COGNITIVE TOOLS FOR UNDERSTANDING AND ACTION STRATEGIES

FOR IMPROVING ORGANIZATIONS – A SOCIOCYBERNETIC APPROACH IN

ORGANIZATIONAL DEVELOPMENT

Jason Jixuan Hu, Ph.D.WINTOP Organizational Learning LaboratoryWashington DC – Shanghaiwww.wintopgroup.comjjh@wintopgroup.com

Relevance

Theme of this conference Theme of this paper

▪ Complex Social Systems

▪ Interdisciplinarity

▪ Concerns for the World Futures

▪ Business Organizations

▪ Cyb., ST, OD, Mgt. , Group facilitation methods and skills

▪ Change the world, one organization a time.

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Main Concepts

▪ A “building” of System Thinking, with multiple floors

▪ Each floor focus on a particular feature of the system being observed

▪ The higher the floor, the more complexity is handled (more cognitively demanding)

▪ The students can decide on which floor to work for their particular purpose/project

▪ System Intervention Through “Roundtable Leadership” In-house Training Program provided to business organizations

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▪ Entry point: Establishing Scientific Causality Links. Tool: typical /traditional scientific research methodology;

▪ First floor: the Laundry List Thinking – counting with one’s fingers. Tools: check lists, multiple variable functions, such as those used in quantitative economics, other-point-of-view;

▪ Second floor: the Tree of Causalities Links – which can be expressed by spreadsheets and mind-maps. Tools: Multiple variable equations, chart graphics, software such as EXCEL;

▪ Third floor: the Net of Causality Loops – which contains feedback and/or feedforward, positive and/or negative, relationship diagrams, flow-charts that containing loops. Tools: Engineering Cybernetics (automatic control theory), The Law of Requisite Variety, System Dynamics Modeling (software: iThink/Stella);

▪ Fourth floor: Self-Organization – through which macro order emerges from micro behavioral patterns. Tools: Recursive Functions in Math, Chaos Theories, Gene Algorithms, Agent Based Modeling;

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▪ Fitfh floor: Non-trivial System - the emergence of memory and learning phenomena within a system being observed. Tools: memory theories, theories of learning, developmental psychology, historical studies, interaction-determinism;

▪ Sixth floor: Purposeful System - systems with purpose, desire, dream, and creativity. Tools: Viable System Modeling, Pask-Pangaro Conversational Modeling, organizational learning tools, shared vision building, consensus workshop, strategic planning, brainstorming for creativity, organizational purpose-setting techniques, facilitation skills, participatory management;

▪ Seventh floor: Reflexive System - systems that are able to observe its own observing and cognition (sub)systems. Tools: Facilitation Skills, Soft System Methodology, Strategic Assumption Surfacing and Testing, Interactive Planning, Action Learning, Second-Order Cybernetics; double loop learning, learning organization, knowledge management;

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▪ Eighth floor: Four-Dimensional System Thinking (4DST): An integrative model combining elements of the lower floors that provides unified insights to guide organizational change and development practices. Tools: Organizational Structural Optimization technologies (IT-based ERP, BPR, CRM, SCM), Organizational Procedural Optimization technologies(TQM, ISO9000, 6 Sigma), Organizational Cultural Optimization technologies, Facilitative Leadership Skills and Participatory Management Skills.

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Emer-gence

Skeleton, hardware

FunctionsAt micro level

(program routines)

Medium

EnvironmentOperating system

Structure

ProcedureCulture

4-DST – A New Tool for Observing

Any Complex System

4-DST – A New Tool for Observing

Any Complex System

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A Business Organization Viewed with “Jason’s Building of ST”

▪ 1st: List of Departments, Name lists of staffs, List of Clients/accounts, List of Suppliers; (no time involved)

▪ 2nd: Relationship Diagrams, Organizational Charts, Simple Work Steps, Financial Reports; (implicit time)

▪ 3rd: Detailed Work Process Flowcharts, Interaction Diagrams (for all elements of the system), SD Models; (explicit time)

▪ 4th: Informal Groups, “GuangXi” networks, Inner-organizational Politics, Policy-Effect Projections; (irreversible time)

▪ 5th: Experiences, History, Core Competency, Strengths and Weaknesses, (time as historical assets)

▪ 6th: D-V-M-V-D: Dream, Values, Mission, Vision, Decisions

▪ 7th: Action Learning Plans, Learning Organization Implementations

▪ 8th: Total Systemic Intervention for Improvement 11:12:26 8

Human IndividualsViewed with “Jason’s Building of ST”

▪ biological: Floors 1 – 4: list of organs and facial characters, deterministic variable tree, interactive biological causal loops, self-organizing biological processes;

▪ psychological: Floors 1-6: category of personalities, developmental path, interactive relationships, habits or addictions, memories and experiences, dreams and hopes;

▪ social: All floors 1-8: ... … group dynamics, politics, team learning capacities, 4-D representations , analysis, and development strategies

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Cybernetic/system thinking ideas Practitioner terms and methods

Multiple (systematic) causes of results in a complicated system

Fishbone diagram analysis in quality management

Feedback PDCA circle, QC circle, single looplearning

Positive feedforward, self-fulfilling prophesy

Appreciative inquiry

Self-organization, dynamics of emergence, eigen-state

Participatory management, consensus

building, GE workout, Technology of Participation

Non-trivial system Learning organization,

Reflexivity Double-loop learning, action learning

Purposeful system Vision building, mission defining,

Four Dimension System Thinking (4DST)

Corporate cultural building, organizational

change, structural optimization(BPR), all

process improvement methods (ERP, CRM, SCM, 6 sigma, etc.)

… …11:12:26 10

Cybernetic and System Principles Used in WINTOP Roundtable Leadership Curriculum

RL Courses (14 hrs each) CS PrinciplesI. Building Team Attitude Positive feedback, self-awareness,

organization-awareness, ST flr 1-3

II. Learning Facilitation Basics Purposeful system, participatory

group dynamics, PDCA procedures

III. Powerful Communication Skills All communication related principles,

ST flr 2-7

IV. Consensus Workshop Method Self-organization principles, ST flr 4-8,

focus on “group mind”

V. Quality Improving and

Action Planning

ST flr 2-8, application of IV

VI. Participatory Strategic Planning ST flr 2-8, vision building, application

of IV

VII. Igniting Action Learning Double-loop learning, second-order

cybernetics, reflexivity, ST flr 811:12:26 11

Discussion

▪ Urgent need of “Cybernetics 101” for wider audience/young students

▪ A large part of Sociocybernetics should be organizational cybernetics

▪ More links are needed between Cybernetics and Organizational Development

▪ WINTOP Roundtable Leadership Training Curriculum needs to be tested in a university platform, beyond corporate training

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