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The Practice Of Resilience
Introduction
What Does It Take? The five platforms of resilience We see five platforms as providing the foundations for resilience. When fully considered they contain the answers to everything that contributes to a resilient enterprise. They are heavily interdependent so to address only certain aspects of them, or to ignore the relationships between them, is to misunderstand the architecture. And to do that would result in sub-optimal outcomes. We can point to many real-life scenarios where just this has happened.
This is as close as we get in Group Partners to an opinion! These platforms have evolved through experience, observation and exploration. We continue to challenge ourselves to see if we can ‘break’ the model and to make sure that we remain curious about humanity and the worlds we inhabit. Nothing is sacred apart from our fundamental philosophies – as explained in our two Manifestos, A Declaration Of Intention and A Redefinition Of Value. We believe that having an opinion on what it means to be resilient is vital as a Practice. It doesn’t compromise our solution neutrality.
There can be many ways to achieve a good outcome and the right answer will still depend on us applying objectivity and structure, supported by visualisation and logic – nothing there has changed. We have simply developed a much more resonant way of framing the context so that we provide as much as possible of our experience and learning to our clients and also to have a valid mechanism for defining and measuring the ‘state’ of resilience. It’s highly unusual for any organisation to be in a position to tackle every aspect of its business in one go. It would be highly inadvisable as well since any change to a complex system creates far too many ripples to want to uproot too much all at once! So we have tested and validated that these platforms can operate at many levels. The only ‘rule’ is that they be considered as a ‘set’ and not as individual components out of which to pick and choose based on perceptions of simplicity or convenience. We are now ready to launch these platforms – alongside the necessary refinements to the way we approach programmes with our clients – as an integral part of our Practice. This publication provides the rationale and approach for our practice of resilience.
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organisational_energy
The essence of an organisation – its ‘DNA’. this is wholly dependent on knowing its core purpose and its identity – what it stands for and the values required to drive appropriate behaviours.
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dynamic_connectivity
The most important influences for an organisation (internal and external). These are the genuine ‘forces’ that exist, not artificial barriers or current challenges. It is these dynamics that must connect to the ‘energy’ of the organisation.
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business_as_a_system
An holistic representation of the business, one that ignores physical boundaries and artificial constraints and simply looks at what makes up the organisation – its primary functions, contributions, assets and capabilities.
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active_operation
The ‘stewardship’ of the enterprise. Organisations that operate as a system have the right balances of governance and process for people to thrive – to operate efficiently and effectively and make valuable contributions to the business.
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meaningful_information
The way an organisation approaches information will drive the effectiveness of the system. Information is a key asset. It is paramount to understand precisely what information is valuable and then how to best capture and organise it so that it can be leveraged.
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A Common Purpose
Every Business Needs A Common Purpose It often surprises us that very few people inside an organisation can state the meaning and purpose of the business.
They can state the goals and objectives they have or the profit figure they have been targeted to deliver or what the business makes but seldom do we hear the higher order ambition or mission. The very first thing we want to understand and in many cases actually create – is the higher purpose or intention (the inspiring reason we exist) of the people responsible for the business. It never ceases to amaze us that this simple idea is somehow missing from many business plans or in conversations with the business leaders. So the driving question before all others is:
“What do we stand for and does that mean the same for all the parts of our world equally?�
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“The mystery of human existence lies not in just staying alive, but in finding something to live for.� Fyodor Dostoyevsk
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The Five Platforms
Now We Are Ready To Explore The Five Platforms
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While we have chosen to introduce them in a specific sequence they are equally important and this sequence in no way suggests that we think there is a priority or logical order to them. We have been developing our thoughts on these platforms for six months now and it would be easy to continue capturing ideas and refining our thinking for many months to come – in the hope that we would crack the code completely. Instead we’ve decided to allow our thinking to emerge openly and so we publish this first set of definitions in the knowledge that there is much more to learn and that as we learn we will build new insights that will influence the way that we practice resilience. Even at this early stage we have a high degree of confidence in the importance of these platforms and their value in shaping the way we think about changing the way we think and work.
All of us – we are no exception to these ‘rules’.
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The Five Platforms
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1. Having The Organisational Energy “We are all inventors, each sailing out on a voyage of discovery, guided each by a private chart, of which there is no duplicate. The world is all gates, all opportunities.” Ralph Waldo Emerson Whether to their customers, to the industry, to their stakeholders or their workforce if the business is not meaningful then it will disappear. In this modern era this can happen very quickly indeed. An energetic organisation is constantly curious, keen to learn and explore new perspectives and concepts. This is at the heart of resilience and of course there is no way to be in tune with the surrounding dynamics without insight.
A definition of energy For us energy means momentum – the potential – the force that exists within us all. It conspires to make the world exist as the complex and ever-changing environment we know it to be. The energy within any organisation requires a purpose to unite everyone. Each enterprise expresses its ambitions and aspirations differently. Each one facing its own unique set of challenges. This fundamentally means the enterprise really knowing itself, what it stands for and therefore what is expected from its workforce.
Intentions must be clear – without them how can the people most capable of delivering on them hope to succeed? Every organisation will claim to be ‘all about the people’. That may be true, yet beyond the ‘easy’ claim there’s little evidence of humanity in so many organisations. For people to energise a business and to commit themselves to its mission and actively participate in good and bad times, they need to be motivated, to believe in what they are doing and to be able to retain their individualism and personality. If we automate the things that don’t require a human perspective, then shouldn’t that mean that our people deserve to be treated a little differently – like people and not machines perhaps? Which means more than ticking the box on the latest definition of equality/ prejudice. It means recognising the huge range of skills that people can bring into the workplace and finding ways to encourage and liberate the creativity that exists in everyone. It just doesn’t exist in the same way for each of us and requires different styles and preferences to be respected in order to release it.
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2. Dynamic Connection “The first dogma which I came to disbelieve was that of free will. It seemed to me that all notions of matter were determined by the laws of dynamics and could not therefore be influenced by human wills.” Bertrand Russell
It’s a fact – dynamics rule our lives Dynamics exist within and without us, they influence all our actions and reactions as humans and as businesses alike. Directly or indirectly they implicate how we work whether as a large or small, simple or complex enterprise. We can tell how well we’re doing by how consciously we deal with the dynamics around us.
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Mastery of dynamics depends on us being able to spot the connections – to see how entangled our world is at every level and to be willing to spend time tuning in to the meaning and implication behind this entanglement. Dynamics don’t organise themselves neatly into boxes or time their arrival or manifestation to suit us – it’s why rigid change programmes struggle so much. Their impact is multi-dimensional and variable.
Dynamics are predictors/enablers/carriers /agents of change. Their interactions, our responses and the coming together of specific ‘moments of truth’ all result in changes in our world and the systems that shape our personal and professional lives.
How many times do you get the answer ‘it depends’ when trying to predict a certain outcome?
That the result of their interactions may not be seen immediately is what makes change so hard to predict or control. The clues and patterns however are there for us to see – if we choose to study them. Each dynamic on its own is simply a truth – representing a possible influence, an important reality, a new challenge or opportunity.
In most cases we cannot change the dynamic itself directly – there are too many forces and energies exerting their influence on each one. Yet our actions have a huge bearing on the way the dynamics impact our systems – natural and man made – and so we need to spot the patterns and understand their meaning much better.
The Practice Of Resilience
All human energy can be channelled by our thoughts. Unfortunately we humans are often guilty of not thinking and simply allow the dynamics of this complex world to wash over us. Committing to think consciously or feeling in constructive ways then becomes the raw ingredient of progress and value creation in life. This requires insight, mindfulness and empathy. And then the discipline to take actions appropriate to the context.
For us that means: Thinking wisely about what we are trying to influence and why Considering the conditions for the change we would like to make Understanding the timings for making change
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3. Thinking About The Business As A System “Learn how to see. Realise that everything connects to everything else.” Leonardo Da Vinci We are surrounded by both natural and man-made systems. Systems that are quite fixed and predictable and dynamic systems that are much more sensitive to the changes around them We are connected with each other and everything around us. We are entangled. Everything we do, how we think and behave, and the decisions we take has an impact on someone or something – with positive or negative outcomes that we may not have even considered. Activity in one part of a system creates an effect in all connected parts, some far removed so that what builds is a ripple effect that ends in completely unintended consequences that often don’t even get associated back to the initial action when the time comes to react. And so it goes on. In our personal lives we tend to live in greater harmony with those systems – how many of us feel the need to develop rigid processes to run our lives? Yet we all have some kind of principles or protocols that help us organise the many dimensions of our systems. While it is inevitable that large organisations need to
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introduce physical structures in order to manage and allocate responsibility, there is no valid reason to use the organisation structure to rule everything.
Change one part without understanding how it fits within the Blaming the org chart for system and the chances the reason people work are you will simply in silos is an excuse that create new problems hides the real reasons for And change it without appreciating the of it to everyone who plays a part a lack of harmony across value in the system and you risk upsetting the balance and harmony of your network. the business Systems don’t fall that easily into their own discrete frames. Most are interoperable with other systems – systems within systems. The more interactions that are outside of our defined protocols the more unpredictable the system and the more dependent we become on others to make the system ‘work’.
Every organisation, every business is a system of interconnected parts and only works effectively if we can see it as such We know when it isn’t working – the signs are all too easy to see. Changing it is less easy. Firstly there are all those dynamics influencing the way it works and then there are all the interconnected parts of the system.
No system exists for the sole benefit of an elite few. Systems are not there to make slaves of us or to justify people’s position within the organisation. Any system that requires the creation of guardians – overseers – is likely to be one that will suffer from unhelpful dynamics – agendas, control, fragmentation and conflict.
Time spent in understanding systems results in: Creating better value across the network Delivering better results and experiences Efficient and effective working practices A greater ability to change/adapt 13
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4. Having An Operation That Is Active “Without inspiration the best powers of the mind remain dormant. There is a fuel in us which needs to be ignited with sparks.” Johann Gottfried Von Herder A business that appears vital and on its game is readily observable. It’s as if it is healthy, athletic and fresh. We can all point to examples, they stand out. The physical effects are there for us all to see. Better service, more interesting stories spread virally, they are advocated within their target markets and people want to go work for them. The energy is real and alive throughout.
will deliver the most value. The energy should provide more than enough reason to unite people. Structure is still important and so is measurement – but only for the purpose of creating the most effective management and ownership of the various domains of knowledge. This is incredibly hard for most organisations to achieve.
Whatever structures, models or processes are established to manage the daily operation of any business they must The business as a system be appropriate for the must be designed to allow system and the dynamics it to function in the most within which it operates effective manner, where The level of ambition and the degree to authority sits in the right which change can be considered must align with the capability of the system to place and decisions can adapt – otherwise change will be rejected. be made by people with quality of process design or the best insight into the The project management will count for situation nothing if there is no natural fit. The efficiency of any operation is heavily dependent on the health of the system. It will be impossible to establish a great working environment and high performing teams if the system is fundamentally broken.
This does not require complicated, bureaucratic processes, it requires shared principles and guidelines that allow the people who best know the work to establish ways of working that
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It’s one of the reasons best practices have such a bad reputation. Many are highly valid and worth adopting but it’s simply not possible to expect to drop them in their generic versions into your
The Practice Of Resilience
own environment and have them work. Nor can you enforce controls on those who have to operate the system without their active involvement. These days it’s impossible to overstate the importance that technology plays in the operation of any business. The model for most is shifting more and more towards a highly virtual and dispersed network of contributors – many working outside your systems’ inner boundaries and therefore following their own protocols and systems. Your operation sits at the heart of your organisation. The way that it serves the business, its performance and the degree to which it is able to respond to challenges and to positively exploit opportunities depends heavily on its ability to get the job done.
That means: The right people being empowered to do what they are best at Environments that enable rather than hinder progress Work that has meaning and purpose for those charged with delivering
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5. Built On Meaningful Information “Watch your thoughts, they become words; Watch your words, they become actions; Watch your actions, they become habits; Watch your habits, they become your character; and Watch your character, it becomes your destiny.” Mahatma Gandhi
Flowing through the system of course is the information that binds it Data is at the heart of everything and is everywhere – in people’s heads as implicit knowledge, in documents where ideas have been captured and discoveries shared, in the statistics that provide necessary facts and evidence and in a growing array of systems that hold the wealth of information that we class as ‘essential’ for the business. Whether we fully appreciate what is ‘essential’ is questionable – in reality the implicit knowledge in people’s heads often represents the real crown jewels for any organisation – but all too often the information is treated with very little care and scant attention.
Yet that implicit knowledge can unlock the real insights that make all the difference The ability to truly understand and appreciate dynamics is wholly dependent on insight into patterns and trends. Without quality data none of the
viewpoints will be approached with any meaning or connection but data in its raw state all too often falls short of expectation.
A data-rich organisation is not necessarily an insightful one. It starts with knowing what information is relevant to your business, what part it plays and how the various ‘entities’ of data relate to each other – it’s ultimately about creating context that can throw out insight and then making that context widely available to those best placed to leverage it.
Data deserves much better treatment and care than most give it. It isn’t something to address as an afterthought or give to the IT team to sort out; the collection, organisation and curation of quality data should be embedded into everyone’s job
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Putting This Into Practice
Developing our point of view around these platforms has naturally forced us to rethink the manner in which we help our clients. We have been encouraged to find that our core tools and techniques have withstood the test of time as we’ve revisited them Anyone familiar with the way we work will see no fundamental change
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Putting This Into Practice We still champion Structured Visual Thinking , creativity and co-creation TM
What we have done however is to take this opportunity to refine and extend the portfolio of tools that we apply today. Our primary logic frameworks in the 4DTM family of frameworks has now been completely aligned to the concept of resilience as defined by these five platforms. And some of these frameworks have been supplemented with new logic and structure so that we can apply them more deeply – either to take more holistic approaches or to deep dive into specific aspects of the business. In our Practice we are lucky to work with many types of organisation and on all kinds of challenges across industry, in private and public sector and increasingly with not-for-profit organisations. As a result we have amassed a lot of insight that we have been harvesting, organising and now embedding into the tools that we use.
It is because of this that we have selected these five platforms.
What that means is that we’ll be in a position to help our clients assess and measure their levels of resilience against the platforms, to establish the most appropriate targets and intentions and then to help them stay on track as they work towards the outcome. All of which has required us to develop new tools and approaches and to invest more energy and time outside of our traditional workshops to working with teams to create the right programmes and also to sustain the new way of thinking and working. Our process remains highly interactive and creative and if anything we have expanded what these two things mean – and they’ll be the subject of an article in their own right.
We have given serious thought to what it means to really change the way we think and work and this will become much more evident and core to our programmes 19
Practice Of Resilience Group Partners August 2013
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