Wirearchy

McGill University management professor Karl Moore interviews McGill University management professor and global management guru Henry Minztberg on the dysfunction of management education and practice, the need to reduce the obsessive focus on leadership and the stimulus and encouragement of "communityship".

I’d embed the video clip in this blog post if I could, but it’s on the web site of the Toronto Globe and Mail and it does not offer the html string that enables embedding in a blog platform … so if you did not click on the link to the clip above, make sure you click here. 

It’s worth watching.

I believe that my thinking about wirearchy implies "communityship", as in the devolvement of power and responsibility to individuals and on-purpose groups in linked networks of interests and values.

Mintzberg’s closing comment: 

 "I think that there are lots of ways of encouraging and stimulating the private sector, the business sector, without this nutty form of capitalism we’re stuck with"

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… say a poster on the wall of the elevator of Lloyd Hall at the Banff Centre, where I have just checked in after a two-hour ride towards the fading sunset streaming ever more slowly over the majestic wall that is the Canadian Rockies, rising up from the prairies west of Calgary, Alberta.

The arts, creativity and exploration of ideas inspires and animates this place … you can tell just as soon as you set foot on the campus.

The Banff Centre is a 75-year old institution of international reknown, comprised of a performing arts centre (venues, regularly scheduled programming, productions, and residencies for artists of all stripes from around the world, a new media institute, a 50-year old respected leadership and management development centre and the upcoming Kinnear Centre for Innovation and Creativity (to become the physical and intellectual core of the centre).

I’ve been invited to lead a two and one-half hour "exploratorium", which sounds like a lot of fun.  I’ll have more time, and so can relax, to unfold the notions I work on, and with the luxury of that time I can work to ensure that there will be a lot less of me and lot more of the ideas, imaginings and questions of whomever shows up.

I am staying here on Tuesday, and will go out in the morning, take some deep breaths and go for a lovely walk in the alpine meadows.  I have lready been warned numerous times that it is elk and deer mating season, and to not look a male elk in the eye, as direct eye contact is seen as a challenge, and he will fight , and he will win !

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From Hierarchy To Wirearchy?

Monday, October 27, 6:30 - 9 p.m.
Donald Cameron Hall Room 21

Guest: Jon Husband, Founder and principal, Wirearchy Network

Our exploratoriums investigate how arts and ecology can help advance the practice of leadership. Led by special guests we will look inward, outward, and upward - in new ways - at the world around us. Join us every Monday for this six-week series.

Join us for a discussion about the Web’s impact on organizational structures, the ways people work, and the need for innovation in management and leadership. We’ll look at how we are moving from a world of vertical organizational structures and top-down dynamics into a two-way, interconnected flow of power and authority.

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(From the web site)

The Banff Centre is a globally respected arts, cultural, and educational institution and conference facility. See the diversity of the Centre (slideshow)

The Banff Centre is internationally recognized as:

• a leader on the local, national and international stages in the development and promotion of creative work in the arts, sciences, business, and the environment
• a catalyst for creative thought, lifelong learning, the development and showcasing of new work, and the advancement of applied research
• a resource for individual and group renewal and transformation, and an enabler of innovation and creativity for participants and staff to question assumptions, explore ideas, embrace change, and exemplify excellence
• a destination of choice for conferences

For almost 75 years, the impact of the inspiring mountain location, the creative atmosphere, the diverse group of participants from many backgrounds and disciplines, and the strong support from Centre staff have combined to make a powerful experience that is intellectually, physically, and emotionally stimulating.

Arts at The Banff Centre have a long and distinguished history. For over 70 years, The Banff Centre has provided professional career development and lifelong learning for artists and cultural leaders in performing, literary, new media, and visual arts. Work is showcased throughout the year in public concerts, exhibitions, and events, culminating in the Banff Summer Arts Festival.

Leadership Development at The Banff Centre offers customized and public programs in the corporate, government, Aboriginal, arts, and not-for-profit sectors that enable and support fundamental transformation in individuals, organizations, and communities. Program participants are mid- to senior-level leaders and decision-makers in their fields.

Mountain Culture programming at The Banff Centre promotes understanding and appreciation of the world’s mountain places by creating opportunities for people to share and find inspiration in mountain experiences, ideas, and visions. Activities include the Banff Mountain Film and Book Festivals and Photography Competition, Banff Mountain Summits, Mountain Communities Conferences, and mountain grants and archives programs.

Conference Services at The Banff Centre provides unparalleled meeting and accommodation facilities for organizations from all over the world, featuring over 400 guest rooms, and 60 exceptional meetings spaces, lecture theatres, and auditoriums to accommodate groups from five to 1,000 people.

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The video clip linked to in the previous post, at the Pharyngula blog, shows the captioned caption at the bottom of the clip.

It strikes me that in the West, and (I believe) notably in the USA, we suffer from much too much "either / or".  Issues are always being simplified down to binary choices.

The Pharyngula blog post rightly mocks, in rightly indignant tone, the recent stump speech by Caribou Barbie (aka Vice-presidential candidate Palin) in which she mocks fundamental genetic research.

I think it’s becoming clear that the only stance she has is "I am against government doing anything for people except giving them back their money".

We misunderestimate (yes, used on purpose ;-), at our peril, the usefulness of bureaucracy in getting us to where we are today, in terms of the infrastructure that affords us a relative life of ease, leisure and the benefits of the many many discoveries that have come before and then been incorporated into the framework of our daily lives.

Without some or much of the bureaucracy in the areas of research and medical care that has gone before, the "special needs" kids to which MooseLips is referring would have been dashed to death upon the rocks down by the river where she would be washing the family clothes, I think.

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I have been reading more and more articles here and there about how the accumulated (hmmm … what’s the word ?  Density, maybe ?) of links, pictures, videos, fact-checking, and so on are contributing to a shift, finally, in the countering of spin in the case study that is the UU election campaigning.

Via the Huffington Post:

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The Internet and the Death of Rovian Politics (Americans No Longer Buying Into The Spec Market On Dread)

Age has finally become an issue for John McCain. But the problem isn’t the candidate’s 72 years; it’s the antediluvian approach of his campaign.

McCain is running a textbook Rovian race: fear-based, smear-based, anything goes.

But thanks to YouTube, blogging, and instant fact-checking, it is getting harder and harder to get away with repeating brazen lies without paying a price.

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I’m not holding my breath for a total "the light of day" moment when people everywhere start paying close attention and demanding facts be the basis of all news and that major mainstream news organs begin practicing journalism and reporting that concentrates on the issues without ideology and propaganda being major factors, but …  just think of where things would be now if we had not had the Internet and the capabilities of democratically-oriented self-publishing for the past decade or so.

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Any of you who may be somewhat regular readers (and if you are, a sincere thank you !  It’s nice to know one is not alone in the world) may remember that back last April I proclaimed that I was beginning a training regimen that involved regular swimming sessions.

I reported from time to time on my build-up to a demanding but sustainable rhythm in preparation for the 2008 Duel at the Pool, which was held September 12 with favourable results.  The 2009 Duel will be held August 30, 2009.

One of the real bonuses of living in Vancouver is having what must be one of the world’s finest outdoor pools a 10 - 15 minute bike ride from my home, and it has been my habit for most of the past decade to spend an hour or three there almost ever day between May 15 and September 15th.  Sadly, in years past once this outdoor pool closes I get lazy, months go by until the following spring, and I acquire another 15 pounds which it takes half the summer to swim off.

Each September I vow, of course, that I will keep on swimming at the very nice Vancouver Aquatic Centre, also a 10 - 15 minute bike ride from my home but as noted above I have not followed through.  I usually end up getting into the Aquatic Centre pool sometime in in mid-February and always wonder why I did not keep swimming, as I love it so very much.

Well … I am happy to report that this year, after a relatively brief period of mourning the closure of the outdoor Kitsilano pool, I have continued my training regimen.  Since the third week of September I have been been swimming between 12 and 15 kilometres a week, and I am looking forward to keeping it going on into next spring, right up until the beloved Kits pool opens again.

Wish me luck !

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My friend / colleague Harold Jarche maintains an highly informative blog and website focused on elearning and the design and application of social computing to learning and effective knowledge work.

He recently uncovered an interesting graphic that speak to the notion of the individual user operating in an ongoing flow of information, taking in information and and co-creating knowledge while operating in continuous flows of information.  It is increasingly apparent that individual cognitive styles and work habits must be considered as a key element in the process of collaboration, and I have commented on this issue in a previous post … I’ll Do It My Way - The Mass Customization of Knowledge Work.

I’m unable at the moment to upload the image but will keep working on a way to do so.  In the meantime, motor on over to the blog post that sets out the position of the Amplified Individual and take a look at how the individual sits at the center of flows and co-creation.

The Amplified Individual

Forecast Clusters:
Highly - Collaborative, Social; Improvisational; Augmented

Dilemma:
Collective Creation vs Individual Recognition

Signals:
Co-working Arrangements; Teamwork in Virtual Environments; Social Filtering; Life Hacks; Visualization Tools

Underlying Technologies:
Sense Making & Visualization; Ubiquitous Displays; Amplified Collaboration Tools

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I know that arguing that this (below) is actually probably sensible would make many people in North America suggest that I be placed on a watch list (at a minimum) or be burned at the stake after my fingernails have been pulled out one by one (at a maximum ?), but removed from the hysteria that led up to invading Iraq, "Shock and Awe", Abu Ghraib, repeal of habeas corpus, killing tens or hundreds of thousands of innocent Iraqis and a fair number of innocent Afghanis, I think that the Pakistanis are actually suggesting something that could lead to some progress.

Via The Guardian.

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Pakistan rejects ‘America’s war’ on extremists

• Parliament vows to end military action on border
• Relations with US will be strained by new strategy

Saeed Shah in Islamabad
The Guardian, Friday October 24 2008

Members of religious party Jamaat e-Islami yesterday at a protest against US airstrikes along Pakistan’s border with Afghanistan. Photograph: Fayyaz Hussain/Reuters

Serious doubts multiplied yesterday about Pakistan’s commitment to America’s military campaign against al-Qaida and the Taliban after parliament overwhelmingly passed a resolution calling for dialogue with extremist groups and an end to military action.

The new strategy, backed by all parties, emerged after a fierce debate in parliament where most parliamentarians said that Pakistan was paying an unacceptable price for fighting "America’s war". If implemented by the government, support for Pakistan from international allies would come under severe strain, adding further instability to a country facing a spiral of violence and economic collapse.

"We need to prioritise our own national security interests," said Raza Rabbani, a leading member of the ruling Pakistan People’s party. "As far as the US is concerned, the message that has gone with this resolution will definitely ring alarm bells, vis-a-vis their policy of bulldozing Pakistan."

The resolution, passed unanimously in parliament on Wednesday night demanded the abandonment of the use of force against extremists, in favour of negotiation, in what it called "an urgent review of our national security strategy".

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We already know that occupation and suppression is not working.

Osama Bin Laden (yes, that guy) used to issue missives that pointed out what their beefs were, why they were provoking the USA and how things might be calmed down.  I never read his missives as ultimatums, but rather as starting points for discussions.

Not acknowledging that there may, just possibly, be some issues is I think one of the reasons that it has been relatively easy to demonise Muslims and lead to a spreading of misinformation and a stirring up of hatred and blood lust, and a validation that America is in a "war" and must (of course, as always) win !

I am emphatically not suggesting that OBL’s arguments had deep merit, nor am I arguing for any form(s) of appeasement, but surely senior diplomats can sit down with leaders of these rebellious groups and discuss the issues (secretly, if need be).  Too many people have suffered death and total disruption of their lives for reasons that have nothing to do with them to forego an opportunity to find out more, even if it leads nowhere.

The chant from the McCain / Palin team that Obama is an appeasing pussy because they claim he might talk with (for example) Iranian leaders "without pre-conditions" is, in my books, a glaringly clear example of the narrow, one-dimensional, unintelligent and overly simplistic stance that a bull-headed America represents.

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One of the quiet small goals I set for myself a decade ago was to make it to Europe at least once a year.  So far so good, though I was beginning to think that 2008 would be the year that goal fell by the wayside.

Thanks to Bertrand Duperrin and blueKiwi, I will be joining Stowe Boyd in Paris to speak at blueKiwi’s annual conference.

Over the past four years I have also had the privilege to be active at Canada’s distinctive Banff Centre, a mountain campus that hosts venues, capabilities and residencies for performing artists, a new Media Institute and one of Canada’s oldest and (perhaps) most progressive leadership and management development institutes.

In about a week I’ll be flying to Calgary and then shuttling to the Banff Centre to go speak about "wirearchy" at an evening seminar and then spend time the next day discussing the possibility of a course (tentatively) titled "From Hierarchy to Wirearchy - leading and managing in a wired workplace".

I’m wondering if I should try to carve out a few days in and around London to catch up with old friends (I always assume that they like to see me, but that’s a difficult assumption to test since it’s rare that anyone is ever going to tell someone different).  Thoughts ?

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First, I want to clarify something for context.

I do not believe that what I call "wirearchy" will replace hierarchy holus-bolus as an organizing principle (I have said and written this many times).  Rather, I subscribe to Stan Davis’ perspective, outlined in the book Future Perfect (1987).

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Networks will not replace or supplement hierarchies; rather the two will be encompassed within a broader conception that embraces both. We are still a long way from figuring out the appropriate and encompassing organization models for the economy we are now in."

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So … today in my inbox I found David Gurteen’s 100th newsletter, a folksy and informative ramble through David’s latest peregrinations.  David is a speaker, consultant and human networking "hub" who travels the world animating Knowledge Cafes.

David was recently interviewed by The Economist Intelligence Unit for a report titled "The Digital Company 2013 - The freedom to collaborate".

David outlines the key themes explored by the report, which sound (to me) very similar to several of the key elements of wirearchy I have discussed here and there over the past several years.

I wonder what Bertrand Duperrin or Luis Suarez (just to pick on a couple of energetic thinkers about the organization of the future) might have to say about the digital company of the year 2013 ?

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The digital company 2013: Freedom to collaborate

I was recently interviewed for a report The digital company 2013: Freedom to collaborate. being written by Kim Thomas for the Economist Intelligence Unit.

Key findings:

1. Technology knowledge will permeate the enterprise.
2. Social networks will be common in the workplace, like it or not.
3. Beware information paralysis.
4. Digital tools will democratise access to information.
5. Digital tools provide employees with greater control over the information they can access.
6. IT will also need to loosen the reins.
7. Ceding technology control will be good medicine.

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“The most valuable things in life are not measured in monetary terms.

The really important things are not houses and lands, stocks and bonds, automobiles and real state, but friendships, trust, confidence, empathy, mercy, love and faith.”

Bertrand Russell (1872-1970) philosopher & mathematician

UPDATE (from anonymous commentator)

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Unfortunately, those things are at an all-time low these days as well. If I were you I’d short empathy and trust.

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