own boundaries of sorts, which is movable, unclear and co-evolving and includes various inputs, processes, outputs and outcomes geared to accomplish an overall goal for the subsystem. Yet the outcome, goals are often unclear, unknown until after the event.

A pile of sand is not a system nor is a Human system (human). If one removes a sand particle, you've still got a pile of sand. Yet its different. However, a functioning car is a system. Remove the carburetor and you've no longer got a working car.

It scares me to find managers now diagnose problems, not by examining what appear to be separate pieces of the organization, but by recognising larger patterns of interactions. Managers maintain perspective by focusing on the outcomes they want from their organizations, yet these outcomes are almost always unknown. Most managers focus on the structures that create behaviors that determine outcomes rather than reacting to events as which is mostly done in good organisations.

We are looking to provide a new Masters award "The MSc Complexity and Leadership Programme" which will comprise of the following awards;

o    MSc Complexity and Leadership
o    MSc Complexity and Leadership (Manufacturing)
o    MSc Complexity and Leadership (Public Service)
o    MSc Complexity and Leadership (Service)

This MSc Complexity and Leadership Programme aims to introduce current practitioners to concepts and thinking concerned with the sustainable leadership of organisations in both public services and manaufacturing. The speed of change and the associated complexity facing organisations in the late 20th and early 21st Centuries has meant that leaders are increasingly having to develop thinking and solutions which would have been considered unthinkable a few years before. In other words leaders have more than ever before to come up with creative ideas that can be developed into successful innovations provided by advanced organisations. While clearly this imperative can be related to new products and services, a crucial dimension is the harnessing of the creative abilities of employees such that the tacit knowledge they possess can be utilized to best affect. The challenge is then to develop strategies, structures, systems and cultures/climates which enable organisations to succeed in achieving (their) interpretation of organisational ‘effectiveness’ and ‘competitive advantage’.

We want to take ideas, your ideas about this programme. Do you agree? Should it be in-company or at Glamorgan?

Let us know...
Paul

Help

We recognise that the nature of 'Leadership', human systems and systems dynamics in all sectors in the UK has been under-researched in the past albiet from a critical perspective. However, we are convinced that there are many creative and effective leadership practices here in Wales to begin with, which merit being researched, documentation, and dissemination. However, we need companies in which to do this research.

We are as the Glamorgan Business School committed to providing an exceptional research agenda, to critically investigate and understand the nature of leadership in all sectors of industry and Public Sector provision, operating to the highest international values.  We desire a meaningful, research-informed exchange of ideas with the WAG Skills Providers, through research-based action workshops, projects, and conferences. We are also funding a number of practitioner-researchers within the sector. Do You wish to help Wales become world leaders again? Will you/your organisation allow us in to research your company. No catches, no consultants, just academic advice, support and data collection of practice.

WHY?

Well the speed of change and the associated complexity facing organisations in the late 20th and early 21st Centuries has meant that leaders are increasingly having to develop methods and solutions which would have been considered unthinkable a few years before. In other words leaders have more than ever before to come up with creative ideas that can be developed into successful innovations and organisations. While clearly this imperative can be related to new products and services, a crucial dimension is the harnessing of the creative abilities of employees such that the tacit knowledge they possess can be utilized to best affect.

The challenge is then to develop systems, structures, humans and cultures/climates which enable the organisation to succeed in achieving (their) interpretation of organisational ‘effectiveness’ and ‘competitive advantage’.

Is this possible in Wales?

I do love Robin Williams as an actor, but this story is truly inspiring ... Ever watched the movie Patch Adams, or read the book Gesundheit! ... this holiday I did both ... truly inspiring ...  

Here we see a really good 'living' example of how in the strive for perfection in medical science, in the persona and power of what is a 'doctor' and the expected objectivity of doctor-patient relations that is indoctrinated into students early in their careers, we can lose sight of whats real and what really matters ... is it the doctors, the advancement of medical science, the rules and procedures that are followed or how the patients feel ... 

Based on the true story of Hunter Campbell "Patch" Adams this story shows how one man went against rules, regulations of a system conditioned over hundreds of years of command and control to bring compassion, creativity, fun, and laughter into the US medical system ... to put people's needs at the centre of medicine and not the cartisian mechanistic perspective of medical science that continues to dominate .... a system of rigidity, rules, procedures, hierarcy and power ... 
 
... this story celebrates the triumph of spirited individualism of a physician who understands that wholeness means incorporating every aspect of the human experience, including love, laughter and compassion ... 

Read more about Patch Adams and the Gesundheit! Institute ...
http://www.patchadams.org/

kp.

p.s.... another good read for those interested in living systems is .... 'the web of life' by Fritjof Capra .... captivating and vibrant in its discussion of the debates over the last 25-30 years about the evolution and organisation of living systems ... 
http://www.amazon.com/Web-Life-Scientific-Understanding-Systems/dp/0385476760

Having spent most of today making people angry about the future of management (that it won't survive the next 5 years!) I’m at a loss to the extent of how change is needed and known by the managers, yet unable to move forward. We need to substitute management with complexity, yet complexity is not as tangible or as ‘simple’ as traditional management practice.