The Arena For Change
From GPWiki
 NEW - 2010 - TAKE A GOOD LOOK AROUND: HELLO - THE ARENA FOR CHANGE - CHANGING THE WAY THE 21ST CENTURY ORGANIZATION THINKS AND WORKS - ALL THINGS CAN BE SOLVED BY 24 CONVERSATIONS - AND THEN VISIT THE 'PIXAR' OF CONSULTING - The 21st CENTURY ORGANIZATION - WICKED PROBLEMS - THE AWESOME POWER OF MEANING - SIGNS - STRUCTURED VISUAL THINKING™' - 4D™ - THE MEANING MAKING MACHINE - 4D™' - WINNING THE BIG BIDS - 'KEVIN HOFFBERG'S 'BLOG' AND JOHN CASWELL'S 'JUST THINK' BLOG - MAIN PAGE - THE TRAINING SECTION - THE TECHNOLOGY VISION- INSIGHTS AND CREATIVITY AT WORK - EXPLAINING HOW TO CREATE A VISION MODEL - LATEST THINKING |
Saturday 31 of July, 2010
 
Articles written around the Critical Context we find ourselves in in the 21st Century. New thinking about how to create sustainable changeA series of short articles that describe the context within which we need to work if we are to make a difference to the way we operate and survive in the 21st Century - 
Articles On 21st Century ToolsThe 21st Century demands different thinking and ideas to cope with the complex context we have now created. These short articles begin to describe how we are thinking about these areas and starting the debate about what we might do to resolve them.
Articles On ThinkingOne of the main agenda items for success and survival in the 21st Century. These articles explain a lot of the technical and strategic ideas that inform our work - 
Articles On MeaningAt the heart of the inertia we observe in transformation and change is the way in which humans attach words and stories to their experiences while this is a natural human condition it needs to be understood if we are to create the tools that overcome conflict and lack of improvement in complex systems.  Articles About EthicsIncreasingly organizations are determined to really make a difference and not just debate how and what. These articles debate the importance or really getting to grips with the issues that are affecting the entire planet. Articles About Being On The RoadIt's a great privilege working and being able to travel. Ever so slightly tongue in cheek and yet ever so slightly true. The following are notes made to humor myself. Observations that inspire or annoy.
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The Group Partners Model for Changing the Way The Enterprise Thinks and Works...
"To succeed in the future, organizations are going to have to find ways of energizing people, so that they bring not only their skills, expertise and diligence to work, but they bring their passion and their initiative as well." - Gary Hamel
In simple terms our approach is a logical framework that widens context of those thinking about the future or undergoing change. It builds a strategic framework and it does so by being inspiring and co-creative.
It asks 24 core questions and in so doing ensures that whether the question being asked was correct or not that we might discover that early and all agree and understand deeply what we need to do. It is about pace and innovation because it surface new and shared meaning in those who need to have their hands on the controls.
See Value Networks and for the detail on The Tangible Intangibles
We know that the traditional ways we manage organizations are blunt instruments in a world that is beyond recognition from the world that created them. We see that organizations have measure just what can be touched - tangible assets. We see the organization chart as a barrier for initiative and passion. The West can no longer simply aim for growth and scale at all cost or at the rate it has. We can no longer pay no attention to the planet, its resources or be blind to its living systems.
See Changing The Way The 21st Century Organization Thinks & Works
Tangible Intangibles
Management has to get to grips with its real assets, mostly the intangibles. Senior teams must understand the importance of how the 21st Century will really work. They need to understand the emotions and insights of the people that work to serve the customer. They will need to harness the design skills of the creative in order to develop the best possible interfaces to their products. They will need to create real qualities and values; create shared meaning that is far more than just words on posters. They must fully appreciate the causes and effects of the ideas of systems thinking and stop solving small pieces of the jigsaw that in turn upset the whole picture.
See Not Solving The Wrong Problem Really Well
Enlightened Leadership
Leaders need to adopt the new tools for the 21st Century and they will need to learn fast. There is now a tremendous wave of interest and evidence that these new skills and techniques are critical. Leaders will need to adopt very different methods and apply them with real determination and 'be' the change for these transformative effects to deliver sustainable change.
Time and Maturity
There is now much evidence of resistance to change based on readiness, context, motivation and leadership. There are countless others of course and all important but our approach also focuses on the fundamentals of human consciousness, enlightened awareness of meaning and value and all debated around a coherent and logical model.
The idea of working with teams around a visually co-created framework has a magical effect on everyone. The audience has the respectful environment to discuss all issues and hidden opportunities as they reveal their thinking, tackle the semantic and long held 'definitions' that restrict change.
Wholly Integrated
The approach you see here is based on these new tools and techniques. The tools are about deep skills in story development and story telling. Visualisation. Collaborative Co-creation. Structured Thinking, Value Networks, Living Systems, Integrative Thinking, Design Thinking, Facilitation, Conversations
Creating A Visual Arena For Thinking About Change
Structured Visual Thinking combines the principles of Systems Thinking, Living Systems, Design Thinking and Integrative Thinking. This means that we combine such ideas as holistics, heuristics, cause and effect, interoperability, creativity (in all its senses) and the rigor of connected, logical frameworks.
The components of the model you can see to the right of this page are wholly integrated - all interconnected. This is because over the last ten years we have seen the risk of thinking in isolation cripple the best intentions of any change or complex program.
Explaining The Details
If you are exploring the image let's start at the highest level and work through the model to greater levels of granularity and detail – moving from Holistic to Specific.
- The DRIVER – the triggers and drivers that are causing change to the current model (strategy, transformation, policy, opportunity etc). This component is not illustrated in the model; it is the reason that the model is required
- The ARENA - (The triangle) – these are the ‘ingredients’ that we will bring into the model – the Domain; The Perspective and the Challenge. These are set within the Triangle that surrounds the image.
- The INTEGRATED VIEW - (the outer 4) - the 21st Century way of looking at an organization – as opposed to taking a functional / silo view.
- The BUILDING BLOCKS - (the inner 4) – These represent the fundamental components of any organization - the players in the Arena. Individuals. Teams. Systems. Infrastructure.
- The THEMES – (the surrounding cylinders) - the characteristics of the Arena. We have defined them as follows:
The Themes
- Performance and Effectiveness
- Customer Centricity
- Sustainability
- Innovation and Creativity
- Collaboration and Alignment
- Compliance with 'Best Practices'
- Social responsibility and Ethics
- Culture and Value
- Diversity and Inclusion.
The Topics
- The TOPICS – (the colored sections within the cylinders) - the disciplines and specialist areas that define the Themes. There will be many of these and we will be continuously developing them
- Leadership
- Behaviors
- Value Propositions
- Change Management
- Lean Six Sigma
The Strategic Framework for Success in the 21st Century
Explaining the Critical Importance of Control Points, Framework Thinking and Alpha-Numerics in Managing a Complex Program.
“So it is said that if you know your enemies and know yourself, you can win a hundred battles without a single loss. If you only know yourself, but not your opponent, you may win or may lose. If you know neither yourself nor your enemy, you will always endanger yourself.” - Sun Tzu
A Strategic Framework is about 2 things:
- ‘Knowing’ as much as we can - and
- ‘Decision Quality’
Decisions are irrevocable allocations of resources. We have either made a decision or we have just made an intention. In complex programs this is the difference between life or death. Intentions are fuzzy, unhelpful and worthless. A Strategic Framework is competitive advantage if used. There is no advantage having a single Strategic Framework and countless random actions that create distractions and diversions.
A Strategic Framework is a weapon. It enables a team to ‘see’, think and act with speed and efficiency. It enables us to outthink the enemy. Without one complex programs will fail. It’s only aim is to enable a committed team to consider, alter and plan their attack of a given mission or goal. A committed leadership team will not allow any changes to any program to be introduced unless it is replayed against the Strategy Framework. Implications of a change without the implications and dependencies mapped to the Strategic Framework will cause significant cost, time and risk to the overall program.
The Five Critical Aspects of the Framework Aproach MUST remain constant throughout any successful plan.
ONE: Strategic Framework: A Strategic Framework is both a mental model and a physical thing. The Strategic Framework is the Program Governance and this is how a well implemented Strategy works. In the Strategy Development Framework (undertaken by the team) the critical points of focus are described. These are clearly defined in a book of record (a workbook for the use of the team). This will be how the leadership will steer through the Control Points. Without their use they will become confused, the team will falter and the program will be taken off track. Leadership must be focused entirely against the framework at all times. There must be no exceptions.
TWO: Control Points: Control Points are supreme horizons of a Strategic Framework, are non-negotiable and are arrived at by single-minded effort by the entire team. This is their work. The Control Points are clearly outlined in the RoadMap (Module E) that we build within the sequence of 4D They are the subject of everyone’s pre-occupation and are the sum of all activity. The detailed program plans are as however outlined in detailed planning but always remain covered by the Alpha-Numerics in the original Strategy Framework.
THREE: The Alpha-Numerics: Each and every object/action/program/project/initiative on the Strategic Framework is governed by a code. This code contains a letter and a numeral. Each code relates to its governing Module (A-H). Each
FOUR: The Master Plan: Will have subsets to it which are the Themes in Module D in Development. These are identified during the development of the Strategic Framework. These subsets are the individual Theme Owners and they must work to the language of the Control Points and Alpha-Numerics as explained above.
FIVE: The Project Room: All intelligence from the field is brought back to the Strategic Framework. This intelligence is focused on everything that is critical to a successful outcome and a major part of any enterprise change. The project room will contain the primary images and records of everything. It is mission control. It is effectively a war room in every sense. There is no more important place or space on the entire program.
The Project Room is a place of high energy, precision and focus. The room must be large, well suited to the task and contain every single piece of raw material for Decisions. The Project Room must have large walls and purpose built for flexibility, access to all the digital assets and external high bandwidth access to the world. The room must have the ability for clear space, kept clean and tidy at all times and yet be prepared for long and messy activity. The walls must accommodate large expanses of thinking and working space. Large floor areas and plenty of light will also be critical.
The Project Room will often be a high security area. Permission only and set up with care for those that will have to work there. It is the heart of any complex program of work. Transformation and change need total precision and clarity. It will contain the Strategic Framework and the Roadmap as living breathing artifacts of the program. The Project Room will have access to all the traditional consumables for brainstorming and decision making. Tools and Equipment.
Sun Tzu in the Art of War explains a strategy like this
- Laying Plans exploring the fundamental factors that define a successful outcome (the Way, seasons, terrain, leadership, and management). By thinking, assessing and comparing these points you can calculate a victory, deviation from them will ensure failure. Remember that war is a very grave matter of state.
- Waging War explains how to understand the economy of war and how success requires making the winning play, which in turn, requires limiting the cost of competition and conflict.
- Attack by Stratagem defines the source of strength as unity, not size, and the five ingredients that you need to succeed in any war.
- Tactical Dispositions explains the importance of defending existing positions until you can advance them and how you must recognize opportunities, not try to create them.
- Energy explains the use of creativity and timing in building your momentum.
- Weak Points & Strong explains how your opportunities come from the openings in the environment caused by the relative weakness of your enemy in a given area.
- Maneuvering explains the dangers of direct conflict and how to win those confrontations when they are forced upon you.
- Variation in Tactics focuses on the need for flexibility in your responses. It explains how to respond to shifting circumstances successfully.
- The Army on the March describes the different situations in which you find yourselves as you move into new enemy territories and how to respond to them. Much of it focuses on evaluating the intentions of others.
- Terrain looks at the three general areas of resistance (distance, dangers, and barriers) and the six types of ground positions that arise from them. Each of these six field positions offer certain advantages and disadvantages.
- The Nine Situations describe nine common situations (or stages) in a campaign, from scattering to deadly, and the specific focus you need to successfully navigate each of them.
- The Attack by Fire explains the use of weapons generally and the use of the environment as a weapon specifically. It examines the five targets for attack, the five types of environmental attack, and the appropriate responses to such attack.
- The Use of Spies focuses on the importance of developing good information sources, specifically the five types of sources and how to manage them.
