Tackling Complexity: A Systemic Approach for Decision Makers - Tapa dura

"Tackling Complexity is a new book by Gilbert Probst and Andrea M. Bassi. It is published by Greenleaf Publishing and they provided the book for review. Initially, I was excited as I have read a number of books about decision-making and even wrote my own, "Taking Aim for Better Decision-Making". Sadly, I wasn't very far into the book until I realized that there is a huge difference between how ivory tower academics approach decision-making and how every day practitioners approach decision-making. Probst and Bassi suggest that, "our decisions often fail" but they fail to recognize the magnitude of the problem as reported by Paul C. Nutt in his book, "Why Decisions Fail". After 20 years of research, Nutt came to the conclusion that, "decisions fail half of the time". This is a huge problem that deserves our attention and practical approaches that will improve outcomes. Probst and Bassi give lip service to the idea that there is a difference between complicated systems and complex systems wherein there are often dynamics beyond our control. They then proceed to explain their systemic approach which is highly analytical and top end driven. Stuart Crainer in his book "The 75 Greatest Management Decisions Ever Made" wrote, "Alluring though they are the trouble with decision-making theories is that reality is often more confused and messy than a neat model can allow for." My research leads me to believe that all analytical decision-making models are subject to imperfect knowledge, unintended consequences and luck. While not very scientific, it has led me to believe as does Paul Nutt that the best practices have a flow that can be related to the appreciative inquiry stages outlined by Copperrider and Srivastva, 1987. J. Edward Russo and Paul J.H. Schoemaker in their book, "Winning Decisions" talked about how traditional organizations viewed implementation secondary to planning and analysis while the newer approach places more weight on learning and adjustment in real time. for me this has been proven by the iteration process common to most successful internet sites. Earlier this week the Wall Street Journal reported on -- Bob Cannon Decision Making Today

Our socio-economic systems continue to grow and evolve. We need to acknowledge that, consequently, our decisions often fail – they are ineffective and create unexpected side effects. The speed of execution is increasing constantly and markets and systems respond almost immediately, making decision-making challenging. There is little or no room for failure.This important new book analyses real world strategy and policy challenges, addressing the interconnectedness of the markets/systems we live in. It provides a step-by-step approach using systems thinking to solve complex problems in socio-political as well as business environment. It proposes a technique with which to better understand the problems and the context in which they arise, and tools to directly inform each step of the decision-making process. The book explores the main innovation that systemic thinking introduces – the emphasis on defining the problem creating system, which is made up of interacting parts, rather than prioritizing events that need immediate fixing.The case studies, examples and the approach proposed can be used to better understand reality and its complexity, and to integrate stakeholders for a better solution. Practically, it can be used to identify problems, analyse their boundaries, design interventions, forecast and measure their expected impacts, implement them and monitor and evaluate their success/failure. The book touches upon global issues related to policy making and strategic management, as well as issues related to sustainable development for both the public and private sector.