In this post we look at how we can create a sustainable system, how we can operate as a sustainable system, and the results this will help us achieve. What would happen if everyone came to work and just did their own thing? Even with the best of intentions, this would not be a great […]
Holacracy vs. Hierarchy? The Answer Lies in Managing Complexity.
A recent article about the company Zappo’s relates how they have chosen a new organizational structure of holacracy that removes traditional managers and job titles. They believe this new structure will allow them to grow in a way that is less rigid and bureaucratic. While this may be a move in the right direction from […]
How To Embed Creative Business Thinking In Your Organization
We may think we know how to think, but can we do it better? This post looks at some tools for systematic, creative thinking for business (and beyond). A recent article in the Globe and Mail newspaper asks the question, how can we produce more creative business thinkers? What sort of things should business schools […]
Mining the Past to Create the Future
The ancient industry of glass blowing in Venice is threatened by a grim economy, changing taste, and cheaper alternatives. A recent article from The Economist concentrates on the famous island of Murano and the challenges facing the centuries-old tradition. One glass-blowing studio in Murano has found success by working with fine artists to produce rare […]
Connecting in a Network? Its usefulness is all about affinity.
Is all that effort to make connections in a network a waste of time? Network theory has something to teach us about all that. A lot of energy is consumed every day by people, groups, and organizations who frantically try to make as many connections as possible. They do so for a reason: to increase […]
Everything Is Connected: A New Economics
After a hiatus over the New Year and preparations for a big move West to British Columbia, the Intelligent Management Blog is back! What do a Theatre Director, an entrepreneur and an organizational scientist have in common? When it comes to creating a New Economics, a great deal. Last weekend in Los Angeles, I had […]
A Mining Company With A Heart of Gold
In a recent article by Dawn Cranfield in The Guardian Express entitled A Mining Company with a Heart of Gold – Comstock Mining, Inc., the author draws attention to what makes Comstock a very different kind of mining company: “Comstock Mining, Inc. had their first pour of gold and silver doré, unrefined gold bullion, on […]
Management and Control: a New Perspective
The traditional model for control is the hierarchical model, and the reason for its existence is because personal capacity for control is limited, and adding hierarchical levels increases personal capacity of control. On the other hand, if we want to increase the capacity to listen to the customers and the suppliers, in order to satisfy […]
Intelligent Emotions the Statistical Way
All processes, human and non, whether we are aware of it or not, are affected by variation. If we want to be able to predict the outcome of our processes, i.e. manage them, we need to understand, measure and manage the variation in those processes. The alternative is to manage by the seat of our […]
CEO Explains Systemic Methodology Behind Responsible Mining Success
How did a mining company succeed where others had failed in reviving mining responsibly in a historic mining district? Comstock Mining CEO explains in an interview how Intelligent Management’s systemic Decalogue methodology has brought his company to mine successfully and in a responsible manner. This is an extract from an interview with Corrado De Gasperis […]
