Integrated work management and systems thinking are two sides of the same coin. Since constraints govern the rate at which systems deliver value, the imperative, if maximising value is your goal, is to know the whole – that is, the system – but focus on the constraint.
As supply chains rupture and decarbonisation becomes imperative, companies in vital industries are feeling squeezed and falling behind. To succeed, they must move quickly from a traditional to an integrated approach to managing work, then beyond to ‘quantum work management’.
‘Artificial Intelligence (AI) is transforming human society in fundamental and profound ways. Not since the Age of Reason have we changed how we approach security, economics, order and even knowledge itself.’ So states the inside front cover of The Age of AI And Our Human Future.
If we want positive cultural change in our organisation, we’ll need more than a simple redesign of surface artefacts. More even than challenging espoused beliefs and values. We must courageously explore the basic underlying assumptions that determine behaviour, perception, thoughts, and feelings.
Many executives expect: ‘I set the course, you manage the project, they deliver the work.’ But reality feels more like: ‘I expect results, you promise me a deadline, they’re late again.’ How do different subcultures understand each other?
This is Part 1 in the series on Change Management | Read Part 2 To change the way you work, you have to change the way you work. As obvious as that may sound, achieving change that delivers the value promised by a new way of working is no simple matter.