Three years ago this month I first encountered Kurtz & Snowden's 2003 IBM Systems Journal paper "The New Dynamics of Strategy: Sensemaking in a Complex and Complicated World".
Few things have so fundamentally influenced the way I view the cause-effect structure of reality, and I've tried since then (with limited success) to encourage systems engineers to add Cynefin to their tool box.
After 10 years of reading complexity-oriented literature (an ontological perspective) and 5+ years of reading sensemaking literature (an epistemological perspective), I was immediately struck by the way the Cynefin framework mapped the intersection of ontology & epistemology.
After 3 years of reading Dave's papers & blog, and listening to his podcasts, I think I've begun to grasp some of the primary points he tries to illuminate.
If you are a systems person and are unfamiliar with Cynefin, here's my list of basic resources (as of this date):
1. The original paper - Kurtz & Snowden
2. "Bramble Bushes in a Thicket (paste "http://www.cognitive-edge.com/ceresources/articles/52_Bramble_Bushes_in_a_Thicket.pdf" into browser): Narrative and the intangibles of learning networks" - Another Kurtz & Snowden article. One of the few articles I've seen exploring how identity and sensemaking are intertwined...though I'm likely to be a fan of any article that has a section entitled "Silos as organisational identities."
3. Various recent presentations (paste "http://www.cognitive-edge.com/presentations.php" into browser) - Since Dave can't cover more than a slice of Cynefin in a given presentation, it's best to browse through several of the recent presentations on this page.
4. And, related podcasts (paste "http://www.cognitive-edge.com/podcasts.php" into browser) - I'd start with the three April/May 2008 podcasts. Many of the previous podcasts have gaps in them and must be pieced together.
UPDATE:
5. The latest publication from Dave is in the Nov 2007 Harvard Business Review, "A Leader's Framework for Decision Making". This is probably the best single article on Cynefin at this time.
Finally, here's one blogger's coverage of a recent Snowden presentation...a good summary, but there's lots of thought-provoking "one-liners" in any given podcast that will likely go over your head unless you're fairly familiar with his thinking.
While I remain a big fan of academicians like Weick and Klein, Cynefin is probably a more efficient/effective gateway to sensemaking for the average systems engineer.
Systems engineering seems to be shifting its center of gravity from technology, systems, and products to how those things can catalyze business/mission success via agility/adaptability. As that shift takes hold, frameworks like Cynefin will gain a central place in the engineering toolbox.
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4 comments:
Some very kind comments here! My thanks and its encouraging to see you use the material. One point that might help. I have found less of a problem with adoption since the model was used in an article on Leadership which I co-authored for HBR (November 2007 cover article). HBR gives authority and the editorial process produces less academic material, more readily accessible to people.
Thanks, Dave. I forgot to link the HBR article. I'll update the post. I agree with the "credibility/clarity" comment...I tend to be a bit of an academician.
Hi Walter, I referenced your post on Twitter but then noticed that some links don't work anymore.
@mireillej:
Sorry about the links...my ignorance of how HTML and PHP interact is showing. I've removed the offending links and placed the link text in quotes to allow cut/paste of link to the browser. Perhaps someone will enlighten me on what I'm missing...a short google search (along with a review of the blog's settings) did not reveal any obvious issues.
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