The speed of the change that digitalization is bringing is dizzying. It is forcing companies to think hard about the very meaning of the way they do business. Old models are no longer valid and businesses need to catch up fast or lose market share and opportunities. Consolidated experience that had a high value suddenly […]
Dysfunctional Organization: Definition and Cure
“There is no such thing as a dysfunctional organization, because every organization is perfectly aligned to achieve the results it gets.” – Jeff Lawrence. We were asked to comment on this statement. Here is our reply. The word dysfunctional contains the prefix dys- from the Greek meaning “bad”, “abnormal”, “difficult”, or “impaired”. We can say […]
The Theory of Everything of Management
There are times when everything seems to be going in different directions, at odds and in conflict. What if in the world of business and management there were a solution? What if the way we manage and they way we produce, buy and sell could contain many of the answers we are looking for? When […]
Resources for the Perplexed: What’s New This Summer at Intelligent Management
Summer 2016 is one that few of us will forget. Events so far have been life-changing and violence, divisiveness and chaos have been rife. Never like now do we need to keep a grip on our thoughts and emotions to produce the kind of work that will make a positive difference. At Intelligent Management we […]
How to Optimize Performance in an Organization
What happens when more than one person or more than one entity work together in the same direction? Is the result just the simple sum of their efforts? The answer to this question is yes, but… ONLY when the elements involved are independent of each other. In the theory of systems, the global “performance” of […]
Divisiveness: What Companies Can Do About It
Divisiveness is one of the most negative forces we face, whether it be at the level of individuals or nations. It is paradoxical that there is so much divisiveness in the world today when we have unprecedented technological means for connection. Polarization is increasing, creating an ever greater divide between the haves and have nots […]
Unintended Consequences Hurt: Summer Reading for Joined Up Thinking
Our lives today are filled with unprecedented levels of rapid change and complexity. Unintended consequences can quickly emerge from inadequate thinking, so we have an urgent need to learn to think in a “joined-up” way. The definition of ‘joined-up thinking” is: “thinking about a complicated problem in an intelligent way that includes all the important […]
Why Businesses Can Change the World (for the better)
People struggle to understand big systems, such as nations and alliances. It’s just too big and complicated (what better proof than U.K. citizens voting to leave the European Union.) So they try to break things down into simpler pieces and set up barriers (silos, fiefdoms, departments). Unfortunately, that just doesn’t work in today’s complex reality […]
What Happens in Europe This Week Affects You, Anywhere in the World (Brexit)
Whether you care or not about the UK staying in or exiting the European Union (EU), the result of this week’s referendum will affect you. Why? Firstly, because we live in a highly interdependent and therefore complex world and there will be a ripple effect into the global economy. Secondly, because it touches on a very […]
How To Overcome Resistance To Change – a Systemic Approach
Any time leaders try to introduce change into an organization they will be faced with the fear and conflicts of the people involved in the changes. In our series we’ve been talking specifically about digital transformation but it is true for any major shift. If these reactions and resistance to change are not managed they will […]
