Foster the "right" degree of information
flow, diversity and difference, connections inside and outside the
organization, power differential and anxiety, instead of controlling information, forcing agreement,
dealing separately with contentious groups, working systematically down all the layers of the hierarchy
in sequence and seeking comfort.
Theoretical studies of complex adaptive systems suggest
that creative self-organization occurs when there
is just enough information flow, diversity, connectivity, power differential and anxiety among the agents.
Too much of any of these can lead to chaotic system behavior; too little and the system remains stuck
in a
pattern of behavior.
Again, we can look to biological sciences for a dramatic
illustration of this principle. Dr. Ary Goldberger is a
cardiac specialist at Harvard Medical School who has done much research in the role of complexity in
physiologic systems such as the beat-to-beat record of a healthy heart. It shows an irregular, wrinkly
appearance – not a smooth, regular tracing. Furthermore, when this tracing is magnified, there
is even more
wrinkly detail. This complex pattern of irregular fluctuations is a fractal. Surprisingly, if you were
to view an
equally detailed heart-rate tracing of a patient before cardiac arrest, you would probably not see more
chaotic activity, as you might expect, but rather virtual consistency and regularity. Thus, predictable
and
regular activity can lead to a heart attack; unpredictability and fractal (chaotic-like) variability
are associated
with health and stability. (Note that this pattern can also be observed in other biological systems:
in sleep,
chaotic patterns have been shown to produce restful sleep and extreme regularity may indicate a coma;
and
in muscles, chaos indicates healthy functioning and stability indicates seizure or degenerative disease.)
Of course, the trick in a human CAS lies in gauging the “right” amount of information flow, diversity,
connectivity, power differential and anxiety among the agents. Since the predominant metaphors of
organizational life are those of a machine and military operation, most organizations today have too
little
information flow and diversity, and too much power differential. The degree of connectivity and anxiety
can
go either way. This is a general observation that could of course be different in any specific context.
If you
are in a CAS, you will have your own mental model about such things, as will the other agents in the
system.
Since the detailed behavior of a CAS is fundamentally
unpredictable, there is no way to arrive analytically at
an answer for what amount of information flow, diversity, connections inside and outside the organization,
power differential and anxiety among the agents is proper.
You can have more- or less-correct intuitions, and some
sense of general direction, but that’s inherently the
best you can do. You’ll just have to try tuning up or down the various factors and reflect on
what happens.
Reflection is, therefore, a key skill for anyone in a
CAS. Good leaders in a CAS lead not by telling people
what to do, but by being open to experimentation, followed by thoughtful and honest reflection on what
happens.
"At the ideal number of connections, the ideal
amount of information flows between agents, and the
system as a whole finds optimal solutions consistently … which in a rapidly changing environment
allows the whole to persist."
–Kauffman
"Living systems are very close to the edge of
chaos phase transitions where things are loose and fluid …
Systems that are most adaptive are so loose they are a hairbreadth away from [being] out of control."
–Waldrop
"The emphasis on managing long-term specific
outcomes is completely misplaced. They cannot be
managed, but it is possible to influence control parameters...managers still need strategic plans;
however, they relate not to outcomes and actions to achieve them, but to methods of affecting anxiety,
power, difference, and connectivity."
-Stacey
1. Thoughts
