I'm not a big fan of the Let's Change the World school of management. But Jurgen Appelo's efforts at the #STOOS Gathering are of interest to me for several reasons:
- Management processes are my profession
- Change processes are hard, and I'm interested to see if there is success here that I can use
- Jurgen has a unique take on the world and I'm interested to see if he has something I can use
The ideas and suggestions are here
I've gathered a few ideas from this that are worth commenting on:
- Page 2: Never doubt a small group ... can change the world - Margret Mead. Good stuff, but those small groups always had an actionable outcome. This is one of the failings of the OWS, no actionable outcomes.
- Bob Marshall (Page 3) hits it again - no actionable outcomes
- Paul Boos (a kindred military aviator) - Page 9 - has good advice. The current military small unit structure is a good example of management principles in action that coudl be used in business
- Erika Anderson - viral processes work. Yes they do, but they work because they are effective for the problem at hand. So what is the problem at hand and who has this problem?
- Page 19 has an important message. We are motivated by autonomy, mastery, and purpose. But to suggest most CEO don't get this has no merit, since most is not defined. The CEO's I know and the very few I've worked with ALL have this drive. One problem is too much generalization is the norm when it comes to these sorts of things - changing the world things.
- Page 20 is Steve Jobs and Apple. There's an example.
Lot's more, but you can read them yourself.
Here's my contribution (that not surprisingly didn't make it)
- Define the problem in units of measure of success outcomes. Meaning I want to achieve this outcome. I need possess this capability and need to make these changes to do so. This is called Capabilities Based Planning.
- Look for working examples of success in firms around the world that have accomplished what you are looking to do. There are plenty of them. A literature search is the first step in any development process. Why do all the work if someone else has do it for you.
- Put those successes in some type of taxonomy that makes sense for your domain.
- Look for principles and practices in that taxonomy that can be put work in your domain.
- Look for research of others that has shown the problem and the solutions, and the reasons for less than expected results.
Making the Impossible Possible is a starting point. Heliotropic Abundance is the basis of the processes used at Ricky Flats (the book and place I worked as a Program Manager).
Positive Organizational Scholarship is an approach that might inform the conversation. Look to places where it is working (what ever it is) and determine if how they got it working can be moved to your domain.
