Identify 2 examples where “small changes yield large results” in your organization.
What are the implication of complexity theory for you and your organization and how can you use this to drive improvements.
When I think of the terminology, I immediately recall a movie called The Butterfly Effect (2004), where Ashton Kutcher plays the main character, Eric, and has the ability to change past events. Eric can manipulate time periods and make changes; however, Eric soon notices that when he tries to go back to change just one minute detail, it changes the course of time completely. When he returns to the past to fix what manipulate in the past, once again, he made the future worse. The moral is clear: there is no such thing as a small change. Every small change can cause a ripple effect on larger issues, for better or for worse, or as Obolensky (2010) defines it, small changes result in large results.
In my department at ERAU, we are set up in a very open-flow environment - we have guidelines and basic qualifications to perform each position, and we work off of each other like a machine; however, there is flexibility in terms of how one performs their job. In such environments,the autonomy can be positive to the overall attitude of the workers, making the institution stronger. I learn with my staff on how to make our department more efficient.
Classmate Ashley notes:
What are the implication of complexity theory for you and your organization and how can you use this to drive improvements.
In order to apply the butterfly effect, one must understand the complex and chaotic dynamics of their working and living environment.
Obolensky (2010) discusses how complex organizations contain features of self organization, inter-relatedness, adaptive nature, and emergence (p. 84). Some organizations can become complex beyond their capability; others do not discover the benefits to complexity and strive to keep the environment of old as simplistic as possible (and as I have said before, they will usually regret this mistake!). There are positive and negative traits in both situations. For example, complexity science exhibits an organizational understanding the importance of adaptability - when and where they need to adapt to be successful - which is a great benefit (p.88).
Obolensky (2010) discusses how complex organizations contain features of self organization, inter-relatedness, adaptive nature, and emergence (p. 84). Some organizations can become complex beyond their capability; others do not discover the benefits to complexity and strive to keep the environment of old as simplistic as possible (and as I have said before, they will usually regret this mistake!). There are positive and negative traits in both situations. For example, complexity science exhibits an organizational understanding the importance of adaptability - when and where they need to adapt to be successful - which is a great benefit (p.88).
In my department at ERAU, we are set up in a very open-flow environment - we have guidelines and basic qualifications to perform each position, and we work off of each other like a machine; however, there is flexibility in terms of how one performs their job. In such environments,the autonomy can be positive to the overall attitude of the workers, making the institution stronger. I learn with my staff on how to make our department more efficient.
Classmate Ashley notes:
During my undergrad at Embry-Riddle, we were often forced to do our own version of a runaround that we named the Riddle Runaround. Whenever we needed to see someone about a class or fixing something on the academic side, we always faced conflicting stories.
In response to Ashley's circumstance, my position involves and encourages outreach to the campus community. I utilize this to get out of the office, visit other departments, meet with employees, and figure out what they do and how their work impacts our students. Therefore, instead of simply guessing what number to transfer a call to, I know when I am giving a resource that the person I am passing a question onto will be the end-all-be-all to the concern.
Another lesson I am learning presently is that everyone wants power, even if they have little say in the outcomes. Sometimes you have to just change a little bit to make people feel like they have "won". I have another department we work with to run programs during the summer. We'd been setting up the structure for how things would be run in summer since March or April but last-minute things come up all of the time. I would charge her on the back end and she would get quite perturbed. I certainly did not understand the contention. The department would make immediate demands of us and not wish to pay for them. I realized the head of the other department did not realize the cost of the items she was asking for, or that we did not have the workers to do these requests at random times. I gave her the option of using her very large staff to fulfill her own needs while offering one or two knowledgeable hands on my staff, as long as the times were scheduled so I could give my people a heads up. This has reduced her costs and given her the opportunity to see how much effort her requests involve.References
Bress, Eric; Gruber, J. Mackye. The Butterfly Effect. (2004). BenderSpink.
Obolensky, N. (2010). Complex adaptive leadership embracing paradox and uncertainty. Farnham, Surrey: Gower.
No comments:
Post a Comment