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- O r g a n i z a t i o n a l _ I n n o v a t i o n -
Tolerating Chaos
by Joyce Wycoff
We're spinning our wheels ...
This isn't getting us anywhere ...
It's time to stop talking and do something!
We've all heard comments such as those. And, sometimes, they're right on. However, other times, they may just be the normal process of chaos that's about to sort itself into order.
Faith in the Process
Over the years, I've experienced the order from chaos phenomenon often enough to develop a level of confidence in it. However, it still always surprises and delights me when it happens. One of the most striking examples occurred at Convergence 96 as a group of us tried to resolve some thorny issues surrounding the creation of the Innovation University.
We first met at Convergence 95, decided that IU was a good idea and spent a year exploring possibilities. By Convergence 96, we had some options but also a lot more questions, including some fundamental issues such as should we affiliate with an established university (more credibility but higher tuition requirements). We met and threw all the questions on the table and introduced the concept to some new folks who joined the group. Chaos continued as we could find no order to the issues so we scheduled a 2-hour meeting for the next day.
At that meeting, we circled the issues, discussing pros and cons for about an hour and forty-five minutes. We were no closer to a decision and it looked like the issue would be tabled again. Then Vicky Warren from Avery Research said, "Why don't we just do it and figure out all these details as part of our Innovation University process?"
Within the next fifteen minutes, we had agreement and a plan. While we didn't have complete order, we did have buy-in from the group to resolve the issues within the structure of IU and the first meeting was held six weeks later at the Ford MP&L Team Learning & Creativity Center.
Could we have been more efficient at reaching this point? Probably, but we would have sacrificed the messiness of participation and might have lost the buy-in and ownership that came from tolerating the chaos a bit longer.
Does this mean that we should allow chaos to continue indefinitely? Absolutely not. In this example, we had a commitment to act and we had a time boundary. As we approached the time boundary (the two hours for the meeting), we were in danger of losing the opportunity for action. The tension between those two forces pulled order out of the chaos and gave us a resolution.
I'm not sure if there is a formula for creating order from chaos, but here's the actions behind the successes I've seen:
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Create a participative environment
Elicit a commitment to action
Provide a lot of information
Surface a lot of issues
Provide time for discussion, incubation and integration
Set an accepted deadline
We'd love to hear your stories of order arising from chaos. Send them to staff@thinksmart.com or fax to 805-963-8220.