Most leadership models have
the assumption of oligarchy – a few leaders do leadership over many followers.
If polyarchy is fast replacing the old oligarchy assumptions does this make
these old leadership models redundant? Reflecting on traditional leadership
from the perspective of complex adaptive leadership, address the implications
and how they will affect you as a leader in the future. What impact will
they have on your future strategy?
Much like many ideas,
policies, protocols and situations we encounter in our work/life scenarios,
what may work well under one set of circumstances simply does not work under
another. The very idea contradicts the logic we use justifying its
applicability. The answer to this age-old question is in the very level of unpredictability
and chaotic order that is so prevalent in the world. The adage of the one shoe
fitting all strategy is a failure of an approach toward effective leadership.
The Cynefin framework is
that model that can be an asset to leaders can be better prepared toward
unpredictability and uncertainty based upon determining the prevailing context
with respect to cause and effect allowing the correct answers to be ascertained
based upon fact.
Boundaries exist in every
organization. The question is how can boundaries be managed in such a way to
enable the freedom to act without chaos on one hand, and no innovation or
flexibility on the other. Boundaries dictate the 'edge of chaos' or the point
that is 'far from equilibrium' which is not a simple area to define.
Boundaries can be
considered in four ways:
Traditional organizational
reporting (organograms) - It is very oligarchic the higher you go the fewer
people there are, and yet outdated as it is it is used by just about every
organization because it still has value. There are different approaches to the
organogram, perhaps by an attempt to progress out of the traditional top-down
pyramid shape of the organogram by turning the pyramid upside down. The main
concern with use of an organogram it is often out of date the day it is
published due to turnover of people or changing role of jobs to meet fast a
moving and global environment.
Supply/value chain -
the company that has a distinct organization yet the boundaries within the
supply/value chain are becoming blurred by the method used to look at the
supply/value chain is not so much in terms of the various departments, but by observing
the relationships that exist. By observing differently, a new approach can be
fostered not so much as a we/they, but a team approach.
The defined strategy
- Strategy can be seen, as how what is
delivered to whom and in many
ways once this is clear then self-organization can operate. Without clarity
chaos will ensue and without underlying order, the organization will quickly
fail.
Invisible boundaries
- As organizations are become more
flexible, boundaries that matter are in the minds of managers and employees ... it should proposed that
organizational boundaries should to be managed are the Authority boundary, the
Task boundary, the Political boundary and the Identity boundary. These four are
well worth taking into account in any consideration of boundaries.
A
successful leader and manager must possess certain attributes in order to be
effective in their respective positions with-in an organization or agency, as a
proactive stance toward keeping power and influence in-check. Achievements are
the ambitious goals through which an individual or group of individuals seek in
obtaining and/or exceeding through the use of milestones or timelines as a
method of collecting data to support a position and how far they or the
organization are from reaching the end result. Conflict can often arise if a
leader or manager is not driven toward strong achievements.
References:
Obolensky, N. (2010). Complex
adaptive leadership. Burlington, VT: Gower Publishing Limited. DOI: www.gowerpublishing.com
Snowden, D.J., and Boone,
M.E. (2007). A leaders
framework for decision making. Havard Business Review. Retrieved
from http://www.mpiweb.org
Snowden, D.J (2002). Complex acts of knowing: Paradox and
descriptive self-awareness. Journal of Knowledge Management, Vol. 6
Iss: 2 pp. 100-111. Retrieved from http://dx.doi.org
Kurtz, C. F., &
Snowden, D. J. (2003). The new dynamics of strategy: Sense-making in a complex
and complicated world. IBM Systems Journal, 42(3), 462. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com
Vasilescu, C (2011).
Strategic Decision Making using Sense-making Models: The Cynefin framework. Paper presented at the Retrieved from
http://search.proquest.com
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