Leading large and complex councils

摘要

The old world view of the organisation as a well-oiled machine ticking over the cogs of rationality, authoritative certainty and logical pathways from ideas to implementation, now finds itself in conflict with the modern interpretation of the organisation as a living organism. Let us explore the view of the organisation as a living organism. By nature organisms are both complex and non linear. They are also near impossible to understand and control. If we accept that organisations subscribe to this picture then the current modus operandi of managing organisations - understanding and keeping control over a few, apparently key, variables - appears a gross oversimplification. In the new worldview, unpredictability, contradiction and paradox are the only constants, the only true surety.