It’s time to evolve strategy with emergent thinking

Our teams are made up of unique sets of individual talents and perspectives that work together toward a shared goal. For these assorted skill sets to function harmoniously, leaders must build complex and sustainable workplace systems. These systems will eventually produce outcomes that would not exist otherwise. This phenomenon is known as?emergence.?

According to research professor?David Pines ,?emergence refers to collective phenomena or behaviors in complex adaptive systems that are not present in their individual parts.

Emergent thinking ?requires recognizing factors involved in any model, then studying how each piece of the system operates as a whole. Certain factors affect parts of the system and not others. By studying the totality of organizational systems, leaders can understand and enhance the model for sustainable productivity and prevent problems.

We can examine the emergent phenomenon and bring about emergent thinking by doing the following:

1. Observe emergent patterns within the system.
2. Identify strong links between factors. It’s easy to jump to cause-and-effect assumptions, so focus on the observation.
3. Define your understanding of these interactions.
4. Implement changes to single elements and observe differences.
5. Apply to the larger concept. Where can small changes be implemented to improve the way the system operates? Take these hypotheses and work with an open mindset. Changes may need to be made down the road, even when investing time in observing interactions.

Observing the interconnectedness of a system allows for greater awareness of future possibilities. I’ve stressed the importance of designing sustainable change systems. With continued observation, slight adjustments, and evaluations, we shrink the change, manage possible outcomes, and create a reliable and productive system. Adding in exercises to evaluate change, like our?Risk + Rewards of Change template , will support you through this observation process.??

Embracing emergent phenomena and thinking in the workplace will forever change your approach to leadership. These robust systems can be as complex and intricate as you wish to build them. Ultimately, you are the architect. For tools and additional resources to help navigate emergent thinking, reach out to us at [email protected] with questions.

Douglas Ferguson | President, Voltage Control

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