Comments on: “The starfish and the spider or the urge to design intelligent organizations” http://blog.enablersnetwork.com/2010/02/06/%e2%80%9cthe-starfish-and-the-spider-or-the-urge-to-design-intelligent-organizations%e2%80%9d/ Leadership Engagement Expert & Board Advisor Sat, 28 Aug 2010 02:18:16 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.9.2 hourly 1 By: Juan M. Gallego http://blog.enablersnetwork.com/2010/02/06/%e2%80%9cthe-starfish-and-the-spider-or-the-urge-to-design-intelligent-organizations%e2%80%9d/comment-page-1/#comment-213 Juan M. Gallego Mon, 08 Feb 2010 22:34:08 +0000 http://blog.enablersnetwork.com/?p=184#comment-213 Hi Didier, As usual, very interesting article to read and to contemplate on. I also agree with many comments that have been mentioned above. I am a strong believer in cognitive behavioral theory. The first step that one should implement in this changing situations is to come out with the issue, agree on the behaviors that needs to be changed and following Beck´s Cognitive theory technique, face the irrational thoughts by introducing the right way to deal with those and the right behavior. Basically, reconditioned your team to match the new challenges. Just as when you go hiking or backpacking, you should match your pace to the slowest hiker. The hike itself will unfortunately weed out those that are not ready for that type of challenge, but 80-90% of the group should be able to follow through and by the end of the trip, would be much stronger. And in order to have a successful hike, you must have someone that knows how to read a map and a compass. If you don´t have the right leader for the new hike, the group should be able to choose another one that is more effective and that will get us there successfully. Saludos, Juan Mª Hi Didier,

As usual, very interesting article to read and to contemplate on.

I also agree with many comments that have been mentioned above. I am a strong believer in cognitive behavioral theory. The first step that one should implement in this changing situations is to come out with the issue, agree on the behaviors that needs to be changed and following Beck´s Cognitive theory technique, face the irrational thoughts by introducing the right way to deal with those and the right behavior. Basically, reconditioned your team to match the new challenges.

Just as when you go hiking or backpacking, you should match your pace to the slowest hiker. The hike itself will unfortunately weed out those that are not ready for that type of challenge, but 80-90% of the group should be able to follow through and by the end of the trip, would be much stronger. And in order to have a successful hike, you must have someone that knows how to read a map and a compass. If you don´t have the right leader for the new hike, the group should be able to choose another one that is more effective and that will get us there successfully.

Saludos,

Juan Mª

]]> By: Didier Marlier http://blog.enablersnetwork.com/2010/02/06/%e2%80%9cthe-starfish-and-the-spider-or-the-urge-to-design-intelligent-organizations%e2%80%9d/comment-page-1/#comment-211 Didier Marlier Mon, 08 Feb 2010 08:17:52 +0000 http://blog.enablersnetwork.com/?p=184#comment-211 Thank you Alex, Ivo and Marvin for commenting, To Alex: Umair calls these organizations "Zombie" which are part of the Zombeconomy... (http://blogs.hbr.org/haque/). Thanks To Ivo: Yes, correct, things move faster by the week. And as you suggest, since strategy is already partially outdated when it reaches everyone in the organization, this is precisely why we need to educate and develop them to think "intelligently" for themselves. This is exactly what elite troops in any army are taught to do: no plan survive the shock of reality, you need to thinki it through on the terrain. This reinforces the case and necessity for "intelligent organizations". Leaders in such "organismations" still have the duty to think further and strategically but rather than driving from the front, they will direct from the back and seek to understand and coordinate the effort and unleashed energy from their people... I totally support your vision of adaptable micro cells, this is exactly how one of the most impressive organismation (organic organisation), the human body, functions today... Thanks To Marvin: Reassuring to see I am not the only one ;) Indeed, I agree that our capacity to challenge our mental models about organization and leadership has become critical! Thanks... Have a great week all Didier Thank you Alex, Ivo and Marvin for commenting,
To Alex: Umair calls these organizations “Zombie” which are part of the Zombeconomy… (http://blogs.hbr.org/haque/). Thanks
To Ivo: Yes, correct, things move faster by the week. And as you suggest, since strategy is already partially outdated when it reaches everyone in the organization, this is precisely why we need to educate and develop them to think “intelligently” for themselves. This is exactly what elite troops in any army are taught to do: no plan survive the shock of reality, you need to thinki it through on the terrain. This reinforces the case and necessity for “intelligent organizations”. Leaders in such “organismations” still have the duty to think further and strategically but rather than driving from the front, they will direct from the back and seek to understand and coordinate the effort and unleashed energy from their people… I totally support your vision of adaptable micro cells, this is exactly how one of the most impressive organismation (organic organisation), the human body, functions today… Thanks
To Marvin: Reassuring to see I am not the only one ;) Indeed, I agree that our capacity to challenge our mental models about organization and leadership has become critical! Thanks…

Have a great week all
Didier

]]> By: Ivo Knottnerus http://blog.enablersnetwork.com/2010/02/06/%e2%80%9cthe-starfish-and-the-spider-or-the-urge-to-design-intelligent-organizations%e2%80%9d/comment-page-1/#comment-208 Ivo Knottnerus Sun, 07 Feb 2010 20:18:00 +0000 http://blog.enablersnetwork.com/?p=184#comment-208 Hi Didier, Thanks for this interesting and mind provoking blog! Very interesting story and video as well. It makes you wonder isn’t it? I mean do you think we could ever prepare ourselves or the organizations we work in for the immense speed of change. If things continue to change as fast or even faster as they have been doing like it is shown in the video, it makes me wonder if a companies’ strategy isn’t already outdated by the time its employees have grasped it… Perhaps I am playing a bit the devil’s advocate here, however really it makes me wonder how we (as leaders) will do this. I guess if we are surprised by the message from the video – by the way, I am a firm believer in the content of that video – it actually should function as a wake up call. How can we ever prepare our organizations, or let alone follow the markets, let people grasp our strategies etc.? My idea is that we should perhaps go back to the ultimate form of decentralized organizations, so that on a super micro level, organizations can adept their strategy to the local pace of change and local needs. Global strategies or country strategies will not work anymore. We need adaptable micro cells, with micro cell strategies, and extremely flexible adaptable execution. What do you think? Have a great week on the slopes (and some work in between of course…) Ivo Hi Didier,

Thanks for this interesting and mind provoking blog!

Very interesting story and video as well. It makes you wonder isn’t it? I mean do you think we could ever prepare ourselves or the organizations we work in for the immense speed of change. If things continue to change as fast or even faster as they have been doing like it is shown in the video, it makes me wonder if a companies’ strategy isn’t already outdated by the time its employees have grasped it…

Perhaps I am playing a bit the devil’s advocate here, however really it makes me wonder how we (as leaders) will do this. I guess if we are surprised by the message from the video – by the way, I am a firm believer in the content of that video – it actually should function as a wake up call. How can we ever prepare our organizations, or let alone follow the markets, let people grasp our strategies etc.?

My idea is that we should perhaps go back to the ultimate form of decentralized organizations, so that on a super micro level, organizations can adept their strategy to the local pace of change and local needs. Global strategies or country strategies will not work anymore. We need adaptable micro cells, with micro cell strategies, and extremely flexible adaptable execution. What do you think?

Have a great week on the slopes (and some work in between of course…)

Ivo

]]> By: Marvin Faure http://blog.enablersnetwork.com/2010/02/06/%e2%80%9cthe-starfish-and-the-spider-or-the-urge-to-design-intelligent-organizations%e2%80%9d/comment-page-1/#comment-206 Marvin Faure Sun, 07 Feb 2010 17:08:04 +0000 http://blog.enablersnetwork.com/?p=184#comment-206 I suspect many of us have had the experience of running "wonderful, state-of-the-art engagement processes" that have ultimately failed to create the hoped-for changes, because the leaders involved have proved unwilling or unable to change their leadership style. This is deeply frustrating for everybody and sometimes even counter-productive. The necessary leadership adaptation is more than a personal challenge. It is a huge, systemic, organisational challenge. I'm not sure we even know what it means yet, still less how to get there. The current leadership paradigm is so deeply embedded in most organisations, and the existing hierarchy sees the changes as so threatening, that the obstacles to change (in large organisations) are enormous. My current thinking is that the best chance of success is through a slow cascade, in which each level of leadership, starting at the very top, takes the time to work out what is needed, how to do it from the starting point of their organisational culture, and persevere (with plenty of objective feedback) until they "really get it". Leadership by example will be the key. There is no way this is going to work with the usual speech "do as I say, not as I do"... ;-) Looking forward to more exchange on this subject. This could truly be THE management issue of the coming decade. I suspect many of us have had the experience of running “wonderful, state-of-the-art engagement processes” that have ultimately failed to create the hoped-for changes, because the leaders involved have proved unwilling or unable to change their leadership style. This is deeply frustrating for everybody and sometimes even counter-productive.
The necessary leadership adaptation is more than a personal challenge. It is a huge, systemic, organisational challenge. I’m not sure we even know what it means yet, still less how to get there. The current leadership paradigm is so deeply embedded in most organisations, and the existing hierarchy sees the changes as so threatening, that the obstacles to change (in large organisations) are enormous.
My current thinking is that the best chance of success is through a slow cascade, in which each level of leadership, starting at the very top, takes the time to work out what is needed, how to do it from the starting point of their organisational culture, and persevere (with plenty of objective feedback) until they “really get it”. Leadership by example will be the key. There is no way this is going to work with the usual speech “do as I say, not as I do”… ;-)
Looking forward to more exchange on this subject. This could truly be THE management issue of the coming decade.

]]> By: Alexandre Pauperio http://blog.enablersnetwork.com/2010/02/06/%e2%80%9cthe-starfish-and-the-spider-or-the-urge-to-design-intelligent-organizations%e2%80%9d/comment-page-1/#comment-203 Alexandre Pauperio Sun, 07 Feb 2010 00:17:33 +0000 http://blog.enablersnetwork.com/?p=184#comment-203 Very interesting view, Didier. The new intelligent organization is a tendency in our crisis time. The change is a natural condition. Leaders need to be smart to make de things easiers. It's our mission. It's not possible? There are "dumbie organizations" around the world... Very interesting view, Didier.
The new intelligent organization is a tendency in our crisis time. The change is a natural condition.
Leaders need to be smart to make de things easiers. It’s our mission. It’s not possible? There are “dumbie organizations” around the world…

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